Happy Thanksgiving

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kidz Korner

Hanukkah Books

 

 

 

 

 

Hanukkah(or Chanukkah) and Thanksgiving coincide this year and that won't happen again for 70,000 years!  This blog is especially dedicated to my friend, Janet's granddaughter, Lia!  Happy Hanukkah!!

 

 

 

The Hanukkah Mice by Steven Kroll

A little mouse family watches the Silman family celebrate Hanukkah on the very first night.  Rachel Silman gets a beautiful doll house for a gift and the mice are enchanted and sure it is just the right size for them. 

Each night another little gift appears in the house and the mice have a wonderful Hanukkah and a new house thanks to Rachel.

I loved the pictures in this book.  The little mice even wore yarmulkes!

I would read this book to kids 3-6.

 

 

 

 

Hanukkah: A Counting Book by Emily Sper

A simple book that has cutouts as each candle on the menorah is lit. A little one could use it to learn to count and an older child can learn the names of the numbers in Yiddish and Hebrew.  I would read this book to kids 1-8.

 The Chanukkah Guest by Eric A. Kimmel

 Bubba Brayna, is old, hard of hearing and has trouble seeing but everyone

loves to come to her house during Chanukkah to eat her latkes. When he
first visitor shows up, Bubba Brayna is sure it is the rabbi but it is a bear
who woke up from his winter sleep instead!  She entertains him and feeds
him and sends him on his way.  Then the real company shows up! A cute book about miscommunication with a happy ending. I would read this book to kids 5-8.

 Latkes, Latkes, Good to Eat by Naomi Howland

If you ever read the story of Strega Nona you will love this book which has

the same theme.  Sadie’s brothers refuse to gather wood for the fire so Sadie
goes herself and meets and old woman who gives her a magic pan and the
special words to make it work.  When Sadie’s brother overhears her speak
the words, he is sure he can make it work too. When Sadie is gone to find
the old woman, the brothers make latkes and more latkes and more latkes.
Find out how the happy ending comes about when you read this book. I would read this book to kids 4-8.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Daughter of Time by Sarah Woodbury

 

 

 

RATED 4.5 STARS

 

 

 

Meg’s abusive husband is dead, leaving the young woman with a 21/2 year old daughter to raise and living at home with her mother and sister.  When she takes her little girl, Anna, for ice cream one evening, Meg’s entire world is turned on its ear.

She loses control of her car and when she wakens, she has been saved by a man on a horse wearing a chain mail shirt.

How Meg adjusts to life in the 13^th century and how she falls in love with the Prince of Wales, Llwelyn ap Gruffydd is the subject of this time travel novel.
Meg is a modern woman thrown back into a very different time from her own yet she makes remarkable adjustments and accepts her fate.  She cares deeply for her little girl and keeps her by her side as much as possible.  When she decides to “marry” the Prince, her life becomes one of concern for her husband and strategic planning to keep the kingdom together.
Llwelyn is a very open minded 13^th century man. He is skeptical of Meg’s story of being from another time but he can’t deny the strong attraction he has for her and his growing love for the little girl, Anna.
All Princes and Kings are surrounded by a circle of men, some who are loyal and some who are false and Llwelyn is no exception.  Trying to figure out which men were going to betray him made for an intriguing part to the story. ,
The romance was straight forward and there was not a lot of sex making this story acceptable for young teens as well as adults.
My one criticism would be that there should have been a glossary of pronunciations for the cast of characters. The pronunciation guide that the author gives us is not very helpful.
All in all, I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more in the series.

 

Sarah Woodbury bio:

With two historian parents, Sarah couldn’t help but develop an interest in the past. She went on to get more than enough education herself (in anthropology) and began writing fiction when the stories in her head overflowed and demanded she let them out.  While her ancestry is Welsh, she only visited Wales for the first time while in college.  She has been in love with the country, language, and people ever since. She even convinced her husband to give all four of their children Welsh names.  She makes her home in Oregon.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Because

I am a complete turkey when it comes to all things technical, even something as easy as Rafflecopter.  In light of that, the raffle for Nancy Pennick's signed copy of Call of the Canyon will continue until December 7th!  No need to leave a comment just follow my blog and you're in! a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

 

 

KIDZ KORNER

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving  November 21, 2013

 

 

 

 

 

I love everything about Thanksgiving except the turkey.  I have to admit it isn’t my favorite, possibly it’s my least favorite.  I was a picky eater as a child.  So were my kids.  If you have a picky eater, don’t worry.  It all seems to work out in the end.

Here’s a little poem that was taught to me by a four year old so you can share it with your little ones.

Gobble,gobble said the turkey.

Soon will be Thanksgiving day.
OH, how you treat me!  Please don’t eat me!
I think I’ll run away.
GOBBLE,GOBBLE ,GOBBLE (Do your best turkey imitation here.)

In honor of the turkey, I present the following:

 One is a Feast for A Mouse by Judy Cox

 A mouse has his eye on a lone pea left over from the Thanksgiving feast.  He nabs it but he can’t resist to take just a little more of everything he sees.  In order to escape the family cat, he has to make a mad dash to his hidey hole and ends up with the feast fit for a mouse.  A great story for anyone whose eyes were ever bigger than their stomachs.  I would read this book to kids 3-6.

 

Arthur’s Thanksgiving by Marc Brown

Nobody wants to be a turkey in the school play that Arthur is in charge of. Not his friends, not his sister, not even his parents will take the party because who wants to be a turkey?  Well, Arthur bites the bullet and accepts his fate.  He will have to be the turkey.  There is a heart warming ending that shows how friends support friends, even if they are turkeys!  I would read this book to kids 4-8.

 One Tough Turkey  by Steven Kroll

Solomon is one smart bird. He sees those pilgrims headed his way so he protects his family as well as he can.  He puts up a sign, NO TURKEYS.  The pilgrims head for home but they aren’t fooled for long and when they return Solomon leads them on a wild goose chase straight to the briar patch.  That wiley turkey wins the day and the pilgrims have their feast without turkey.  I would read this book to kids 4-8.

 Gobble, Gobble by Cathryn Falwell

This is a serious look at the behaviors of wild turkeys throughout the year as told by a little girl who lives on a farm.  It’s a good chance to let your kids know that all turkeys don’t come from the grocery store!  Did you know that Benjamin Franklin thought the wild turkey should be our national bird?  How the bald eagle beat the wild turkey could make for a fun discussion.  I would read this book to kids 4-7.

Count your blessings and until next week, keep on reading!
P.S.  Next week, Kidz Korner will appear on Wednesday due to the holiday a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

RIP Barbara Park

Such a loss for all her fans.  Junie B. is crying today.

Barbara Park, a former class clown who channeled her irreverence into the million-selling mishaps of grade schooler Junie B. Jones, has died. She was 66. a Rafflecopter giveaway >