Geo Librarian

Jennifer A. Nielsen has a new historical novel coming out in March of 2021.  To tide us over while we wait, she is offering a cover reveal trivia contest.  Her historical novels are fabulous and I'm excited about this upcoming one.  Here are the covers from her other historical novels. Click on them to visit the Goodreads summary of each one. BOOK SUMMARY FOR NEW HISTORICAL NOVEL (You will have to wait to find out the title until the cover is revealed.) Six hundred and fifty-seven days ago, Meg Kenyon's father left their home in France to fight for the Allies in World War II, and that was the last time Meg saw him. Recently, she heard he was being held prisoner by the Nazis, a terrible sentence from which Meg fears he'll never return. All she has left of him are the codes he placed in a jar for her to decipher, an affectionate game the two of them shared. But the codes are running low, and soon there'll be nothing left of Papa for Meg to hold on to at ...

I love middle grade books, in fact, I think they are my favorite genre.  So, of course, I have to participate in this fun readathon.  Since I go back to school this week I won't be able to read as much as I'd like, but I hope to finish at least a few books.  Here's the list I will be reading from: It's Raining Cupcakes by Lisa Schroeder The Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman by Ben H. Winters The Familiars by Adam Jay Epstein & Andrew Jacobson (e-book) Jake by Audrey Couloumbis (e-book) Miles to Go for Freedom by Linda Barrett Osborne (nonfiction) Glory Be by Augusta Scattergood Dumpling Days by Grace Lin Depending on my mood, there are a bunch of others I will consider as well, books I need to read for the Beehive Book Awards (Children's Literature Association of Utah).

Billy & Milly Short & Silly written by Eve B. Feldman, pictures by Tuesday Mourning G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2009 ISBN: 978-0-399-24651-7 Grades K-2 Reviewed from personal copy. BLURB: Follow Billy and Milly through thirteen adventures in these funny and simple short stories. Through very basic storytelling, these brief narratives are told in only three or four words apiece. For example, "Stoops (Billy and Milly sit on their front stoops as the ice cream truck drives by.), Hoops (Billy shoots his basketball...), Scoops (...as Milly licks her ice cream cone...), Oops (...until the ball hits the cone and squashes her ice cream!)." I used this book last week with my first and second grade students as an introduction to story elements.  I explained to them that to be a story there needs to be at least three things: characters, setting, and plot.  The short stories in this book worked perfectly to emphasize my point that a story doesn't need to have 100...

I've decided to enter this year's Happy Haul-idays contest sponsored by Chronicle Books.  Chances are I won't win, but it's fun to dream.  My charity would be my local public library, Smithfield Public Library, where I spent many happy hours in my younger years.  Please leave a comment for a chance to win, should I be chosen. Thanks! If I were to win, here are my choices: A Dog is a Dog by Stephen Shaskan ($14.99) E-mergency by Tom Lichtenheld, et.al. ($16.99) Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner ($16.99) Follow the Star by AndyMansfield ($19.99) The Orphan of Awkward Falls by Keith Graves ($16.99) Worst-Case Scenario Ultimate Adventure: Mars by Hena Ghan, et.al. ($12.99) Sea Monster's First Day by Kate Messner ($16.99) Kokeshi Kimonos by Annelore Parot ($17.99) A Zeal of Zebras: An alphabet of collective nouns by Woop ($17.99) Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker ($16.99) Out of Sight by Pittau & Gerv...