humor
Some Down Under Book Love
Jan 31st
Look what came in the mail from Australia!
That’s right, two books and a wonderful note from Miss Y in Melbourne, Australia. She is a librarian at the St. Martin of Tours Primary School. We have been blogging buddies for over a year now, exchanging ideas for books back and forth.
These Andy Griffiths books are going to be BIG hits in our library. You can’t NOT laugh when you read them. They are just that funny! Look at this photo of him from his website. Does he look like a serious kind of guy? I haven’t had a chance to read the books yet, but here’s what it says on Andy’s website:
“Andy and Terry live in an incredible ever-expanding treehouse and create very silly books together. Andy writes the words and Terry draws the pictures… well, when they’re not too distracted by all the amazing things going in their incredible ever-expanding treehouse! Last year they opened a new school with a brand new library.”
I think these books sound like some crazy fun. If you are in 3-5th grade, this might be the just-right book for you. Stop by the library and put in your reservation. They will be available for check out early next week.
It’s been quite a week for connections. First a phone call from New Zealand and then a package from Australia. I love these reading connections! Miss Y’s students have been enjoying some Mo Willems books we sent her last year and now we have some Andy Griffiths books here! It’s a full circle of reading fun!
Here’s a photo of what the school looks like outside, courtesy of the magic of Google maps! I hope you will visit Miss Y’s LRC blog soon and leave her a comment. I just watched a new book trailer she made about a new book in the Clementine Rose series for girls by Jacqueline Harvey. This is the author of the Alice Miranda books we already have in our library! Jacqueline visited Miss Y’s school last year. Here is the post about this visit. I sure hope if Jacqueline ever visits the Pacific Northwest on a book tour, she will stop by our library!
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What do you think about our surprise package?
Have you ever read any Andy Griffiths books before?
Look at the title.What word do we spell differently?
Favorite Books of 2012
Jan 27th
Have you ever read a book that you just couldn’t forget?
Did it make you laugh? Cry? Shout?
Today’s post is about my favorite books from 2012. These are the standout books from a year of reading. Even though I may have read them months ago, I still think about them and consider them book friends. When I see the cover, or think of a passage from the book, I get a smile on my face. Not all of these books were written in 2012, although most of them were. I am in the process of reading all the Newbery Medal winners, so one book was published years ago. All, except the young adult books are available in our library. I hope you will stop in and check them out!
Tomorrow the American Library Association will announce all of the Youth Media Awards at their Mid-Winter Conference here in Seattle. I will be at the press conference for the very first time! I can’t wait to see what books won medal and honor awards. Above any other books, I have my fingers crossed for The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate and Wonder by RJ Palacio.
Here are my standouts from a year of reading!
Categories: Favorite Graphic Novels, Favorite Picture Books, Favorite Non-Fiction Picture Books,Favorite Middle Grade Novels, Favorite Young Adult Novels, Favorite Audio Books
So there you are…my favorites. Not all will win awards tomorrow at the ALA conference. However, they have already won a special award in my heart because each of these books has touched me in a very personal way. I’m looking forward to lots of reading in 2013 and seeing where my reading travels take me!
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Were any of these books favorites for you this year?
Is there a book I should have included?
Leave us a comment and let us know!
Top Ten Titles for 2010-2011
Jun 6th
The statistics are in!
Which books hold the top ten places in fiction for this year?
Drum roll please…….
And the #1 fiction book for this year is…..
Congratulations to Jenni and Matt Holm,
Jeff Kinney
and Jarrett Krosoczka!
Our authors of the year!
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What do you think about the results?
Are there any surprises?
Why do you think Babymouse holds 6 out of 10 places?
March Student Book Reviews
Mar 4th
February Student Book Reviews
Feb 10th
February Book Reviews on PhotoPeach
Deltora Quest by Emily Rodda – Review by Julius
This is a magical and mysterious book about wizards and sorcerers. There are two boys that are best friends and one happens to be the king of all the land. The king’s best friend, Jarred is accused of trying to kill the king. He is banished from the palace and has to survive in the poor town of Del.
Suddenly he finds out that there has been a great darkness that has been attacking Del for a long time. His son and his partner in crime have to set out and find the stones that complete the belt of light and defeat the shadow lord. CAN THEY SURVIVE?
There are many reasons why I liked this book. Here are a few; this book has a lot of adventure and fantasy, and I love adventure and fantasy. Also, this book reminded me of Harry Potter because it has that whole wizards and wands defeating the darkness effect.
Another reason why I love this book is that it was very suspenseful. Throughout the book, I was so scared to turn the page because you didn`t want something horrid to happen to the characters, but yet you didn`t want to stop because you were also dying to know what happens next.
This is a quite easy read and is fairly short. I really recommend this book to any age, although you have to be a fantasy and adventure lover because this book contains a lot of it. Even so, you should still give this book a go because I am betting you will like it.
Little Brother by Cory Doctorow -Review by Blake
This is a great, fun filled book about Winston, but please calls him Marcus. He is only 17 years old, but he has figured out how the system works and he works the system; a smart, fast and wise, networked world. He has no trouble outwitting his high school surveillance systems. His whole world changes when he and his friends skip school and get caught in the after math of a terrorist attack in downtown San Francisco. He is captured by the Dept. of Homeland Security and whisked away to a secret asylum. Read the book to find out the rest!
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth by Jeff Kinney – Review by Elliott
This is about a kid named Greg who is having a hard time in middle school. He is trying to fit in with all the so called popular kids. He also just lost his best friend, but deep inside they still want to be friends. They are both trying to find new friends, but keep ending up together somehow. You will be taken on a long and funny ride with Greg as you experience his life and his friends. Be sure to read the other books first, as this is number 5 in the series. If you like really funny books, this one is for you!
Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman by Dave Pilkey- Review by Mark
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes action because it is funny and it has a lot of fighting in it. It is really interesting because the teacher turned into a villain and had hands coming out of her hair!! The author gives a lot of details in the story; for example when they were about to go to sleep and they heard something in the bushes and it turned out to be the Wedgie Woman! She took them and made a portrait of George and Harold so the other children would not notice that they are not there. The author makes the story interesting and you do not want to do anything until you finish it.
Bud Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis - Review by Devon
Have you ever felt so lonely, that you want to rip the despicable out of everybody you never met? Well I could tell you, not the best idea…. But don’t try to explain this to Buddy….. I MEAN BUD!
Bud is not too bright, which means that his imagination can lead to some drastic things, but cause some great adventures… Would you try to escape from a foster family with a boy who sticks pencils up your nose and makes your nose drip in the puddles of blood, when they lock you outside the house in a scary dark shed? I guess not, but Bud can’t stop himself. He’s pretty smart which greatly adds to the adventures of Bud Cosweld on the lam!
This book is amazing… a perfect book for anybody who wants to read an amazing story they can’t put down. This book is my favorite!
Eldest by Christopher Paolini–Review by Moses
Eldest, the second book of the Inheritance series is a timeless fantasy! After the death of Durza (Gallbatorix’s right hand man) and the victory for the Varden, Eragon suffers from a fatal scar from the duel with Durza in the first book. Too make matters worse Adjaid, king of the Varden and Murtagh dies, Eragon mourns for them. Meanwhile Gallbatorix is planning something to avenge his defeat. I recommend Eldest for older readers because of violence. I really enjoy this book, Check it out today!
Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan -Review by Jack
“Look, I don’t want to be a half blood.” This is what Percy Jackson said before he started his long journey. He did not know the gods were tangling him in a mystery of the stolen lightning bolt. One that no simple person would have imagined. He could see what no normal person could see. Percy never wanted to be a half-blood. He just was.
This book is about his big adventure to unlock the mystery of Zeus’s stolen lightning bolt. Only Percy and his two friends are on the journey. All the Greek gods think he stole it, except his father. Percy was set to have an adventure he never asked for. One a half blood had to face, even though Percy never asked to be a half blood, or have a marvelous adventure. It was hard enough with the mystery of his father’s disappearance and his mom’s terrifying boyfriend.
If you like the Greek gods, or want to read about a half blood’s exclusive adventure, this is the book for you. I recommend this book to everyone.
Bella The Bunny Fairy by Daisy Meadows- Review by Diana
Bella is a fairy that had a bunny until Jack Frost took the magical bunny. Rachel and Kristy are both best friends they also are friends to the fairies. The setting is in Rachel’s cousins house at Easter. The pets found a hole in the castle wall, so they escaped to the human world. Will the friends rescue the bunny or will the goblins take the bunny back to the castle? Read this book to find out.
Green Lawns, Twine and 12 Year Olds
Jan 23rd
Green lawns, balls of twine and 12 year old kids? You are probably wondering how those topics could possibly relate to one another. Well, really they’re not….and they are topics of the new books in our library!
Lawn Boy Returns continues the funny story of the 12 year old boy who becomes a millionaire by mowing lawns. Lawn Boy only wanted to make enough money to buy a new inner tube for his bicycle tire and ended up with a stockbroker, a prizefighter, property and more problems than any 12 year old wants to handle. Equal parts quirky and funny-check out this new book by Paulsen, author of Hatchet.
Dan Gutman’s book, The Genius Files, is the first of what looks like a new thriller adventure series. Genious 12 year old twins Coke and Pepsi McDonald (yes, those really are their names) join their parents on an RV cross-country trip visiting the Spam museum, escaping harm in some sand dunes and deciphering 
codes that lead them to places like The World’s Largest Ball of Twine and The House on the Rock. Gutman includes sidebar notes with information the reader can use to track the trip using GoogleMaps. If you are a Gutman fan, or liked the 39 Clues series, then you will definitely want to read this new book.
Yea! It’s a Snow Day!
Nov 23rd
Our Bernese Mountain Dog lives for snow days!
- Kasa loves the snow!
Brrrr….it’s cold outside here in the Seattle area. It’s our first snow day of the year and I am happily sitting on my couch, watching endless videos on the news of sliding cars, treacherous streets, and people trying to deal with the snow, ice and freezing cold weather. It’s a warm, balmy, 12 degrees F at my house outside. Now that’s cold! Last night I was standing on the deck and enjoying the absolute quiet. No cars, no traffic, no planes flying over head. Just blissful quiet and the whisper of lightly falling snow.
Today it’s a no school day for all the kids in the greater Seattle area as we deal with our first snow storm of the fall. The amount of snow isn’t so bad, but the problem here is all the steep hills, which are covered with a layer of ice and snow. That combo makes driving a nightmare around here.
Yesterday morning afternoon I was reading Turk and Runt,
a funny story about a family of turkeys, who are faced with the dilemma of Thanksgiving! Luckily, Runt understands that all the human visitors to the farm do not want to be friends with the turkeys and he saves the day.
If you like funny Thanksgiving stories, it’s a good choice! so is Dav Pilkey’s Thanksgiving book. 
So, now I am left with the question of what book to read today! Any suggestions for a sunny, snowy day? Keep Reading! Mrs. Hembree
The Ugly Truth by Request Only
Nov 16th
We now have 4 copies of the new Diary of a Wimpy Kid – The Ugly Truth for all you Wimpy Kid fans. Because we have so many students wanting this book, I will be checking it out only to students who give me a request sheet. So far we have a waiting list of about 25 students, so please be patient. It may take a week or two to get the book to you.
Phineas L. MacGuire Gets Slimed by Frances O’Roark Dowell
Oct 5th
Fourth grader Phineas “Mac” MacGuire loves science. He loves it so much he decides his school goal is to be the best 4th grade scientist at his school. When he only gets an honorable mention for his exploding volcano in the science fair, he decides he needs to be a little more creative. He decides to help his friend Aretha grow the kind of mold that creates penicillin. Things get a little wild especially when his mom finds mold growing in her bathroom. Mac’s crazy experiments will have you laughing out loud. I mean, who would ever think of growing mold for fun? He even gives a recipe for how to grow wood mold!Try the other books in the series too: Phineas L. MacGuire Blasts Off! and Phineas L. MacGuire Erupts. Review by Mrs. Hembree
