It always seems strange to have Christmas so soon after it finally gets cold. I feel like we were solidly in fall territory last week, and Christmas is only two weeks away! Wild. These books were selected by my coworker.
Who Will Guide My Sleigh Tonight?
Jerry Pallotta, illustrated by David Biedrzycki
ISBN: 9780439853699
Any story that seriously questions the type of animals best suited to pull Santa's sleigh is a winner for me.
The Christmas Kitten
Mary Packard, illustrated by Jenny Williams
ISBN: 0516053647
A frisky homeless kitten ends up in Santa's Workshop causing chaos until Christmas when Santa heads out on his sleigh with the kitten in tow, destined for a happy (non-elf-filled-workshop) home.
Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho!
Doreen Cronin, illustrated by Betsy Lewin
ISBN: 9781442496736
The well-intentioned but clutzy farm animals from Click, Clack, Moo! are trying to make sure that their farmer has a Merry Christmas, but they're all stuck in the chimney now. (It's always Duck's fault.) Who can save both them and Christmas?
Thursday, December 14, 2017
Wednesday, December 13, 2017
Tuesday Storytime: Last Fall Storytime!
It's finally getting cold out (now that it's December, of course) and so we're wrapping up with one final salute to fall. These titles were chosen by my coworker.
Fall Leaves Fall
Zoe Hall, illustrated by Shari Halpern
ISBN: 0590100793
Oddly-textured papercuts give this an old-fashioned stop-motion animation feel, with flat matte textures for people and backgrounds, and vibrant painterly textures for leaves and natural objects. Factual and quite short.
In The Middle of Fall
Kevin Henkes, illustrated by Laura Dronzek
ISBN: 9780062573117
This newest from Keven Henkes moves away from mice into a lovely exploration of fall and the activities and events that epitomize it.
Leaves
David Ezra Stein
ISBN: 9780399254970
Bear wanders around the woods, gently confused and saddened by the falling leaves all around. He gathers them up as he drifts gently toward hibernation, and when he wakes he sees the new leaves budding on the trees and is comforted.
Fall Leaves Fall
Zoe Hall, illustrated by Shari Halpern
ISBN: 0590100793
Oddly-textured papercuts give this an old-fashioned stop-motion animation feel, with flat matte textures for people and backgrounds, and vibrant painterly textures for leaves and natural objects. Factual and quite short.
In The Middle of Fall
Kevin Henkes, illustrated by Laura Dronzek
ISBN: 9780062573117
This newest from Keven Henkes moves away from mice into a lovely exploration of fall and the activities and events that epitomize it.
Leaves
David Ezra Stein
ISBN: 9780399254970
Bear wanders around the woods, gently confused and saddened by the falling leaves all around. He gathers them up as he drifts gently toward hibernation, and when he wakes he sees the new leaves budding on the trees and is comforted.
Monday, December 4, 2017
Tuesday Storytime: Fall Leaves
A last generic fall storytime before it's finally December and I feel obligated to move on to winter, despite whatever it's doing outside.
Fall Leaves: Colorful and Crunchy
Martha E. H. Rustad, illustrated by Amanda Enright
ISBN: 9780761385059
A really good junior nonfiction title with information about photosynthesis and plant growth and leaf formation. Illustrations are cartoony and clear and stylized in a slightly exaggerated manner. Interesting choice and a fun difference from the majority which use photographs. It has "chapters" of a few spreads each, which was a big hit for my little ones to be big enough to listen to a "chapter book."
Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
Lois Ehlert
ISBN: 0152661972
This book always surprises me that it is so narrative-heavy. The (unseen) narrator tells us all about her sugar maple tree and how it was grown and developed and nursery'ed, and talks about the colors of the leaves and the different types of trees and resulting leaf colors.
Fletcher and the Falling Leaves
Julia Rawlinson, illustrated by Tiphanie Beeke
ISBN: 9780061134012
Fletcher the fox kit is experiencing his first fall, and so he's worried when his favorite tree starts turning brown and then (oh horrors) losing it's leaves! He tries very hard to save them, but it's a lost cause. There's a beautiful surprise on the last pages of the now-winterized tree (love when books have just a smidge of glitter or fun printing tricks to them!) Amazingly evocative and sweet, and more than a bit sad, despite the happy ending.
Fall Leaves: Colorful and Crunchy
Martha E. H. Rustad, illustrated by Amanda Enright
ISBN: 9780761385059
A really good junior nonfiction title with information about photosynthesis and plant growth and leaf formation. Illustrations are cartoony and clear and stylized in a slightly exaggerated manner. Interesting choice and a fun difference from the majority which use photographs. It has "chapters" of a few spreads each, which was a big hit for my little ones to be big enough to listen to a "chapter book."
Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
Lois Ehlert
ISBN: 0152661972
This book always surprises me that it is so narrative-heavy. The (unseen) narrator tells us all about her sugar maple tree and how it was grown and developed and nursery'ed, and talks about the colors of the leaves and the different types of trees and resulting leaf colors.
Fletcher and the Falling Leaves
Julia Rawlinson, illustrated by Tiphanie Beeke
ISBN: 9780061134012
Fletcher the fox kit is experiencing his first fall, and so he's worried when his favorite tree starts turning brown and then (oh horrors) losing it's leaves! He tries very hard to save them, but it's a lost cause. There's a beautiful surprise on the last pages of the now-winterized tree (love when books have just a smidge of glitter or fun printing tricks to them!) Amazingly evocative and sweet, and more than a bit sad, despite the happy ending.
Tuesday, November 21, 2017
Tuesday Storytime: Autumn Thanks
Since we covered Thanksgiving pretty thoroughly last time around, I focused on a few of my newly-acquired fall books this time around.
Hocus Pocus, It's Fall!
Anne Sibley O'Brien, illustrated by Susan Gall
ISBN: 9781419721250
An entire book of fold-out flaps gives very short rhymes on different fall themes and situations, and then a "magic word" (a different one each time - there are SO MANY OF THEM!) to fold out the flap and show the "magic" change of seasons on the fold-out continuation of the spread.
Thanks for Thanksgiving
Julie Markes, illustrated by Doris Barrette
ISBN: 9780060510985
Short and as inoffensive as possible, this set of "thanks" are offered generally to no specified person or entity, and focus on the experiences of children - school and dress-up, play-dates and parents.
My Autumn Book
Wong Herbert Yee
ISBN: 9780805099225
Sweet but just a liiiiitle bit too long for my very young group this time around. A possibly-Asian girl notices lots of natural changes in the world as proof that autumn is approaching, and collects items to remember the season, building a book of memories to read in the winter.
Hocus Pocus, It's Fall!
Anne Sibley O'Brien, illustrated by Susan Gall
ISBN: 9781419721250
An entire book of fold-out flaps gives very short rhymes on different fall themes and situations, and then a "magic word" (a different one each time - there are SO MANY OF THEM!) to fold out the flap and show the "magic" change of seasons on the fold-out continuation of the spread.
Thanks for Thanksgiving
Julie Markes, illustrated by Doris Barrette
ISBN: 9780060510985
Short and as inoffensive as possible, this set of "thanks" are offered generally to no specified person or entity, and focus on the experiences of children - school and dress-up, play-dates and parents.
My Autumn Book
Wong Herbert Yee
ISBN: 9780805099225
Sweet but just a liiiiitle bit too long for my very young group this time around. A possibly-Asian girl notices lots of natural changes in the world as proof that autumn is approaching, and collects items to remember the season, building a book of memories to read in the winter.
Tuesday Storytime: Thanksgiving is Coming
My compatriot had lots of fun picking out Thanksgiving-themed books before she realized the rotation had her on the week before - but that's ok! We're not super tied to a schedule here, so there's no reason we can't have an anticipatory storytime a week ahead of time to remind kids what all the fuss is about.
She chose:
The Thanksgiving Play (a Herbster Reader)
by Cecilia Minden
Herbie and his school friends try hard to put on a fun and interesting Thanksgiving School Play, but everything keeps going wrong!
The Leaves on the Trees
by Thom Wiley
A beautiful nonfiction picture book focused on nature's glorious and varietal fall colors, to the tune of "The Wheels on the Bus."
Bear Says Thanks
by Karma Wilson
Another of the really delightful Bear books - this time focusing on the importance of family and friends as a cause for celebration and happiness.
She chose:
The Thanksgiving Play (a Herbster Reader)
by Cecilia Minden
Herbie and his school friends try hard to put on a fun and interesting Thanksgiving School Play, but everything keeps going wrong!
The Leaves on the Trees
by Thom Wiley
A beautiful nonfiction picture book focused on nature's glorious and varietal fall colors, to the tune of "The Wheels on the Bus."
Bear Says Thanks
by Karma Wilson
Another of the really delightful Bear books - this time focusing on the importance of family and friends as a cause for celebration and happiness.
Tuesday, November 7, 2017
Tuesday Storytime: Fall is Here!
With Monster Month safely behind us for another year, it's time for the rotation to begin having a solid selection of "fall" themed books, and oh there are just so many good ones to choose from. This time around I went with two solid favorites, and a new discovery just recently published.
Wonderfall
Michael Hall
ISBN: 9780062382986
A tree narrates a set of short non-rhyming poems as the season progresses from the end of summer to the beginning of winter, hitting on the start of school, Halloween, and Thanksgiving, along with blustery winds, animal migrations and foraging, and even composting! Really well done, and a delightful addition to our collection.
Mystery Vine
Cathryn Falwell
ISBN: 9780061771989
This one really needs to be done very early in the fall, so I wanted to go ahead and use it while summer is still fairly fresh in people's minds. A pair of kids follow a garden through the year in cute little rhyming couplets while a "mystery vine" grows along the fence until fall, when everything else in the garden is dead or dying - it's of course a pumpkin vine. There's a spread about trick-or-treating, but the focus is on the outdoors and the garden.
Moon Glowing
Elizabeth Partridge, illustrated by Joan Paley
ISBN: 0525468730
We follow a squirrel, bat, beaver, and bear through the developing fall into winter, as they prepare for the coming cold weather. Very sparse text, very short, not much content. Chosen to be a short final story for our typical fall crowd of very very young babies and toddlers, who are nearing (or well past) their attention spans by the last book of the day. Sweet and a bit solemn,
Wonderfall
Michael Hall
ISBN: 9780062382986
A tree narrates a set of short non-rhyming poems as the season progresses from the end of summer to the beginning of winter, hitting on the start of school, Halloween, and Thanksgiving, along with blustery winds, animal migrations and foraging, and even composting! Really well done, and a delightful addition to our collection.
Mystery Vine
Cathryn Falwell
ISBN: 9780061771989
This one really needs to be done very early in the fall, so I wanted to go ahead and use it while summer is still fairly fresh in people's minds. A pair of kids follow a garden through the year in cute little rhyming couplets while a "mystery vine" grows along the fence until fall, when everything else in the garden is dead or dying - it's of course a pumpkin vine. There's a spread about trick-or-treating, but the focus is on the outdoors and the garden.
Moon Glowing
Elizabeth Partridge, illustrated by Joan Paley
ISBN: 0525468730
We follow a squirrel, bat, beaver, and bear through the developing fall into winter, as they prepare for the coming cold weather. Very sparse text, very short, not much content. Chosen to be a short final story for our typical fall crowd of very very young babies and toddlers, who are nearing (or well past) their attention spans by the last book of the day. Sweet and a bit solemn,
Friday, November 3, 2017
Tuesday Storytime: Happy Halloween!
A cute set of books for Halloween, picked by my partner.
Trick or Treat
Leo Landry
ISBN: 9780547249698
Oliver the ghost is hosting a Halloween party for all his spooky friends, but one of the invites goes astray into the perfectly ordinary neighborhood house next door, allowing a pair of cute trick-or-treaters the chance to attend their first REAL Halloween party. All goes well, and Oliver ends up invited to a party himself!
Ten Orange Pumpkins
Stephen Savage
ISBN: 9780803739383
Graphically intense (all oranges and blacks and grey-scaled-desaturated colors) counting book with really nifty illustrations, and a serviceable "story" to accompany the counting.
Boo to You!
Lois Ehlert
ISBN:9781416986256
A clever crew of mice band together to outwit a mean cat in this Halloween-adjacent story made of fall-items-and-papercraft collages.
Trick or Treat
Leo Landry
ISBN: 9780547249698
Oliver the ghost is hosting a Halloween party for all his spooky friends, but one of the invites goes astray into the perfectly ordinary neighborhood house next door, allowing a pair of cute trick-or-treaters the chance to attend their first REAL Halloween party. All goes well, and Oliver ends up invited to a party himself!
Ten Orange Pumpkins
Stephen Savage
ISBN: 9780803739383
Graphically intense (all oranges and blacks and grey-scaled-desaturated colors) counting book with really nifty illustrations, and a serviceable "story" to accompany the counting.
Boo to You!
Lois Ehlert
ISBN:9781416986256
A clever crew of mice band together to outwit a mean cat in this Halloween-adjacent story made of fall-items-and-papercraft collages.
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