Duck and Hippo in the Rainstorm Review and Giveaway

Duck and Hippo in the Rainstorm
by Jonathan London; Illustrated by Andrew Joyner
Two Lions Publishing (March 1, 2017)
Fiction * Social Issues * Friendship
Audience: Ages 4 to 7 years old
Amazon | WorldCat

Description from GoodReads: 
Get ready for a rainy-day adventure with Duck and Hippo!

Duck and Hippo may be completely different, but they are best friends. When playful Duck invites careful Hippo to go for a walk in the rain, they have trouble sharing Duck’s umbrella. But Duck and Hippo won’t let that stop them. Soon they are puddle-jumping and sailing down the river! Until…WHOOOSH! A terrible wind sends the umbrella flying up, up, up into the air, with one friend holding on. What will Duck and Hippo do now? Jonathan London’s charming text and Andrew Joyner’s delightful art bring to life two lovable friends in this fun new series.

Quick thoughts on the book:
Friendship stories, especially those between opposites, easily become favorites of young children. Opposites naturally allow the author to interject conflict and humor into the story, and when the story wraps up, there is an extra level of satisfaction and enjoyment for the reader. 

When Duck and Hippo venture out for a walk on a rainy day, there are a number of times when the two need to negotiate a next step in order to continue. These negotiations provide quite a few opportunities for humor but also help young readers to learn important skills about getting along with others and working through difficulties. 

The refrain "And that worked just fine" carries the reader along each humorous twist. 

Duck and Hippo's day of fun in the rain will make everyone want to put on a raincoat and boots and have some fun and then return home for a warm drink and another read through of the book.

There’s more fun with Duck and Hippo in the free downloadable activity sheets: https://www.andrewjoyner.com.au/activities/

About the author: 
Jonathan London is the author of more than one hundred children’s books, including the bestselling Froggy series, illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz. Many of his books explore nature, among them Flamingo Sunset, illustrated by Kristina Rodanas, and Little Penguin: The Emperor of Antarctica, illustrated by Julie Olson. He is currently writing a middle-grade series, which started with Desolation Canyon, illustrated by his son Sean London. Jonathan lives in Graton, California. Learn more online at www.jonathan-london.net.

About the illustrator: 
Andrew Joyner is an illustrator, author, and cartoonist based in South Australia. He has illustrated a number of picture books, and he wrote and illustrated a chapter book series about a warthog named Boris. He has also illustrated for newspapers and magazines, including the Wall Street Journal, Reader’s Digest, and Rolling Stone magazine, among others. Learn more online at www.andrewjoyner.com.au.

Giveaway!

Two Lions is offering a copy of DUCK AND HIPPO IN THE RAINSTORM to one lucky winner (U.S. addresses).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Mr. Fuzzbuster Knows He's The Favorite Review & Giveaway

Mr. Fuzzbuster Knows He's the Favorite
by Stacy McAnulty; Illustrated by Edward Hemingway
Two Lions (February 7, 2017)
Audience: Ages 4 to 7 years old
Fiction * Pets * Friendship
Worldcat | Amazon

About the book: 
Mr. Fuzzbuster knew he was Lily’s favorite. They did everything together. Naps. Story time. Walks. And more naps. But now four more animals lived in the house.…

To prove he’s still Lily’s favorite, Mr. Fuzzbuster will have to ask her, but will her answer surprise him? This is a sweet story for any parent dealing with sibling rivalry. Kirkus gave it a positive review:  "This tale of who's the preferred pet will charm animal lovers of all stripes."

Thoughts about this book:
Our first grade Writing Workshop classes have recently started their Opinion Writing Units. The first thing students begin to write about is a favorite ____________ (fill in the blank). I have learned a lot about Shopkins recently, and about favorite toys, shells, and of course, pets as I read their writing. Children have interesting criteria for what qualifies as a favorite. Sometimes it just means that it sparkles or is the shiniest. However, just as fast as something becomes a favorite, it can also be replaced with a new favorite. 

Stacy McAnulty addresses the perennial question "Whose your favorite?" in her new book, Mr. Fuzzbuster Knows He's the Favorite. Mr. Fuzzbuster knows he is the favorite of Lily (his human owner) and he as the drawing to prove it. However, the other pets in the house would happily disagree. Lily is a smart kid and knows just how to answer the question but there is a twist at the end, which just may keep Mr. Fuzzbuster up all night. 

I look forward to sharing Mr. Fuzzbuster with 1st and 2nd grade teachers next week at our Writing Professional Development. For everyone else, enter to win a copy of the book below or pick up a copy at a local bookstore or library.

About the author: STACY MCANULTY is certain she's her mom's favorite. Her younger brother disagrees. She's the author of Beautiful, illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff; Excellent Ed, illustrated by Julia Sarcone-Roach; and 101 Reasons Why I'm Not Taking a Bath, illustrated by Joy Ang. Originally from upstate New York, she now lives in Kernersville, North Carolina, with her three children, two dogs, and one husband. She doesn't have a favorite. You can find her online at www.stacymcanulty.com.

About the illustrator: EDWARD HEMINGWAY is certain he's Stacy McAnulty's favorite illustrator, although the illustrators of Stacy's other books may disagree. Edward himself is the author and illustrator of the children's books Bump in the Night, Bad Apple: A Tale of Friendship, Bad Apple's Perfect Day, and Field Guide to the Grumpasaurus. Originally from Bozeman, Montana, he now lives in Brooklyn where he teaches creative writing at the master's level at SVA in Manhattan. If he has any favorite students, he'll never tell. Learn more about him online at www.edwardhemingway.com.

Did you know Mr. Fuzzbuster loves writing notes? He wants to send cards to young readers across the country.  Maybe he will be your favorite.

More information can be found at http://www.stacymcanulty.com/fuzzbuster-email

Enter to win a copy of Mr. Fuzzbuster Knows He's the Favorite: Participants must be 13 years old or older and have a U.S. mailing address. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Celebrate Computer Science Education Week with Gene Yang and the Secret Coders

Computer Science Education Week started today, December 5th and goes through Sunday, December 11th.  First Second/Macmillan Publishers are celebrating by sharing some important facts and introducing readers to Gene Luen Yang's Secret Coder Series.

Here are some facts, from Hour of Code, about computer education in schools: 

The majority of schools don't teach computer science -- 90% of parents want their kids to study computer science, but only 40% of schools teach it.

15% of households in the US don't have a computer. So if the kids in those households overlap with the 60% of schools around the country that don't teach computer science, they won't have any access to computers or learn about them in school.

There are fewer students in the US graduating with a degree in computer science than there were ten years ago -- and half as many women.

Computer science majors can earn 40% more than the average college graduate. 

Computing jobs are the #1 source of new wages in the US; there are more than 500,000 open jobs in computers right now (in every state around the country), and these jobs are projected to grow at twice the rate of all other jobs.

Computer science only counts towards graduating in 32 states. 

For more information about Gene Yang's Secret Coder Series, click here. 

Secret Coders (Secret Coders #1)
by Gene Leun Yang; Illustrations by Mike Holmes
First Second (September 2015)
Audience: Ages 8-12 years old
Fiction * Comics & Graphic Novels

About the book: 
Welcome to Stately Academy, a school which is just crawling with mysteries to be solved! The founder of the school left many clues and puzzles to challenge his enterprising students. Using their wits and their growing prowess with coding, Hopper and her friend Eni are going to solve the mystery of Stately Academy no matter what it takes!

From graphic novel superstar (and high school computer programming teacher) Gene Luen Yang comes a wildly entertaining new series that combines logic puzzles and basic programming instruction with a page-turning mystery plot!

Paths & Portals (Secret Coders #2)
by Gene Luen Yang & Mike Holmes
First Second (August 2016)
Audience: Ages 8 to 12 years old
Fiction * Comics & Graphic Novels

Keep an eye out for Book #3: Secrets and Sequences coming in March of 2017.  

To win a set of Secret Coders Books 1 & 2. Complete the Rafflecopter below. All participants must be 13 years or older and have a US mailing address. Thank you to First Second for hosting the giveaway. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Waiting for Snow Blog Tour: Waiting and Patience and Dreams - Oh, My!

Waiting for Snow
by Marsha Diane Arnold; Illustrated by Renata Liwska
HMH Books for Young Readers (November 1, 2016)
Fiction * Nature * Weather
Audience: Preschool to 3
Indiebound | WorldCat
 

About the book: 
Badger loves snow and he just can’t wait for it any longer! Patience does not come easily to Badger. He bangs pots and pans and shouts, “Wake up, Sky! It’s time to snow.” His animal friends, Hedgehog, Rabbit, Vole, and Possum, try to help by using other tricks and superstitions, but snow is taking its time. Sensible Hedgehog explains that everything has its season and all that’s required is waiting. But what can they do while they wait? Be a friend?

Waiting and Patience and Dreams - Oh, My!

I’m just going to blurt it out. I love anthropomorphic animals, absolutely love them. Indeed, I like anthropomorphic plants, rocks and dishes (especially that one who ran away with the spoon.) Deep inside me, I believe all things are sentient, just as small children do. So writing about Badger and his friends was an absolute delight. Indeed I followed Waiting for Snow with two more Badger stories, which may someday find their way into book form...with a little bit of patience.

Waiting for Snow is about seasons, a second Badger story involves searching for sunshine, and a third is about seeds. Obviously, my Kansas farm girl roots are showing. There’s no doubt my father’s influence is in Waiting for Snow. As a farmer it was his job to understand the earth and the rhythm of each season. “Everything in its time,” he often said. As a nature-lover, he knew every wild flower in the county. He often consulted the Farmer’s Almanac, which might have been a good idea for Badger too.

But why did I write about patience? Perhaps because I am so lacking in it myself! A friend of mine once traveled the country in two “gypsy” wagons along with about twenty animals: donkeys, goats, and chickens.  He parked his wagons in what he called “the margins” along the sides of the road. When he found a new friend willing to share their water, he would carry the water in buckets with a yoke, from source to his twenty-some animals. If anyone required patience, John did. I can hear his words in my mind still:  “You have to take your time and do things right. If you hurry, you just mess things up.”

Badger and his friends tried to hurry snow. It didn’t work well. They were rained on by pebbles, got sore feet, and wore uncomfortable pajamas to bed. Though it was hard, it was better to wait – to play together, cook, read, and knit a warm hat for a friend until the snow arrived.

How lucky I am to have my editor Kate O’Sullivan and illustrator Renata Liwska as teammates for this story. Years ago, when I was a California gal, I was in a writing group with Deborah Underwood during the time she was writing The Quiet Book. Deborah waxed poetic about her amazing editor and illustrator. It was then I put a wish in my heart that someday I would work with these two shining stars. But honestly, I didn’t hold out much hope. I would never have expressed my wish outloud.  So when it did come true, it was like a wonderful surprise present.

Here I am, some 8 years later, with a book edited by Kate O’Sullivan and illustrated by Renata Liwska! Of course, the dedication had to be: “For Kate O’Sullivan and Renata Liwska, a dream editor and illustrator worth waiting for.”

Renata Liwska’s vision for the art in Waiting for Snow is so brilliant. She added things like the classroom, the telescope, and the disco ball. Although I often have images in my mind for my stories, I can’t recall having a lot for Waiting for Snow. The text came to me almost as a meditation: “The sun comes back every day,” said Hedgehog, “and the stars every night.”

Renata’s characters and images, like the mushrooms on Hedgehog’s back, bring the story to a wonderful kid-friendly level. Indeed, my three-year old granddaughter’s favorite image in the book is the first page with mushrooms sticking on Hedgehog’s back. Look carefully at Hedgehog later in the story. Renata has now whimsically painted him with quills holding yarn for knitting. Hedgehog quills are so useful!

I hope my readers don’t have to wait long to find Badger and his friends in their bookstore or library.  But if they have to wait a bit, I hope they find as many fun things to do during that time as Badger and his friends did. 

About the author: 
Marsha Diane Arnold is an award-winning author with over one million books sold. Waiting for Snow is her 14th book with four more coming soon.

Her popular Writing Character-Driven Picture Books course can be found here: http://www.childrensbookacademy.com/writing-character-driven-stories.html. There’s a special going on in November in honor of Waiting for Snow’s birthday!

Follow the blog tour: 
October 31st, Monday - Cynthia Alaniz, Librarian in Cute Shoes  
Nov 1st, Tuesday - Alyson Beecher, Kid Lit Frenzy
Nov 2nd, Wednesday - Dylan Teut, Reading with Mr. Teut 
Nov 3rd, Thursday - Mia Wengen, Pragmatic Mom 
Nov 4th, Friday - Margie Myers-Culver - Librarian’s Quest 
Nov 6th, Sunday - Matthew Winner - The Best Book Ever (This Week) 
Nov 7th, Monday - Niki Ohs Barnes, Daydream Reader 
Nov 8th, Tuesday - Bridget and the Books 

If You Give a Mouse a Brownie - Blog Tour & Giveaway

If You Give a Mouse a Brownie
by Laura Numeroff; Illustrated by Felicia Bond
HarperCollins (October 18, 2016)
Audience: Ages 4 to 8 years old
Fiction * Humor * Read Aloud
IndieBound | WorldCat
Click for Activity Book

Description of the book:
You’ve given a mouse a cookie, but what happens if you give a Mouse a brownie? Mouse is back in this delicious new story in the #1 New York Times bestselling If You Give series, which has sold over 14 million copies, from author and illustrator duo Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond. This book is also the first one to feature Mouse in 14 years.  With its spare, rhythmic text and circular tale, If You Give a Mouse a Brownie is perfect for beginning readers and storytime.

Thoughts on the book:
First let's stop for a moment....

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie is celebrating its 30th Anniversary. This makes me feel a bit old, since there was only this book at the time and I used it a lot in my first few years as a teacher. Though I have enjoyed the other books, I am particularly excited to see that the adorable mouse has returned. 

Numeroff and Bond have paired up again to bring readers another If You Give books. We haven't seen mouse in 14 years. In similar format to the original story, mouse and his friend start off by enjoying a brownie. Yet, you can't have a brownie without ice cream. Well...ice cream leads to an impromptu drumming session and the adventure is back on.  Young readers will delight in how one action triggers another moment and another one until things circle back to ice cream and brownies are 

To celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the first book and now the newest book, I made chocolate chip cookies into bars and added in a layer of caramel. 

Sorry no kitchen pictures because seriously....the kitchen somehow became a disaster. And though it looked like it could be a scene in one of Numeroff's Cookie books, I was way too embarrassed to photo document it. However, I did share this with a friend and packaged up the rest for other friends. 

Look for a copy of If You Give a Mouse a Brownie at your local indie bookstore or public library, or enter the giveaway below.

Don't miss the giveaway: 
If you give a child this prize pack, they are going to want another book!

One (1) winner receives:

·         If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and If You Give a Mouse a Brownie.

Open to US addresses only.

Prizing and samples provided by HarperCollins.

a Rafflecopter giveaway