MORE '2011-REVIEWS' POSTS
Come to Bed, Red! By Jonathan Allen Double Digit productions Kindle Edition File Size: 6845 KB For ages 4-8 Available now Each year I like to review one independently published title. In an era where even review journals like Kirkus have a section dedicated to self-published titles, it’s always a good idea to give some […]
Coral Reefs By Jason Chin Roaring Brook (an imprint of Macmillan) $16.99 ISBN: 978-1-59643-563-6 Ages 5 and up On shelves now First things first. Let’s just get something out the way here before I go any further. I am not exactly a disinterested party when it comes to this book. No, I don’t know the […]
The Trouble with May Amelia By Jennifer L. Holm Illustrated by Adam Gustavson Atheneum (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) $15.99 ISBN: 978-1-4169-1373-3 Ages 9-12 On shelves now Reviewing a Jennifer L. Holm book is a bit redundant. Telling anyone that the woman can write is like pointing out that the sky is blue. It’s […]
Everything Goes on Land By Brian Biggs Balzer & Bray (an imprint of Harper Collins) $14.99 ISBN: 978-0-06-195809-0 Ages 3 and up On shelves now There is much to be said for simplicity. The elegant understated picture book that contains peaceful moments of serenity with the idea that a child might get lost in the […]
From Then to Now: A Short History of the World By Christopher Moore Illustrated by Andrej Krystoforski Tundra Books $25.95 ISBN: 978-0-88776-5407 Ages 9 and up On shelves now. I have nothing but respect for contemporary historians. A few of them, let us be honest, are rock stars. They have to take something as strange […]
The Romeo and Juliet Code By Phoebe Stone Arthur A. Levine (an imprint of Scholastic) $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-545-21511-4 Ages 9-12 On shelves now It seems unfair that my attention was first drawn to The Romeo and Juliet Code because of its cover. No book deserves to be held responsible for its misleading jacket and Phoebe […]
Belle, the Last Mule at Gee’s Bend: A Civil Rights Story By Calvin Alexander Ramsey and Bettye Stroud Illustrated by John Holyfield Candlewick Press $15.99 ISBN: 978-0-7636-4058-3 Ages 4-8 On shelves now Certain historical figures inspire multiple generations of children’s authors to go a little hog wild and pig crazy writing up their lives for […]
Alicia Alonso: Prima Ballerina By Carmen T. Bernier-Grand Illustrated by Raul Colon Marshall Cavendish $19.99 ISBN: 978-0-7614-5562-2 Ages 8-11 On shelves now When I was a kid I took a fair amount of ballet. I liked it. Kept me on my toes (yuk yuk yuk). I retain fond memories of that time in my life, […]
Dragon Castle By Joseph Bruchac Dial Books (an imprint of Penguin) $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-8037-33767-3 Ages 10-14 On shelves now. “When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the […]
What Animals Really Like By Fiona Robinson Abrams Books for Young Readers $15.95 ISBN: 978-0-8109-8976-4 Ages 4-8 On shelves now. I’m sitting in a room with other children’s librarians. Together, we are attempting to determine what the best children’s books of a given year are. It’s late in the publishing season and we haven’t a […]