This book is cleverly set up as a diary that was written by a worm. It gives the reader an inside look at what it might be like to be a worm, and how the big world, and humans, appear from their perspective. The worm writes about things kids can relate to, such as doing homework, playing, good manners, and even going to the dentist.

It is a silly story that provides clean, fun entertainment. But the underlying message here is that even worms have feelings and should be respected. This book may help young vegetarian children to see how even the smallest of animals are interesting and deserving of compassion. There is one reference to fishing, in which the worm states that, as fishing season started, the worms all dug deeper in the dirt in order to hide.

If you are a vegetarian parent trying to teach your kids to have compassion for animals, “Diary of a Worm” is a big hit. This book will help children see that even the smallest animals have interests and thoughts of their own.

Ages 4-8.

About Jacqueline: Jacqueline Bodnar is a professional writer who blogs about vegetarian issues at VegBlogger.com. She and her husband have been ethical vegetarians since 1995 and are raising two vegetarian children. She is also a nature lover, environmentalist, and avid reader. Jacqueline is a Michigan native, who now resides in Florida, after spending almost a decade in Las Vegas.

Cronin, Doreen. Diary of a spider.  New York : Joanna Cotler Books, 2005.

Ever want to know what young spiders learn?  This cute ’diary’ is full of fun, learning and growing.  Oh, and a best friend who is a fly.  The world has changed since Grampa’s day, and diversity and acceptance of differences extends even to the world of insects.  (Oops!  That was the March 1^st lesson at school: insects have only six legs….)

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin is a silly story that demonstrates the power of being able to express yourself in words through print. The cows find an old typewriter in the barn and begin using it to make demands for themselves and the chickens, even going on strike when Farmer Brown refuses to refill their requests.

Kyah (7) and Parker (5) both thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much so that we read it twice in a row. The second time they sounded out many of the words themselves.

Please read this post to get the background on The Project

See The Project List for Day 1

Here’s what we ready today with the running total: (R = repeat)

9. I Spy: An Alphabet in Art by Lucy Micklethwait

R. This Train by Paul Collicutt

10. Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin (Caldecott Award)

11. Charlie at the Zoo by Marcus Pfister

12. The Thanksgiving Story by Alice Dalgliesh

Please share your thoughts and comments. What have you read to your kids today?

Stretch, by Doreen Cronin, illus. by Scott Menchin, Ages 2-6

Get ready to exercise those muscles! Join our doggy friend as he leads us in a stretching adventure–to the ceiling, to the floor, with a whisper, and with a roar! Children can explore from the depths of the oceans to the heights of the sky as they get limber with this fast-paced picture book!

Doreen Cronin (author of the previous Bounce and Wiggle) provides text that is unfailingly energetic and joyful, encouraging young readers to join in on the adventure. Cronin’s enthusiastic words are paired flawlessly with bright illustrations by Scott Menchin. Bursting with color and texture, Menchin’s art is sure to engage parents and children alike! This fantastic new book is perfect for an action packed storytime with kids who like to get up and go!

Stretch, Doreen Cronin, Scott Menchin, pub. Aug. 2009, Atheneum Books

Want to explore other books to share with wiggly readers? Call us! We’re always happy to provide recommendations. 703-548-4092. Or email: info@hooray4books.com.

Stretch your imagination with a good book today!

–Miss Megan

What a lucky duck–I got to meet the moovelous Betsy Lewin this week. The whimsical illustrator of Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type and countless other barnyard books visited our local elementary school and entertained the kids with a mix of slide show, drawing lesson and Q&A.

Two Kindergarten classes filed into the library with clipboards and crayons, eager to learn from a master cartooner.

But first, Mrs. Lewin showed photos of her 120 year-old Brooklyn brownstone. Her living room is filled with souvenirs from her world travels–Africa, Australia, the Galapagos–places where she has observed animals and gained inspiration. When she showed her husband’s studio on the fourth floor, she pointed out that it was far bigger than hers, not because he was more important, but because it also housed a photography studio. Ted Lewin paints his realistic watercolors by studying photographs. He pays neighborhood kids to model for him. “Anybody want to move to Brooklyn?” she asked. (My hand went up!)

Mrs. Lewin brought along her cartoon friend, Weirdly, to show the children how to draw expressions: mad, sad, excited, laid back and cool, mischievious, shy. “Weirdly helps me draw ’sound’ words like BOOM and CRASH because sometimes I can’t imagine what they look like,” she explained.

She also showed her first draft cover for Doreen Cronin’s Duck for President. The original cover depicted a national political convention. The point of view is Duck’s, looking out over the crowd (we see his back and tail, wings outstretched). In the front row there’s Farmer Brown, some cows and chickens, Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin. Red, white and blue balloons are falling from the ceiling as the crowd holds signs with slogan spoofs like “The Duck Stops Here,” “I like Duck,” and “A Veggie in Every Pot.”

Then her publisher decided they didn’t want political sayings on the cover, so they asked her to write signs with all 50 states. She soon realized that wouldn’t work. “Which states should go on the front cover? Which states should go on the back? It wouldn’t be fair. What about M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I? That’s too long!”

Ultimately they decided to put Duck on the podium with just three signs: DUCK, Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin. PERFECT!

The hilarious moment came when Mrs. Lewis showed a photo of someone in a cow costume, typing away. She said the photo was sent to her in an unmarked package. Then she asked, “Does anyone know what Doreen Cronin was before she became a children’s author?” One kid had an answer. ”A cow?”

Much to his disappointment, no. Ms. Cronin was a lawyer, just like Mrs. Lewin’s brother, a judge, who had sent the funny cow costume photo. (Yep, lawyers are some of the funniest people I know. My own father included.)

Next, Mrs. Lewin showed the children how to draw a lion with a few easy steps. She broke it down into wiggly lines, circles and half circles and then had the kids decide how they wanted to draw the eyes–happy, sad or angry–with just a slant of the eybrows. She had the first row stand up to show the rest of the audience how different each lion was, as different as they were. “And that’s what makes you so special,” she said. “You’re the only you in the whole world.”

After some questions and answers–her favorite books as a child were Winnie the Pooh and Call of the Wild–she asked the children for suggestions of what to draw. An animal lover and observer all her life, Mrs. Lewin grew up in rural Pennsylvania surrounded by farms. She would watch the animals intently so she could remember how to draw them. She doesn’t need to look at an example as she creates. She can draw anything!

Mrs. Lewin draws with quick strokes, and it’s amazing to watch how these simple lines and squiggles magically come together  to form monkeys, elephants, rocket ships and knights in shining armor. Two lucky ducks, I mean kids, even got their portraits drawn.

The most interesting part of the presentation was when Mrs. Lewin showed the difference between her original black and white drawings for her debut 1979 book, Cat Count, and the new full-color edition. In the new release, she gave two dancing felines a blue room lit with the shimmering, sparkling light of a disco ball. The way the dots played on the page gave the scene a magical feel, as if it could lift right out of the book and tango around the room.

I’ll use the saying “lucky duck” one last time: how fortunate children are to have such marvelous books illustrated by a true genius. Thank you, Betsy Lewin!

Come to the “tellebration” with us! Monthly Saturday morning meetings where kids can enjoy selected stories in English with Brian George (Oliver) as storyteller.

Participation is free. Register at biblioteca@iie.es

April storytelling around the book:

“Click, clack, moo cows that type”

 By Doreen Cronin and illustrated by Betsy Lewin

Saturday, April 25th 2009, 12 p.m.

“Farmer Brown’s cows have found an old typewriter in the barn, and now they are typing notes demanding electric blankets. The hens support the cows. The farmer types notes back. The ducks mediate the dispute, carrying typed notes between house and barn. This highly amusing tale combines several styles of writing: straight prose, letter-writing and sounds. Children will especially enjoy the repetitions of the sound effects: click, clack, moo! The pictures, with their bold, black lines and gentle cartoon humor, add to the comedy.”

From Scholastic.

Recommended links for parents and teachers:

http://www.geocities.com/teachread/ccmoo.htm

http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/2277.html

http://www.nancypolette.com/LitGuidesText/clickclack.htm

On last Wednesday’s library visit, I picked up, among other things, three picture books. Although they are not newly published, they are all new to our library, and Princess Two was the first to check them out. Book people will understand what a thrilling feeling that is. Here are some reactions.

Bounce by Doreen Cronin and Scott Menchin

I am ashamed to say it, but I have generally avoided Cronin books since the mega-famous Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type. I thought that book was funny. But then came the sequels, and they all kinda sounded alike, and I fell into that cynical (and probably unfair) “Here goes the publisher just trying to make a quick bazillion bucks by rehashing the same tried-and-true formula.” I am happy to say that Bounce has no cows or ducks, only a cute puppy amidst charming, expressive art. Princess Two and I both loved its simple, rhyming text; she because it sounds good and has humor (“If you must bounce in the market, it’s best not to bounce in fruits!”) and I for the additional, insidious reason that repetition and rhyme and short words like hip, hop, and ker-plop encourage her to read for herself.

Not a Box by Antoinette Portis

Now and then you come across a book that is so simple and yet so genious that you wish you’d written it yourself. This is that book. It’s all about imagination, featuring a black-and-white-line bunny and the various adventures it creates in its “not-a-box.” One word of warning: On viewing the line drawings in the crisp, never-before-read book, Princess Two had a strong urge to color them. I said no, alas, it is a library book. But if we do end up buying our own copy (a distinct possibility), I just might let her have at it.

365 Penguins by Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet

Hmm. This one is interesting. I feel in some ways that the authors just wanted to smash a whole bunch of “edutainment” into one package. The premise of this oversized picture book is that a crazy uncle sends his niece and her family one penguin a day for a year. There is a lot of sight humor, many many adorable penguins, and some fairly innocuous math (how much does it cost to feed a certain number of penguins every day, how best to stack them up into even groups, etc.). I managed to get 9-yo son and 12-yo daughter in on that (just to make sure their brains didn’t freeze during those two totally lame COLD days we had off from school). I played along, too, until…the crazy uncle shows up and spends a giant boring paragraph explaining why he sent the penguins in the first place. At this point, Number-One Daughter rolled her eyes at the didacticism, and Princess Two simply lost interest.

Moi? In addition to my artistic aversion to beating readers over the head with one’s “lesson,” I found it disturbing that the uncle advocates smuggling (as the penguins are losing their habitat in the Antarctic, he wants to save them by sending them to the North Pole; unfortunately international customs laws don’t allow the exportation of endangered species, so he smuggles them one by one to his niece). Am I being prude? Probably. I ran it by Superhero Husband (who happens to professionally know a lot about international customs law), and he nominally agreed with my assessment. I tried to get him a little more excited about the subtext here—encouraging children to break the law if they don’t like it. He agreed with me but remained calm. At any rate, Princess Two was happy on the second reading to skip the whole crazy-uncle thing to get to the punchline of the last page (the first polar bear arrives).

Masterpiece Classic, Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights

I watched the first part last night. Wonderful costumes, gorgeous people, etc. etc. Will I watch the second part? Probably (if I remember). I’m that big a sucker for gorgeous costumes and attractive young actors (and classic books-into-movies). But here’s the thing. I never really cared for the book (read in high school), and after watching the film version, I still don’t see the lasting appeal of the story. Yes, I get the whole forbidden-love-deathless-soulmates thing, the Romantic approval of wildness over civilization. The bottom line is, these people are rotten. They’re mean. All of them. You can have all the long, stringy black hair you like (and the tall riding boots are pretty hot), but vindictive is just not sexy to this reader/viewer. How about some nice Jane Eyre instead?

]]> http://janflora.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/e-day-get-out-the-books/ Mon, 27 Oct 2008 22:29:21 +0000 janflora http://janflora.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/e-day-get-out-the-books/ http://readerspolaris.wordpress.com/2008/10/14/giggle-giggle-quack/ Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:11:40 +0000 P.D. Yoko http://readerspolaris.wordpress.com/2008/10/14/giggle-giggle-quack/ http://readerspolaris.wordpress.com/2008/10/13/duck-for-president/ Mon, 13 Oct 2008 23:57:49 +0000 P.D. Yoko http://readerspolaris.wordpress.com/2008/10/13/duck-for-president/ http://hilltownfamilies.wordpress.com/2008/10/01/contest-17/ Wed, 01 Oct 2008 13:00:46 +0000 Hilltown Families http://hilltownfamilies.wordpress.com/2008/10/01/contest-17/ http://fremontlibraries.wordpress.com/2008/06/28/book-review-click-clack-moo-cows-that-type/ Sat, 28 Jun 2008 17:11:17 +0000 celticlibrarian http://fremontlibraries.wordpress.com/2008/06/28/book-review-click-clack-moo-cows-that-type/

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin is a picture book with character. Just look at the cover. Farmer Brown has a rather strange problem. His cows have found an old typewriter and have begun leaving messages for him. When he doesn’t give in to their demands (they want electric blankets) they go on strike. What is a farmer to do?

The first book in a series, this Caldecott Honor book features a cute story of animals standing up for their perceived rights. Adults love this book, and many kids do too. Other kids want to know what a typewriter is. Sigh. The watercolor illustrations that appear throughout really add to the story. The cows’ eyes are particularly expressive. They seem to be constantly surprised about something. Personally, my favorite image is the one from the cover. Everyone is concentrating on that typewriter, even the chickens. The story itself is really well written. My favorite line is, “Duck was a neutral party, so he brought the ultimatum to the cows.”

So, to sum up: cute illustrations, fun story, may need to explain typewriters, nominated for all kinds of prizes, first in a series, and I like it. I hope that you do too.

Read the book – place a hold here.
Check out the author’s website – Doreen Cronin’s Website

]]> http://hilltownfamilies.wordpress.com/2008/05/22/contest-4/ Thu, 22 May 2008 14:00:08 +0000 Hilltown Families http://hilltownfamilies.wordpress.com/2008/05/22/contest-4/ http://rcgale.com/2008/04/19/diary-of-a-worm-by-doreen-cronin/ Sun, 20 Apr 2008 04:51:13 +0000 rossgale http://rcgale.com/2008/04/19/diary-of-a-worm-by-doreen-cronin/

Doreen Cronin’s Diary of a Worm is one of the funniest children’s books I’ve ever read. I’m not well read in the children’s book genre, but I picked this one up and was cracking up all the way through it.  The story is the diary of a worm (bet you couldn’t have guessed that) and all the good and bad things about being a worm that he experiences throughout his days.

What caught my interest was that it was written in a chronological sequence, having the date of the diary entry at the top of the page.  I don’t read a lot of children’s books, but this seemed unusual to me, not the date exactly, but that the story is in fragments of different scenes through the worm’s life.  The story is still connected, but in pieces.  I wondered how children respond to that.

If you have kids I recommend this book.  If you don’t, but happen to find yourself in a doctor’s office or the children’s book section of the library, take a few minutes to laugh.

]]> http://mrschu81.wordpress.com/2008/01/09/duck-for-president-08/ Thu, 10 Jan 2008 01:17:41 +0000 mrschu81 http://mrschu81.wordpress.com/2008/01/09/duck-for-president-08/

Duck for President ‘08, originally uploaded by mrjohnschumacher.

 Duck for President tops my list of picture books to compliment a government unit. I came upon a special edition Duck For President ’08 at Anderson’s Bookshop tonight. It appears that the only changes are to the cover and title page. This sort of annoys me and seems like a ploy to make more money off of an already successful children’s book.  

]]> http://therealsouthkorea.wordpress.com/2008/01/07/times-top-10-childrens-books-2007/ Mon, 07 Jan 2008 16:58:59 +0000 therealsouthkorea http://therealsouthkorea.wordpress.com/2008/01/07/times-top-10-childrens-books-2007/

Save this list:
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#1. When Dinosaurs Came with Everything
Written by Elise Broach, illustrated by David Small

Buy a dozen doughnuts, get a triceratops. Have a haircut, get a pterosaur. A small boy’s very boring errand day is transformed by an unusual promotional campaign, in which, for no good reason, a dinosaur comes with everything. The idea is so simple, absurd and a kid’s dream come true. It’s told from a kid’s point of view, but parents have their hero here too: the increasingly beleaguered mom, who probably didn’t even want a dog.

#2. Today I Will Fly
Written and illustrated by Mo Willems

Kid book humor is a very unstable breed. To be funny to kids, it has to be broader than a schoolbus; to be funny to parents (who after all have to do most of the reading) it needs to be subtle, quirky and sophisticated. This tale of an overly optimistic pig and his downer elephant friend has very few words per page — and probably not more than 50 different ones in the entire book — so much of the wit is carried in the repetition and the expressions of the two creatures and their friends. This also makes it a great book for struggling readers.

#3. Motherbridge of Love
Illustrated by Josee Masse

Got a girlfriend who just adopted a kid? You’re going to want to get them this book, although the illustration is so gorgeous, you could give it to anyone. The text was submitted anonymously to the charity Mother Bridge of Love, which seeks to connect kids adopted from China with their homeland. As might be expected the sappiness meter is turned to 11, but it does explain quite lyrically how two mothers can each have a part in making one whole child.

#4. Iggy Peck, Architect
Written by Andrea Beaty, illustrated by David Roberts

I’ve always had a weakness for children’s books that rhyme. They’re more fun to read aloud, especially by the 12th time in one sitting. This one’s the classic oddball-makes-good story about a kid whose teacher does not recognize his enormous talent — he makes buildings out of anything at hand, including diapers, fruit and chalk — until it saves her life. Illustrated in a chic urban style, it’s like a fun little playdate in magical designer-land.

#5. Great Joy
Written by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline

On the other end of the spectrum from Iggy Peck’s hipster tale, this tale of a child’s warm heart on a cold Christmas night could not be more old-fashioned, and we mean that as a compliment. Set in an era when there were still organ grinders and monkeys and illustrated in a similar vein, it makes none of the clumsy passes at p.c.ness or postmodernism that are jammed hamfistedly into so many children’s books. It trusts that its moral, and yes, it has one, is timeless and moving enough to be told straight.

#6. Diary of A Fly
Written Doreen Cronin; illustrated by Harry Bliss

There is a rich vein of great modern picture book franchises — Ian Falconer’s Olivia stories and Jane Yolen’s How do Dinosaursbooks and Cronin and Bliss’s Diary of series. They all had good additions this year, but Diary of a Fly is the most irresistibly funny (“Tomorrow is the first day of school. I’m so nervous. What if I’m the only one who eats regurgitated food?”). And of course it does manage that most cunning of witty children’s book tricks, teaching kids science — in this case fly biology — without them even realizing it.

#7. The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County
Written by Janice N. Harrington; illustrated by Shelley Jackson

Our protagonist here loves to chase chickens, particularly Miss Hen who’s “plump as a Sunday purse,” but, as all farming folks know, this is not conducive to happy productive chickens. What will make her change her ways? The author is a librarian and professional storyteller and this book just begs to be read aloud, with long pauses to take in the complexity of the gorgeous half painted, half collage illustrations.

#8. Smelly Bill
Written and Illustrated by Daniel Postgate

Bill is a very naughty, smelly dog. Right there you have every single little boy’s rapt attention. One day he goes to stay with his nemesis, the fanatical great Aunt Bleach and it’s on. It’s a joyride to the finish — Bleach is forced to use the washing line as a flying fox. Who will prevail? Never mind. Just sit back and enjoy.

#9. City Lullaby
Written by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by Carll Cneut

There are as many ways to do a counting book as there are numbers. This one is all about the noises of the city: nine annoying cell phones ringing, eight dogs barking, four b-ball players thump-thump-thumping. And on each opposing page you and your reading buddy can find and count the noisy city sights. A good time for all, especially those under 4.

#10. Cherry and Olive
Written and Illustrated by Benjamin Lacombe

With their one-two punch of art and text, children’s books can quickly transport little readers into new world — the big city, 1930s Georgia, outer space. Without ever saying so, this book feels like a little trip to a European capital. The story is not surprising: Because Cherry is rotund and likes books, she has few friends until she meets a stray Shar-Pei puppy she calls Olive. But the pictures are enchanting; her cable sweater and his skin seem to match. And through him she finds confidence and friends. What will happen when his owner returns? Relax people, these are kids books not Tolstoy’s. It ends well.

]]> http://mrschu81.wordpress.com/2007/10/30/diary-of-a-fly/ Mon, 29 Oct 2007 21:54:39 +0000 mrschu81 http://mrschu81.wordpress.com/2007/10/30/diary-of-a-fly/

 

 Today I FINALLY bought the third and final book in the “Diary” series, Diary of a Fly. Fly is always trying to get away from her 327 siblings and runs into even more problems when it comes to a science assignment. Diary teaches educational facts about flies through humor and visual jokes. Harry Bliss always brings such life and humor to his illustrations. (If you have not read A Fine, Fine School run out and buy it.) A wonderful addition to a school or a  classroom library!

To learn more about Doreen Cronin and Harry Bliss, visit http://harpercollinschildrens.com/HarperChildrens/Parents/BookDetail.aspx?isbn13=9780060001568&BDMode=8

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