ABC Color Apricot, Burgundy & Chartreuse, 26 brand new colors are out on the loose! Book Review

ABC Color Apricot, Burgundy & Chartreuse, 26 brand new colors are out on the loose!

Little Concepts Series

Ingela Peterson Arrhenius

Quarto Publishing Group – Walter Foster, Jr.

Children’s Book, Nonfiction, Board Book

Publication Date: November 1, 2017

Most kids learn your standard red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple, but what about all of those other colors out in the world?

ABC Color Apricot, Burgundy & Chartreuse has fantastic illustrations that take kids on a color-filled journey through the alphabet. From apricot to jade, umber to zomp you're sure to learn a few new colors alongside your kids.

If you’re interested in reading ABC Color Apricot, Burgundy & Chartreuse, you can purchase a copy here on Amazon. 

*A copy of this book was provided free of charge for an honest review.

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Programming Games and Animation Kids Get Coding Series Book Review

Programming Games and Animation 

Kids Get Coding Series

Heather Lyons (Author)

Alex Westgate (Illustrator)

Lerner Publications

Children’s Nonfiction, Upper Elementary

Publication Date: August 1, 2017

I love finding coding books that appeal to different age groups and that get kids interested in coding. I had a lot of hope for Programming Games and Animation from the Kids Get Coding series, but this book fell flat.

First, the web address in the book takes you to a page where the links associated with this book say, "Sorry... There's nothing here!" so any of the activities the book describes can't actually be completed. If I was a kid, I would be devastated.

Second, the book does do a good job of helping kids plan out a maze-type game and thinking through different scenarios, but the "coding" they show doesn't translate into other commonly used types of coding I've seen. Perhaps it is exactly what kids need for the maze-building website that has a broken link and is thus inaccessible? But as it currently is, if kids read this book, they would not be able to apply their knowledge to other coding formats.

Last, the book covers several coding topics but uses a rubber duck called "Data Duck" as its mascot. Even when the duck wears sunglasses, it's still too juvenile for the target audience. Upper Elementary kids who are excited to learn to code want to be challenged, not infantilized. Again, I had a lot of hope for this book, but your money would be better spent elsewhere.

If you’re still interested in reading Programming Games and Animation from the Kids Get Coding Series, you can purchase a copy here on Amazon. 

*A copy of this book was provided free of charge for an honest review.

From Far Away Book Review

From Far Away

Robert Munsch; Saoussan Askar

Rebecca Green

Annick Press

Children’s Fiction, Picture Book

Publication Date: August 8, 2017

Saoussan is a second grader, she is seven years old, she came from far away, and she frames her story as if she is talking directly to the reader, her reading buddy. Saoussan tells her story of coming to Canada from her home country where a war started. With the war came bombings, a lack of food, and people being shot at. When she gets to Canada her father tells her to be good and listen in school, but Saoussan doesn't speak English, so she can't understand the teacher or the other students. School it difficult at first and she doesn't want to go back, but over time, Saoussan begins to learn English and becomes the best reader and speller in her class. She's so good at speaking English that her teacher complains that she never stops talking to her friends! Saoussan shares bits and pieces of her new life, giving a glimpse of what it is like to immigrate to a new country.

From Far Away gives a personal look at immigration and humanizes a sometimes abstract concept. The book addresses issues like violence head on by stating more than once that people were shot at in Saoussan's unnamed home country, but it is not graphic, just realistic. From Far Away is a good book for introducing or reinforcing the concept of immigration for elementary-aged children.

If you’re interested in reading From Far Away, you can purchase a copy here on Amazon. 

*A copy of this book was provided free of charge for an honest review.

The Wild Zoo Train Book Review

Wild Zoo Train

Carmela LaVigna Coyle (Author)

Steve Gray (Illustrator)

Muddy Boots

Children’s Fiction, Picture Book

Publication Date: October 1, 2017

Once the Wild Zoo Train loads up its riders, it pulls out of the station with some choos and some dings and a clickety-clack and a toot-toot and it embarks on an off-the-zoo-map adventure. The train ventures through a canyon to a jungle to a savanna to the Antarctic and beyond!

Filled with train sounds and animals, The Wild Zoo Train will be a hit with toddlers and preschool age kids!

If you’re interested in reading Wild Zoo Train, you can purchase a copy here on Amazon. 

*A copy of this book was provided free of charge for an honest review.

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The Man Who Knew Everything The Strange Life of Athanasius Kircher Book Review

The Man Who Knew Everything: 

The Strange Life of Athanasius Kircher

Marilee Peters

Roxanna Bikadoroff

Annick Press

Children’s Nonfiction, Upper Elementary, Middle Grades

Publication Date: October 10, 2017

The Man Who Knew Everything is a fun and colorful biography of Athanasius Kircher. Part scientist, part inventor, part show man, part con man: Athanasius Kircher made his mark on history. He explored inside a volcano by being lowered into itself mouth in a wicker basket. He wrote many books about his theories and findings. He drew up a design for a cat piano. And he filled a museum with fantastic creations, inventions, and displays (though same were not exactly grounded in fact and science).

Athanasius Kircher was an interesting and unique man - a celebrity scientist of his time. Though he had more misses than hits when it came to his theories, his work helped spread and improve scientific knowledge and it laid the groundwork for other scientists who came after him.

If you're looking for an interesting and well-illustrated biography, be sure to check out The Man Who Knew Everything!

If you’re interested in reading The Man Who Knew Everything: The Strange Life of Athanasius Kircher, you can purchase a copy here on Amazon. 

*A copy of this book was provided free of charge for an honest review.

A Stick Until... Book Review

A Stick Until...

Constance Anderson 

(Author, Illustrator)

Star Bright Books

Children’s Book, Picture Books

Publication Date: June 30, 2017

A Stick Until... tells the story of how a stick can start as part of a tree, have many uses, be helpful, and come full circle. From elephants using a leafed stick as a flyswatter to alligators using a stick as bait and to many more uses, the life of a stick is much more interesting than you might expect. The simple story is paired with factual asides that help set this book apart and will keep kids wondering what else a stick can do.

If you’re interested in reading A Stick Until..., you can purchase a copy here on Amazon. 

*A copy of this book was provided free of charge for an honest review.

Read Alouds for Halloween

Looking for some October inspiration for your read alouds?  Try some of these great titles!

1) Leonardo the Terrible Monster This one is from Mo Willems, so you know it's good. Leonardo is a terrible monster, meaning he is terrible at being a monster. He can't scare anyone! But he is determined to keep trying!


2) The Graveyard Book For your older kids (4th grade and up), this book dives into the life of Bod, the only living resident of a graveyard. Can a boy raised by ghosts make it in the real, living world?



3) Click, Clack, Boo If your kids are fans of Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type, then they'll love this Halloween addition to the series. Farmer Brown does not like Halloween, but those barnyard animals have other ideas!



4) Little Boo As the seasons change one little pumpkin seed tries to be scary, but he can't seem to scare anyone! He is told to wait until he grows, but waiting is hard!


5) Creepy Carrots Jasper Rabbit loves carrots!  But one day he notices something odd.  Are the carrots following him?


6) Creepy Pair of Underwear! From the same team that created Creepy Carrots, we now have Jasper in a new adventure.  He's not afraid of anything anymore... well, except for his pair of underwear that seems to glow in the dark.  And even when he tries to get rid of them, they keep coming back!

Do you have other October or Halloween favorites?  Let me know in the comments section below!

Everybody's Somewhere Book Review

Everybody's Somewhere

Cornelia Maude Spelman (Author)

Alea Marley (Illustrator)

Seagrass Press

Children’s Books, Picture Books

Publication Date: October 17, 2017

Everybody's Somewhere has colorful illustrations and good rhythm and rhyme. If you have a little one with separation anxiety, Everybody's Somewhere is a great read aloud. Even if you can't see someone, they are still somewhere!

If you’re interested in reading Everybody's Somewhere, you can purchase a copy here on Amazon. 

*A copy of this book was provided free of charge for an honest review.

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