BUCK'S TOOTH by Diane Kredensor. New York: Aladdin PIX, 2015. 60p. ISBN 978-148142382-3 hc. $12.99 Gr. K-3 E PIC
Buck Beaver was typical in every way except one. He had a big front tooth that made it difficult to smile, speak, and eat. On top of dealing with that, he and his friends were planning to compete in the local talent show soon, and Buck couldn't figure out what his talent could be. After trying to learn new skills like walking on stilts, he had a long conversation with his friend Pearl, Buck finally found his talent by accident. It turns out that Buck was talented at sculpting wood with his big tooth. In the words of his friend Pearl, "Buck's talent was right under his nose the whole time." This story is packed with illustration and word bubbles, similar to a graphic novel for beginning readers.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
THE TEA PARTY IN THE WOODS by Akiko Miyakoshi. Originally published in Japan, 2010. English translation, 2015. Kids Can Press: Tonawanda, NY. 32p. ISBN 978-177138-1079 hc. $16.95 Gr. K-2 E PIC
Kikko sets off in her father's snowy footsteps to catch up with him because he forgot the pie to be delivered to Grandmother. Don't be lulled into thinking this is a rendition of "Little Red Riding Hood" even though readers will see some similarities. Kikko trips in the snow, dropping the pie, and then hurries up to keep sight of her father in the distance. As he approaches a house she's never seen before, she realizes she's been following a bear in clothing and is invited by a lamb (also in clothing) to a fabulous tea party inside. When the guests, all forest animals, find out that Kikko's pie is ruined, they each provide a piece of the pies they brought to make a brand new multi-flavored pie. Charcoal drawings on textured paper are enhanced by Kikko's yellow hair and red skirt. The author/illustrator provides a storytelling masterpiece on each page, especially the last page showing Grandmother and Father looking down at the pie which is hidden from the reader's view. Was the tea party real or an imaginative tale about a walk through the woods? The proof's in the pie...what do you think?
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Kikko sets off in her father's snowy footsteps to catch up with him because he forgot the pie to be delivered to Grandmother. Don't be lulled into thinking this is a rendition of "Little Red Riding Hood" even though readers will see some similarities. Kikko trips in the snow, dropping the pie, and then hurries up to keep sight of her father in the distance. As he approaches a house she's never seen before, she realizes she's been following a bear in clothing and is invited by a lamb (also in clothing) to a fabulous tea party inside. When the guests, all forest animals, find out that Kikko's pie is ruined, they each provide a piece of the pies they brought to make a brand new multi-flavored pie. Charcoal drawings on textured paper are enhanced by Kikko's yellow hair and red skirt. The author/illustrator provides a storytelling masterpiece on each page, especially the last page showing Grandmother and Father looking down at the pie which is hidden from the reader's view. Was the tea party real or an imaginative tale about a walk through the woods? The proof's in the pie...what do you think?
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
WOMEN WHO BROKE THE RULES series by Kathleen Krull, New York: Bloomsbury Publishing Inc., 2015. 48p. hc. $16.99 each Gr.3-5 JUV
Krull, an acclaimed biographer, just rolled out a fantastic series of nonfiction books about notable women who defined their own roles in history. The books are published as a classroom set with similar covers, six chapters apiece, and the same number of pages, but each one has a different illustrator to lend individuality to the books. The text is easy to comprehend and includes personal stories that make the information more memorable for readers. Dolley Madison, Judy Blume, Sacajawea, and Sonia Sotomayor are the subjects of the first four books in the series, soon to be followed by Corretta Scott King and Mary Todd Lincoln. These books make it fun to learn history!
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI 49855
Krull, an acclaimed biographer, just rolled out a fantastic series of nonfiction books about notable women who defined their own roles in history. The books are published as a classroom set with similar covers, six chapters apiece, and the same number of pages, but each one has a different illustrator to lend individuality to the books. The text is easy to comprehend and includes personal stories that make the information more memorable for readers. Dolley Madison, Judy Blume, Sacajawea, and Sonia Sotomayor are the subjects of the first four books in the series, soon to be followed by Corretta Scott King and Mary Todd Lincoln. These books make it fun to learn history!
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI 49855
Thursday, June 25, 2015
THERE'S A LION IN MY CORNFLAKES by Michelle Robinson. Illustrated by Jim Field. New York: Bloomsbury, 2015. 32p. ISBN 9780802-738363 hc. $16.99 Gr. K-3 E PIC
Robinson takes readers on an adventure that many of us have already lived through, but with more imagination. Two brothers are intrigued by the offer of a "free lion" on their cereal box; the catch being that they have to save up 100 coupons from 100 boxes of cereal. They ate the cereal for every meal, cut the coupons, and sent their letters to the cereal company requesting their free lion, just like every other kid in the neighborhood. They waited and waited, even though everyone else took delivery of their prize. Soon the boys received a grizzly bear and, when they wrote to the company to complain, received a crocodile....and then a gorilla because the company was all out of lions. The brothers learned their lesson that there are limitations to corporate offers and marketing schemes....or have they? Check out the last page for a chuckle.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Robinson takes readers on an adventure that many of us have already lived through, but with more imagination. Two brothers are intrigued by the offer of a "free lion" on their cereal box; the catch being that they have to save up 100 coupons from 100 boxes of cereal. They ate the cereal for every meal, cut the coupons, and sent their letters to the cereal company requesting their free lion, just like every other kid in the neighborhood. They waited and waited, even though everyone else took delivery of their prize. Soon the boys received a grizzly bear and, when they wrote to the company to complain, received a crocodile....and then a gorilla because the company was all out of lions. The brothers learned their lesson that there are limitations to corporate offers and marketing schemes....or have they? Check out the last page for a chuckle.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
ASK ME by Bernard Waber. Illustrated by Suzy Lee. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2015. 32p. ISBN 978-054773394-4 hc. $16.99 PreS - Gr.2 E PIC
Waber, award winning author of LYLE, LYLE CROCODILE and IRA SLEEPS OVER, actually died in 2013, leaving this tender story of a young girl and her father as they walk through their neighborhood. The girl talks the whole time, observing the animals and insects along the way. She plays word games with her father who asks if she likes ice cream cones, to which she replies, "No, I love, love, love ice cream cones." The conversation is realistic and a good language model for emerging readers. Suzy Lee's illustrations look like colored pencil drawings; textured and subtle. She made an impact with a beautiful cover design and a full page spread of father and daughter taking a rest in a pile of fallen leaves. This is a great read-aloud book for children.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Waber, award winning author of LYLE, LYLE CROCODILE and IRA SLEEPS OVER, actually died in 2013, leaving this tender story of a young girl and her father as they walk through their neighborhood. The girl talks the whole time, observing the animals and insects along the way. She plays word games with her father who asks if she likes ice cream cones, to which she replies, "No, I love, love, love ice cream cones." The conversation is realistic and a good language model for emerging readers. Suzy Lee's illustrations look like colored pencil drawings; textured and subtle. She made an impact with a beautiful cover design and a full page spread of father and daughter taking a rest in a pile of fallen leaves. This is a great read-aloud book for children.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
THE SECRET PLACE by Tana French. Viking, 2014. 464p. ISBN 978-0670026326 hc. $18.98. Ages 14+ AFIC or Y.A.
I confess that I listened to this story in its CD book format instead of turning the pages. Either way, the story features a Dublin detective, Moran, and a new partner, Conway, who end up working the same cold case - the murder of a 16 year-old boy that took place at a reputable girls boarding school the previous year. A new clue has turned up and the detective duo head for the school to interview two groups of roommates who rank high on the suspicion scale. Both groups have alpha females and very loyal friends, always watching out for each other. As with any good mystery, the prime suspect changes often, keeping readers guessing who the killer is. The author switches the storyline between present day and one year ago, letting the murder unfold in one chapter, and coming back to the present in the next chapter, as the detectives interview each girl in turn to sort out the truth.
THE SECRET PLACE, part of the Dublin Murder Squad series, is fifth in the series, but was easy to follow as a separate novel. Since the story centers around the lives of teenagers, it would also be interesting for high school students, who may recognize some of their friends' mannerisms and speech patterns in these characters. It seems that teens are similar whether they live in the U.S. or Ireland. These girls are just a little scarier because of the secrets they hide.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
I confess that I listened to this story in its CD book format instead of turning the pages. Either way, the story features a Dublin detective, Moran, and a new partner, Conway, who end up working the same cold case - the murder of a 16 year-old boy that took place at a reputable girls boarding school the previous year. A new clue has turned up and the detective duo head for the school to interview two groups of roommates who rank high on the suspicion scale. Both groups have alpha females and very loyal friends, always watching out for each other. As with any good mystery, the prime suspect changes often, keeping readers guessing who the killer is. The author switches the storyline between present day and one year ago, letting the murder unfold in one chapter, and coming back to the present in the next chapter, as the detectives interview each girl in turn to sort out the truth.
THE SECRET PLACE, part of the Dublin Murder Squad series, is fifth in the series, but was easy to follow as a separate novel. Since the story centers around the lives of teenagers, it would also be interesting for high school students, who may recognize some of their friends' mannerisms and speech patterns in these characters. It seems that teens are similar whether they live in the U.S. or Ireland. These girls are just a little scarier because of the secrets they hide.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Thursday, June 11, 2015
THE ADVENTURES OF SOPHIE MOUSE: A NEW FRIEND by Poppy Green. Illus. by Jennifer A. Bell. New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc. 2015. 64p. ISBN 978-14814-28330 hc. $16.99. Gr. 2-4 JUV
Green's series of early chapter books features Sophie Mouse and her realm of forest friends who include frogs, squirrels, rabbits, moles, and assorted birds. Her classroom teacher, Mrs. Wise, is the proverbial wise old owl. Sophie is a good little mouse with many friends, who likes school and always has a helping hand for her little brother. However, Sophie was surprised on the first day of school by the addition of a new student - a snake. After a few misconceptions about the character and habits of snakes, the forest friends found that they could welcome a new friend into their group. The characters are reminiscent of "Peter Rabbit" and the animal stories written by Beatrix Potter.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
Green's series of early chapter books features Sophie Mouse and her realm of forest friends who include frogs, squirrels, rabbits, moles, and assorted birds. Her classroom teacher, Mrs. Wise, is the proverbial wise old owl. Sophie is a good little mouse with many friends, who likes school and always has a helping hand for her little brother. However, Sophie was surprised on the first day of school by the addition of a new student - a snake. After a few misconceptions about the character and habits of snakes, the forest friends found that they could welcome a new friend into their group. The characters are reminiscent of "Peter Rabbit" and the animal stories written by Beatrix Potter.
Lynette Suckow, Superiorland Preview Center, Marquette, MI
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