Larger than life close-up photos ( 9 X 11in. ) of guinea pigs are on every right hand page throughout this Early Intervention reading non fiction book. The book is presented in nine parts: Purr-fect Piggies, Eyes, Nose, Whiskers, Ears, Teeth, Legs, Feet , and Fur. Text on the left hand hand page is factually presented in three or four sentences. “Cavies’ big eyes see in color, but they don’t see very well. ” ( p. 6) Guinea pigs or cavies ( “another name for a guinea pig” (p. 22 [glossary] ) possess a good sense of smell, hearing and touch- through their whiskers.

Nice addition to a library’s 636 pet section.

208 word count.

Includes:www. facthound

In a blend of fiction and non-fiction, this book follows a family for 175 years over two continents.  Starting in Germany in the 1850s, the Peters family makes the difficult choice to emigrate to the United States.  The book describes the forces behind the decision to emigrate, the departure, the sea voyage, the Mississippi River, the wagon train, and establishing a farm with both historical information and fictionalized characters.  Skimming forward five generations, the story quickly reaches the present day when the interracial Peters family investigates their family’s past through pictures, family artifacts and online research.  This American family then travels full circle as they discover and explore their ancestral roots in Germany.  An engaging story, this book effectively communicates the magnitude of the historical journey to a farm in the central United States.  The establishment of farm, however, lacks the depth of detail and accuracy found in the description of the journey.  The encounter with Native Americans in the first year on the farm fails to recognize that the Peters were part of the influx that displaced the Native populations.  The hardship of establishing a homestead are also minimalized when the sod house of the first year is replaced within a year with a wooden house, barns, orchard and garden.

Originally published in German and translated by Susi Woofter.  All and all, good choice for young children to inspire them to investigate their family heritage and genealogy.

When their family moves to a farm, Luke, Ellie, and Joey find an old car in the shed.  Too busy to take it to the dump, their dad moves it out under a tree and tells the kids they can play with it “for the time being.”  The car is transformed through imagination and creative play into a sailing ship, vehicle for the queen in a parade, a Mount Everest basecamp and more.  When the farm’s previous owner comes to visit, the children are concerned about the car’s deteriorating condition, but Mrs. Crosby just “smiled and smiled.”  Over tea she shares stories and pictures of all that the car had been for her.  To the children, her stories are just as amazing as the ones their imaginations had created.  Told in first person, this lovely book shows that stories and imagination transcend generations.

Pom Pom wakes up on the wrong side of the bed and nothing seems to go right.  He can’t find his blanket, his brother is playing with his favorite toy, his cereal is soggy and it goes on and on with Pom Pom responding with “Harrumph!” to everything and everyone around him.  Finally Pom Pom yells at his friends on the school playground to, “Go, away!” and is surprised when they do. Pom Pom realized that isn’t really what he wants.  Finally the acceptance of his apology turns Pom Pom’s day around, that is until he’s tagged by his friend Buddy in a game of tag. “Harrumph.”

Pom Pom’s scowl and posture clearly reinforce his grumps.  This is a good choice for young children learning to recognize their feelings and the consequences of their behaviors.

Simon the dog is surprised with a new bed and knows that after his walk he’ll have “the best nap of his life.”  With bone in mouth, he enters the room only to find Adora Belle the Siamese cat has already settled in his new bed. Polite requests, barking, begging – nothing seems to work.  Simon finally settle for a compromise and shares his first nap in his new bed.  The charming illustrations clearly show Adora’s sly looks and Simon’s joys and frustrations.  This is a fun, sweet choice for pet owners and siblings that shows the benefits of compromise.

This book provides an engaging graphic description of the sport of hockey that includes timelines, graphs, maps, and diagrams.  Hockey’s increasing popularity, rules, players, equipment and game statistics are all part of this visual guide. Each two page spread includes clear headings, easy to read captions, and a descriptive paragraph in addition to the inforgraphic. Occasionally the graphics interfere with the content being communicated, though overall the book is a positive example of this format.

Contains table of contents, glossary, further information, and index.  The table of contents is organized in a circle making it misleading and difficult to follow.

This translation of the Korean original uses simple yet rich text to describe the water cycle.  The story and images create a cycle of their own using a young girl in a red dress to follow the water from one page to the next. The illustrations are simple yet charming.  Includes questions and an activity.  The book focuses more on the story than the science as it is lacking a table of contents, glossary, or index.  A pleasant read to introduce the water cycle or as an extension on a rainy day.

Shaken Up is part of The Kicks series by Olympic Gold Medalist, FIFA Women’s World Cup Champion and US Women’s National Soccer Team member Alex Morgan.  The series holds obvious appeal for young girl athletes.  The main character, Devin is a middle school soccer player beset with friend, crush, and self-confidence issues typical of that age.  As a new resident of California, she is “freaked out” when a earthquake hits and it affects her ability to cope with both soccer team rivalries and the challenges of middle school life.  The story resolves with her on top in the friend, crush, and soccer drama.

The content is more appropriate for a middle school audience, but the simple plot and “cute” cover is a better fit for younger grades.  While this is definitely a recreational read, it could easily be used in the classroom as an example for writers to “write what you know.”

Mr. Pants the cat and his two cat sisters, like mischievous siblings everywhere, spend their seemingly endless energy both provoking each other and aggravating their human mom.  In Slacks, Camera, Action!, Mr. Pants has only one day to enter a film contest and his fixation on creating a film encounters continual hiccups.  When it appears he’s run out of time, his mom shows him how to edit and add audio to what he already has filmed and Mr. Pants gets the film submitted just in time!

Slacks, Camera, Action is the second book in the Mr. Pants series.  The colorful pictures and simple text are in the format of a graphic novel with speech bubbles and multiple panels on each page.  The silly story is organized into eight easy-to-read chapters offering young readers a sense of accomplishment and a good option for readers not quite ready for more challenging chapter books

This is a math concept book for addition and subtraction.

Nora is counting down the days to her dog, Ruffer’s birthday. “Nora is planning a birthday party for him– an awesome, unforgettable birthday party.” Nora decides which people and their pet friends to invite, then begins adding up the number of invitations to send.  (3 + 6 + 2 = 11 ) Nora and Ruffer cross out the four days until the party day on the calendar page, one day at a time. When Nora goes to bake “the most delicious puppy cake” there are not enough eggs. They need 10 eggs, they have 4 eggs, they need 6 more eggs. “Oh no! Ruffer accidentally stepped on the egg carton and broke too* eggs! … Nora needs eight more eggs. She decides to buy one carton, which has ten** eggs.” At the store there is a sale happening, so subtraction is shown on the various signs:  

“Eggs

$3 per carton

Today only:

You save $1

Only $2“

Then, they add the prices on the receipt using partial sums. ( $4 + $5 = $9 + $2 = $ 11) Cake baked just in time, the guests arrive for the party. Ruffer graphs the number of bones, stuffed animals, and balls received  and adds the columns. They play ring toss before the party ends.

The illustrations are cute, fun, and animated.

Includes 2 adult help pages and 2 pages of “Addition and Subtraction Game with Ruffer”.

*“too” should be two

** Perhaps eggs are sold in cartons of 10 in South Korea ( where this book originated) , but  seldom, if ever, in the USA.