Other worlds are just an attic away ...

Wilson, N.D. (2007). 100 Cupboards (Gr. 5-7).

12-year-old Henry York has led a strange, if uneventful, life.  He has never played baseball, drunk soda, or had parents who paid much attention to him.  When his parents are kidnapped on a bicycling trip in South America, Henry travels to Kansas to stay with his aunt, uncle, and cousins.  A thump on the wall of his attic bedroom throws Henry into a whirlwind, sometimes creepy, adventure of mysterious cupboard doors that lead to other worlds.  Henry and one of his cousins begin to explore, finding notes from their grandfather and meeting a few people from these other worlds. Some of the people want to help, some want to be left alone, and others want something much more sinister than Henry can even imagine.

100 Cupboards combines the best of fantasy and mystery--readers might even find it a little bit scary.  Fans of Neil Gaiman's Coraline should check this one out!  The books move quickly, so be sure to request the two sequels at the same time.

Where the Less Wild Things Are

Proimos, James (2009). Patricia von Pleasantsquirrel (Gr. K-2).

Patricia von Pleasantsquirrel knows that she is a princess, but her non-royal family disagrees.  Inspired by Max, from Where the Wild Things Are, she flies off in her little airplane to search for her own princessdom.  The Land of Hippos happily welcomes Patricia as their princess: they dance past midnight, eat cake all day long, and give her a great big crown to wear.  Unfortunately, Patricia's job comes with a very long, very tiring list of rules.  Suddenly, home seems a lot better than it did before.

This picture book is laugh-out-loud funny for both kids and the adults who read to them.  Comical side comments and literary references balance Patricia's saucy personality, making this an irreverent take on a familiar childhood wish.

The Boston Massacre: March 5, 1770

Two hundred forty years ago, on this very day in history, a small group of British soldiers killed five colonists in the city of Boston.  Colonists were angry about the taxes they paid to England, and very unpopular British soldiers patrolled Boston every day.  Colonists made fun of the soldiers and threw objects at them on March 5, 1770, and the confused soldiers fired their guns into the crowd, killing five men. 

John Adams--a lawyer who would sign the Declaration of Independence six years later--defended the soldiers in a trial despite the anger toward the British in Boston.  None of the soldiers were convicted of murder, and only two were convicted of other crimes.  Even so, the event was named the Boston Massacre, and it became a very important event that led to American independence from England.

Learn even more about the Boston Massacre:

Fradin, Dennis Brindle.  The Boston Massacre.
     Covers the Boston Massacre as a watershed event in U.S. history, influencing social, economic, and political policies that shaped the nation's future.

Santella, Andrew.  The Boston Massacre.
     Discusses the events leading up to the Boston Massacre, including the Sugar and Stamp Acts, and the aftermath of the massacre.

Burgin, Michael.  The Boston Massacre. 
    
Rinaldi, Ann.  The Fifth of March: A Story of the Boston Massacre.
     Fourteen-year-old Rachel Marsh, an indentured servant in the Boston household of John and Abigail Adams, is caught up in the colonists' unrest that eventually escalates into the massacre of March 5, 1770.

Princess Books

Two important stickers from the "Books We Love" Valentine's heart were not included in yesterday's list. Both stickers said that the readers' favorite books were about princesses, but there are so many different kinds of princess books! The "Books We Love" list wouldn't have done the genre any justice.

Today's post is devoted to all things Princess: from animal stories to fairy tales to more realistic books, the following list will introduce all kinds of princesses in all kinds of worlds. Just like yesterday, click the "Read more" link to see the whole list.

Readers' Report: Valentine's Edition!

Here's a great big "Thank you!" to everyone who helped with the special Valentine's display.  We had a lot of people come into the children's room to write down the title of their favorite book or series of books--so many people, in fact, that we filled a great big paper heart above the book display!

Getting a picture of the whole heart was easy to do, but it's even more important to share this list of favorite books.  The list is pretty long, so click on the "Read more" link to see all of the titles, grouped by reading level.

Samantha Hansen: Rock Star!

Nancy Viau (2008). Samantha Hansen Has Rocks in Her Head (Gr. 3-6)

Ten-year-old Samantha Hansen is crazy about science.  She loves learning about caves, clouds, the weather, and especially rocks.  She also likes to make lists: a talent she got from her dad, who died a long time ago.  When her mom announces a family vacation to the Grand Canyon, Samantha's wildest dreams come true: she'll get to see the biggest, oldest, most colorful rocks she's ever heard of.   The vacation almost falls through, however, because Samantha has trouble controlling her temper.  It's not easy to be calm with a pesky older sister and classmates who like to tease!

There's a lot to like about Samantha Hansen.  She asks honest questions and makes honest mistakes.  She's a good friend and a (mostly) good sister.  She's also a little awkward, and sometimes you want to jump into the story and stop her from whatever she's about to do.  On the whole, Samantha Hansen makes this a very good book that skips along quickly in her quest to know as much as possible about her family, herself, and (of course) rocks.

Waiting for Mama

Lee Tae-Jun, illustrated by Kim Dong-Seong (2007).  Waiting for Mama (Gr. K-2).

(Bilingual: English and Korean) 
On a wintry, cold afternoon a small boy waits patiently at a streetcar station for his mama to come home.  Other passengers come and go, but there's no sign of the boy's mother.  As each streetcar arrives, the little boy asks the driver if his mama is there.  The little boy sits quietly despite his cold, red nose, and he continues to wait as snow begins to fall and the day gets darker. 

Although this story was originally written for a Korean newspaper in 1938, Kim Dong-Seong's new illustrations bring the Korean people, landscape, and culture to life.  Pay close attention to the pictures--the final drawing has two very important people in it.