New Books for April

Dear Cinderella
by Marian Moore and Mary Jane Kensington and illustrated by Julie Olson

In this picture book Cinderella and Snow White have become pen pals. They mail letters back and forth discussing the ways that their stepmothers are treating them and all of the work they are expected to do. They also share their hopes and dreams with one another. Then one day, Cinderella writes Snow White about a ball, and Snow White writes Cinderella about a huntsman taking her out in the woods. Both girls are excited for the other. Snow White still writes to Cinderella about living in the little cottage with the seven dwarfs, and Cinderella writes about all of her experiences at the ball. Unfortunately, Snow White is unable to write any more letters to Cinderella, and she soon finds out why when the seven dwarfs send a letter, instead. Will Snow White ever be able to write Cinderella another letter? Will Cinderella’s letters have a happy ending?


















The Cabinet of Earths
by Anne Nesbet

In Paris in 1944 little Henri-Pierre learns what it is to be the “keeper” of the Cabinet of Earths. He watches as his grandmother collects her “bottle of earth” (or time) and becomes older right before his eyes. After losing his grandmother, Henri-Pierre grows up, grows old, and he waits for the day that someone else can take over his position as keeper.

Maya Davidson is in Paris, and she is not very happy about it. Maya’s mother was very sick, and Maya knows that it will make her mother happy to live in France for a year. So, Maya is dealing with it. After taking a short walk with her brother, Maya sees a strange man in dark glasses (the director of the Society of Philosophical Chemistry, where her father will work) and a woman (Cousin Louise) who is very hard to see (even when you are looking right at her). Cousin Louise soon gets Maya to help her look for “Uncle Henri,” in order to ask him questions about why she is the way she is. They find Henri-Pierre, but instead of answers, Maya finds the Cabinet of Earths. Then Henri tells Maya a lot of stories about their family and their abilities that she does not understand. Maya does know, though, that seeing that cabinet has changed her life. At school, she manages to make a friend named Valko, who is the son of diplomats who travel all over the world. Then one day, they meet Henri de Fourcroy with his purple eyes. Maya wants to ask him so many questions about the society, Henri-Pierre, and those bottles in the Cabinet of Earths that Henri-Pierre won’t accept anymore, but she cannot seem to get them out. She witnesses many strange things in Henri de Fourcroy’s home, and she becomes alarmed by the things she sees and Louise’s reaction to Henri. Then she learns of the “immortality” of the bottles in the Cabinet of Earths, and she is told
that she can help turn other people into “immortals.” Will Maya ever be able to figure out what all of the weird things going on around her mean? Will she be able to find out what Henri de Fourcroy is planning to do with her brother after taking his picture, and what he did with all of other children whose pictures Maya found?

















Do You Have a Dog?
by Eileen Spinelli and illustrated by Geraldo Valério

The author first asks, “Do you have a dog?” Then she tells you about
the dogs of famous explorers, adventurers, musicians, and even queens. Billie Holiday had a boxer named Mister, who liked to listen to her sing, and he loved to hang out with everyone backstage. Empress Josephine Bonaparte used her little dog, Fortune, to pass notes back and forth with her husband, Napoleon. Jackson Pollock had a little black poodle named Ahab, which loved to play with Jackson and his wife. There are also lots of other famous people who had dogs. What kind of dog do you have? What kinds of cool things does your dog do?

















What Happens to Our Trash?
by D.J. Ward and illustrated by Paul Meisel

Did you ever wonder what happens to all of those things that you throw away into the trash can? Take some time to look in to the trash can and see what is being thrown out. In the United States, the author says that we make almost five pounds of trash a day per person. In the landfill, which your trash goes to after the garbage people take it away, the trash is buried under dirt in layers of clay and plastic that keeps the harmful liquids from leaking from the landfill. There are some kinds of trash, like car batteries or paint, that need to go to special places to be disposed of. When the landfills are full, they are completely covered up and might become something like a park in the future, even with the trash still underneath it. Some cities have their trash taken off on barges, and other cities burn their trash. The book also lists the three ways to help out with the trash problems: reduce, reuse, and recycle. Things like boxes, papers, and plastic bottles can be used again and again. What are some of the other ways you think can accomplish these three things?