Are
you excited about the new year? The Children’s Department is, and we’d like to
share some of our favorite books about celebrating a new year and new
beginnings.
Winter
is a wonderful season, so we’d like to share some books related to winter with
you. Here are a few, but we’ve got a lot more, so you have plenty of choices.
A kitten explores the woods outside during wintertime.Great way to teach your child about what
people (and animals) in cold weather climates experience in winter!
Squirrel, Hedgehog, and Bear have never seen it snow, so when Deer
tells them it’s going to snow soon, they try to stay awake to see it.Will they see the snow?
Best
friends Mouse and Mole enjoy playing in the snow in the winter with two new
friends named Sno-Mouse and Sno-Mole. With names like that, how could these
four not be snow friends?
Is
your child fascinated by the weather and how it can be sunny one moment and
raining the next? We’ve got books in the Children’s Department that cover all
aspects of weather, from rain to tornadoes!
Have
you ever wanted to read a really great book about birds or one with a fun bird
character in it? Well, you’re in luck, because we’ve got a few bird books to
share with you.These are just some out
of the many that we have in the Children’s Department because just like there are a lot of types of birds, there are a lot of bird books!We wouldn’t have it any other way.
A cat escapes from his home thinking he can catch a bird to eat for
lunch, but all the birds he encounters are too smart and fast for him, leaving
him with only “feathers for lunch.” Light-hearted and fun story that teaches
about different types of birds.
A simple and beautiful fable about a bird that brings hope to a lonely
mountain. Fabulous and colorful illustrations by Eric Carle add to the already
great story.
Having read the first two Incorrigible books, I'd characterize the series as a kinder, gentler, but no less stylish and whimsical choice to Lemony Snicket's immensely popular Unfortunate Events.
Fifteen-year-old Penelope Lumley, newly hired by Lord Fredrick and Lady Constance of Ashton Place to serve as a governess, arrives to find a rather bewildering scenario: Her three charges — Alexander, Cassiopeia and Beowolf — were actually found running wild in the nearby woods. The children have been taken in by the couple, but it's Penelope's job to civilize and educate the feral youngsters.
As a recent graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, the practical-minded Penelope quickly overcomes her shock and devotes all her efforts to seeing to her charges' well-being. The children, though occasionally given to bouts of howling and squirrel chasing, blossom under Penelope's attentions.
However, Wood's first book right away hints that not all is at it seems. Lord Fredrick, who seems to enjoy hunting more than he does his wife's company, has an odd compulsion to constantly check an alamanac. His colleagues, whom Penelope first meets at the Ashtons' Christmas party, seem to have shadowy motives. And something — or someone — possibly lurks on the fourth floor.
These questions only multiply as you continue into the second book, The Hidden Gallery, when Penelope and the Incorrigibles journey to London.
I admire the pluck and determination young Miss Penelope Lumley (or "Lumawooo!", as the Incorrigibles call her) shows. Penelope comes across as bright, mature and level-headed, but not to an unrealistic degree. (The only thing I found slightly jarring was the ambitious curriculum she sets for the Incorrigibles: She soon has them appreciating great literature, spouting Latin and tackling advanced math — quite the absorption rate for a pack of half-tame grade-schoolers!) With few allies — Lord Fredrick comes across as uncaring and Lady Constance, a flake — Penelope does her best to protect her charges while solving the mystery of the Incorrigibles' origin as well as her own.
Alexander, Cassiopeia and Beowolf themselves are endearing. The rapidity at which they learn also lends the story much of its humor as we see Penelope's lessons pay off. Each of the siblings has a distinctive personality, though it's clear all of them adore and trust Penelope. Still, this is Penelope's story to tell, and it's one I think all ages will find entertaining.
Here's a video of author Maryrose Wood discussing the books:
For
most kids, going to the doctor or dentist can be scary, but reading a book or two
about doctors and dentists can help them feel better prepared and less worried. Froggy goes to the doctor by: Jonathan
London ELONDON A useful and funny book in the
Froggy series about Froggy realizing going to the doctor is nothing to worry
about. Froggy is nervous about going to the doctor, but after some hilarious
things happen there, he realizes that the doctor’s office isn’t that bad!
Ben goes to the doctor because he
has an earache, but he is scared to let the doctor look at his ear. That is,
until his big sister Amy volunteers to get a check-up to show him there’s
nothing to be scared of!
Katie feels sick, so
her mother takes her to the doctor and Katie learns all about getting her
temperature taken, having her heart listened to with a stethoscope, and more.
She also learns that going to the doctor is nothing to be scared of!
Harry’s first dentist trip is
less scary because he brings along his dinosaur toy friends. One of them,
Tyrannasaurus, is a little scared still, but Harry helps him feel better.
Teaches about words you might hear at the dentist, like
appointment, cavity, and x-ray. Great way to ease your child’s fear about the
dentist by empowering them with knowledge about the words they might hear.
