hooray for books!

Turtle leaves no stone unturned on a search for a beloved book that he lent to Zebra...who lent it to Owl...who lent it to who knows?!  Turtle is disheartened—will he ever be able to read his treasured book again?  If you've ever lent a favorite book to a friend and had trouble getting it back, you'll have a chuckle with this one.  Hooray for Books! is a celebration of books and the friends we love reading them with.  It's also a wonderful lesson for little ones on sharing graciously.

Hooray for Books! was written and illustrated by Brian Won and published by HMH Books for Young Readers. Out on September 12.  Visit Brian Won's site to download an activity kit and a preview of the book is available here.

Little Lit Book Series Explores Space

This month’s theme for #littlelitbookseries is space (as in the final frontier).

Our favorite professor is back to take us on a tour of the solar system, with opportunities to learn intriguing attributes about some of our neighboring planets, like how Saturn can float on water.  Clear, concise and simple definitions of the parts of the solar system make this a terrific first book about space.

Professor Astro Cat’s Solar System was written by Dr. Dominic Walliman, illustrated by Ben Newman and published by Flying Eye Books.

Be sure to check in at @littlelitbookseries throughout the month for more books on space and head over to these accounts for more space-y reads today by searching the hashtag #littlelitbookseries on Instagram.

our story begins

"Our story begins with a box in the basement. It's brown and heavy and one of many marked Elissa.  And it's filled, to the brim, with stories from my childhood. Stories I wrote." — from editor Elissa Brent Weissman

Before writers and illustrators were putting their work out into the world, inspiring children everywhere and turning them into lifelong readers, they were kids themselves.  Our Story Begins is an honest, funny and heartfelt collection of some of the earliest works written and drawn by twenty-six authors and illustrators as kids.  Included are Kwame Alexander, Tom Angleberger, Kathi Appelt, Ashley Bryan, Tim Federle, Candace Fleming, Marla Frazee, Chris Gall, Alex Gino, Chris Grabenstein, Gordon Korman, Jarrett J. Krosoczka, Thanhha Lai, Peter Lerangis, Gail Carson Levine, Grace Lin, Yuyi Morales, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, R. J. Palacio, Linda Sue Park, Rohmann, Eric, Dan Santat, Brian Selznick, Cynthia Leitich Smith and Rita Williams-Garcia.

We read their candid words, thoughts and feelings as they spilled out onto looseleaf lined paper.  We have the privilege of seeing their earliest literary efforts and stapled-together stories, inventive even at a young age.  We learn who and what books inspired their love of words, pictures and stories, what they dreamt about, how they came to the realization that they wanted to write books for children and how they found their own voice.  "Their stories were just beginning. Your story is beginning too. Where will it go?" — E. B. W.

Our Story Begins was edited by Elissa Brent Weissman and published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

her right foot

At a substantial one hundred and four pages, Her Right Foot is not just a smart and insightful source of history and symbolism about the Statue of Liberty.  Dave Eggers considers an often overlooked detail — Lady Liberty's right foot, "the foot that is so obviously in mid-stride."  What does it mean?  "If the Statue of Liberty is the symbol of freedom, and has welcomed millions of immigrants to the US, then how can she stand still?"

We find in Her Right Foot a message of acceptance and a timely reminder of the principles of hope and compassion that our country was built on.  When I first read it, I was overwhelmed in a good, almost tearful way.  It's a book not just for children, but for all of us.

Written and illustrated with humor, wit and a tremendous amount of heart by Dave Eggers and Shawn Harris and published by Chronicle Books. Out on September 19.  Click here to watch the book trailer.