MORE 'BEST-BOOKS-OF-2014' POSTS
The Night Gardener By Jonathan Auxier Illustrated by Patrick Arrasmith Amulet Books (an imprint of Abrams) $16.95 ISBN: 978-1-4197-1144-2 Ages 10 and up On shelves May 20th For whatever reason, 2014 is a dark year in children’s middle grade fiction. I speak from experience. Fantasy in particular has been steeped in a kind of thoughtful […]
The Griffin and the Dinosaur: How Adrienne Mayor Discovered a Fascinating Link Between Myth and Science By Marc Aronson with Adrienne Mayor Illustrated by Chris Muller National Geographic $18.99 ISBN: 978-1-4263-1108-6 Ages 9-12 On shelves April 8th. I remember back in 2007 when the American Museum of Natural History in NYC premiered a show called […]
Nightingale’s Nest By Nikki Loftin Razorbill (an imprint of Penguin) $16.99 ISNB: 978-1-59514-546-8 Ages 10-14 On shelves now. Magical realism in children’s novels is a rarity. It’s not unheard of, but when children’s authors want fantasy, they write fantasy. When they want reality, they write reality. A potentially uncomfortable mix of the two is harder […]
Anna Carries Water By Olive Senior Illustrated by Laura James Tradewind Books $18.95 ISBN: 978-1-896580-60-9 Ages 3-7 On shelves now. I was recently engaged in a high-energy search at my library to locate as swiftly and surely as possible a listing of any and all children’s books set in the Caribbean. We were eventually able […]
Three Bears in a Boat By David Soman Dial (a division of Penguin Young Readers Group) $17.99 ISBN: 978-0-8037-3993-2 Ages 3-7 On shelves May 20th I always suspected there was more to David Soman than met the eye. That’s the problem with success. Folks just dismiss you out of hand. If the man’s name is […]
The Riverman By Aaron Starmer Farrar Straus & Giroux (an imprint of Macmillan) $15.99 ISBN: 978-0-374-36309-3 Ages 11 and up On shelves March 18th When a book has worked its way into your cranium and is making a home for itself within the darker recesses of your very soul, the natural inclination is to talk […]
Everybody Paints! The Lives and Art of the Wyeth Family By Susan Goldman Rubin Chronicle Books $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-8118-6984-3 Ages 9-12 On shelves February 4th For years it was my pleasure to work in the New York Public Library’s Central Children’s Room, located in the Donnell Library. The Central Children’s Room was the crown jewel […]
Under the Egg By Laura Marx Fitzgerald Dial (an imprint of Penguin Group) $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-8037-4001-3 Ages 9-12 On shelves March 18th. Let me ask you a question. You seem like an intelligent individual. Have you ever read From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler? And, if your answer is yes, did you […]
Have You Seen My Dragon? By Steve Light Candlewick Press $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-7636-6648-4 Ages 2-6 On shelves April 8th When I grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan I would get this little thrill every time my city appeared in a children’s book. Which is to say, every time it was mentioned in Horton Hatches the Egg. […]