Sunday, January 1, 2023

January 2023


I haven’t been blogging much lately and I have decided to take a break from it for a while. I began The Children’s War in 2010 because I had finished my dissertation on girls’ popular fiction in Nazi Germany and had been thinking a lot about #kidlit and how the adults who write it can have such an impact on the lives of young readers. At around the same time, I became a member of the Bank Street Children’s Book Committee and was reading so many good books, I began Randomly Reading in 2012. I have enjoyed working on both blogs, but I feel like I need to take some time off. I hope to be back in the early spring of 2023. In the meantime, you can still find me on Goodreads, Twitter, Instagram, and Post.




Friday, December 9, 2022

Book Blitz and Giveaway: Weird But True! World 2023: Incredible Facts, Awesome Photos, and Weird Wonders for This Year and Beyond!


BuyGoodreads

The BLOCKBUSTER kid-favorite series Weird But True! is busting out with a BIG, BOLD annual extravaganza of the wackiest, wildest, and downright weirdest wonders on planet Earth.

Discover Earth’s strangest animals, natural formations, festivals, ancient wonders, news, and more in this newest addition to the wildly popular Weird But True! family―an annual compendium of everything Weird But True! fans love ... and then some. Readers will journey across the seven continents, dive into the ocean, and even blast off into space to discover a whole wide world of weird. From the troll doll bug of Suriname to the Bog Snorkeling Championships in Wales to a technicolor village in Indonesia, Weird But True! World offers an unparalleled, adventure-filled exploration of our world’s amazing uniqueness.

Inside, you’ll find:

  • Stunning photographs
  • Wild, wow-worthy facts
  • Weird news
  • Shocking stats and infographics
  • Colorful maps
  • Personality quizzes
  • Adorable odd animals
  • And more!

This book is perfect for fans of Weird But True!, as well as Atlas Obscura, Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, and Guinness World Records, and any curious kid willing to embrace the quirky side of life.


click to enlarge


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For more Weird But True! fun check out the series page on National Geographic Kids!

 


GIVEAWAY

  • Five (5) winners will receive a hardcover of Weird But True! World 2023
  • Ends 12/18 at 11:59pm ET
  • Enter via the Rafflecopter below

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Book Blitz and Givaway: The Law of Cavities (Izzy Newton and the S.M.A.R.T. Squad #3) by Valerie Tripp

 

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Meet the characters, watch the book trailer and check out the Educator and Reader's Guides on the series website here!

The S.M.A.R.T. Squad is back to tackle more middle school mayhem with science, technology, engineering, math, and friendship!

In this third book in the S.M.A.R.T. Squad series, best friends Izzy Newton, Allie Einstein, Marie Curie, Charlie Darwin, and Gina Carver set out on a mystery-filled Outdoor Adventure Camp experience.

Now that Izzy’s finally found her voice in public speaking class and become an ice hockey star, she’s determined to conquer her “dizzy-Izzy-ness” in new situations―including caring for her brand-new braces on an outdoor education overnight and her friends’ good-natured teasing about her friend Trevor. But the forecast for fun turns cloudy when the girls discover their cabin chaperone is none other than Izzy’s tough public-speaking teacher, Ms. Martinez, and their junior counselor is eighth grade mean girl, Maddie Sharpe.

When an innocent exchange of harmless pranks with Maddie takes a turn for the worse, the Squad turns to science to prove their innocence. That’s nothing, though, compared with the terrifying swamp monster haunting their campsite, a catastrophe befalling Ms. Martinez, and a mysterious disaster threatening the future of camp itself.

With their very survival on the line, will science be enough to save the day?
 

Praise:

"Wholesome entertainment for preteens, offering positivity without didacticism."
Kirkus

"It's one thing to have children's books about scientists or podcasts or stories about strong women in STEM, but it's another world entirely when your children get to feel represented by the characters they're reading about. The characters in the Izzy Newton and the S.M.A.R.T. Squad series are diverse, smart, and sure of themselves the way all middle school girls are---through their dreams and newly acquired skills they're still getting used to."
Romper 

About the Creators

VALERIE TRIPP is the co-creator of the American Girl book series that includes titles featuring Felicity, Josefina, Kit, Maryellen, Molly, and Samantha. Tripp also wrote American Girl's Wellie Wishers titles, Hopscotch Hill School titles, numerous leveled readers, songs, stories, skills book pages, and plays for educational publishers. Tripp is writer and editorial director of the Boys Camp series, and a writer, editor, and art editor for Sterling Publishing Company. Tripp received a B.A. and honors as a member of the first co-educated class at Yale University and a master's of education degree from Harvard University.


Website | Instagram | Facebook

MILLIE LIU was born in sunny Pasadena, California, and has been drawing ever since she could hold a pencil. It did start with color pencils on walls but after some scolding, she decided paper was much better. She graduated from Otis College of Art and Design and went into the field of toy design shortly after, designing colorful toys for children the world over. Her favorite subject to draw is story-driven fantastical locations with a touch of magic. When not drawing, she loves to read, experiment with cooking, and keep up with her fierce, growing collection of house plants. She also makes a conscious effort to buy secondhand or used products, and tries to reduce her use of single-use plastic.

 


GIVEAWAY

  • Three (3) winners will receive the complete 3-book Izzy Newton and the S.M.A.R.T. Squad series: Absolute Hero, Newton's Flaw, and The Law of Cavities
  • US/Canada only
  • Ends 12/11 at 11:59pm ET
  • Enter via the Rafflecopter below

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

Monday, November 28, 2022

The Best Gift for Bear written and illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell

 
The Best Gift for Bear
written and illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell
Two Lions/Amazon, 2022, 40 pages
The holiday season is the perfect time to show your appreciation to friends and family for all the times they were there for you throughout the year. And that is just what Hedgehog is busy doing. She's been busy baking all kinds of special cookies for her friends. There are snowflakes for the mice, trees for the squirrels, and special rabbit cookies for each of the rabbits. But what about Bear?

Hedgehog is at a total loss about what to bake for Bear. After all, it was Bear who taught her how to ice skate, but ice skate cookies just don't feel right.
Bear loves butterflies and sunflowers, but even though they are lovely, some butterfly or sunflower cookies just don't feel right for Bear, either. But then snow on the roof of her little house gives Hedgehog the perfect idea. So, she plans it and bakes it and puts it together with frosting - the perfect gingerbread house for a special friend. It even has a bear cookie standing proudly in front of the house, along with sunflowers growing and a butterfly flying.

It is so big and so heavy, though, Hedgehog can't possibly carry it all the way across the forest to Bear's house. Instead, she decides to load it onto a sled and pull it to Bear's. 
The only problem is that then snow and a whipping wind begins to blow and the next thing she knows her perfect gift has been blown to pieces. Just then, Bear opens his door to see what's going on and is surprised to find a very upset Hedgehog. Bear brings her inside, gives her a warming cup of cocoa and listens as Hedgehog tells him what happened to his special gift. After she finishes her story, Bear has a surprising story of his own - and my young readers definitely did not see his surprise coming. And in the end, they actually give each other the best gift ever - the gift of friendship.

The Best Gift for Bear is just the book to begin the holiday season with. It's all about acceptance, friends, and giving, without any of the commercialism that has evolved around the holiday season. It is a quiet, gentle, heartwarming tale that reminds us of what is really important. I loved that Hedgehog gave gifts that she had made herself - they are real gifts from the heart. And I was really happy to see that the gingerbread cookie recipe is included in the endpapers. Yum, I love gingerbread. Complimenting this heartfelt story are clear, uncluttered illustrations done with gouache and colored pencil in a very definite winter palette.    

This was a story that led to lots of talk about the different holidays my young readers celebrate in their families and because this book doesn't identify the holiday Hedgehog is baking cookies for, it was the ideal book to share with my small class of readers, and perhaps with your young readers as well.

Thank you, Barbara Fisch at Blue Slip Media for providing a review copy of this book.

 ★“This genuinely heartfelt, quietly moving friendship story emphasizes that ‘a day with a friend is the best gift of all.’” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“A sweet, appealing picture book for the season.” —Booklist


A 2022 Goodreads Choice Award Nominee


Jennifer A. Bell is the illustrator of more than forty children’s books, including the Sophie Mouse series. She studied fine art at the Columbus College of Art & Design, and her work can also be found on greeting cards and in magazines. This is the first picture book she’s written and illustrated. She lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Learn more about her at www.jenniferabell.com.

Instagram: @jbellstudio

Facebook: Jennifer A. Bell Illustration

Twitter: @JenniferABell_

Thursday, November 17, 2022

My GrandMom written and illustrated by Gee-eun Lee, translated by Sophie Bowman

 
My GrandMom written and illustrated by Gee-eun Lee,
translated by Sophie Bowman
Amazon Crossing Kids, 2022, 40 pages

Grandparents are often such important part of a child's life (if they are lucky enough to have them and they live nearby) and this is a particularly endearing story because it is based on the author's own experience with her Halmonie. Much to her distress, Gee-eun's parents work long hours and she must stay home with her GrandMom. Trying to calm her granddaughter down, GrandMom suggests they make kalguksu, a knife cut Korean noodle soup. While GrandMom makes the dough for the noodles, Gee-eum makes a dough family to put in the soup. 

Later, on Family Sports Day, a day Gee-eum has been excitedly looking forward to, she's disappointed that her mom won't be able to participate with her. To comfort her, GrandMom tells Gee-eum about good she has always been at running, tug of war and doing a cheer dance. But when GrandMom and granddaughter arrive at the field, Gee-eum is excited, sure that they will win all the competitions with such a strong, athletic grandmother.

 But is seem's that GrandMom isn't as spry as she used to be and when they lose all the competitions, Gee-eum becomes very mad at her Halmonie. Can GrandMom jolly Gee-uem into a better mood with a fresh curry bun that will be their delicious secret? 

I love how the focus of My GrandMom is only focused on the relationship between grandmother and granddaughter. In fact, Gee-eum's parents never even make an appearance. Instead, we see the two Gee-eum and GrandMom doing all kinds of things that ultimately lead to a strong bond between the two of them. I particularly liked the way readers can see how this strong intergenerational bond develops over the course of the book 

The illustrations, done with a subtly colored palette using colored pencils and paint, totally enhance and compliment the story and the have a certain humor to them even when there is unhappiness or when Gee-eun is angry or crying. 

My GrandMom will be a welcomed story for any kids living in an intergenerational home, as Gee-eun does, or whose grandparents are just an important part of their life, as many of my young readers do. I suspect this is a book that will be read in my class again and again. 

"A touching tale that exudes love and warmth." - Kirkus Reviews 

"A touching celebration of grandparent-and-grandchild connection that will warm many hearts." - Booklist

Meet the Author:
Gee-eun Lee is an award-winning Korean author/illustrator. She recently won the prestigious BolognaRagazzi Award in the comics category for her book, The Story of How the Korean Shaved Ice Dessert Was Born, and is also a top winner of the Korean Young Illustrator Award. She studied design and illustration in Korea and the UK. Her first picture book, Paper Dad, was made into a children’s musical in Korea. My GrandMom is the second book she both wrote and illustrated and is based on her own grandmother. Instagram: @studio_geeeun 

Meet the Illustrator:
Sophie Bowman is a PhD student at the University of Toronto, studying Korean literature. She was awarded the ICF Literature Translation Fellowship at Ewha Womans University. In 2015, she won the Korea Times Modern Korean Literature Translation Award grand prize for poetry with her translations of Jin Eun-young and co-translated Kim Bo-Young’s I’m Waiting for You and Other Stories. She recently translated the picture book Magic Candies by Heena Baek, which received a starred review from Publishers Weekly. Follow her on Twitter @SophieOrbital.

Publisher tags;
Twitter: @AmazonPub

Thank you, Barbara Fisch at BlueSlipMedia
 
Imagination Designs