Library Book Sale

It’s National Library week. If you’ve read here for a long time, you know how much I love the library. I love finding new books at the library. I love getting recommendations from librarians who have literally read everything. I love seeing the list of upcoming programs and children racing to the children’s room excited for today’s book activity.

This weekend is one of my favorite book events….the library book sale. I look forward to this book sale for months. I’ve gone into the sale hoping to find certain books, and I have been lucky enough to find them. I’ve gone into the sale with no idea what book will find me, and somehow the great books manage to draw me to them, and I’m always thrilled to bring them home.

I’ve seen many library book sales advertised on my social media feed lately. I may be biased, but I think my library’s sale is one of the best. I think we might all say that about our town library and that’s ok. They can all be the best (but if you are in CT, check out the Friends of the Ridgefield Library Book Sale).

Many library book sales have a $5 fill a bag day. I love this day for parents looking to get their children excited about reading. There are some books I have hesitated to buy because I didn’t think it would hold my child’s interest. Library $5 fill a bag day, yes, you can get that book. Being able to have one of those yes days is amazing. Yes, you can get that book. Yes, you can get three different world record books. Yes, you can get a different version of a favorite book because this one has different illustrations. Yes, you can get 2 copies so your best friend can read it too. An hour of yeses and five dollars can make a child excited about books.

Even if your library doesn’t have a fill a bag day, there are so may great books for as little as a dollar. I saw children at the sale adding up their books asking their parents, “can I spend six dollars on all these books?” Developing a love of reading and practicing math without realizing they are doing either. That’s a pretty awesome day.

If you aren’t sure if your library has a book sale, check out their website. You will find so many incredible things there…possibly book sales, lectures, book talks, learning opportunities. Libraries are magical little places that serve as a doorway to so many different worlds.

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Wolves and Brioches

Historically, wolves have gotten a bad rap in stories…. tricking that little girl in the red cape or trying to eat those three little pigs. Imagine breaking into a library to find the ancestor of those two menaces elegantly dressed reading a book. Would you befriend him or run in fear?

In Alysa Salzberg’s “Wolves and Brioches,” we meet Odette de l’Estoile who comes from one of the powerful magic families, however Odette is only half magic and forbidden from learning spells. Odette, curious about the magic books locked away in her uncle’s library, breaks into his library while he is away to read those books. She knows the house is empty, so she is startled to find someone in the library. She is even more startled to see it is an elegantly dressed wolf reading a book. Fight or flight? Neither. Odette is curious and begins to talk to the wolf, Louis. This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Odette has been given a rather daunting task by her uncle and Louis is happy to help her tackle it. The two venture out into Paris and complete the tasks Odette has been given. Once that is out of the way, they find ways to explore the city without Louis’ true identity being discovered. How would Parisians in 1765 react to a young woman and a wolf walking down the street together?

Another wolf, the legendary Beast of Gévaundan has killed many innocent people, and an evil magician plans to use that wolf to threaten the world Odette and Louis have come to enjoy. While Odette’s family needs to fight this magician and save Paris, Odette and Louis are unexpectedly pulled into this battle.

I loved this book. I can’t say that enough. Salzberg’s storytelling is beautiful and captivating, and I was so engrossed in this story. The story took twists and turns I didn’t expect and I was sad when it ended. The descriptions are so well written I felt like I was walking the streets of Paris in 1765 and Salzberg managed to do this without being “world building” heavy. She balanced those descriptions beautifully while telling Odette and Louis’ story.

The book ends with a message to the readers which reminded me of William Goldman’s message to the readers in “The Princess Bride” (you all know how much I love that book). That message made me believe the story even more and made me love the book even more (just as Goldman did with his message). Pick up a copy of this beautiful book today. I am sure you will love it as much as I did.

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King & Sendak’s “Hansel and Gretel”

Like most students learning a language, I took your usual school language classes. I learned to conjugate verbs and studied lists of vocabulary. I didn’t think I would ever learn to actually speak and hold conversation until one class changed everything. I signed up for a Grimms’ fairytales class in German. An entire class reading fairytales. This class changed my language journey, instead of trying to translate word for word, I started reading. I started learning meaning of words through context. The same way I read in English, I was learning to read in German. It was in that class that I truly realized the importance of stories and how we learn from them. This was of course two-fold, including both the lessons the Grimms fairytales taught and the way we read and hear stories teaching us language, imagination, and new perspectives.

Those stories have stayed with me. I love the original versions (far darker than the ones we tend to read today), retellings, picture book versions. When I saw the Stephen King retelling of “Hansel and Gretel” illustrated by Maurice Sendak, I needed to read that version.

For those of you who have been long time readers of on the children’s shelf, you may remember my Maurice Sendak story. For those who are newer here, many years ago, I was sitting in a waiting room and Maurice Sendak walked in. He sat down and immediately opened a book which he held up so no one would notice him; except I already had. I was trying to keep my cool, but he realized I recognized him. He lowered his book, made eye contact with me and smiled. It’s not a dramatically exciting story but it means so much to me. In that moment, I hope my excitement expressed my gratitude for his stories, appreciation of his illustrations, and that I truly believe great children’s stories impact us for the rest of our lives.

King and Sendak’s “Hansel and Gretel” is a beautiful retelling. The illustrations are everything I hoped they would be and more. This retelling brings a combination of the Grimm brothers and King into a dark and magical new tale with proper homage paid to the original story.

When you pick up your copy, be sure to remove the dustjacket…the book itself is beautiful. Definitely check out this incredible retelling of famous fairytale.

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Paper Wishes

You know those books that you finish and just sit there and think about them? They just stay with you and your mind keeps thinking through the story? That was my reaction to “Paper Wishes” by Lois Sepahban. Since finishing the book, I just keep thinking it over. I sit down and try to write this and nothing I write seems to do it justice so bear with me as I attempt to write about this brilliant historical fiction.

In “Paper Wishes,” we meet 10-year-old Manami. The year is 1942 and it is right after Pearl Harbor. Manami’s family, along with other Japanese American families, are being sent by the government from their home in the Pacific Northwest to a prison camp in the desert. Manami and her family are scared and sad to leave their home but Manami especially does not want to leave her grandfather’s dog. She tries to sneak him along with them but is caught and the dog is taken away.

Manami is devastated to lose their dog, scared of this new life in the prison camp, and wishing her dog could find his way to them. Manami is mute from the pain, and from the time she arrives at the camp she only communicates through drawings. She sends her wishes, drawings on paper, out into the world in paper airplanes, hoping her dog will find them and heal some of the pain she is feeling.

Sepahban’s beautifully written story shows this dark time in our history through a 10-year-old’s eyes. When we think about camps like this, it’s easy to see them as far away in a different period of time, separate from us. Sepahban takes us into the camp with Manami. We see families, communities, friends. We see their struggle and their attempts to keep some semblance of normal for their children. While the subject might seem too dark for young children, Sepahban writes this story in a way that young readers can understand and see this experience through Manami’s eyes.

It’s been weeks since I’ve read this and I’m still thinking about Manami and her family. I’ve always believed a great children’s book is a great story that is written appropriately for children but can be enjoyed by readers of all ages. “Paper Wishes” is definitely one of those books.

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Rock, Paper, Scissors

“Long ago,

in an ancient and distant realm called

the Kingdom of Backyard,

there lived a warrior named

ROCK”

So begins “The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors” by Drew Daywalt. This book is sure to make it onto many young readers’ favorite book lists.

Daywalt introduces his readers to Rock, a warrior looking for an opponent who can truly battle him. He meets many challengers in the backyard, but none can beat him. Meanwhile Paper and Scissors are looking for their own worthy challengers. All three set out on their own journeys to find someone who can possibly truly challenge them. 

The three meet, and the battle begins. “‘Round and ’round they went, in the most massive and epic three-way battle of all time!” Who will be victorious….Rock, Paper, or Scissors?

This book is hilarious and amazing and I highly recommend it. Any child (or adult) who has played rock, paper, scissors will delight in this legend. I will definitely be giving copies of this book to several young readers in my life.

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Finding Lost

I recently turned to social media for book recommendations that took place in the Pacific Northwest. I was traveling to Seattle and wanted a good book for the plane with ties to where I was going. I looked through the recommendations I received and saw a Holly Goldberg Sloan book, “Finding Lost.” I had no idea she had a book that took place in the PNW but I was thrilled to dive in.

I would read anything Holly Goldberg Sloan wrote. Literally anything. Her voice, storytelling approach, word choices…she pulls the readers into her story because it feels real. You will read her books and feel like a good friend is telling you their personal story. You will be invested in their story, you will know these characters, you will laugh with them, you will identify with them, you will think of them as friends.

I boarded the plane, opened my book and couldn’t put it down. Hours later I was looking out the window, finished book in hand, still thinking about those characters. In “Finding Lost” we meet Cordy Jenkins who lives on the Oregon coast in the “boat house” of a large property where her mother is the property caretaker. Her father died in a boating accident and her mother is saving for a new beginning away from Oregon, the one place Cordy and her brother have called home. Cordy finds a hungry lost dog who she brings home. Her mom, who doesn’t want a dog, tells Cordy and her brother they will find the dog’s home. This little dog, who they name Lost, wins all of their hearts and guides their new beginning in an unlikely place, right there on the Oregon coast.

Now here is the reason I love Holly Goldberg Sloan books for readers of all ages. There are the obvious reasons–I love her stories, I love her characters, but what I really love are these passages that make me think. I’ve texted photos of passages from every one of her books to friends. Her words, while written appropriately for children, will give readers of all ages something to think about. I remember in one of her previous books she wrote about photo albums and how they tell one family member’s perspective. I still think about that today.

I can’t recommend this book enough. Definitely check out “Finding Lost.” If you haven’t read “Short” read that one too (it’s one of my all-time favorites). Just save her name, and when you see a book she’s written, read it. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.

A Time to Keep

Earlier this week, I posted a photo on social media of a page from my favorite picture books, Tasha Tudor’s “A Time to Keep: The Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays.” I’ve revisited this book more times than I can count and when I opened it earlier this week to look at the February section, I was immediately pulled back in.

Tasha Tudor takes readers through the year, month by month. She makes the ordinary beautiful, special, and memorable. As a small child, I dreamed of climbing inside those pages, helping to make maple syrup, playing with the corgis, putting on plays in the carriage house, making candles for the upcoming year.

What I didn’t realize when I read this book when I was small, is that I learned from these pages that there is beauty in our own special traditions. They don’t have to be fancy or expensive; they just have to be meaningful to us. Celebrating these things as a family make us look forward to them.

While my family’s traditions look different than the ones in Tasha Tudor’s beautiful illustrations, I realize how important those rituals are to my family. I realize now that the way we talk about the year ahead and what we look forward to, stems from that book. Not that we are imitating what we see in the book, but rather that we look forward to our own traditions and how we make them special. I learned the value of tradition from those pages.

While I wouldn’t trade our traditions for someone else’s, I would still love to climb into that book and experience Tasha Tudor’s world. If you haven’t read this beautiful picture book, please check it out. It is honestly the most beautiful illustrations of family tradition (and if someone can figure out how to make a lit birthday cake float down a river like it does in the book, please share because I think I need to add that tradition).

Liesl & Po

“Liesl & Po” by Lauren Oliver was highly recommended to me by my daughter. She repeatedly reminded me that this was a book I had to read. When my dear friend, Sally, and I were discussing books; I mentioned this one to her, and she read it that night. After reading it, she raved about the book as well. I knew I needed to read it, and last night, I finally picked it up. I wasn’t expecting that it would be impossible to put down, but it was. It was one of those incredible books that pulls you in. I was so emotionally invested in the characters, I needed to see how the story would end.

Liesl is trapped in the attic of her house, being held being a locked door by her stepmother. Her father has just died. She is alone, until a ghost, Po, appears in her room and becomes her friend. Po helps Liesl escape the attic, and they go on an adventure to bring her father’s ashes to the place he loved the most. They face many obstacles on their adventure, befriend a runaway orphan, and are chased by those who believe there is something far more powerful than ashes in the box Liesl is carrying. Will Liesl and Po make it to the far away favorite place and deliver the ashes to their final resting spot? Is the box Liesl carrying filled with something more powerful, like the others believe? This book is worth checking out to find the answers to these questions.

This book was so brilliantly written, I found myself photographing pages as I read, so I didn’t forget these passages. While the intended audience is children, the words speak to readers of all ages.These words make the reader think. They make the reader feel. Without giving away the ending, I will share my favorite quote from the book.

“And this, really, is the story-within-the-story, because if you do not believe that hearts can bloom suddenly bigger, and that love can open like a flower out of even the hardest places, then I am afraid that for you the road will be long and brown and barren, and you will have trouble find the light. But if you do believe, then you already know all about magic.” – Lauren Oliver

Oliver wrote this story to deal with the pain of the loss of her own friend. She didn’t write it with the plan of it being a book, she wrote it because she needed to write this story. As a reader, I needed to read this story. I highly recommend this book. Don’t turn away from this book because it starts off so sad, keep reading….it is worth it.

*This was originally printed on Books, Ink (HamletHub) in December 2015.

Travelling to Ancient Greece

I haven’t read many time travel books. If I’m going to read one, I need it to feel possible, believable, and realistic (although I read fantasy so I’m not sure why these are my rules on time travel but if the book doesn’t involve fantasy, then I want the time travel to feel completely possible).

I was given a copy of Caroline Lawrence’s “The Time Travel Diaries: Adventures in Athens.” Lawrence introduces her readers to Alex and Dinu, two friends who are enjoying newfound fame and popularity in their school after appearing in a popular video game. How did they end up in a video game? Well, they traveled back through time to gather information for the video game maker who in turn added them into the game. Life post time traveling (and appearing in a popular video game) is good for the two friends but they both vow they never want to time travel again. Their time travel mentor, the video game maker, is gone so they don’t expect they will ever be asked to time travel again.

Much to their surprise, their mentor shows up and makes them an offer they can’t refuse…. but it involves one more trip through time. The mission sounds simple enough, find one specific person. Who did they need to find and observer? Socrates. Like last time, they just need to follow 3 “simple” rules: 1. go naked, return naked 2. no eating, only drinking and 3. interact as little as possible (as it might change the course of history).

How bad could one more quick trip through time be? Could they find the one person they needed to and make it back without interacting with too many people? Could they handle a surprise person following them through the portal through time? I want to tell you what happens, but I want you to read this book.

Lawrence writes in a way that traveling back through time to find Socrates felt completely possible. I didn’t doubt any aspect of the time travel. I was invested in this trip, the possibility of finding Socrates, the wonder of seeing the streets Alex and Dinu had just walked in modern times as they were originally built. I loved this trip through time. My only disappointment was that I could only travel through time to search for Socrates in the pages of the book because after reading it, I wanted to go too.

Definitely check out this book! Join Alex and Dinu on this epic adventure through time. I highly recommend it.

The book I waited too long to read…

I was introduced years ago to Holly Goldberg Sloan books through a text message from a friend. She sent me a photograph of a page from “Counting by 7s” and said “you need to read this book.” That same friend texted me another page photo when reading “Short” because the writing is just that incredible that one page will draw you in. “Short” is on my list of the 10 best children books I’ve ever read.

So you can imagine any time I see a book written by Holly Goldberg Sloan, I need to read it immediately. Yet for some reason, I’ve walked past “Appleblossom the Possum” multiple times without picking it up. I didn’t expect a book about a possum to be as powerful a read as “Short” and “Counting by 7s.” I realized how wrong I was the moment I finally picked up a copy and started reading on a train ride into the city.

I could not stop reading except to dogear corners of pages and sending texts to friends about this book. I finished the book during my train ride, and I have three regrets. First, I regret waiting so long to read this book. Second, I wish I read it slower just to savor this story. Finally, I regret judging a book by its cover/title and thinking a book about a possum wouldn’t live up to books like “Short.” This book is just as amazing as Goldberg Sloan’s other books and what I love most about her writing is that each book is different and amazing in its own way.

Appleblossom is the smallest of her siblings, cautious, but also a little bit curious. A disagreement with her brothers over her curiosity about monsters (humans) leads to her falling down a chimney which starts this little possum on an awfully big adventure. I want to tell you more, but really, I want you to read this book and have the joy of watching this story unfold.

In addition to the story being captivating, I loved how the book covered the young possums learning appropriate possum behavior. It was like an introduction to sociology for children. The sociological concept that we are all actors learning our role in society was explained in a way that children would follow and understand…the young possums all learning possum behavior while bringing their own personalities into how they interpret those behaviors. This understanding of how we as humans (and possums in this case) learn and evolve in our roles was so well done throughout the book.

Holly Goldberg Sloan is one of the best children’s authors of our time. I will read any book she’s written, and I highly recommend you check out “Appleblossom.” Readers of all ages will enjoy this amazing story.