Geo Librarian

IF I COULD CHOOSE A BEST DAY: Poems of Possibility selected by Irene Latham & Charles Waters, illustrated by Olivia Sua Candlewick Press, 2025 ISBN: 978-1-5362-1979-1 Source: publisher for review Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK An ode to imagination and the power of “if,” this exhilarating poetry collection features the voices of thirty-one diverse poets. If I could choose a best day it would be sunny it would be summer and I would be with you. Imagine what you could do with if. Build a tree house, ride your bike back in time, catch a firefly like a tiny star in the palm of your hands and let it go to make a wish—anything, when it starts with if. Because if is where your imagination begins, where the impossible becomes possible, if only you imagine. And if you do, just think of how much better our world could be. Thirty-one poets, selected by “poetic forever friends” and fre...

OH, ARE YOU AWAKE? written by Bob Shea, illustrated by Jarvis Candlewick Press, 2024 ISBN:  978-1-5362-2658-4 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK For anyone who has ever craved sleep—and anyone too full of energy to settle down—a comedy from Bob Shea, creator of the popular Dinosaur vs. series, and singular illustrator Jarvis. It’s sleepy time for Lion and Penguin. Correction: it should be sleepy time for Lion and Penguin, but Lion’s eyes aren’t tired, and his ears would like a story. Penguin, however, is tired and nods off into sweet candy dreams—until a noise wakes him. “Oh, are you awake?” asks Lion sweetly, seated before a drum set. “Let’s have that story, then!” “Not now. It is time to close your eyes and dream dreams.” And so it goes, with an ever-more-disgruntled Penguin trying to nod off while an exuberant Lion innocently practices his drummin...

THE LUCKY ONES by Linda Williams Jackson Candlewick Press, 2022 ISBN: 9781536222555 Source: ARC from publisher for review Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Ellis Earl dreams of one day becoming a teacher and a lawyer.  But in 1967 Wilsonville, Mississippi, those dreams huddle under the realities of poverty and segregation. Ellis Earl lives in a shack with his mother and eight siblings and niece Vera. The addition several other nieces and nephews after their mother's complications giving birth add to the crowding and hunger.  Despite his mother's and brothers best efforts, work and income is hard to come by.  But at school, Ellis Earl learns about Thurgood Marshall and Miss Marian Wright as his teacher, Mr. Foster works to instill not just knowledge but hope in his students. Ellis Earl struggles with shame for his situation, jealousy of his friend Philip, and conflict with his family. While he...

CRIMSON TWILL, WITCH IN THE CITY by Kallie George, illustrated by Birgitta Sif Candlewick Press, 2022 ISBN: 9781536214635 Source: ARC from publisher for review Ages 7-9 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW Crimson Twill's unusual preferences help her stand out in the witch world.  She loves polka dots, she giggles rather than cackling, and skips rather than slinking, and dreams sweet dreams rather than nightmares.  A visit to Broomingdale's, a mall in the city, highlights her differences as she looks for a way to spend her gold coins. Her efforts lead her to visit several different floors where she looks at pets, brooms, and hats.  She picks up a lost puppy on the pet floor and spends the rest of her time looking for its owner.  She meets another young witch with colorful tastes while looking at hats before ending up at the fashion show where she finds the owner of the puppy.  She doesn't find s...

OLD WOOD BOAT by Nikki McClure Candlewick Press, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-5362-1658-5 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by Goodreads.com & publisher.  ABOUT THE BOOK Old wood boat remembers the wind. Dilapidated and parted from the sea, she remembers and waits as her mast cracks and blackberry vines creep across her deck. But one day, a family tows her home. Scraped, scrubbed, sanded, and varnished, she is made beautiful and seaworthy again. After libations have been poured out, the family casts off, and old wood boat embarks on adventure once more. In this love letter to sailing, heralded artist Nikki McClure tells the story of a restored boat in timeless and reverent prose that perfectly accompanies her stunning cut-paper illustrations. At once delicate and bold, each page is masterful, rendered from a single sheet of black paper with precision and care that is sure to enthrall readers from coast to coast...

I'LL GO AND COME BACK by Rajani LaRocca, illustrated by Sara Palacios Candlewick Press, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-5362-0717-0 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by Goodreads.com & publisher. ABOUT THE BOOK A tender, beautifully illustrated story about a girl in America and her grandmother in India, whose love stretches between languages and cultures—and across the world. When Jyoti visits her grandmother halfway around the world, she is overwhelmed by the differences between India and home. At first she feels lonely and out of place, but soon, despite a language barrier, she and Sita Pati are able to understand each other. They form a bond—looking at books together, making designs with colored sand, shopping at the market, playing games, eating chapatis, and sipping warm milk with saffron to bring sweet dreams. When it’s time to part, Jyoti doesn’t want to leave, but then she remembers that in Tamil, people d...

THIS IS A SCHOOL words by John Schu, illustrations by Veronica Miller Jamison Candlewick Press, 2022 ISBN: 978-1-5362-0458-2 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book summary & cover provided by Goodreads.com and the publisher. ABOUT THE BOOK A moving celebration of school and all it may signify: work and play, creativity and trust, and a supportive community that extends beyond walls. A school isn’t just a building; it is all the people who work and learn together. It is a place for discovery and asking questions. A place for sharing, for helping, and for community. It is a place of hope and healing, even when that community can’t be together in the same room. John Schu, a librarian and former ambassador of school libraries for Scholastic, crafts a loving letter to schools and the people that make up the communities within in a picture book debut beautifully illustrated by Veronica Miller Jamison. REVIEW A school is so much more than a pl...

THE BEATRYCE PROPHECY by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Sophie Blackall Candlewick Press, 2021 ISBN: 978-1-5362-1361-4 Source: ARC from publisher for review Ages 9-12 Middle grade speculative fiction (fantasy) All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book blurb and book cover obtained from Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK From two-time Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo and two-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall comes a fantastical meditation on fate, love, and the power of words to spell the world. We shall all, in the end, be led to where we belong. We shall all, in the end, find our way home. In a time of war, a mysterious child appears at the monastery of the Order of the Chronicles of Sorrowing. Gentle Brother Edik finds the girl, Beatryce, curled in a stall, wracked with fever, coated in dirt and blood, and holding fast to the ear of Answelica the goat. As the monk nurses Beatryce to health, he uncovers her dangerous secret, one that imperils them all--for the king of the land se...

WHERE'S WALDO? Santa Spotlight Search by Martin Handford Candlewick Press, 2021 ISBN: 978-1-5362-2013-1 Source: publisher for review (THANKS!) Ages 8-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. REVIEW In my experience, many children love these search and find type books.  And since I grew up with Waldo it's fun to look at these titles that bring back memories of those times I spent looking at these books.  This Waldo book offers a bit of a difference challenge.  Going beyond just finding Waldo and his friends, the book includes a 'spotlight searcher' that is inserted behind a plastic darkened screen on each spread.  The searcher lights up as the reader moves it around.  The fun thing about it is that the 'wand' allows the reader to focus on small parts of the page which makes it a bit easier to find the items.  For young readers who love the challenge of looking for specific items in the pictures this book can provide hours of fun, as long as the wand does...

YOU CAN'T SAY THAT!  13 Writers for young people talk about censorship, free expression, and the stories they have to tell compiled and edited by Leonard S. Marcus Candlewick Press, 2021 ISBN: 978-0-7636-9036-6 Source: ARC from publisher for review Ages 12 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK What happens when freedom of expression comes under threat? In frank and wide-ranging interviews, historian and critic Leonard S. Marcus probes the experience of thirteen leading authors of books for young people. A powerful photo essay on transgender teens is called anti-religious and anti-family. A meticulously researched primer on sex education stirs up accusations of pornography and child abuse. Picture books about two mommies (or two penguin daddies) set off a hue and cry. Two hugely popular children's series run afoul of would-be censors, one for its scatological humor, the other because it's deemed too scary. Kids' books that touch on race, sex, LG...

  MI CASA IS MY HOME words by Laurenne Sala, pictures by Zara Gonzalez Hoang Candlewick Press, 2021 ISBN: 978-1-5362-0943-3 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. REVIEW This lovely book follows a young girl named Lucia as she shows the reader around her house.  The front porch, living room, kitchen, backyard, bathroom, brother's room, and her room are all explored.  Lucia explains the kind of activities that take place in each room with various family members and extended family and friends.  Games that are played, meals made and eaten, imaginations activated are all explored through the various locations.  Spanish words are scatter throughout the text.  Most of them can be understood in context, but I would still have liked to have a glossary and pronunciation guide to make it a bit easier to understand for those who don't read Spanish.  Overall, this book offers a delightful glimpse into the life and culture ...

HOW TO APOLOGIZE by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka Candlewick Press, 2021 ISBN: 978-1-5362-0944-0 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. REVIEW LaRochelle combines humor and animals to present some basic advice on learning to apologize.  Starting with a skydiving penguin breaking through the roof of a bathing alligator, readers are presented with the idea that "everyone makes mistakes".  And the right thing to do is apologize when those mistakes effect those around us.  Meerkats playing pin the tale on a donkey using the broad side of a rhino leaves them having to apologize to an angry, glasses-wearing rhino.  Not an easy thing to do.  The straight-forward text provides the reader with great advice about how to say you're sorry simply and sincerely.  The humorous illustrations and examples help readers understand the important lesson being taught in a light, enjoyable way.  The examples of how t...

   THE BOY WHO LOVED EVERYONE by Jane Porter, illustrated by Maisie Paradise Shearring Candlewick Press, 2021 ISBN: 978-1-5362-1123-8 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. REVIEW Dimitri cares about the people around him and he tells them so by saying, "I love you."  But Liam doesn't know how to respond.  Sophie, Stella, and Sue giggle and flee.  Adult readers will quickly realize that Dimitri's open declarations are making some of the people around him uncomfortable. The tree and ants don't reply at all.  Dimitri keeps saying "I love you" all day to a wide variety of people, animals, and materials.  As the day wears on, Dimitri's spirits get lower and lower as the day wears on until he finally gets a response from his mother at bedtime.  He doesn't want to go to preschool the next day because nobody seemed to care about him in return.  He mother gently explains that people show caring in a variety of...

MONSTER CLOTHES by Daisy Hirst Candlewick Press, 2020 ISBN: 978-1-5362-1528-1 Source: publisher for review Ages 0-3 All opinions expressed are solely my own. REVIEW   Monsters have to choose what to wear when they get up in the morning.  Hats, socks, undies (on the head), and a tomato (!) work for some monsters.  Other monsters choose to wear a t-shirt, a dress, pajamas, and toy cars (!).  Tamsin likes her tank top, Oliver prefers overalls, Lester tries leaves, and Beatrice puts boots on hands and feet.  What will Evie put on?  The unexpected choices of some of the monsters adds some fun surprises that will induce giggles on the part of young readers and smiles from adult readers.  A fun read that can also help young listeners learn the names of various types of clothing. MONSTER FOOD by Daisy Hirst Candlewick Press, 2020 ISBN: 978-1-5362-1774-2 Source: publisher for review Ages 0-3 All opinions expressed are solely my own. REVIEW Peaches and pears are...