• Reviews

    Spy School

    This is another book I read on vacation.  Spy School is about Ben Ripley, a awkward, science geek whose dream job would be to work for the CIA.  Ben is not surprised to be selected to attend a magnate school with a focus on science, but he is surprised to…

  • Reviews

    The Tragedy Paper

    I’m back!  After a week with extended family in the beautiful states of Tennessee and North Carolina, I’m back at work and reeling at how much I need to get done in the next couple of weeks! Over vacation I was able to read a handful of books that I’ll…

  • Lifestyle

    Summer Vacation

    I forgot to let everyone know that I’m on vacation this week, spending time with my family and getting (hopefully) a lot of reading done! Hopefully I’ll be catching up on my posts tomorrow!

  • Reviews

    Yes, Let’s

    I wish I would have seen this book before I did a camping themed story time this summer!  Yes, Let’s with its rhyming couplets and repetitive “let’s” shows how much fun spending the day outdoors can be!  The illustrations are also a lot of fun with things to find and…

  • Reviews

    Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle

    Caldecott award winning author, Chris Raschka, again brings his beautiful watercolors to a new book for youngsters called Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle.  In a field of children’s book you would think learning how to ride a bike would be a topic on everyone’s mind, but there aren’t…

  • Activities

    Wacky Wednesday Book Discussion #2 (3rd & 4th graders)

    Our second book discussion for 3rd and 4th graders happened this afternoon.  If you missed out on the first one I did, check out the link here.  I had 15 kids participate with all of them actually reading the book.  For this book discussion, I chose Frankie Pickle and the Closet…

  • Activities

    Story Time Theme: Library Love

    In retrospect, this would have made a great story time at the very beginning of the story time session, with a book on library manners and all the fun things to do at the library!  But the kids still had a lot of fun with the theme (and hopefully they…

  • Reviews

    The Story of Fish & Snail

    The Story of Fish & Snail written and illustrated by Deborah Freedman is a beautifully told story about friendship in a new and unique way.  “Every day, Snail waits for Fish to come home with a new story.”  But one day, Fish wants to be able show timid Snail a…

  • Reviews

    The Truth of Me

    I have loved Patricia MacLachlan’s writing since I read Sarah, Plain and Tall.  I couldn’t have been very old when I read it, but I remember it so clearly.  The Truth of Me is MacLachlan’s newest book and still her voice and writing is as strong as ever.  She is…

  • Lifestyle

    7 Reasons to Rediscover Your Public Library

    There are a number of reasons to visit the public library in your neighborhood, but Money Talks reports on just seven reasons, all of which are helpful suggestions for people of all ages to visit (and support) their local libraries.  Check out the article here! The article does a great…