fantasy

It’s Star Wars Day – May the Fourth be With You!

/ Louise / Leave a comment

May 4 is unofficially “Star Wars Day.” It’s the one day a year when Star Wars fans are encouraged to REALLY let their devotion to all things Star Wars out to play. Cheshire Library has got you covered, young Jedis – we have Star Wars items in just about every section of our collection. Here’s a very small taste of what you can find in our corner of the galaxy:

ADULT SCIENCE FICTION:

TEENS:

CHILDREN’S FICTION:

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EASY READERS:

NON-FICTION:

DVD:

 

Wacky Weather Picture Books to Share

/ Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment

Even without the snow filled and freezing cold winter we have just had weather is always an interesting topic to discuss with your children. From snow storms and the school free days they often bring to sunny days at the beach weather is always with us and affects our daily lives and activities. Here are some picturebooks about wacky weather than can make children of all ages laugh and start a discussion about nature and weather in your house.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett; drawn by Ron Barrett. Life is delicious in the town of Chewandswallow where it rains soup and juice, snows mashed potatoes, and blows storms of hamburgers–until the weather takes a turn for the worse.

Hello, Sun! by Dayle Ann Dodds; pictures by Sachiko Yoshikawa. A young girl and her cat must change clothes many times as the weather goes from sunny to cloudy to rainy to snowy.

Aunt Minnie and the Twister by Mary Skillings Prigger; illustrated by Betsy Lewin. After a tornado rearranges their Kansas house, Aunt Minnie and the nine nieces and nephews living with her add on a much-needed new room.

Un-brella by Scott E. Franson. In this wordless book, a little girl uses her magic umbrella to give her the weather she wants, regardless of what the conditions really are outside.

Bartholomew and the Oobleck written and illustrated by Dr. Seuss. The King, tired of rain, snow, sun and fog, commands his magicians to make something else come down from the sky, but when oobleck falls, in sticky greenish droplets, Bartholomew Cubbins shames the King and saves the kingdom.

As usual, there are too many great books to limit myself to the size allotted here, so I will offer a few more and invite you to offer more suggestions in the comments. My other suggestions include; Sector 7 by David Wiesner, Miss Mingo Weathers the Storm by Jamie Harper, Sun, Snow, Stars, Sky by Catherine and Laurence Anholt, Mouse & Mole and the All-Weather Train Ride by Doug Cushman, and The Magic School Bus Kicks up a Storm adaptation by Nancy White and illustrated by Art Ruiz.

Books to Read After Wimpy Kid

/ Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment

Are you a fan of Jeff Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid, or know someone that is? Waiting for an author to release another book, or the next movie adaptation of a favorite series, can be frustrating to big fans. Thankfully, there are still plenty of books out there that might make Wimpy Kid fans happy. take a chance with one of these books to satisfy that Wimpy Kid craving.

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda (Origami Yoda #1) by Tom Angleberger
Sixth-grader Tommy and his friends describe their interactions with a paper finger puppet of Yoda, worn by their weird classmate Dwight, as they try to figure out whether or not the puppet can really predict the future. Includes instructions for making Origami Yoda.

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier
Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes is the utterly beguiling tale of a ten-year-old blind orphan who has been schooled in a life of thievery. One fateful afternoon, he steals a box from a mysterious traveling haberdasher that contains three pairs of magical eyes. When he tries the first pair, he is instantly transported to a hidden island where he is presented with a special quest: to travel to the dangerous Vanished Kingdom and rescue a people in need.

Charlie Joe Jackson’s Guide to Not Reading (Charlie Joe Jackson, #1) by Tommy Greenwald
Middle schooler Charlie Joe is proud of his success at avoiding reading, but eventually his schemes go too far.

NERDS: National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society (NERDS, #1) by Michael Buckley
While running a spy network from their elementary school, five unpopular misfits combine their talents and use cutting-edge gadgetry to fight evil around the world.

The Adventures of Captain Underpants (Captain Underpants, #1) by Dav Pilkey
When George and Harold hypnotize their principal into thinking that he is the superhero Captain Underpants, he leads them to the lair of the nefarious Dr. Diaper, where they must defeat his evil robot henchmen.

Milo: Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze by Alan Silberberg
In love with the girl he sneezed on the first day of school and best pals with Marshall, the “One Eyed Jack” of friends, seventh-grader Milo Cruikshank misses his mother whose death has changed everything at home.

You might also want to try: The Accidental Genius of Weasel High by Rick Detorie, The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #1) by Rick Riordan, Gossip from the Girls’ Room (Blogtastic!, #1) by Rose Cooper,  Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie,  Zen and the Art of Faking It, or Notes from the Midnight Driver by Jordan Sonnenblick, Horton Halfpott: or, The Fiendish Mystery of Smugwick Manor; or, The Loosening of M’Lady Luggertuck’s Corset by Tom Angleberger,  Horrid Henry (Horrid Henry #1) Francesca Simon, Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson, Into the Wild (Warriors, #1) by Erin Hunter, or Warp Speed by Lisa Yee.

Sharon Reads: The Abominables by Eva Ibbotson

/ Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment

The Abominables by Eva Ibbotson is a children’s chapter book. This is a previously unpublished work from a well known author, following a family of yetis who are forced to leave their home in the Himalayas and make their way across Europe to a possible new home. Siblings Con and Ellen shepherd the yetis along their eventful journey, with the help of Perry, a good-natured truck driver. Through a mountain rescue in the Alps and a bullfight in Spain, the yetis at last find their way to an ancestral estate in England—only to come upon a club of voracious hunters who have set their sights on the most exotic prey of all: the Abominable Snowmen.

The Abominables is a fun story full of crazy incidents that keep the reader turning pages. As a child, Abigail is stolen from her father’s tent while on an expedition. Her kidnapper means no harm, only needs some help raising his young adominables. This introduction to the world of the adominables brings readers to a place where what most consider imaginary monsters, to be very much like man. Abigail teaches the adominables that she lives with to read, speak, and have good manners. When tourism threatens their home, Abigail sends her ‘family’ to her original home in search of safety. The journey is much more exciting than the travelers were prepared for. Just think about a long trip in the back of a truck with four adominables and a very confused yak. The illustrations scattered throughout the book from Fiona Robinson add a level of humor and aid the imagination perfectly, without overwhelming the reader.

I would highly recommend The Abominables to readers that are fans of the late, great Eva Ibbotson. Readers that enjoy animal stories, humor, and adventure will greatly enjoy the story. I am a little unsure on my age recommendations as I think readers around 8 and older would be my best guess. However, there is quite a bit about animal rights and cruelty so some of the youngest set might be upset by. However, (spoiler) every character gets their happy ending so that might be enough to make the mild upset worth the big happy that is sure to follow. I gave this book 4 stars on Goodreads.

Picturebooks for Raising Independent Girls

/ Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment

I was never the typically girl dressed in pink (willingly anyway) and pretending to be a princess. Instead, I was out climbing trees and playing astronaut with the boys and defending my right to do so even though I was ‘just a girl’. My daughter loves pink and purple, but is just as likely to jump in a mud puddle as she would be to convince her big brother and all the superheros or monsters of the day to have a tea party. I want her to stay open to all possibilities and be a strong individual. I do not want her waiting for a prince or knight to rescue her, so I am always on the lookout for books that reinforce that idea. Here are some of the best picturebooks that I have found that support growth of every girl into a strong, capable individual.

The Paper Bag Princess written by Robert N. Munsch; illustrated Michael Martchenko
After her castle and clothes are destroyed by the dragon, Princess Elizabeth, dressed only in a paper bag, sets out to rescue Prince Ronald, who was taken captive.

Me– Jane by Patrick McDonnell
Holding her stuffed toy chimpanzee, young Jane Goodall observes nature, reads Tarzan books, and dreams of living in Africa and helping animals. Includes biographical information on the prominent zoologist.

The Sandwich Swap by Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah with Kelly DiPucchio; illustrated by Tricia Tusa. Best friends Lily and Salma disagree over their preferred foods, but after trading sandwiches to see how they taste, the girls change their minds.

I Like Myself! written by Karen Beaumont; illustrated by David Catrow
In rhyming text, a child expresses her self-esteem and exults in her unique identity.

Cloud Tea Monkeys by Mal Peet and Elspeth Graham; illustrated by Juan Wijngaard
When her mother becomes too ill to harvest tea on the nearby plantation, Shenaz is too small to fill in, but when she tells the monkeys she has befriended why she is sad, they bring her a basket filled with rare and valuable wild tea.

The Gardener written by Sarah Stewart; pictures by David Small
A series of letters relating what happens when, after her father loses his job, Lydia Grace goes to live with her Uncle Jim in the city but takes her love for gardening with her.

For even more books you can take a look at these options; Amazing Grace written by Mary Hoffman; pictures by Caroline Binch, The Three Ninja Pigs written by Corey Rosen Schwartz; illustrated by Dan Santat, Every Cowgirl Needs Dancing Boots by Rebecca Janni, Blueberry Girl written by Neil Gaiman; illustrated by Charles Vess, Not All Princesses Dress in Pink written by Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple; illustrated by Anne-Sophie Lanquetin, My Name is Not Isabella written by Jennifer Fosberry; pictures by Mike Litwin, Basketball Belles written by Sue Macy; illustrated by Matt Collins, The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds, Sally Jean, the Bicycle Queen written by Cari Best ; pictures by Christine Davenier, O’Sullivan Stew: a Tale Cooked Up in Ireland wirtten by Hudson Talbott, Unspoken: a Story From the Underground Railroad by Henry Cole, and The Princess Knight written by Cornelia Funke; illustrations by Kerstin Meyer; translated by Anthea Bell.