The National Book Awards were announced yesterday, November 14, 2018. Among the four categories is the award for Young People’s Literature. Lists of award winners and finalists are always fun to browse. Well, if you haven’t heard already, the 2018 Winner of the NBA Young People’s Literature Award is… Read more…2018 National Book Awards
male protagonist
How to prepare when Hamilton mania comes to town!
Hamilton: The Musical has finally come to Boston! And after a long wait for a birthday present given years ago, my lucky family and I got to see the show last night. And people, the show did not disappoint! In fact, it was 2 hours and 55 minutes of incredible.
Unlike my kids who know most of the lyrics inside-out, upside-down, and back-to-front like many kids across the country, I’ve been a bit of a Hamilton ignoramus. But these two resources helped me get quickly up to speed, and were great companion-pieces for my kids as well. Read more…How to prepare when Hamilton mania comes to town!
There are 13 letters in “Happy Birthday”
Who knew? I hadn’t counted before. But once I had to put 13 candles on a birthday cake, it came to me! Well now, we are officially a family with a teenager on board.
Here are the books, among some other presents, our teenager got this year. Read more…There are 13 letters in “Happy Birthday”
Horse tales, aloud
If you’re looking for audiobooks that have adventure, nail-biting excitement, friendship, courage and loyalty, look no further than these three, great, horse-tales. Read more…Horse tales, aloud
Here’s to the daydreamers…
There are few things I look forward to less than doing laundry. And with two active boys in the house, there is always a mountain of it waiting to be washed or transferred or folded at any given time. It is an endless effort to conquer the mountain, and I have my systems, as I am sure you have yours!
But these systems have their adversaries, and if you have a magpie for a child, not least of these are the ubiquitous pockets full of assorted trash: found pennies, baby pinecones, odd shaped stones, gnarled bits of bark, a crushed flower, downy feathers, each leaving a grainy debris that is near impossible to clear out completely. Read more…Here’s to the daydreamers…
Boys and their bots
It’s a happy and familiar story: Boy meets bot, boy befriends bot…they become best pals, rescue each other from peril, and live happily, chasing adventure ever after.
Simple though it may sound, this theme has been spun into some great books for boys at all reading levels. Read more…Boys and their bots
Book review: Pax
Title: Pax
Author: Sarah Pennypacker (author of acclaimed Clementine series)
Illustrator: Jon Klaassen (award-winning picture book author/illustrator of I Want My Hat Back)
Format: Single book
Age group: 9+
A mesmerizing book about the profound bond between a fox and a boy.
Peter is 7 years old when he finds an abandoned and starving fox kit in the woods nears home. Peter adopts the fox and names him Pax. The two form a deep connection, “two, but not two”. But the disease of war encroaches, and Peter’s angry and restless father has caught the bug. When he decides to enlist in the army, Pax and Peter are forcibly separated after more than 5 years at each other’s side. Read more…Book review: Pax
Audiobook review: A Boy and His Bot
Title: A Boy and His Bot
Author: Daniel H. Wilson
Narrator: David Ackroyd
Length: 4h 40m
Format: Audiobook
Age group: 10+
Code Lightyear is a shy young Cherokee boy. At school, he keeps his head down and tries to avoid the taunts of bullies. Rather than standing up for himself, Code prefers to concentrate on doodling robot designs. He also misses his beloved grandfather, who disappeared on a visit to Mek Mound, the hilly site of an ancient, Native American civilization.
On a field-trip to this hallowed place, Code wanders off from his classmates only to stumble through a portal into Mekhos, a bizarre and dangerous land populated entirely by robots. Read more…Audiobook review: A Boy and His Bot
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