Provo Library Children's Book Blog

CLASSICS FOR GUYS These are the classic reads written by guys, for guys... and about guys. Everything from the oh-so-manly Treasure Island to the more contemporary Graveyard Book. There's something here for every man.  Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry The Macmillan Company, 1940. Newbery, 95 pp.  "Based on a Polynesian legend, this is the story of a youth who overcomes his fear of the sea and proves his courage to himself and his tribe." Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne Sterling Pub., 2007 (1864). Fiction, 244 pp. "Jules Verne takes young readers on one of the most incredible journeys ever imagined, from Iceland’s frozen tundra far down into fantastic underground prehistoric worlds and back up again through the fires of an erupting volcano." Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos Farrar Straus Giroux, 2011. Newbery, 341 pp. "In the historic town of Norvelt, Pennsylvania, twelve-year-ol...

50 Wacky Inventions Throughout History By Joe Rhatigan Illustrated by Celeste Aires Quarto Publishing, 2017. Informational. This is a clever and interesting informational book about different wacky inventions that have been created. The illustrations add to the quirky character of the book. Here are some examples of some inventions: A warning device that flashes a red light and plays a song when it senses poop or pee in a baby's diaper. Smell-O-Vision! In 1960, moviegoers didn't just get to see a movie but smell it too. Fans blew the smells through pipes leading to vents underneath the seats of the audience. The Sibling Separator. Literally a divider to keep children from fighting on those long car rides. Pit Purifiers. Tiny fans that clip to the sleeve and direct a refreshing breeze into your arm pits. There are even more strange and fun inventions that could make you wish that you had one too!

Draw Your Own Lettering and Decorative Zendoodles By Abby Huff Illustrated by Pimlada Phuapradit Capstone, 2017. Informational. Do you enjoy doodling? Are you looking for new, interesting ways to create drawings? This book is for you! Step-by-step instructions and pictures help guide you from simple to complex in designing beautiful letters, borders, and corner clusters. There is a guide to specific tools you can use and ideas for coloring. This informational book teaches an inexpensive, relaxing hobby anyone can easily learn.

Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder Walden Pond Press, 2017. Fiction. 269 p. Jinny has grown up on a secluded island populated by nine orphans.  Every year a boat comes bringing a new child, and taking the oldest of the orphans away.  The new "oldest" orphan takes charge of the new child and teaches him/her the ways of the island.  When it is Jinny's turn to be the oldest, she is uncomfortable with her new responsibility, and begins to question the status quo of their life on the island, with disastrous results. This is a unique approach to the classic "coming of age" story.  Even though the setting is unusual, Jinny struggles with accepting separation from loved ones and the changes that come with growing up will feel familiar to many young readers. This title is getting a lot of Newbery buzz and it is available in print, as and e-book, and as an audio download.

What Do Grown-Ups Do All Day? Illustrated by Dawid Ryski Little Gestalten, 2017. Informational. What little kid isn't curious about the different jobs of different grown-ups? This picture book introduces young readers to thirty different jobs that grown-ups might have. There will never be a shortage of this type of book for kids, but this one stands out for the diversity of jobs represented - ranging from manager to astronaut - and the good gender balance with female entrepreneurs and male teachers. The text of this book can be a little clunky in places, but the cool, graphic, nearly full-page illustrations are enough to hold interest.

Jingle Bells Susan Jeffers HarperCollins Publishers, 2017. Picture Book. There are certain songs that just stick in my head—and Jingle Bells happens to be one of them (especially at this time of year). If you are like me, this might be a fun book to read—er sing—aloud to little ones. The text is the lyrics to the song (though in my renditions of the singing I add a few “Hey!” exclamations here or there that aren’t included in the text). The illustrations are a story arc all on their own, though they do complement the text. When readers get to the end of the book I suspect that everyone will wonder if Santa Claus happens to be their grandpa along with the protagonists. This is a fun book to be sung around this time of year.

Hotdogger By Karla Oceanak As the days drag on in January and Aldo's boredom increases, the nonathletic boy agrees to go downhill skiing with his super-jock brother, with humorous results. Hans Brinker By Bruce Coville A Dutch brother and sister work toward two goals, finding the doctor who can restore their father's memory and winning the competition for the silver skates. Rhinos Who Snowboard By Julie Mammano Snowboarding rhinos check the weather, head for the slopes, and spend all day out on the snow- covered mountains. Includes a glossary of snowboarding lingo. Snowboard Duel By Jake Maddox When the son of the new manager of the ski resort starts a snowboard cross team and will not allow girls to join, Brian and Hannah try to think of a way to change his mind. Ski Spy School By Stuart Gibbs Twelve-year-old Ben's unexpected success outside the classroom causes the CIA to activate him for a mission t...

Story Worlds A Moment in Time Created by Thomas Hegbrook Caterpillar Books, 2017.  Informational. This is a beautifully illustrated book that shows the same moment in time across the world in the different time zones. It shows animals at play, people just going about their day-to-day tasks or just scenic parts of a city. What is also especially cool and unique about this book is that it is three books in one but separated into three sections to be able to fold out the book to see more pictures to compare the locations and time zones. It was a fascinating and lovely look at these moments.

Pick a Pine Tree By Patricia Toht Illustrated by Jarvis Candlewick Press, 2017. Picture Book. The story follows a family as they pick the perfect tree, decorate it, and transform it into a Christmas tree, as they invite all their friends over to decorate it and celebrate the season. The rhyming text makes this a great read aloud to share with your love ones for Christmas.

I'm Just No Good at Rhyming and Other Nonsense for Mischievous Kids and Immature Grown-ups. By Chris Harris Little Brown and Co, 2017. Poetry. 221 p. Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky, step aside.  There is a new king of funny poetry for children. Harris has created a collection of poems that will bring a smile to any face. Some are concrete poems but most (despite the title) are rhyming and actually have good meter.  One or two are rather touching, but most are silly or down right irreverent.  All are smart and clever (oh so, so, so, clever).  Lane's Smith's illustrations perfectly compliment the tone of the poems, and there are several places where the author and illustrator exchange playful patter. This book has now topped my list of Newbery hopefuls for next year.

How Does My Home Work? By Chris Butterworth Candlewick, 2017. J Informational. When we flip a light switch in our home, light immediately comes on. When we turn on the faucet, we can get hot or cold water on demand. These things almost seem like magic, but they aren’t. This book offers simple explanations of how the pipes, wires, power plants and water treatment plants provide us the amazing light, heat and clean water we take for granted. With fun but detailed illustrations and diagrams, and clear, limited text, this is a great early introduction to energy sources, mechanics and engineering. Or an illuminating read for any child or adult who wants a little better picture of how our homes work.

The 12 Days of Christmas  Greg Pizolli 2017, Disney Hyperion. Picture Book. Greg Pizzoli delivers one of my new favorite holiday books this season. In this remake of the classic Twelve Days of Christmas song Pizzoli has illustrated elephants as the main characters. One elephant (sporting a red Santa hat) comes bearing gifts for a second elephant. However, a third larger elephant (perhaps a mama or papa elephant?) is not so enamored by the large groups of gifts—and with all the birds that are in this song there is quite a large amount of chaos that comes with each day of gifts. In fact, the expressions on the grown-up elephant from reactions to the various odd gifts and the resulting cleaning and mess may be my favorite part of this book. This is a great rendition of a classic song, with a little humor added, that would be fun to read (or sing) this holiday season.

Eric Carle's Dragons Dragons & other creatures that never were Illustrations by Eric Carle Compiled by Laura Whipple Philomel Books, 1991. Poetry. This is an oldie but a goodie. And since I just purchased a mint copy for the library, there's no time like the present to revisit a book that kids will still love 26 years after original publication. I've noticed that a common question we receive at the library is, "Do you have any dragon books?" Well dragon lovers rejoice at this incredibly illustrated offering by Eric Carle. Each spread features a crazy-looking mythical creature accompanied by a poem. These poems have been gathered from all sorts of poets: some are serious, some are funny, some are considered "lore." All are interesting. This book DOES NOT get enough attention because it's tucked away in the 800s. But be sure to look it up on your next visit.

Little Red Ruthie By Gloria Koster Illustrated by Sue Eastland Albert Whitman & Company, 2017. Picture Book. On the way to Grandmother’s house to make latkes for Hanukkah, Ruthie runs into a wolf. She convinces the wolf that she is way too skinny to eat right now but after Hanukkah and eight days of eating delicious potato pancakes, she will plump enough to eat. The wolf agrees and lets her go until his stomach begins to rumble… Ruthie shares the story of the Macebees and the miracle of the oil in this story book. Included in the back is Ruthie’s Potato Latke Recipe for “latkes so good a big bad wolf will eat them up instead of you!”

Fault Lines in the Constitution: The Framers, Their Fights, and the Flaws that Affect Us Today by Cynthia and Sanford Levinson Peachtree, 2017. Informational. 235 p. This is an informational book that is getting a lot of attention this fall.  In it the authors talk about some of the provisions of the Constitution that have made it difficult for the government to run smoothly.  There are chapters on the Electoral College, the uneven representation in Congress, the difficulty in making amendments and others.  In each chapter they discuss how the provision started and specific troubles is has caused in modern times. They end each chapter, and the whole book, with ideas of how the Constitution could be improved. In all honesty, I can't really see kids picking this off the shelf. What kid wants to read a 235 page book about the Constitution? When my kids were younger I used to bribe then to read certain books. This one just may be bribe worthy.  If I sixth grader ...

Survivors: Extraordinary Tales from the Wild and Beyond Written by David Long Illustrated by Kerry Hyndman Faber and Faber, 2017. Informational. There is something about survival stories that really appeals to readers of all ages. After all, stories like Island of the Blue Dolphins  and Hatchet are perennial favorites for a reason. This new, beautifully illustrated informational book is filled with twenty-three incredible stories of survival - and they're all true! I was first drawn to this book because it features some familiar stories (Aron Ralston, Ernest Shackleton, and Hugh Glass) and because one of my co-workers had spotted this book on our new cart and recommended it. Then I was reading this book at the Children's Reference Desk and two people asked if they could check it out - clearly this book is exciting for all ages. Each story is well-written, vivid, and engaging and filled with excitement and peril.

The War I Finally Won  By Kimberly Brubaker Bradley Dial Books for Young Readers, 2017. 385 p. I loved The War that Saved My Life ! (It was the Odyssey Award Winner for the year that I was on the Odyssey Award Committee . So I got to know that book very well.) So I was excited, yet a little apprehensive when I heard that this next book was coming out. Would I like it as much? Would it live up to the expectations and glory of the first book? How would it fair? In this sequel, Ada’s clubfoot has been fixed. She is living with Miss Smith and her brother—yet the war is still going strong. Lady Thorton allows the family to move into a cottage on her estate, though Lady Thorton moves in with them when the government needs to use her house for the war effort. And not only that, but a German Jewish girl named Ruth has come to stay with them, which causes Ada to have to sort through feelings of if she trusts Ruth or not (she is a German…and Germans are who they are fighting—thoug...

Sputnik's Guide to Life on Earth By Frank Cottrell Boyce Walden Pond Press, 2017.  Fiction.  321 p. Prez is a foster child living with a new family on their farm for the summer after his grandfather becomes too ill to care for him.   Prez doesn’t speak, even though he enjoys the hubbub of life at the farm.   But things get complicated and hilariously comical when a creature arrives that looks like a dog to everyone else – and only Prez can see Sputnik for what he is:   a small little man from outer space wearing a kilt and goggles; an alien who’s trying to save earth from being destroyed.   An amusing sci-fi adventure ensues as Prez and Sputnik strike out to find 10 reasons why our planet should be saved and to solve the mystery of Grandpa’s whereabouts.  This is ultimately a tender story of family love and loyalty, and now I really want to name my next dog Sputnik!  Also, the audio on this one is not to be mis...