Category: Middle Grade

Posted in Intermediate, Middle Grade, Non-fiction, Non-Fiction, picture books, Preschool Reads

Animals, Animals, Animals!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Search for a Giant Squid, by Amy Seto Forrester/Illustrated by Andy Chou Musser, (Apr. 2023, Chronicle Books), $14.99, ISBN: 9781797213934

Ages 6-9

Choose your own adventure, nonfiction style! Readers can learn about the elusive giant squid while navigating their own adventure. The stage is set: the team is going on an expedition to find a giant squid. Readers can choose a scientist, a submersible, and a dive site, and each choice leads to a different adventure. Does every adventure end with a squid encounter? Maybe, maybe not, but there is a lot to learn and see. Colorful illustrations, a diverse and inclusive group of scientists to choose from, and comic book pacing, word bubbles, and explanations make this a great way to engage readers and interest them in STEM studies. Search for a Giant Squid has a starred review from Booklist.

 

The Wild Life of Animals, by Mike Barfield/Illustrated by Paula Bossio, (Aug. 2023, Kane Miller), $19.99, ISBN: 9781684646494

Ages 7-11

With comic book art and pacing, this look into the “secret lives of astounding animals” is a fun, informative add to animal collections. Organized by habitats and lifestyles, The Wild Life of Animals covers areas including oceans, rivers and swamps, grasslands, deserts and polar regions; nocturnal animals get their own section. Profiled animals tell their stories from their personal experience, with a sense of humor to educate and entertain: the Pygmy Hippopotamus, for instance, yawns, showing their tusks and teeth, and coyly asks, “is this a warning or am I just yawning? Come any nearer and you’ll soon find out!” A glossary is there to help readers learn new terms. Originally published in Great Britain earlier this year, this is a good volume for intermediate learners who enjoy animals; the graphic novel format makes this an excellent add to nonfiction and graphic nonfiction shelves.

 

LifeSize Deadly Animals, by Sophy Henn, Aug. 2023, Kane Miller), $17.99, ISBN: 9781684645671

Ages 3-8

Fans of Steve Jenkins’s Actual Size books will enjoy this look at some of the deadliest animals on the planet. Opening the book, readers are greeted by lifesize rendering of a harpy eagle’s talons, outstretched and ready to grab… your nose? Your arm? Page after page of life-sized color illustrations, accompanied with factual, easy-to-read text, present predators like the dragonfly (don’t laugh – you’re not a small insect!), the black caiman (so many teeth), or a lion (spiky tongue). Spreads lead up to the fold-out great white shark’s mouth, big enough to swallow… the reader? Back matter includes statistics on profiled animals, including how many LifeSize books it would take to measure one. A good companion series to the Actual Size books. LifeSize Deadly Animals is the fourth in the LifeSize series.

 

Who Made This Mess?, by Laura Gehl/Illustrated by Aleksandar Stojsic, (Aug. 2023, Capstone), $18.99, ISBN: 9781684466290

Ages 4-8

This laugh-out-loud farm mystery is perfect for a rollicking read-aloud. Nighttime moos, missing carrots and splattered mud, what is going on at the farm? The rhyming verse and pictures give readers just enough clues to make a guess… and the reveals hilariously defy expectations! Endpapers show silhouetted animals, wide-open eyes showing through; cartoon artwork is appealing and made for fun readalouds. A sweet story about relying on assumptions and keeping an open mind, this is a great way to get new students ready for a new school year. Pair this up with Sandra Boynton’s Barnyard Dance and Doreen Cronin’s Click Clack Moo books for hilarious barnyard fun.

 

Posted in Fiction, Fiction, Intermediate, Middle Grade, Science Fiction, Teen, Tween Reads, Young Adult/New Adult

More Graphic Novels – if you haven’t read them, they’re new to you!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Another graphic novel TBR rundown!

Tales of a Seventh-Grade Lizard Boy, by Jonathan Hill, (Sept. 2022, Walker Books), $24.99, ISBN: 9781536216462

Ages 8-12

Tommy Tompkins is the new kid in town, and he’s from somewhere REALLY different: he’s a lizard person from beneath the earth! Beginning seventh grade in a new town is tough enough, but Tommy has an entirely new face and has to pretend to eat human food, which he thinks is gross. It’s hard enough to hide his true self from people, but seeing how different beings are treated in the media makes him feel even worse: there’s a show that’s all about lizard people trying to take over the world, for crying out loud. He and his family aren’t trying to take over anything; they’re looking for a safe place to live. Making friends with other outsiders – Dung Tran, a Vietnamese kid whose scientist parents are working to figure out a series of mysterious sinkholes popping up in the area, and Scarlett Roberts, the janitor’s punk rock daughter – helps for a little while until Tommy lets jealousy get the best of him. A fun graphic novel with a relatable story about accepting and welcoming others, Tales of a Seventh Grade Lizard Boy builds on humor and delivers a stirring subplot focusing on Tommy’s isolation and longing for home. An author note details Hill’s inspiration for the story and details on delicious-sounding Vietnamese food. Endpapers add to the fun with a yearbook layout complete with scribbles over different class photos. A fun addition to graphic novel collections.

 

The Mighty Bite, by Nathan Hale, (Apr. 2023, Abrams), $14.99, ISBN: 9781419765537

Ages 7-10

The creator of Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales has a surreal new graphic novel that makes internet stars out of a Trilobite and a whale named Amber. The two don’t realize that the rest of the world thinks trilobites and ambulocetuses are extinct, so when paleo-newscaster Tiffany Timber discovers them, she thinks she’s going to be famous. Which makes Trilobite think he and Amber are going to be famous. It’s a manic and hilarious look at the hunt for those 15 minutes of fame, social media, and a video-making slobberknocker that hits the sweet spot for middle grade readers. Two-color blue and black illustration is calming against the frenetic pace of the novel, with wild fonts sharing space with giant gorillas, zombie pigs and maggot-infested harmonicas, and more. Hale sets up a possible sequel at the end. Middle graders will devour this one and relish the sheer mania.

The Mighty Bite has a starred review from Booklist.

 

Global: One Fragile World. An Epic Fight for Survival, by Eoin Colfer & Andrew Donkin/Illustrated by Giovanni Rigano, (Apr. 2023, Sourcebooks Young Readers), $14.99, ISBN: 9781728262192

Ages 10-14

The creative powerhouse behind 2018’s Illegal is back with a story of climate change. Two narratives; two stories; two areas of the world ravaged by climate change. At the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean, 12-year-old Sami lives with his grandfather. Orphaned by storms that also claimed their home, Sami and his grandfather try to eke out a living on their fishing boat, but there are fewer and fewer fish to be caught; there are also pirates who will steal their catch. Meanwhile, 14-year-old Yuki lives in Northern Canada inside the Arctic Circle. The ice is melting, and bears have begun wandering into residential areas, looking for food. Polar bears and brown bears, their territories mixed up thanks to climate change have started mating, creating a new breed, Grolars. Yuki wants to bring the grolars’ plight to public attention: the bears don’t have the skills to hunt on ice, like a polar bear, or to catch salmon in the rivers, like brown bears. Climate change and human encroachment could spell the end for these bears unless Yuki can do something about it. Each story is a climate change tale that has drastically changed the land and made life difficult for those who live there. Through Sami’s and Yuki’s eyes, readers see how all life is affected – from plants and animals to humans – and how each of the main characters pushes back against despair and surrender to keep going. It’s a page-turning adventure with masterful color illustration making use of ominous shadows, murky earth tones, and cool blues and whites. Back matter includes an author’s note and a graphic novel explanation of global warming. An excellent choice for graphic novel collections and realistic fiction readers who may have moved on from I Survived, but still love tales of survival. Download a free educator guide on the Sourcebooks website.

Global has a starred review from Foreword Reviews.

 

Northranger, by Rey Terciero/Illustrated by Bre Indigo, (June 2023, HarperAlley), $26.99, ISBN: 9780063007390

Ages 12+

A queer spin on Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey, Northranger introduces readers to 16-year-old Cade Muñoz, who has to spend his summer working alongside his stepfather, Dale, in at the General’s – Dale’s old Army buddy – ranch. Not thrilled with the prospect of shoveling poop for the summer, not to mention sharing a room with Dale, he is pleasantly surprised to discover the General’s friendly twin children, Henri and Henry. Cade and Henry are attracted to one another and start up a romantic relationship, but Cade is frustrated by Tyler’s secretive nature; a ranch hand convinced that the General killed his wife doesn’t help matters. As the teens struggle with homophobia, racism, coming out, and family relationships, their own relationship hits rocky waters. Cade is Mexican-American; his mother and grandmother sprinkle Spanish in their conversations. Cade’s stepfather and stepsister are Black; Henry, his sister, and father are white. The sepia color palette adds a timelessness to the story, with creative use of shadows to add to the mystery of Northranger. An author’s note rounds out the story. An excellent work of realistic fiction and YA romance.

Northranger has a starred review from the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books and Shelf Awareness.

 

Posted in Fiction, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Intermediate, Middle Grade, Non-fiction, Non-Fiction

Graphic Novel rundown

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

As I continue scaling Mount TBR, I’ve got some good graphic novels to share!

Batcat, by Meggie Ramm, (March 2023, Amulet Books), $13.99, ISBN: 9781419756573

Ages 7-10

Batcat is a round, pink, half-bat and half-cat who lives alone in their oak tree home on Spooky Island. They love mushroom pizza and junk food, video games, and being alone – until the day when a ghost decides to haunt their home. Batcat is besides themselves: the ghost is SO RUDE! The ghost is constantly talking, and commits the cardinal sin of eating Batcat’s ice cream. Fed up, Batcat heads to the Island Witch for a spell to get rid of the ghost, and ends up on a journey for the ingredients to mix up the spell. First, Batcat has to go to the Cavernous Caves, where bats tell Batcat that they aren’t batty enough to be a bat. Then, it’s off to the Whispering Cemetery, where the cats that live there tell Batcat that they’re not committed to being cat enough. Batcat is frustrated and sad: why do they have to be one thing or the other? That’s the whole point of Batcat: it’s perfectly fine to be yourself, and don’t let anyone pressure you into being something you’re not comfortable with. Batcat is a delightful story about embracing our own individuality, delivering a strong, sweet message to readers throughout the story: “The Island Witch was neither a good witch nor a bad witch. She was somewhere in between. Batcat liked that, as they were neither one thing nor another themselves”. This message runs throughout the story, and some readers may notice the bright, vibrant colors running throughout the story map to the colors of the Nonbinary flag. Full of humor and moments of self-awareness and acceptance, Batcat is an adorable story about finding friendship and discovering our place in the world.

Batcat has a starred review from School Library Journal.

 

 

History Comics: Rosa Parks & Claudette Colvin: Civil Rights Heroes, by Tracey Baptiste/Illustrated by Shauna J. Grant, (Jan. 2023, First Second), $19.99, ISBN: 9781250174215

Ages 9-13

The History Comics series is another nonfiction graphic novel win. The kids in my library love them, and First Second’s strong author and illustrator teams make for a winning combination of solid writing, pacing, and art. Rosa Parks & Claudette Colvin: Civil Rights Heroes brings Claudette Colvin’s story to the forefront. Most people think that Rosa Parks was the first person to refuse to move to the back of the bus during the Jim Crow South, but 15-year-old Claudette Colvin was actually the first. Narrated in Colvin’s voice, readers get a summation of life during segregation and the seeds of activism planted by her teacher, Mrs. Lawrence, who told her class the unvarnished truth about history: “Are you who theysay you are? Or are youwho you say you are?” The narrative moves into Colvin’s arrest and trial, her civil rights work, and how Parks and Colvin knew one another long before Rosa Parks’s defining moment in Montgomery, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott. While covering history, Baptiste also gives a glimpse into Colvin’s and Parks’s life, providing a look at the people behind the legends. Baptiste, a bestselling middle grade author, knows how to write for her audience and provoke feelings of frustration, anger, and the desire for change. She does not shy away from the ugly side of history, touching on Emmett Till’s violent murder and Recy Taylor’s rape at gunpoint. Grant’s expressive illustrations bring Baptiste’s words to life and keep readers engaged. Afterwords from Baptiste and Grant complete the back matter. An essential addition to civil rights, social justice, and graphic novel nonfiction collections.

The Zinn Education Project has webpages dedicated to Colvin, including a Day in History link to March 2, 1955, when she refused to give up her bus seat, with links to more resources. There is a wealth of information on the Montgomery Bus Boycott, including History.com, Encyclopedia Britannica, the National Women’s History Museum, and the Encyclopedia of Alabama.

 

Codex Black (Book One): A Fire Among Clouds, by Camilo Moncada Lozano, (Apr. 2023, IDW Publishing), $16.99, ISBN: 9781684059591

Ages 12+

Set in 15th century Mesoamerica, the first book in the Codex Black series is an adventure bringing together Donají, a teen Zapotec girl who sets out on a journey to find her father, and Itzcacalotl, a teen Mexica warrior, who happens to have wings. Together, along with the god that lives inside Donají’s poncho, the two face monsters and defend villages, while trying to solve the mystery behind Donají’s father’s disappearance. Originally a webcomic on Tapas, Codex Black: A Fire Among Clouds makes a seamless transition to graphic novel. Lozano weaves a hero/heroine’s journey with fantastic and historical elements, rich in pre-Columbian history. The vibrant artwork, the expressive characters, the historical clothing, and cultural details are all breathtaking. Perfect for middle school into high school readers, this is what to hand your readers that have moved beyond (but never away from) Rick Riordan and Rick Riordan Presents adventures.

Want to learn more about the differences between Webtoons and Tapas? Check out this helpful article. Teachers Pay Teachers has some good resources for Mesoamerican studies, too: Tony the Tourist has reading passages; Teaching to the Middle has passages on Mayan religions; Mama Made Resources has reading comprehension on the Olmecs; Carroll’s Curations has a Mesoamerican Overview presentation on Powerpoint, and SimplyKristalClear has a Mesoamerican Geography document.

 

What Happens Next?: Talent Show Troubles, by Jess Smart Smiley, (Apr. 2023, First Second), $12.99, ISBN: 9781250889263
Ages 7-10

The Choose Your Own Adventure model works so well with this funny graphic novel about Megan, a tween targeted by seagulls and determined to do her part in making the school talent show a success. As readers make choices throughout the story, they’ll encounter dogs pooping backstage, a sick stage manager (or is it more?) and a wanted bandit – and that’s just a few of the wacky events in store for readers. Each turn of the page brings new decisions and consequences; there are over 100 paths and 29 endings available, meaning a LOT of re-reads in this book’s future. Bold cartoon art and hilarious dialogue makes this a graphic novel that readers are going to enjoy the first time and the hundredth time. What Happens Next?: Science Fair Frenzy just hit shelves in June, so pair them up. Booktalk this one to your storytellers who enjoy having some control over the outcome of a story.

Jess Smart Smiley’s webpage has links to events, animated stickers, and info on joining his First Readers Club, where readers can read his newest books for free while giving him feedback.

More to come!

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

National Geographic Kids 2024 Almanac Book Blitz & Giveaway!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Buy | Goodreads

The New York Times best-selling Almanac is packed with incredible photos, tons of fun facts, National Geographic exclusives, games, activities, and fascinating features about animals, science, nature, technology, and more.

This new edition features:

  • EXCLUSIVE National Geographic Explorer interviews and features
  • EXCLUSIVE Interactive Almanac Challenge 2024, plus the results of the Almanac Challenge 2023
  • BONUS SECTION of sidesplitting jokes and riddles
  • NEW fun-tastic things to see and do in 2024
  • NEW cutest animal superlatives and animal rescue stories
  • NEW science and dinosaur discoveries
  • NEW fun games, quizzes, and activities
  • NEW weird and wacky places around the world
  • NEW experiments to do, places to explore, and ways to change the world
  • UPDATED reference material, including fast facts and maps of every country

Check out THIS PAGE for more information and to take the 2024 Almanac Challenge, Elephant-Stagram!

Praise:

“…this gathering of upbeat, vividly illustrated, browser-friendly dips into topics ranging from black holes to blue-footed boobies to Bolivian street food is hard to put down, and the pop quizzes and research guides at each chapter’s end will give studious sorts a leg up, too”.― Kirkus

 

GIVEAWAY!

  • Three (3) winners will receive a copy of National Geographic Kids Almanac 2024
  • US/Canada only
  • Ends 7/2 at 11:59pm ET
  • Enter via the Rafflecopter below

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Posted in Fantasy, Fiction, Middle Grade, Tween Reads

Percy Jackson RETURNS! Cover reveal is live!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

More Percy Jackson is coming, Rick Riordan fans! Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Chalice of the Gods has a global release date of September 26th, and illustrator Khadijah Khatib’s cover is gorgeous. Puffin Books put up their cover reveal a few days ago. Take a look if you haven’t seen it yet!

 

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Posted in Fiction, Graphic Novels, Middle Grade, Tween Reads

Remy Lai’s Ghost Book weaves myth and fantasy

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Ghost Book, by Remy Lai, (Aug. 2023, Henry Holt & Co.), $22.99, ISBN: 9781250810410

Ages 8-12

You’d think July Chen was invisible, but she’s not – at least, she’s pretty sure she isn’t, even if no one can quite remember her. She can also speak to ghosts; they tell her she’s the girl with the “yin-yang eyes”. July lives with her dad – her mother died the night July was born – and he often seems too preoccupied to notice her, too. July makes her first friend when she saves a ghost named William from a Hungry Ghost, but William is not really a ghost: he’s a boy who lives between worlds because of something that happened the very same night that July was born. July’s and William’s stories are entwined in ways they could never have imagined, and as Hungry Ghost month begins – and the Gates of the Underworld open and dangerous ghosts swarm into the living world – July discovers that she may have to sacrifice herself in order for William to live. Inspired by Chinese mythology, Remy Lai’s newest shows a rich underworld; the ghost marketplace is a bustling otherworldly place where ghosts and human vendors interact; the two ghosts who collect souls are an amusing pair whose love of dumplings sets events in motion. A touching story of friendship and sacrifice, with a sensitive look at grief and loss as only Remy Lai can skillfully weave. Another win!

Want to learn more about Hungry Ghost Month? Check out Chinese American Family’s webpage on this year’s Festival; OFTaiwan has videos and photos, plus links to more resources.

 

Posted in Animal Fiction, Fiction, Middle Grade, Middle School, Tween Reads

Reynard’s Tale breathes new life into a literary figure

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Reynard’s Tale, by Ben Hatke, (April 2023, First Second), $22.99, ISBN: 9781250857910

Ages 10+

Foxes have been tricksters in fairy tales and myths for as long as cultural memory can hold. Ben Hatke’s latest work, Reynard’s Tale, takes readers into a wonderful medieval setting to relate a new set of trickster tales starring Reynard the Fox, Isengrim the Wolf, and a series of memorable supporting characters. The short stories all link together: Reynard on the move, Isengrim on the hunt, and Reynard smooth-talking and outfoxing (pun intended) a series of love interests… but the last joke may just be on Reynard. There’s a playful sense of adventure in Hatke’s storytelling, and his ink artwork has a fairytale quality, with Reynard sporting a large hat, a cloak, and boots. If you have animal tale fans, give them this one.

Read more about Reynard at Britannica.com. Listen to audio, watch a dramatic reading, and learn to make a fox bookmark at Oxford’s Bodleian Library’s website.

Posted in Middle Grade, Non-fiction, Tween Reads, Uncategorized

Just Between Us journals open up conversations between daughters, fathers, and mothers

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Just Between Us: Father & Daughter – The original bestselling no-stress, no-rules journal, by Jonathan Jacobs & Sofie Jacobs, with Meredith Jacobs/Illustrated by Nate Padavick ,(Apr. 2023, Chronicle Books), $16.95, ISBN: 9781797216119

Ages 10+

Father-daughter team Jonathan Jacobs and Sofie Jacobs come together to tell some stories and provide thought-provoking prompts for dads and daughters to communicate. Suggested guidelines help set comfortable boundaries while encouraging open sharing, with pages set side to side for dads and daughters. There are fun prompts that call to mind those “how much do you know about me?” memes we’ve all done through e-mail and social media, and Free Spaces allow for journaling feelings, memories, or stream-of-consciousness writing. Fun illustrations encourage the writers to envision what they’d like to see about themselves on the front page of a newspaper or their social media pages. With Father’s Day coming up, this would be a great way to connect. Not suggested for a circulating collection, but a great suggestion to have in your pocket.

 

 

Just Between Us: Mother & Daughter – The original bestselling no-stress, no-rules journal, by Meredith Jacobs & Sofie Jacobs/Illustrated by Molly Baker, (Apr. 2023, Chronicle Books), $16.95, ISBN: 9781797222219

Ages 10+

Mother and daughter first collaborated on the Just Between Us journal over ten years ago; this revised edition allows for updated prompts and greater writing and creative space. Spaces like “a drawing of my dream outfit” let moms and daughters show their playful side, and “Things I would love for us to do together” breaks down the walls and allows for a wish list that mom and daughter can create together: and then act on it. I miss the playful illustrations that were in previous editions, but I appreciate the copious writing space to allow both writers to put their hopes, dreams, feelings, and ideas on paper. An excellent suggestion for summer journaling.

Posted in Middle Grade, Non-fiction

BLOG TOUR: How to Survive in the Age of Dinosaurs!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Hello, folks! After a morning fraught with technical difficulties, I bring you the latest and greatest Blog Tour from NatGeo Kids! Introducing…

 

Welcome to the blog tour for

How to Survive in the Age of Dinosaurs,

part of National Geographic Kids’ DinoMAYnia – a month-long celebration of all things prehistoric!

All week blogs are hosting fun excerpts from this handy guide so you will know just what it takes to dodge deadly dinosaurs, ride out mega monsoons and escape other perils of the prehistoric!

How To Survive the World Before Dinosaurs

Before you can try your luck at surviving the age of dinosaurs, you have to make it through what came just before: the Permian. It’s home to animals so strange they seem like fictional monsters. They dominate Earth for millions of years, until nearly all are wiped out by the biggest extinction event in the history of our planet. This catastrophe clears the world of competitors, setting the stage for dinosaurs to rise up. Can you survive it?

  • The Permian: 299-252 million years ago
  • Known For: The most catastrophic extinction in history
  • Best Place for Home Base: Northern Pangea…but be prepared to sweat
  • Your Main Food Source: Mega-size insects
  • Try to avoid: Going extinct along with 90 percent of the planet’s species

BIG Bugs

Your stomach rumbles. If you’re going to last another day in the Permian, you need food. You glance around—nope, not a single restaurant or grocery store in sight. That’s when you hear a buzz near your ear. The Permian is crawling with insects—some of them mega-size. Could you make a meal out of these big bugs?

During the early Permian, insects reach enormous proportions. There are dragonflies that could do aerial combat with the largest modern birds and go head-to-head with millipedes as long as a human is tall. Never again in the history of Earth would insects be so large.

What is it about the ancient world that allows these creatures to become supersize? Part of the answer is oxygen. At this time, the atmosphere contains far more oxygen than it has in the modern age—over 10 percent more. This allows Permian-era insects to fuel up more efficiently, freeing them to grow large. Then, there’s the second reason: Birds haven’t evolved yet. With no birds around, large, slow-moving insects have one fewer predator to worry about — and one fewer critter competing with them for meals. This also allows them to get big.

Those enormous insects would have made a great food source. Most insects are rich in protein, healthy fats, iron, and calcium. In modern times, about two billion people worldwide eat insects regularly. But it takes a lot to make a meal: If you were to snack on ants in modern times—say, red ants, for example—you’d need to eat more than 30 pounds (14 kg) of them a day to get the calories you’d need to stay healthy. Even if you spent all your time hunting and eating small, modern insects, you still might not gather enough to survive.

That’s not a problem in the time of giant insects. A single dragonfly-like Meganeuropsis would be enough to fuel you for several meals. Giant insects can even be dried and packed for eating on the go, like insect jerky. So big bugs would have been good eating.

Did You Know?

Spiders, scorpions, millipedes, centipedes, and some beetles survived the Permian extinction!

Buy | Buy on Bookshop.org

 

How to Survive in the Age of Dinosaurs:

A Handy Guide to Dodging Deadly Predators, Riding Out Mega-Monsoons and Escaping Other Perils of the Prehistoric

(ages 8-12, Paperback, National Geographic Kids Books)

Boom, boom, BOOM … Look out! That’s a T. rex coming your way!? You’ve been transported back in time to the age of the dinosaurs. What do you do?!

Test your chops and discover if you have what it takes to survive at a time when Earth looked, well, a tad different in this ultimate survival guide to the prehistoric age.

Find out how to make it through exploding volcanoes and mega monsoons—while dodging giant Permian bugs! See how to fend off an angry pterosaur and learn what to do if you’re caught in a stampede of enormous titanosaurs. Discover what you could eat (spoiler alert: You better like the taste of insects!), and find out which hungry creatures just might try to eat you!

Packed with tips, tricks, and helpful maps, this is the ultimate handbook for dinosaur fans who want to know what life on Earth was really like when dinos ruled. Could you survive in the age of dinosaurs?

 

About the Author

Stephanie Warren Drimmer is an award winning science writer based in Los Angeles, California. She writes books and magazine features for kids about everything from the strangest places in space, to the chemistry of cookies, to the mysteries of the human brain. She has a degree in science journalism from New York University…but she thinks she likes writing for kids because she’s secretly still one herself.

Website

 

About the Expert Contributor

Dr. Steve Brusatte vertebrate paleontologist and evolutionary biologist and professor at the University of Edinburgh who specializes in the anatomy, genealogy, and evolution of dinosaurs and other fossil organisms. He has written over 110 scientific papers, published six books (including the adult pop science book The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs, the textbook Dinosaur Paleobiology, and the coffee table book Dinosaurs), and has described over 15 new species of fossil animals. He has done fieldwork in Brazil, Britain, China, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, and the United States. His research is profiled often in the popular press and he is a “resident paleontologist” and scientific consultant for the BBC’s Walking With Dinosaurs team.

Website | Twitter

GIVEAWAY

 

  • One (1) winner will receive a copy of How to Survive in the Age of Dinosaurs!
  • US/Can only
  • Ends 6/3 at 11:59 pm ET
  • Enter via the form below

Visit the other stops on the tour for more chances to win

 

Blog Tour Schedule:

May 22nd— Mom Read It

May 23rd— Ms. Yingling Reads

May 24th – From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors

May 25th — Log Cabin Library

May 26th— Mrs. Book Dragon

 

Posted in Fiction, Middle Grade

Reads for Respect for All Week

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

NYC public schools have a week in February called Respect for All Week, where the students have discussions, assemblies, and programs geared toward a respect, appreciation, and understanding of diversity and inclusion. I went to speak my Kiddo’s – now a fifth grader! – classroom and realized that I couldn’t find specifically Respect for All booklists, so I made up my own and it went over pretty well. Here are my booktalks as presented to the class, with links to the publishers’s webpages with publishing details:

American as Paneer Pie, by Supriya Kelkarr

Lekha is an Indian-American girl – the ONLY Indian-American girl – living in a small town. She puts up with casual everyday racism and tries to cover up who she is culturally in order to fit in until she meets Avantika, a new girl who is also Indian, and who has no interest or patience to hide who she is! Avantika helps Lekha find her voice in this community, and together they have to be strong: a racist is running for Congress in their community and they need to stand up for themselves and their families.

 

A Good Kind of Trouble, by Lisa Moore Ramee

First, I explained “good trouble”, and read the John Lewis quote on getting into “good trouble” to the class. After establishing what “good trouble”, I started my booktalk:

Shay is 12 and tries to stay far away from trouble. Her older sister, Hana, is an activist who takes Shay to a Black Lives Matter protest; the protest awakens Shay’s sense of social justice. Shay begins wearing a black armband to school as a silent protest, but that causes division among the students, and Shay has to hold onto her values and beliefs in the face of anger and bullying.

 

Front Desk, by Kelly Yang

Who doesn’t love Kelly Yang? The kids went wild when I held up the book, because Ms. Yang was a virtual visitor to their 4th grade class last year and they all have signed copies of her book, New From Here. Quite a few had already read Front Desk, so I asked them if they’d known that Ms. Yang was the victim of a racist Zoom-bombing during a virtual visit over the pandemic. The kids were mortified when I told them what happened to them, and we talked more about how this is why Respect for All is so important: we have to do better. That said, I gave a quick booktalk for the handful of kids who hadn’t yet read Front Desk.

Mia is a fifth grader working at the front desk of the hotel where her parents also work, but she has a secret: her parents help shelter newly-arrived immigrants at the hotel, giving them a place to stay until they can get on their feet. Mia wants to be a writer, but has to navigate her parents’ expectations, her job, and hoping that the hotel owner doesn’t find out about Mia’s parents and their shelter work or they’ll all be out on the street!

 

Green Lantern Legacy, by Minh Lê & Andie Tong

This is one of my favorite original graphic novels, and I’m pretty happy to stay I made quite the stir by booktalking this one! A large number of the kids were familiar with Green Lantern, so I was able to start with just a quick explanation of Green Lantern and how the Lantern Corps protect the universe. Whoever gets a ring joins the Corps. Tai Pham is a 13-year-old living with his family above his grandmother’s store. At his grandmother’s funeral, he meets Xander, who tells him that his grandmother was a hero – a superhero! – and leaves him a ring. Tai discovers that his grandmother was a GREEN LANTERN.

That alone set the room of kids off, but when I explained that Tai’s family were refugees from Viet Nam, and showed them my favorite panel in the book, when Tai’s grandmother used her Lantern powers to get the refugees’ boat to safety, the kids were sold. One of my Kiddo’s classmates is Vietnamese and gave me a fist pump. It was fantastic. I’ve since been told that there is a “10-person deep line to borrow the book”.

 

Restart, by Gordon Korman

Everything changed for Chase Ambrose the day he fell off the roof. He has no idea who he was before the fall, or why the kids all look at him the way they do. Or why that girl in the cafeteria, poured yogurt over his head one day. Chase wasn’t just a bully: he was THE bully, enouraged by his father and his friends. Chase doesn’t think he wants to be that person any longer, but can he really have a restart?

This was another home run with the class. Gordon Korman is aces with these kids, so a couple had read Restart, and most had read at least one other book by him.

 

Blackbird Girls, by Anne Blankman

Valentina Kaplan and Oksana Savchenko live in Russia near the Chernobyl nuclear plan, but they aren’t friends: Valentina is Jewish and Oksana has been told to avoid her. Their fathers die in the nuclear reactor explosion, they’re separated from their moms, and the government isn’t exactly forthcoming. Together, they discover that they need to rely on one another to save themselves.

This was a surprise hit! The idea of two girls relying on each other to survive, especially if they weren’t really friends to begin with, really appealed to boys and girls alike in the class. I’ve since been told there was a “WWE-like brawl” for the book (which I’ve confirmed was not really a brawl, just a group of kids surging the desk for the book).

 

Me and Marvin Gardens, by Amy Sarig King

I finished with Me and Marvin Gardens, beginning with a quick chat on how respect for our world and our environment is just as important as respect for one another. The kids hadn’t heard of this book, so I was excited to booktalk it, since it’s one of my favorites.

Obe Devlin has some big problems: developers are taking over his family’s farmland and he keeps getting nosebleeds. While he’s on what’s left of his family’s land, cleaning up the trash, he discovers a not-quite-dog, not-quite-pig, eating plastic. It only eats plastic. Naming it Marvin Gardens (any Monopoly fans here?), Obe quickly takes to his new friend and has to keep it safe from everyone.

So that’s my fledgling Respect for All list, which will only get better as I refine it. Feel free to weigh in with your favorites to add!