Children's Bookwatch articles from November 2005

Children's Bookwatch archives from November 2005

Dingles & Company.("On Thanksgiving Day")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Dingles & Company PO Box 508, Sea Grit, NJ 08750 $15.50 Each www.dingles.com Other companies produce holiday books with detail on history, but for older readers: Judy Zocchi's holiday guides are one of the few to provide details...

Compass Point Books.("Games Around the World: Spinning Toys")("Games Around the World: Card Games")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Compass Point Books 3109 W. 50th St., Minneapolis, MN 55410 $16.95 Each compasspointbooks.com Kids studying other cultures and games will find unusually attractive books in Dana Meachen Rau's two new 'Games Around the World'...

Hidden Child.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Hidden Child Isaac Millman Farrar Straus Giroux 19 Union Square West, NY, NY 10003 0374330719 $18.00 fskidsbooks.com During World War II over a million Jewish children were murdered by Nazis: survivers were often those...

Young Person's Guide to the Prairie.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Young Person's Guide To The Prairie Wendy Munson Scullin South River Press PO Box 392, Indianola, IA 50125-0392 0977076407 $11.95 1-800-350-6680 Young Person's Guide To The Prairie is an introduction to what constitutes a...

Puffin Classic Gift Sets.(Brief article)
November 1, 2005... Puffin Classic Gift Sets Puffin/Penguin $14.97 Each penguin.com/youngreaders Two wonderful gift set packages of classics for ages 10 and up will make lovely gifts for the season, and are highly recommended picks. The Puffin...

Overlook Press.(The Freddy Anniversary Collection )(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Overlook Press One Overlook Dr., Woodstock, NY 12498 www.overlookpress.com Two unique books bring back memories of the old Brooks' children classic 'Freddy the Pig' adventures by Walter R. Brooks. The Freddy Anniversary Collection...

Sea-to-Sea/Creative Company.("Children's Rights")("Drug Culture")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Sea-to-Sea/Creative Company 1980 N. Lookout Drive, N. Makonta, MN 56003 1-800-445-6209 www.amazon.com Two excellent, contemporary discussions of facts behind headlines from the Sea-to-Sea 'In the News' series provide...

Stargazer Books/Creative Company.("The Solar System")("Earthwise: Sun: Discover Your World In Close-Up")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Stargazer Books/Creative Company 123 S. Broad St., Mankato, MN 56001 1-800-445-6209 www.amazon.com Elementary-grade libraries seeking solid, very basic contemporary reviews of astronomy will find The Solar System by Kathryn Whyman...

Smart Apple Media/Creative Education.(Future Energy)(Science Issues)(Brief article)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Smart Apple Media/Creative Education 2140 Howard Dr. West, N. Mankato, MN 56003 1-800-445-6209 www.amazon.com Smart Apple Media's gorgeous books will be the mainstay of any elementary-level library seeking colorful, lasting titles...

Lerner.("Salvadorans In America")("Filipinos in America")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Lerner 241-1st Ave S., Minneapolis, MN 55401 www.lernerbooks.com Two outstanding stories of selected immigrant groups from Lerner's 'In America' series are highly recommended picks for grades 4-6. Kathiann M. Kowalski's...

OTTN Publishing.("Road to War: Causes of Conflict")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... OTTN Publishing 16 Risler Street, Stockton, NJ 08559 1-866-356-6886 www.ottnpublishing.com The "Road to War: Causes of Conflict" series from OTTN Publishing features outstanding titles that introduce young readers in grades 4...

Exploring Ancient Rome.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Exploring Ancient Rome Elaine Landau Enslow Publishers PO Box 398, Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922 0766023370 $23.95 www.enslow.com Ancient Rome joins others in Elaine Landau's 'Exploring' series of titles for kids in grades...

Crabtree Publishers.('Life in the Ancient')(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Crabtree Publishers 350-5th Avenue, #3308, NY, NY 10018 www.crabtreebooks.com Crabtree's 'Life in the Ancient' series on peoples of the ancient world by Hazel Richardson is a wonderful, colorful recommendation for grades 3-4: each...

Thomson Gale.("Life among the Aztecs ")("Life During the Great Civilizations")("The Inca")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Thomson Gale 27500 Drake Rd., Farmington Hills, MI 48331-3535 www.gale.com Eleanor J. Hall's Life Among The Aztecs (1590181603, $27.45) joins others in the 'Way People Live' series, using plenty of black and white illustrations...

Walk With Wonder.(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
November 1, 2005... Walk With Wonder Connie Gillies & Alice Weiser Constant Wonder Records c/o Waldmania! 130 Maywood Drive, San Francisco CA 94127 $15.00 waldmania@comcast.net "Constant Wonder" is songwriter/pianist Connie Gillies and...

French Playground.(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
November 1, 2005... French Playground Putumayo World Music c/o Beth Blenz-Clucas Publicity 5505 SW Illinois Street, Portland, OR 97221 CD $15.98 www.putumayo.com French Playground offers a lively mixture of French and French Creole songs...

New Video Kids.(Brief article)(Video recording review)
November 1, 2005... New Video Kids c/o Beth Blenz-Clucas Beth Blenz-Clucas Publicity 5505 SW Illinois St., Portland, OR 97221 $12.95 DVD & $9.95 VHS Two new DVDs featuring two of the most famous ragdolls in all of children's literature have...

World Art 2.(Brief article)(Video recording review)
November 1, 2005... World Art 2 Cherie Lynn, host Jumby Bay Studios/Vat19.com 11783 Borman Dr., St. Louis, MO 63146 1-800-476-1991 www.vat19.com UPC: 820658002528 $19.95 World Art 2 is a full color, 230 minute, superbly produced DVD in...

Schlessinger Media.(Weather Fundamentals)(Brief article)(Video recording review)
November 1, 2005... Schlessinger Media 7 East Wynnewood Road, Wynnewood, PA 19096-0580 www.schlessinger.com $29.95 each 1-800-843-3620 Among the truly outstanding DVD series for young viewers from Schlessinger Media is "Weather Fundamentals", a...

Still There, Clare.(Young adult review)(Brief article)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Still There, Clare Yvonne Prinz Raincoast Books 9050 Shaughnessy Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6P 6E5 1551927675 $13.95 www.raincoast.com Twelve (almost thirteen!) year old Clare is the total opposite of her best friend...

Lion Singer.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Lion Singer Sylvia Ross Heyday Books PO Box 9145, Berkeley, CA 94709 1597140090 $12.95 heydaybooks.com Written and illustrated by Sylvia Ross, Lion Singer is the story of a boy of the Chukchansi tribe in the foothills of...

The Sacrifice.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... The Sacrifice Kathleen Benner Duble Simon & Schuster 0689876509 $15.95 simonsayskids.com It's 1692, and ten-year-old Abigail and her family are threatened by witchcraft fear in Salem. When the focus reaches Andover and her...

Orchard Books/Scholastic Inc.(Ricky Ricotta's Mightly Robot Vs. the Urban Unicorns from Uranus)(When Guinea Pigs Fly!)(Queen Bee)(Charlie Bone and the Castle of Mirrors)(Jinx On the Divide)(Land Of Elyon Book 2: Beyond The Valley Of Thorns)(The Legend of the Wandering King )(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Orchard Books/Scholastic Inc. www.scholastic.com Advanced elementary into early middle school grades will appreciate a set of leisure readers which promise high interest. Another Ricky Ricotta robot adventure is presented by Dav Pilkey...

Random House.(Nicky Deuce: Welcome to the Family)(Harriet the Spy, Double Agent)(Willow Run)(Flush)(Pure Dead Trouble)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Random House www.randomhouse.com/kids Steven Schirripa and Charles Fleming's Nicky Deuce: Welcome To The Family (0385732570, $15.95) tells of a boy slated to spend the usual weeks at summer camp until a last-minute disaster leads him...

Looking for Normal.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Looking For Normal Betty Monthei HarperCollins 1350 Avenue of Americas, NY, NY 10019 0060725022 $15.99 harperchildrens.com One morning Annie is pulled from class to learn now both her parents are dead and she and her...

Learn Art: Painting.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Learn Art: Painting Deri Robins QEB Publishing 23062 LA Canada Drive, Laguna Hills/Irvine, CA 92653 1595660461 $27.10 Have fun with paint and learn to make 'masterpieces' even if you are only in first or second grade,...

Marshall Cavendish.(Rulers and Their Times)(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Marshall Cavendish 99 White Plains Rd., Tarrytown NY 10591 $20.95 Each www.marshallcavendish.us Four new titles in the 'Rulers And Their Times' series by Miriam Greenblatt add excellent 96-page coverages suitable for reports to...

Patria Press, Inc.("Abner Doubleday: Boy Baseball Pioneer")("Phillis Wheatley: Young Revolutionary Poet")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Patria Press, Inc. PO Box 572, Carmel, IN 46082 1-317-577-1321 www.patriapress.com The "Young Patriots" series from Patria Press has two new additions for young readers ages 8 to 12. Abner Doubleday: Boy Baseball Pioneer...

Alpha Bravo Charlie: The Military Alphabet.(Young adult review)(Brief article)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Alpha Bravo Charlie Chris L. Demarest McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster 0689869282 $16.95 simonsays.com Unique for both children and adults is Alpha Bravo Charlie: The Military Alphabet, a picture book providing An A-Z military...

Raising You Alone.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Raising You Alone Warren Hanson Tristan Publishing 2300 Louisiana Avenue North, Suite B, Golden Valley, MN 55427 www.tristanpublishing.com 0972650466 $15.95 1-866-545-1383 Deftly written and colorfully illustrated by...

Out and About at the Public Library.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Out And About At The Public Library Kitty Shea & Zachary Trover Picture Window Books 7825 Telegraph Road, Minneapolis, MN 55438 www.picturewindowbooks.com 1404811508 $23.93 1-877-845-8392 Informatively written for...

Dear Big, Mean, Ugly Monster.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Dear Big, Mean, Ugly Monster Ruth Marie Berglin & Carl DiRocco Child & Family Press c/o Child Welfare League of America 440 First Street, NW, Third Floor, Washington, DC 2001-2085 1587600722 $14.95, 1-800-407-6273 ...

Holiday House.("Dybbuk")("Punxsutawney Phyllis ")("The Great Graph Contest")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Holiday House 425 Madison Avenue, NY, NY 10017 www.holidayhouse.com A version of the classic Dybbuk (082341-616X, $16.95) by Barbara Rogasky receives Leonard Everett Fisher's compelling illustrations as it retells one of the...

Josefina Javelina: A Hairy Tale.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Josefina Javelina Susan Lowell Rising Moon 0873587901 $15.95 risingmoonbooks.com It's hard to find anything zanier or brighter than the color drawings of Bruce MacPherson in the lively Josefina Javelina: A Hairy Tale. A...

Orchard/Scholastic Inc.(Rin, Rin, Rin Do, Re, Mi)(Dad, Are You the Tooth Fairy?)(The Bumpy Little Pumpkin)(Ms. Frizzle's Adventures: Imperial China)(Hi! Fly Guy)(Ella Takes the Cake)(A Was Once an Apple Pie)(Trick or Treat, Smell My Feet!)(How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food?)(The Subway Mouse)(Math Potatoes: Mind-Stretching Brain Food)(When an Elephant Comes to School)(Pirate Girl)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Orchard/Scholastic Inc. 557 Broadway, New York NY 10012 www.scholastic.com These new leisure reads stand out from the crowd, offering unusual topics and compelling stories. Jose-Luis Orozco and David Diaz's Rin, Rin, Rin Do, Re,...

Knopf/Random House.("10 Trick or Treaters: A Halloween Counting Book ")("Halloween Night")("Halloween Night")('Merry Christmas to You, Blue Kangaroo!")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Knopf/Random House www.randomhouse.com/kids Janet Schulman's 10 Trick Or Treaters: A Halloween Counting Book (0375832254, $8.95) provides a very simple counting title which arrived too late for Halloween mention but still deserves...

Dutton/Penguin.("Sylvia Jean, Drama Queen")("The Christmas Hat ")("Skating with the Bears")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Dutton/Penguin 345 Hudson Street, New York NY 10014 www.penguin.com/youngreaders Lisa Campbell Ernst's Sylvia Jean, Drama Queen (0525469621, $16.99) tells of a would-be drama queen who always has the perfect outfit for any...

Pink Magic.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Pink Magic Donna Jo Napoli Clarion Books 215 Park Avenue South, NY, NY 10003 www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com 0618159851 $15.00 www.amazon.com Nick's sister gets great cards on her birthday, but poor Nick doesn't--so sis...

Candlewick Press.("The Wolf's Story: What Really Happened to Little Red Riding Hood")("Imagine")("Me, All Alone at the End of the World')(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Candlewick Press 2067 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02140 www.candlewick.com Candlewick's leisure readers are something out of the ordinary and will appeal to many young picturebook readers. Toby Forward and Izhar Cohen's...

The Shelf Elf.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... The Shelf Elf Jackie Mims Hopkins Upstart Books Box 800, Ft. Atkinson, WI 53538-0800 193214627X $16.95 www.amazon.com The Shelf Elf deserves recommendation as a fine and different Christmas picturebook tale. Skoob the...

Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.("The Perfect Pumpkin Pie")("The Peterkins' Thanksgiving ")("The Peterkins' Christmas")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Atheneum/Simon & Schuster www.simonsays.com/kids When he was alive Mr. Wilkerson was sour and disagreeable: once he was dead he got better--but he's back and very hungry in Denys Cazet's The Perfect Pumpkin Pie (0689864671, $15.95)....

Walker & Company.("Walter the Giant Storyteller's Giant Book of Giant Stories")("Earth Mother")("The Devil You Know")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Walker & Company 104-5th Avenue, New York NY 10011 www.walkeryoungreaders.com Three bright books are recommended as strong leisure picks for kids. Walter M. Mayes' Walter The Giant Storyteller's Giant Book Of Giant Stories...

The Book of Christmas.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... The Book Of Christmas Fiona Waters Chrysalis/Trafalgar Square Box 257, N. Pomfret, VT 05053 www.trafalgarsquarebooks.com 1843650061 $25.00 Matilda Harrison's drawings are lavish embellishments to the poems and...

Putnam/Penguin.("Honey ... Honey ... Lion!")("The Ugly Pumpkin")("The Little Engine That Could")(Brief article)(Book review)(Children's review)
November 1, 2005... Putnam/Penguin 345 Hudson St., New York NY 10014 www.penguin.com/youngreaders In Africa the honeyguide and honey badger are partners: the guide finds the honeycomb, the badger cracks it open and they share it. But greedy Badger...

Bloomsbury.("Brave Charlotte")("Chicks and Salsa")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Bloomsbury 175-5th Avenue, New York NY 10010 www.bloomsburyusa.com Anu Stohner and Henrike Wilson's Brave Charlotte (1582346909, $16.95) tells of Charlotte, who's different from ogther sheep. She likes to explore her world and...

Farrar Straus Giroux.(Carl's Sleepy Afternoon)(Igor: The Bird Who Couldn't Sing)(A Pipkin of Pepper for the Pumpkin Soup)(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Farrar Straus Giroux www.fsgkidsbooks.com Fans of the large dog Carl have another classic Alexandra Day addition to the growing series: Carl's Sleepy Afternoon (0374310882, $12.95) presents a mostly-wordless picture book showing the...

Twenty-one Elephants and Still Standing.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Twenty-one Elephants And Still Standing April Jones Prince Houghton Mifflin 222 Berkeley St., Boston MA 02116 www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com 061844887X $16.00 www.amazon.com It took fourteen years of construction to...

Panda: A Guide Horse for Ann.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Panda: A Guide Horse For Ann Rosanna Hansen Boyds Mills Press 815 Church Street, Honesdale, PA 18431 1590781848 $19.95 www.amazon.com Neil Soderstrom's color photos in Panda: A Guide Horse For Ann lend to a very lively...

The Weather: Clouds.(Brief article)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... The Weather: Clouds Terry Jennings Smart Apple Media/Chrysalis Ed. 2140 Howard Drive West, North Mankato, MN 56003 1593891474 $27.10 1-800-445-6209 Weather books always have chapters on clouds--but how many books offer...

Holiday House.("Great Groundhogs!")("Turkeys Together")(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2005... Holiday House 425 Madison Ave., New York NY 10017 www.holidayhouse.com Kids at the Level 2 reading stage will appreciate Karen Gray Ruelle's Great Groundhogs! (0823419304, $14.95), a very simple reader story celebrating Groundhog...