January 2017 – Mom Read It

Family Storytime: Pizza!

Posted on January 31, 2017January 30, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

I led a family storytime in Corona and decided go with a pizza theme. Who doesn’t love pizza, right? Since family storytimes are for all ages, I included a fun pizza craft after the storytime, and everyone seemed to have a great time.

Books:

Hello song!

Story: Secret Pizza Party, by Adam Rubin

Story: Hi, Pizza Man!, by Virginia Walter
This is such a great book, and I hope it gets put back into print. While waiting for a pizza delivery, a child and caregiver imagine what they would say to a gaggle of different pizza delivery… folks.

Song: “I Wish I Were a Pepperoni Pizza” (Tune: Oscar Meyer theme)
Oh, I wish I were a pepperoni pizza,
That is what I’d truly like to be,
For if I were a pepperoni pizza,
Everyone would be in love with me!

Rhyme: “Pizza Man!” (Tune: Pat-a-Cake)
Pat a pie, pat a pie, Pizza Man.
Make me a pizza as fast as you can!
Roll it and toss it and sprinkle it with cheese.
And don’t forget 5 pepperonis please!

Story: Pete’s a Pizza, by William Steig
This is a great story to get little ones and caregivers interacting. As Pete’s parents make Pete a pizza, they roll him out (tickle him), cover him in “pepperoni”, and carry him to the oven (the couch) to bake him. Parents can play along with kids at the library or even more fun, at home.

Song: “If You Want to Eat Some Pizza” (Tune: If You’re Happy and You Know It)
If you want to eat some pizza, clap your hands,(clap, clap),
If you want to eat some pizza, clap your hands, (clap, clap),
If you like bubbly cheese ,then just say “Pizza, please!”
If you want to eat some pizza, clap your hands, (clap, clap).
If you want to eat some pizza, stamp your feet,(stamp, stamp)…
If you want to eat some pizza, shout “Hooray!”, (“Hooray!”)…
If you want to eat some pizza, do all three, (Clap, clap, stamp, stamp, “Hooray!”)

Thanks to Storytime Katie and Perpetual Preschool for the pizza songs!

Goodbye song!

Craft: Make Your Own Pizzas!
For this craft, I handed out small paper plates and construction paper in red, brown, green, and yellow for toppings. Families used safety scissors and glue sticks to create their own pizzas and took them home.

Middle Grade, Non-Fiction, Non-fiction, Tween Reads

Time For Kids Presidents is a good desk reference for middle graders

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Time for Kids: Presidents of the United States, by Editors at Time for Kids, (Jan. 2017, Time for Kids), $15.95, ISBN: 978-1683300007

Recommended for ages 8-12

Time for Kids’ Presidents of the United States is a slim, backpack and desk-friendly reference guide for middle graders. Loaded with color photos and illustrations, there are facts about the Presidency, branches of government, political parties and why we have them, a spotlight on the First Ladies, and more. Each President receives a brief biography, fast facts, including birth and death dates, political party, Vice President, wife, children, key dates during his administration, and a Did You Know? fact. A 2016 election spotlight and President portrait gallery completes the volume, along with links to the White House website, Presidential homesteads and museums. The volume includes an index.

This is a helpful resource for middle graders – it will help with social studies and current events homework, and provides a quick, easy reading experience by chunking information into readable bites. A good buy for classroom libraries and social studies collections.

Infant/Baby, programs, Storytime, Storytime

Storytime: What Baby Can Do

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

This was a storytime I tried out with my Corona infants a little over a year ago. It’s meant to be a lapsit for babies about 6-10 months, but toddlers had fun with this one, too. I tried to keep a good mix popular songs and fingerplays, with some books that encouraged parents to be interactive with the little ones.

Books read:

Opening Song: Hello, My Friends! (to the tune of “A Hunting We Will Go“)

Hello, my friends, hello!
Hello, my friends, hello!
Hello, my friends, hello, my friends,
Hello, my friends, hello!

Story: Wiggle Your Toes, by Karen Katz

Song: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes.

And eyes, and ears, and mouth,
And nose.

Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes.

(When I’m doing this with preschoolers, I’ll have the kids do it faster, and again superfast. They love it!)

Fingerplay: This Little Piggie
This little piggie went to market,
This little piggie stayed home,
This little piggie had roast beef,
And this little piggie had none.
But THIS little piggie went WEE, WEE, WEE, all the way home!

Story: Peek-A-Baby, by Karen Katz

Rhyme: One Hand, Two Hands
One hand can wave, (wave)
One hand can tap, (tap your knee with your hand)
But they each need a friend
If they want to clap! (clap hands together!)
Thanks to Perry Public Library for this one!

Rhyme: We Can! (great for toddlers, but easily adapted for babies)
We can jump, jump, jump, (bounce baby on your lap!)
We can hop, hop, hop, (bounce baby!)
We can clap, clap, clap, (clap baby’s hands!)
We can stop, stop, stop. (hold baby’s hands in a stopping motion)
We can nod our heads for yes, (nod)
We can shake our heads for no, (shake your head)
We bend our knees a little bit, (gently bend baby’s knees)
And we can sit down slow.
Thanks to Perry Public Library for this one!

Rhyme: My Hands (copy the actions)
My hands upon my head I place,
Upon my shoulders, on my face,
On my hops, and by my side,
Now behind me they will hide,
I can raise them way up high,
And make my fingers fly, fly, fly,
Now they are in front of me,
I will clap them, 1, 2, 3!
Thanks to Perry Public Library for this one!

Story: Counting Kisses, by Karen Katz (I encourage my parents to kiss along with the story, with adorable results and giggling babies)

Song: Hokey Pokey (again, great for toddlers, easily adaptable for babies by having caregivers sit in a circle and raise each body part for baby)
You put your right hand in,
You put your right hand out,
You put your right hand in,
And you shake it all about,
You do the hokey pokey
and you turn yourself around
That what it’s all about!

2) left hand
3) right foot
4) left foot
5) head
6) tush
7) whole self

Closing Song: Goodbye, My Friends! (same tune as the Hello song)

Goodbye, my friends, goodbye!
Goodbye, my friends, goodbye!
Goodbye, my friends, goodbye, my friends,
Goodbye, my friends, goodbye!

Fiction, Middle Grade, Middle School, Realistic Fiction, Tween Reads

A girl tries to bring her family back together in The Haunted House Project

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Haunted House Project, by Tricia Clasen, (Oct. 2016, Sky Pony Press), $15.99, ISBN: 9781510707122

Recommended for ages 8-12

When Andie’s mom died in a tragic accident, she left a huge hole in her family. Andie’s dad drifts from job to job, spending more time drinking and gambling away their insurance money. Andie’s older sister, Paige, holds down a diner job in addition to being a high school student, just to make sure there’s food on the table. Andie’s having a harder time holding it together at school, and teachers are starting to notice. Seemingly left on her own most of the time, Andie comforts herself with ghost stories; she wants desperately to believe that there’s a way she can reach out to her mother, somehow. When Isaiah, her science partner, suggests they study paranormal activity for their project, Andie gets a spark of inspiration: what if she were to haunt her family’s home, making them believe her mother was reaching out to them? Would it bring them back together? She sprays perfume, leaves objects and writes messages around the house, hoping to get a reaction from her father and sister. Whether or not it will be the reaction she wants remains to be seen.

The Haunted House Project is a touching story of grief and loss, and one girl’s attempt to bring her mother back the only way she knows how. She grieves not only for her mother, but the normalcy of everyday life. It’s an honest look at a girl coming of age under difficult circumstances; it’s a look at how friendships can change, and it’s a story about one child trying to repair her broken family. Readers will feel sympathy for Andie; some will, empathize with her, and most readers will understand the desperation of wanting. This is a strong yet gentle work of fiction that will go well with Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Cynthia Rylant’s Missing May.

Fantasy, Middle Grade, Tween Reads

Get #DeckedOutforDragonwatch!

Posted on January 27, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Okay, Fablehaven fans, the next series is coming: Dragonwatch, by Brandon Mull, is coming in March – but the team at Shadow Mountain Publishing is sharing a book trailer TODAY, and I’ve got it right here. Enjoy.

Do you have a Google Cardboard, Oculus Rift, or other VR device? Then make sure to check this out, too:

Finally, Shadow Mountain has a fun contest for my fellow dragon fans: Decked out for Dragonwatch! Here are the details:

Pay tribute to your favorite dragons! Send us a photo on social media and Brandon Mull may pick YOU as the fan most “Decked Out for Dragonwatch”!

If you love dragons, gather together your best dragon gear and unleash your imagination by creating a space in your home, classroom, library, or local bookstore that pays tribute to all your favorite dragons from Fablehaven and anywhere else in the universe.

Take a picture of your “Decked Out for Dragonwatch” space and send it to us via social media. Brandon Mull will choose the best, most creative spaces from submitted entries, and we’ll send those lucky fans and autographed copy of Dragonwatch plus a copy of The Caretaker’s Guide to Fablehaven and Fablehaven Book of Imagination.

See the website for the five ways to enter and the official rules: http://brandonmull.com/decked/, and follow https://www.instagram.com/deckedoutfordragonwatch/.

Good luck, and watch this space for a Dragonwatch review soon!

Animal Fiction, Early Reader, Fiction, Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Boo! Who’s biggest? Who’s bravest?

Posted on January 27, 2017August 29, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Boo!, by Ben Newman, (Apr. 2017, Nobrow), $12.99, ISBN: 9781911171058

Recommended for ages 3-6

A cute little mouse claims to be the bravest animal around, but he has no idea what’s coming up behind him… BOO! Each animal in Boo! is ready to brag about being the bravest, but there’s always a shadow lurking, waiting to pounce in the next spread in this fun cumulative story. This is a fun story about size and how being the biggest may not always mean being the bravest. It’s a fun, interactive read, giving kids the opportunity to call out when there’s a rising shadow that the current bravest animal doesn’t know about, and to yell, “BOO!” in each reveal. You can make animal noises, ask kids to predict what animal is in shadow, and what animal could be scarier as you progress.

There’s a nice rhythm to the story: animal states that he or she is the bravest; the opposite page shows a shadowy antagonist rising up behind the current star of the story, and the following spread features the jump scare reveal. Kids will love the suspense and the chance to be part of the story. Ben Newman’s retro art is fun and bright, with exaggerated scale and reactions for his characters. This is an especially great read-aloud, yell-along book for toddler and pre-k audiences! Fun endpapers show the progression of the scare chain.

Ben Newman is an award-winning illustrator who also works on the Professor Astro Cat children’s books with Dr. Dominic Walliman; also published by Nowbrow/Flying Eye Books. His website has a podcast, some great artwork and a trailer for Boo!, which is currently released in the UK.

Adventure, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Middle Grade, Science Fiction, Tween Reads

Star Scouts gets the merit badge for fun reading!

Posted on January 26, 2017February 6, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Star Scouts, by Mike Lawrence, (March 2017, First Second), $14.99, ISBN: 9781626722804

Recommended for ages 8-12

Avani Patel is not feeling this new scouts Flower Scouts troop her parents signed her up for. She’s the new kid, her parents figured it would be a new way to make friends, but the Flower Scouts are so lame. All they talk about are boys and makeovers; it’s totally out of line with her interests, like rodeos and adventure. Things change for the better when Avani is accidentally picked up by an alien named Mabel, who happens to be a scout – a Star Scout – working on one of her badges. The two girls hit it off, and Avani finds herself an unofficial Star Scout! She’s zooming around on a jetpack, working on teleportation, and avoiding the xenoscatology lab; she’s made some out of this world friends, and she’s happy. When Star Scouts announce their yearly camping trip, Avani manages to fib her father into signing off on the trip – she’s going away to camp, she doesn’t need to mention that it’s not exactly on the planet, right? But shortly after arriving at Camp Andromeda, Avani finds herself on the wrong side of a rival group of aliens; Avani, Mabel and their friends are in for a heck of a week, if they can work together to get through it.

Star Scouts is a fun outer-space adventure for middle graders. It’s scouting with a little more adventure added in, and lots of hilarious bathroom humor (look, I raised three boys, I find poop and fart jokes funny) to keep readers cracking up. There are positive messages about friendship and working together that parents and caregivers will appreciate, and the two main characters are spunky girls that aren’t afraid to take on an adventure.

If you want to go the sci-fi way with displays and booktalks, you have to pair this with Zita the Spacegirl and Cleopatra in Space. You can revisit this book when you’re getting ready for Summer Reading by booktalking this with camp books like Camp Midnight, Beth Vrabel’s Camp Dork, and Nancy Cavanaugh’s Just Like Me.

Check out more of Mike Cavanaugh’s illustration at his website.

ALA Midwinter, Conferences & Events

My first ALA Midwinter!

Posted on January 25, 2017January 25, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

I attended my first ALA Midwinter this past weekend, and weather be damned, I had a great time. I wasn’t on any committees this time, but I was one of ALSC’s live bloggers, attended some great events, sent home an insane amount of ARCs, and, the most exciting event for me, attended the Youth Media Awards.

First things first: ALA is HUGE. The Georgia World Congress Center is tremendous. I’m a New Yorker, I’ve been to BookExpo and New York ComicCon at the Javits Center, but the Georgia World Congress Center is even bigger. I felt like I was a librarian Dora the Explorer, heading off with my tote bag, rather than my backpack, exploring the terrain. Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry about a snarky fox stealing my swag, and I was surrounded by pretty amazing librarians and their families. There were kids galore at the conference, which made me happy: let’s get the kids excited about what we do! Bring the next generation in!

Contemplating the big questions at the Penguin Random House booth

Let’s talk about the ARCs. Advance Reader Copies. I thought I brought home books from PLA last year, but no. I sent home a LOT of boxes – thanks for having the Post Office on site, ALA and USPS! – and a tube, because there are posters that I have the bulletin board space for (and a really cool Dragonwatch poster from Shadow Mountain) and can’t wait to show off to the kiddos here. I can’t wait to dive into these beauties and start reading and reviewing; some of the books I took home included the sequel to Joshua Khan’s Shadow Magic, Dream Magic; a new Gum Girl adventure, called Gum Luck; an Animal Planet intermediate fiction series, and the Shannon Hale/LeUyen Pham collaboration, Real Friends. There is so much great intermediate series fiction and middle grade fiction coming out!

There were several maker events, and that’s right up my alley. One of my favorites was the DK maker event promoting their new book, Out of the Box. It’s filled with cardboard engineering projects. Projects that you can make using cardboard! I’m a librarian, I’m surrounded by boxes all day long, I got this! We each received a tote bag, and sat at tables with toilet paper rolls, paint pens, scissors, and instructions on making our own cardboard tube owls. My fellow make-brarians and I had a blast, laughing, talking, and trying to make our owls look like… well, owls.

I call this “myth vs. reality”.

A Scholastic literary event spotlighted some upcoming middle grade fiction. In Gordon Korman’s newest book, Restart, we meet a bully who’s lost his memory; Natasha Tarpley’s novel, Harlem Charade, blends mystery and art, starring a protagonist trying to solve the mystery of who attacked his grandfather, and Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang collaborated on This is Just a Test, which takes an often hilarious look at a Chinese-American Jewish boy in the early 1980s, who’s worried about nuclear war and his two warring grandmothers.

Each author spoke briefly, introducing themselves, their books, and what led him or her to write these stories. In a fun departure from the usual author readings, the authors engaged one another by turning their excerpts into a brief radioplay, where each participant took on a character role to act out the story. Scholastic was also kind enough to give us a tote bag full of books – the books spotlighted at the reading, and new selections from Emma Donohue, Kathryn Lasky, Lamar Giles, and Amy Sarig King.

I wanted so badly to meet John Lewis. I’ve been a fan of his since I read March: Book One several years ago, and was hoping upon hope that I could get to shake his hand. It wasn’t to be, sadly; the line to meet him stretched around the exhibit hall, and I chickened out. There will be another time, I hope.

Finally, the big time: the ALA Youth Media Awards. The biggies. The Caldecott, the Newbery, the Printz, all the big ALA awards for children’s and teen books happen here. It was such an experience, being in the room with other librarians and book lovers, celebrating the authors who have created memorable characters, told incredible stories. When John Lewis’ March: Book Three received an unprecedented FOUR AWARDS, we almost took the roof off of the Center! People were hugging, cheering, crying… it was an unforgettable moment, and I’m so grateful that I was there to enjoy it. You can find the full list of Youth Media Award winners here.

My first ALA was a heck of a great time. I’m not sure I’ll make it to ALA Annual this year, but there’s always next year. Lord knows I’ll be reading ARCs until then!

I’ve Storified my ALA Midwinter pictures here, if you want to see more.

Fantasy, Fiction, Middle Grade, Tween Reads

Two kids discover an uncommon society below modern-day London

Posted on January 25, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Uncommoners #1: The Crooked Sixpence, by Jennifer Bell, (Jan. 2017, Crown Books for Young Readers), $16.99, ISBN: 9780553498431

Recommended for ages 9-12

Ivy Sparrow and her big brother, Seb, are worried about their grandmother Sylvie when she has a fall. Their parents are away on business, and it’s just the two of them, so when they discover that Grandma Sylvie’s home has been ransacked, and a strange, toilet brush-wielding policeman tries to arrest them, they have the feeling that strange things are afoot. They manage to escape, via suitcase – no, not carrying one, IN one – to a secret, underground city called Lundinor, where seemingly everyday objects can hold fantastic powers. They’re uncommon, and so are the people with a gift for wielding them. Healing buttons, weaponized drumsticks and yo-yos, almost anything can be uncommon in Lundinor. But Ivy and Seb don’t have the luxury of time; an evil force wants something that Grandma Sylvie has, and they’re willing to do anything to get it back from them. In trying to figure out what they want, Ivy and Seb will meet new friends and discover things about Grandma Sylvie’s past that they never could have imagined.

The Uncommoners is the first in a new middle grade fantasy series by debut author Jennifer Bell. In parts, reminiscent of Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere, The Crooked Sixpence is a good beginning with worldbuilding and character creation, but was missing the spark that made this book – for me – truly unputdownable. Ms. Bell is at her best when she brings us her Lundinors: Ethel, the proprieter of a bell shop and Scratch, the bell; Violet, who trades in magical buttons, and Erebus and Cerebus, hellhounds who can be summoned with a specific bell and by yelling, “WALKIES!”, stole my heart and made me fall in love with Lundinor, much as I adore Gaiman’s London Below. The horrific selkies made for delightfully skin-crawling reading.

This is a promising start to a new fantasy series. Give this to your middle grade fans who enjoy some British wit (Roald Dahl, David Walliams) and fans who enjoy a little magic in their reality.

Graphic Novels, Teen, Women's History

The life of a legend, through the eyes of those who knew her: California Dreamin’

Posted on January 20, 2017August 29, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

California Dreamin’, by Pénélope Bagieu, (March 2017, First Second), $24.99, ISBN: 9781626725461

Recommended for ages 12+

Mama Cass is a music legend. A member of The Mamas and the Papas folk group in the late 1960s, I grew up hearing the group bemoan Monday mornings and dream about California when the winters got too cold. There’s been a lot of ink spilled, writing about the dysfunctional group and its members, but Pénélope Bagieu pays homage to Cass by looking at her earliest years, before and leading up to the formation of the group, in her graphic novel, California Dream: Cass Elliot Before The Mamas and the Papas.

Beginning with her birth, California Dreamin’ tells Cass’ story through the eyes of the people in her life; her family, her friends, her band members. We learn something about each of them as they reveal their stories about life with Cass, and we get a glimpse into some of the singer’s defining moments: her work with Denny Doherty and the band, The Mugwumps; the group coming forming while performing in the Virgin Islands; Mama Cass joining The Mamas and the Papas despite John Phillips’ insistence that she was just providing “guest vocals”, and that the band was himself, Michelle Phillips, and Denny Doherty.

The art is expressive and touching; Bagieu makes her characters cartoony but real; touching and intense. Making Cass’ story a graphic novel will hopefully appeal to a younger audience who may not know the singer or her group, but will appreciate her ability to make things happen for herself and never take no for an answer.

Pénélope Bagieu’s first US graphic novel was 2015’s Exquisite Corpse..