More books for kids

How to catch the kid market (or not)
Otto: The Boy Who Loved Cars by Kara LaReau (illustrated by Scott Magoon): Red-headed Otto loves car and has car paraphernalia all over his house and his room, including car pajamas and a bed shaped as a racing car, until one night he turns into a car and he can't eat, he can't get on the school bus and no one will play with him on the playground. When Otto wakes up the next day, he is glad to be a boy and finally willing to think about activities and food that do not involve cars. A simple object lesson with cut cartoony pictures, aimed at little boys who love cars, certainly a place for this one.
The Lost and Found Pony written and illustrated by Tracy Dockray: The pictures in this book are delightful, but the text and concepts are too sophisticated for a young audience. It reminded me of Black Beauty and the author alludes to this book in her end notes. This might be appropriate for older readers who love horses, but it failed to keep my interest.
Fractions=Trouble by Claudia Mills: Written for the second and third grade set who are just beginning to read chapter books, this tells the tale of Wilson who is a great artist, but needs help with fractions. A well-told school tale that should hold the interest of both boys and girls who are ready for early chapter books. Mills knows what she's doing.
Escape by Night: A Civil War Adventure by Laurie Myers: I was disturbed by this book on many levels. The title (A Civil War...) indicates a northern perspective, however it is set in Augusta Georgia. No one in the south would refer to this war as the Civil War; it is still known as the War between the States all over the South. The story itself is well told, has a nice plot and pulls the reader in to the adventure. It also will lead the teacher to talk about issues of slavery and right and wrong. However, the author refers to Woodrow Wilson at the end of the book, and infers that the main character is based on Wilson (who was called Tommy as a young boy). But, if the author did any historical research at all, she would know that Wilson is one of the most bigoted of our US presidents and did more than any other president to undermine the civil rights of African Americans, so it was a little galling to have him depicted in this story as a boy who went out of his way to help free a slave. When we present historical information to children, we need to be sure that we are presenting facts and not glorified myths.

Four New Picture Books

I recently received a box of new books for the fall list. Are these books the ones that will become classics? Probably not, but here are four of the picture books that caught my eye:
This Baby by Kate Banks: a great book for parents to share with young children when expecting a new baby. Written as a poem, it moves poetically through the wondering of what the new baby will be like. Lots of soft pictures of the mother's belly and toddlers wondering what is to be.
Jack and the beanstalk by Nina Crews: a new version of an old tale told with words and photographs, set in contemporary times. A good book to share with young children as a way to make comparisons.
Prudence wants a pet by Cathleen Daly: a predictable story about Prudence who begs and begs for a pet, trying out a branch and a stick before her parents finally give in and get her a kitten. Fun to share, not extremely memorable.
Oh, Harry! by Maxine Kumin, Kumin is a renowned American poet and this tale about a horse with a calming attitude is written in verse, albeit sometimes a little clunky. Harry can not only calm other horses, but has the ability to calm a mischievous 6 year old as well. Sweet story, pictures were stylized, not exactly eye-catching or appealing.
Next: some new fiction for young adults. Too many books!

July book list (sorry it is late!)

1. The forgotten garden by Kate Morgan
2. June Bug by Chris Fabry
3. Devil bones by Kathy Reichs (audio book)
4. No good deeds by Laura Lippman (audio book)
5. Kabul beauty school by Deborah Rodriquez
6. Soccer world Spain by Ethan Zohn and David Rosenberg (SLJ review)
7. Being me by Wendy L. Moss (SLJ review)
8. Listening is an act of love by Dave Isay
9. Middlemarch by George Elliot
10. South of superior by Ellen Airgood
11. Live to tell by Wendy Corsi Staub
12. A family affair by Mary Campisi

1. This was recommended to me by two of my sisters. It was a good read, if a little long. I liked the characters and the way the story played out. The author kept me guessing as to what would happen.
2. Written by a Christian author who wrote part of the Left Behind series for kids, I thought it would be a little preachy, but it was not. He said at the end that he was trying to retell the story of Les Miserables, so I had to download Les Mis on my Kindle, interesting connection.
3. About a third of the way through this book, I realized that I had read the book a few years ago. No matter, Kathy Reichs is a good story teller, even the second time around.
4. I had not read this one before, but I have read a few of Lippman’s books about Tess Monaghan, a Baltimore private detective. It made me think I should read more of these, fun to read about places in B’More that I now know and love!
5. We read this book for book club. I enjoyed Rodriguez’ style, but wondered as I read it about the veracity of her claims as well as the safety of some of the women since she was telling secrets about women still living in Afghanistan. It seems that NPR has done an expose of her and it seems that her memoir may not be all memoir. Perhaps it was too good to be true?
6. Reviewed for SLJ: good book, but where are the girls? Come on, Zohn, it can’t be that hard to give a few facts about women playing soccer in Spain!
7. A self-help books for tweens. Too bad we live in a society where they need this kind of help!
8. One of my faves this month. I would read this book again, or more from this author. So many truly wonderful stories. If you see this, you must read it!!
9. This has four good love stories, but lots of extraneous information. I felt like I slogged through it, bit by bit!
10. Right before vacation, I heard of this book on NPR. I downloaded it to Kindle and Chris and I both read it while we were in HI. It was a lovely story and very well told. I would look for more by this new author.
11. An old friend recommended this author and I was able to get this book on the Kindle. Suspenseful, good character building and tiny bit of romance. Would read her again.
12. 99 cents from Amazon on the Kindle. I just read this and could hardly remember it. Romance, but not well written. Don’t bother!