Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm!

Last year was the inaugural year for Read Across Lawrence for Kids in which the kids of Lawrence got “on the same page” by reading the same book during the month of September. Along with reading the book, LPL also offered a variety of fun activities based around that book. Over 2,500 kids participated in Read Across Lawrence for Kids last year and we have a feeling this year will be even bigger! Stay tuned for more information on this year’s event to be revealed later this summer!!

About Turtle in Paradise:

In Jennifer L. Holm’s New York Times bestselling, Newbery Honor winning middle grade historical fiction novel, life isn’t like the movies. But then again, 11-year-old Turtle is no Shirley Temple. She’s smart and tough and has seen enough of the world not to expect a Hollywood ending. After all, it’s 1935 and jobs and money and sometimes even dreams are scarce. So when Turtle’s mama gets a job housekeeping for a lady who doesn’t like kids, Turtle says goodbye without a tear and heads off to Key West, Florida to live with relatives she’s never met. Florida’s like nothing Turtle’s ever seen before though. It’s hot and strange, full of rag tag boy cousins, family secrets, scams, and even buried pirate treasure! Before she knows what’s happened, Turtle finds herself coming out of the shell she’s spent her life building, and as she does, her world opens up in the most unexpected ways. Filled with adventure, humor and heart, Turtle in Paradise is an instant classic both boys and girls with love.

Check it out!

About Jennifer L. Holm:

Jennifer L. Holm is a NEW YORK TIMES bestselling children’s author and the recipient of three Newbery Honors for her novels OUR ONLY MAY AMELIA, PENNY FROM HEAVEN, and TURTLE IN PARADISE. Jennifer collaborates with her brother, Matthew Holm, on two graphic novel series — the popular Babymouse series and the bestselling Squish series. She is also the author of several other highly praised books, including the Boston Jane trilogy and MIDDLE SCHOOL IS WORSE THAN MEATLOAF. She lives in California with her husband and two children.

Mary Pope Osborne’s amazing Magic Tree House fiction series is waiting on the shelves of the Young Fiction section for you to discover.  There are now 49 books, with number 50 coming out in July.  So if you like the stories, you know you will have plenty to read for a long time. The Magic Tree House is great for children 6  to 9 years old and their families, for reading and for listening.  Keep an atlas and/or a globe handy to keep track of where you go.

The books are written in groups of four titles and involve a mystery Jack and Annie have to solve. It is best to read the books in order, to get the whole story, to find all the clues and to understand the mystery in each set  The first four books are Dinosaurs before Dark, The Knight at Dawn, Mummies in the Morning, Pirates Past Noon.

Many of the titles have a companion non-fiction book, called a Research Guide or Fact Tracker, that explores the history and geography of the story in a lively way and offers lots of general information about the subject and time period.  Be sure to check one out after you read the corresponding chapter book!  The first four are Dinosaurs, Knights and Castles, Mummies and Pyramids, and Pirates.

Go to the Magic Tree House website at www.magictreehouse.com to set up your own My Library account, answer trivia questions about each book and get your website Passport page stamped!

You can find a complete list of titles on the website or ask at the Children’s desk.  Put titles on reserve at the Library so you can read the stories in order, and solve the many mysteries waiting for you in the Magic Tree House. I highly recommend the Magic Tree House to the whole family for an exciting experience!

An amazing photo awaits the reader in the first pages.  It is a soldier and his dog jumping from an aircraft over the Gulf of Mexico during training.  The Special Forces, such as Navy Seals, are only one branch of the military that uses dogs as members of their teams.  MWD’s are now a part of all the service branches.  With amazing photos and hero stories, this book is of high interest for young people as well as adults.

Dogs have been used as vital partners in the United States war effort since World War I when they served as Red Cross dogs.  They sought out the wounded and brought them aid as well as serving as messenger dogs.  As messenger dogs, they bravely dodged through the trenches to deliver critical information between command posts and the front.  It wasn’t until the Vietnam War, however, that the military realized all the ways a dog’s powerful senses could be used to protect troops from harm.

What breed of dog is best suited for this career?  The Belgian Malinois is a fine athlete, quick to learn and eager to please.  Also favored are the Dutch Shepherd, German Shepherd, and the Labrador Retriever.  However, any type of dog showing promise is welcome to serve.  From the time they are three days old, puppies start training for their very important job.  The intense training that these dogs go through is covered in this book.

A highlight is stories of individual dogs who have served with such heroism and valor; although any dog serving in the military is a hero.  Personally, this book touched me as my own brother served in Vietnam as a dog handler.  Only in the past few years has he been able to tell us of his experiences there, and his great trust and companionship in his lifesaver, his dog.

From there make your way to a newly published book by Eva Moore, with illustrations by Nancy Carpenter, entitled Lucky Ducklings.  This book about a mother duck and her ducklings is also based on a true story.  Read about Pippin, Bippin, Tippin, Dippin and Little Joe and their mother in Montauk, New York and find out who helps them out of a predicament.

Now for some especially silly duck books!  Try Duck at the Door by Jackie Urbanovic and get to know Max, a duck who brings some excitement to one family one winter.  Then check out what your eyes and brain tell you when you see and read Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld.  You may start to find ducks everywhere!

Finish your duck fest with a reading of Judy Dunn’s The Little Duck, a picture book illustrated with beautiful photographs to accompany a heart warming story.

Celebrate all these new ducks in your life by watching the skies and listening for ducks flying over Kansas on their way north.

These relatively short and fast-paced novels for middle-grade readers cover a time period of one year from Enola’s fourteenth to fifteenth birthday.  And what a year it was!  During that time we follow Enola, always in disguise, through the streets, back alleys, sewers, and even on roof-tops of nineteenth century London.  The first person narrative with abundant historical detail allows one to experience this unique time and place from the perspective of one of the most remarkable and likeable heroines that I have ever encountered.  In each novel the author has been careful to bring the reader up to date so that they can be enjoyed independently.  However, for the full effect of the tension and suspense of the subplots, I would recommend reading them in order if possible.

Enola’s adventures continue in the following Enola Holmes Mysteries listed in order of publication.  You can enjoy them as books or audiobooks.

The Case of the Left-Handed Lady:  Posing as the secretary for the world’s first scientific perditorian (one who uses logic and scientific method to find missing persons), Enola sets out to find Lady Cecily who disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets:  Using her ample wits and knowledge of the language of flowers, Enola seeks to save Dr. Watson from a fate worse than death at the hands of a deranged former patient.

The Case of the Peculiar Pink Fan:   An odd and out-of-place pink fan is the first clue in another sinister plot involving the tormented Lady Cecily.

The Case of the Cryptic Crinoline:  As if searching for her mother and eluding her brothers wasn’t enough, Enola returns to her rooms one day to find that the closest thing she has to family – her dear, sweet landlady, Mrs. Tupper,  has been kidnapped.

The Case of the Gypsy Good-bye:  While Enola pursues the trail of the missing Lady Blanchefleur del Campo, Sherlock and Mycroft follow close behind with a message from their mother that only Enola can decipher.

Portal 2 – XBox 360 (Also Available on PS3)
It’s difficult to describe and classify the exact genre of Portal 2.  It’s best described as a first person shooting puzzle platformer.  A player must use creative manipulation of portals that can be shot on the walls, floors, and ceilings to make it through obstacle filled rooms.  Portal 2 has received nearly universal critical acclaim for its unique play experience, and it’s a game that needs trying out to fully understand and appreciate.

Angry Birds Trilogy – Playstation 3
The popular phone-app makes its way to the console and your television!  Known for its simple but addictive gameplay, a player must control the flock of angry birds to rescue the eggs from the thieving pigs  Game contains the first three titles in the angry birds series:  Angry Birds, Angry Birds Seasons, and Angry Birds Rio.

By now there are well over 100 Eyewitness titles in 36 languages, and DK has a huge list of early readers and board books, all with that very clear style. Check out their website. The interesting thing about Eyewitness books is that they take into account that children learn in all sorts of ways, and that information need not be dumbed down as much as we think. Kids will pour over a picture and get so much more out of it than I, who look at the caption before the picture. But the images, always photographic, never silly cartoon art, respect my need for information. For print addicts, there is intelligent text, in varying sizes, with information about the picture. Just enough so that you can actually understand something important.

Title search DK Eyewitness gets you 145 titles in our online catalog. There are also Eyewitness DVDs, which are also beautiful, but you really can’t pore over a DVD. Some of the books now feature the great images on a Clip-Art CD, which we have fixed to the back inside cover for you to use.

Personally, I really think Eyewitness books shouldn’t be considered only children’s books. I am looking at Eyewitness Train. By the way what is a flange? Something to do with the plateway of a railroad track… Maybe I should read the larger print. I guess I thought I was too cool for that.

Lives of the musicians : good times, bad times (and what the neighbors thought)

Lives of the presidents : fame, shame (and what the neighbors thought)

Harvesting Hope: The story of Cesar Chavez

Wilma unlimited : how Wilma Rudolph became the world’s fastest woman

and many more.

In 2011, Kathleen Krull won the Children’s Book Guild of Washington, D.C. Nonfiction Award, an honor presented annually to an author or illustrator whose total body of work has contributed significantly to the quality of nonfiction for children.

Recently, two new titles by Krull were added to our collection.  What Was The March on Washington and What Was the Boston Tea Party are the titles in the What Was… series that we now have available for checkout.  Other titles are What Was the Gold Rush and What Was the Battle of Gettysburg.  At this point, we can get these through interlibrary loan.  What a fun way to learn history! What Was the March on Washington even includes black and white photos taken on that grand day.

Nonfiction books are being written in such an entertaining way that readers barely realizes they are reading a factual book.  So, if you haven’t been in the habit of checking out nonfiction books, give it a try.  I think you will thoroughly enjoy your read!

Gardening is a great way for the whole family to work and learn together, and the Children’s Library can help you get started.  We have many helpful books (j 635 in the non-fiction section) with topics ranging from preparing soil and composting to growing fruits and vegetables.  Special projects for every season are also featured.   Learn how to build a bird house, make a rain gauge, attract butterflies, and much, much more.

Below are just a few of the titles that can help you get started:

101 Kid-Friendly Plants by Cindy Krezel features 101 common plants that are safe to eat and simple to grow plus more seasonal activities and science projects.

Jack’s Garden by Henry Cole is a beautifully illustrated book for younger readers that shows the evolution of a garden from early spring to late summer.

The Kids Can Press Jumbo Book of Gardening by Karyn Morris includes many great gardening activities plus sections devoted to native plants, wildlife gardens, and community and school gardens.

Garbage Helps Our Garden Grow: a Compost Story by Linda Glaser uses photographs to show how one family works together to turn their table and yard scraps into rich, dark soil for the garden.