Tag: teeth

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

Jackson’s Wilder Adventures 2: Dentistry and Dreams

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Jackson’s Wilder Adventures Vol. 2: Dentistry and Dreams, by Sarah Davidson, (June 2025, Papercutz), $9.99, ISBN: 9781545818350

Ages 6-10

Jackson and his dad have moved from their house into a smaller apartment and are enjoying a quick lunch after unpacking when Jackson realizes he’s got a loose tooth! As he starts stressing about losing a tooth, his imaginary thylacine friend Irwin takes him on a journey to meet animals who loose dozens of teeth, from Nile crocodiles to bull sharks; he even gets to see the capybara, an animal who has to file its teeth down because they never stop growing. When Jackson’s tooth finally falls out, he asks Irwin to show him animals who sleep to help him fall asleep as he waits for the Tooth Fairy; Irwin takes Jackson to visit Yakushima Island in Japan, where they encounter the Ussuri Tube-Nosed Bat, who sleeps through the winter in a deep sleep called torpor; the Kenai Fjords in Alaska, where they see a Wood Frog, who can can create a protective film that keeps their internal organs safe as they freeze into a layer of ice for the winter, and Joshua Tree National Park, where they discover the Little Pocket Mouse, who also enters torpor to sleep. It’s a fun and educational look at animals and habitats, with activities like mazes and rebuses throughout.

Jackson’s Wilder Adventures is a fun graphic novel series that combines fiction and nonfiction with great success. Jackson and Irwin are illustrated as cartoon characters, but the animals and habitats are drawn more realistically, making this a good graphic novel series to keep in your collections.

 

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

NatGeo Kids sends kids back to school ready for everything!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

I am an unabashed fan of NatGeo for my nonfiction sections. They have books on EVERYTHING, and the kids love it. They also make every single thing they cover amazing, hilarious, or both, which makes my life a lot easier when I have kids trudging into my children’s room, moaning that they have to read more nonfiction. Excuse me, do you see the GIANT WATER FAUCET on the cover of this book? Guess what? Nonfiction. Suddenly, they’re a lot more amenable to what I have to offer.

Let’s start with the backpack essential: The Weird But True Planner ($12.99, ISBN: 978-1426327933). The Weird But True books come in second only to the NatGeo Kids joke books when it comes to demand in my children’s room. It’s got the planner essentials: it’s spiral bound and sturdy, so kids can use it and it will hold up. It’s got paper that won’t tear when you turn a page. You know that paper; it’s usually the one that flies away and has the details of your homework on it. The space is smartly laid out, with NatGeo’s trademark gorgeous photos sharing space with planning and goal pages that help your kids keep it together during the school year. And because it’s NatGeo, it’s got the fun, weird holidays, crazy facts, pages for scribbling areas where you need homework help, little writing prompts, and an overall fun vibe that demands you embrace your weirdness. I have a copy that I desperately want to keep for my own library notes, programs, and scheduling the lives of my weird family; now, the key is making sure the kids don’t take mine off my desk at work OR at home.

Let’s be clear: this is not a library book; it’s a book meant to be written in, used, and yeah, even a little abused. But it IS an essential buy.

Next up is the NatGeo Kids 2018 Almanac ($14.99, ISBN: 978-1-4263-2772-8). Updated for 2018, this is another go-to for my library kids. There are 12 sections – up from last year’s 10 – and cover current events, life science, engineering and technology, space and earth, and more. The fun and games section is still here, and the overall fun spirit of discovery runs through the book. A spread in life science tells readers “18 Fantastic Facts About Fungi”, with facts about cheese mold, to mushrooms, to athlete’s foot (it’s just a photo of a bare foot). Feel bad for the Ugly Food, but rejoice in reading how being ugly doesn’t mean being garbage – make banana bread with those brown bananas (that’s when they’re the best), or make a smoothie using that bruised peach. A companion page on the time it takes different types of trash to decompose is a powerful call to action for recycling and re-purposing our trash. Homework help tips, quizzes, jokes, fun facts, and breathtaking photos make this Almanac a keeper.
Atlases are always handy to have around, especially with increased importance on understanding global affairs and cultures. The United States Atlas (Fifth Edition, $12.99, ISBN: 978-1-4263-2831-2) gives readers a literal lay of the land, with political and physical maps by territory: Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, Southwest, and West. There are maps and statistics for each state within the territories; economy symbols to illustrate local economies like crops and industries. Photos and infographics round out each state’s profile. The atlas also includes U.S. territories, a glossary, postal abbreviations, and additional web resources.
The Ultimate Space Atlas ($12.99, ISBN: 978-1-4263-2802-2) is a handy guide to what’s “up there”: phases of the moon, seasonal constellation maps for each hemisphere, what’s new in space exploration. “Digital Traveler” boxes help readers expand their learning by using going online. There are fun facts, amazing photos, diagrams, and Space Travel Attractions to visit… you know, from here. Earth. There’s a section with some fun activities at the end, and a glossary and index complete this handy astronomy desk reference. Both atlases will be helfpul during the school year, so load up your bookshelves if you’re in a library, or consider these when you’re buying school supplies.
CHOMP!: Fierce Facts About the Bite Force, Crushing Jaws, and Mighty Teeth of Earth’s Champion Chewers ($12.99, ISBN: 978-1-4263-2839-8) has been on my shelves since this summer, and I see it wandering around the tables at the library (meaning, the kids are reading it while they’re in the library during the day) pretty regularly. Written by “Extreme Animal Explorer” Brady Barr, CHOMP! has a lot of pictures of a lot of big, mean teeth. The first page has a hippo, jaws open wide, greeting readers, and those choppers are intimidating! Barr organizes his chompers into four groups: the grippers, slicers, crushers, and gulpers; bite force and preferred menu for each animal profiled appear on each page. Barr jumps in with his own entertaining anecdotes, Brady’s Bite Stories, that will make kids squeal and cringe all at once; I’m thinking of reading the one about Barr squeezing a live otter out of a gator the next time I have a class visit. I like to be memorable. Further resources, a glossary and an index, make this a good companion guide for animal reports and fun reading for animal fans.
Last but never least, What Would Happen? Serious Answers to Silly Questions ($14.99, ISBN: 978-1-4263-2770-4) looks at the logic and science behind some wild, weird questions. Starting with questions like, “What if you ate nothing but ice cream?” (short answer: DON’T) and working their way up to “What if you could wield The Force?” (You may call me Lady Vader), questions are organized into areas covering humans, space, nature, time, technology, natural wonders, worst-case scenarios, and just plain surreal. Each question is examined by giving readers a background on the deeper question (ice cream tastes great, but without protein and fiber, you’re in for some problems); primary repercussions (those problems could include going to the bathroom, no matter how much you love butter pecan); side effects (you’ll get weak and possibly develop scurvy from lack of Vitamin C); and finally, could it happen (unless you’re putting chunks of chicken or tofu, plus some broccoli and tomato on that ice cream, probably not)? This is going to move right along with my Weird Facts books. Heck, I may just turn this one into a program – write your own What Would Happen? and let’s swap; research it and find out the answer. But I’m totally developing The Force.
Go forth and fill up backpacks, and have a great school year!
Posted in Preschool Reads

The Tooth Fairy’s Origins, Revealed!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Untold Story of the Tooth Fairy, by José Carlos Andrés/Illustrated by Betania Zacarias, (May 2018, nubeOCHO), $16.95, ISBN: 978-84-944446-1-6

Recommended for readers 3-8

Related as a folktale, this take on the Tooth Fairy’s origins makes things more of a team effort. It all starts underwater, when Lady Oyster – depicted as a fabulous, brown-skinned diva – loses her pearl. She’s very, she means very, so very sad! Word goes out among Lady Oyster’s underwater friends: octopus tells French sardine; the sardine tells a crab, who relates the story to a mouse on land, who comes up with a solution that works for everyone.

Based on the French, Spanish, and South American version of the Tooth Fairy myth, where a small mouse – not a fairy – takes a newly dispatched tooth and leaves a gift, kids will love this original take on the tooth fairy – especially kids in the 5-8 age category who are getting visits from the Tooth Fairy. I love the idea of the Tooth Fairy’s assistants helping her, too – it makes sense! It sends a nice message about teamwork, too.

Betania Zacarias’ paint and cut-paper collage artwork is beautiful. I love her gorgeous, over the top Lady Oyster; she’s a diva of color, she’s got curves, and she’s dramatic! The texture of the artwork is beautiful, and her color choices are bright, most primary colors, and eye-catching. This is a story I could read to the kids in my Queens Library storytimes and have the kids say, “I see myself here.” The bright orange endpapers are filled with fish of all different colors, giving kids an idea of where this story is going to start.

This is a wonderful book to read to kids getting ready to – or in the process of – get visits from the Tooth Fairy. Originally published in Spanish (2016), the book is available in both Spanish and English. Add The Tooth Fairy Meets Ratón Perez by Rene Colato Lainez for a fun multicultural tooth fairy storytime or display, and Susan Hood’s The Tooth Mouse for a French take on the little mouse’s side of the story.

Posted in mythology, Preschool Reads

Book Review: Ganesha’s Sweet Tooth by Sanjay Patel & Emily Haynes/Illus. by Sanjay Patel (Chronicle, 2013)

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Recommended for ages 4-8

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This adorable story puts a new spin on the Hindu myth that tells the story of how Ganesha, the elephant-headed god, came to help write the epic poem, The Mahabharata. Young Ganesha has a sweet tooth and particularly loves laddoos – a kind of jawbreaker candy – until one day, he breaks a tusk on one! What’s a young godling to do? He meets the poet, Vyasa, who offers a surprising way to make the best of the situation.

I can’t say enough about this book. The art is stunning. Sanjay Patel is an animator at Pixar Studios, and the look and feel of the overall story definitely has a fun quality to it that Pixar fans will appreciate and everyone will enjoy. The colors and Indian-influenced artwork are breathtaking. This is artwork I would hang in my kids’ room, it’s so beautiful. It’s colorful and exciting, and introduces children to Indian-influenced art, which many will likely never have seen before.

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At the same time, the artwork is adorable. Children will adore Little Ganesha and his best friend Mouse and relate to them. What child wouldn’t want to sit and eat candy all day long? What child doesn’t believe he or she is invincible, as Ganesha does? When Ganesha breaks his tooth, he is worried about his appearance and becomes angry and frustrated, throwing his tusk at the moon. He loses his temper, like any other child would in a frustrating situation, and there is a friendly adult, in the person of Vyasa, to deflect Ganesha’s anger and channel it into something productive.

There are good lessons to be learned in this story, including making the best of a bad situation and how sharing is important, as illustrated between Ganesha, Mouse, and their other friends. I read the digital version of the book, but encourage adults to read the actual storybook, as the font is playful, round, and fun, attracting young readers’ eyes and directing them to the action and flow of the story. The artwork will keep little eyes busy – there is so much to see! – and the story lends itself to great post-storytime discussions about sharing, listening to your friends, and seeing the good in every situation.

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