Friday, April 27, 2012

New YA Books

The Wicked and the Just - J. Anderson Coats
In medieval Wales, follows Cecily whose family is lured by cheap land and the duty of all Englishman to help keep down the "vicious" Welshmen, and Gwenhwyfar, a Welsh girl who must wait hand and foot on her new English mistress.

Same Sun Here - Silas House
A twelve-year-old Indian immigrant in New York City and a Kentucky coal miner's son become pen pals, and eventually best friends, through a series of revealing letters exploring such topics as environmental activism, immigration, and racism.

I Hunt Killers - Barry Lyga
Seventeen-year-old Jazz learned all about being a serial killer from his notorious "Dear Old Dad," but believes he has a conscience that will help fight his own urges and right some of his father's wrongs, so he secretly helps the police apprehend the town's newest murderer, "The Impressionist."

The Wild Book - Margarita Engle
In early twentieth-century Cuba, bandits terrorize the countryside as a young farm girl struggles with dyslexia. Based on the life of the author's grandmother.

Chomp - Carl Hiaasen
When the difficult star of the reality television show "Expedition Survival" disappears while filming an episode in the Florida Everglades using animals from the wildlife refuge run by Wahoo Crane's family, Wahoo and classmate Tuna Gordon set out to find him while avoiding Tuna's gun-happy father.

Article 5 - Kristen Simmons
Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller has perfected the art of keeping a low profile in a future society in which Moral Statutes have replaced the Bill of Rights and offenses carry stiff penalties, but when Chase, the only boy she has ever loved, arrests her rebellious mother, Ember must take action.

Under the Never Sky - Veronica Rossi
Aria and Perry, two teens from radically different societies--one highly advanced, the other primitive--hate being dependent on one another until they overcome their prejudices and fall in love, knowing they can't stay together.

Winter Town - Stephen Emond
Evan and Lucy, childhood best friends who grew apart after years of seeing one another only during Christmas break, begin a romance at age seventeen but his choice to mindlessly follow his father's plans for an Ivy League education rather than becoming the cartoonist he longs to be, and her more destructive choices in the wake of family problems, pull them apart.

Explorer: The Mystery Boxes - Kazu Kibuishi
An anthology of short graphic works on the theme of a mysterious box and the marvels, or mayhem, inside.

New Picture Books

I'll Save You Bobo! - Eileen Rosenthal
Willy writes a storybook starring Bobo in order to act out his revenge fantasies on Earl, who retaliates by continually wrecking Willy's stories until the duo realizes that they both have something in common.

Little Dog Lost - Monica Carnesi
A dog is rescued after days afloat on a sheet of ice in the Baltic Sea (based on a true story).

And Then It's Spring - Julie Fogliano
Simple text reveals the anticipation of a boy who, having planted seeds while everything around is brown, fears that something has gone wrong until, at last, the world turns green.

Frogs!: Strange and Wonderful - Laurence Pringle
An introduction to frogs including their life cycle.



Meet Me at the Moon - Gianna Marino
During a dry time, Mama leaves Little One alone while she climbs the highest mountain to ask the skies for rain, but she promises that her love will remain all around.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

New Health Teaching Aids

Pumping Heart Model
Demonstrates how the blood flows through the heart and into the lungs.

Healthy Helpings: A MyPlate Pocket Chart
28" square hanging pocket chart features 90 photo-illustrated food cards (with food groups on reverse for self-checking) and 2 back storage pockets.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

New Children's Books

Boy + Bot - Ame Dyckman
A boy and a robot strike up a friendship despite their differences.

Red Bird Sings - Gina Capaldi
Zitkala-Sa finds that she can sing through her music, but also by writing stories and giving speeches and being an activist for Native American rights.


Kite Day: A Bear and Mole Story - Will Hillenbrand
Bear and Mole build a kite and take it out on a windy day, but when the weather suddenly turns stormy there are unexpected consequences for some birds.

The Dunderheads Behind Bars - Paul Fleischman
The Dunderheads--a gang of misfits with unique and unusual talents--come to the aid of one of their own when Spider is falsely arrested for stealing jewelry.

The Obstinate Pen - Frank W. Dormer
Uncle Flood is very pleased with his new pen until he tries to write with it and finds that it writes only what it wants to for him, and the series of people who try it after him, until finally his nephew Horace tries something new.




Mooshka: A Quilt Story - Julie Paschkis
Karla's quilt Mooshka tells her stories about the pieces of fabric that Mooshka is made from, but when Karla's baby sister is born, Mooshka falls silent until Karla overcomes her jealousy and shares Mooshka with the baby.

Amelia Bedelia's First Vote - Herman Parish
When Amelia Bedelia runs into her principal, Mr. K., and plants the idea that students should vote on the rules, he decides that her class should be the first to come up with new ideas for running the school.

New YA Books

No Crystal Stair - Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
In this work of historical fiction, Nelson tells the story of a man with a passion for knowledge and of a bookstore whose influence has become legendary.

Master of Deceit: J. Edgar Hoover and America in the Age of Lies - Marc Aronson
An exploration of one of the most powerful Americans of the twentieth century unmasks the man behind the FBI, his family history, and relationships, and explores his own need for secrecy, deceit, and control, and the broad trends in society that shaped his world.

New YA Books

The Obsidian Blade - Pete Hautman
After thirteen-year-old Tucker Feye's parents disappear, he suspects that the strange disks of shimmering air that he keeps seeing are somehow involved, and when he steps inside of one he is whisked on a time-twisting journey trailed by a shadowy sect of priests and haunted by ghostlike figures.

Fear: A Gone Novel - Michael Grant
As the young residents of Perdido Beach begin to better comprehend the truths of who they are and their relationships to one another, the Darkness finds a new way to be born, bringing their understanding of fear to a new level.

Caddy's World - Hilary McKay
Twelve-year-old Caddy's world turns upside down when her father, Bill, temporarily becomes a stay at home "mom" and her best friends since kindergarten, Ali, Beth, and Ruby, begin to move in different directions.

The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict - Trenton Lee Stewart
Nine-year-old Nicholas Benedict, an orphan afflicted with an unfortunate nose and with narcolepsy, is sent to a new orphanage where he encounters vicious bullies, selfish adults, strange circumstances, and a mystery that could change his life forever.

New Health and Hygiene Books

5 Minute Activities for Elementary Students
These 5-minute lessons are to reinforce, introduce, or conclude lessons in hygiene and safety and to utilize brief learning opportunities in the classroom.







From the Looking After Me series

Teeth
Marta has a wobbly tooth. Her mother explains that all children have teeth that fall out, and new ones grow in their place. Marta learns all about how to clean her teeth and look after them so that they last her whole adult life.

Taking Medicine
Provides information about the different types of medicines and how to take them safely.

Safety
Molly is an adventurous little girl who never listens to her parents, disobeying all of their rules. One day, Molly gets lost and a strange man offers her a sweet. Teaches children how to stay safe.

Keeping Clean
In this playful lesson of the importance of cleaning up after playing dirty, Karim and Kurt--two little boys who hate bathing and keeping clean--visit the zoo and see how animals groom themselves.

Eating Well
Teaches the benefits of healthy eating.

Exercise
Tom and Emily learn how much fun exercise can be when their grandmother visits.

Monday, April 9, 2012

New Children's and YA Books

The Beetle Book - Steve Jenkins
An illustrated introduction to a variety of beetle species with information on unique characteristics and how these insects have adapted to survive.

Sadie and Ratz - Sonya Hartnett
Hannah and her hands, named Sadie and Ratz, regularly get into trouble, especially when younger brother Baby Boy is around.


The List - Siobhan Vivian
Every year at Mount Washington High School somebody posts a list of the prettiest and ugliest girls from each grade--this is the story of eight girls, freshman to senior, and how they are affected by the list.