Book Review

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw by Jeff Kinney

It’s New Year’s Day, and since Greg Heffley is “already pretty much one of the best” people he knows, he resolves to help the less than perfect people in his life improve themselves. So begins the latest journal in Jeff Kinney’s hilarious “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series. This latest installment documents six months (January to June) of Greg’s middle school life through diary entries and simple sketches. We follow Greg through numerous laugh-out-loud situations as he warms the bench for his soccer team, attempts to romance classmate Holly Hills, tries his hand at becoming a Boy Scout, and faces getting shipped off to military school. Fans of the series will not be disappointed, and newcomers will be able to jump right into the story without having read any of the previous books.

Kinney promises a fourth book, which he can’t publish soon enough. (jmv)

Percy Jackson series nearing a close

From PW Children's Bookshelf 1/22/09 e-newsletter:

After a four-year run, Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians series—about a boy who discovers he is a son of Poseidon and embarks on a string of modern-day adventures involving ancient Greek gods, heroes and villains—will draw to a close this spring. But arriving ahead of the fifth and final book is a companion title, The Demigod Files. The paper-over-board title aims to make readers experts on the Percy Jackson universe, offering interviews with characters from the series, games, puzzles and two original short stories by Riordan.

American Library Association Medal Winners Announced!

Winners of this year's most prestigious medals in children's literature:

Newbery Medal
"The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman

Newbery Honor Books
"The Underneath" by Kathi Appelt, illustrated by David Small
"The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom" by Margarita Engle
"Savvy" by Ingrid Law
"After Tupac and D Foster" by Jacqueline Woodson

Caldecott Medal
"The House in the Night," illustrated by Beth Krommes and written by Susan Marie Swanson

Caldecott Honor Books
"A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever" by Marla Frazee
"How I Learned Geography" by Uri Shulevitz
"A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams," illustrated by Melissa Sweet and written by Jen Bryant

Geisel Award
"Are You Ready to Play Outside?" written and illustrated by Mo Willems

Geisel Honor Books
"Chicken Said, 'Cluck!'" written by Judyann Ackerman Grant, illustrated by Sue Truesdell
"One Boy" written and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
"Stinky" written and illustrated by Eleanor Davis
"Wolfsnail: A Backyard Predator" written by Sarah C. Campbell, photographs by Sarah C. Campbell and Richard P. Campbell

Sibert Medal
"We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball" written and illustrated by Kadir Nelson

Sibert Honor Books
"Bodies from the Ice: Melting Glaciers and Rediscovery of the Past" written by James M. Deem
"What to Do about Alice?: How Alice Roosevelt Broke the Rules, Charmed the World, and Drove Her Father Teddy Crazy!" written by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham

Jeff Smith’s Bone Saga Ends—Again

This complete story originally appeared in PW Comics Week on January 27, 2009. Follow the link above to read the entire article.

Graphix, the Scholastic division focused on comics and graphic novels for children, released the ninth and final color volume of Jeff Smith’s epic fantasy adventure series Bone this month. PW Comics Week spoke with Smith and interviewed David Saylor, v-p, associate publisher and creative director of Graphix, via e-mail regarding the significance of the milestone and their future publishing plans.

Plans for promoting Crown of Horns, the final volume, which has an initial print run of 100,000, include a Bone floor display at retail stores, trade and consumer advertising, and a national media campaign. Scholastic's Bone web site has been updated with information about the final volume well as an excerpt and a new Bone game that will launch on the site this spring.
The Graphix edition has been published in thirty countries. In 2006, a release of the first color volume was coordinated across Europe. Smith recently conducted a three-week book tour of India, where the first four volumes are in print.

More reasons to interact with your babies

Read this short, but interesting article from the Seattle Times about recent research about how infants best learn. This research offers even more support for reading with your babies!

Importance of Play

The American Academy of Pediatrics published this lengthy report on how important play is in the lives of children. Despite its length, it is worth reading. The report defines the many ways play benefits children in all aspects of development and encourages parents to spend time interacting with their children through play.

More great resources about play in the lives of children:
- Alliance for Childhood
- Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America
- National Public Radio

Arthur's looking for a new friend and you can help!

Between February 1st and March 31st, 2009, Arthur is on the hunt for a new friend who can show the gang in Elwood City that children come in all shapes, sizes, and abilities. Children between the ages of 6 and 12 are invited to take part in the search. Follow this link to see how you can help.

Make sure you check out books about Arthur and his friends at your Dakota County Library! We have Arthur chapter books, picture books, and more!