Part 1: Picture Books (Fiction) Well, it’s done. I picked over every single year end list I could get my hands on. From the big names (Horn Book, School Library Journal) to the names which carry lesser weight in the children’s lit world (Miami Herald anyone?), no list went un-poured over (see below). I noted [...]
100 Scope Notes Year In Review: The Best of the Best of the Best (Part 1)
December 13, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Hollywood Inside Report: The Spiderwick Chronicles
December 13, 2007 By Leave a Comment
For those of you suffering “Golden Compass” withdrawal, fear not. Another children’s lit adaptation is humming along toward its date of release. This time, the film in question is based on the outstanding fantasy series “The Spiderwick Chronicles” by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi. As I’ve noted in the past, I can be a bit [...]
Let's Review…
December 11, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Book Review: The Lemonade Club
December 10, 2007 By Leave a Comment
The Lemonade Club By Patricia Polacco Philomel Books ISBN 9780399245404 $16.99 Grades 3-6 In Stores Patricia Polacco’s books consistently occupy an unusual spot in the world of children’s literature. Typically more mature than your average picture book yet less elaborate than your average chapter book, her stories tend to find their audience with the sensitive [...]
7 Things Roundup
December 10, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Book Review: Helen Keller – Her Life in Pictures
December 9, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Helen Keller: Her Life in Pictures By George Sullivan Scholastic ISBN 9780439918152 $17.99 Grades 3-6 In Stores *Recommended* In my eyes, most biographies fall into one of two camps. There are biographies (such as the recent and outstanding Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow) that seek to tackle their subject from a unique angle. This [...]
Book Review: Judy Moody & Stink – The Holly Joliday
December 7, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Judy Moody & Stink – The Holly Joliday By Megan McDonald Illustrated By Peter H. Reynolds Candlewick Press ISBN 9780763632373 $14.99 Grades 2-4 In Stores The flashiness quotient has been upped for the first ever team-up between Judy Moody and her younger brother Stink. How does that flashiness make itself known? Well, Exhibit A: A [...]
Controversy Report: The Golden Compass
December 6, 2007 By Leave a Comment
I thought I was through with reports on the Golden Compass controversy. The movie comes out tomorrow and the time for hype is over. Then I visited the excellent children’s lit blog Educating Alice this afternoon. She linked to article on Mr. Pullman’s work that I had to share. Is ‘The Golden Compass’ really anti-Christian? [...]
The Scoop: PaleoJoe Brings Class on Dino-Dig!
December 6, 2007 By Leave a Comment
As I reported on November 9th, digger of dinosaurs/Mackinac Island Press author PaleoJoe recently made an author visit to the elementary schools I work at. Fun was truly had by all – Mr. Joe knows how to win over a room full of kids. Before he began his presentation, he mentioned a contest where an [...]
Books in Bits
December 5, 2007 By Leave a Comment
The Edge Is Back!
December 5, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Hey you! Enjoyer of all things children’s lit affiliated – be sure to check out the latest edition of The Edge of the Forest.
7 Fact Notes
December 4, 2007 By Leave a Comment
A shout goes out to Wizards Wireless, a canny individual and wonderful children’s lit blogger, who tagged me for the “Seven Facts About Me†meme. Here are the rules (from the source): 1) Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog. 2) Share 7 facts about yourself. 3) Tag [...]
Book Review: Eggs
December 3, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Eggs By Jerry Spinelli Little, Brown ISBN 9780316166461 $15.99 Grades 5-8 In Stores When I started reading this book, I couldn’t help but be reminded that Jerry Spinelli is an author. What I mean is this: There are lots of hardworking folks out there who write books, to varying degrees of success, but Spinelli’s skill [...]
Report Card: Library Exterior Gets an A+
December 2, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Imagine if everyone’s workplace exterior represented what was going on inside. I know that the people at Longaberger would approve. In my web travelings I recently stumbled upon the following images. This one is of the exterior of the Cardiff, UK library: This next one is of the library in Kansas City, MO: More information [...]
Book Review: Canned
December 1, 2007 By Leave a Comment
100 Scope Note: This review originally appeared in December 2007, but with the book recently hitting the shelves, I thought it might be a good idea to re-post Canned By Alex Shearer Scholastic Press ISBN 9780439903097 $16.99 Grades 5-7 In Stores Now If you’re anything like me (and I suppose you probably are – I [...]
Recent Comments