Toddlers:
Underwater Doggies Colors by Seth Casteel (Little Brown Kids, August 2014)
Who doesn’t smile every time they see the underwater doggies photos of Seth Casteel? Now even the littlest of dog lovers can learn their colors and numbers while enjoying those zany dogs.
A Library Book For Bear by Bonnie Becker (August 2014)
Bear is rather curmudgeonly. That’s a big word for grumpy. In this series of books, Mouse is the one who very kindly teaches her friend Bear many lessons. In this latest by Becker, they head to the local library for story time.
Mix It Up by Herve Tullet (Chronicle Books, September 2014)
If you missed Press Here, make sure you pick up this new title by the talented artist Herve Tulle. In Press Here, there’s magic in the pages as readers are instructed to interact with the book. In Mix It Up, we continue to interact while learning primary and secondary colors. After reading it, you can get the paints out to create your own book.
Emerging Readers:
Frank Einstein and the Antimatter Motor by Jon Scieszka (Amulet, August 2014)
We know Mr. Scieszka’s work from the funny picture books (Stinky Cheese Man is my favorite) and his memoir for kids (Knucklehead). Now he is introducing a new series that mixes science and humor and memorable characters. It’s amazing how he gets the dialogue just right. Frank is creating something in his garage that is stolen by his archenemy T. Edison, and we go from there.
Louise Loves Art by Kelly Light (Balzer & Bray, September 2014)
This is both a charming sibling story and an inspiring push to creativity. Louise’s brother loves to admire her art, but he feels compelled to create his own. Louise struggles to decide how to display her masterpieces and learns how to recognize everyone’s talent. (The author will be at Blue Willow Bookshop on September 17.)
We Both Read: Sharks by Sindy McKey (Treasure Bay Books)
If you haven’t discovered these level readers, you are going to love them. Most level readers require the emerging reader to patiently (or impatiently!) sound out each word. The slow pace makes the story seem to go nowhere. We Both Read readers have text for the adult to read on the left side of the page to keep the story moving along and to add context for the young reader who reads the text on the right side of the page. There are lots of subject matters to choose from, and the series goes from one word on the page to much higher content (K level up to level 3).
Ant & Bee by Angela Banner (Egmont U.K.)
The British equivalents of the Dick and Jane stories are back in print here. The small trim size fits just perfectly in a young child’s hand. Follow along with the adventures of Ant and Bee in the animal world as the emerging reader reads all the words in red font. This classic series was originally published in the 1950s.
Tween Readers:
Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods by Rick Riordan (Disney, August 2014)
This highly entertaining guide to the Greek gods is narrated by young Percy Jackson, the smart alecky hero of the self-named series. Percy introduces all the gods to us, providing a handy reference while we read Riordan’s iconic myth series. This is the series which has prepared thousands of students for their future mythology studies.
I Kill The Mockingbird by Paul Acampora (Roaring Brook Press, May 2014)
Mr. Nowak, Lucy, Elena and Michael’s 8th grade English teacher, dies right before Halloween. He had assigned—way back in September—only one book for summer reading: To Kill a Mockingbird. Summer arrives and, in homage to their beloved teacher, the bibliophiles set out to encourage everyone in town to read the classic. They start by misshelving copies in bookstores and libraries, hoping to create demand and generate interest. Soon their project takes on a life of its own, one Lucy, Elena and Michael need to rein in. Smart, witty dialogue and literary references might just rejuvenate interest in old classics.
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson (Nancy Paulsen, Penguin, August 2014)
With each impeccably chosen word in this novel-in-verse, Jacqueline Woodson tells the story of her early life, growing up surrounded by family in South Carolina and Brooklyn, New York, in the racially charged 1960s and ‘70s. Through moments both large and small, we meet the little girl who will become a gifted author as she overcomes her difficulty learning to read and goes on to tell the stories that have always “run like rivers through her veins.” As gentle, heartbreaking and heartwarming as her picture books, Brown Girl Dreaming is a real gem. Recommended for 4th grade and above.
Teen Readers:
Six Feet Over It by Jennifer Longo (Random House Books for Children, September 2014)
The blurb on its cover says this novel is darkly funny; it is that and more. Leigh’s father buys a cemetery where Leigh is expected to help out in the office. Leigh has suffered great heartache in her fifteen years—parents who don’t seem to care or understand, almost losing her sister to cancer, and worst, losing a good friend with no chance to say goodbye. Leigh’s acerbic wit gets all of us through this story, and we cheer when she finally finds another friend to lean on.
I Become Shadow by Joe Shine (Soho Teen, July 2014)
Fourteen-year-old Ren Sharpe is kidnapped by the F.A.T.E. Center, a top-secret government program that produces super soldiers who will shadow and protect F.I.Ps (Future Important Persons). After four years of training, Ren receives her assignment: Gareth Young, a geeky, computer game-playing, engineering freshman at Texas A&M. Defending Gareth in a violent abduction, Ren learns that F.A.T.E. may be even more heinous than she originally thought. A satisfying ends leaves room for a sequel.
The Unfinished Life Of Addison Stone by Adele Griffin (Soho Teen, August 2014)
On the night of July 28, artist Addison Stone fell to her death from a bridge in New York. This novel is her imagined biography, fully illustrated with photographs and samples of Addison’s artwork. The narrator attempts to determine how and why Addison died and includes interviews with friends, family members and colleagues. Adele Griffin creates her own piece of art, rendering Addison Stone as a real, tragic figure, while exploring mental illness and the price of fame. A tremendous read for grades 9 and up!
