Summers in Portland and Seattle are beautiful and GREEN. Time to play some backyard soccer, hit around a tennis ball, and bike with friends. Might even bike to a bookstore – there are many – and get a refreshing smoothie or a sour lemonade. Look over the books, choose a couple good ones, get comfortable,… Read more »
Nancy Bo Flood
Bats and Unicorns
One of the best things about books in a series is that when you come to the end of one terrific book, you can reach for another (and also a glass of cold lemonade and a few chocolate chip cookies)! Macey (age 6) recommends this terrific series: Title: UNICORN’S SECRET series: Book #1 is Moonsilver Author:Kathleen Duey… Read more »
NEVILLE and a Chocolate Factory
Summers in Vermont might be a bit short, but afternoons are a perfect time to climb a tree, get comfortable, and spend a few hours reading. Zane, age 8, from Vermont offers two of his favorite books to include on your summer reading list: Title: NEVILLE! Author: Norton Juster Illustrator: G. Brian Karas Who might enjoy this book? Boys… Read more »
SNOOK ALONE by Marilyn Nelson, poet and story-teller
If you haven’t explored Marilyn Nelson’s poetry and narratives, you are in for a literary feast. Her new picture book reads soft and soothing – with surprises and delights with phrasing that is part poetry, part narrative. SNOOK ALONE tells the story of a faithful little rat-terrier dog, Snook, who dutifully catches the mice and… Read more »
Juan Felipe Herrera’s THE UPSIDE DOWN BOY
THE UPSIDE DOWN BOY (Children’s Book Press, 2000) is a picture book in verse – bilingual, Spanish and English – by California’s poet laureate, Juan Felipe Herrera and illustrated by Elizabeth Gomez. Juanito is bewildered by his new country, his new neighborhood, and especially, his new school. Everything feels upside down. His father reassures him: “Don’t… Read more »
SWEETHEARTS OF RHYTHM
SWEETHEARTS OF RHYTHM: The Story of the Greatest All-Girl Swing Band in the World What a picture book – written in verse with toe-tapping words that sing across the page, by Marilyn Nelson, and illustrated with collage, colors, and scraps of historical photographs, plus musical notation by Jerry Pinkney. This important part of America’s musical history… Read more »
KNIT YOUR BIT: A WORLD WAR I STORY
KNIT YOUR BIT: A WORLD WAR I STORY by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by Steven Guarnaccia “We knit all afternoon, and the next day too. By the third day, the pressure was on… Nick was still clicking away, though the edges of his muffler were all zigzaggy because he kept adding stitches or dropping them…. Read more »
