Notes from the Metrowest Chapter of the MSLA meeting
April 12, 2007

Pat Keogh Presents, Your Book Order, What You Can't Miss

PICTURE BOOKS

Baretta G. Now and Ben (Henry Holt)
Ben Franklin Bio with inventions depicted on the end papers, then & now style to introduce his inventions. No biographical info.

Bunting Eve. One Green Apple (Clarion). ill. by Ted Lewin
Muslim girl in a new school. Gorgeous illustrations.

DeGroat, Diane. No More Pencils, No More  Books, No More Teacher's Dirty Looks.
(Harper).
Fun series, end of the year story. Much of the art and color is done on the computer

Ehlert, Lois Wag a Tail! (Harcourt)
Cut paper and mixed media collage Dog story. Very readable for emerging readers
Humorous biography of dogs at the end.

Geisert, Arthur. Oops (Houghton)
A glass of spilled milk sets off a chain reaction of events

Gravett E. Wolves. (Simon & Schuster)
Rabbit reads a story about a wolf, and becomes immersed. Humorous, library themed.

Hills, T. Duck Duck Goose. (Random House)
Sequel to Duck and Goose - what happens when a third party enters a friendship?

Mahy, Margaret Down the Back of the Chair (Clarion) ill. by Polly Dunbar
How many things can get lost down the back of the chair? Fun rhyming text tells the story of the hunt for the car keys, and finding everything but.

Michelson, Rich. Across the Alley.  ill by E.B. Lewis. (Putnam)
Mixed race friendship story a Jewish boy's grandfather wants him to be a violist, a black boy's dad wants him to be a ballplayer.

Michelson, Rich. Oh No, Not Ghosts. ill by Adam McCauley (Harcourt)
a non-Halloween story a brother who teases his little sister who is afraid of ghosts. Just scary enough with an element of fun.

Moser, L. Watermelon Wishes. ill by Stacy Shuert (Clarion)
A boy & his grandfather plant watermelon seeds one summer and wait to see if

Roth, Susan. Do Re Mi: If you can read music, thank Guido and Arezzo. ill by   A Mafussi (Houghton)
Biography of the man who devised the system of writing music 1000 years ago. Illustrations are unusual collage of papers from around the world. Author's note, bibliography & autographs

Schaefer, Carol. Dragon Dancing. ill by (Viking, 2007)
Exuberant with wonderful language, great birthday books

Shulevitz, Uri. So Sleepy Story. (FSG)
For very young children, but appears heavily influenced by Randolph Caldecott, with a nod to Sendak's wild rumpus, but dedicated claims inspired by graphic artist

Tingle Tim, Crossing Bok Choy ill by (Cinco Puntos Press)
A beautiful small press book, by a Choctow storyteller, with an author's note about Native Americans today. Story of a Choctow girl and slave boy who form a friendship

Weatherford, Carole Boston. Dear Mr. Rosenwald ill by R. Gregory Christie (Scholastic)
Biography of the head of Sears Roebuck in the 1930s, who helped communities build better schools for African Americans by donated funds contingent on community involvement.

Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road? (Dial)
A number of artists cleverly interpret the famous joke

NONFICTION
Bronzeville Boys and Girls ill by Faith Ringold
A collection of poems celebrating childhood.

Bryant, Ashley. Let it Shine (Atheneum, 2007)
Three illustrated spirituals: This Little Light of Mine He's Got the Whole World In His Hands and music and author's note appended. Endpapers demonstrate the cut paper art technique. A trend, becuase African authors/Illustrators fear this is a great contribution to American culture, and they may be getting lost. Joy within fear is an important message.

Butterworth, Chris. Sea Horse. illustrated by John Lawrence.
Natural history of the Barbour Seashorse stunning art and fascinating info

Escape! The story of the Great Houdini (Greenwillow)
Sid Fliecshman is a magician and knows Mrs. Houdini- perfect author for this title.
A nice sized bio, not a skinny series book, but very readable.

Florian, D Comets, Stars The Moon and Mars. (Harcourt, 2007)
Succinct short verse and illustrations about the Solar System, glossary and bibliography at the end

Miller, Debbie. Big Alaska: Journey Across America's Most Amazing State. ill by Jon Van Zybe. (Walker, 2006)
Arranged geographically, this naturalist biography of the Alaska tells what life is like in the biggest state in the US.

Muse, Daphne. The Entrance Place of Wonders. ill by Charlotte Riley-Webb.(Abrams, 2007)
Poems of the Harlem Renaissance, gorgeous art and exemplary poems

Montgomery, S. Quest for the Tree Kangaroo: An expedition to the cloud forest of New Guinea. ill. by Nic Bishop (Houghton)
Scientist in the Field Series. Story of scientists tracking tree kangaroos in New Guinea. Author's note and info about tree kangaroos

Prelutsky, Jack. What a Day It Was At School (Greenwillow)
Funny poems related to school.

O'Sullivan, J. 101 Places You Gotta See Better You're Twelve (Sterling)
Stickers can be removed. No specific locations, instead recommend general places like the backstage of a theatre, a sculpture park, a tree canopy.

Shore, This is the Dream ill by James Ransom (Amistad, 2007)
Shows the history of segregation in rhyme. Really simple terms and visuals. Painting have border of archival photos. Perfect for discussion.

Truss, L. Eats, Shoots and Leaves. (putnam)
Why Commas do really make a difference
Who's going to read a book on punctuation. Clever and funny pictures show the difference a comma makes.

Sidman, Butterfly Eeys (Houghton)
Similiar to osng of the water boatman. Riddle nature poems in letter format. Paired poems preface science applications and natural histories.

Wong, Janet S.The Dumpster Diver. ill by David Roberts (Candlewick, 2007)
Story of a man who dives into dumpsters and comes up with all sorts of treasures.

Wong, Janet S. Twist. ill by Julie Patchkiss (S&S)
Yoga poems beautifully illustrated.

Owen & Mzee: The Language of Friendship
sequel to Hippo befriended a 130 year old tortoise.

FICTION
Fine, Anne. The Diary of a Killer Cat. (FSG)
Perverse nature required to enjoy. From the point of view of a murderous cat, clever voice. Good read aloud.

Holm, Jennifer L. Penny From Heaven. (Random)
Newbery honor, not a "kid" book. Semi-autographical story about a family whose uncle is sent to an Italian interment camp during WWI; author's note with family album at the end. Middle school.

Hurst, Carol Otis. Torchlight. (Houghton)
Short novel, set in Westfield MA. Bigotry up close:-Irish immigrants move in and Yankees don't like it.

Lin, Grace. The Year of the Dog. (Little, Brown)
Novel about growing up Chinese-American.

Lowry, Lois. Gossamer. (Houghton)
Beautifully written story about where dreams come from.

McKissack, Patricia. Porch Lies: Tales of Slicksters, Tricksters and other Wily Characters. ill by Andre Carrilho (Random)
Short stories, well written and appealing, lots of humor. Who is the audience?

McKissack, Patricia. A friendship for today.
Fictionalized autobiography of Patricia McKissack's life, and friendship of a black girl and a white girl. 5th grade & up.

Pennypacker, Sara. Clementine ill by Marls Frazee (Hyperion)
Ramona meets Junie B. Jones. Strong spirited girl story.

Howe, James. Houndley and Catina.  ill by Mary-Louise Guy
Beginning reader with charming illustrations.

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