New Audio/Visual Materials

Music

Australian Playground
A musical adventure to Australia with fun songs about kangaroos, boomerangs, didgeridoos and so much more.




DVDs

VeggieTales - Beauty and the Beet: A Lesson in Unconditional Love
Mirabelle and her traveling family band are determined to make their next gig at Vegetable Square Garden. On their journey, a winter storm hits, and they get stuck at a run-down resort. Mr. Beet, the grumpy manager makes them sing and clean for their supper. Why is Mr. Beet such a beast? And can Mirabelle's kindness change him? Find out in the hilarious and heartwarming tale of unconditional love.

Children and Grief: Children Teaching Children About Grief
Ten children share their personal stories of what it is like to experience the death of a family member. They discuss grief and loss, and how they are coping and healing.




Frenemies: Unhealthy Friendships and What to Do About Them
"What is a frenemy? How can you recognize a frenemy? How can a frenemy hurt you? Can you fix a relationship with a frenemy? When do walk away from a friendship? This video and print curriculum explores friendships gone awry and provides elementary students with strategies for coping with difficult friendships."

More New Picture Books

My Grandfather's Coat - Jim Aylesworth
A tailor's very old overcoat is recycled numerous times over the years into a variety of garments and other uses.


Sam and Dave Dig a Hole - Mac Barnett
Sam and Dave are sure they will discover something exciting if they just keep digging their hole.

Lion, Lion - Miriam Busch
A young boy encounters a lion while trying to find his pet cat--meeting a number of other animals along the way.


Once Upon an Alphabet: Short Stories for All the Letters - Oliver Jeffers
"From an Astronaut who's afraid of heights, to a Bridge that ends up burned between friends, to a Cup stuck in a cupboard and longing for freedom, this series of interconnected stories and characters explores the alphabet."-- Provided by publisher


Strongheart: The World's First Movie Star Dog - Emily Arnold McCully
When silent movie director Larry Trimble decides to put Strongheart, a police dog, into his movies as the lead actor, he must first train him to play with toys and walk like a regular dog, but Strongheart becomes a sensation until his military training leads to trouble, and possibly the end of his career. Includes author's note on the real Strongheart.

Pardon Me! - Daniel Miyares
A bird tries to keep his spot to himself only to discover that spot is not so safe.

Jim Curious: A Voyage to the Heart of the Sea - Matthias Picard
Presents a three-dimensional story about a young boy named Jim Curious who makes a thrilling trip to the bottom of ocean all by himself and includes two sets of 3-D glasses.


Blizzard - John Rocco
After a massive blizzard, a boy becomes a hero when he manages to walk to the local store and bring supplies back to his neighborhood which has been snowed in for days. Based on the author's childhood experience.


Aviary Wonders Inc.: Spring Catalog and Instruction Manual - Kate Samworth
In a future when deforestation and other environmental factors have caused many bird species to go extinct, businessman Alfred Wallis offers a catalog of parts for creating replacements, from hand-carved beaks to Italian-leather feet.

New Picture Books

Little Green Peas: A Big Book of Colors - Keith Baker
Little green peas make their way into collections of objects of many different colors, from blue boats, seas, and flags, to orange balloons, umbrellas, and fizzy drinks.

Draw! - Raúl Colón
In this wordless picture book, a boy who is confined to his room fills his sketch pad with lions and elephants, then imagines himself on a safari.

Gaston - Kelly DiPucchio
A proper bulldog raised in a poodle family and a tough poodle raised in a bulldog family meet one day in the park.


A Perfectly Messed-up Story - Patrick McDonnell
Louie becomes angry when the story in which he appears is ruined by messes from jelly, peanut butter, and other things that do not belong in books.

This is a Moose - Richard T. Morris
Director Billy Waddler is trying to film a documentary about moose, but the moose in question has no intention of spending his life in the woods and his animal friends, who have dreams of their own, help him prove his point.

Is There a Dog in This Book? - Viviane Schwarz
Can cats and dogs share the same turf? Revisit the age-old dilemma with a hide-and-seek romp among furry friends.

Horton and the Kwuggerbug and More Lost Stories - Dr. Seuss
"A collection of 'lost' stories written and illustrated by Dr. Seuss and published in magazines in the 1950s. Includes an introduction by Seuss scholar Charles D. Cohen."-- Provided by publisher


1 to 20, Animals Aplenty - Katie Viggers
"The new book from Katie Viggers, author of Almost an Animal Alphabet, teaches kids to count from 1 to 20 as they meet a menagerie of amusing creatures."-- Provided by publisher

Mix It Up! - Hervé Tullet
Using no special effects other than the reader's imagination, simple directions lead the reader to experiment with mixing and changing colors on the printed page.

Nonfiction

Junk Drawer Physics:50 Awesome Experiments That Don't Cost a Thing - Bobby Mercer
A children's instructional book on how to use readily available materials to turn the house into a science lab Physics teacher Bobby Mercer provides readers with more than 50 great hands-on experiments that can be performed for just pennies, or less. Turn a plastic cup into a pinhole camera using waxed paper, a rubber band, and a thumbtack. Build a swinging wave machine using a series of washers suspended on strings from a yardstick.

Nonfiction Picture Books

Nest - Jorey Hurley
A simple depiction of a year in the life of a bird.

Eye to Eye: How Animals See the World - Steve Jenkins
Profiles a series of animals with unusual eyes and explains how such animals use their uniquely evolved eyes to gain essential information about the biological world.


Who Was Here? Discovering Wild Animal Tracks - Mia Posada
Study the picture and read the clues to figure which animal left each set of tracks.

Malala: A Brave Girl From Pakistan/Iqbal: A Brave Boy from Pakistan - Jeanette Winter
A picture-book biography of two young Pakistani heroes--Malala Yousafzai and Iqbal Masih.

Fiction for Middle and High Schoolers

Middle School

Vango: Between Sky and Earth - Timothée de Fombelle
In a world between wars, a young man on the cusp of taking priestly vows is suddenly made a fugitive. Fleeing the accusations of police who blame him for a murder, as well as more sinister forces with darker intentions, Vango attempts to trace the secrets of his shrouded past and prove his innocence before all is lost.

Loot: How to Steal a Fortune - Jude Watson
When Alfie McQuinn, the notorious jewel thief, is killed on a job, his last words to his son, March, are to "find jewels" and this instruction leads the boy to Jules, the twin sister he never knew he had--and the perfect partner to carry on the family business.


Blood of Olympus - Rick Riordan
The Greek and Roman demigods must simultaneously prevent the earth mother, Gaea, from waking and stop war from breaking out at Camp Half-Blood.

Young Adult

Wintergirls - Laurie Halse Anderson
Eighteen-year-old Lia comes to terms with her best friend's death from anorexia as she struggles with the same disorder.

The Rule of Thoughts - James Dashner
Sequel to 'Eye of Minds'. Michael and his friends, Sarah and Bryson, are still being chased by a cyber-terrorist. And now the government is after them, too.


The Young Elites - Marie Lu
Adelina Amouteru survived the blood fever, a deadly illness that killed many, but left others with strange markings and supernatural powers. Cast out by her family, Adelina joins the secret society of the Young Elites and discovers her own dangerous abilities.

Crazy - Linda Vigen Phillips
While growing up in the 1960s, Laura uses art to cope with her mother's mental illness.


The Infinite Sea - Rick Yancey
Sequel to The 5th Wave. Cassie Sullivan and her companions lived through the Others' four waves of destruction. Now, with the human race nearly exterminated and the 5th Wave rolling across the landscape, they face a choice: brace for winter and hope for Evan Walker's return, or set out in search of other survivors before the enemy closes in.

Elementary Fiction

The Madman of Piney Woods - Christopher Paul Curtis
Even though it is now 1901, the people of Buxton, Canada (originally a settlement of runaway slaves) and Chatham, Canada are still haunted by two events of half a century before--the American Civil War, and the Irish potato famine, and the lasting damage those events caused to the survivors

Explorer: The Hidden Doors - Edited by Kazu Kbuishi
A bullied boy discovers a door guarded by a sly monster . . . A painting of a door opens in a forgotten Egyptian tomb . . . A portal in the park promises to turn you into a much cooler version 2.0--if you can just get the bugs out. (From publisher's web site)


Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul - Jeff Kinney
The Heffley family road trip starts off full of promise, then quickly takes several wrong turns--with everything from a fender bender to crazed seagulls--but even the worst road trip can turn into an adventure, and this is one the Heffleys will not soon forget.


The Red Pencil - Andrea David Pinkney
After her tribal village is attacked by militants, Amira, a young Sudanese girl, must flee to safety at a refugee camp, where she finds hope and the chance to pursue an education in the form of a single red pencil and the friendship and encouragement of a wise elder.


365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Browne's Book of Precepts - R.J. Polacio
A book of precepts, with one saying for each day, from Auggie's teacher Mr. Brown from the book, Wonder.

More New Holiday & Seasonal Materials!

The Twelve Days of Christmas in Ohio - Carole Gerber
Megan writes a letter home each of the twelve days she spends exploring the state of Indiana at Christmastime, as her cousin Matt shows her everything from Amish buggies to speeding snowmobilers. Includes facts about Ohio.

Winter is Coming - Tony Johnston
Each day, from September through November, brings glimpses of forest animals seeking food in preparation for the onset of winter, from a fox sniffing the last apple on the ground to a flock of wild turkeys that finds nothing.


Santa Clauses: Short Poems from the North Pole - Bob Raczka
Twenty-five haiku give readers a fresh, humorous perspective on Santa's December preparations, and rich illustrations pull readers into every wintry scene.

Beautiful Yetta's Hanukkah Kitten - Daniel Pinkwater
In English with some Yiddish and Spanish text. Yiddish and Spanish texts include phonetic pronunciation.


Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold - Joyce Sidman
In this outstanding picture book collection of poems by Newbery Honor-winning poet, Joyce Sidman ("Song of the Water Boatman," " Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night"), discover how animals stay alive in the wintertime and learn about their secret lives happening under the snow. Paired with stunning linoleum print illustrations by Rick Allen, that celebrate nature's beauty and power.--From the publisher

The Dreidel That Wouldn't Spin: A Toyshop Tale of Hanukkah - Martha Seif Simpson
The most beautiful dreidel a shopkeeper has ever seen will not spin for the two children who insist they must own it, but perhaps it would spin for a child with the true spirit of Hanukkah in his heart.


DVDs

A Charlie Brown Christmas (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
Feeling that the Christmas message is getting lost amid all the seasonal glitter, Charlie Brown has the blues. But when he takes Lucy's advice and tries desperately to organize a Christmas pageant, nothing seems to go his way. Join Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang as they discover for themselves the true meaning of Christmas.

New Christmas Books

And Then Comes Christmas - Tom Brenner
A story that celebrates the signs of the approaching season--from icicles clinging to roofs and houses strung with colorful lights to visiting Santa and hunting for the perfect tree.

The Animals' Santa - Jan Brett
A rabbit named Little Snow is celebrating his first Christmas, and after all the forest animals tell him about the animals' Santa, he is excited to wake up on Christmas morning to find his own surprise.

Shooting at the Stars: The Christmas Truce of 1914 - John Hendrix
In 1914 France, a British soldier writes to his mother about the strange events of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, when German and Allied soldiers met on neutral ground to share songs, food, and fun. Includes historical notes.

Simon and the Bear: A Hanukkah Tale - Eric A. Kimmel
Stranded on an iceberg on his way to America, Simon remembers his mother's parting words and lights the first candle on his menorah while praying for a miracle, which soon arrives in the form of a friendly polar bear.


Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - 75th Anniversary Edition - Robert L. May
Although the other reindeer laugh at him because of his bright red nose, Rudolph proves his worth when he is chosen to lead Santa Claus' sleigh on a foggy night.


Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - The Classic Story Based on the Original
Television Classic
Share the classic story of Rudolph with his glowing nose, an elf named Hermey who dreams of becoming a dentist, the prospector Yukon Cornelius, the Island of Misfit Toys, and the scary Abominable Snow Monster.

The Night Before Christmas - Clement C. Moore
A well-known poem about an important Christmas Eve visitor.


'Twas Nochebuena: A Christmas Story in English and Spanish - Roseanne Greenfield Thong
Explores Latin American traditions for celebrating Christmas Eve in a text that combines English and Spanish words and follows the rhythm of Clement Moore's "The Night Before Christmas".

Here Come Santa Cat - Deborah Underwood
Cat wants off Santa's naughty list and makes several valiant attempts, but this 'being nice' business is trickier than he thought.