Geo Librarian

There's a Book is once again sponsoring the Read to Me Picture Book Challenge .  Since I really enjoyed participating last year and received some great books as prizes, I'm going to participate again this year.  I am going to up my goal since I will be participating throughout the whole year rather than only a part like 2011.  There are three levels of participation, Reading with a Child, Reading on Your Own, and Reading with child or on own with only a wrap up post at the end of the month.  Since I work in a school library and see children every day, here is what I have decided to do. There are various goals to chose from based on how many books you think you can complete.  I have decided to be daring this year and chose a more difficult goal. (Note: I did meet my goal for last year, I just didn't review all the books read on my blog.) Reading with a Child (Children) Growing Level (Read 120 books with a child during the year.)   Already completed: ...

I've found another fun challenge to join for 2012.  I have stacks of books sitting in my room waiting to be read.  Some of them have been waiting for years.  I am hoping to get some of these books read this year. I am going to go for the Grungy Level (20+ books).  Here are a few of the books I am considering for this challenge: Disasters: Natural and Man-Made Catastrophes Through the Centuries by Brenda Z. Guiberson The Sixty-Eight Rooms by Marianne Malone Into the Land of the Unicorns by Bruce Coville Keepers of the School: We the Children by Andrew Clements The Case of the Gypsy Good-bye by Nancy Springer Unraveling Freedom: The Battle for Democracy on the Home Front During World War I by Ann Bausum A Savage Thunder: Antietam and the Bloody Road to Freedom by Jim Murphy Palace Beautiful by Sarah DeFord Williams Drita My Homegirl by Jenny Lombard Lowji Discovers America by Candace Fleming Syren (Septimus Heap) by Angie Sage The Boy Sherl...

Coral Reefs written and illustrated by Jason Chin Roaring Brook Press, 2011 ISBN: 978-1-59643-563-6 Grades K-5 Reviewed from personal copy. BLURB : During an ordinary visit to the library, a girl pulls a not-so-ordinary book from the shelves. As she turns the pages in this book about coral reefs, the city around her slips away and she finds herself surrounded by the coral cities of the sea and the mysterious plants and animals that live, hunt, and hide there. This book is gorgeous, that pretty much covers it.  The illustrations take the reader on a journey over and around a coral reef.  Even without the words, I could easily follow the story.  I love the idea of a book taking the reader on a journey to somewhere they may never be able to go in real life.  This suits my lifestyle of armchair adventuring.  The text does add a great deal of information, a little too much for a read-a-loud I discovered, especially when the students kept interrupting to...

Last week I read some Christmas related duck books to my kindergartners and they really enjoyed them.  So here they are. Have You Been Naughty or Nice? written and illustrated by Ethan Long Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-316-01722-0 Grades PreK-1 Reviewed from personal copy. BLURB :  In Have You Been Naughty or Nice? the duck excitedly awaits a visit from Santa Claus until he eats all of Santa's snacks and realizes he just put himself on the naughty list. But never fear, because the duck has a clever plan to get himself back on the nice list. This fourth book in Ethan Long's duck series features a cloth Santa cap on the cover and a fold-out letter to Santa, and is filled to the brim with holiday hilarity that will keep kids entertained for hours. This book is quite short and makes for a quick read (which is a good thing when you've got squirmy kindergartners).  The children quite enjoyed this one.  The illustrations are ca...

The Happy Elf written by Harry Connick, Jr., illustrated by Dan Andreasen Harper, 2011 ISBN: 978-0-06-128879-1 Interest Level: Grades K-2 Reviewed from purchased copy. BLURB :  Eubie is the happiest elf at the North Pole. More than anything else, he longs to be a part of Santa’s sleigh team. Instead, he’s stuck checking the naughty-or-nice lists. Until one Christmas Eve he sees something strange: In the whole town of Bluesville, not a single person has been nice. So with a pinch of elfish magic and a magical whoosh , Eubie’s off to Bluesville. But can he turn a whole town of naughty children nice in just one day?  The things I liked about this book were: the illustrations are adorable.  The characters are round and cheerful and appealing.  The bright colors contrast nicely with the 'sad' parts.  The illustrations do a nice job of providing the mood behind the story. the theme of happiness and helping others be happy can be the best gift of all. ...

I've found some more fun challenges to participate in for 2012.  The first is the YA/MG Fantasy Challenge hosted by The Book Cellar .  To participate I will be doing the following: - Read 10 YA or MG fantasy that are released in 2012 - Post a review on a personal blog or Goodreads - The challenge runs from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012 I already have a bunch of books that I am looking forward to reading next year.  I'm excited to be a part of this. The Marvelous Middle Grade Read-a-Thon will take place Jan 2-Jan 8, 2012. This one is being hosted by Deb Marshall at Just Deb .  I hope to get a bunch of my middle grade books read during this week.  I will not be able to read all week though since I go back to work (school) that week, but I will do what I can.  For every book I read I will donate a book to my school library.

Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade written and illustrated by Melissa Sweet Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2011 ISBN: 978-0-547-19945-0 Interest Level: All Levels Reviewed from purchased copy. BLURB :  Everyone's a New Yorker on Thanksgiving Day, when young and old rise early to see what giant new balloons will fill the skies for Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  Who first invented these "upside-down puppets?"  Tony Sarg—puppeteer, illustrator and legendary prankster who once declared, "I never worked a day in my life."  In brilliant collage illustrations, award-winning artist Melissa Sweet tells the story of this puppeteer, capturing his genius, his dedication, his zest for play, and his long-lasting gift to America—the inspired helium balloons that would become the trademark of Macy's Parade. I don't know that I can say anything about this book that hasn't already been said.  Exce...

Fall Mixed Up written by Bob Raczka, illustrated by Chad Cameron Carolrhoda Books, 2011 ISBN: 978-0-7613-4606-7 Grades K-2 Reviewed from personal copy. Fall is full of many enjoyable activities, carving pumpkins, raking and jumping in piles of leaves, or watching flocks of geese fly south for the winter.  Unfortunately, Raczka seems to be a little confused in this book.  Here we have red pumpkins and orange apples, bears gathering nuts for winter and squirrels flying south, while geese hibernate.  And the worst error of all, touchdowns are hit and home runs are kicked!? What a horrible mix-up!? (I hope you realize I'm being factitious, here).  The kindergartners got a big kick out of correcting all the mix-ups in this book.  I also enjoyed reading it and pretending to be shocked at all the errors. The words are fun to read, but it's the glorious full color illustrations that showcase the silliness in this book.  Combine this with the Fall's Here se...

The Fall's Here series, part of Cloverleaf books, published by Millbrook Press, a division of Lerner Publishing Group, consists of the following six books, all of which I recommend. Animals in Fall: Preparing for Winter (ISBN: 978-0-7613-8506-6) Fall Apples: Crisp and Juicy (ISBN: 978-0-7613-8507-3) Fall Harvests: Bringing in Food (ISBN: 978-0-7613-8508-0) Fall Leaves: Colorful and Crunchy (ISBN: 978-0-7613-8505-9) Fall Pumpkins: Orange and Plump (ISBN: 978-0-7613-8509-7) Fall Weather: Cooler Temperatures (ISBN: 978-0761385103) written by Martha E. H. Rustad, illustrated by Amanda Enright Millbrook Press, 2012 Grades K-2 Reviewed from personal copies. Each of these books covers a specific part of the fall season.  Animals is Fall discusses what animals do to prepare for winter including migration, hibernation, and camouflage.  Fall Apples covers the growth and development of apples from the planting of the seed to the harvesting of the crop.  It also mention...

The Princess and the Pig written by Jonathan Emmett, illustrated by Poly Bernatene Walker & Company, 2011 ISBN: 978-0-8027-2335-2 Grades K-3 Reviewed from library copy. BLURB: There's been a terrible mix-up in the royal nursery. Priscilla the princess has accidentally switched places with Pigmella, the farmer's new piglet. The kindly farmer and his wife believe it's the work of a good witch, while the ill-tempered king and queen blame the bad witch-after all, this happens in fairy tales all the time! While Priscilla grows up on the farm, poor yet very happy, things don't turn out quite so well for Pigmella. Kissing a frog has done wonders before, but will it work for a pig? I picked up this book thinking it would be the typical based on fairy tales sort of book.  I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it is not.  Many princess books, which little girls devour, show only the positive parts of being a princess, the beautiful dresses, the parties,...

I've decided to participate in the Seasons Readings Challenge being hosted by Maestra Amanda's Bookshelf .  I love Christmas books of all kinds, so this is a great chance for me to share my favorites, old and new. The challenge starts on December 1st, but for directions on how to participate see this post .  Basically, all that is required is to read and review books related to the holiday season, as many or few as you want.  I'm going to try to do at least one for every weekday.  Most of the ones I plan to read will be picture books that I will be sharing with my students, most will be Christmas related but some will be Hanukkah and Kwanzaa related. I am looking forward to a great reading season.