Staff Picks: Books
Staff-recommended reading from the
KPL catalog.
I love crafting books and crafting blogs and I always have! Nothing gives me more inspiration than reading stories about projects other people have figured out. At least right now with a full-time job and a toddler at home, that's what works for me. Hand in hand: crafting with kids, edited by Jenny Doh, is a book I really enjoyed recently that gave me lots of fresh inspiration for crafting with my girl at home. Not only is it full of inspiring parents who have simple and effective ideas for crafting with children, each person featured is a blogger with a blog full of other ideas. I love it! I've always loved making things but it can be hard as a parent to involve children in the process. As an adult, I can become product-oriented and it's important for me to remember that young children are more process-oriented. They want to experience things, not just get a finished product put together. And in that experience, they can practice all kinds of wonderful skills like fine-motor development, conversation, measurements, etc. If you're looking for some fresh ideas from real parents who craft with their children, this book has plenty. And if you are a parent who just likes to unwind with a craft book, even though you have no intention whatsoever of adding new projects to your long to-do list, don't worry....I'm right there with you and I won't tell. You can just soak up that inspiration and save it for a rainy day when you need the perfect new activity to keep everybody smiling! Happy crafting!
Book
Hand in Hand: crafting with kids
9781454702405
The Fiddles Go On Strikeby Bobby Claeys is cute children’s book with a message. It starts out with a child asking is mom how does this or that work. The mom doesn’t know how our gadgets work, they just work. Then one day they stop working. The TV will not turn on, the computer will not work, the toaster will not make toast. Why? Repair people come and find a note inside each broken gadget saying “We Quit” We find out that the Fiddles or as some called them the purple dudes wrote the note. The Fiddles make a statement “BEHOLD! We are the reason your lives are easier. For too long, we have been working without any appreciation. You humans go through each day using your gadgets without even thinking ‘How does this work’” The humans hold a party thanking the Lil’ Purple Dudes. This is a cute entertaining book and especially dear to me as my sons best friend Bobby Claeys is the author. We look forward to more books by the soon to be famous author Bobby Claeys.
Book
The Fiddles Go On Strike
9781938110733
Crows have glossy black feathers with glints of dark blue and purple. Their life span usually ranges from 9 to12 years. Like humans, they can pretty much adapt to a variety of habitats, eating just about anything that their bodies can digest. Crows are highly social and enjoy traveling in groups. They can mimic various sounds and have a highly specialized and evolved language of communication. A flock of crows is called a “murder.” Although worldwide there are 45 different crow species, the ones most commonly seen in Michigan is the American or common crow.
Crows can be noisy, nosy, and downright annoying at times. Because of their raucous tendencies, some people don’t like them very much, and most farmers tend to lump them into the pest category of animals since they are inclined to dine on their crops. On the other hand, crows have also been proven to be beneficial in farm settings since they consume many insect pests that can ruin a harvest.
I’ve always been intrigued and fascinated by these highly intelligent, comical, and mischievous birds. When my husband and I walk around KVCC’s Texas Township campus, we usually see and hear numerous crows. They tend to hang out in small mobs, idling on and around lamp posts or sauntering along the parking lots and fields; forever on the lookout for a scavenging opportunity. They don’t have to look far since college students throw away lots of fast food offerings such as fries or buns, making the entire site an ever changing smorgasbord. The garbage bins seem especially suited for quick crow take-out buffet dining, and we’ve been amused many times by crow dumpster divers in search of their next snack.
As the Crow Flies is a new children’s picture book that was published in December, 2012. It was written by Sheila Keenan and illustrated handsomely by Kevin Duggan, an experienced nature painter. It beautifully captures and celebrates crows and their world in rhyming verse:
“All day long you’re on the go.
You don’t have time to watch a crow.
But we’re here ...and here... and there.
We poke our beaks in everywhere.”
Just a few weeks ago, I also happened to watch a very well made PBS program, originally filmed in 2010, entitled A Murder of Crows, a part of their “Nature” series. It was enlightening, entertaining and made me especially aware of these birds’ high level of intelligence, as evidenced by the fact that they can manufacture and use tools to solve problems.
And since I was on this crow kick anyway, I also read the “J” non-fiction book, Crows: Strange and Wonderful by Laurence Pringle with illustrations by Bob Marshall, who are both popularly known wildlife advocates.
So the next time you are out and about, listen for the familiar “Caw, caw,, watch for streaks of black wing, and you might be fortunate enough to see crows in an entirely different, more appreciative way.
Crows and humans; we are so different, yet so alike!
Book
As the Crow Flies
9780312621568
What do you get when you combine a word and a number? A Wumber!
Wumbers: It’s a book! It’s a game! It’s words cre8ed with numbers! Wri10 by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and illustr8ed by Tom Lichtenheld this is such a creative and fun book. Each two page spread is a little story. Characters speak through balloon captioned text. The text is so easy and fun that kids and adults will be it over and over.
Samples from the end pages:
- Have you ever tiptoed through the 2lips?
- What question would you ask a 4tune teller?
What a fun book to share plus you may want to try making wumbers yourself!
Book
Wumbers : it's words cre8ed with numbers!
9781452110226
Billy Lynn is a 19-year-old soldier from Texas. After he and his squad are declared heroes as the result of a horrific firefight in Iraq, they are brought home for a whirlwind Victory Tour across the country, ending with a special halftime show at a Dallas Cowboys game. Billy’s youth, questions, and observations about the disconnect between his two worlds gives the reader a provocative look at how we perceive our warriors.
Book
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
9780060885595
I absolutely adored Kyo Maclear's Virginia Wolf. Illustrated by the extremely talented Isabelle Arsenault, this is the story of sisters Virginia and Vanessa as battle Virginia's sadness and anger with imagination and colorful art.
I love that this book has the potential to inspire and guide not only the grumpiest, most wolfish child, but also adults who've also fallen prey to their wolfish tendencies. No matter your age, Vanessa's determination and the beautiful illustrations within Virginia Wolf's pages has the power to inspire and slowly tame the wolf within.
Key Words and Ideas:
Empathy
Learning to deal with and handle emotion
Using art as an emotional outlet
Imagination
Compassion
Sisters
*Recommended for ages 4-8
Book
Virginia Wolf
9781554536498
Hannah’s hands have names . . one is Sadie and one is Ratz. Most of the time, her hands are well-behaved, but sometimes they just can’t help being naughty. When 4-year-old Baby Boy is around, it seems like Sadie and Ratz have more trouble than usua, especially when they get close to ears. Sibling rivalry and general mischief-making are seen here, but it’s very interesting how Hannah realizes that Sadie and Ratz need some time out as she struggles to prove that Baby Boy is not always the little darling that he seems. In fact, by the end of the story, we suddenly have two new characters: Colin and Scraps. Hmmm.
Book
Sadie and Ratz
9780763653156
What are ABCers? They are a spunky group of kids in motion in their neighborhood and the park. They are doing all sorts of lively and interesting activities while learning their ABCs.
ABCers by Carole Lexa Schaefer and illustrated by Pierr Morgan is such a fun ABC book – one which stands out from the crowd not only with the creative use of the letter for the word and activity but also for the kid friendly artwork.
As the kids make a b-line around the park they discover “D is for Dogwalkers, E is for Eek! Squealers” as the dogs greet them. The kids are in constant motion.
Join the fun. It is worth sharing again and again from “ A is for arm linkers to Z is zee end.”
Book
ABCers
9780670012312
What are the top two most popular books printed in the English language?
The Bible is the number one most popular book printed in English and the second most popular book printed in English is Webster’s Dictionary of the English Language.
Noah Webster was born on a farm in West Hartford, Connecticut in 1758. Noah didn’t want to be a farmer, he wanted to be a scholar. He went to school at Yale and graduated in 1778 and became a teacher. He soon realized there were no books about America; Noah wanted American schoolbooks! America was a new country and America needed a national language and government. Americans were spelling words any way they wanted, the same word might be spelled ten different ways in ten different places. So, Noah wrote an American spelling book so that Americans would spell every word the same way, every time, everywhere. Noah had the publisher put a blue cover on it so that people could just ask for the “blue-backed speller.” Noah’s blue-backed speller taught spelling and it also listed important American dates, town and states! Two years later he published his second book, a Grammar [noun: study of words; rules for using words].
Then Noah had another big idea: to write a dictionary [noun: a book listing words in ABC order, telling what they mean and how to spell them]. His book would be 100 percent American and it would include new American words, such as skunk, dime and tomahawk. He decided to show where the words came from, all the different origins. He began this wonderful dictionary in 1807 and he completed it nearly twenty years later! Noah’s American Dictionary of the English Language was published in 1828. Noah’s words DID unite America! This is a great book and the bright, fanciful illustrations will keep your attention. [noun: the act or state of applying the mind to something].
Book
Noah Webster & His Words
9780547390550
Sitting in front of the town's general store, Ms. Pettway explains to Alex why Belle the mule is allowed to browse freely in her garden. The mule is revered in the little farm town of Gee's Bend, Alabama, for her role in the civil rights movement. In 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. came to Gee’s Bend to speak, encouraging everyone assembled to register to vote. People from Gee’s Bend took the ferry to Camden across the river in order to register. Belle helped to convey citizens from Gee's Bend all the way around - the long way - after racist ferry operators closed the ferry to the people who wanted to register to vote.
Belle is especially revered in the town because she is one of the two mules that served to honor Dr. King's wish that mules from Gee's Bend pull the farm wagon that would hold his burial casket. King had visited Gee’s Bend on several occasions. Community members from Gee’s Bend traveled elsewhere to march in protest with him. Based on a true story, this picture book portrays one moment in the American civil rights movement. The story was passed on to the author by the Reverend James E. Orange, who worked with Dr. King and remembered his connection with the community of Gee’s Bend.
Book
Belle, the Last Mule at Gee's Bend
9780763640583