Gone Fishin' (Ice Fishin', It Would Seem)

I'm taking some March Break respite this week, but I though I would leave you with a pair of fun new books I found recently and wanted to share with you. (And when I say new, it's likely to be 2006-7, just so's you know.)

Chicky Chicky Chook Chook, by Cathy MacLennan

This one makes me think of my darling Mrs. Chicky every time. (If you don't know her, you should - she's kind of an honorary MBTer, but lives too far away to join the fun for real.) Anyhow, apart from reminding me of Chicky Chicky Baby, this book is the kind of crazy, silly nonsense that makes even the most staid of parent don their silly hats and voices and run amok. The language is all about sound, lending itself perfectly to bolstering the teaching of phonetics: Sunny, sunny, hot shine. Snuggle, snuggle, sleepy shine. Lazy... dozy. Snoozy...woooooozy. This all blends with the animals and their actions in a manner both descriptive and romping. The paintings are unusual, too, with soft-edged blobs of colour, bold splashes and lines, and details that cross cute and amusing, all splayed out across pages of brown paper. Really, it's a fun trip through this book.

The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians, by Carla Morris, ill. Brad Sneed

Melvin was a library kid, one of those ones who hangs around a lot and gets to know the librarians, without being a nuisance - the ones we librarians think are kind of neat, actually. The ones who are curious, who talk to grownups, and who like to share. The librarians in his library love Melvin, and help him in his hobbies, his school projects, and his role in the school play. They help him prepare to win the spelling bee and the science fair, and to be on a Tv trivia show for kids. He worked there in high school, wrote them letters from university, and one day, joined them, helping a new little curious boy identify his grasshopper (a redlegged grasshopper, to be exact). This book captures the joy we take in looking stuff up, in encouraging curiosity, and in seeing kids learn to think for themselves. In short, every blissfully nerdy thing about librarians and the kids we love the best is laid bare here by the author, a librarian herself, and dressed up in fun illustrations for sharing. My only quibble with this? What library has three librarians, all on the desk at the same time, and all with time to help a kid sort his baseball cards?

Find great stories and a ton of March Break fun at your local library this week!

Originally posted on MommyBlogsToronto/Better Than a Playdate.