A Long Road on a Short Day

A Long Road on a Short Day by Gary Schmidt and Elizabeth Stickney is a very short chapter book that is worthwhile read for all ages.  Samuel and his father set out one snowy day in search of a cow for their family.  On the way, they stop to visit many people, and eventually do end up with a cow, and a surprise for Samuel, too.  The story reminded me a little of the game bigger and better, where you start out with a toothpick and you keep trading up until you get something very large.

The Nature of Yosemite

 

The Nature of Yosemite: A Visual Journey by Robb Hirsch is a book for all ages.  This oversized book has landscape photos of Yosemite, as well as close ups of plants and animals.  The photos make me want to go back to Yosemite, or at least get to some of the other national parks that are closer to me.

The Winter King

The Winter King by Christine Cohen is one of my recent reads.  Cora lives in a kingdom where winter makes things even more difficult for everyone.  She is tired of being cursed and poor so she tries to find some answers in hopes that her family can survive.  This book is worth reading if you are 10 or older, even if don't usually read fantasy.

Little Red Ruthie

Little Red Ruthie by Gloria Koster and illustrated by Sue Eastland is a twist on the traditional Red Riding story worth looking for at your library.  Ruthie goes to visit her grandma for Hanukkah to make latkes.  On her trip, she encounters a wolf.  Ruthie outsmarts the wolf in this clever tale and gets to enjoy the holiday with her grandmother.  A good book for this time of year to help children understand a little about another culture, or a book to add to a collection of Little Red Riding Hood stories.  

Norway

Norway by Udo Bernhart, Rasso Knoller and Christian Nowak is a book for anyone who enjoys a good photography book or anyone who would like to travel to Norway.  There is very little text and lots of high quality photos.  This is only one in the series of Spectacular Places.  Some other titles in the series include Sweden, Guatemala, The Alps, Switzerland, and The Mountains. 

Cookie Boo

Cookie Boo written and illustrated by Ruth Paul is a fun book for the season.  Written with short rhyming sentences, it should keep the attention of preschool students.  Older children who celebrate Halloween would likely enjoy it as well.  In the story, seven decorated sugar cookies escape from the cookie tin when Monster opens it.  They have lots of fun scaring others, but then encounter the Monster who is interested in eating them.

The Boy Who Grew a Forest

The Boy Who Grew a Forest is written by Sophia Gholz and illustrated by Kayla Harren.  

This book tells the true story of Jadav Payeng, a boy from India who noticed that the lack of trees caused other problems.  After talking with the elders of his village, he planted a few trees.  He cared for them as they grew.  He kept at it, making a big difference a little at the time.  The thing that stood out to me was the way his steps seemed small, but with effort and patience, his work had a tremendous effect.  Any age of elementary students would enjoy this story, and it could be used for a read aloud in a science class for middle and high school students as well.  

Seaside Stroll

Seaside Stroll by Charles Trevino and illustrated by Maribel Lechuga is a great book to share with children.  The girl and her mom go to the sea one snowy afternoon and experience the beach, including losing her doll.  I enjoyed the story, but I especially appreciated the skill the author had in telling the story with words only beginning with the letter S.

50 Little Gifts

50 Little Gifts complied by Susanne Woods is a book worth looking at if you are interested in sewing some hand made gifts.  I have made some of the projects.  

One idea that was unique to the book was the memory game.

This little basket is another project that went together quickly.

I also made a water bottle holder.  

More projects in the book are a checkbook cover, a variety of bags and pouches, a baby bib, and a few pincushions.  

twenty years ago

 

Twenty years ago today, I was walking on the Great Wall of China with my sister Anita.  That's me in the red tee, white cap and sunglasses.  The things that I remember the most are the crowds, the heat and humidity, and the vendors selling bottles of cold water.

The Secret World of Weather

The Secret World of Weather by Tristan Gooley is a worthwhile read.  If you live in a place where the weather changes often, the people talk about the weather, or the weather affects your daily activities, you would learn something useful.  It would also be a good book to read if you are a science teacher or a naturalist.  Parts of it was easier to understand than others, but I plan to reread parts of it, especially the parts about clouds, trees, and precipitation.  It made me realize there are a lot more things that an average person can pay attention to and understand about the weather without listening to a forecast. 

more than books

If you have not been to your local public library lately, I would suggest you stop by.  Of course, there are plenty of books, but many libraries have increased the variety of things you can check out with your library card.  

My library now has disc golf sets (five plus a carrying bag) you can check out for a week.

You can check out a mobile hotspot for a week as well.

Or a Minnesota state park pass.  

There are also telescopes, board game kits, and a try it yourself ukelele kit in my regional library system.

Does your library have any of these sorts of things?  

Whose House is That?

 Whose House Is That? by Stan Tekiela makes an excellent addition to any home or classroom library.  Tekiela describes in a few sentences a home of a wild animal and shows a photograph of the home.  On the folllowing page, there is a photo of the animal in it's home, along with more information about the animal.  All of the animals are from Minnesota.  If you enjoy this book, you can look for more by Tekiela, including his books for children like Whose Track is That? and The Kids' Guide to Birds of Minnesota, or his guides for wildflowers, trees, or birds of different states.

Sewing

One thing nice about summer is chunks of time to sew when I am not tired from teaching.  I made a few zipper pouches this summer for gifts-this one was my favorite.

I also am working on two different quilt tops.  The pinwheels are going to be a quilt for me.

 This quilt is going to be a graduation gift.