Hansel and Gretel By Neil Gaiman Illustrated by Lorenzo Mattotti Candlewick $16.95 ISBN: 978-1-935179-62-7 Ages 6 and up When a successful writer of books for adults decides to traipse headlong into the world of children’s literature, the results are too often disastrous. From Donald Barthelme’s self-indulgent Slightly Irregular Fire Engine to the more recent, if […]
You know, folks, there are lists and then there are LISTS. And I’m not saying one is any better than another. Of course not. But when we look at lists of children’s books there’s only one that truly has my heart. Coming in at 103 years old this year, NYPL’s 100 Titles for Reading and […]
Water Rolls, Water Rises: El Agua Rueda, el Agua Sube By Pat Mora Illustrated by Meilo So Children’s Book Press (an imprint of Lee & Low Books) $17.95 ISBN: 978-0892393251 Ages 4-8 On shelves now. Sometimes I wonder what effect the televised ephemera I took in as a child has had on my memories and […]
Caminar By Skila Brown Candlewick Press $15.99 ISBN: 978-0763665166 Ages 9-12 On shelves now Survivor’s guilt. Not the most common theme in children’s books these days. Not unheard of certainly, but it definitely doesn’t crop up as often as, say, stories about cupcakes or plucky orphans that have to defeat evil wizards. Serious works of […]
Fox’s Garden By Princesse Camcam Enchanted Lion Books ISBN: 978-1-59270-167-4 $14.95 Ages 3-6 On shelves now. Have you ever read a picture book multiple times, enjoying it with each and every read, and then find later that it was wordless . . . and you didn’t even notice? Now THAT is the mark of an […]
Dory Fantasmagory By Abby Hanlon Dial (an imprint of Penguin) $14.99 ISBN: 978-0-8037-4088-4 Ages 6-8 On shelves October 9th Which of the following types of children’s books are, in your opinion, the most difficult to write: Board books, picture books, easy books (for emerging readers), early chapter books, or middle grade fiction (older chapter books)? […]
The Madman of Piney Woods By Christopher Paul Curtis Scholastic ISBN: 978-0-545-63376-5 $16.99 Ages 9-12 On shelves September 30th No author hits it out of the park every time. No matter how talented or clever a writer might be, if their heart isn’t in a project it shows. In the case of Christopher Paul Curtis, […]
Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation By Duncan Tonatiuh Harry N. Abrams $18.95 ISBN: 978-1419710544 Ages 7-12 On shelves now If I blame my childhood education for anything I suppose it would be for instilling in me the belief that the history worth learning consisted of a set of […]
Greenglass House By Kate Milford Clarion Books (an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) $17.99 ISBN: 978-0-544-05270-3 Ages 9-12 On shelves August 26th When I was a kid I had a real and abiding love of Agatha Christie. This would be around the time when I was ten or eleven. It wasn’t that I was rejecting […]
Hug Machine By Scott Campbell Atheneum (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) $16.99 ISBN: 978-1-4424-593509 Ages 3-7 On shelves August 26th Do you remember that old Shel Silverstein poem “Hug O’ War”? This may be considered sacrilege but did you ever notice how the guy could do something brilliant one moment, like “Sister For Sale” […]
Roller Derby Rivals By Sue Macy Illustrated by Matt Collins Holiday House $16.95 ISBN: 978-0-8234-2923-3 Ages 5 and up On shelves July 1st In my next life I will come back as a roller derby queen. Since the majority of my adult life has come and gone in complete and utter ignorance of this sport, […]
brown girl dreaming By Jacqueline Woodson Nancy Paulsen Books (an imprint of Penguin) $16.99 ISBN: 978- 0399252518 Ages 9-12 On shelves August 28th What does a memoir owe its readers? For that matter, what does a fictionalized memoir written with a child audience in mind owe its readers? Kids come into public libraries every day […]
West of the Moon By Margi Preus Amulet Books (an imprint of Abrams) $16.95 ISBN: 978-1-4197-0896-1 Ages 10 and up On shelves now. These are dark times for children’s literature. Pick up a book for the 9-12 year-old set and you just don’t know what you’re going to find. Whether it’s the murderous foliage of […]
My Country, ‘Tis of Thee: How One Song Reveals the History of Civil Rights By Claire Rudolf Murphy Illustrated by Bryan Collier Henry Holt and Company (an imprint of Macmillan) $17.99 ISBN: 978-0-8050-8226-5 Ages 7 and up On shelves June 3rd It doesn’t matter how long you’ve worked as a children’s librarian. It doesn’t matter […]
The Great Greene Heist By Varian Johnson Arthur A. Levine Books (an imprint of Scholastic) $16.99 ISBN: 978-0-545-52552-7 Ages 10 and up On shelves May 27th What is the ultimate child fantasy? I’m not talking bubble gum sheets or wizards that tell you you’re “the chosen one”. Let’s think a little more realistically here. When […]
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