Provo Library Children's Book Blog

Redwoods, Hemlocks and Other Cone-Bearing Plants by Steve Parker Compass Point, 2010. 48 pgs. Non-fiction. Cumbersome title, fabulous book. Parker's well-written, beautifully illustrated volume is a smorgasbord--in format and content--of fascinating information on conifers. From prehistoric cycads (whose leaves were eaten by the dinosaurs) to modern pine, fir, and hundreds of variants, the history of conifers is laid bare along with any number of arcane facts. Did you know that juniper and other conifer woods are burned as incense in Buddhist temples? that conifers that grow in swamps have node-like roots that protrude above the ground/water because the tree can't get enough oxygen otherwise? Did you know that the longbows of medieval warfare were made from yew wood because of its perfect combination of strength and elasticity? Redwoods, Hemlock, and other Cone-Bearing Plants is one volume in the Kingdom Classification series. I can hardly wait to read the rest.

Year of the Tiger by Alison Lloyd Holiday House, 2010. 195 pgs. Fiction Two boys become unlikely friends in this exciting story from second century China. Li Hu helps his parents run their noodle shop next to the Great Wall, but likes it better when he and his family perform as acrobats. But when Commander Zheng and the Tiger Battalion show up at the Emperor's command to repair the Great Wall before the Barbarians swarm through, Hu's life changes dramatically. He and the commander's son meet by accident and secretly practice together to enter an archery contest, but greater things are afoot as the boys are driven apart and then join forces again as they try to outsmart and then outrun the Barbarians to save their families and their country. With appealing protagonists, a nicely atmospheric sense of Chinese culture and society, and an exciting story, Year of the Tiger is a fine story for young people who like stories from far away and long ago.

Super Stars: The Biggest, Hottest, Brightest, Most Explosive Stars in the Milky Way . . . By David A. Aguilar National Geographic, 2009. 48 pgs. Nonfiction. A judicious mix of photographs and out-of-this world (you'll excuse the expression) astronomical art will draw young science types quickly and thoroughly into Aguilar's new book about all things STAR. The genesis of stars, their differing properties, and astral recycling form the scaffolding upon which Aguilar hangs his breathtaking artwork, fascinating facts, and a cool little feature that gives the names of the star, the constellation in which it may be found, its distance from earth, visibility (naked eye, binoculars, telescope), and where to find it in the seasonal sky. There is so much material here that it occasionally takes snake-eyed concentration to follow all the texts, charts, and illustrations to the point being made, but there's nothing wrong with that for kids who want to grow up to be rocket scienti

The Meeting Mr. Badger and Mrs. Fox #1 by Brigitte Luciani & Eve Tharlet Children's graphic novel Minneapolis, MN : Graphic Universe, 2010 Mrs. Fox and her young daughter flee from their burrow just before the hunting dogs destroy it. They are seeking shelter and a place to rest when they accept the hospitality of Mr. Badger. The badger children aren't too sure of these strangers staying in their home and putting them out of their beds. The little fox thinks she is too good to play badger games and doesn't settle in well with them either. When the parents decide this might be a bit of a more permanent solution and begin expanding the badgers burrow to make more room, the youngsters' emotions explode with surprising results. This cutely illustrated graphic novel is obviously trying to show the struggles some people face when blending families. The author specifically demonstrates some parallels to a family of multiple ethnicity. If a child is soon to be a part of thi

Anna Maria's Gift by Janice Shefelman ill. by Robert Papp intermediate historical fiction 100 pages New York : Random House, c2010 Anna Maria Lombardini is only eight-years-old when her beloved father passes away. Already having lost her mother years ago, she is sent to an orphanage in Venice. Her father had given her one last gift from his death-bed, a new violin made just for her. The master Antonio Vivaldi becomes her music instructor at the Pieta, and is quite pleased with her mastery of the violin. A fellow orphan is jealous of Anna Maria's talents and throws her precious instrument into the canal. Anna Maria is distraught from losing this last link to her father. She enlists the aid of some friends to scour the city for her violin with surprising results. An intriguing historical fiction story for beginning chapter book readers. Who doesn't love books about orphans and their exciting adventures?

The Dancing Pancake by Eileen Spinelli ill. by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff juvenile realistic fiction - in verse 248 pages New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 2010 Bindi is struggling with life. Her parents are separated for reasons she doesn't understand. She is good friends with a couple girls and a boy, but the dynamics of the friendships seem to be undergoing a change. Her mother join her aunt and uncle in opening a cafe called The Dancing Pancake. All of these things together require her to move out of the house she has always known into an apartment over the restaurant. As she comes to terms with all the changes surrounding her, Bindi grows up and realizes changes aren't always a bad thing. As I read this, I was frequently reminded of another book I read recently - It's Raining Cupcakes . The similarities include family and friendship issues and mother opening a themed restaurant. That being said, they are quite different as well. The Dancing Cupcake is told in verse and

Michael Townsend's Amazing Greek Myths of Wonder and Blunders Graphic Novel/Mythology 160 pages New York : Dial Books for Young Readers, c2010 Nine classic tales from Greek Mythology are presented here in a bright and bizarre graphic novel format. I can honestly say I have never read more ridiculous versions or seen such wacky illustrations for these myths. While not my favorite thing, they will probably be popular with the younger crowd (particularly boys) who tend to prefer comics and the graphic novel genre.

Adam Wreck and the Kalosian Space Pirates by Michael S. Bracco unpaged juvenile science fiction graphic novel Levittown, NY : Alterna Comics, 2009 Young Adam Wreck is bored out of his mind! He is traveling through deep space with his scientist parents who are searching for alien life. For two years Adam has been away from friends, TV and new video games. He just wants something interesting to happen for once. Finally his wish comes true and the family ship is attacked by pirates. Adam is able to flee in an escape pod and discovers a treasure of galactic proportions. Adam has the adventure he has been yearning for with some unexpected side affects. Adam Wreck's exciting and entertaining adventure is sure to be a hit with boys. The black, white, gray and orange illustrations are engaging and accompanied by just the right amount of text to not turn away even the most reluctant readers. I hope there are more tales to tell of Adam Wreck and his adventures through space.

The Wide-Awake Princess By E.D. Baker Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2010. 261 pp. Juvenile chapter book. In this story based on the tale of Sleeping Beauty, Princess Gwendolyn has been cursed to prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and sleep for 100 years till kissed by her true love. Her sister, Princess Annabelle, however, was given a much different fairy blessing at birth--she was given the unusual gift of being immune to all magic. When Gwendolyn does indeed fall into a magical sleep, along with the entire castle, Annie is the only one who remains standing. It is up to her to find Gwendolyn's true love and to end the curse, and she bravely sets out on her own to do just that. This fractured fairy tale was a delight to read. Fast-paced, funny, and well told, there were fun little twists at every turn. Baker is a great storyteller and keeps the language simple and accessible for her audience. I loved the inclusion of many well known fairy tale snippets peppered

The Very Little Princess By Marion Dane Bauer Random House, 2010. 122 pp. Juvenile intermediate fiction. This is a short, simple story about a young girl named Zoey, her mother, grandmother, and most importantly, a princess. The princess in question is an extra-special one--she's also a tiny doll. Zoey meets the princess when she visits her grandmother for the first time and discovers a beautiful dollhouse in her mother's old room. After one of Zoey's tears splashes onto the little doll, she suddenly comes to life, and a relationship springs up between girl and doll, but not the one you might expect! This story is much more than being about a doll that comes to life. It's about familial relationships and how they can be complicated and confusing, especially for children. This story is also about love and how it can bind people together, despite difficulties or differences. A beautiful story, this is one to be sure to read.

The Battle of the Sun by Jeanette Winterson Bloomsbury, 2010. 388 pgs. Fiction. Jack Snap, son of the pirate Roger Rover's housekeeper, is kidnapped at noon on his twelfth birthday, August 14, 1601. Soon Jack finds himself in the home of the Magus, an alchemist and sorcerer determined to transform the entire city of London into gold. Jack, it turns out, is key to his project, the Radiant Boy whose power must be joined with the power of the Magus to bring his plan to pass. When Jack's mother follows him to save him, the Magus turns her partly to stone and promises Jack he will restore her only if Jack joins with him to turn the land to gold. What choice does Jack have? But the Magus does not keep his promise. Only fear and uncertainty can keep Jack and his friends (the Keeper of Tides, Mother Midnight, Crispis the Sunflower) from defeating their formidable enemies (Master Wedge and Mistress Split--male and female halves of one bottle-born person; the dreaded Eyebat, and the Magu

Growing Patterns: Fibonacci Numbers in Nature by Sarah C. Campbell, photographs by Richard P. Campbell Boyds Mills Press, 2010. 32 pgs. Nonfiction. In this elegantly written, photographed, and formatted volume, Campbell shows children of all ages how patterns in nature reveal the mathematics of creation. The Fibonacci sequence: 1+1 =2; 1+2=3; 2+3=5; 3+5=8, etc., plays out in this volume in numbers of flower petals, spirals in pine cones and in the centers of sunflowers, and the shells of mollusks. Helpful overlays show the numbers of spiral bands, left and right, and a color chart shows how the spiral translates into numbers. Science becomes art and art becomes science in this beautiful, enlightening, and inspirational volume.

Nest, Nook & Cranny by Susan Blackaby Charlesbridge, 2010. 49 pages. Poetry. Baldly stated, these are poems about habitat. But Blackaby's true subject is home--where animals live and move and have their being. Divided into Desert, Grassland, Shoreline, Wetland, and Woodland, Nest, Nook & Cranny brings hares, hawks, herons, and sea otters to imaginative life: "Otters loll like whiskered boats/ Bobbing gently in the swells./Kelp beds help the otters float/ While prying shellfish out of shells./Thoughtful otters dot the ocean,/ Heads awash with crabby notions./ What prey, tell, do otters dwell on?/ Anything that has a shell on." Blackaby's sophistication of rhyme scheme, wordplay, and sound patterns makes these poems that children may enjoy better read aloud. Helpfully appended are discussions about each animal portrayed, and about her poetic constructs, including a than-bauk, a triolet, and a Shakespearean sonnet. Lovely spare line drawings by Jamie Hogan enhan

by Deborah Wiles 2010 historical fiction 377 pages Scholastic Press One of the year's absolute best! Countdown and The Water Seeker are my picks for Newbery, so far . . . Countdown takes place during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Franny, 11, and her younger brother, Drew, along with all the students at Camp Springs Elementary School, practice what to do if an air raid siren goes off while they're at school. It's scary for everybody, young and old, to even think about bombs, but when President Kennedy goes on TV and tells the country about Russian missiles in Cuba pointed right at Washington D.C., terror runs rampant. It's all anyone can think about, especially in a military community like Franny's. In addition to worrying about bombs, Franny is having friend trouble, her older sister Jo Ellen receives secret letters and won't tell Franny who they're from, her mom won't allow her to go to boy-girl parties, and her Uncle Otts is goin

Hawksmaid: the untold story of Robin Hood and Maid Marian By Kathryn Lasky Harper, 2010. 292 pp. Chapter book. In this unique tale of Robin Hood, Maid Marian is the star character. Introduced as a young child by the name of Matty, the book follows her as she grows and matures and becomes the Maid Marian of legend along with her childhood friend, Robin Hood, otherwise known as Fynn. The fascinating glue of the story, however, is in her involvement and ability with falconry. Spun with a magical touch, her bond with the birds goes beyond mere talent to something much deeper--something unexplainable. If you ever thought you knew the story of Robin Hood, this book will give you a whole new perspective. I found this story interesting and engaging. Although it started out a bit rough--I thought the author's use of old language forced and unnatural--I was spelled into enjoyment after getting through the first few chapters. This story is packed with adventure and would be a great read for a