Reviews
A Review of "Track that Scat!" in The Midwest Book Review
Track that Scat! is a picturebook about discovering the traces of common woodland creatures, including rabbits, chickadees, red foxes, and Canada geese. A young girl and her faithful dog venture on a woodland hike, and observe the tracks and feces of different animals (sometimes the girl View →
A Review of "Frog and Friends" in Great Kid Books
Finding books that work just right for new readers is a tricky business, as many families know. Children who are new to reading on their own often want humor, surprises and twists in the plot – and yet they need fairly straightforward books that are easy to grasp. The wonderful Eve View →
A Review of "Best Summer Ever" in Kirkus Reviews
Frog and his friends are back (Frog and Friends, 2011) in another trio of early-reader tales, but this time they focus less on humor and problem solving and more on life lessons and… In the first story, Frog and Bat play a game, pointing out the ways in which they are diffe View →
A Review of "Surviving the Hindenburg" in Booklist
The 100th anniversary of the Titanic disaster is a good chance to rope in discussion of the 1937 explosion of the Hindenburg, which, as Verstraete’s foreword details, was nearly as long as the Titanic and intended to be “the world’s first flying hotel.” Told from the point of view of the View →
A Review of "The People of Twelve Thousand Winters" in Booklist
Long before the arrival of the first Europeans, the Lenni Lenape people lived near what is now northern New Jersey. Noble imagines what life was like for a 10-year-old boy, Walking Turtle, growing up at that time in his village above the Passaic River. Part of the Tales of the World… View →
A Review of "Track That Scat!" in Booklist
For young Finn and her hound, Skeeter, exploring the outdoors becomes a somewhat pungent adventure and a vehicle to introduce readers to identifying commonly known animals through their tracks and, particularly, droppings. From the onset, the pair encounters—and sometimes steps in—a… View →
A Review of "What’s Looking at You, Kid?" in Booklist
Lewis, the current Children’s Poet Laureate, offers rhymes as riddles. Examples include “Hanging in the air’s the thing / he can do without a wing / Look, a yo-yo on a string! Whee!” and “Look who’s into something sweet. / She must live on Honey Street. / She’s got honey on her feet!”… View →
A Review of "T Is for Titanic: A Titanic Alphabet" in School Library Journal
Gr 2-4–This alphabet book provides introductory information about the ship itself, the people associated with it, and a very basic outline of the events surrounding that fateful night in April 1912. Each page includes a short, rhyming poem, a piece of original artwork, and several… View →
A Review of "Stella Batts Needs a New Name" in Publishers Weekly
First in a series featuring eight-year-old Stella, Sheinmel’s unassuming story, cheerily illustrated by Bell, is a reliable read for those first encountering chapter books. An aspiring writer, Stella tells her story in the form of an autobiography, describing her daily life as a… View →
A Review of "Twice as Good" in Kirkus Reviews
Despite growing up in a community that was racially segregated, William Powell persisted in playing the game he loved,… Young Willie could only caddy on the golf course near his Ohio home, although one white man did let him play. Returning home after World War II from England, View →