Emeraldalicious

In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day, Ivy has chosen Emeraldalicious by Victoria Kann.  Pinkalicious and her brother Peter visit their favorite park only to discover it is filled with trash.  Pinkalicious decides to make a wand out of an old stick, some flowers, and a vine.  Thrilled to discover the wand is magical, Pinkalicious and her brother make wishes and turn trash into treasures.  When Peter gets a little greedy with his wishes, Pinkalicious helps him remember that "green" wishes are really the best. A little bit of Earth Day and St. Patrick's Day magic rolled into one!

Happy Belated Valentine's Day

The Valentine Bears by Eve Bunting and Jan Brett is an adorable classic tale from the 1980s.  The Bears have never celebrated Valentine's Day together because they are always hibernating.  Mrs. Bear decides that this year will be different.  She has a special surprise; she just needs to wake up Mr. Bear from his slumber!  Will Mr. Bear have a surprise of his own?

The Secret of the First One Up

Lila, a young spirited groundhog, is just just not ready for bed.  As her Uncle Wilber tucks her in, he  mentions a special secret that is revealed to the first one up in the spring.  Lila is so excited she can barely fall asleep.  When she finds herself awake on Feb. 2nd, she is so thrilled she dashes Above Ground.  All the forest animals are awaiting her.  They curiously ask about her shadow.  She is disappointed when she cannot see her friend.  Where could her shadow be?  However, the forest animals are thrilled with the news.  Old badger explains the job of the first groundhog up, and Lila is excited to be part of the big secret.

My First Chinese New Year

Karen Katz, ruler supreme of toddler literature, has written a lovely book about Chinese New Year - My First Chinese New Year.  Two sisters prepare for the New Year by hanging decorations, cooking, sweeping, etc.  The celebration culminates in a parade in which the kids see "dragons".  Ivy is especially interested in this telling of the holiday because there is a big sister AND the dragon is not real!

Dim Sum for Everyone!

In an attempt to teach Ivy about different cultures, I decided to do some research on Chinese New Year's.  Dim Sum for Everyone by Grace Lin is a beautifully illustrated book about dim sum, or little dishes of food. Each member of the family chooses a small plate of food.  They then all enjoy a meal together.  The vivid colors and beautiful illustrations caused Ivy to ask me to read this five times tonight.  There is not much text - mainly pictures.  Ivy was especially thrilled to learn that one does not say thank you to the waiters - one just taps three fingers on the table!

Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad

Ivy was quite distraught I had to return Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad by Jackie Davis and David Soman to the library.  This book is perfect for both boys and girls, but it especially touches upon the often fragile relationship between young girls.  Lulu is expecting to have the perfect Bug Squad play date complete with cupcakes, rock painting, and a little exploration.  When Kiki does not do exactly what Lulu had in mind, hurt feelings arise.  Will Lulu be able to use her Ladybug Girl powers to help her apologize to her friend?

Kevin Henkes

Kevin Henkes is a favorite of Ivy's, but I think I have read Owen 15 times in the past few days.  Owen owns a fuzzy yellow blanket that accompanies him everywhere, much to the dismay of his parents and their nosey neighbor, Mrs. Tweezers.  As school rapidly approaches, Owen's parents try a myriad of ways (all suggested by the omniscient Mrs. Tweezers) to stop Owen from taking Fuzzy to school.  In the end, perhaps Fuzzy can go to school after all thanks to some quick thinking done by mom!  For anyone who has ever struggled growing up or giving up a favorite blankie...

If there is a book I have read more than Owen recently, it is Chrysanthemum.  Chrysanthemum absolutely loves her name.  She and her parents think it is perfect until...Chrysanthemum goes to school.  Some of the other girl mice giggle and say her name is too long.  After all, it does not even fit on a name tag!  After a few discouraging days at school, the poor little mouse hates her name.  Then, Mrs. Twinkle, the music teacher, arrives at school and dazzles the mice with her voice.  Will she be able to turn things around for a poor, broken-hearted mouse?