FOR THE YOUNGER SET OF READERS

NANCY ELIZABETH WALLACE has written a lovely book called THE KINDNESS QUILT (Marshall Cavendish, 2006 $16.99(. After Mrs Bloom's class read and discussed the Aesop fable, "The Lion and the Mouse" the children set out to a Do-And-Draw-And Share Kindness Project. After sharing each project on the first day someone remarked that all together they resembled a quilt. So the idea was born. Simple text with very lively illustrations all childlike. The finished quilt finally involved the whole school. Gentle idea showing how acts of kindness spawn other acts of kindness. BRUCE GOLDSTONE has done an interesting math concept book. Bruce has had a career writing math word problems for kids so it is no surprise he developed this interest into a colorful picture book. GREAT ESTIMAT- IONS (Henry Holt, 2006, $16.95) The text is actually nothing more than series of pictures of groups of items like coins, cereal os, etc. In the text Bruce teaches youngsters how to go about grouping to make intelligent estimations. I found the book fascinating and in a way probably helpful. MARGIE PALATINI and HENRY COLE are teamed up again in the clever BAD BOYS GET COOKIE! (HarperCollins, 2006, $16.99 Readers met Wally and Willy in the first book, BAD BOYS. They boys once again are up to No- good. It seems the baker's cookie has run off and our friends are about to give chase. But the Bad Boys need a plan to capture the cookie. And here is where the fun begins. There is the expected chase including having the boys disguise themselves as Hansel and Gretel. But, if you remember, there is a witch and an oven in that story. What are our two friends in for here? The story and art mesh beautifully. The faces on the wolves are so funny. One can almost hear them running about setting up Plans A and B. I loved it and I'm sure the children will also. A remarkable book to talk about is MAX'S WORDS by KATE BANKS pictures by Boris Kulikov (Farrar Straus Griuox, 2006, $16.00). Max has two older brothers, Benjamin who collects stamps and Karl who collects coins. When he asks them for just one of each of the collections, the brothers send him off empty-handed. So, Max is determined to start his own coll- ection. And what does he see around him waiting to be collected: WORDS. He starts with the small words a, the, an, ate, who and eventually gets to the bigger words and words that made him feel good. Ultimately his collection was so large it spread from his room to the hallway. But the words needed order of some kind and Max solves that problem in a clever way. Ultimately the two hoarding brothers are curious about his extensive collection and they join Max--after each, of course, parts with one from their collections. The artwork here is so appropriate for the storyline sort of collage like with the words having been cut from a variety of sources. Max is shown as a really curious young man who has become attracted to his marvelous collection. The Extinct Files: My Science Project by WALLACE EDWARDS (Kids Can Press, 2006, $17.95 shows young readers that science can be fun. Jacket copy states, "Are dinosaurs really extinct? Wally says no ... and he's got his science project to prove it!" And we have Wally's notebook to prove his theory. The book is designed to look like a notebook and is organized as any science proof project would be. The illustrations are very funny and add greatly to the text. I am certein kids all over will really take to this book. ANNE ROCKWELL has a new paperback, THEY CALLED HER MOLLY PITCHER (Ran- dom House Dragonfly, 2006, $6.99) The book is illustrated by Cynthia von Buhler. There is considerable text in this book which should make it more appealing to the 3rd-4th graders studying American history. A nice picture of this heroine.

AND THEN I FOUND...

In my reading lifetime I have been fortunate enough to discover some truly remarkable reads. I recall fondly the day I stumbled on VIOLETT by Julia Cunningham the story of the thrush in France who could no longer sing because the beauty of life was gone. Or even later THE CRYSTAL CHILD by Barbara Wersba where the statue in the garden has observed the life of a very special child. Then there's STONE FOX which a young boy (aged 9) informed me, "Mister, this is the best book ever written, Really, I should know. I even cried." Who should know better than a child, I ask you. Well, I have found another treasure I must share with you. No one placed the book in my hands; no, I read catalog copy and thought the description interesting enough to explore. The book is not marketed for young readers especially. Rather the age of the heroine caught my eye. So, I requested a copy of HURT GO HAPPY by Ginny Rorby (Starscape, A Tom Doherty Associates Book (and I have talked to his daughter) 2006, $17.95). In the story we meet 13 year old Joey Willis who feels she is missing much of what is said around her. Joey is deaf but not from birth. Rather her deafness occurred from an accident at age 4. So, Joey can remem- ber sounds vaguely. her mother has insisted she learn to read lips and not learn sign language. This has worked in a limited way, but,for example, she can not read her stepfather lips because he maintains a bushy mustache in order to cover his decaying teeth. So, Joey is a loner for the most part. She has one particular friend at school and that's about it. Her baby brother Luke takes up some of her time. Also she collect mushrooms for her mother. Some plants are to make dyes for paints her mother uses in her artwork; other are for eating. One day while searching for mushrooms she travels beyond her family's land and is suddenly grabbed on her shoulder from behind. The man has been yelling at her but speaking to her back. She has not been able to read his lips. Following him Joey spies a small animal wearing a diaper. This chimp lovingly called Sukari was brought to America from Africa as an infant, and she can use sign language to express her needs and to be in contact with the adults around her. This chimp is better equipped to communicate than Joey is. Joey's burning desire, of course, is to learn sign. Her mother's adamant in her refusal to have her daughter not stick out so dramatically as she feel sign users do. The owner of the chimp is a doctor professor and even he can not dissuade Joey's mother from her very limited approach to Joey's future. Finally he arranges for Joey to attend a school for the deaf to learn sign. Mean- while Joey's relationship to Sukari has blossomed into a full loving and caring arrangement. An accident happens and the doctor is injured and dies. However, his estate has been left to Joey for her education primarily. He has informed Joey's mother about his wishes, but ahe has chosen not to share the information. Eventually Sukari is sold to an animal testing facility where she will be used to test disinfectants. Through guile and ingenuity Joey sets out to save her beloved friend from this inhumanity. This book speaks eloquently about the abuse being suffered by test animals in America. Those loving little chimps we enjoy in ads and movies have no place to go after they age except to these testing facilities. This story should awaken every animal rights advocate in the world about this tragedy. The book accomplishes this beautifully without using a soapbox. You will love Joey, Sukari, the doctor bene- factor brother Luke and even her stepfather when you read this book. I loved every minute and the message here will remain with me forever and ever, I am positive. Get a copy today; write to the author or publishers. You'll be glad you did, believe me!

SOME AMAZING READS!

A number of years ago I was excited about a book called FINAL JOURNEY written by Gudrun Pausewang. The author is one of Germany's foremost writers for teens. She is an activist for peace, social justice and environmental protection. She writes most passionately about the WWII years, her time of teenage angst. The war forced her to flee her village when she was seventeen. This flight and its resulting consequences is the story found in DARK HOURS. (Annick Press 2006, $21.95). Two days prior to Gisel's sixteenth birthday she along with her very pregnant mother, granny, and two younger brothers are forced to flee from the advancing Russian army. The family is enroute to Dresden the one German city of such beauty and antiquity they figured no one will ever bomb. At one train station they are forced off the train to seek shelter from a Russian air attack. The three children become separated from both of the adults travelling with them. In the crowded, dirty, smelly air raid shelter a young girl attaches herself to Gisel as her mother and nanny are lost. To clean everyone up from the dirt of the trip Gisel takes all her charges into the ladies room in the shelter. It is at that moment a Russian bomb hits the shelter and the children are buried in the rubble. The restroom stays intact but they are literally buried in the rubble. And thus begins the story of the children as they face the prospects of not being rescued. Their noise is heard by a wounded soldier trapped on the other side of the wall in the men's latrine. His encouragement, plus Gisel's oldest younger brother's ingenuity and her iron deter- mination to see her newest sibling and her family again keeps up her spirits and keeps the children from panic. She does celebrate her sixteenth birthday buried alive but even that milestone only helps her keep going. The reader lives those 48 hours in darkness with the kids, and when a beam of light appears from the top of the rubble pile I must confess I felt a tremendous sense of relief. The cast here are Germans but their suffering is no less severe. Their hope of reaching Dresden is shattered when, of course, they learn of the horrendous Allied bombing raid - which destroyed so much of that ancient and beautiful city. The ending of FINAL JOURNEY is so I guess FINAL when the young girl arrives at the camp and readies herself for a shower. Here Ms Pausewang is much more hopeful as the family ultim- ately do come back together at the close of the hostilities. This is a satisfying read and an important one. It takes our young readers into a situation with their sworn enemies, the axis of WWII. But these are kids going through this horrible situation. Can we make connections to the recent Israeli-Lebanese conflict. One only has to see the destroyed homes and watch the bodies of children being excavated in body bags. History repeats itself. Will we never learn! On a much lighter note I enjoyed LIBRARY LION, by Michelle Knudsen, illustrated by Kevin Hawkes (Candlewick Press, 2006, $15.99). This oversized book with magnificent illustrations begins: "One day, a lion came to the library. He walked right past the circulation desk and up into the stacks." The head librarian when informed of the new customer was only concerned if he had broken any of the rules of the library. Since he hadn't she allowed him to tour until he came to the Story Corner where he promptly went to sleep. You can just imagine what can happen when story hour is over and it's time to go. Yes, he roars his displeasure. Head librarian tells him he must be quiet if he expects to come back that is. The artwork here is very very funny. The lion's expressions are priceless. Story great too.

BITS AND PIECES FOR EVERYONE

LYNNE TRUSS has her adult book translated for younger readers in EATS SHOOTS & LEAVES: Why Commas Really Do Make a Difference , illustrated by Bonnie Timmons (Putnam, 2006, $15.99). The book in either version is a must read for all teachers. It is funny beyond words and gives marvelous illustrations of how important the commas truly is. The words coupled with the ridiculous illustrations will make any reader laugh. Language activities can be so much fun with kids. My favorite used to be Baby swallows fly." DEBRA FRASIER, latest book, A BIRTHDAY CAKE IS NO ORDINARY CAKE (Harcourt, 2006, $16.00) enumerates all the dream ingredients one must assemble to make that special birthday cake. The author is very imaginative as she gathers those special items needed to celebrate the birthday properly. Also included at the end of the book is a real recipe with two kinds of frosting--vanilla or creamy chocolate. Actually quite a lot of information included here. PAUL BRIGHT has a new picture book which I think is great fun. I'M NOT GOING OUT THERE! illustrated by Ben Cort (Good Books, 2006, $16.00) asks the question of who makes the boy cower under his bed. All kinds of possible scarey things are presented and ultimately discarded in favor of the absolutely worst kind of monster. This one has "...teeth that bite and gnash; It's got eyes that dart and flash. We can hear it grumping, jumping, Hear it stamping, stomping, thumping." Oh, just wait until that monster is exposed. It is so funny and so REAL too. Every little brother will identify with this one immediately. The art work is loud, large, colorful, scarey and funny funny funny! Loved it. Also from the same company Good Books comes CLAIRE FREEDMAN and CRISTINA STEPHENSON'S NEW KID IN TOWN. This is the story of what befalls every new kid in town. At first one hears about the Bad Guy who will attack you so you are constantly being warned to watch out for HIM. (or HER). One spends so much time worrying about what will happen when you two meet, it becomes a drain. Then, of course, the actual face to face and you discover that the worry was for naught. The worry becomes a friend and life goes on. The way this is handled here is very clever and with art to assist in such a clever way. Mouse finally says, "And although his eyes are yellow. he's a friendly kind of fellow." This loosens up the rest of the gang and they say, "Maybe we should give him a chance." Oh friendships among children--some hot--some cold--some new some old; there today--gone tomorrow--best friends forever--until someone comes along with gum to spare. I remember fondly my 7th graders and the trauma of lost friendships. How many after school hours were spent consoling young ones because their best friends were now sitting with someone else. I laugh today, but how serious it was for them then. When I see them today as 50 year olds and we recall those days we all have chuckles. BLADE NELSON author of Gender Blender has a new psychological thriller in PARANOID PARK. (Viking, 2006, $15.00) The story revolves around an impulsive-- act of violence and its chilling consequences. The nightmare begins in an underground skateboard park when the narrator, a high school junior, teams up with a borderline gutter punk. Grab hold! Gr 8+ Have you filled out a grant application for free books? Check out FRANK HODGE READING ASSOCIATION for details.