Bookworm for Kids

These new books are highly recommended for home and school libraries.

New Books for Younger Kids

Oh No!: Or How My Science Project Destroyed the World
by Mac Barnett, Dan Santat
Ages 4–8
When an overly ambitious girl builds a robot for her science project, things get hilariously out of hand very quickly. Speech bubbles tell the tale in this nearly-wordless book as our heroine tries unsuccessfully to control her prize-winning entry in this action-packed kids-eye account of girl versus machine.

What the Ladybug Heard
by Julia Donaldson, Lydia Monks
Ages 2–6
All the animals in this colorful barnyard have plenty to say, except the silent ladybug, until she overhears a plot to steal the prize cow. The clever ladybug comes up with a plan to foil the robbers and save the cow, instructing each animal to mimic the sound of another animal. The lilting rhyming text and exuberant illustrations invite young listeners to join in the chorus.

Mary Mae and the Gospel Truth
by Sandra Dutton
Ages 8–12
Mary Mae (10) loves to sing hymns, go to church, and learn about trilobites in school. Her 5th grade teacher encourages Mary Mae’s inquiring mind, but her mother, who believes in the Bible version of creation, is horrified by Mary Mae’s questions about how the earth looked millions of years ago. Mary Mae’s mother threatens home schooling and Mary Mae has to decide if she will side with science and her teacher, with God and her mother, or somewhere in between. All the caring adults in Mary Mae’s life try to provide truthful guidance in this book that respects both viewpoints as well as those in the middle.

Amazing Faces
poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins, illustrated by Chris Soentpiet
Ages 6–up
This collection of poems includes character sketches and descriptions of multi-cultural people from all over the United States. Soentpiet’s beautifully lifelike and detailed watercolor illustrations zoom in on the faces of the wide variety of people and scenes depicted in the poems.

The Pirate of Kindergarten
by George Ella Lyon, Lynne Avril
Ages 4–8
Ginny loves Kindergarten, even though the other kids sometimes laugh when she bumps into things or reads lines of text twice. Finally the nurse during Vision Screening Day discovers that Ginny has double vision and the doctor gives her a temporary eye patch. Ginny happily wears the eye patch and transforms herself into a “Kindergarten Pirate” suddenly able to draw, cut, and read with ease. This empathetic book humorously presents the disorienting alienation of those who see the world differently.

Subway
by Christoph Niemann
Ages 2–5
Two children and their father, drawn as transit map stick figures, spend a rainy day exploring New York subway routes. The bright gouache illustrations, color-coded to match the appropriate subway line, pop out from the solid black background in this celebration of public transportation.

The Dancing Pancake
by Eileen Spinelli, Joanne Lew-Vriethoff
Ages 8–12
Bindi (11) had a normal and happy life until her parents announced they were separating. After her father moves to another city, Bindi’s mother and aunt open a diner, The Dancing Pancake, to make ends meet. Told entirely in verse from Bindi’s perspective, this accessible book presents Bindi’s struggles to deal with her new reality and her wildly changing emotional state in a light-hearted way.

A Sick Day for Amos McGee
by Philip Christian Stead, Erin Stead
Ages 2–6
Elderly zookeeper Amos McGee always makes time in his busy day to spend time with the animals. He plays chess with the elephant, reads to the owl, and sits quietly with the penguin. When Amos catches a cold and can’t come to work, the animals miss him and pile onto the bus to pay him a visit, each offering a small kindness in return. Erin Stead’s delicate woodblock prints perfectly complement this gentle story of quiet affection.

City Dog, Country Frog
by Mo Willems, Jon J Muth
Ages 4–8
City Dog, enthusiastic about his new life without a leash, meets Country Frog in the spring and the two frolic throughout the summer and fall. But winter finds Country Frog’s favorite rock empty. In the spring, City Dog meets a new friend and extends the same welcome he received from Country Frog. Beautiful watercolors expand the emotional depth of this simple story about the transitory nature of the seasons and the cycle of life.

New Books for Older Kids

Sir Charlie: Chaplin, the Funniest Man in the World
by Sid Fleischman
Ages 9–12
Photographs and newspaper clippings enliven this sympathetic biography of the great silent film star whose career ended with the introduction of sound to movies. Chaplin was one of Fleischman’s idols, and his admiration for Chaplin’s humor will motivate young readers to seek out some of the silent film gems listed in the filmography.

Picture the Dead
by Adele Griffin, Lisa Brown
Ages 12–up
When Jennie’s twin brother dies in the Civil War in 1864, Jennie feels his loss like a wound. A year later, her cousin Quinn arrives home to Massachusetts with the news that his brother Will, Jennie’s fiancé, is also dead. Quinn, who is much changed by the war, begins to court Jennie, who responds though she senses that something mysterious surrounds Will’s death. Jennie is haunted by both her dead brother and Will, and suffers a recurring sensation of being choked. Newspaper clippings, scrapbook entries, and black-and-white drawings illustrate Jennie’s first person narration in this effective gothic ghost story portraying a country recovering from the horrors and loss of war.

The Last Best Days of Summer
by Valerie Hobbs
Ages 10–14
Lucy (12) is highly influenced by her friend Megan, who gives her tips about how to be popular in junior high, including not being friendly with Eddie, a boy with Down syndrome. Lucy eagerly heads off to her annual trip to her grandmother’s lake cabin, anxious to escape her over-protective parents and enjoy doing all her favorite summer things with Grams. But Grams isn’t acting like herself (early Alzheimer’s) and Eddie shows up expecting Lucy to be the friend she’s always been. This thoughtful coming-of-age story is simply and effectively told.

Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour
by Morgan Matson
Ages 12–up
The summer after her junior year Amy is still grieving the loss of her father in a car accident. Her mother has decided to move the family from California to Connecticut, and has given Amy the task of driving the family car to their new home. But Amy won’t drive since the accident. Luckily Roger, the 19 year old son of a family friend, is on his way to visit relatives in Philadelphia and volunteers to chauffeur Amy and the car across the country. Along the way, Roger helps Amy confront her grief and guilt about her father’s death, and she helps him recover from a painful breakup.

The Wager
by Donna Jo Napoli
Ages 12–up
Set in 1169, this novel tells the story of Don Giovanni, a wealthy 19-year-old orphan who suddenly loses his riches and his castle in a tidal wave and is reduced to begging for food to survive. The devil appears to offer a wager—if Don Giovanni agrees not to bathe or change his clothes for three years, three months, and three days, he will receive a purse that magically refills. Giovanni’s descent into foul decay and eventual redemption is colorfully portrayed in this retelling of a traditional Italian fairy tale.

As Easy as Falling Off the Face of the Earth
by Lynne Rae Perkins
Ages 12–up
Ry (16) discovers that his summer camp has been cancelled. When he steps off the train to call his grandfather, the train leaves without him. Unfortunately Ry’s grandfather has suffered a concussion and is missing, and Ry can’t reach his parents, whose cell phone has been stolen by a monkey as they sailing around the Caribbean, so Ry is on his own. He meets Del, a helpful stranger who offers to drive Ry home to Wisconsin, and then to rescue Ry’s parents. Told from all three viewpoints, including a comic strip version from the dogs staying with Ry’s grandfather, this humorous misadventure is delightful.

Bamboo People
by Mitali Perkins
Ages 11–14
Chiko (15) is pressed into military service by the Burmese government. A scholar rather than a soldier by nature, Chiko finds himself involved in the ongoing war against the Karenni people, one of the many ethnic minorities in modern Myanmar (formerly Burma). Chiko is wounded and found by Tu Reh, an angry Karenni teen. Told from both perspectives, this novel shows both teens struggling with the prejudices of culture and class. Themes of family, friendship, and the circumstances of war are explored in this accessible story.

Somebody Everybody Listens To
by Suzanne Supplee
Ages 12–up
Encouraged by her best friend and biggest fan, recent high school graduate Retta Lee Jones sets off to Nashville to make her name in country music. Living in the car she borrowed from her grandmother, Retta tries to make her hard-earned waitressing money last as long as possible as she searches for a way to break into the completive music scene. Biographical notes about other music stars who overcame great odds to become successful introduce each chapter, giving Retta (and readers) hope that dreams can come true.

Glimpse
by Carol Lynch Williams
Ages 12–up
Hope (12) is horrified when her sister Lizzie (14) tries to shoot herself. Lizzie becomes an elective mute and is institutionalized and Hope desperately tries to understand what has happened. Ever since their father died, Hope and Lizzie relied on each other. Their mother is a reluctant parent at best, turning tricks to support the family and her dependence on alcohol. Narrated in blank verse from Hope’s perspective, flashbacks fill in the girls’ past. The appalling truth is finally revealed when Hope reads Lizzie’s diary in this lyrical yet heartbreaking novel.