Tandem Insights

Book of the Week: Ballerina Dreams

Lots of little girls have ballerina dreams. But what if you have a physical disability that makes it difficult to dance? One physical therapist decided to help these dreams come true, despite the obstacles. This is the true story of five little girls who realized their ballerina dreams.

The students in this special ballet class have cerebral palsy or some other muscle deficiency. A photo-essay format introduces each girl and helps the story come to life as they rehearse for their performance. Each girl has a helper to assist them with movements, but the dancers have learned the steps on their own and will complete them to the best of their abilities. Photos from backstage and of the performance itself, including the audience’s reaction, capture the spirit and determination of these girls, who prove that dreams really do come true.

View this book in the Tandem Library Books online bookstore.

‘Tis the Season!

If you’re looking for a few last minute Christmas ideas, or even some holiday stories to check out from your local library, here are some of our favorites!

Russell is back again in Rob Scotton’s third book, Russell’s Christmas Magic.  Santa  declares that “Christmas is cancelled” when his sleigh crashes in Firefly Wood.  Russell the Sheep comes to his aid equipped with a welder, hammer, and circular saw-labeled “ask parent before using this tool”!  Will Russell’s efforts be enough to save Christmas?

Told in a silly Christmas rhyme, A Christmas Stocking Story, by Hilary Knight, is a book that all will enjoy.  Stork, Hippo, Lion, Fish, Elephant, Snake, Fox and Bug’s stockings were mixed up while being washed on Christmas Eve.  Will the animals ever figure out how to get the right presents from Santa Claus?

A hockey outfit, makeup kit, and a chemistry set – are all great Christmas gifts according to Morris.  Unfortunately Morris is told that he cannot play with them because he is “too young.”  Unsatisfied with his new teddy bear, Morris finds an unwrapped present under the tree – a disappearing bag!  Find out about the mysterious disappearing bag in Rosemary Wells’ Christmas classic, Morris’s Disappearing Bag.

2008 Children’s Summer Reading Program: Catch the Reading Bug

Plan ahead for the summer!  The Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP) has selected “Catch the Reading Bug” for its 2008 children’s summer reading theme.  If you go to the CSLP website, you’ll quickly recognize that the watercolor artwork was fittingly illustrated by the well known Harry Bliss.  Bliss creatively illustrated the witty books Diary of a Worm and Diary of a Spider, both written by Doreen Cronin.

Have you ever wondered what a fly does all day?  Find out in the newest book written and illustrated by the Cronin-Bliss team, Diary of a Fly.  Young readers will giggle and learn fascinating fly facts as they read about Fly and how she dreams of being a super hero.

Not buggy about fiction?  Try Nic Bishop’s Backyard Detective: Critters Up Close.  Bug enthusiasts will be  engrossed in this book filled with over 125 different critters.  You’ll think twice about stepping into your own backyard after seeing the amazing life-sized photos of bugs set in their natural habitat.

For more books about bugs, click here!

Book of the Week: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Fly Guy

Fly Guy fans will not be disappointed when they read the newest book of the Fly Guy series, There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Fly Guy.  The early chapter book begins with Buzz and his pet, Fly Guy, on their way to visit Grandma—the old lady.  When Grandma sees Buzz arrive on his bike she runs to greet her grandson with open arms…and mouth.  Before Buzz gets a chance to introduce his amazing pet, Fly Guy is accidentally swallowed by Grandma in their embrace.  In the attempt to save Fly Guy, Grandma swallows a spider, a bird, a cat…and so on.  Being overwhelmed by all of the animals in Grandma’s stomach, Fly Guy shouts, “Buzz!”  After hearing Buzz call back to him, Fly Guy flies his way out of Grandma’s stomach followed by the spider, bird, cat, dog, goat, and cow.

Tedd Arnold’s take on this classic tale is humorous and delightful.  Early chapter readers will enjoy the expressive illustrations and clean text as they cheer on Fly Guy to safety.  In 2006, Hi! Fly Guy, the first  title of this series, received the Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Award for literary and artistic creativity in a beginning reader book.

Bill of Rights Day!

Freedom to speech.  Freedom to assemble.  Right to bear arms.  We know these freedoms from discussions in classrooms or in the media, but what do we really know about the Bill of Rights?

This December 15th take your students deeper into the freedoms we are granted with Russell Freedman’s In Defense of Liberty.  This Orbis Pictus Honor book breaks the Bill of Rights down chapter by chapter talking about the history, the controversy, and the ordinary citizens who have stood up for each amendment.  Compare this title to Milton Meltzer’s now of of print The Bill of Rights: How We Got it and What it Means to talk about how the Bill of Rights has changed even since 1990 as new issues arise, like electronic privacy and homeland security, which were barely on the radar in 1990 when Meltzer’s book was published.  Add in Kathleen Krull’s Kid’s Guide to America’s Bill of Rights for a look at how freedom affects even young people’s lives. 

Inspire your students with examples of those who have stood up for their freedom with Freedom Walkers: The Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott starts with Rosa Parks’ famous refusal to move to the back of the bus in 1955.  But you can go back even further in time with We Are One: The Story of Bayard Rustin to read about how this little-known civil rights activist staged his own bus protest some thirteen years before Rosa Parks.  Women, too, have changed the shape of freedom in this country, and Ann Bausum’s With Courage and Cloth explores the women’s suffrage movement from 1848 to the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920.

Get to know your rights and be inspired to change the shape of your world this Bill of Rights Day!

Multiple Narrators in Teen Fiction

Sometimes you just want both sides of the story.  Or all sides. 

One of the most popular novels from 2006 was a fast paced, two-sided look at one night.  Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist took two major talents in teen fiction and put them side-by-side in a novel that made high scores in both quality and popularity.  Cohn and Levithan are back together with 2007’s Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List, which has even more perspectives on a story of two friends when friendship gets complicated.

Levithan is no stranger to alternating narrators.  In Are We There Yet? We get both points of view as two brothers, as different as can be, are tricked by their well-meaning parents into taking a vacation together. At first, they get on each other’s every last nerve. 17 year old Elijah’s serendipity clashes with 23 year old Danny’s organized business like manner. A girl comes between them and changes things, as girls always do. Levithan’s insightful prose makes it possible to experience Venice, Florence, and Rome along with Elijah and Danny, each in their own way.

Middle school readers might not be ready for Cohn and Levithan’s books, but they will not want to miss another great collaborative novel: Never Mind: A Twin Novel.  Rachel Vail and Avi put their talents together in this novel that alternates between two siblings. 

Don’t be limited to just one point of view.  Check out this list of great multi-voiced fiction for middle and high schoolers.

Book of the Week: Remembering Raquel

“It’s amazing how much dying can do for a girl’s popularity.”

Raquel Falcone was not the most popular girl in her high school.  She was quiet and overweight.  She had a few friends, but her death affects more than just the few who knew her well. 

Now there’s a collection going to get a memorial park bench in her name and a letter-writing campaign to lower the speed limit on the road where her fatal accident occurred.  Amidst the crusading of some of Raquel’s classmates though, there are questions.  No one is 100% sure what happened.  Did she fall in front of the car?  Was she pushed?  Or did she step in front of the car?

Despite a premise that seems heavy and full of tragedy, Remembering Raquel is actually a fairly light and fast read.  At only 160 pages, this slim book will appeal to readers who don’t want a huge time commitment.  And the alternating perspectives keep the book moving at a quick pace while keeping it interesting.

All the while, you’re left wondering how you might be remembered.

View this book in the Tandem Library Books Online Bookstore.

Unlikely Friends Round Up

There are some pretty amazing friendships out there.  We’ve managed to round up six tremendous examples of unlikely friendships that have left a lasting mark on readers this year.

Although Cowboy and Octopus have different opinions about beans and knock-knock jokes, their friendship grows in these seven humorous mini-stories.

Owen & Mzee bonded with one another despite some pretty unimaginable differences. Owen, a baby hippo was separated from his mother during the devastating 2004 tsunami, and Mzee, a 130-year-old giant tortoise invited the inspiring, inseparable friendship.

After conquering the unknown beyond his nut tree in 2006, Scaredy Squirrel is ready to socialize in Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend.  Once he's spotted a perfectly safe candidate (with no teeth), will he be able to make the Perfect Friend?

                                           

The moment they saw each other, Ivy & Bean knew they wouldn't be friends. But when Bean pulls a trick that goes wrong, Ivy comes to the rescue, proving that sometimes the best of friends are people who never meant to like each other.

Graystripe and Millie are from two different worlds, but that doesn’t stop the feisty kittypet Millie and second-in-command of ThunderClan Graystripe from becoming the best of friends.  Lost Warrior is the first of a new graphic novel series based on the incredibly popular Warrior series.

Lincoln and Keckley star in An Unlikely Friendship, a fictionalized dual biography by one of the premier writers of historical fiction for young readers. Find out how two women--one who grew up in a wealthy Southern home and became the wife of the president of the United States, the other who was born a slave and eventually purchased her own freedom--come to be such close companions.

*Keep your eyes peeled for Scaredy Squirrel at the Beach April 2008.
*That goes double for Warrior's Refuge at the end of December 2007 and Warrior’s Return in April 2008.
*We can’t forget about Ivy and Bean Take Care of the Babysitter in April 2008.

Hanukkah Must-Reads

Every year we see more and more Hanukkah books for children.  We’ve compiled a list of Hanukkah-themed titles for elementary-age readers for the celebration of Hanukkah, which starts at sundown Tuesday, December 4th, and runs through sundown December 15th.  This list features new releases and old favorites with plenty of dreidels, menorahs, latkes, recipes, and fun mixed in.  Enjoy!

Latke Who Couldn't Stop Screaming: A Christmas Story by Lemony Snicket voices a very angry latke which may resonate well with an American culture that sees the Christmas season coming earlier and earlier each year.

Celebrate Hanukkah: With Light, Latkes, and Dreidels by Deborah Heiligman overflows with the vivid photography of National Geographic and the joyous celebrations of Jewish people around the world.

  Jar of Fools: Eight Hanukkah Stories from Chelm by Eric Kimmel draws on traditional Jewish folklore to relate Hanukkah stories / antics of the people of Chelm, thought to be--perhaps incorrectly--a town of fools.

Elijah's Angel: A Story for Chanukah and Christmas by Michael J. Rosen tells the story of Michael and Elijah, who are friends, but when Elijah gives Michael one of his special carved angels, Michael doesn’t know what to do.

Check out all of our Hanukkah must-reads.

Book of the Week: Jabberwocky

Jabberwocky is powerful take on Lewis Carroll’s well-loved nonsensical poem and a sure fire hit for today’s young readers.  Illustrations come alive in electric color, framing and taking charge of Carroll’s bold verse.

An urban basketball court is the setting for a face-off between an epic challenger and hopeful contender.  Lime green, yellow, fuchsia, red, orange and sky blue text color the mood as the bold young hero takes on the Jabberwock in a game of one-on-one.  Control and thought arm the hero in what should be an impossible match-up versus the fourteen-fingered slam-dunking beast.  Students and teachers in grades four and up will find many lessons in this picture book for all ages: analysis of the setting for Myers’ illustrated interpretation, study of the use of portmanteaux in Carroll’s poem from his novel Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There (1871), or defining words of poems even if they are beyond definition.

Christopher Myers delivers a poem with punch.

Click here to view other books written and/or illustrated by Myers, one of today’s most talented children’s book illustrators.  Included on the list are: Harlem which earned a Caldecott Honor for illustrations, as well as Black Cat and Jazz which both earned Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honors.