Geo Librarian

BITSY BAT, SCHOOL STAR by Kaz Windness Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-6659-0505-3 Source: F&G from publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Kaz Windness's Bitsy Bat eagerly awaits her first day of school. She wants to be a star, but worries that she's not ready. She rehearses raising her wing, painting friends, and sharing snacks. As a bat, however, she can't sit like the other students, she paints with her feet, and no one wants her bug snacks. After having 'a five-star meltdown', Bitsy refuses to return to the school where she can't do anything the way the other students do. Thanks to her family's encouragement and her teacher's help, Bitsy comes up with an idea to show the students in her class the ways she does things and help them all show what makes them special. A note providing additional information about autism and a

THE SUPERTEACHER PROJECT by Gordon Korman Balzer + Bray, 2023 ISBN: 978-0-06-303279-8 Source: purchased Middle grade science fiction Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Gordon Korman has a knack for creating characters and stories that make readers smile. His stories are entertaining and yet somehow manages to present interesting ethical and moral dilemmas as well. Told from the perspectives of several students, the principal, and an engineer, The Superteacher Project follows the arrival of a new teacher at Brightling Middle School. From the moment Mr. Aidact catches Oliver's spitball in his fingers it's clear the teacher is unique. Mr. Aidact takes over detention, the girl's field hockey team, and most of the extra duties around the school without a word of complaint. He sees things that no one else sees and doesn't get upset. As Mr. Aidact becomes more popular among the students, Oliver and

I've been looking for a St. Patrick's Day book that I can really love for a long time.  I've come across a bunch that I like, some of them quite a bit, but none that I truly love.  Here are three fun ones that I like and plan to use, but I'm still on the hunt for one I adore. If you know of any, please share! Thanks. HOW TO CATCH A LEPRECHAUN words by Adam Wallace, pictures by Andy Elkerton Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, 2016 ISBN: 978-1-4926-3291-7 Source: purchased Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Having read a number of these 'How to Catch' books, I wasn't sure I was going to like this one any more than I liked the others.  The idea is certainly a fun one but the rhymes don't always work well for me.  But I quite enjoyed this tale of a mischievous leprechaun pulling pranks on everyone he meets. Turning toilets green, throwing sneakers in the dishwater, the leprechaun sneers at

  HONEYBEE RESCUE A Backyard Drama by Loree Griffin Burns, photographs by Ellen Harasimowicz Charlesbridge, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-62354-239-9 Source: publisher for review (Thanks!) Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Narrative nonfiction provides readers with information in the form of a story. Honeybee Rescue tells the story of a colony of bees that needed to be removed from an unsafe location and moved into a hive box. Burns does a fabulous job of presenting readers with the information they need to understand bees, colonies, and the risks involved with working with bees. The story provides Mr. Connery who finds a colony of bees in his old, leaky garage. He suspects they came from one of the hives in his yard. Regardless, they aren't likely to last the winter in the garage.  He calls Mr. Nelson who gathers his equipment and comes to gently and carefully vacuum up the bees in his specially designed bee vacu

9 KILOMETERS by Claudio Aguilera, illustrated by Gabriela Lyon translated Lawrence Schimel Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2023 ISBN: 978-0-8028-5600-5 Source: Publisher for review (THANKS) Ages 6 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Stories like this one remind me just how important it is for children to receive an education. Based on the experience of the author walking to and from school daily. It was especially impressive that he worked to earn an attendance award, going to school even when it was storming or he had a cold. The story follows a young boy as he walk 9 kilometers (5.62 miles) to school, one way. As he walks down paths, through fields, crosses streams, and crawls under barbed wire, he ponders the question of just how far 9 kilometers is, how many feet, how many steps, how many football (soccer) fields, etc. The combination of math (distance) and story makes for an intriguing read. The boy&

  FINALLY SEEN by Kelly Yang Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-6659-2899-1 Source: from publisher for review Ages 9-12 Middle grade contemporary/realistic fiction All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Lina Gao leaves China to join her parents and little sister in America. To her shock, she discovers that their living situation is very different than she was led to believe. As she struggles to get to know her family again she wonders if there's a place for her in this family.  Helping her mother with her business though helps smooth the way a bit. Her uncertainty extends to school and the teasing she endures because her English isn't perfect. Thanks to a kind teacher, an understanding ELL teacher, a great librarian, and some books she can connect to, Lina begins to adjust to her new environment. But nothing lessons the guilt she feels for leaving her Lao Lao (grandmother) behind in a

Welcome to the Not-So-Common Cents Blog Tour & Giveaway! To celebrate the release of Not-So-Common Cents by Sarah Wassner Flynn, featuring a special forward by financial educator Alvin Hall, blogs across the web are hosting exclusive excerpts from this ultimate book of all things money, as well as 5 chances to win a copy! FAMOUS FIRST JOBS You’ve got to start somewhere! Before they made the big bucks – or made history – these extraordinary people had pretty, well, ordinary jobs. Even better? They used some of their earnings to give back to others in need.  THE PERSON: Robert L. Johnson THE JOB: Newspaper delivery person THE STORY: Before he became the first African American billionaire, Johnson had a paper route in his hometown of Freeport, Illinois. But he says he didn’t like the early-morning hours, and he wound up dumping the papers in the trash! HOW HE GIVES BACK: With a $30 million donation, Johnson established a fund to help Liberian entrepreneurs go after their

These two picture books beautifully highlight the fascinating world that exists at the bottom of the ocean. One book focuses on the wildlife that has been discovered living in an incredibly harsh world at the bottom of the ocean, the other book focuses on some of the remarkable technology scientists have used to make those discoveries. Combined, these two books share in amazing fashion the incredible world found in the ocean. DEEP, DEEP DOWN The Secret Underwater Poetry of the Mariana Trench by Lydia Lukidis, illustrated by Juan Calle Capstone Editions, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-68446-615-3 Source: purchased Ages 6 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Lukidis's poetry joined with Calle's stunning illustrations make this a wonderful book that gives young readers a brief glimpse into a world that scientists are just beginning to understand. The book highlights a few of the remarkable creatures that live at differen

WHERE ARE THE EGGS? Storytelling Math by Grace Lin Charlesbridge, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-62354-346-4 Source: publisher for review Ages 2-5 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Where Are the Eggs ? introduces young children to the concept of spatial awareness using words such as, under, next to, and behind. A young girl looks for the eggs that her hens have laid around the yard. Not only is this a cute search and find book, but it does a nice job of introducing a basic math concept. Lin's illustrations provide an eye-catching, brightly-colored, appealing background. This would make a fun read between a parent and child.  It would be especially fun to ask the child to spot the eggs in each illustration. Tips from Angela Chan Turrou, PhD give parents ideas for encouraging their children's curiosity and learning. A BEAUTIFUL HOUSE FOR BIRDS Storytelling Math by Grace Lin Charlesbridge, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-62354-347-1 Source

IN THE BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY by Jane Kuo Quill Tree Books, 2022 ISBN: 978-0-06-311898-0 Source: purchased Ages 9-12 Middle grade historical history/novel-in-verse All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Anna looks forward to moving to 'the beautiful country', the Chinese name for America. After getting haircuts, she and her ma pack everything they can into six suitcases, leaving behind her pile of books, she can get new ones in 'the beautiful country'. But the happily ever after she's expecting turns into a rather miserable reality very quickly. She faces bullying at her new school, the new apartment is tiny and uncomfortable, and her parents' struggle to get their new business, a restaurant, off the ground. A foam mat for a bed, a black-and-white TV, and racist vandalism add to her families challenges.  This novel-in-verse tells Anna's story as she struggles to adapt to a place and circumstanc

RAISING DON The True Story of a Spunky Baby Tapir by Georgeanne Irvine San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Press, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-943198-14-6 Source: Blue Slip Media/publisher Ages 7-10 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by Blue Slip Media. REVIEW Raising Don  tells the story of a Baird's tapir baby raised by the staff at the San Diego Zoo after his mother rejected him.  The adorable photographs really win the day in this book as the reader watches Don grow up under the tender care of the wildlife care specialists. They feed him, introduce him to water, encourage him to learn to swim, and introduce him to other animals in an effort to help the animals learn to get along.  I found it a fascinating glimpse into the work that goes on in zoos to protect and grow the populations of endangered animals. While this tale is told in picture book format, the amount of text makes it more appropriate for older readers, although anyone who loves animals is bound to enjoy

AN AMERICAN STORY by Kwame Alexander, art by Dare Coulter Little, Brown and Company, 2023 ISBN: 978-0-316-47312-5 Source: purchased Ages 9 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Kwame Alexander and Dare Coulter have created a masterpiece with this book.  I think Alexander's dedication says it best, "This is for the ones who want to speak the truth, the ones doing the hard and sacred work of nurturing young minds into beautiful human beings...the teachers." Told from the perspective of a teacher teaching a class of students, slavery and it's ramifications are presented to readers. One of the most powerful aspects of using poetry to tell such a tale is that every word is carefully chosen and specifically placed making meaning oh so deliberately. The interweaving of the past and present makes the book even more influential. As the teacher strives to help her students understand the horrors of sl

DEADLANDS: HUNTED by See Melki-Wegner Henry Holt & Co. (BYR), 2023 ISBN:   9781250827692 Source: eARC from publisher through NetGalley Middle grade animal fantasy Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Young readers who enjoy Erin Hunter's Warriors series are bound to be fans of this new series focused on dinosaurs. Based on the premise that the dinosaurs evolved intelligence and language after being exposed to the remnants of a fallen star. While many dinosaurs died after the star hit and devastated the landscape, some survived and changed. But a war over territory rages between the plains dinosaurs (triceratops, ankylosaurs) and the mountain dinosaurs (oryctodromeus, iguanodons, and stegoceras). Eleri, a young oryctodromeus, stumbles into a conspiracy just before being exiled for inadvertently saving an enemy soldier. Struggling to survive in the Deadlands, the area devastated by the fallen star, Eler

WELCOME TO THE 'BURBS CatNinja #4 by Matthew Cody and Alejandra Arbona illustrated by Chad Thomas Derek Kaufman colors by Warren Wucinich Epic! Creations, Inc., 2022 ISBN: 9781524875855 Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Cat Ninja leaves the big city behind for the suburbs when he goes with Leon and Marcie to visit their father. Unfortunately for CatNinja, things in the 'burbs work differently than he's used to, so he returns to the city on patrol, but finds someone else saving the day. He returns to the 'burbs to discover that something isn't right. The goldfish given to the family by a neighbor turns out to have been genetically altered into a mob box called Goldfather who is running the neighborhood through blackmail and control of the sewer system. Unfortunately, Mr. Squeaks, the criminal genius hamster's been captured. Naturally it is up to Cat Ninja and Adonis, the robot dog, t

  DARK ON LIGHT written by Dianne White, illustrated by Felicita Sala Beach Lane Books, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-5344-8789-5 Source: publisher through Blue Slip Media Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & sample book pages provided by Blue Slip Media. ABOUT THE AUTHOR/ILLUSTRATOR Dianne White is fond of lavender blooms and the way an orange moon hangs in the evening sky. She’s the author of several picture books, including the award-winning Blue on Blue, illustrated by Caldecott medalist Beth Krommes, and Green on Green, illustrated by Felicita Sala. Dianne lives with her family in Gilbert, Arizona, where many nights at twilight, the desert blazes rose on sapphire on dark on light. For more information and to download a free activity kit, visit diannewrites.com . Instagram: @diannewrites Facebook: Dianne White Twitter: @diannewrites Felicita Sala is a self-taught illustrator and painter. She has a degree in philosophy from the University of Western Australia. S

THE INDESTRUCTIBLE TOM CREAN Heroic Explorer of the Antarctic by Jennifer Thermes Viking, 2023 ISBN: 978-0-593-11772-9 Source: purchased Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW During his years as a sailor, Tom Crean served on the crews of three Antarctic expeditions. He survived hunger, freezing temperatures, bitter Antarctic storms, and the loss of animal companions. He saved the lives of other crew members on more than one occasion.  Thermes's book beautifully highlights some of the events that Crean experienced and the choices made by him and others.  Interestingly, much of the information about Crean's choices and heroics comes from his compatriots, since apparently he never shared much about his experiences himself. After a brief introduction, the book focuses on the three expeditions.  The text and illustrations blend beautifully into a marvelous account of the incredible challenges that surround