Children's Book Specials

Monday, December 2, 2019

"Gerald McBoing Boing" Review

Gerald McBoing Boing
Author: Dr. Seuss
Pictures adapted by Mel Crawford
 Publisher: Random House, New York
Copyright: 1950
 ISBN: 0-679-89140-4
Accelerated Reader Book, reading level 3.5
(Based on the Academy Award-winning motion picture by Dr. Seuss)
I LOVE this book!!  Of course, Dr. Seuss books are always great, but this one reminds me of my daughter when she was little.  She would make some of the silliest noises and I always wondered if she would ever talk!   Unlike Gerald McCloy in the story she finally did develop this ability!

When Gerald McCloy was little he would never talk, just make noises like"boing boing", "boom", "cuckoo" and "honk".  His parents called in the doctor, but he said he couldn't  help.  When they sent him to school the teacher sent him back with a note.  

Poor George doesn't have any friends and he even annoys his father.  So he runs away from home.  He then meets someone that likes all his noises and offers him a job!
"Your GONG is terrific,
Your toot is inspired
Quick come to BONG-BONG-BONG
McBoing Boing-you're hired!"

With quirky, retro looking illustrations and fun, rhyming text his story will be enjoyed by many ages.

Both of my children really enjoyed listening to this story.  So thumbs up from all of us!

*I wrote this years ago, but didn't publish it.

Review by Christy F. @ PrincessPinkk's Ponderings.

"Quick as a Cricket" Review

Author: Audrey Woods
Illustrator: Don Woods
 Publisher: Child's Play
Copyright: 1982
 ISBN: 0-85953-151-1
Accelerated Reader Book, reading level1.7
Through the use of simple text, with six words per page, the little boy describes himself using 22 different similes.  
"I'm as quick as a cricket, 
I'm as slow as a snail, 
I'm as small as an ant, 
I'm as large as a whale."  
In the end you,  
"Put it all together, and you've got ME!"
The colored pencil illustrations are full of color and detail depicting the boy as he is described on each page.
This book would be a great intro to a lesson on similes, or if you were having the chilren write about themselves.  The book is also a great way to talk about different feelings. (sad, happy, nice,  mean, tough, gentle, brave, shy, tame, lazy, busy)

I started reading this book to my daughter when she was around two and a half.  She loved it.  I think the illustrations pulled her in and it was a chance to discuss different creatures that you don't always see in fiction books (snail, lark, ox, clam, rhino, shrimp).

I love a book that is so versatile, that tells a story, but can be used for teaching a variety of things:  similes, animals, feelings.  I think this book can be enjoyed by many.

*this was written years ago, but I didnt publish it.

Review by Christy F. @ PrincessPinkk's Ponderings.

"Dinosaur Train" Review

Author: Steven Gurney
Illustrator: Steven Gurney
 Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Copyright:2002
 ISBN: 0-06-029245-8
Accelerated Reader Book, reading level 1.0
This simple little book is a favorite of my son, Jake's.  Any book with a train in it ranks pretty high up there for Jake!
Jesse the main character in this story loves trains and dinosaurs.  He gets to take an unexpected ride on a train that is filled with dinosaurs.  What a dream for him!  The illustrations are bright and colorful.  The dinosaurs have human characteristics, wearing clothes, reading the newspaper and eating hamburgers. 

After going through a tunnel they come around the curve and see a volcano.  (My son also loves volcanoes, so this was a special page in the book for him.)  All the dinosaurs lean over to see the volcano and the train falls over.  Using team work the dinosaurs and Jesse all help to right the train.

This is a quick read that is sure to entertain most boys, especially if they like trains and dinosaurs!

*this was written years ago, buy I never published it.

Review by Christy F. @ PrincessPinkk's Ponderings.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

"Martina the Beautiful Cockroach" Review

A Cuban Folktale
Retold by Carmen Agra Deedy
Illustrated by Michael Austin
Illustrations created in acrylic.
Publisher: Scholastic
Copyright: 2007
 ISBN:0-545-17210-1
Accelerated Reader Book, reading level 3.1
Pura Belpre' Honor Book
2010-2011 Virginia Reader's Choice Nominee

How would you pick a husband?


Has anyone in your family ever given you advice you didn't understand?  


What does coffee have to do with anything??



This story will reveal to you a wise method to use while choosing a mate.  But, watch out you may upset some people along the way!

Martina Josefina Catalina Cucaracha was a beautiful cockroach in search of a mate.  After being courted by a rooster, a pig and a lizard; Martina finds that love had been close by all the while.  And that Cuban grandmothers are very wise!


This book is a little bit of a higher level for my children, and I'm not sure they exactly understood the story. But, they both seemed to enjoy the rhythm of the book and the illustrations.  (As well as finding the coffee test to be funny!)

A story about a cockroach?  The detailed and charming illustrations in this book truly beautify this repulsive-type insect.  

The only drawback for me about this book is there are 10-15 Spanish words...which is neat, but there isn't a glossary to tell you the meaning of these words. Or the correct pronunciation.

Review by Christy F. @ PrincessPinkk's Ponderings.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Last Birthday?

So They Say It's Your Birthday!!
Happy Birthday to Me!!
 Well, I am 39 now.  
Hmmm....so maybe I will be 39 forever?  
Isn't that what a lot of women do?  
I'm not really sure if I will be like that.  
So far, I feel pretty good about 39.  
I don't really feel too old....yet!  
Maybe next year will be different!  
The big 4-0 might affect me differently. 
Right now I'm enjoying life!
I'm alive & healthy.
(with a few extra pounds I need to work on!)
I have an awesome husband who loves me!
 Beautiful, fun children.
I have a trendy haircut. 
Some fun piercings.  
A new tattoo soon!!  yippee!
A fulfilling social life.
Books.
Pink things.
Jewelry.
And most of all, lots of LOVE in my life!
I think I can handle more days in this life.
And lots more birthdays!







Tuesday, March 22, 2011

"Elbert's Bad Word" Review

Author: Audrey Woods
Illustrator: Audrey & Don Woods
The illustrations in this book were first drawn in pencil 
by Audrey Wood and then rendered in color by Don wood in 
watercolor, gouache and colored pencils on coquille board.
 Publisher: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich
Copyright: 1988
 ISBN:0-15-225320-3
Summary: After shocking the elegant garden party by 
using a bad word, Elbert learns some acceptable substitutes 
from a helpful wizard. 
Accelerated Reader Book, reading level 3.6


Elbert was at a fancy dinner party with his parents when he heard an adult say a bad word.  In this book you can actually "see" the naughty word.   

"With a swift flick of his wrist, Elbert snatched the word from the air and stuffed it in his pocket ."  Later, the word became so small it "flew" into Elbert's mouth.  After a series of crazy events a croquet mallet lands with a "thud" on Elbert's toe!  When Elbert opened his mouth to scream a bad word came out instead!  The bad word continued to g r o w, it even perched upon Elbert's shoulder. 
 
Elbert goes to visit a wizard gardener who bakes him a special cake.  Elbert learns about "strong" words and the need to sometimes use them. Later through another series of mishaps, Elbert is again in a position of pain.  Everyone stops to observe him to see what he will say.  Will he say the bad word again???

My children enjoyed this book, it was easy for them to understand how Elbert learned the bad word and they were a little surprised when he used it.  After reading the book we were able to discuss other things to say instead of bad words.   I love books that you can use to teach something. 

The book is fun to read, and has interesting illustrations.  The expressions on Elbert's face are great.  And I love that you can "see" the bad word.  You can't go wrong with an Audrey or Don Woods book.  I don't think I've read one yet that I don't like.

Review by Christy F. @ PrincessPinkk's Ponderings.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Was it Wrong?

Last night, we went to visit friends after 8pm.  They have a boy and a girl that are older than our kids....so they had a lot of fun playing together.  We let the kids play mostly unsupervised, and let them stay up very, very late.  They eventually fell asleep.  Many hours later we carried them to the car and brought them home.


Are we horrible for doing this?  we feel pretty bad.  Normally we closely supervise our kids.  Never let them fall asleep at someone else's house...unless it was a planned overnight and we aren't there.  (Like at grandparents or aunts).  Never take the kids out that late at night or have to put them in the car in the middle of the night to go home.


Have you ever done this?  do you think it's okay? 

Friday, March 4, 2011

Misadventures and Fits


My crazy little angels!

Okay, so if you are a parent, you will totally understand how frustrating some of these types of scenarios can be.  If you aren't a parent and you read this....you may rethink if you want children, lol!

I am told, at least once a week, sometimes more often how w.o.n.d.e.r.f.u.l my children behave at daycare.  They are said to be polite, well mannered, sweet, etc.

Sometimes when I am home with my children, I wonder....are these really the same children that the daycare raves about??  And don't get me wrong...I would prefer it to be this way....behave in public/misbehave at home.  As much as it sucks sometimes at home dealing with them, it gives me great pleasure to hear others rave about how well behaved my children are.  :)

But, I just want to share some of the fits and misadventures that I recently had with the kids.  Saturday morning, while Lee was at work and I was alone with the kids, I had stepped into the bathroom.  Jake (4 1/2) comes to tell me that he spilled a little water.  Well, it turned out that he had knocked over a huge cup of water on the end table...which had lots of magazines and newspapers that were now sopping wet.  Our tables are glass top with wood around the edges.  So the glass sits down into the wood.  Well, anytime a drink is spilled....it runs under the glass and gets everywhere down below.  So I had to move the lamp, candles, picture frames, Scentsy burner, etc. to clean up all the water. Ugh.

A little later, while I was ironing clothes Julz had gone into the bathroom....I thought to brush her teeth.  Jake comes in and says, "Julz has nail polish".  Oh! Yes! She! Did!!  It was on her face, on her hands, on her shirt, on the sink and in the bathtub.  Mind you this happened in just a matter of three minutes tops that she was out of my eyesight!  So, I did get it off of her, but not so much the shirt.  And I did manage to save the sink and tub as well.

Then Jake had a small fit after that because he didn't want to put on clean underwear!  (boys!)  When I picked a gift bag for his friend's birthday present (I have to climb up in the attic to get this, since that is where I store all my gift wrapping items) he cried for I know 20 minutes because the bag was "too pretty" and he didn't want to give it away! (me=rolling my eyes)

Later in the day after being at a birthday party and visiting Mimi & Gramps we were almost ready to head out.  I needed to go to the grocery store to pick up some items for Julz's birthday party.  After the behavior they exhibited at Mimi's house (running, being loud, not listening), I told them they wouldn't be allowed to go to the grocery store with me.  So, they were both upset, crying and pouting.  On the way out of the house walking through the garage, Jake stopped beside my mom's (very nice, shiny, well taken care of, immaculately clean) Dodge Nitro and proceeded to kick it t.h.r.e.e times!!!!  aaaarrrrgghhhh!!!!  So then, Gramps spanked Jake (very unusual) and Jake was crying and mad and then Julz hopped in between Jake and Gramps and says loudly and sternly, "don't you be mean to my Jakey!!!  (gotta love the sibling love!) so, then Gramps told her that she needed to be quiet that he wasn't talking to her.  Crying, more crying.  Both crying.  Crying all the way home!!

So I hope you just enjoyed a day in my life with children, lol!!  I still love them even though they drive me crazy!!

How many of you can relate to this craziness???

Friday, February 25, 2011

"Flap Your Wings" Review


Author: P.D. Eastman
Publisher: Beginner Books a Division of Random House
Copyright: 1969, 1977, 2000
ISBN: 0-375-80243-6
Accelerated Reader Book, reading level 2.0

With simple, bright illustrations, this colorful book is easy for a young child to follow.  Not too busy or overstimulating. I love the expressions on the little birds faces throughout the book and especially love Mrs. Bird's red scarf.   

The story starts out with a boy walking down a path near several different types of animals.  He finds an egg.  He sees an empty nest.  He decides the egg must have come from that nest and places the egg there.  When Mr. and Mrs. Bird come home she notices the egg. "That's not our egg," says Mrs. Bird. "Look how big it is!" I love what Mr. Bird has to say about that....."But it is an egg.  It's in our nest, " said Mr. Bird.  "If an egg is in your nest, you sit on it and keep it warm.  It doesn't matter whose egg it is."  As the story goes on, Mr. and Mrs. Bird keep this egg warm until it hatches and then raise "Junior" as their own.  They feed and feed and feed and feed "Junior".  Until finally "Junior" has grown so large he must be taught to "fly" and "flap his wings" for he is too large to stay in the nest.  

My son, 4 1/2 yrs, enjoyed this book.  He understood the humor and the mistake of the wrong egg being in their nest.  He really thought it was funny when we found out what was inside of the egg.  My 3 yr old daughter seems to understand how sweet it is that Mr. and Mrs. Bird take care of the creature that hatches from the egg.  The message of acceptance and love in this story, along with the humor has kept me reading it over and over to my children.  

This is also a good companion book to be read along with Guji, Guji by Chih-Yuan Chen.  Guji, Guji is a very similar story.  At home we read the two together and then compared them.  

On a scale of 1-10, I will give this one an 8.  This sweet little story is sure to become a favorite.  If you notice the copyright (1969), this book has been around for a long time, so it must have been a favorite to many over the years.  I wonder if I heard this story as a child?  

Do you have any favorites from your childhood?  

Review by Christy F. @ PrincessPinkk's Ponderings. 

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Author: Jerry Pallotta

November 2009


I had the pleasure of meeting Jerry Pallotta a year ago when he visited Roanoke, VA for the VEMA (Virginia Educational Media Association) Conference and a visit to the elementary school where I work.  He is such a nice man!  That is such a simple way to say it, but it simply is true. He did several presentations with different age groups (with student involvement, the children were very engaged), sold books and even autographed them. He was kind, funny, attentive and is full of neat ideas....his books are really fun! 

He tends to write more nonfiction, but has done several fiction books, as well.  He is well known for his alphabet books.  His alphabet books include many interesting details.  He spends a lot of time researching for these books.  He even collaborated with many other popular childrens book authors and illustrators in the book Guys Write for Guys Read

The children and teachers at my school really enjoy his math books, such as Hershey's Milk Chocolate Weights and Measures, Twizzler's Shapes & Patterns and The Crayon Counting Book (and there are many more!) Some of the books that we have at my house that my own children enjoy are The Construction Alphabet Book, The Butterfly Alphabet Book and Who Will Help Santa This Year?

 I would recommend reading his books....all of them!  And I would also recommend him as a visitor to your conference, school or library.

Do you have a favorite Jerry Pallotta book?