This month I would like to highlight some new eBooks and Audiobooks we have in our digital collection. These resources can be accessed from the Follett Shelf, which is linked to the Media Center homepage. Please come see me if you have any questions about how to read or listen to these digital resources.
eBooks:
These books can be read by all your students at the same time (on iPads or computers), and can also be used on Smartboards. Below are detailed descriptions of 5 of them...we have 31! Check them out!
A Butterfly's Life, by Ellen Lawrence (Grades 1-3)
Life Cycles series, this book chronicles the mysterious and colorful
sequence of a butterfly’s maturation. Formatted as a series of
late-summer diary entries written by an inquisitive young boy, the book
describes events from two butterflies mating in his backyard through
their fall migration south and eventual return the following summer.
Photographs combine with kid-friendly maps and illustrations to display
migration patterns and metamorphosis in a vibrant manner. The text,
though written from the point of view of a child, is insightful and
straightforward while still maintaining an age-appropriate reading
level. Also included is a science lab that explains the process of
growing butterfly-friendly plants like verbena and milkweed in window
pots and transplanting them outdoors to provide food and nectar to
growing insects. A list of science terms is explained through an
illustrated glossary. This book explains a complicated process in a
factual, understandable, and attractive style. ~Erin
Anderson, Booklist
Can You Tell a Frog From a Toad, by Buffy Silverman (Grades 1-3)
Something small and green hops through the wet grass. It watches with
big, round eyes. Then its long tongue shoots out from its mouth. It
caught an insect! Did you just see a frog? Or was it a toad?
These animals look very similar, but they are different. Read this book
to become an expert at telling these look-alikes apart! Learn the
fascinating differences between similar animals in the Animal
Look-Alikes series--part of the Lightning Bolt Books collection.
With high-energy designs, exciting photos, and fun text, Lightning Bolt
Books bring nonfiction topics to life! ~Amazon
Meet the Planets, by John McGranaghan (Grades 2-4)
Soar into the Solar System to witness the first Favorite Planet
Competition, emceed by none other than the former-ninth planet, now
known as dwarf planet Pluto. The readers become the judges after the sun
can't pick a favorite and the meteors leave for a shower. Who will the
lucky winning planet be? Could it be speedy-messenger Mercury,
light-on-his-feet Saturn, or smoking-hot Venus? Readers learn all about
each planet as Pluto announces them with short, tongue-in-cheek facts.
Children will spend hours searching the art for all the references to
famous scientists and people of history, space technology,
constellations, art, and classic literature. ~Amazon
Disaster on the 100th Day, by Jean Robertson (Grades K-2)
In this early reader animals bring 100 things to celebrate the 100th day of school. Someone spills 100 marbles! ~Amazon
What's the Difference? An Endangered Animal Subtraction Story, by Suzanne Slade (Grades 1-3)
Similar in format to its companion book What's New at the Zoo? An Animal
Adding Adventure (2009), this picture book introduces a dozen
endangered, threatened, and recovered species while offering practice in
subtraction. Each double-page spread includes a simple subtraction
problem (“6 - 1 = ?”); a related rhymed couplet about a group of animals
(“Six silly prairie dogs / frolic most the day. / One guards the
colony. / How many dogs at play?”); and a paragraph of information about
threats to the species and its current status of endangerment. An
intriguing feature on the appended pages is a chart showing what happens
to an ocean habitat when one species, sea otters, disappears from the
area's food chain. The paintings clearly depict the animals and
settings, although there is occasional awkwardness in figure drawing as
well as the scale. Though not a necessary purchase, this blend of math
practice and science facts may be useful to supplement classroom units
in either area. ~Carolyn Phelan, Booklist
Here are the covers of a few more digital resources on our Follett Shelf.
Audiobooks:
These audiobooks are hosted through Catalist Digital. They can be listened to on the iPads and on computers. Each audiobook has 1 copy available and can be "checked out" by the student for two weeks. After those two weeks it will automatically returned and the student can renew it if needed. I tried to purchase a variety of audiobooks at a multitude of levels to accommodate for all our students. These are just 5 of the titles...we have 38!
Owl Moon, by Jane Yolen (Grades K-3)
A girl and her father go owling on a moonlit winter night near the farm
where they live. Bundled tight in wool clothes, they trudge through snow
"whiter than the milk in a cereal bowl"; here and there, hidden in
ink-blue shadows, a fox, raccoon, fieldmouse and deer watch them pass.
An air of expectancy builds as Pa imitates the Great Horned Owl's call
once without answer, then again. From out of the darkness "an echo/ came
threading its way/ through the trees." Schoenherr's watercolor washes
depict a New England few readers see: the bold stare of a nocturnal owl,
a bird's-eye view of a farmhouse. In harmony with the art, the
melodious text brings to life an unusual countryside adventure. ~Publishers Weekly
The Tale of Despereaux, by Kate DiCamillo (Grades 3-6)
A charming story of unlikely heroes whose destinies entwine to bring
about a joyful resolution. Foremost is Despereaux, a diminutive mouse
who, as depicted in Ering's pencil drawings, is one of the most
endearing of his ink ever to appear in children's books. His mother, who
is French, declares him to be "such the disappointment" at his birth
and the rest of his family seems to agree that he is very odd: his ears
are too big and his eyes open far too soon and they all expect him to
die quickly. Of course, he doesn't. Then there is the human Princess
Pea, with whom Despereaux falls deeply (one might say desperately) in
love. She appreciates him despite her father's prejudice against
rodents. Next is Roscuro, a rat with an uncharacteristic love of light
and soup. Both these predilections get him into trouble. And finally,
there is Miggery Sow, a peasant girl so dim that she believes she can
become a princess. With a masterful hand, DiCamillo weaves four story
lines together in a witty, suspenseful narrative that begs to be read
aloud. ~Miriam Lang Budin, School Library Journal
Extra Credit, by Andrew Clements (Grades 4-6)
A forced pen-pal exchange turns into an opportunity for real
communication between Illinois sixth-grader Abby Carson and Sadeed
Bayat, the best English-language student in his Afghan village. When
Abby's first letter arrives in Bahar-Lan, 11-year-old Sadeed is asked by
the elders to compose his sister Amira's reply; it isn't proper for a
boy and girl to correspond with one another. But soon Sadeed can't
resist telling Abby that it is he who has been writing to her. The
third-person narrative alternates points of view, allowing for inclusion
of intriguing details of both lives. Never a scholar, Abby prefers the
woods behind her family's farm and the climbing wall in her school; in
the afternoons, Sadeed works in his father's grain shop. In spite of
their differences, Abby and Sadeed connect through their imaginations,
and their earlier readings of Frog and Toad Are Friends. They learn, as Abby reports, that "people are simple, but the stuff going on around them can get complicated." ~Kathleen Isaacs, School Library Journal
Spirit Animals: Book 1-Wild Born, by Brandon Mull (Grades 4-6)
In the world of Erdas, when children turn 11, they drink Nectar in order
to see if they will have a spirit animal. Conor, Abeke, Meilin, and
Rollan are chosen, and, with their spirit animals-a wolf, a leopard, a
panda, and a falcon-they must summon the Four Fallen, Great Beasts that
gave their lives many years earlier to defeat the Devourer. Now the
Devourer is back, and the children have to use their animal powers to
defeat it. Minions of the Devourer are hot on their trail and will do
anything to stop them from succeeding. ~Kira Moody, School Library Journal
Navigating Early, by Clare Vanderpool (Grades 5-6) *Now a Printz Honor winner!*
When his mother unexpectedly passes away and his father returns from
serving in World War II, Jack Baker's life is turned upside down. He's
moved from his home in Kansas to a boy's boarding school in Maine. He
meets a unique boy named Early Auden who has an obsession with pi,
seeing an unending story in the mathematically significant number.
Caught up in their own sorrows, the boys take a chance during a school
break to head off on a quest along the Appalachian Trail. Early's
telling of the pi story seems to oddly mirror the strange characters and
happenings that the boys encounter in their journey. This is a journey
of loss, discovery, and deep-rooted friendship and love. ~Deanna Romriell, School Library Journal
Here are a few more covers of the books in the current digital audiobook collection.
Every year I enjoy predicting what children and young adult books may be winners of the Caldecott and Newbery awards. The winners will be announced at the American Library Association on January 27th, but before then feel free to come to the MCS library and check out some books that COULD be winners! Also, learn about some new audio books that have been added to the collection, in both MP3 and Catalist Digital format.
CALDECOTT:
Locomotive by Brian Floca
All aboard! From the creator of the “stunning” (Booklist) Moonshot, a rich and detailed sensory exploration of America’s early railroads. It
is the summer of 1869, and trains, crews, and family are traveling
together, riding America’s brand-new transcontinental railroad. These
pages come alive with the details of the trip and the sounds, speed, and
strength of the mighty locomotives; the work that keeps them moving;
and the thrill of travel from plains to mountain to ocean. Come
hear the hiss of the steam, feel the heat of the engine, watch the
landscape race by. Come ride the rails, come cross the young country! ~Amazon
The Dark by Lemony Snicket
Laszlo is afraid of the dark. The dark
lives in the same house
as Laszlo. Mostly, though, the dark stays in the basement and doesn't
come into Lazslo's room. But one night, it does. This is the story of
how Laszlo stops being afraid of the dark. With emotional insight and
poetic economy, two award-winning talents team up to conquer a universal
childhood fear. ~Amazon
Journey by Aaron Becker
A lonely girl draws a magic door on her bedroom wall and through it
escapes into a world where wonder, adventure, and danger abound. Red
marker in hand, she creates a boat, a balloon, and a flying carpet that
carry her on a spectacular journey toward an uncertain destiny. When she
is captured by a sinister emperor, only an act of tremendous courage
and kindness can set her free. Can it also lead her home and to her
heart’s desire? With supple line, luminous color, and nimble flights of
fancy, author-illustrator Aaron Becker launches an ordinary child on an
extraordinary journey toward her greatest and most exciting adventure of
all. ~Amazon
If You Want to See a Whale by Erin E. Stead
If you want to see a whale, you will need to know what not to look at. Pink roses, pelicans, possible pirates . . . If you want to see a whale, you have to keep your eyes on the sea, and wait . . . and wait . . . and wait . . .~Amazon
NEWBERY:
Doll Bones by Holly Black
Black's tale of friendship and the
trials of growing up is set against the backdrop of a spooky ghost
story. Zach Barlow loves to make things up. He and his friends Poppy and
Alice spend every afternoon concocting new adventures for their dolls
and action figures. However, Zach's recently returned father is less
than thrilled about his son spending his time playing with dolls instead
of taking part in more age-appropriate activities, such as
basketball. When he commits a drastic act to force Zach to give up his
play-acting, it precipitates a series of events that send Zach, Poppy,
and Alice on a midnight quest to lay to rest the soul of a murdered
girl, a soul that now inhabits a bone china doll. Along the way, the
trio uncovers secrets about the past and one another, and discovers that
they are capable of more than they ever realized. Nick Podehl expertly
voices the three friends as well as the unforgettable characters
Tin-Shoe Joe and the pink-haired librarian, Miss Katherine. Black has
written an adventurous ghost tale that fans of Mary Downing Hahn and Peg
Kehret and devotees of the author's previous novels will love.–Michaela
Schied
The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes
Billy Miller is starting second grade, and though his teacher, Mrs.
Silver, tells the class it is the Year of the Rabbit, Billy’s father
tells him it will be the Year of Billy Miller. Billy isn’t sure. He’s
even more worried when he gets off on the wrong foot his first day, but
as the months go on, Billy begins to shine. There are some wonderful
moments here: when Billy brings his teacher silver items—coins, a paper
clip, a little rabbit—to show her he’s a nice boy; when he agonizes over
how to tell his father that Papa is a babyish name; and a triumphant
ending when poetry and self-confidence intertwine. But the school year
also seems rushed, and some intriguing characters, like the annoying
Emma, are barely touched. Harkening back to writers of an earlier era,
like Eleanor Estes, Henkes never compromises his language. Words like
replicated, diligently, and frustrated appear—and that’s on just one
page. Since this is so age specific, older readers might pass it by.
That would be too bad, because this is a story with a lot of heart and
sweet insights into growing up. ~Ilene Cooper, Booklist
Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan
In the tradition of Out of My Mind, Wonder, and Mockingbird,
this is an intensely moving middle grade novel about being an outsider,
coping with loss, and discovering the true meaning of family. Willow
Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing
medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has
never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive
parents, but that hasn't kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . .
until now. Suddenly Willow's world is tragically changed when
her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling
world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This
extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to
push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and
fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read. ~Dial Books for Young Readers
Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool
In her first book since the Newbery Medal winner, Moon Over Manifest, Clare Vanderpool delivers another contender in Navigating Early.
Jack and Early, outsiders at their boarding school in Maine, form a
friendship that sets them on an epic quest across land, sea, and the
depths of their own hearts looking for Pi—the young seeker whose tale
Early reads in the numbers following 3.14, convinced that he is lost.
On their adventure they find pirates, a ferocious black bear, and
finally, resolution and connection in the aftermath of a haunting loss.
Vanderpool works magic in this multilayered novel of two stories —that
of the boys, and that of Pi--and they dovetail beautifully throughout,
culminating in an incredibly touching and gratifying ending. --Seira Wilson
The Real Boy by Anne Ursu
The Real Boy, Anne Ursu's follow-up to her widely acclaimed and beloved middle-grade fantasy Breadcrumbs, is an unforgettable story of magic, faith, and friendship. On
an island on the edge of an immense sea there is a city, a forest, and a
boy named Oscar. Oscar is a shop boy for the most powerful magician in
the village, and spends his days in a small room in the dark cellar of
his master's shop grinding herbs and dreaming of the wizards who once
lived on the island generations ago. Oscar's world is small, but he
likes it that way. The real world is vast, strange, and unpredictable.
And Oscar does not quite fit in it. But now that world is
changing. Children in the city are falling ill, and something sinister
lurks in the forest. Oscar has long been content to stay in his small
room in the cellar, comforted in the knowledge that the magic that flows
from the forest will keep his island safe. Now, even magic may not be
enough to save it. ~Walden Pond Press
NEW AUDIO BOOKS
Chapter Books
Big Nate Series, by Lincoln Peirce
Big Nate: In a Class by Himself
Big Nate Flips Out
Big Nate Goes for Broke
Big Nate on a Roll
Big Nate Strikes Again
Ghost Knight by Oliver Latsch (GSF list)
Island of Silence by Lisa McMann
Murder at Midnight by Avi
Midnight Magic by Avi
Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool
Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool
The Notorious Benedict Arnold by Steve Sheinkin
Secrets at Sea by Richard Peck
Picture Books
Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
Make Way for Duckilings by Robert McCloskey
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
The Biggest Bear by Lynd Ward
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
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