Misadventures of the Monster Librarian

Every time I hear that a Mo Willems book is coming out I get super excited, I think even more than the kids. And lovers of Mo Willems won't be disappointed with his latest, That is Not a Good Idea! Kids will love this interactive, funny book, which starts out like a traditional fairy tale, but ends a fractured tale with a Mo Willems-worthy surprise ending that made me smile (and I needed that this morning!) The artwork is all Willems--see if you can find one of his signature marks: the Pigeon (of the Pigeon series) hidden in the book. Great book for a young reader, not only because of its' repetition of certain words, but also because there are short sentences that can be easily digested. I LOVED IT!

This is the story of a robot boy named Doug whose parents hook him up to a machine everyday so he can download lots of facts about the city...until one day when Doug unplugs himself to get a first hand experience of the city. A fun story that kids can enjoy; how can you not be amused by Doug as he moves from absorbing so many facts to actually living them? "Doug knew that cities were teeming with people. He discovered that crowded sidewalks made it hard to see where you were going..." to all kinds of new adventures: "Doug learned many more things about the city, like Wet cement feels squishy under your feet. Fire engine sirens are loud. Some garbage cans are smelly. Manholes are dark. Pretty flowers grow out cracks in the sidewalks. Taxis stop if you raise your hand. And the cool water in a park fountain feels good on a hot day..." Kids will enjoy Doug's adventures, and also his return home to be with his family. Yaccarino's artwork is fun and sil...

The magic lady 's: High School Book Suggestions: 13 Little Blue Envelopes, by Maureen Johnson The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, by Laurie R. King Big Mouth and Ugly Girl, by Joyce Carol Oates The Body of Christopher Creed, by Carol Plum-Ucci The Book Thief, by Marcus Zusak Breaking Rank, by Kristen Downey Randle The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, by Mark Haddon Dairy Queen, by Catherine Gilbert Murdock Ender’s Game, by Orson Scott Card Fat Kid Rules the World, by K.L. Going Feed, by M.T. Anderson The Gospel According to Larry, by Janet Tashjian Hard Love, by Ellen Wittlinger Life of Pi, by Yann Martel If You Come Softly, by Jacqueline Woodson Luna, by Julie Ann Peters Rats Saw God, by Rob Thomas Scrambled Eggs at Midnight, by Brad Barker & Heather Hepler The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Kidd Monk The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, by Chris Crutcher – all of his books are worthwhi...

More great books to reads from the magic lady , this time: MIDDLE SCHOOL BOOKS Al Capone Does My Shirts, by Gennifer Choldenko All Alone in the Universe, by Lynne Rae Perkins Among the Hidden, by Margaret Haddix Bone from a Dry Sea, by Peter Dickinson Catherine Called Birdy, by Karen Cushman City of Ember, by Jeanne DuPrau and its sequels Crash, by Jerry Spinelli Devil’s Arithmetic, by Jane Yolen Dovey Coe, by Frances O’Roark Dowell East by Edith Pattou Fever 1793, by Laurie Halse Anderson The Giver, by Lois Lowry The Goose Girl, by Shannon Hale Hattie Big Sky, by Kirby Larson Holes, by Louis Sachar Homecoming, by Cynthia Voigt Hoot, by Carl Hiaasen Hope Was Here, by Joan Bauer- and other novels House of the Scorpions, by Nancy Farmer Inkheart, by Cornelia Funke and its sequel Island of the Blue Dolphins, by Scott O’Dell Long Way from Chicago, by Richard Peck and its sequel The Loon Feather, by Iola Fuller Lord of the Rings trilogy, by J.R.R. Tolkien Love tha...

And still more ... 5th Grade Recommendations: Aurora County All-Stars, by Deborah Wiles, any books by her Becoming Naomi Leon, by Pam Munoz Ryan BFG, by Roald Dahl Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson Castle in the Attic, by Elizabeth Winthrop Dealing with Dragons series, by Patricia Wrede Donuthead, by Sue Stauffacher Ella Enchanted, by Gail Carson Levine Esperanza Rising, by Pam Munoz Ryan Flipped, by Wendelin Van Draanen From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, by E.L. Konigsburg George Washington’s Socks, by Elvira Woodruff The Great Gilly Hopkins, by Katherine Paterson Hatchet, by Gary Paulsen Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling Inkheart, by Cornelia Funke and its sequel Invention of Hugo Cabret, by Brian Selznick Julie of the Wolves, by Jean Craighead George Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, by Robert O’Brien My Side of the Mountain, by Jean Craighead George The Penderwicks, by Jeanne Birdsall P.S. Longer Letter Later, by Paula Danzig...

In case you like book award nominees: 2013 Ohioana Book Award Finalists Announced Ohioana will announce the winners in each category near the end of Augus * not Ohioans – note, books about Ohio or Ohioans need not be authored by an Ohioan. Fiction The Coldest Night by Robert Olmstead - Algonquin Books, 2012. Home by Toni Morrison - Knopf, 2012. Stay Awake: Stories by Dan Chaon - Ballantine Books, 2012. The World We Found: A Novel by Thrity Umrigar - Harper/William Morrow, 2012. Nonfiction  Biting the Moon: A Memoir of Feminism and Motherhood by Joanne S. Frye - Syracuse University Press, 2012. The Bluebird Effect: Uncommon Bonds with Common Birds by Julie Zickefoose - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012 Earth Works: Selected Essays by Scott Russell Sanders - Indiana University Press, 2012 The Presidents Club: Inside the World’s Most Exclusive Fraternity by Nancy Gibbs* and Michael Duffy - Simon & Schuster, ...