National Library Week 2015

Unlimited Possibilities @ your Library

Unlimited Possibilities during National Library Week 2015

The American Library Association has designated April 12-April 18

National Library Week.

• Check your local library for special events this week.
• Renew your library card and take a trip to a new branch in your area. They're as different as snowflakes!
• Volunteer to read at story time.
• Donate a book in someone's honor.
• Read the digital magazine subscriptions available at many libraries.
• Watch a DVD from their collection.
• Learn a new language through the library's Mango service.
• Join a club for knitters, writers, mystery lovers, or Lego builders at a library near you.
• Discover the possibilities behind the doors of the library in your neighborhood!

The doors of the New York Public Library
Courtesy International Revolving Door Company

Join the fun at ILoveLibraries.org

What are you doing to celebrate? Let us know in the comments below!

PPBF: Violet and Victor Write the Best-Ever Bookworm Book

Today's Perfect Picture Book Friday pick

The Best-Ever Bookworm Book,
by Alice Kuipers and
Bethanie Deeney Morguia

Violet and Victor Write the Best-Ever Bookworm Book
Written by Alice Kuipers
Illustrated by Bethanie Deeney Morguia
Little Brown Kids, 2014
ages 4-9

Themes:
siblings, creativity, writing

Opening:
"I'm Violet Small and I'm six minutes older than my twin brother. I love writing and I'm a great speller. I want to write the best-ever book in the whole entire world."

Synopsis:
Violet wants to write a story, but she needs the help of her twin brother, Victor. Victor would rather tend to his bucket of worms. Violet finally convinces her twin to make some suggestions. Unfortunately, ever time Victor tells part of the story, Violet hates the idea, changes it complete.y, and goes off on a writing tangent. In the end, they produce a book they both can love and share.

What I Love:
I loved the brother and sister characters with their individual personalities and voices. I am not always fond of narration from two perspectives, but Alice Kuipers did an amazing job in this book. I think it will be fun to reread and that it will spark readers' interest in writing their own stories, making art, and following their passions. And as always, I am pleased to find a picture book with siblings who can get along despite their differences. The eclectic collage art lends to the creative spirit of the book. I think this book will inspire readers to use their own unique creativity, whether in writing stories, making pictures, or digging in the dirt!

Bonus:

Courtesy Ashley Hackshaw

1. Make a bookworm bookmark like this one from Family Crafts.
2. Decorate your own writing journal like these from LilBlueBoo.
3. Here are a year's worth of story prompts for young writers on Hub Pages. Have students take turns writing a section of a story, alternating between scenes.
4. Cultivate a worm farm. Then donate the improved soil to a community garden or other non-profit.
5. Check out these and other Perfect Picture Books at your local library.

Reviewed by Julie

Reviewed by Laura Anne

Reviewed by Barbara

Reviewed by Joanna

Reviewed by Joanne

Reviewed by Wendy

Reviewed by Laura

Have you reviewed a Perfect Picture Book along this theme? Please leave the link in the comments below. Thanks!

Check out all the recommended titles for Perfect Picture Book Friday
for April 8, 2015 available on Susanna Leonard Hill's blog.

Writing Progress

"Every word is progress."
-Shannon Wiersbitzsky*

By George D. Perrottet

*Via Nerdy Chicks Rule

PPBF: Tap Tap Boom Boom

Today's Perfect Picture Book Friday pick

TAP TAP BOOM BOOM,
by Elizabeth Bluemle
and G. Brain Karas

Tap Tap Boom Boom
Written by Elizabeth Bluemle
Illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Candlewick, 2014
Preschool-2nd grade, 263 words

Themes:
Poetry, city life, humanity

Opening:

Tap TAP, dark clouds.
Tap TAP, damp air.
Tap TAP, cold drops
of raindot hair.

Street carts appear: "Umbrellas here!"
Tap TAP Tap TAP BOOM BOOM
Tap TAP Tap TAP BOOM BOOM Crackle-Boom

Synopsis:
A rainstorm pelts the people of the city. They congregate in the subway tunnel for shelter. Based on a real event, the author records her observations and sensations in poetic style, showing that people of every race, creed, and walk of life can come together in a time of crisis.


What I Love:
I love how the author turns an ordinary rainstorm into a rhythmic picture book. The message she shares about the kindness she witnessed, a woman giving away her umbrella to a stranger, a man buying pizza for the crowd, people singing together to pass the time and calm the fears. These observations make this a book to treasure.
I wish I could share every line of this outstanding picture book poem! I can't believe I haven't heard of it before. The rhymes are so much fun, like

Feet wetter? / You'd better / go down / underground . . .

This is one of those books to read aloud over and over. My kids would've memorized and recited it in the car or during a thunderstorm.
The design of the book, the use of display fonts, and the collage-y illustrations make the reader want to notice all the details just like the author did during the real event.

Milk carton city craft
Courtesy Maria Victrix

Bonus:
1. Read more poetry during National Poetry Month!
2. Write your own poetic impressions of a storm, rain, snow, or hail. Here are some photos to inspire you further, via Tewee on Pinterest.
3. Make a cardboard city or other crafts, gathered by Laine Van.

4. Bake and decorate simple umbrella cookies from Land O Lakes. And don't forget to share them with friends, neighbors, maybe even strangers, like the characters in the book.
5. Check out these and more Perfect Picture Books at your local library.

Reviewed by Wendy

Reviewed by Joanna

Reviewed by Rhythm

Reviewed by Joanne

Reviewed by Susanna

Reviewed by Vivian

Have you reviewed a Perfect Picture Book along this theme? Please leave the link in the comments below. Thanks!

Check out all the recommended titles for Perfect Picture Book Friday
for April 3, 2015 available on Susanna Leonard Hill's blog.

National Poetry Month, April 2015

Numeroff, Hopkins, Stevenson, McCord, and Rossetti

I thought you might enjoy some of my favorite kids' books about poetry to start off National Poetry Month.

Pictured above are:
Sometimes I Wonder if Poodles Like Noodles, by Laura Numeroff and Tim Bowers
Side By Side, Poems to Read Together, collected by Lee Bennett Hopkins and illustrated by Hilary Knight
Candy Corn, by James Stevenson
All Day Long, by David McCord
Sing-Song and Other Poems for Children, by Christina Rossetti

Aspiring Young Writers

“If you have any young friends who aspire to become writers, the second greatest favor you can do them is to present them with copies of The Elements of Style. The first greatest, of course, is to shoot them now, while they’re happy.”*

― Dorothy Parker 

Courtesy Leo Baeck Institute

*Courtesy D Biswas on Amlokiblogs

Infinity

“A library is infinity under a roof.”
― Gail Carson Levine

Courtesy Ariel Eldridge

*Goodreads