New Book: A Home for Bird

A new book that caught our attention recently is A Home for Bird written and illustrated by: Phillip C. Stead (E STEAD). This book made us smile and is one of our favorite children’s books of all time. It’s a simple story about a toad named Vernon who finds a new friend, a blue bird who is curiously silent.  Bird seems sad, but because he doesn’t communicate, Vernon doesn’t know why. He thinks it’s probably because he’s far away from home. Vernon is such a good friend to Bird that he makes it his mission to get Bird home! The location of Bird’s home is a fun and sweet surprise, so we won’t spoil it for you.  This book teaches about being a good and unconditional friend in a fresh way that no other book quite has. As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (E STEAD) or on the new books display.

Celebrating our differences

Photo by TylerIngram available through a Creative Commons license

Earlier this summer, Tess Goldwasser, a librarian at St. Mary’s County Library, Lexington Park, Md., blogged about children's books that celebrate diversity. The titles she recommended, along with a few more suggested by commenters, all highlight the importance of being true to yourself. Through their words and illustrations, they empower children and help them understand that being different isn't a bad thing.

 
And Tango Makes Three
by Justin Richardson
E RICHARDS
 





Donovan's Big Day
by Leslea Newman




E NEWMAN
Christian, the Hugging Lion
by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell






E RICHARDS
The Story of Ferdinand
by Munro Leaf
Also on audiobook
 




A Mother for Choco
by Keiko Kasza
E KASZA
 




Monday is One Day
by Arthur Levine
E LEVINE

Introducing a New Early Literacy Program: 1000 Books Before Kindergarten

Moore Memorial Library will be launching a new early literacy initiative program “1000 Books Before Kindergarten” on September 4th.  Its purpose is to encourage and support the pre-reading skills of children from birth until before they start Kindergarten.  Children do not simply learn how to read after they start Kindergarten, but instead have been prepared for reading from birth.  Early literacy skills are developed by reading to children as much as possible, but also by talking to, singing with, saying rhymes, and attending library programs with them so they are curious about both learning and reading. 

The program is as simple as it sounds: read 1000 books to your child before they start Kindergarten.  There is no timeline or end date other than the child entering Kindergarten. You will be surprised at how quickly you’ll reach the 1000 books read point going at a natural pace for both you and your child.

To join the program, a parent or caregiver registers the child in the Children’s Department and Children’s Department staff will give them all the required materials and information they need. Parents will get support from the library along the way with help choosing books to read and early literacy tips. There will be some rewards along the way for children, including a book prize at the end. For more information contact the Children’s Department at 409-643-5966 or 5983.

New Book: Lucky and Squash

A new book we want to share is called Lucky and Squash by: Jeanne Birdsall and illustrated by: Jane Dyer (E BIRDSALL). It’s a picture book with a sweet story about two neighbor dogs who are friends but can’t play together because there is a fence between them.  They decide to become matchmakers for their single owners so that they can live and play together. Their owners are shy, so to get them together, they run away so that their owners will meet while searching for them and fall in love. Check out the book to find out if their matchmaking is successful!  As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (E BIRDSALL) or on the new books display.

New Book: Chronal Engine

A new book worth checking out is Chronal Engine by: Greg Leitich Smith (J SF SMITH). It is a chapter book about dinosaurs and time travel, so it’s hard to think of anything we can tell you beyond that that will make it sound more awesome than just saying that does. We also don’t want to spoil any of the plot points for you. It’s located in the Science Fiction section of the Children’s Department (on the book shelf to the left of the audiobooks).  As always, if you need any help finding the Science Fiction section (or any other section) please ask the Children’s Department staff.  As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (J SF SMITH) or on the new books display.

New Book: A World of Food: Discover Magical Lands Made of Things You Can Eat!

It’s time to share a new book: A World of Food: Discover Magical Lands Made of Things You Can Eat! By: Carl Warner (E WARNER). When this book arrived at the library, we were so impressed with the beautiful pictures in it.  Twelve landscapes are featured, each one including the same colored foods.  For instance, the orange landscape includes carrots, pumpkins, tangerines, apricots, squash, and, of course, oranges.  Each landscape has accompanying rhyming text that teaches about food and colors, which makes it a great book to introduce both concepts to your child.  As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (E WARNER) or on the new books display.

New Book: A Project Guide to Sound

We have a new book to share: A Project Guide to Sound by: Colleen Kessler (J 534 Kessler).  It is a non-fiction book that includes a great and easy-to-understand introduction to what sound actually is, along with a bunch of fascinating projects and activities to do that are all about hearing.  The project that stuck out to us most is an experiment called “Sound Shadow” that only requires a clock that ticks and a table. If any of you do this experiment, we’d be interested to hear about it, because we’re curious to find out more about what a “sound shadow” exactly is! As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (J 534 Kessler) or on the new books display.

New Book: I Spy Under the Sea

We want to tell you about a new book we love: I Spy Under the Sea by: Edward Gibbs (E GIBBS). It’s a wonderful picture book that teachers about numbers, noticing details, and sea animals—a three-for-one book! It has a great concept of blocking out the next page except for one small hole that your child can see through.  They have to guess which sea animal is on the next page by what they can see through the hole in the page!  As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (E GIBBS) or on the new books display.

New Book: "Forgive Me, I Meant to Do It!"

There's a new and fabulous book in the Children’s Department: Forgive Me, I Meant To Do It: False Apology Poems by: Gail Carson Levine (J 811.54 LEVINE). The title sums it up well: it’s a collection of (made-up) hilarious and smart “apology” poems written by people, animals, and other characters that aren’t so sorry!  If you read this with your child, it’s a great opportunity to laugh and, on a serious note, to discuss why it’s important be sincere when you say sorry. As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (J 811.54 LEVINE) or on the new books display.

New Book: Watch Me Throw the Ball!

We have a new book to share with you that made us laugh and also teaches a great lesson for kids: Watch Me Throw the Ball! by: Mo Willems (ER WILLEMS). It’s an Elephant & Piggie series book and tells the story of Piggie (the pig, naturally) who teaches his friend Gerald the Elephant that the most important part of playing is to have fun.  Gerald takes throwing a ball around way too seriously and Piggie shows him that even if the ball lands behind you when you throw it, keep throwing!  You’ll need to read it to see the funny ending because we don’t want to spoil it for you.  As always with new books, if it is not checked out, it will either be on the shelf (ER WILLEMS) or on the new books display.