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What’s the deal with the groundhog and its shadow again? February 2nd, a.k.a Groundhog Day, is the day we dread or adore, depending on our love of snow and cold. If the groundhog emerges from its burrow and sees its shadow, watch out! – more winter is on the way. But if it doesn’t see its shadow, spring is coming soon. These delightful books feature our furry friend, the groundhog, and its special day.
We all have at least one thing in common on the Tandem Library Books Collection Development Team: we love books. We couldn’t help but be charmed by some of these books about books (and libraries!).
Library Lion is an office favorite. The soft illustrations make the lion look like a gentle cat. And strange as the sight of a lion in a library might be, as long as he doesn’t break the rules, he can stay and enjoy the books and the storytimes to his heart’s content. Only he finds that sometimes breaking the rules is necessary. But will our Library Lion be banned from the library?
We all love the zany librarian who went to the zoo in Judy Sierra’s Wild About Books, but do you know Library Lil, who becomes a hero when the power goes out in Chesterville? Or Ms. Chinca, the really nice librarian who helps out Carlo in Carlo and the Really Nice Librarian? Or the three librarians who help Melvin explore his world in The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians? Now those are some librarians worth knowing!
Being the book lovers that we are, we know that books are for reading. Not for eating. Henry learns that lesson in The Incredible Book-Eating Boy by Oliver Jeffers. Another book eater finds that books are better when “eaten” with your eyes in Winston the Book Wolf by Marni McGee.
I think we’ll keep eating the books with our eyes as it makes it so much easier to write reviews of them later….
Imagine swimming in the ocean at the break of dawn. Marine life swirls around you as the salty water keeps you floating near the surface. Sounds are amplified while your vision is clouded by goggles and dark water. Now imagine that you realize you’re swimming side-by-side with a baby gray whale...
This is the true account of distance swimmer Lynne Cox’s encounter with the whale she named Grayson when she was seventeen years old. Cox was training at her hometown beach in southern California and was just getting ready to swim to shore when she saw the whale. Knowing it had been separated from its mother and needed to be reunited in order to survive, Cox decided to keep swimming with it until the mother could be found. Spoiler alert: the book does have a happy ending, and in addition to the amazing true story, it is also a fascinating look at ocean life and a testament to the power of human-animal connections.
Grayson is a quick, engaging read and will make a great read-aloud for classrooms and libraries. Readers of all ages will enjoy this remarkable story. Pair it with a unit of study on oceans or marine animals, and be sure to read the epilogue for ideas on how teachers and librarians have integrated it with curriculum.
View this book in the Tandem Library Books online bookstore.
Library displays are a great way to do silent reader’s advisory. But they won’t do any good if they don’t get attention. Here are some quick tips for creating attention getting displays for your teens:
• Get teens involved. Have them create the display or display reviews they’ve written.
• Don’t get cluttered. Keep it neat and organized while using your space effectively. Too many (or too few) books for a space will look messy.
• Notice traffic patterns. Watch the way teens use your library and put displays where the traffic is.
• Use props. Add objects to your display that relate to the theme or make it interactive with a puzzle or game.
• Think about the covers. Use your book covers to really get attention. Group books by color or other common element for a dramatic display.
• Variety is good. Mix fiction, nonfiction, audiovisual, magazines, etc.
• Refresh your display regularly. A picked-over display will likely be passed by.
• Keep your eyes open for great themes. Turn the Insightful Lists or the Book Round-Ups into great attention-getting displays for your library or media center.
Losing a loved one is a painful experience for both young and old. Finding quality books to share with your students may help them through this tumultuous experience. Titles in this week’s featured list highlight beautiful picture books and stories of strong characters persevering through one of the toughest times in their lives.
Ben Wolf, star cross country runner, had plans for his senior year until the day he went to the doctor’s office for a routine physical. That summer day Ben finds out that he has leukemia and, at most, only a year to live. Not wanting to be sick and weak for the rest of his remaining days, Ben decides to forgo his treatments and keep his illness a secret from everyone--including his star quarterback, twin brother Cody. To make the most of his time on Earth--without any long term consequences--Ben decides to ask out his long-legged crush, Dallas Suzuki; try out for the football team; learn as much as he can; and help out the town drunk. Ben's year is going great until his illness catches up to him, and he realizes the effects of keeping secrets.
Chris Crutcher carefully weaves many themes such as death, racism, abuse, and sports into this wonderfully touching story. You may think that a book about these heavy themes may be pretty depressing, but it is the exact opposite. I found myself laughing more that I did crying. Despite the one mild sex scene and one account of sexual abuse, this fast-paced humorous book is one that most high school students and adults will thoroughly enjoy.
January is a big month for medical history milestones. This month marks 158 years since Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to receive her medical degree and 40 years since the first heart transplant. In those years, many, many important medical advances and discoveries have been made.
Stephanie True Peters takes us back to 1918 while keeping one foot firmly planted in the latest research in 1918 Influenza Pandemic. This exceptional work of nonfiction for middle and high school students is a must-have for collections looking for history and science. Dr. Jenner and the Speckled Monster is another fascinating look at the history of science and medicine for this grade range.
High schoolers interested in the history of small pox and vaccinations may be interested in Julia Alvarez’ historical fiction novel Saving the World, which fictionalizes a journey to the New World with the vaccine. And the Alex Award winning Year of Wonders chronicles the Black Plague as it broke out in England from the perspective of a woman in a village that chose to quarantine itself to keep the sickness within its borders.
These are just a few books that bring history and science together in ways that will fascinate your students.
I have loved historical fiction since I was a teen. In particular, I read everything I could find that was based on a real historical figure. The idea that this was something that might have really happened was so romantic to the teenage me, and I ate it up. In that way Angelmonster by Veronica Bennett was almost nostalgic for me when I read it last year because it reminded me so much of what I actually read as a teen. Plus, I happen to be a bit of a poetry geek as I’ve mentioned before, so the story of Mary Shelley’s life with her poet husband Percy was fascinating to me.
Fans of this week’s Book of the Week, No Shame No Fear, might be interested in Alice Hoffman’s book for teens, Incantation, in which a young girl in Spain learns that her family are secretly still practicing the Jewish faith despite the fact that it was highly dangerous to do so at the time. She is forced to make a choice about what she will do: uphold her family’s religious traditions or give in to pressure from the Inquisition.
But historical fiction isn’t just for girls. The Strongbow Saga is Judson Roberts’ new series that begins with Viking Warrior in which Halfdan, who has been a slave his entire life, is given his rightful place as the son of the chieftain. He begins his training as a warrior, and soon he finds a need to use his newly acquired skills. This action-packed book is full of details about life in a Viking village, and the story is engaging from the very beginning. Dragons From the Sea continues Halfdan’s story, and fans will want to know what happens in this saga.
There are many more options in this growing genre. Here are a few more that might be of interest to your teens.
Can you imagine living at a time when it was dangerous to believe certain things? Or to practice a particular religion? That may seem strange to us in this country, where we have always had the right to worship as we chose. But many people have had to struggle for their faith.
In England in 1662, it was dangerous to be a Quaker. Parliament has passed laws making it illegal not to take the oath of allegiance and to hold religious meetings. Quakers who broke these laws were beaten or imprisoned. This is the backdrop against which Will and Susanna fall in love.
The narrative in No Shame, No Fear goes back and forth between the two teens as they meet and become intrigued with one another—and as Will becomes intrigued by Susanna’s religion. He attends a few Quaker meetings out of curiosity, and soon he feels compelled to make huge changes in his life in accord with the religion. But his father does not approve of his newfound faith or of Will’s interest in Susanna.
This is a compelling story of love against the odds that fans of historical fiction will devour. Be sure to have the sequel on hand for those who want to know more about what happens with Will and Susanna.
View this book in the Tandem Library Books Online Bookstore.
Many of you can identify with our giddy sense of anticipation as we awaited the award announcements from ALA Midwinter. Here at Tandem we gathered in the office at 6:30 a.m. to watch the live webcast from Philadelphia. All the lists of winners and honor books can be found at our website.
Some of our predictions came true; other winners were total surprises. We felt certain that an Elephant & Piggie book would get a Geisel, since these are a pretty unanimous choice for the best early reader books of all time. The Newbery winner is a nice surprise from an author who is a school librarian: Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices From a Medieval Village is a series of monologues that depict village life, along with some well-researched nonfiction narrative. We were shocked but pleased that The Invention of Hugo Cabret won the Caldecott this year. It's a major departure from the traditional picture book format winner, and we think Brian Selznick is utterly deserving for his imaginitive, compelling illustrated novel.
Did one of your favorite books from 2007 get honored? Click here to see all the 2008 ALA award lists. Need to know which book was the ultimate winner in each category? Read on...
