Happy New Year: 2014 Endings and 2015 Beginnings

Yes, it's that time again, time to take stock and see where I've been and where I'm going.

Reading Challenges:
When I first started blogging over at The Children's War, it was June 2010 and reading challenges were in full swing.  But they sounded like fun and I couldn't wait for 2011 so I could participate in reading challenges, too.  Well, it turns out that I am not such a good challengee.  So I cut down on the number of challenges I joined in 2012, and again in 2013.  Still not such a good challengee, I cut down again in 2014.  And I finally almost met all my challenges.

2014:

In the #summerthrowdown Year 3,hosted by @BrianWyzlic @HeiseReads @LibraryFanatic and @thebrainlair, I said I would read 18 books in 31 days.  I actually read 23 books in 31 days, five more than I had pledged.  Not bad!

I read lots of nonfiction picture books this year, but when I decided to participate in the Nonfiction Picture Book Reading Challenge hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy, I left the number of books unspecified, but I did list 8.  I probably did better than 8, but forgot to list them.

For the Newbery Reading Challenge hosted by Smiling Shelves, I really have to hang my head in shame.  I know I read Newbery winners, I just forgot to list them…all.

2015:

I really enjoyed reading more nonfiction books than I usually do, so I have decided to again participate in the Kid Lit Frenzy's Nonfiction Picture Book Reading Challenge.  Thank you, Alyson, for hosting this again.

And yes, I am going back for another go at the Smiling Shelves Newbery Reading Challenge.  I will try to do better in 2015, and thank you, Julie, for hosting this challenge again.

In 2014, I did a little retro reading of The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett prior to reading A Year in the Secret Garden by Valerie Budayr.  I really enjoyed that, and have decided to make Retro Randomly Reading a regular feature on Randomly Reading.

Because I'm on a book committee, I read a lot of books for young readers.  So, in 2014, I also started to do a Saturday Roundup of books that I have read, but not reviewed.  This proved to be a very successful feature and I will be doing it again in 2015.

2014 is the year when the importance of diverse books really came to the fore.  Many of us have been introduced to experiences different from our own and are all the better for it.  Thank you to the late
Walter Dean Myers for asking the question Where are the People of Color in Children's Books? in his Opinion essay in the March 15, 2014 New York Times.  Sadly, WDM passed away shortly after this was published, but WOW, what he started…

Thank you, Ellen Oh, Malinda Lo and Aisha Saeed for taking up WDM's challenge and starting the #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign and setting the children's book world (readers, bloggers, publishers and everyone else) on their toes and changing the way we think about books for young readers.

2014 has been a great year, and I'm really looking forward to 2015.

Wishing Everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!

The Mystery of the Missing Lion: A Precious Ramotswe Mystery for Young Readers #3 by Alexander McCall Smith

One of my favorite adult book characters is Precious Ramotswe of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series written by Alexander McCall Smith.  Detecting was clearly what Mma Ramotswe is meant to be doing and she acknowledges much of her success to her father Obed Ramotswe, who taught her many skills as a child.  Now, young readers can read all about Precious and her early adventures in detecting in a series of chapter books.

The Mystery of the Missing Lion is the third book in the series.  Here, Precious is invited to visit her Aunty Bee who works in the Eagle Island Safari Camp in the Okavango Delta in northern Botswana in Africa.  Precious is very excited and on her first day she makes friends with Khumo, a young boy about her age.

There is also a movie crew in the area, making a film that will be using a trained actor lion named Teddy.  Of course, the kids are interested and soon the director asks if they can hide in the bushes and makes sounds of a guinea fowl to attract Teddy during a shoot.  It is a fun day for Precious and Khumo who are treated like part of the film crew.

And so is the next day, but later that day, Precious hears a commotion and when she goes outside, she learns that Teddy is missing.  The next morning, Precious puts to good use the tracking skills her father had taught her, but there are no lion tracks to be found.

Precious and Khumo decide to borrow Aunty Bee's canoe (with her permission, of course) and set off on the river looking for Teddy.  They finally spot him in a pride of lions at the river's edge.  Hurrying back to camp, a new search party is formed to find Teddy and bring him back.  But is that the right thing to do?  Precious has other ideas about where Teddy belongs, but will she have the courage to say something?

The Mystery of the Missing Lion is a perfect book for young readers ready to tackle a higher level chapter book.  The writing is uncomplicated and where something new is introduced, like the Okavango Delta, Smith gives a clear description/definition for his readers.  There is a map of Africa showing where Botswana is at the beginning of the book, but I would have liked to see a more detailed map of Botswana, since there is a bit of geography to the story.  At the back of the book, there is a page detailing information about Botswana and the geography that is also helpful but would be better with a map.

Of course, in the Reader's Guide at the back of the book, there is pre-reading activities and one is focused on map work and the varied wildlife that is found in Botswana.  People sometimes forget that Africa is such a large continent with many different countries, all with their own customs, traditions and cultures, not to mention landscape and wildlife.  The Mystery of the Missing Lion goes far in helping kids understand what at least one country is like.

There are spot black and white illustrations throughout the story by Iain McIntosh, giving the story a real feeling of being in Botswana.

As an adult, Precious Ramotswe gives her father Obed a lot of credit for many of the things she knows and one of those is a strong sense of right and wrong.  This comes through so clearly in this book about young Precious, making it a wonderfully gentle story for young readers.  But Obed had also imparted a real love for Botswana, its people, animals and land in Precious and that too is already evident in this delightful young girl.  So the same charming qualities that make the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series such a pleasure to read are present in this chapter book.

This book is recommended for readers age 7+
This book is an EARC received from NetGalley

Merry Christmas 2014

MERRY CHRISTMAS

from Randomly Reading

Here's wishing you a year filled with good books!

It's Monday! What are you reading? Some Old and New Christmas Favorites #13

It's Monday! What are you reading? is the original weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.  It's Monday! What are you reading? - from Picture Books to YA is a kidlit focused meme just like the original and is hosted weekly by Teach Mentor Texts.  The purpose is the same: to recap what you have read and/or reviewed and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week.

First, I apologize for doing so many roundups lately.  December is a busy month for me, but it's also Christmas, and so here are some old and new favorites that I have been reading this week.

Eight Jolly Reindeer by Ilanit Oliver, illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers

Scholastic, 2014 16 pages

In this rhyming board book, young readers can count Santa's eight reindeer one by one and by name as each jumps ups in happy anticipation of the arrival of Christmas.  This is a nicely shaped book and there is a shiny glittery tab for each of the eight reindeer.  In the end, they are all hitched to Santa's sleigh, ready for the big night ahead.  Age 2+

Little Blue Truck's Christmas by Alice Schertle, illustrated by Jill McElmurry

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014, 24 pages

Another counting, rhyming board book for young readers that continues Little Blue Truck's adventures.  It's Christmas and Little Blue Truck has 5 Christmas trees, count them 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.  Now he need to deliver them all over town to his friends.  And when he is finally done, there is a twinkly surprise waiting for him at home.  Age 3+    

Here Comes Santa Cat by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Claudia Rueda

Dial Books, 2014, 88 pages

Remember Cat from Here Comes the Easter Cat?  Well, Cat's back.  It's December 24th and Cat is pretty sure he is on Santa's naughty list, which means no presents for him.  Is it too late to be nice enough to get off the naughty list and on to the nice list so Santa will pay Cat a visit on Christmas Eve?  This is a great laugh out loud read aloud for parents, teachers and young readers who will certainly understand the humor of Cat's dilemma.  Ages 3+    

A Charlie Brown Christmas Pop-Up Edition by Charles M. Schulz

Running Press, 2010, 10 pages

There are lots of versions of this Christmas classic, but since I love paper engineering, this pop-up version is my favorite.  Each page has a large pop-up surrounded by the story's text and there are large flaps on some of the pages that reveal even more pop-ups when opened.  As you can see, the whole Peanuts gang is included.  Ages 4+ 

The Christmas Magic by Lauren Thompson, illustrated by Jon J. Muth

Scholastic, 2009, 40 pages

When Santa's whiskers begin to tingle, he knows it is time to start getting ready Christmas.  Brushing and feeding his reindeer, trimming his own whiskers, polishing his sleigh bells, darning his thick woolen winter socks, and, oh yes, getting toys ready for kids all around the world.  It's a lot to do, but Santa is definitely the man for the job.  The gentle watercolor and pastel illustrations are a perfect compliment to the poetic language of this beautiful book that is sure to become a holiday classic.  Ages 4+

The Christmas Coat: Memories of My Sioux Childhood 

by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve, illustrated by Ellen Beier

Holiday House, 2011, 32 pages

The winters on the South Dakota prairie are cold, windy and snowy.  Young Virginia has outgrown the coat she has and needs a new on.  The daughter of an Episcopal priest, she knows that when the boxes from the East arrive full of donated clothes, she will have to wait until everyone else on the Rosebud Sioux Reservation takes what they also need.  But when her best friend gets the fur coat Virginia was hoping for, it's back to her old outgrown coat.  Will Christmas bring a welcomed surprise for Virginia?  This picture book for older readers is a beautifully recounted memory from the author's childhood and complimented by the watercolor and gouache realistically detailed illustrations.  Ages 5+

Junie B., First Grader

Jingle Bells, Batman Smells (P.S. So Does May)

by Barbara Park, illustrated by Denise Brunkus

Random House, 2005, 128 pages

It's the last week of school before the Christmas break and Room One is getting ready to celebrate.  There's a holiday sing-along, complete with elf costumes in the auditorium, then there's picking name's for the class Secret Santa gift giving and to make that easy, the school is hosting a gift shop for the kids.  But, uh oh, Junie B.'s secret Santa pick is her nemesis May.  That's bad, but when Junie sees the only Squeez-A-Burp at the gift shop, she knows she can't get that for May, because she wants it herself.  Can you guess how Junie's dilemma is resolved? Typical Junie, but a nice chapter book for young readers, because, as always, there's a lesson to be learned.  Ages 7+

A Christmas Treasury

Dover Publications, 2014, 96 pages

If you are in the mood for some old fashioned Christmas stories, this anthology is just the ticket.  The six fully illustrated tales include The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore (1917), Father Christmas by Clifton Bingham (1920), How Santa Filled the Christmas Stockings by Carilyn S. Hodgman (1916), A Visit to Santa Claus by Margaret Evans Price (1917), Polar Bear at the Zoo by Helen C. Dods (1917), and Christmas ABC (1910).  Young readers will probably recognize The Night Before Christmas, but the others hold some enchantment for them as well.  Kids will enjoy seeing that Christmas concerns, such as will Santa bring Tommy the same amount of presents in his stocking as he brings his older siblings with bigger stockings, were as common then as they are now.  This book certainly is a treasure.  Ages 5+

The Night Before Christmas: A Classic Illustrated Edition by Clement C. Moore

Chronicle Books, 2005, 44 pages

When my old hand-me-down Little Golden Book of this Christmas favorite finally fell completely apart, I replaced it with this beautifully illustrated version.  This has always been my favorite Christmas poem so I was kind of picky when it came time for a new one.  I chose this one because I liked the illustrations which come from a number of different sources, yet they all work together so well.  Do you have a favorite version of The Night Before Christmas?

Everything I Need to Know About Christmas,

I Learned from a Little Goden Book by Diane Muldrow

Random House, 2014, 96 pages

Speaking of Little Golden Books, here is one that is sure to tickle your funny bone and warm your heart.  All your old favorites are included here.  The nostalgic illustrations are all reprints from different Little Golden Book stories paired with words of wisdom, guidance and reminders of things to do to get ready for the big Christmas celebration.  I think this is more a book for adults who need to take a breather from holiday hustle and bustle and go for a walk down the Little Golden memory lane.  Yes, that is the Pokey Little Puppy in Santa's bag on the cover.  Ages 12+

Here is what I am looking forward to reading this week:

Bombay Blues by Tanuja Desai Hidier

This is the sequel to Born Confused

What are you reading this week?

Saturday Roundup #6: Winter 2014

The Shortest Day: Celebrating the Winter Solstice 

by Wendy Pfeffer, illustrated by Jesse Reisch

Penguin, 2013, 40 pages

December 21, is the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year.  That means that the days start getting longer, but they also start getting colder in the Northern Hemisphere.  Here is a book that explains the Winter Solstice to kids, as well as providing a very interesting and informative history of how and why this is such an important date from ancient times to the present.  There is also some nice cultural history, and how traditions that we still keep first developed.  The science behind the Winter Solstice is also explained in clear, simple terms, with lovely colorful illustrations throughout. Ages 6+

And, of course, with winter comes snow…

The Snowy Day by Erza Jack Keats

Penguin, 1962, 40 pages

After a big snowfall, Peter puts on his snowsuit and goes out to play in the snow.  First published in 1962, The Snowy Day has been a favorite classic story ever since.  It makes a wonderful read aloud and a great story to share on snowed-in days, as well as bedtime.  It is unique for being one of the first children's books to feature a child of color for the main character.  The illustrations, done by Keats, are also unique.  According to Wikipedia, they are "collage with cutouts of patterned paper fabric and oilcloth; handmade stamps and spatterings of India ink made with a toothbrush."  It is rumored that the park where Peter plays is Prospect Park, Brooklyn, which is fine with me, since that is the park where I spent my snowy days as a child.  Ages 3+

The Snowy Day is such a beloved story, that it was issued in a board book for kids younger that 3.  

The Snowman by Raymond Briggs

Random House, 1978, 32 pages

In this classic wordless story, a young boy builds a snowman who comes to life and with whom the boy has lots of adventures.  But are the adventures just a product of the boy's active imagination?  Wordless books give parents and young readers the opportunity to make up the story as they look at each illustration, in a way, mirroring the boys adventure.  This is one of those books that, along with The Snowy Day, I always give as a Christmas gifts to new born family and friends for their beginning picture book libraries.   Ages 5+

The Snowman is also available as a board book for readers age 2+

And if you go to The Snowman's website, you can find all kinds of activities including simple instructions and templates for making Snowman garland, 3-D snowflakes and more.

  
And as long as we're on about snowmen,

Snowmen at Night by Caralyn Buehner, pictures by Mark Buehner

Dial Books, 2002, 32 pages

Have you ever wondered what snowmen do after the kids who built them go home and go to bed?  Well, here's your answer.  Those rascally snowman and snowwomen pretty much do the same things kids do.  They drink ice-cold cocoa, play baseball with snowballs, slide around on the ice, roll around in to the snow.  All their fun is told in simple rhyme, with beautifully depicted in oil paint over acrylic illustrations.  This is a fun book and there are even hidden shapes in the illustrations on each page.  See how many you can find.  Ages 4+

Outside by Deirdre Gill

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014, 40 pages

It's snowing outside and a little boy has nothing to do inside, but his brother won't go out and play with him in the snow.  So, the boy puts on his winter clothing, goes out and begins making snow angels.  When his brother still won't go out, the boy begins to roll some some into a ball and build and build all kinds of snowy things and when he's done building he lets his imagination run wild.  What adventures he has!  What a wonderful magical day in the snow!  Beautifully illustrations in wintry whites and blues, with touches of red.  Ages 4+

Blizzard by John Rocco

Disney Hyperion, 2014, 40 Pages

Based on the Blizzard of 1978, Rocco takes the readers day-by-day, from the first falling snowflakes to the end of a long snowy week.  With drifts so high the front door couldn't be opened, at first it was fun for a young boy to be snowed in with his family.  But after a few days, they are beginning to run out of supplies.  But then, the young boy comes up with a remarkably clever idea for getting to the store.  Follow his route and see what a hero this boy truly is.  Rocco's illustrations are wonderful in all their blizzardy glory.  Ages 4+

Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold by Joyce Sidman & Rick Allen

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014, 32 pages

In 12 poems, the reader is introduced to winter as it impacts various animals living in the natural world. Each lyrical poem is dedicated to a different animal and coupled with a short but informative facts about that animal.  This is a perfect book for kids who may be budding poets or budding scientists and for everyone who loves animals and nature.  The illustrations are hand painted linoleum prints and are just spectacular.  What a great Christmas present this picture book for older readers would make.  Ages 6+

Winter Eyes by Douglas Florian

Harper Collins, 1999, 48 pages

Here is a book of poetry dedicated to winter, and one that invites the reader to perhaps look and about winter.  And there is something for everyone in Florian's poems, whether you like winter or not (like me).  Some poems are written in the shape of what they are about - words ice skate a figure eight, or climb a sledding hill, then sail down it.  The watercolor and color pencil illustrations are as beautifully quiet as the poems themselves.  Age 4+

I thought this one was perfect for the Winter Solstice:

The Madman of Piney Woods by Christopher Paul Curtis

It's 1901 and two 13 year old boys, Benji Alston, an African Canadian living in Buxton, an area settled by former slaves, and Alvin "Red" Stockard, a red-headed Irish Canadian living in nearby Chatham, an area populated by Irish immigrants, are destined to meet…eventually.  Their lives are separated by the woods that fascinates them, even as they hear separate stories about the legendary mysterious "creature" who lives there.  To Benji, he is called The Madman of Piney Woods, to Red, he's the South Woods Lion Man.

Each boy tells his story in alternating chapters.  Benji lives with his family that includes younger twins Patience and Timothy called Stubby, who are gifted at working in wood and apprenticing as carpenters.  Benji has set his sights on becoming a newspaper reporter so all his adventures end with a newspaper headline.  Benji also knows the woods better than anyone he knows, feels them talking to him and is very proprietary towards them.

Red is a lover of factual information and wants to be a scientist.  He lives with his widower father, a judge, and his Grandmother O'Toole, a paranoid mean-spirited somewhat physically abusive racist woman who seems to hate him.  These things and her habit of sneaking up on Red and hitting him with her cane causes him want her to be put into an asylum, but his father refuses.  Now, Red will be happy to just survive living with her.

At some point, both boys have an encounter with the madman of Piney Woods, and both are surprised to discover the monster of their imaginations is, in fact, a kind, quiet, rational man, who has chosen to live in the woods for his own reasons, which are revealed as the story unfolds.  Both when Benji and Red finally meet, the madman becomes a point of connection and friendship and catalyst for adventure. And he has a lot to teach them.

Both boys have been pretty content living in the present.  But when the madman causes the past to come up and wash over them, they begin to realize how connected to their pasts and to their sorrows they actually are.  For Benji, that past is slavery, the Underground Railroad, the American Civil War and the treatment of black Union soldiers; for Red, it's the Irish potato famine and watching helplessly as family began to die, later, it was the coffin ships in the St. Lawrence River where Grandmother O'Toole was forced to remain until a typhus epidemic ended, waiting and watching as more family dies.  

I've always known that Christopher Paul Curtis can really write a moving, spellbinding story and The Madman of Piney Woods is no exception, although when I first started reading it, I had some doubts.   But it didn't take long to get totally hooked into these two boys and their stories and as they do, they will make you laugh, cry and break your heart.  Their stories can be violent in spots, but none of it is gratuitous.  And reading their stories in alternating chapters sounds like it may be confusing, but it really isn't.

At the heart of the story is a mystery that Benji and Red work together to solve.  The mystery is one of those things that to go into any detail would reveal too much of what should be allowed to unfold as you read, so just suffice it say, it takes a while to get there, so enjoy the read knowing you will find out what the mystery is eventually.

Technically, this is a sequel to Elijah of Buxton, even though it is 40 years later.  But it is also a stand alone novel, and anything you needed to know from the first book is included in this one.  And no doubt, the themes of friendship and family with resonate with readers, I think they will also appreciate the intense relationships between the generations.  Also, the theme of prejudice is also explored in some unusual ways, bearing in mind that Canada is not have the kind of intense racial conflicts that the US had in its past.  But again, to say more gives too much away.

This book is recommended for (mature) readers age 9+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

Saturday Roundup #5: Hanukkah Edition

Hanukkah begins at sundown on Tuesday, December 16, 2014 and I thought I would dedicate this week's Saturday Roundup to some lovely holiday books celebrating this eight day Festival of Lights.

Chanukah Lights by Michael J. Rosen, paper engineering by Robert Sabuda

Candlewick Press, 2011, 16 pages

Starting with the temple where the oil lamp burns for 8 nights with just enough oil for one night, Rosen and Sabuda travel through time celebrating all the places where Jews have celebrated Chanukah over time.  The only color on each page is the background and the Chanukah lights int he windows, adding to its effectiveness.  This short video will give you a good sense of this lovely book:

As you can see, the only color on each page is the background and the Chanukah lights int he windows, adding to its effectiveness.  This is a book that will be cherished year after year.  Ages 5+

Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins by Eric Kimmel, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman

Holiday House, 1989, 2014 Anniversary Edition), 32 pages

It's the first night of Hanukkah and Hershel of Ostropol has been walking a long time and decides to stop at the next village.  But he notices that not a single candle in a single menorah is to be seen.  When he asks the Rabbi about this, Hershel is told about the goblins who haunt the old synagogue and who hate Hanukkah.  They blow out Hanukkah candles, break dreidels and throw their potato latkes on the floor.  Not afraid of goblins, Hershel volunteers to clear the goblins out of the synagogue and break their curse.  It will take all eight nights of Hanukkah to do it.  But is Hershel the right man for the task?  Age 5+

I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Dreidel  by Caryn Yacowitz, illustrated by Slonim

Scholastic, 2014, 32 pages

"I know an old lady who swallowed a dreidel,

A Chanukah dreidel she thought was a bagel…Perhaps it's fatal"

It's Hanukkah and time for the family to visit Bubbe, but then the cat drops a small dredel on her bagel and, yup, she swallowed it.  So Bubbe begins to swallow more and more traditional Chanukah items to wash down the dreidel.  The rhyme is fun and sure to make readers smile.  Each illustration sets Bubbe in a different work of art (each of which is elaborated in back matter).  Age 4+

Hanukkah Bear by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka

Hiliday House, 2013, 32 pages

Bubba Brayna is 97 years old and her hearing and eyesight aren't just what they used to be, but that doesn't stop her from making lots and lots of potato latkes for the Rabbi's visit on the first night of Hanukkah.  When the good smell of those latkes reaching sleeping bear, he wakes up hungry and pays Bubba Brayna a visit.  Thinking he is the Rabbi with a mighty big appetite, Bear eats all the latkes.  But after Bear leaves, imagine Bubba Brayna's surprise when the real Rabbi shows up.  Includes a latke recipe.  Ages 4+

The Dreidel That Wouldn't Spin, a Toyshop Tale of Hanukkah

by Martha Seif Simpson, illustrated by Durga Yael Bernhard

Wisdom Tales, 2014, 32 pages

No sooner does a merchant buy a beautiful dreidel from a peddler, who warns him that the miracle of Hanukkah can't be bought, when a selfish girl insists on having it.  But the dreidel won't spin for her, and was returned.  Nor would it spin for the selfish boy who demanded it next and returned it.  A third child, one who can't even afford the dreidel, merely admires its beauty.  Will it spin for him?  Back matter explains Hanukkah, and what the letters on the dreidel mean, and tells how to play the dreidle game.  Age 5+

Candlelight for Rebecca by Jacqueline Dembar Green

American Girl Publishing, 2009, 96 pages

It's 1914 and in Rebecca's NYC public school class they are making decorations for Christmas, a national holiday according to her teacher.  But Rebecca is Jewish, so is she less American because she doesn't celebrate Christmas?   But, she loves to celebrate Hanukah with her family.  Finding herself torn between having to do the school project, and facing her mother and grandmother's disapproval of her Christmas centerpiece that she is so proud of if she brings it home, how will Rebecca reconcile her dilemma.  Ages 8+

By the Hanukkah Light by Sheldon Oberman, illustrated by Neil Waldman

Highlights Press, 1997, 32 pages

Every year, Rachel and her grandfather clean the Menorah together just before Hanukkah.  On the first night, after the candle is lit, grandpa tells the story of the Maccabbees exactly the way his grandfather told it to him.  Next, he tell the story of the Menorah that belonged to his family, but was left behind when they fled the Nazis.  Later, while grandpa was still an American soldier, he returned to the destroyed home of his family and found the Menorah buried in the ashes.  This is a true miracle that his family celebrates every year.  Age 6+

These are some of my favorite Hanukkah books.  What are your favorites?

Santa Clauses: Short Poems from the North Pole by Bob Raczka, illustrated by Chuck Groenick

It's almost Christmas and the air is electric with anticipation.  Sometimes, though, it is nice to step away from all the hustle and bustle, the crowds and the long, long lines, make some nice hot chocolate for everyone (or whatever else tickles your fancy), put the kids into their pajamas and get ready to enjoy reading the calmest, most delightful of Christmas books.

Santa Clauses is a collection of 25 haikus written by Santa as he prepares for his big travel night.  There is a short introduction explaining how Santa was inspired to write his own poems about life at the North Pole in the month of December, after Mrs. Claus had given him a book of them.  Santa loved these Japanese haikus so much, he decided to try his hand at writing this particular form of short but expressive poetry.

And so each day, Santa finds something around him that is inspirational.  Maybe it's Mrs. Claus making snow angels on December 3rd (my personal favorite), or moving names from the naughty to the nice list on December  6th.  How about a kiss under the mistletoe from Mrs. Claus on December 11th.  All the big and small joyful moments that go into making Christmas a magical time are recounted in Santa's poems.  Even practical moments, like untangling the Christmas tree lights, or making toys in the workshop with the elves while listening to holiday music on the radio, become the stuff of poetry.

And lets not forget the beauty surrounding the North Pole, even if a reindeer does come along and eat the snowman's carrot nose, there are trees trimmed with pine cones, snow and icicles, and the stars overhead the outshine the lights on even the largest of outdoor light decorations.  It's all there.  Santa is an astute observer of life around him and he writes about it all happily and tenderly.

Santa Clauses is a wonderful book to read as at bedtime, or anything time holiday anticipation gets too high, or toy commericals threaten to overwhelm.  Readers are sure to sigh, to laugh and to just get that overall good feeling that should be so much a part of Christmas and that Bob Raczka has captured so well.

The 25 haikus are a real window into Santa's life that kids are sure to love seeing.  And, since the form of the haiku is described in the introduction, parents and kids might want to try their own hand at expressing the moments or traditions that mean much to them during the holiday season.

And, since there is one haiku for each day, you might even use this beautiful book as an advent calendar, reading one poem a day as a family.

The illustrations so perfectly match the mood of the haikus.  Artist Chuck Groenink used a muted palette to create illustrations that remind the reader of folk art using pencils, gouache and photoshop.

Santa Clauses is a welcome addition to any collection of holiday books, and is sure to become a family favorite and reading it a yearly tradition.

This book is recommended for readers age 4+
This book was an EARC received from NetGalley

Magic in the Mix by Annie Barrows

Molly and Miri Gill are fraternal twins, unlike their identical older twin brothers Ray and Robbie and their identical younger twin sisters Nora and Nell.  The only difference is that Molly was originally living in 1935 when Miri traveled back in time and found her.  Both girls traveled forward to Miri's time and have lived as twin sisters ever since, and luckily, everyone has a little mind adjustment so no one except Molly and Miri remembers what it was like before Molly arrived - they remember only that she was always there.

OK, that and more is what happened in Annie Barrows's first book The Magic Half.  Now Molly has lived in the present long enough that she doesn't make too many slip ups about her former life.  But suddenly, during some house renovations, the magic comes back, the girl time travel back to 1935 again.  But why?  Then, they are also sent back to 1918 and Molly meets her real mom as a teen.  Molly's mom had died after marrying and having Molly, which is why she was living with mean Aunt Flo in 1935.  When Molly realizes that she could possibly change her mother's fate by going back to 1918 again and preventing her from meeting her future dad, she begins to believe maybe she needs to do, even though it would mean giving up Miri and her new, great life with the Gills.

Meanwhile, twins Ray and Robbie are in trouble in history class, and have to participate in a Civil War reenactment to help bring up their grade.  Turns out, the boys really like enacting the Civil War, but then they get in trouble (again) for not doing their homework, and they are not allowed to go back to the battlefield until all it's done.  So the boys try to sneak out of the house when the parents and youngest twin sisters are out.  Suddenly, Miri realizes that her brothers have time traveled back too, but to where?  When she and Molly follow them, they discover they are in the midst of the Civil War as it happened in their neighborhood.  And Ray and Robbie, dressed in Union uniforms for their reenactment, have just been captured by Confederate soldiers.

Molly and Mire can't help but wonder why all this happened?  After all, the magic is supposed to set things right, not make them more complicated.

I really thought Magic in the Mix was a very readable middle grade time travel novel that will probably have lots of appeal to young readers despite or even maybe because of the amount of Civil War history included.  The real story, however, revolves around the tough dilemma the girls are facing that would separate them for life, and on solving the mystery of what the magic needed to set right with their help in 1864, 1918 and 1935.

One of the things I liked about Magic in the Mix is the way the girls arrive right where their house is each time they travel back in time.  Barrows describes the area through Miri's observations so that the reader get a sense of time as far as how the house, the yard and the people living there change over time.  By connecting it all to the Gill family, it really shows how the past is so connected to the present (and presumably the future).

I had never read The Magic Half, so I was afraid that maybe I wouldn't really be able to appreciate this novel completely, but it really is a good stand alone story.  The reader is given just the right amount of information they need to understand the history of Molly and Miri and how they became twin sisters.

Twins are always popular in literature for young readers and they seem to be gaining in popularity these days (because there are so many more twins being born nowadays? Perhaps).  That special bond they have with each other makes the idea of twins very appealing.  Young readers don't have to be a twin, though, to enjoy this fun novel.

This book is recommended for readers age 8+
This book was an EARC received from NetGalley

Two Books about Words

For as long as I can remember, there have always been a dictionary and thesaurus sitting on my desk, just waiting to be used.  The editions have been updated and replaced, but they are always there and like best friends, they got me through elementary, junior high, high school, college, MA and, finally, PhD.  One Christmas, when my Kiddo was old enough, I gave her her own dictionary and thesaurus, and they have been her constant companions ever since.

Naturally, I found these two books to be very interesting.  I hope you do, too.

Noah Webster & his Words by Jeri Chase Ferris, illustrated by Vincent X. Kirsch

So many times, I am sitting here writing a post and  find myself needing to double check the definition of a word I am about to use.  So I go to my trusty dictionary and look it up.  What would I ever do with my Webster's Dictionary?  But who is this Webster guy?

Born in Connecticut in 1758, by the time Noah Webster was a boy of 12, his father wanted him to become a farmer and follow in his footsteps.  But Noah didn't want to farm, he wanted to go the school and study.  Luckily for the world, his father was persuaded to send Noah off to Yale to study Latin and Greek when he turned 15.

During the American Revolution, Noah taught school, but all he and his students had were some old schoolbooks from England.  When the war ended, Noah decided to write an American speller, a book that would no longer use British spellings- for example, favour would be spelled favor, dropping the British u.  Not satisfied even after publishing an American grammar book, after marrying, Noah went to Paris, London and Cambridge to study 20 languages while collecting and defining all kinds of words, including where they originally came from.  Eventually, this work became Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language.

Noah Webster and his Words is a wonderful multilayered biography and vocabulary builder.  In what could easily have become a dry, dull biography, Ferris has tempered this picture book for old readers with humor and historical details from Webster's time, creating instead an interesting and very readable book.  But, vocabulary builder, you ask?  Yes, indeed.  The book introduces the reader to new words and their meanings right in the text, for example: Noah was EC-STAT-IC [adj.: filled with pleasure; delighted; thrilled]!  No flipping back and forth from text to back-of-the-book glossary here.

There is, however, information timeline that parallels Webster's life and the same years in American history, as well as a nice bibliography and websites for the curious, as even a bit more information about Noah Webster.

The illustrations do much from this text in visually presenting Noah life history and work.  Using fun, whimsical, cartoon-like mixed media illustrations, Vincent X. Kirsch has given Noah a very large head,  in comparison to his body and making me think that perhaps it was big because it was so full of words, but also extending the playfulness of the text.

America was still a young country when Webster began his work and, through his speller, grammar and dictionary, he certainly played an important part in giving the United States her own word personality.

An extensive discussion and activity guide is available for Noah Webster and his Words HERE

This book is recommended for readers age 4-8, but I have to disagree and recommend it for readers age 7+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus by Jennifer Fisher Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

A dictionary is good for giving us the definition of a word, but what if we need to find just the right word for what we want to say?  For that, we turn to a book of antonyms and synonyms called the thesaurus and we owe a rousing thanks to Peter Mark Roget.

Born in London in 1779, Peter's father died in 1783 when Peter was only 4 years old.  The family moved often and Peter found it hard to make friends because of that, and it wasn't helped by his shyness.  But he found comfort in books, and later, he brought order to his life by making lists that classified and organized words and concepts, for example, things that fly, things in the garden.  Peter was only 8 when he wrote his first book of lists; with his lists, "the world itself clicked into order."

Later, Peter would go to Scotland and study medicine, becoming a well-known, well-respected physician, but he never stopped creating new lists of concepts and words.  Finally, in 1852, Peter published his first thesaurus.  It became an immediate best seller.

 Webster defines the word thesaurus as a book in which words that have the same or similar meanings are grouped together.  But Roget picked the word thesaurus for his lists based in the Latin meaning of "treasure-house." And both are right.

The Right Word is a treasure house of biographical information about Peter Roget.  As a physician, teacher, writer of scholarly articles and family man, it seems amazing that he found any time at all to keeps his passion for making lists going, but his love of words and order were clearly too compelling for his to not do it.  And Peter succeeded in making it a book that anyone can use, not just scholars.

Melissa Sweet's incredible watercolor, mixed media and collage illustrations are a perfection reflection of the text and of Peter Roget's life.   Her playfulness with the words and lists, and with the biographical events of this quiet man's life add a clarity despite their seeming disorder - but that's the point, isn't it.  Life is disorderly, but ordered in Roget's lists.  Sweet's artwork never fails to amaze me and if parents or teachers read this beautiful picture book for older readers with young people, be sure to linger over and discuss each illustration to appreciate their full impact, and don't forget the endpapers.

At the end of The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus is a list of the important events in Roget's life, an Author's Note and Illustrator's Note that should not be skipped and a bibliography, suggestions for further reading as a list of quoted sources.

A classroom guide is available for The Right Word HERE

This book is recommended for readers age 7+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

These are books 9 and 10 of my Nonfiction Picture Book Reading Challenge hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy