Kids Blog

    Oliver Olson’s problem is over-protective parents.  When his third grade teacher opens a space unit by asking, “How many of you would like to walk on the moon?”, Oliver doesn’t raise his hand.  “Oliver’s parents would never let him walk on the moon.  The moon was too far away.  It was too cold.  It didn’t have enough gravity. The rocket might explode.”  And when his teacher announces that the whole class is invited to a space sleepover at school, he knows he won’t be allowed to go.  Ever since Oliver was a sickly preschooler, his parents have worried about him too much.

Right now there is a sick kid upstairs, reading and coughing. And laughing, in between coughs. "Mom, this book is hilarious!" he manages to squeak out, somewhat breathlessly. When I ask what the book is, I'm told, "This Book is Not Good For You," which doesn't sound like a promising read when you are ill. The plot summary includes something about adventure, chocolate, and kidnapping. And a narrator who writes himself into the story, sometimes even falling asleep for pages at a time.

 Lauren Thompson’s story begins, “This is the pie, warm and sweet, that Papa baked.”  But how did Papa make the pie?  Start with apples, “juicy and red,” then the tree, “crooked and strong,” and so on until we come to “the world, blooming with life, that spins with the sun, fiery and bright…” 
 Perfect for this time of year, “The Apple Pie That Papa Baked” is a rollicking picture book illustrated by Jonathan Bean in tones of cream, sepia, black and red, evoking classic illustrations by Virginia Lee Burton and Wanda Gag. 

Come vote for your favorite of the 3 pumpkins that library staff members decorated. There's "Some Pig," a tie in with Charlotte's Web, a Day of the Dead jack-o-lantern, and a howdy partner cowboy pumpkin. This is just one of the many fun things you can do @ your local library.