The Worst Princess

Another princess book? Another anti-princess book? Princesses are all the rage. Ivy just adored this new book by Anna Kemp. Sue, your standard princess awaiting Prince Charming, is beyond excited when he finally arrives. Horrified to learn that she is expected to sit in a tower (she just left one) and try on dresses all day (she already did that), she finds an unexpected friend in a dragon. Both commiserate and discuss the fact that the prince is a "twit". The ending left Ivy giggling with joy. She has read it three times tonight.

Atticus' Corner

Don't forget to check out Ivy's brother's favorites!

http://atticuscorner13.blogspot.com/

The Dandelion's Tale

Kevin Sheehan and Rob Dunlavey have teamed up to create a lovely new yarn, The Dandelion's Tale. An adorable sparrow befriends a dying dandelion with only ten seed pods left. She worries she will be forgotten forever.

The two decide the best way for Dandelion to be remembered is to tell her stories to sparrow who will lovingly etch them into the earth with her beak. Sparrow dutifully writes the poetic words of Dandelion. Sadly that very night Dandelion passes away during a summer storm. Sparrow sings a song of sorrow, but is pulled out of her sorrow with a special realization. Ivy and I just loved this book.

The Bobbsey Twins and the Ghost in the Computer

80's flashback alert - I had to explain to Ivy what a floppy disk was when we read this Bobbsey Twin paperback. Ivy just adored this adventure. She felt it was just packed with excitement...clowns, ghosts, hidden formulas, and even a tree house. What's not to love? The Bobbsey twins befriend young Rodney Blake, a boy with a passion for computers, on the day of the school's fun fair. When a ghost is spotted at the school, Freddy's prize is stolen, and Bimbo the clown disappears, the plot begins to thicken. Although not as well written as a mother would like, Ivy is just loving these paperback Bobbseys. She is also learning a lot of words related to solving crimes. A little sleuth in the making.

The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes

Dubose Heyward's classic was one of my favorites when I was Ivy's age. The illustrations are so lovely, and the story itself is heartwarming. A brown country bunny had always dreamed of being one of the five Easter Bunnies. However, she grew up to have 21 children and was so busy she felt her dream would never come true. She raised each of the babies to learn a specific chore to help the household run smoothly - I think this is Ivy's favorite part.

One day she took the bunnies to see the new Easter Bunny be chosen. What happens next will have to be found out when you read The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes.

Surprise Island: Boxcar Children #2

I never read the Boxcar Children as a child, but I really wish I had. Ivy just adores the resourcefulness of these children. Each book is a mystery, but the mystery is not as important as how the children are able to survive on their own. Ivy loves to think of the talents of each of the young heroines. Henry is the builder, Jessie is the cook, Violet the musician/artist, and Benny is the finder of childhood fun. One of her favorite games is to play the Boxcar Children. Atticus is, of course, Benny. I am Jessie, and Ivy is Violet. Matt is Henry, who is often away building something or foraging for food. In this book, the children are left to summer alone on Surprise Island. They befriend the handyman, Joe, but there is something special about him that makes the children think he is more than he appears to be. Also, the children have discovered numerous Native American artifacts while on the island. If they let the public know, will Surprise Island be overrun with curious tourists? Read to find out more about the Boxcar Children in this Gertrude Chandler Warner classic. 

The Right Word: Roget and his Thesaurus

Ivy really enjoyed this new book about Peter Mark Roget, creator of Roget's Thesaurus. Replete with lovely illustrations of Roget's life, this picture book tells of the remarkable creation of the thesaurus, or "treasure house" in Greek. Each page contains pictures with little word bubbles filled with synonyms, reminding us that we can always turn to a thesaurus to find the right word...