A young Italian orphan learns to juggle to earn money. As his talent grows he is asked to join a traveling troupe and his performances attract great crowds. He even performs for royalty, juggling to spread happiness and joy. Growing older, and less skilled, the crowds thin and his performances are mocked as those of… Read more »
Jeanette Larson
Last Gasp Kids’ Summer Favorites!
For the few who are still on summer break, here are our last-gasp, fun summer reading recommendations. For the youngest readers: Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos and illustrated by Nicole Rubel. Houghton Mifflin, 1980. Even after more than 30 years, Rotten Ralph remains fresh and sassy and readers will thrill to his antics, which are… Read more »
Librarian’s Corner: More Sports Books!
I’ll be the first to admit that my favorite sport is reading, but that doesn’t get me outside and off the couch very much. Use some of these suggested books to help children exercise their minds while discovering some less familiar sports that may inspire them to try something different. For the youngest readers: You… Read more »
Librarian’s Corner: Sports Books!
We all need exercise and many children get theirs through sports. Sport is generally defined as a physical activity engaged in for pleasure that requires skill or prowess or a particular activity that has rules and customs, often with an element of competiveness. Sports include swimming, yoga, and power walking, activities that are not necessarily… Read more »
Librarian’s Corner: Books to Make You Laugh, Part 2
Children’s book historian and critic Leonard Marcus reminds us that “A joke isn’t a joke if you need to explain it.” Humorous books for young readers must include topics and situations that will be familiar to them. That’s one reason for the popularity of “potty humor” and fart jokes with boys, but we won’t go… Read more »
Librarians Corner: Books to Make You Laugh
Humor. It’s more than joke books. Humor is also very individualized. Some of us have more sensitive funny bones than others and see humor in the oddest places while others don’t recognize humor unless it hits us over the head. Humor also comes from many sources. Some authors recall funny incidents from their own childhood… Read more »
FAQ: Why did that book win an award?
January always signals the height of awards seasons. And every year at this time there is a lot of debate about the winners and the nominees, along with discussion of what was overlooked. Whether it is the Oscars, the Emmy’s or the Newbery, we all have to agree to disagree and scratch our heads about… Read more »
