This week at the library; Or, we celebrate Dr. Seuss with even more snow

Monday - Belatedly began work on March publicity. Official circulation numbers from the annual report are in - my children's circulation went up 7,929 last year, more than the 7,000 I estimated. Left early to pick up the rest of the Dr. Seuss program supplies and sample t-shirts for spring break at Wal-Mart and to go to the comic shop to pick up the library's monthly orders. Got home a little past six, which wasn't bad at all. Favorite question of the day: "Is the library open to the public?"

Tuesday Bad start to the day with a popped lens, but happily found a place only a few blocks away to fix it before I went to our youth services meeting. We toured Yerkes Observatory, discussed possible collaboration, and went out to lunch and worked through our agenda - summer reading, grants, and other stuff. We also had good librarian time - you know, where you can talk to people with similar issues and problems, laugh at our insane stories, and enthuse about the merits of various storytimes. Anyhow, I have to admit in all honesty, that astronomy leaves me cold. Probably because my glasses get in the way of telescopes, binoculars, etc. and I have pretty bad eyesight. Kind of the same way I feel about birding - while everyone else is shouting "look at the purple-beaked tick picker with spliced tails!" I'm staring at anonymous little black dots - assuming I see anything at all. However, stars make excellently easy decorations, so I'm not complaining about this summer's theme at all. I did get some work done when I got back, but not enough to really make a dent.

Pause while I consider my to read list:

• 3 books on my to read - search list (still looking, can't find them)
• 10 books on my to read - request list (waiting for library holds to come)
• 31 books on my to read - nonfiction list (reading one by one at lunch time)
• 53 books on my to read - list list (stuff I haven't looked for yet, just dumped it on the list)
• 70 books on my to read - new list (waiting for them to come in at a library so I can request them)
• 87 books on my to read - shelf list (actually on a shelf, waiting to read. Includes library books, review copies, and more)
• 313 books on my to read list (I know a library has it, I just haven't moved it to a more immediate list)

I need to read more. I'm not sure if that's physically possible, but there must be some way to do it...

Wednesday A good day, but crazy busy. Had a large crowd for Preschool Interactive and realized once again how annoying it is that the post office refuses to allow the library to put events in the school newsletter sent out by Miss Pattie. Parents are confused, thinking that she is the library and her programs are all we have. Sigh. We are going to try to work around this again. I actually got lunch today, which was awesome, because I had somewhere between 40 and 50 people for Messy Art Club!

Thursday - My first visit from a class of 2nd graders at a local elementary school. We've been planning this for a while; this school is a little farther out so it takes longer to walk. Everything went really well - we did a quick tour, I had pulled books for them to look at and pick from, and then they made butterfly masks. Next visit, they'll return their books, I'll take them on a tour of a different part of the library, and we'll try picking from the open shelves. Evening desk shift, getting ready for Seuss party, etc.

Friday - I came in around 10:45 and started setting up for the Dr. Seuss party. I had several hours of desk time, but luckily it was very quiet so I got all the little decorations cut out. A gazillion calls from people wanting to know if we were closing and/or cancelling the party. There was no way we could cancel - all the food had been purchased and by the time I got the room reserved again it would all have spoiled. I am fascinated by native midwesterners' reluctance to drive in snow. Come on, people! If a Texas girl can do it, so can you! Anyhow, we ended up with 50 people, which is pretty good. We only expected 70 and the weather really was pretty bad. We had green eggs and ham, a choice of juice or milk, and cake while watching The Lorax (the old one. we were going to watch Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham - the old ones - but the movie that played perfectly when I tested it an hour before died when I tried to play it with an audience). Then it was 6pm and the library closed. We all went over for a special after hours tour, featuring the amazing microfilm machine! The inner workings of the bookdrops! The Magnifying Machine! Then at about 6:30 we went back to make a craft - I had beads and pipecleaners and popsicle sticks. Most people stayed for the tour, but only about 20 stayed for the craft. It took me about an hour to lug everything back over to the library, where I dumped it all in my office and Storyroom to await Monday.

Cost of the program (not including time of all the people involved)

• $55 for three cakes (one of our librarian's neighbors cut us an awesome deal and they were SERIOUSLY YUMMY)
• $70 for the food (one of the ladies who cooks for Rotary/Kiwanis volunteered her time to cook)
• $40 for clean up (so instead of paying her we paid her assistant)
• $20 for decorating supplies/tablecloths/etc. (estimate)
• $20 for craft supplies (pipe cleaners, etc.)
• Total estimated cost - $200

Everyone really loved the program and I couldn't have done anything about the weather. I would like to do things differently next year though. We ended up with too much food and it was too expensive, the tour didn't really work with that number of people, and I think there were too many things and people were flagging. I'm thinking of doing a Seuss Sampler party next year, with a table for each book. So Ten Apples Up On Top would have apples to sample. Cat in the Hat would have a craft to make a hat. Scrambled Eggs Super would have eggs to decorate. Green Eggs and Ham would have, you know, to sample. If I Ran the Circus would have a circus craft and so on. Then I wouldn't have to limit registration, which I always hate.

Larf by Ashley Spires

Ashley Spires, who branched out from her hilarious graphic novels about Binky the Space Cat to write a picture book last year, Small Saul, continues the theme of characters who just don't quite fit in the way everyone else expects.

In her newest picture book, Larf, she introduces the only living sasquatch - or so he thinks - his pet bunny Eric, and a surprisingly sweet story about the joys of friendship.

Larf is perfectly content to live life alone, avoiding reporters and fame, and filling his days with peaceful activities. Until one day he sees that a sasquatch is scheduled to make an appearance in the nearby city. Could there be another person like him?

In a ferment of uncertainty, he makes a hilarious and risky trip to the city only to discover the sasquatch is a fake...but rest assured, there's a happy ending after all!

Spires' watercolor illustrations with touches of collage (and "a dollop of Organic Sasquatch Detangler and Conditioning Shampoo") are the perfect accompaniment to her dry wit. I was especially fascinated by how well she blended Larf into his natural environment; he looks perfectly at home in his log cabin and the woods, but made him out of place in the city without making him ridiculous. The soft earth tones and caricatured people combine to create a smoothly blended story that combines humor, friendship, and a gentle moral - it can be scary to make new friends, but worth it!

Verdict: While not quite as delicious as her Binky books or as funny as Small Saul, this is a delightful story that will be perfect for storytimes and read-alouds. After all, how many sasquatch picture books are there? Recommended.


ISBN: 9781554537013; Published April 2012 by Kids Can Press; Review copy provided by the publisher through Raab Associates; Purchased for the library

Preschool Interactive: Letter Knowledge

[Notes and Responses February 29, 2012: I just can't win with the weather. Several kids pointed out "it's not snowing!" when I taught them the snow rhyme. E-mergency worked better than I had expected, we talked about what our names would sound like with no E. I read I Spy with my little eye by Edward Gibbs instead of doing the goldfish song. Best was the flannelboard/puppet version of I'm the biggest thing in the ocean. Lots of kids made squids with their tape.]

Dancing time and name tags ["Boots" from Victor Vito by Laurie Berkner]

Introduction and welcome

Early Literacy Theme: Letter Knowledge is knowing the same letter can look different, that letters have names and are related to sounds. We're going to read a fun story today all about letters!

Opening name song: The more we get together

Early Literacy aside: Put flannel vowels on board. Identify letters. Who knows what sounds these letters make? What would happen if we lost all the sounds E makes?

Long story: E-mergency by Tom Lichtenheld

Movement: Climb climb climb up the hill of snow, jump on the sled and down we go

Nonfiction: When rain falls by Melissa Stewart

Music: "Goldfish" from Victor Vito by Laurie Berkner

Short story/flannelboard and puppet: I'm the biggest thing in the ocean by Kevin Sherry

Closing: Announcements, don't forget to take more stories and a take home bag.

Closing song: Sunny Day

Process art: tape art

Take Home Insert

Chick and Chickie Play All Day! by Claude Ponti

My favorites of the TOON comics for beginning readers are the Zig and Wikki series and the Benny and Penny series - my patrons seem to concur with me on this, as those are the most frequently checked out TOON titles.

Chick and Chickie looks like it's one that I'm going to be on the fence about. Chick and Chickie, distinguishable only by their slightly different colors, are having fun. First they make masks and scare each other.

Then they drag out a letter A to play school with...a letter A with a face, and flexible structure. They tickle it, throw it, bring it food, threaten it, and leave it alone, all the while discussing how they are making it feel. It finally runs away while they talk about playing with B the next day.

Like the other Level 1 TOON books, it's formatted in a horizontal rectangle, instead of the traditional easy reader vertical rectangle. Each page has a single panel, some of them running the length of the entire spread. The art is simple with the focus being on Chick and Chickie and their activities against an empty background.

The first episode, where they scare each other with masks, is a good story. It has suitable words, fun expressions, and a plot that young children will identify with and enjoy. The second episode, with the A, was strange. It was oddly disconnected and the two chicks manipulating the letter's emotions is just...freaky "When we are nice...he is happy. When we look scary...he is afraid!" Apparently, the author is well-known for his "explorations of the nonsense world of dreams" and there is certainly a dream-like quality about this tale.

Verdict: If you have a strong audience for the TOON books, you'll want to add this title, but it's not the most accessible and the oddly nightmarish quality about it may bother some children. The Silly Lilly series and Little Mouse Gets Ready are better choices for comics for beginning readers.


ISBN: 9781935179146; Published February 2012 by Candlewick; Review copy provided by the publisher

Nonfiction Monday: Prairie Dog's Hideaway by Dee Phillips

Today I'm looking at a title from one of Bearport's newest quirky animal series - The Hole Truth! Underground Animal Life. This particular volume examines prairie dogs.

First of all, they are so cute! Like furry guinea pigs with extra fat bottoms! *pause for the cuteness*

Ok, now we can move on. The book introduces the young reader to a prairie dog town and basic facts about the prairie dog, then explores their underground homes with cut-away illustrations and photos. We learn why they live underground and how they escape from predators as well as how their underground homes fit into their life cycle - diet and baby prairie dogs.

The illustrations are a mixture of photographs and pictures with bubbles of extra text, captions with arrows, and  a new feature, boxed text asking questions that students can think about like "This female prairie dog is carrying grass to her burrow. What do you think she will use the grass for?" Some of the captions are unnecessary, like the picture of a prairie dog digging, next to the text about prairie dogs digging their homes, has a caption reading "a prairie dog digging a burrow." There is one typo on page 20, "prarie" instead of prairie. The book ends with a "science lab" game, figuring out the closest hole for a prairie dog to run to. There is a section of "science words," burrow, mate, prairies, predators, squirrel and territory, each with a small picture and definition. The final page has a brief index, additional resources, and link to more information on Bearport's website.

Verdict: This is an interesting topic, but the couple oddities - the superfluous captions and typo - detract from what would otherwise be a solid offering for beginning and intermediate readers. I like the addition of questions throughout the text for the reader to think about, but the "science words" section was a little odd - since when is "squirrel" a "science word"? However, the subject matter and easy text outweigh these minor issues in my mind and I'd definitely put this series on the library's wishlist.

ISBN: 9781617724084; Published 2012 by Bearport; Review copy provided by publisher; Added to the library's wishlist

Flying off my bookshelf

A few more quick reads from this week...or almost reads...or started-but-didn't-finish reads...

1. Celebrity in death by J. D. Robb Cotton candy read. Yum. I'm guessing people are saying this is not as good as her others because it's more straight-forward but I usually skip all the emotional gushy stuff anyways.
2. Hey 13! edited by Gary Soto Oh, I don't know. The presentation and cover is are good, but I didn't care for the short stories and it's really hard to get kids to read short stories. Then again, I never really liked being thirteen and forgot that portion of my life as fast as possible so maybe I'm just not relating. Ehhh, I don't know. Anybody have reactions from kids on this one?
3. Spunky tells all by Ann Cameron I was hoping for a good beginning chapter series - cute dog, sweet illustrations by Lauren Castillo, what could be wrong? But the story is way to philosophical and slow-paced to be a good beginning chapter book and there was a TYPO in the first chapter. An obvious, could-have-been-caught-by-spellcheck typo. Urgh.
4. Side Scrollers by Matthew Loux Kinda like the art, but lost interest as soon as I learned it was about directionless twenty-somethings. I detest comics about directionless twenty-somethings.
5. Tricky Journeys #1: Tricky Coyote Tales by Chris Schweizer I can't stand choose-your-own adventure stories, they give me a headache. But they never go out of popularity. If I had the budget I'd buy this series - it's brightly colored, lots of action and twists, and funny bits. But right now I'm focusing on the Twisted Journeys series and possibly replacing the original Choose Your Own Adventure series.
6. Gideon by Olivier Dunrea Um...what modern children's book describes a gosling as "ruddy"? Otherwise a cute story, but the book is a very small format. Pass.
7. 10 hungry rabbits by Anita Lobel I like the bold color and counting concepts, but I was disappointed by the text - too flat and stilted. I've also become recently very into realistic art or photos for teaching concepts and I didn't feel the vegetables were identifiable enough.
8. At Night by Jonathan Bean According to my LibraryThing catalog, I have read this before, but I didn't remember it. I'm sure I would have, because I loved the images of the little girl going up to the roof to sleep at night. It's a little small for a storytime, but I loved it anyways.
9. My sister, Alicia May by Nancy Ling The retouched photographs were odd and the story ended somewhat abruptly, but it's one of the few "special sibling" books that included the "normal" kids getting mad or frustrated with their "special" sibling. Will consider for our parenting/tough topics collection.
10. Three Billy Goats Fluff by Rachael Mortimer I really hate these retold fairy tales where the monster is just misunderstood and hugs and kisses make it all better. In this one, the troll is tired b/c the goats keep him awake. Mother goat knits booties for the kids' feet and a blanket and earmuffs for the troll and everyone is happy. Blech.
11. Big Snuggle-Up by Brian Patten by Brian Patten The text was rather lack-lustre and I thought the scarecrow struck a jarring note but the AMAZING art of the various animals makes this a stunning books. I was fascinated by the exquisite detail. I'm going to get this one!
12. Anthony and the girls by Ole Konnecke Hilarious - a little boy tries to impress the girls with his amazing toys and building skill, but they don't notice him until he falls and gets hurt. Then he gets to join their group...until a little boy with an even bigger armful of toys comes along...the illustrations are so simple but so perfect. Love this author, a new discovery for me.
13. Pig Pig meets the lion by David McPhail Not one of McPhail's better titles - kind of cute but the illustrations felt a little blah and the ending was odd.
14. Maudie and Bear by Jan Ormerod Cute illustrations, but I'm not feeling the love on this one - Maudie struck me as a particularly annoying and demanding brat.
15. Frisky Brisky Hippity Hop by Alexina White and Susan Lurie Didn't care for the new verses added to the classic squirrel rhyme, but who could resist all those adorable squirrel photographs?

This week at the library; or, Cutting back...I hope

Monday. Have I mentioned recently how much I love my vendor, BWI? Soooo easy to use, can always quickly get in touch with someone, and they fix things asap! Even when the mistake is my fault!
9-1 Desk time. It might have been a little quieter than usual since many people assume we're closed on President's Day, but someone brought over a large number of homeless people to spend the day in the library, so it was rather busy.
1-5 Staff meetings. We determined, among other things, that we have set an impossible pace and it is time to cut back programming and focus.

Tuesday Planning. Book bundles. Cleaning off my desk (layers dating back several weeks and not a clear spot in sight) Putting together minutes from the previous day's staff meetings. Planning. Took books to preschool. Finished off the day with a couple hours at kindergarten registration. A little different this year because it's only 4k, not five year old registration and I only stayed an hour and a half, not the usual three hours. Trying to stick to my New Year's resolution of not working 12 hour days anymore (have only done...um...maybe 2 so far this year). One of the highlights of the evening was when I met a woman who looked vaguely familiar...and she turned out to be the mom of one of my storytime regulars (her babysitter brings her) a little girl so bright she sparkles! Her mom said she sings our storytime songs, especially Elizabeth Mitchell's Sunny Day, at home all the time. Awwwww.

Wednesday Huge group again at Preschool Interactive! Will hopefully make up for next year, when 4k is going to five days a week and my entire storytime group will disappear *sigh*. After storytime I had an Early Head Start group. Only three families, and two did not speak English, so the Head Start teacher translated. I picked some different books to make it easier to translate and we:

• read Where is Tippy Toes by Betsy Lewin
• read Otto the Book Bear by Katie Cleminson
• sang five green and speckled frogs
• read Little Dog Lost by Carnesi
• sang Sunny Day
• made the peacock crafts from Preschool Interactive
• and they brought their lunch. I also talked about library services and showed them our Spanish collections.

Lego Club was fairly large, about 40 people. We are running out of Legos! I don't think we have less than when we started, I think a lot of the kids have started to form friendships and build collaboratively, and they're all building larger edifices.

Thursday Came in early b/c my dentist appt. ended early. Spent all my extra time coming and going as I tried to run errands but had to keep coming back for things I had forgotten.
   I like the idea of the Elephant and Piggie Kids' Club but I'm having a lot of problems with this program. When I revamped the Preschool Interactive, I spent several months promoting it, doing marketing, reworking it, and make storytime plans. I only spent a few weeks on E&P and so few people are aware of it. I also have no backlog of plans and am finding myself planning the program a few hours before I do it. Plus, I don't think I have the time to do this program as well. I am afraid I will have to cancel it after April. On the other hand, the parents don't seem to care, they just like coming and hanging out and I've gotten ok numbers. I planned today's about an hour beforehand and we:

• sang Sunny Day by Elizabeth Mitchell
• Read Watch me throw the ball by Mo Willems
• Limelight Larry by Leigh Hodkinson
• sang Cat goes fiddle-i-fee with my flannelboard (I need to tell parents to keep clapping even when I stop to put up the pieces!)
• read The wolf and the seven little kids (I wimped out and just said that the wolf was never seen again. I had some very sensitive parents and younger kids)
• read Chopsticks by Amy Rosenthal
• made button people
• played in the puppet theater

Then it was a busy evening with Daisy scouts, new books, and Amazon orders. And a very snowy, slushy drive home.

Friday More snow. Lots of snow. But that didn't deter anyone from coming to Open Storyhour. When there's no school, Miss Pattie doesn't come, since she works through the school district (except in summer, which is a different thing). I have observed that we get a lot of older kids on these no school days, and I got tired of the endless "where's Miss Pattie?" questions (despite telling people weeks ahead of time that she would be gone) so I'm going to try making it clear that this is NOT me being a poor substitute for Pattie's Toddler's 'n' Books, but a whole different storytime program for all ages. However, the only thing certain about programming on no school days is that nothing is certain, and six inches of thick, wet snow did not help. We had about 20 people, very disparate ages - grade school kids from Elephant and Piggie that I invited (who got bored with the younger stories and wandered out) and very young toddlers and babies from the regular storytime (who got wiggly with the longer stories and went out to play. We:

• sang Boots by Laurie Berkner
• read I will not read this book by Cece Meng
• read I want my hat back by Jon Klassen
• did a flannelboard of Five little snowmen
• read Kitten's Winter by Eugenie Fernandes
• read Otto the Book Bear by Katie Cleminson
• sang Sunny Day by Elizabeth Mitchell

Then I worked three hours on the desk. Then I did our sewing workshop. Only four girls had signed up, but about five more had promised to come. We ended up with three girls and a boy (who refused to be photographed or have his presence recorded in any way). There was a lot of variety in the sewing ability, but it worked out pretty well. One thing I did that made things a lot easier was use darning needles and embroidery thread instead of regular needles and thread. It worked fine b/c we were sewing on knit material like hats and on flannel and was easier for the kids to see and manipulate. Finished up and left about 5:30

I will not read this book by Cece Meng, illustrated by Joy Ang

I liked this book until the end. A little boy dramatically declares he won't read a fairly thick-looking book. The words are too hard. He reads too slowly. 

He won't read the book even if you dangle him over a cliff. Upside down. With sharks below. From a rope that's breaking!

But then...it turns out he's being dangled upside-down by his mom and in the end they're going to read the book together before bedtime.

Ok, I realize there's a trend in education for teaching kids to read younger and younger, but most kids don't start to hate reading until at least first grade, usually second or third. Few moms can dangle a second or third grader upside down, let alone throw him in the air and catch him, especially a woman as skinny as the mom pictured! Would an older child even want that? It's more something you'd do with a preschooler. I just felt there was a clash between the child's age and attitude and it bugs me. And there's no real reason for him to suddenly change his mind and want to read the book.

Verdict: The pictures are cute, very Santat-like, and the mounting list of horrible things is hilarious, but I can't handle the ending. I might read it on a school visit, where I don't have to finish it!

ISBN: 9780547049717; Published September 2011 by Clarion; Borrowed from the library

Preschool Interactive: Narrative Skills

[Notes and Responses February 22, 2012: Big group back again, 45! My soggy day note really didn't work as the weather suddenly changed to sunny. Sigh. Limelight Larry was not as popular as I had hoped, this group was too big for the little pictures I think. Otto the Book Bear was a HUGE hit. I tried a different set up, having the first half of the craft on two tables and the second half on the other two tables, but the group was too big and spread out. Maybe lay out the first part of the craft next time, then come around with the bleeding art tissue paper.]

Dancing time and name tags ["Boots" from Victor Vito by Laurie Berkner]

Introduction and welcome (quiet room, Friday announcements)

Early Literacy Theme: Narrative Skills, one of the early literacy skills children need in order to learn how to read, is expressive language, including being able to describe things, to tell events in order, and to retell stories. We'll be practicing this skill today in a number of ways, including having the children participate in the stories.

Opening name song: The more we get together

Early Literacy Aside: Are you all ready to help me with our first story? When I point to a picture, I want to hear you say what animal you see!

Long story: Limelight Larry by Leigh Hodgkinson

It's a soggy day outside, so we're going to do a rhyme all about the rain!

Movement: Rain on the green grass

Nonfiction: Little dog lost by Monica Carnesi

We're reading about all different kinds of animals today and now we're going to sing a song about an animal that is green all over...what do you think it is?

Flannelboard/Music: Five Green and Speckled Frogs

Short story: Otto the book bear by Katie Cleminson

Closing: Don't forget to check out more stories and get a take home bag. Instructions for art.

Closing song: Sunny Day

Process art: Bleeding art tissue peacocks

Tape a tongue depressor to a paper plate. Snip the top of the plate and draw a face in the middle. Decorate the "feathers" with bleeding art tissue paper. Separate tables for the two parts of the craft.

The Loopy Coop Hens: Pip's Trip by Janet Morgan Stoeke

I usually find picture book sized easy readers annoying - where do you shelve them? Who do you give them to? But Janet Morgan Stoeke could never annoy me. Everything she does is amazing!

Her new chicken series, Loopy Coop Hens, is as perfectly delightful and exquisitely simple as the Minerva Louise series. Midge, Dot, and Pip are three chickens who thirst for adventure. Or do they? Only Pip is brave enough to actually climb into the truck and go out into the world! It's an amazing adventure!

Until she realizes that, um, she didn't actually go anywhere. But her friends reassure her she was still brave - and they find a much better adventure right at home.

The large type and short, simple sentences, "Pip shuts her eyes. She hides. She waits." are perfect for a beginning reader, but Stoeke's combination of subtly humorous illustrations and tongue-in-cheek text makes this a fun read-aloud for toddlers as well.

Her chickens' silly, scared, and funny expressions are the stars of the story. Like her Minerva Louise characters, she puts an amazing amount of expression into the simple lines of the chickens' faces and bodies.

Verdict: Highly recommended - hand to parents with pre-readers and read aloud to toddlers. The story is divided into chapters, which beginning readers will love!

ISBN: 9780803737082; Published January 2012 by Dial; Borrowed from the library; Purchased for the library