Provo Library Children's Book Blog

Children Make Terrible Pets By Peter Brown Little, Brown; 2010. Unpaged. Picture book. Dear little Lucy Bear finds a small boy in the woods one day and decides she must have him as a pet! Her mother warns her that children make terrible pets, but Lucy wants to keep him, anyway! She loves him dearly and includes him in all her games and activities--they are inseparable. Even though there are some drawbacks to having a child as a pet, Lucy still loves him. When her child disappears one day, Lucy doesn't know what to do! Will she ever find her wonderful pet again? This is a fun, silly story that will be enjoyed by all! Children will love the idea of an animal wanting to make a pet out of a human as they imagine themselves in the story. Beautiful, sepia-washed illustrations add a bright, appealing aspect to the book. Altogether, this is a wonderful combination!

Even Monsters Need Haircuts by Matthew McElligott Walker & Co., 2010. 32 pages. Picture Book. A little boy, who is son of a barber, has a secret life. After the moon rises, the boy sneaks out to his father’s barbershop and lets in his own “customers” in through the back door. Frankenstein, Dracula, a mummy and Medusa—they all need haircuts too! And this imaginative little boy is just the one to do it. The simple but colorful illustrations will draw in any child and make them smile as they study every page. Each picture has lots of visual details about the difficulties of cutting the various monsters hair—such as the picture that shows the little boy wearing a blindfold as he arranges Medusa’s snakes. Have a little monster lover in your family? This is the book for you!

Museum of Thieves by Lian Tanner Delacorte, 2010. 312 pages. Fiction Lian Tanner riffs successfully off a familiar theme in children's dystopian fiction: children growing up in a repressive society, the constraints in place to keep them safe. Goldie Roth hates the normal chains with which children are kept close to their parents or bound by The Blessed Guardians, but she hates the Punishment Chains worse, which she is wearing as the book begins on Separation Day, when she will finally be cut loose. But when the Separation ceremony is canceled, Goldie makes a break for it and winds up at the Museum of Dunt where wildness and randomness are still alive and well and where she, some grownup helpers, and a young boy named Toadspit must learn to work together to thwart the Fugleman, the Guardians, and the traditions of their own people to save the city of Jewel from all that threatens to break out from the Dirty Door. Along the way they (and you) meet the shape-shifting brizzlehound, the...

Wolf Pie By Brenda Seabrooke illus. by Liz Callen juvenile fiction 46 pages Boston : Clarion Books, 2010 Once upon a time the Pygg brothers lived in a brick house. Two of the brothers fell a little short in the smarts department, the third had enough for all of them combined. One day a big scary wolf named Wilfong knocked on their door. You might think you already know this story, but then again, you could be wrong. So maybe you better read Wolf Pie to find out what happens. And as an added bonus you get to find out the secret ingredients of Wolf Pie! If you are looking for a silly and entertaining story this is the book for you! Wolf Pie will be a great choice for reluctant readers as the chapters are short and full of bright colorful illustrations.

Magic Below Stairs by Caroline Stevermer Dial Books for Young Readers, 2010. 199 pages. Juvenile fantasy. Frederick Lincoln seems to be living the typical life of a young orphans in Victorian London. He works in the kitchen to earn extra tables scraps with the extra benefit of avoiding the orphanage director and the resident bullies. Frederick soon discovers he has an unusual companion, Billy Bly, a queer little brownie that no one else can see or hear. Billy aids Frederick in being chosen to leave the orphanage to work for Lord Schofield, a mysterious wizard. Frederick is soon immersed in the astounding world of magic as he assists his master in clearing up the remnant of a nasty curse placed on the family home. Frederick is a great character with a bit of a selfish and naive personality. Add into the mix a slightly vague wizard and you have a fabulous combination of historical and magical adventures.

Touch Blue By Cynthia Lord Scholastic Press, 2010. 192 pages. Juvenile realistic fiction Eleven-year-old Tess loves her quaint island home. When the government threatens to close their school due to a small student body, Tess is terrified. This would mean having to move to the mainland for her mother to work and for her to attend school. If that happened, she would no longer be able to go lobstering with her father. The town hatches a brilliant plan to increase their school attendance - take in foster kids! Tess's family welcomes a sullen, red-haired musician into their family. Having read many novels dealing with foster kids and orphans, Tess feels relatively prepared for this change in her home. She quickly realizes that real life does not have a storybook ending. Her new foster sibling is not Anne of Green Gables nor is he Gilly Hopkins! A great book about kids having to adapt to changes in their lives whether they be large or small. I loved the literary references and al...

Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein Candlewick, 2010. Unpaged. Picture Book. Papa is trying to read a bedtime story to Little Red Chicken but she never lets him get very far before she interrupts. Just as an old woman comes out of the wonderful candy house to invite Hansel and Gretel in "DON'T GO IN! SHE'S A WITCH!" cries Little Red Chicken. And when Little Red Riding Hood is approached by a wolf in the forest, Little Red Chicken wisely warns her "DON'T TALK TO STRANGERS." In this fashion Papa Chicken (with Little Red Chicken's help) quickly finishes the stories he knows, but Little Red Chicken is still not sleepy so she tells Papa Chicken a story and they both sleep happily ever after. As is usual with David Stein's books, a delight for children and adults.

Monsters Eat Whiny Children by Bruce Eric Kaplan Simon and Schuster, 2010. Unpaged. Picture Book. Henry and Eve are "two perfectly delightful children" who are going through a terrible phase of endless whining. Their kindly father warns them that monsters eat whiny children but they don't believe it until a monster shows up with a drawstring bag and spirits them away to his "lair on the bad side of town." Once there he starts to assemble a Whiny Children Salad but Henry whines because he doesn't like to sit on lettuce and Eve doesn't want to sit in a wooden bowl. Mrs. Monster wants paprika on the salad instead of cilantro in the salad but Mr. Monster hates paprika so in turn they decide to grill whiny-child burgers, make whiny-child cake, and finally settle on whiny-child cucumber sandwiches. While all this is going on around them, Henry and Eve start to play with the monsters' toys and then climb out the window and run back home. This delightf...

Wolven By Di Toft Chicken House/Scholastic, 2010. 322 pp. Juvenile chapter book. When Nat meets his new pet, Woody, his life changes forever. Woody is not just a normal dog--he has the ability to morph from human to wolf, his specie being identified as "Wolven," and is also telepathic. Nat finds himself mixed up in the craziest, most dangerous adventure of his life trying to elude the evil werewolves that are trying to capture the two boys, specifically Woody. This is a book that would be well-suited to kids who love adventure and supernatural themes but aren't ready for most of the edgier fare available. Despite some violence and gore, the story is mild and would be just fine for 5th and 6th graders. The friendships and relationships in the book are heart-warming, and although the plot struggles somewhat and the writing isn't some of the finest in juvenile literature, this is still a book children will enjoy.

A Crack in the Sky By Mark Peter Hughes Delacorte Press, 2010. 403 pages. Science fiction. Don't worry! Infinicorp is taking care of everything! Infinicorp created the dome cities that saved a lot of people from the Great Sickness and the increasing heat of the world's atmosphere. Unfortunately, some still struggle to survive Outside. These people were called Foggers by the dome residents and blamed for every little thing that goes wrong with the dome. Eli Papadopoulos is the youngest of the ruling clan behind Infinicorp. He is rather unmotivated to gain a high and important position within The Company. He would rather spend time reading ancient books and daydreaming. He sees things that cause him to think the dome is falling apart, unable to withstand the terrible storms raging on The Outside. When he confronts his parents and other authority figures within his family he is given no satisfactory answer. This leads him to defy his elders by seeking help in very unconven...

Librarian on the Roof!: A True Story by M. G. King ill.by Stephen Gilpin picture book biography unpaged Chicago, Ill. : Albert Whitman, 2010 RoseAleta Laurell is a real-life librarian. When she began working at the Dr. Eugene Clark Library in Lockhart, Texas she found it a dusty, dark and dreary place. The town's children never visited the library, they thought it was just for adults. RoseAleta was determined to set them straight and make them feel more than welcome. When all of her original ideas to raise money didn't bring the desired results, she decided to camp out on the library roof. She vowed to stay up there until enough money had been raised to create a fun and inviting children's section. She weathered ridicule as well as terrible rainstorms, but she toughed it out until the people came through! The changes in the library were phenomenal and all because of one librarian!

Too Busy Marco by Roz Chast Atheneum, 2010. Unpaged. Picture Book. Marco would go to bed if he weren't so busy. When his windup clock (with legs) points out the time--time to get ready for bed--Marco lists off all the reasons he doesn't have time for bed. He still has painting to do. And he needs to discover new fish. How about painting the new fish he has discovered, such as Boots-o'-the-Sea or the Cube-Headed La-di-dah, with the underwater paint he has yet to invent? And what about bowling with Uncle Ed? Though all Marco's plans are important and pressing he still, alas, has to go to bed where his adventures go on in his dreams. Roz Chast has delivered another laugh out loud book for kids, text and pictures equally funny. Kids will relate to the little bird, with the human mother, who is way too busy to go to sleep.

April and Esme: Tooth Fairies by Bob Graham Candlewick, 2010. Unpaged. Picture Book. Bob Graham has worked his magic again with a loving tooth-fairy family, the Underhills, who live at the base of a stump near the motorway. April, aged seven, and Esme, aged six, receive a call on April's cell phone. Daniel Dangerfield has lost a tooth and needs a pickup and exchange. April and Esme's parents think they are too young, but agree to let them go if they are very careful and text Mum and Dad if they need help. The exchange is made, though April has to dive for the tooth which is in a glass of water. They swing in, on the way out, to see Daniel's grandmother, but leave all her teeth in the glass where they find them. Graham's genius as illustrator and storyteller is richly evident here, as is his particular gift for portraying the loving bonds of families.

I Know Here Laurel Croza and Matt James Groundwood, 2010. Unpaged. Picture Book. From Canada comes this lovely title, winner of the 2010 Boston-Globe Horn Book Award for the best picture book of the year. When the little girl who is the narrator of the story finds out her family will be moving to Toronto from their forest home, she is worried because "This is where I live. I don't know Toronto. I know here." What she knows about "here" is beautifully told and illustrated in the remainder of the story: She knows the "squishy spot by the beaver dam" where her sister catches frogs. She knows the sound of wolves howling in the forest, and "the gravel jumping up and dancing under the tires" as the grocery man drives his truck up the lane. She knows the trailers of her neighbors who have worked with her father on the dam, which will soon be finished. When her teacher asks each child in their small school to draw a picture of what they would like ...

Let's Count Goats! by Mem Fox, illustrated by Jan Thomas Beach Lane Books, 2010. Unpaged. Picture Book The title alone makes me laugh. The reader is asked on every other page if they are able to count the goats who are engaged in very ungoat like activities. Jan Thomas' bright and bold outlined figures are child friendly and appealing. While Mem Fox demonstrates once again her carefully chosen words and phrases. Children will be eager to point their fingers and count.

Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee Candlewick, 2010. 80 pages. Fiction. Bink and Gollie are friends, though they are very different. Gollie lives in the high rent district, i.e., a well-appointed treehouse. Bink lives at the base of Gollie's tree in a shingled cottage surrounded by flowers and a low rock wall. Gollie is tall, slender, and austere. Bink is short, frazzledy, and enthusiastic. Their adventures together include roller skating to the store where Bink buys an outrageous pair of socks for which Gollie denies her pancakes. They compromise. When Bink gets a goldfish, her "marvelous companion," Gollie feels slighted as well as annoyed that Bink feeds Fred pancakes and take him with them roller skating and even to the movies! In the end, Gollie saves Fred's life, the friends are reconciled, roller skating gives way to ice skating with a delightful final illustration by Tony Fucile, whose pictures perfectly complement the text. Bink &...

Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus Abrams, 2010. 302 pgs. Fiction As a young boy Manjiro dreamed of becoming a samurai, but knew he had no chance since he hadn't been born into that class. Swept away and shipwrecked on a rocky island pinnacle, he and his fellow fishermen are rescued by a shipload of barbarians--blonde, bearded, blue-eyed American whalers whom the Japanese had been told would use them cruelly and probably kill and eat them. Instead, they were greeted with kindness and integrated into the ship's crew. All the group were put ashore in Hawaii--then, the Sandwich Islands--except Manjiro whose curiosity about this newly-discovered world was boundless. He became the adopted son of the ship's captain, William H. Whitfield, who took him to America, taught him English and farm work, and enrolled him in the premier navigational school of the day. Manjiro's story is true, and Preus' novel is a sprightly and faithful retelling of the story of a young man who ...

The Clockwork Three by Matthew J. Kirby juvenile historical fantasy/adventure/mystery 386 pages 2010-10-01 Scholastic At first glance Giuseppe, Frederick and Hannah have nothing in common save for the city in which they live. Through a series of seemingly unrelated events their paths cross and re-cross until they are thoroughly intertwined. Each has a secret heart's desire that they will need to divulge to the others in order to achieve it. When working together the three remarkable children accomplish amazing things and learn more about themselves in the process. The three main characters are superbly developed. The supporting cast of personalities is equally intriguing while not overshadowing the children. A wonderful book that has hints of so many genres that there is sure to be something for everyone. At times it reads as pure historical fiction then there is a dash of fantasy or mystery with a great deal of adventure thrown in to ensure it will be devoured by all ages, boys a...

Martha in the Middle By Jan Fearnley Candlewick Press, 2008. Unpaged. Picture book. Martha is having a hard time being the middle child. She never feels she receives the same amount of attention as either her older sister or younger brother--she just feels ignored. Martha decides to run away, but luckily, a wise frog tells her about all the wonderful things that are "in the middle," such as the center of a flower, the fruit of a melon, and other great things. The middle is actually something special, as Martha comes to realize. What a wonderful story for any child who feels a little lost between their older and younger siblings! This book has such a sweet, simple message that we all have an important part to play, no matter our situation. Cuddly, friendly illustrations will charm small ones and compliment the story beautifully.

You Can't Go to School Naked! By Dianne Billstrom, illustrated by Don Kilpatrick III Putnam Sons, 2008. Unpaged. Picture book. In this funny story, a little child wants to go to school naked. Clothes are such a bother and he just doesn't like them! His parents tell him all the reasons why it would be much better to wear clothes, such as to avoid sunburn, to have pockets for supplies, to stay warm in cold weather, and other such sensible things. But will the little boy agree to wear clothes after all? Silly and sensible, this book will make your child laugh at all the funny scenarios presented! This book's sure to get some good giggles, especially the ending. The charming, retro-styled illustrations are perfectly paired with the goofy text. Great combination!

The Boss Baby By Marla Frazee Beach Lane Books, 2010. Unpaged. Picture book. As everyone knows, when there's a new baby, he or she calls all the shots--welcome to your new boss! He may be small, but don't let that fool you, because he means business. You'll probably be on call 24/7 with no breaks whatsoever! A boss baby also has many tricks up his sleeve to convince you to do his bidding, so be prepared for anything and everything. "The boss. He's here. And FYI--he's a total baby." Marla Frazee must be congratulated again for this hilarious, wonderfully written and illustrated book! What a gem. Anyone who has ever had a baby or taken care of one can delight wholeheartedly in this funny, goofy, absolutely true story. This is one you won't want to miss!