“Everybody, sing it!”

 

Pete Seeger was born with music in his bones. So begins this inspirational picture book biography about one of America’s most famous, beloved folk singers, Pete Seeger, Stand Up and Sing! Folk Music, and the Path to Justice, (Bloomsbury 2017), written by Susannah Reich and illustrated by Adam Gustavson. Seeger came of age during the Great Depression. The joyous music and singing that went on in his family’s house was a balm to the impressionable boy who longed to do something about the poverty and injustice he saw all around him in New York City. The first instrument he played was the banjo after he drove with his family to a music and dance festival in North Carolina. The rhythm, melody, chords and words struck something inside him. The older he got, the more he listened to and played all kinds of music: spirituals, work songs, dance tunes, lullabies, ballads – so many kinds that “he played all night, and he played all day,” his sister said.

Seeger went on to use his passion for music to instill passion against injustice in tens of thousands of people around the country and world. His songs are used as a rallying cry to this day. Never has there been a better time to introduce young readers to the power of music and the need to address injustice, whenever and wherever they find it.

This book is a lovely addition to the legend of Pete Seeger.

Princess Posey and the First Grade Play

 

The first graders in Posey’s class are reading about bees and plan a play to share what they’ve learned with the other first grade classes. Caitlyn certainly knows a lot about bees. Her mother’s even given her a small yellow eraser in the shape of a bee.  “Who cares about an old eraser?” Posey says to her friends. But secretly, Posey admires the eraser’s black stripes and bee wings. She wishes she had one, too.

When Caitlyn is chosen to play the part of Queen Bee that Posey was hoping to get, Posey’s heart sinks. It isn’t fair, she thinks. Caitlyn gets everything! Then, Posey notices Caitlyn’s bee eraser on top of her lunch box. Nobody’s watching…Posey can’t resist. She picks up the eraser and puts it into her pack. Immediately, she realizes her mistake. What will she do?

Princess Posey and the First Grade Play by Stephanie Greene (G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2017) is the 11th book in the Princess Posey, First Grader, series.

About the series, School Library Journal writes: “Greene’s simple writing style and straightforward plot is ideal for advanced first graders or beginning second-grade readers.”

Kirkus Reviews has this to say: “Greene doesn’t miss a step. Posey is the perfect fictional friend for any first-grade girl.”

Don’t miss these ReaderKidZ reviews of other books in the series!

Princess Posey and the New First Grader

Princess Posey and the First Grade Ballet

Princess Posey and the First Grade Parade

THE ROCK MAIDEN, a Chinese Tale of Love and Loyalty

What is loyalty? When you are someone’s friend, what does it mean to be a true and LOYAL friend?

THE ROCK MAIDEN, a Chinese Tale of Love and Loyalty, shows us the power of true love and loyalty.

In this re-telling of the legend about Amah Rock – a fifty-foot granite formation found in the Sha Tin area of Hong Kong – we hear the lyrical voice of Natasha Yim and, page after page, we see enchanting images painted by Pirkko Vainio, Finland’s award-winning artist and creator of over thirty children’s books. What a treasure!

Natasha Yim

In this tale a young wife, holding her infant son, watches as her fisherman husband sails off to sea in hopes of bringing back a fine catch of fish. Storms turn the calm sea into a swirl of deadly raging waves. Other fishermen return, but not her beloved.

The thesaurus describes loyalty as staying faithful, true, and devoted. And that young woman is!  Day after day she puts her baby on her back, climbs to the top of the tallest hill, and watches, hoping to see her husband’s boat appear on the horizon.

The legendary Amah Rock is indeed real. It stands over fifty feet tall on top of the tallest of hills overlooking other hills. This unusual granite formation looks like a woman with a baby on her back. Maybe someday you will travel far across the Pacific Ocean and sit on the veranda of a little hotel, sip afternoon tea, as the author once did and, as you gaze at the strange and intriguing Amah Rock, you’ll remember this story and imagine the loyal loving woman coming back to life when her lost husband finally returns and embraces his beloved wife and child.

This retelling is a lovely opportunity to share a charming tale with a young listener, study the enchanting images, and talk about how much patience and kindness it takes to be a truly loyal friend.

Published by Wisdom Tales, 2017.

Make Way for… Buddy and Earl!

 

Make room, Elephant and Piggie. Step aside, Frog and Toad. Picture book pals, Buddy and Earl, have arrived on the scene!

When Buddy, an unassuming dog, and Earl, a clever hedgehog, meet in book one of the Buddy and Earl series, all bets are off. The two strike up an unlikely friendship, passing an otherwise uneventful afternoon in a rousing game of pretend. Are they pirates? Racecars? Skyscrapers? Reimagining themselves as all sorts of amusing things, they come to a heartwarming conclusion. What they really are is friends.

Kids who enjoy the playful antics in BUDDY AND EARL, written by Maureen Fergus and illustrated by Carey Sookocheff (Groundwood, 2015), will also delight in books two and three of the series. BUDDY AND EARL GO EXPLORING (2015) finds these sweet and silly characters adrift on a “wild adventure” in the kitchen at night. In BUDDY AND EARL AND THE GREAT BIG BABY (2016), a neighbor baby’s visit results in both fun and chaos for these unsuspecting animal pals.

Both charming and endearing, Buddy and Earl are sure to leave a lasting impression on young readers.

Karen Jameson is a children’s author, newly retired teacher and active member of SCBWI. She holds a master’s degree in Language and Literacy.  Karen has published a number of nonfiction science articles in AppleSeeds and Ask magazines.  Recently awarded the 2016 Sue Alexander Grant for the Working Writers Retreat (SCBWI LA), she is now living her dream of writing full time.

The blending of fiction and nonfiction

 

If I were still teaching in the primary grades, students would definitely find FARM FRIENDS ESCAPE! (Animal Planet Adventures#2) by Gail Herman and DOLPHIN RESCUE (Animal Planet Adventures #1) by Catherine Nichols on my bookshelves. Each 10-chapter book introduces readers to a pair of protagonists (cousins Luke and Sarah in Farm Friends Escape, and siblings Maddie and Atticus in Dolphin Rescue) who, using their problem-solving skills, work together to help animals and solve a mystery.

These engaging chapter books, part of a new series from Animal Planet, offer traditional narrative stories with color illustrations alongside engaging photo and fact-filled sidebars. The books have a recommended reading level of 3rd grade, but I can easily see them holding the interest of older, reluctant readers as well as make a perfect choice for younger, fluent readers.  Kids will enjoy the bonus flipbook feature which accompanies each book.

Two new books, PUPPY RESCUE RIDDLE and ZOO CAMP PUZZLE are forthcoming in September 2017.

WE Have a Cybil’s POETRY Winner!!!

THE LAST FIFTH GRADE OF EMERSON ELEMENTARY (Wendy Lamb Books, 2016)

What an unusual, delightful, and thoughtful novel-in-verse for middle-grade readers, written by Laura Shovan. Here’s a “taste” of this delightful book:

“Eighteen kids,

one year of poems,

one school set to close.

Two yellow bulldozers

crouched outside,

ready to eat the building

in one greedy gulp….”

Eighteen narrators, from diverse backgrounds and experiences, tell the story of their final year at elementary school before moving up to middle school.  Their final year also corresponds to the last year of Emerson Elementary itself.  The school is scheduled to be demolished in order to build a supermarket in their food insecure neighborhood.

The fifth grade has been asked by their teacher, Ms. Hill, to write poems for a time capsule to be incorporated into the new building project. The poems reveal the distinctly personal voice and story of each of the students. As the year unfolds, students organize and protest – they are determined to stop the demolition of their beloved school.
Of all the candidates for this year’s award for poetry, the committee found The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary to be the most appealing in its diversity, its capturing of the emotional lives of children on the brink of adolescence, and its poetic acrobatics.  Laura Shovan’s writing is masterful.  Readers will find themselves reflected in the experiences of the fifth graders.  A thumbnail illustration of each character accompanies the poem helping the reader further identify the character.  An introduction to poetry and poetic forms at the end completes the package.

When this school year ends,

I will have spent

one thousand days

in this building.

I want a thousand more

so I’ll never have to say

goodbye to friends.

From “First Day”  in the voice of student Rachel Chieko Stein

Wendy Lamb publication –

“A delightful book, with an endearing cast of characters who can help teach the craft of poetry while sharing their own diverse personal stories.”– Margarita Engle, Newbery Honor winning author of The Surrender Tree

Review written by the Finalists Poetry Cybil Committee

Somebody Loves You…

 

Valentine’s Day comes once a year, but isn’t every day the perfect day for letting somebody know you care?

Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch by Eileen Spinelli, illustrated by Paul Yalowitz (S&S, 1991) is what I like to call an “oldie but goodie.” It’s been shared with children for over 25 years! In a time in our world when it seems too many are forgetting the power of kindness and generosity towards one another, it remains a beautiful story that’s especially relevant today and ripe for rich discussion with students of all ages.

From Kirkus:

Colorless Mr. Hatch–who works in a shoelace factory and eats a cheese and mustard sandwich for lunch every day with, just occasionally, a prune–is jarred from his reserve by receiving a huge Valentine box of candy with a card that says only, “Somebody loves you.” Amazed, he samples it, shares it at work and, buoyed by his friendly reception, sympathetically helps several people out on the way home (e.g., he watches the newspaper stall so that its proprietor can take his cold to the doctor). He’s soon baking brownies, hosting a neighborhood picnic, and reading to the local kids. Then the postman arrives with the news that the candy was delivered to the wrong address, putting poor Mr. Hatch into a funk; but his devoted new friends rally round to bring him back into their cheerful society. Told with warmth and a light touch, the story easily transcends its predictability.

Other great books to share:

Related ReaderKidZ Reviews:

Be A Friend. Love a Friend

Two Way to Say “I Love You”