Anastasia Suen – Page 9 – Booktalking #kidlit

Rad American Women A-Z

Rad American Women A-Z
Rebels, Trailblazers, and Visionaries Who Shaped Our History . . . and Our Future!
by Kate Schatz (Author) and Miriam Klein Stahlby (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Like all A-Z books, this one illustrates the alphabet—but instead of “A is for Apple”, A is for Angela—as in Angela Davis, the iconic political activist. B is for Billie Jean King, who shattered the glass ceiling of sports; C is for Carol Burnett, who defied assumptions about women in comedy; D is for Dolores Huerta, who organized farmworkers; and E is for Ella Baker, who mentored Dr. Martin Luther King and helped shape the Civil Rights Movement.

Snippet:

B is for Billie Jean

Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King was 12 years old when she had her first tennis lesson, and she knew right away that she wanted to play tennis for the rest of her life.

Nonfiction Monday

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Animal Helpers: Aquariums

Animal Helpers: Aquariums
by Jennifer Keats Curtis (Author)

Booktalk: Follow this behind-the-scenes photographic journal as it leads you into the wondrous world of aquariums and the animal helpers who work there.

Snippet: You won’t need a snorkel and mask in here! In an aquarium, you can trek through millions of gallons of fresh and salt water, but you won’t get wet.

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

Over on a Mountain: Somewhere in the World

Over on a Mountain: Somewhere in the World
by Marianne Berkes (Author) and Jill Dubin (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Discover twenty cool animals, ten great mountain ranges, and seven continents all in one story! And do it in the age-old style of children the world over – by clapping, counting, singing, and acting like . . . Well, animals! What fun!

Snippet:
Over on a mountain
Where leaves and berries thrive,
Lived a shy mother gorilla
and her little babies five.

This week’s Poetry Friday Round-up is hosted by Reading to the Core.

P. Zonka Lays An Egg

P. Zonka Lays An Egg
by Julie Paschkis (Author, Illustrator)

Booktalk: Extraordinary hen P. Zonka spends her time taking in the beauty around her: the shiny green of the grass, the buttery yellows of the dandelions, the deep blue of the sky. The other hens can’t understand why she never lays eggs like they do. Finally, P. Zonka gives in and lays an egg. To everyone’s delight, she produces a wondrous egg that contains all the colors and designs that she has stored in her creative imagination.

Snippet:
All of the other chicken laid eggs regularly.

All of them except P. Zonka.

Last-But-Not-Least Lola and the Wild Chicken

Last-But-Not-Least Lola and the Wild Chicken
by Christine Pakkala (Author) and Paul Hoppe (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Lola has patched things up with frenemy Amanda Anderson, but it’s not happily ever after for these two best friends, at least not yet. Lola doesn’t want to share Amanda, especially not with Jessie, who seems to be around . . . all the time. Can there be more than two best friends? And what does a wild chicken have to do with anything? (Hint: The answer involves a class trip to a farm.)

Snippet:
“I remember that field trip,” Jack says. “The teacher brings back a big bag of chicken poop to class.”
Grandma purses her red lips tight.
I shake my head. “I don’t believe you.”

From Bulb to Tulip

From Bulb to Tulip (Start to Finish)
by Lisa Owings (Author)

Booktalk: How do onion-shaped tulip bulbs become the beautiful blooms in your garden? Follow each step in the process—from planting the bulbs to caring for the flowers—and see it for yourself!

Snippet:
In spring, the tulips sprout.

The tulips sprout when the weather gets warm enough in the spring. Green leaves emerge from the pointy tips of the bulbs. They slowly push up through the soil.

Nonfiction Monday

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

The Secret Galaxy

The Secret Galaxy
by Fran Hodgkins (Author) and Mike Taylor (Illustrator)

Booktalk: The Milky Way tells its own story in this book (with fact sidebars) for stargazers.

Snippet:
I whirl in a spiral with my starry arms trailing.
You and Earth and your sun and solar system
are on one arm, but don’t worry.
Gravity holds everything together.
No stars get left behind.

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

Water Can Be . . .

Water Can Be . . .
by Laura Purdie Salas (Author) and Violeta Dabija (Illustrator)

Booktalk: This poetic exploration of water throughout the year begins (right now!) with spring . . .

Snippet:
Water is water–
it’s puddle, pond, sea.
When springtime comes splashing,
the water flows free.

See the book trailer.

This week’s Poetry Friday Round-up is hosted by Robyn Campbell.

Stanley the Farmer

Stanley the Farmer
by William Bee (Author, Illustrator)

Booktalk: It’s going to be a busy day down on Stanley’s Farm! From plowing the field, to planting the seeds, to harvesting the wheat, Stanley has a lot to do. Luckily, his friends Shamus and Little Woo come to help him.

Snippet: The first thing to do is plow the field so Stanley can plant some wheat. He pulls the green plow with his red tractor.

See the book trailer.

Dance of the Banished

Dance of the Banished
by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch (Author)

Booktalk: Ali and Zeynep are young and in love. But the Anatolian teenagers are caught in circumstances that threaten to separate them forever. While Ali has found passage to Canada, war breaks out in 1914; he is declared an enemy alien. Unable to convince his captors that he is a refugee from an oppressive regime, he is thrown in an internment camp, where he must count himself lucky to have a roof over his head and food to eat. Meanwhile, left behind in a country plunged into war and revolution, Zeynep is determined to stay alive—despite the impossible odds—and find a way to save her Christian Armenian neighbors from the horrors of the Armenian Genocide. But if she succeeds, will Zeynep still find a way to cross a continent and an ocean to find Ali again? And if she does, will he still be waiting for her?

Snippet: May 1, 1915
Soldiers went door-to-door today, searching Christian houses for weapons and any bit of paper that proves a person is a traitor. I was terrified that they would find this journal. I haven’t said anything against the government, but even talking about starving soldiers might be considered treason.