do you love me?

There are hardly words to tell you HOW much I LOVE this book! Joost Elffers is always a treat-of-author, but his latest, do you love me?, is one that my daughter and I can not get enough of. She keeps begging me to read it again, and I can see why. Simple, simple text - but then, that's all you need to get this point across! "Do you love? Always, dear," begins this sweet story - with large, beautiful illustrations that only add to the "endearment" of this book!! HIGHLY recommend it! (I'm buying my own copy, see how much I LOVE it!??!)

Mumsi Meets a Lion

Kim Stegall sent me a copy of her book, Mumsi Meets a Lion - illustrated by Kimberly Batti. This is a wonderful book set in Kenya about a young boy learning the finer points of life in his land and how to be a strong hunter, but also how to deal with fear on his way to becoming a man. The illustrations just add so much authenticity to this story. Books set in other cultures are great for our readers too - I love that about this book too. I enjoyed it and I think kids will too - especially boys - and I'm always on the lookout for great "boy" books!

Lucky Breaks

Susan Patron's latest - Lucky Breaks - is another winner in my book. I SO enjoyed The Higher Power of Lucky and was hoping to be as enamored with this one - and I was! I just love the - the coming of age - grappling with life - in such an innocent style. Patron's books make me laugh out loud and then, in the next page, even feel a tear starting - they are just THAT good. I love Lucky - she is, I am sure, a carbon copy of myself at that age. :) (I'll have to talk to Patron about that sometime!) She is spunky, full of fun, and yet can see the faults in herself so clearly as well - and best of all, she knows how to say "I'm sorry." I am just SO glad that this sequel lives up to the first.

Toon Books

You know from previous posts that I adore Toon Books - I love the whole concept - using graphic novels with beginning readers! So - when they sent me their latest titles - Luke on the Loose and Benny and Penny in The Big No-No! I was so excited! Luke on the Loose is by Harry Bliss - yes, none other than our wonderful illustrator for our Summer Reading Program this summer. Benny and Penny in The Big No-No! is by Geoffrey Hayes - a continuation in his Benny and Penny series. I just can hardly tell you how much I like these books - I guess the proof would be to tell you that they are RARELY in our library - they are always checked out!

Sylvan Dell Goodies

I have had these for while now and haven't posted on them - IT IS TIME!!
I do love a Sylvan Dell Box - you just know the quality is superb AND they are always wonderful for science and math - which I just can't promote enough! Their website is a treasure-trove for teachers - Teaching activities to accompany each story, Related websites, audio readings in English and Spanish, part of the Accelerated Reader Program - I am telling you - they are WONDERFUL!

One Wolf Howls by Scotti Cohn and illustrated by Susan Detwiler - brilliant - a great way to use the months of the year and numbers, 1-12, to teach children about wolves and their behavior. I think kids will LOVE this one!

Henry and the Impatient Heron by Donna Love and illustrated by Christina Wald - How often can you find a book about a heron!?!?! Not very - that's another reason I like this one! A great lesson on the subject of camouflage and the importance of being still - I love it!

Ocean Hide and Seek by Jennifer Evans Kramer, illustrated by Gary Phillips - what a great book - of course it's wonderful for that ocean unit or storytime, but also perfect for your animal lovers too!! There are hidden creatures on every page which even makes it more fun - kids love those at our library!

Paws, Claws, Hands and Feet by Kimberly Hutmacher and illustrated by Sherry Rogers - I think this one would be SO fun for story hour - you get to move along with the animals in the story - tons of fun and different actions to do with them AND then it ends with everyone sleeping after their long day! This will be a good time!!

Where Should Turtle Be? by Susan Ring and illustrated by Laurie Allen Klein - I love books about turtles, and this one is very nice. Everyone is trying to tell turtle where to live, but he just doesn't feel at home in those places. But look out when he finds his place - so nice! The illustrations are magnificent in this one too!

Thank you Sylvan Dell for another wonderful box full of books!

Worthwhile Books

Once in awhile you see something new - and you just have to share it with the world. Ok - I will admit it - I've never heard of Worthwhile Books - but now that I have - I am sharing it with all of you!!! I got a package today and in it was Carl the Frog. David N. Weiss wrote this book and Pete Whitehead illustrated it to perfection. This book had me laughing out loud - I am NOT kidding. It is hilarious! What's a frog to do with his enormously long tongue that he can't seem to control?!?!? It just eats all of his friends!! My favorite part that had me out loud laughing??? "Bouncing behind a bus, with a belly full of friends, can make a frog feel very ill." You will get it when you read it - and YOU BETTER read it!!


Then there's Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug by Ellie Bethel and illustrated by Alexandra Colombo. LOVED this one too - just in time for Earth Day this year! It is all told in rhyme and yes, it is SO fun! Even some spreads that you have to hold vertical to read - I love it when they do that! And the illustrations?? Well - it is just an all-around great pick! Another winner - thank you Worthwhile Books!!