A book for your 9+ year old boy

Let's face it, boys are hard to keep engaged with books. Boys want to be active. Boys want to be physical. Boys don't want to seem "sissy". Well, by accident I stumbled across a series for boys that I think they will enjoy - Speed Racer. I never saw the movie that was released last year, but I certainly watched the cartoon when I was a kid (we won't specify how long ago THAT was!). The illustrations and writing took me back to my childhood. I could "see" the cartoon in my head while I read it.

Book 1 in the series, "The Great Plan", is all about how Speed began to race. It also introduces the characters to the uninitiated. I was a little disappointed that Racer X wasn't introduced - although he was in the "Bonus Race Story" included at the end of the book. What I liked is that it is obvious who the good guys and bad guys are - they might as well be wearing white and black hats. If your son is like my son then he would love this book. Matt loves cars, racing and cheering on the good guys.

If you want to relive YOUR childhood, read it out loud together! The chapters are short and would only take minutes to read each one.

Miss Stacey says on your mark, get set....READ!

Pick up a copy of "Speed Racer - The Great Plan" by clicking here

Find the Duck

When Matt was just a toddler, a friend was getting rid of some old books her children had outgrown and passed on "Find the Duck" to us.

I fell in love with the drawings and loved helping Matt find the little rubber duck on each page. At the back of the book there are additional characters for the child to find throughout the book. It also includes a page with some simple counting. I think it's a great book for the 1-year-old into kindergarten child. At an Usborne party I hosted a 6-year-old girl loved this book so much she wanted to get it for her little sister.

This was the book that introduced me to Usborne Books and Stephen Cartwright's illustrations. I love both now.

Click Here to get your own copy of "Find The Duck" from Miss Stacey's bookstore

Encourage Reading with a Book Allowance

I'm always looking for new and interesting ways to put books in the hands of young readers and I hope you give this idea some thought.

Do your children get an allowance? How about offering them a book allowance?

This would be money that your kids use just to buy books. If finances allow, it would be great if this wasn't tied to chores. Let them earn their "fun" money - the money they use for music, video games, movies, etc. Think about it, you give them money for important things such as lunch, clothes, shoes - why not books? If you encourage them to buy a book, whether or not they've "earned" it, they will understand that reading IS important.

"There are many little ways to enlarge your child's world. Love of books is the best of all." — Jacqueline Kennedy

Matt's Pick of the Month: Patrick's Dinosaurs on the Internet

This was a birthday gift to Matt and he loves it! It is also a favorite of the little boy who gave it to him. This is a cute book about a little boy who, while trying to fall asleep (or is already asleep?) is contacted by a dinosaur from outer space. He is taken on the spaceship and travels to another planet where they all live. There isn't any "learning" in this book - you won't learn about dinosaurs or space - but it does help develop the love of storytelling!

It is a great book to read to your child and one that they will enjoy reading themselves when they are able.

Classics

My favorite book of all time is "Jane Eyre". I read it every couple of years. Having said that, I must admit that the first time I tried to read it I couldn't finish it. I just couldn't get through it. The sad thing was it was a Reader's Digest Condensed Book! The language bogged me down. A few years passed and I tried again. By that time I had matured and I could appreciate everything about the book.

I have discovered the Usborne Classic Collection and have to recommend these books to introduce kids to the classics. I just finished "Jane Eyre", "Tom Sawyer" and "Moby Dick". Never having read the original "Tom Sawyer" I can't compare the versions, but I can say that I liked it, a lot. Boys would really enjoy it (as well as a certain 10 year old girl I know who recently read it also!). "Jane Eyre" was only missing the formal English language and phrasing. The only condensing I found was that some of the conversations were just summarized. In other words, the very things that can intimidate a young reader were omitted. These books should help smooth the transition to the original works. After reading "Moby Dick" I am actually planning on reading the original - I enjoyed it that much! I found it a little slow to start, but once Captain Ahab appeared I was riveted.

The Classic Collection is an excellent way to introduce children to the great authors and their works.

Click Here to get your own copy of "Jane Eyre", "Tom Sawyer" or "Moby Dick" from Miss Stacey's bookstore

A Friend

This was a book I saw at a show and just fell in love with it immediately. What MAKES a real friend? How can I BE a real friend? These are concepts that little kids (AND adults) struggle with every day.

How many times have we, as parents, witnessed our kids being hurt by another child that they called friend? How many times have we witnessed our own child telling their friend "I'm not your friend"?

This book helps explain what being a real friend entails. Someone who is there to help. Someone who tells us the truth when others laugh. Someone who holds us when we need it and who lets us go when we need it. Aren't these the truths we want our child to learn? AND practice?

This is a Kane/Miller book from Germany. Be sure and point out to your child that this is a book from another country and that kids there are just like us.

Miss Stacey

Click Here to get your own copy of "A Friend" from Miss Stacey's bookstore

Matt's Pick: Llama Llama Red Pajama

This was a book I stumbled across by accident and had to buy it. We were going through a period where almost every night Matt was having a "hissy fit" about going to bed. This book is about that topic as well as a child's fear about being alone. Matt really enjoyed it and we were able to use it to talk about Llama Llama's bad behavior. It really helped Matt see how wrong his own behavior was. The best part was that Matt enjoyed it (and still does)!

The book has a lyrical quality to it and because of that it was an easy book for Matt to memorize. It is also a fun book to read! I enjoy speeding up the reading to match Mama Llama's mad dash and using my voice to show how each character is feeling!

Matt really enjoys this book at bedtime. So find a copy of this and cuddle up!

A Squirrel's Tale...

The squirrel says, on the front cover, "Please come with me through the woods and help me to find my nuts!" What child doesn't want to help? The great thing is that while they help the squirrel, they will be working on their pre-reading skills, pre-writing skills and fine motor skills.

The book comes with a little squirrel that sits in a pocket on the front. Encourage your child to take the squirrel out and follow the dotted line. Every page has a slot for the squirrel to "hop" through as he goes through the woods and asks other animals for help.

One little thing that I appreciated was that the people behind the book understand the reality of kids. Just in case your little one destroys the squirrel, instructions on creating a new one is included! I looked at them and they are really simple.

Every child who has looked at this book has loved it! So much so, that their mothers have gotten them its sister book, "There's a Mouse About the House."

Miss Stacey

Click Here to get your own copy of "A Squirrel's Tale" from Miss Stacey's bookstore

Matthews's Pick of the Month: Why?

This is a really cute book for the 4-to-8 year old set. Inside, questions, such as "Why do zebras have stripes?" are asked. Then several silly answers are given. The real answer is also provided.

Matt enjoyed the silly answers and we were able to make a game of it all. I asked the first question and Matt's response was "Because God made them that way". I then gave the first silly answer and asked if that's why God did it. Matt said "Nooooo". We proceeded that way through every silly answer until I gave the real answer when Matt very happily said "YES!"

The book is published by Kane/Miller, which distributes books from around the world. This book is from Slovenia.

Matt & Miss Stacey

Interested in more about Matt's Pick of the Month?
Click Here!

Come Join Me for "Mom's Night Out!" (MD Moms)

I wanted to invite you to join me for a fun and FREE event without the husband or kids!

Lisa Steve and the staff at SupperThyme USA in Cockeysville, MD have put together a wonderful time just for Moms to enjoy some food, meet some friends and check out some services and products for you and your family! I will have a table set up and hope you will stop in and say "Hi!"

Here are the details:

Celebrate National Mom’s Night Out @ SupperThymeUSA!

Date: Thursday, April 30
Time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Address: 9972 York Road
City: Cockeysville, MD 21030
Phone: 410-667-2665

Visit with representatives from the following companies:

Miss Stacey's Bookshelf - Usborne Books
Close to My Heart Scrapbooking
Stroller Strides
LaPapillon Spa & Gift Boutique
Upper Case Living
Pampered Chef
The Longaberger Company

Not sure about Supper Thyme's Meal Assembly? You can make One 3-serving Dinner for just $10 tonight. Make it, Take it Bake it!

We will be serving samples from our Extreme Fitness Meals as well as our 3-A-Day Fast Track Weight Loss meals!

Door prizes will be given away throughout the evening. Need not be present to win!

See you there!

Miss Stacey

Update on Encyclopedia Brown

When I reviewed Encyclopedia Brown I stated that I would update it as I read the original book written in 1963. It had then come to my attention that new books in the series were still being published. Based on how the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew book from 2007 had updated the series in a way that bothered me, I was concerned about what changes were made, if any, in the intervening decades to Encyclopedia. I am happy to report that other than referring to current events (space shuttle launches, hurricanes) Encyclopedia and his partner Sally Kimball are unchanged. Yay!! What a relief. I can endorse the books, regardless of publication date, for the 8 and up crowd.

Mary Ann and Miss Mozart

This is the first book in the "Historical House" series. The series is set in a house in London. Each book involves a different era and different characters. The books are written for girls aged 10 and up. They take place between the 1700's and 1960's.

In "Mary Ann and Miss Mozart" a girl is sent to a school for girls - which she loves. She especially enjoys her music lessons as she wants to be an opera singer. The school takes some of the girls to see Amadeus Mozart and his sister perform. The genius of Mozart and his sister are explained without sounding like a lecture. Trouble ensues when she finds out she will be forced to leave the school.

I would recommend that Mom reads the book first - not because of inappropriateness, but because the book offers a lot of chances for discussion (e.g. how Mary Ann should have handled things, the inequality between boys and girls at that time, how girls were not expected to want a career or have ambition).

I enjoyed reading it and look forward to the other books in the series.

Miss Stacey

Click Here to get your own copy of Mary Ann & Miss Mozart from Miss Stacey's bookstore

Mysteries for the 8 to 12 set: Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and Encyclopedia Brown

I decided to have a blast from the past this week and revisit the characters that began my addiction to reading - The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew. I haven't visited my "old friends" in a long time and decided to get one of their new adventures to see how they held up. Well, I am sorry to say that I was VERY disappointed. I enjoyed reading these stories so much and looked forward to the day that Matt could read them too. After reading "Terror on Tour", he'll only be reading the original series - at least until I can check others out.

"Terror on Tour" is a mystery featuring both The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew written by Franklin W. Dixon and Carolyn Keene. This book was published in 2007 and SAYS that it is for readers 8 to 12. In my opinion that is too young for some of the content in this book. After only 30 pages in, I was already shaking my head. The story takes place at a Lollapalooza-type concert event. A girl (thankfully NOT Nancy Drew or her friends) is described as wearing a grass skirt and a bikini top that "left little to the imagination". Do we really want 8 to 12 year old boys TRYING to imagine what WASN'T left to the imagination? One of the bands playing at this concert simulates a suicide or murder at every concert, and Joe Hardy and George (Nancy's friend) think this is awesome. A girl is tied up and has electric wires attached to her arms and head so that she can be electrocuted if the villains don't get their way. Joe is said to utter a "string of curse words" - thankfully they don't give us the actual words. Is this what we want our kids thinking is cool? Why can't they find a way to make the characters relevant and "cool" while still making them good examples?

I also visited with Encyclopedia Brown (by Donald Sobol) in his very first book. I was pleased to see that I still enjoyed him. Kids today might find it a little old fashioned, but I think that the chance to solve the mysteries will still be enjoyable. Reading the story, trying to think of the solution and turning to the back of the book to see if you are right is still fun - even for a grown woman. I'm happy to report that I did solve most, but not all, of his stories - so I think it would provide a pleasant challenge to most kids to try and solve them too. In some of the stories Encyclopedia deals with bullies which some kids would relate to also.

I'll be checking out a more recent Encyclopedia Brown book in the future and am hoping that I won't find him as drastically changed as Frank, Joe and Nancy. I'll let you know.

Miss Stacey

Joining the Ultimate Blog Party 2009!

I am so happy to be joining with other Mom bloggers around the world during the Ultimate Blog Party! Welcome party friends! Want to join the party? Click the banner above.

Just a thought......

"Mooooom! Somebody might see!!" The first time Matt said that when I tried to give him a little kiss in a public place, I realized that he WAS growing up. I was also worried that the cuddle stage was almost over - and no one cuddles like Matt! He always enjoyed giving hugs and sitting on laps, was it over? The answer is that sometimes, it is. However, whenever I just need a Matt cuddle, I just have to say "Want to read a book?" and he grabs a book and jumps into my lap.

Need another reason to read to them even though you may be absolutely exhausted? They don't want cuddles forever. Try to set that precedent when they're small. Mike and I always had Matt sit on our laps or cuddled up close beside us when we read to him. I am so thankful we did that every day (and sometimes several times during a day).

Well, I better go. I think I want to read a book and get a cuddle!!

Miss Stacey

Matthew's Pick of the Month: The Adventures of Sinbad

This is a great chapter book. It is a little above Matthew's reading level right now, but an excellent book to read aloud to him. Each of the 7 chapters is one of Sinbad's voyages. We read a chapter a day (although it is short enough we could have read it in one day if we really wanted to). Matt couldn't wait to read the next adventure. He found it exciting and, to quote him, "Sinbad is cool! He rocks!" The best part of this book is that he'll enjoy hearing it again and again, and, when he is able, read it himself again and again.

I realized that I had never read anything of Sinbad's adventures and hadn't realized that they were part of 1001 Arabian Nights. For those who don't know, the Arabian Nights is a legend about a woman who told her husband - The Sultan - stories to entertain him because he wanted to have her killed. She continued to tell him these tales for 1001 nights. I actually had a question answered by a note on the back of the book. Did the wife save her life or not? Do you want to know? If so, look further...if not, stop right now.

He spared her life.

Hop on board and sail off to adventure with your child!

Matt & Miss Stacey

Interested in more about Matt's Pick of the Month?
Click Here!

Book Review: Stellaluna

Well, here it is. The first review and I'm actually quite excited about it as I just discovered this book a couple of days ago and loved it.

"Stellaluna" by Janell Cannon

This is a delightful book about a little bat that gets lost and is raised by birds. It is a wonderful story about the things that make us different, yet the same. I found the writing beautiful (something that can't always be said about children's books - even the excellent ones) and the illustrations make the bats "pretty" without distorting their real appearance. In other words, girls won't be disgusted by their appearance, but boys won't think they look too "frou-frou". At the back are two pages of "Bat Notes" - which is all kinds of information about bats. When a children's book teaches me something while still remaining true entertainment to a child, well I think that's just pretty cool.

The appropriate age would probably be between 4 and 8 - although a 9 or 10 year old might still enjoy reading this on their own.

Welcome to my bookshelf

Welcome.

You probably have at least one child you love - whether it's your own child, niece, nephew, grandchild or godchild - and you also love to read and want that special child to have the same love. That's what I want too. But, HOW can I figure out, among the THOUSANDS of choices what my son would like? There are book reviews to help me find new and established authors and books to try for my personal enjoyment, but what about for my kids? I know that there are "professionals" out there but sometimes I wonder, "Do they even have kids?" They seem to approach it from an intellectual perspective, not an emotional one - and that's where kids live, in the emotion.

So, I am going to offer my humble opinions on what I loved as a child, what my son loves now (including his pick of the month) and other interesting tidbits along the way. I hope it helps you discover new books and maybe even some classics, that you never thought of trying. I'll be posting at least once a week and trying to give you ideas for different age groups, suggestions for specific times of the year and other ways to make reading fun and exciting for your kids.

I would love to hear from you! I hope that you will post your comments and/or send me an email to: stacey@missstaceysbookshelf.com

Hope you enjoy.

Miss Stacey