Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Delivery Bear has a message about being yourself

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Delivery Bear, by Laura Gehl/Illustrated by Paco Sordo, (Sept. 2018, Albert Whitman & Company), $16.99, ISBN: 978-0-8075-1532-7

Ages 4-7

Zogby is a big, brown bear who’s wanted to be a Fluffy Tail Cookies delivery animal ever since he was a cub. When he finally gets his chance, he’s up against a few obstacles: management is a little concerned that he doesn’t have “the Fluffy Tail Cookies look”, and his trial run is less fluffy, more… terrifying. He tries to change his appearance to be less scary to his little woodland customers, but no one wants to give the big guy a chance! It’s time for Zogby to put the lyrics to the Fluffy Tail jingle to work: You are special! You are YOU! Zogby comes up with his own original song to put the animals at ease, and before he knows it, he’s being invited in for tea and giving out bear hugs.

Delivery Bear is an adorable story about judging other based on appearances, and about appreciating yourself for who you are.The book is loaded with comic moments of a friendly cartoon bear trying to be friendly, and wide-eyed little animals screaming in terror, but there are plenty of teachable moments to talk over with readers; most notably, why Zogby had to change his approach to be accepted. Is it right or wrong to change for someone else? There is a lot to talk about here. (There’s also the question of whether or not the hiring manager was facing a lawsuit for not hiring Zogby, based on appearances, but I digress.)

With cartoony, kid-friendly artwork and a sweet story about self-acceptance, Delivery Bear is a cute add to storytime collections. Author Laura Gehl has a bunch of free downloads on her author website, including curriculum guides and coloring sheets for her Peep & Egg series, and One Big Pair of Underwear (which is a storytime standard for me).

 

Posted in Fantasy, Fiction, Middle Grade, Tween Reads

Begone the Raggedy Witches: mystical, magical, Irish fantasy

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Begone the Raggedy Witches (Wild Magic #1), by Celine Kiernan, (Sept. 2018, Candlewick), $15.99, ISBN: 9780763699963

Ages 9+

Mup is a biracial girl living in Ireland with her family. On the night her Aunty dies, though, things change. The raggedy witches come for her mother; they’ve come to bring her back to their world, the Glittering Land, where an awful queen reigns: and who just happens to be Mup’s grandmother. When Mup’s mother holds them off the first time, the witches take more drastic measures, kidnapping Mup’s father. Mup, her mother, baby brother, and dog set off to the Glittering Land to save Dad, but will her Mam want to come back again, if she gets a taste for power – or survives her own mother?

Fantasy readers are going to be drawn right into Celine Kiernan’s mystical, magical tale. There are talking animals, shapeshifting kids, golden forests, and an evil queen to be reckoned with. Celine Kiernan creates a magical world beyond our imaginations, bringing to mind Narnia and Wonderland. The enchanted worldbuilding will keep your fantasy readers thrilled, and Mup’s heroine’s quest is thoughtful and intriguing. This is the first of a planned trilogy, so get your readers hooked now.

Begone the Raggedy Witches has a starred review from Kirkus.

Posted in Teen, Young Adult/New Adult

When Elephants Fly digs deeply into trauma and healing

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

When Elephants Fly, by Nancy Richardson Fischer, (Sept. 2018, Harlequin TEEN), $18.99, ISBN: 9781335012364

Ages 14+

Lily is a high school senior with a plan: she’s going to avoid stress, drugs, booze, and romantic entanglements; anything that can trigger a stressful episode. She’s in a race against time, because the odds are against her: her mother, and women in her family, have all developed schizophrenia. Schizophrenia most commonly manifests between the ages of 18 and 30, so for the next 12 years, Lily’s on guard. She even has her best friend, Sawyer, give her psych quizzes to catch any developing symptoms. Lily’s mother stopped taking her meds when Lily was a child, and during one episode, tried to kill Lily; she later committed suicide in prison, and Lily, who’s still dealing with the trauma, is getting no help from her father, who won’t discuss Lily’s mother or the incident.

Lily’s on a journalism internship when she witnesses the birth of a new elephant calf at the local zoo. When the calf’s mother tries to kill her calf, and a story goes out with Lily’s byline, she’s stuck with the story – and the fallout. A traveling circus enacts a claim on the calf, and the zoo director is furious with Lily’s betrayal. Swifty bonds with Lily, but the calf’s grief puts her health at risk. Lily’s determination to save Swifty is at odds with her resolve to stay away from stressful situations, but she’s committed to the calf.

Nancy Richardson Fischer brings together a fantastic amount of elements to create When Elephants Fly: trauma; mental illness; the animal captivity debate, and journalistic integrity, for starters. Lily is a fascinating and complex character; she may not always be sympathetic, but she is empathetic. She’s not always likable – she’ll admit it – but readers will always feel for her, because she’s facing down a very real monster and fighting it every step of the way. Swifty is as a strong supporting character in the book, too; she brings out the vulnerable, human side of Lily that she tries to push down. Before Swifty, Lily seems determined to barrel through the next 12 years as mildly and quietly as possible: Swifty makes her engage with her surroundings and with people other than Sawyer.

When Elephants Fly is a strong, moving story that allows for big discussions. A must-add to YA collections; a must-read for caregivers and educators that know tweens and teens dealing with trauma.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Seasons with Granddad explores fall with Storm

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Storm, by Sam Usher (Seasons with Granddad), by Sam Usher, (Aug. 2018, Candlewick), $16.99, ISBN: 9781536202823

Ages 3-7

Sam Usher’s Seasons with Granddad wanders into the fall with Storm. A red-headed young boy wakes up to see the wind rattling at his window; orange and red leaves flying outside. He can’t wait to go outside so he can play in the leaves and the wind with his granddad, who agrees that it’s perfect kite-flying weather. Grandfather and grandson discover a treasure trove of goodies from previous adventures (readers of previous Seasons with Granddad books may recognize a few) as they search for the kite, then head to the park for their newest adventure. As the storm nears, Granddad and grandson head home to enjoy a meal together.

Seasons with Granddad is such a lovely series about a grandparent and grandchild. I love the familiarity of the story: the grandson wakes up to the latest seasonal weather, and he always says, “I couldn’t wait to go outside”. The action moves gently between the outside world, where the weather takes on a fantastic turn, and indoors, where the two prepare for their latest endeavor. Granddad and grandson experience a bit of magic in their everyday life, then head home to share some quiet time together. It’s a comforting series, filled with everyday magic and the unconditional love that one can only find with a loving caregiver. This is the kind of book you read on a lap; it’s the kind of quiet adventure that begs readers to slowly savor every moment, every bit of ink and watercolor artwork, because there’s something new to discover every time.

 

Storm, and its companion books Rain, Sun, and Snow, are the kind of books you keep forever. They’re wonderful books about weather and the seasons, but first and foremost, they’re about the special and magical relationship between generations. Grandparents Day in the US falls on Sunday, September 9; this would be a sweet gift for the grandparents in your lives.

Posted in Uncategorized

Just Breathe… Mallika Chopra brings meditation to kids

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Just Breathe, by Mallika Chopra/Illustrated by Brenna Vaughan, (Aug. 2018, Running Press Kids), $12.99, ISBN: 978-0-7264-9158-2

Ages 7-12

Self-help guru Deepak Chopra’s daughter, Mallika, began meditating at age 9. In Just Breathe, she introduces mindful meditation practices to a younger audience. She discusses stress, how stress affects the body, and how meditation can help in her introduction; she ends her introduction with a baseline meditation; something to allow readers to create a “safe, happy place” inside them. Other practices in the book build on this base. Divided into subsequent sections on breathing, moving, being silent, noticing, asking, and creating, she leads readers through breathing and meditation exercises that help reduce stress and anxiety, cope with pain, and get them moving. There are sections on walking meditations, and on yoga, with each breathing exercise lasting anywhere fromn one to five minutes (the introductory exercise is the longest at 15 minutes, but she emphasizes that even one minute of meditation can greatly help).

The artwork is calming, featuring kids of all colors and genders in various stages of mindfulness, from yoga to walking to laying down. The muted colors and gentle expressions add to the calm, meditative feel of the text. Chopra provides prompts for thought throughout the book, which could be really helpful in a guided session where a reader can gently prompt meditative thoughts. Chopra encourages face-to-face interaction and disconnecting from devices, even for a little while; she also brings attention to our inner voices, the power of journaling, and the joy that comes with creativity. She applies these lessons to everyday stressors kids encounter, including bullying or test jitters, providing solid context.

Just Breathe is a solid introduction to mindfulness and meditative practices for kids. I’m looking forward to adding it to my yoga collection, and want to see how a meditation program for school-age kids will go over at my library. I miss my yoga storytime!

 

Posted in Early Reader, Graphic Novels, Intermediate, Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Preschool Reads

Two from TOON: Fun ways of looking at Math and Science

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

TOON’s doing it again: promoting authors and illustrators who know how to take abstract concepts and craft them into something exciting, beautiful, and fun. The two Fall graphic novels TOON has coming out: 3×4, by Ivan Brunetti, and We Are All Me, by Jordan Crane, play with multiplication, sorting, and sets; creation, DNA, and our relation to the planet and beyond. Sounds like weighty stuff, right? It is, but here’s the best part: these books are for kids, ages 3 and up. Let’s take a deeper look.

3 x 4, by Ivan Brunetti, (Sept. 2018, TOON Books), $12.95, ISBN: 9781943145348

Ages 3+

A teacher gives his class an assignment: draw 12 things, but in sets. Everything else is up to them: how many sets, what to draw, what colors to use. Annemarie, one of the girls in class, thinks deeply about what to create, as we see her classmates get to work on their sets. The book introduces readers to the beginning principles in multiplication; sorting; and thinking outside the box, as we see through the kids’ assignments. The book is so meta – it’s a math assignment within a math assignment – that teachers can easily use this as a math storytime.

Ivan Brunetti’s previous TOON book, WordPlay, played with language and compound words, and also starred Annemarie, a child of color in a diverse classroom of friends. As an art teacher, he has a gift for seeing things differently, and has the talent to make his ideas fun and relatable to a young audience. My 6-year-old read 3×4 to me, cover to cover, one night, after I read it to him and we worked through all the similarities between events in the book and what he’d done in his Kindergarten classroom the past school year. I’d love to try a math challenge for the kids in my library, asking them to start with 3 x 4, and go from there: make an art gallery and keep switching up the numbers. Have stickers and stamps and other creative materials handy!

3 x 4 has a starred review from Kirkus. As with all TOON books, a free, downloadable teacher’s guide is forthcoming.

 

We Are All Me, by Jordan Crane, (Sept. 2018, TOON Books), $12.95, ISBN: 9781943145355

Ages 3+

A dot forms and takes readers on a visual journey through existence. As it moves through bodies, nature, DNA, and space, readers experience evolution, our relationship to the Earth, and consciousness, all in vibrant, pulsing, day-glo pen, ink, and tablet artwork. Spare text reads lyrically, almost mantra-like, as we – via the dot – progress through time and space. The visual confirmation that we are connected to this world, and to one another, is exciting and humbling all at once; for young readers, it’s mind-blowing and beautiful. This is one of those books that left me speechless when I first read it, because it’s breathtaking and uses such brief, eloquent verbiage to explain… everything. A stunning must-have for all collections. Own it, and read it. Often.

We Are All Me has a free, downloadable teacher’s guide forthcoming.

Posted in Non-Fiction, Teen

The Ultimate Survival Guide to Being a Girl – it ain’t easy out there

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Ultimate Survival Guide to Being a Girl, by Christina De Witte, with Chrostin, (Aug. 2018, Running Press), $14.99, ISBN: 978-0-7624-9043-1

Ages 13+

Being a teen is tough these days! Social media, body image, school, work… teens are under pressure. Webcomic author and illustrator, Christina De Witte, whose comic Chrostin follows the amusing day-to-day adventures of a young milennial, is here to help with advice on tattoos, sex and relationships, periods, mental and physical health, and more. Black and white illustrations starring Chrostin flow throughout the book.

The book may first present as a guide to puberty for tweens, but this is all for teen girls. Read Chrostin and you’ll quickly see that this is a comic for millennials, not up-and-coming kids. The author is only 20, putting her at a good age to offer advice; the book’s conversational tone and laid back language make this an easy read that readers can pick up at any point. The book is divided into 10 chapters, on issues including Internet safety, diversity, society, love, food, and fashion. She emphasizes healthy eating and endorses a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle, including some quick and tasty recipes that come together cheaply and quickly; she also shares beauty and fashion hacks for a student’s salary.

The Ultimate Survival Guide to Being a Girl is a good reference to have on your shelves for teens. Want to learn a little more about Chrostin? BuzzFeed has a fun Chrostin article from 2016, and you can follow her on Instagram.

 

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Henry and the Yeti is about snuggle-worthy friendship!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Henry and the Yeti, by Russell Ayto, (Aug. 2018, Bloomsbury USA), $16.99, ISBN: 9781681196831

Ages 3-7

Henry is a little boy who loves yetis, but no one is quite sure whether or not yetis actually exist. Except for Henry, that is. He gets some time off from school, packs his equipment, and heads off on an expedition to the snowy mountains. Just when he’s ready to turn around and go home, SURPRISE! He finds a yeti! The two hit it off, snap some pictures, and Henry heads back home, delighted. But when he unpacks his gear, he discovers, to his horror, that he left his camera behind! How can he prove to his principal and classmates that he isn’t making things up? It’s a good thing that yetis are such good friends.

What an adorable book about friendship Henry and the Yeti is! I especially love the quirky, cool-hued artwork, making Henry and instantly likable little boy with huge glasses, expressive eyes, and a turtleneck that hides the rest of his face and covers most of his body. The yeti is an amorphous, white blob on two legs, and he, too, has tremendous, kind eyes. The size difference makes these two friends adorable together as they take selfies and share hugs. The sparse illustration allows readers to give Henry their full attention and sets him apart from his principal and classmates, all of whom stand taller and wear more shifty, less open, facial expressions. The text is tongue-in-cheek, working wonderfully with the artwork. When the principal uses a bullhorn to announce Henry’s punishment, we see the large yeti’s legs and body come into view, and the text reads, “Oh! Henry sees the yeti again. The yeti sees Henry. The principal sees the yeti. And everybody stops laughing.” The joke is on the mean crowd, and we’re there to savor it as it unfolds, as does on the next page… but I’ll let you read it for yourself. Suffice to say, Henry’s reputation is saved and he’s gained a friend for life; the principal and classmates have learned a valuable lesson about being kind. The book was originally released in the UK in 2017

Read this one out loud, and make sure you leave time for all the giggles and “awwwwwws” you’ll hear. Add Henry and the Yeti to your stories about empathy, friendship, and yes… yetis (psst… sasquatches work, too).

 

Posted in Non-Fiction, picture books, Preschool Reads

Baby Animals Eating is the cutest book you will read today.

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Baby Animals Eating, by Suzi Eszterhas, (Aug. 2018, OwlKids), $14.95, ISBN: 9781771473170

Ages 3-7

Wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas’ third Baby Animals book, Baby Animals Eating, spotlights more adorable baby animals, and their parents, enjoying foods from eucalyptus leaves to mother’s milk. The pictures are vibrant, and the text teaches readers about animal behavior and differing food needs. The previous books, Baby Animals Moving and Baby Animals Playing, come together to form a great introduction to natural science for early learners, and can lead to a good discussion on nutrition. Ask kids what they like to eat; ask for similarities and differences (Bears like to eat clams and fish; do you? Koalas eat eucalyptus leaves; what leaves do you like to eat?) Notice the relationships between parents, siblings, and babies: does your grownup carry you? Do you and your siblings like to eat the same things? Back matter includes more information about Suzi Eszterhas and some behind-the-scenes photos.

This is a great book for storytime, and the crisp pictures allow for early and pre-readers to explore independently. A nice series to add to early nonfiction collections, and a great book to give little ones who love animals. (Go around the room and point out different toys and stuffed animals, and see how many kids can point out from the book.)

Keep Suzi Eszterhas’ webpage on your list of reference links. She’s got a fantastic amount of information on the page, including her books, newsletter, tours and workshops, and a gallery with some of the most incredible wild animal photos you’ve ever seen (perfect for animal reports!). There’s also a link to Girls Who Click, an organization founded by Eszterhaus, empowering young women to enter the field of nature photography and further global conservation efforts.

Posted in Uncategorized

I’m Back! Plus, some news.

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

I’m back after a week of radio silence! It wasn’t intentional; I was just enjoying a few days off and hanging out with my kids before the hectic new school year starts up.

 

I’ve got loads of books to talk about, and I want to get back into talking about programming, too. But first… I have a confession to make.

I received a promotion, and just passed my 6-month probation. I’m an assistant manager at my community library now, and we have a wonderful children’s librarian who’s inherited the room, and the kids. She’s a programming whiz, too, so the kids are having a ball over there, whether they’re learning Harry Potter coding or chasing bubbles at storytime.

I was terrified to write about my promotion, because for the longest time, I worried that no one would see me as a children’s librarian anymore. But I still love kidlit, and I am still passionate about children’s librarianship and early childhood literacy. Being at my small community library allows me the luxury of being able to still keep a toe in the children’s librarian world – the current children’s librarian knows I will gladly take on storytimes and class visits when she’s off – while still exploring this profession, and for that, I’m truly grateful. Plus, Carla Hayden started out as a children’s librarian, so if she has any advice for me, I’m listening!

Bottom line: I am still voraciously devouring kidlit and playing around with programming. I’ll always find a way to talk about children’s literacy and programming here, and nothing here at MomReadIt will change. Honest. I’m always going to be a children’s librarian at heart, because my heart is what led me to change careers and pursue children’s librarianship. Please stick around for more reviews and articles; I’d like to think that MomReadIt still has things to say.

With that… my manager got a big laugh out of this picture, so I’ll share with you, too.