July 2016 - Anastasia Suen

myhouseisalive.s
My House Is Alive!: The Weird and Wonderful Sounds Your House Makes
by Scot Ritchie (Author / Illustrator)

Booktalk: What’s that sound? Starting with a simple question, My House Is Alive! takes readers on a tour of the basic inner workings of a house and explains the scientific reason for the knocks, thumps, bangs, and booms we hear.

Two spreads are devoted to each scary sound: the first shows the source of the noise as imagined by a small boy — a monster, giant insect, or other wacky creature — and the second explains the reality behind it.

Snippet:

MHASample

The garage door can make a lot of noise. The door’s motor is attached to a chain. It pulls the chain one way to open the door and the other way to close it. Push a button and — presto –the door rumbles open!

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

holestory
The Hole Story of the Doughnut
by Pat Miller (Author) and Vincent X. Kirsch (Illustrator)

Booktalk: In 1843, fourteen-year-old Hanson Gregory left his family home in Rockport, Maine, and set sail as a cabin boy on the schooner Achorn, looking for high-stakes adventure on the high seas. Little did he know that a boatload of hungry sailors, coupled with his knack for creative problem-solving, would yield one of the world’s most prized and beloved pastries.

Snippet: Their raw centers, heavy with grease, made them drop like cannonballs in the stomach. Sailors called them SINKERS.

As Hanson shaped another batch, he was struck by an idea. He took the round lid off a pepper can and cut perfect holes in the center of each sinker.