Quite often, we are asked for mystery books by children who have only been reading for a few years. There are a number of mystery series written for children of that age (the A to Z Mysteries, Nate the Great, Cam Jansen), but children who like mysteries REALLY like mysteries, and by the time they have to ask an adult for a book recommendation, they’ve already burned through all the well-known series.
We’re always excited to see the first book in a new series, and luckily for us, Alexander McCall Smith has produced a spin-off of his adult series, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, called The Great Cake Mystery. This first book in what will hopefully be many tells a story of nine-year-old Precious Ramotswe (future proprietor of the aforementioned agency) and the very first mystery she ever solved–one that involves all of her classmates at her country school in Botswana.
While the mystery is not trivial, the story is a gentle one, and unlikely upset young or sensitive children. The book isn’t meant for the very first emerging readers, but for those who are already reading easy chapter books, such as the Magic Tree House series. The great strength of the book lies in the African setting, which is beautifully described, and the description is augmented by phenomenal illustrations by Iain McIntosh. The wood cut-like depictions combine with McCall Smith’s words to create a Botswana so different, and yet so comfortable, that they will entice any child to want to visit.
Posted by: Sarah
Here in our library, it seems that the interest in the gingerbread man isn’t just a holiday thing, it happens year round — and this book will keep that fascination going. In this version, the gingerbread man has been baked by kids at school and left to cool in their classroom while they go out for recess. Well, the gingerbread man can’t believe that they would just leave him behind, and he becomes very distressed. He wants to be part of the class, and so he runs after them through the halls of the school looking for them (I’ll run and I’ll run, as fast as I can. I CAN catch them! I’m their gingerbread man!). 
This is not a new book but it is a cute summer read. Piggie gets her first ever party invitation and she asks Elephant to go with her. He is delighted and tells her that he knows about parties. He advises her that it might be a fancy party and that they should dress up for it. They do! But then he says that it might be a pool party. So they wear their pool accessories also. But wait, it might be a costume party too! Does Elephant know parties like he says he does? Look for this book in the Easy Fiction section under the author. It is a lot of fun. And if you like it, there are more Elephant and Piggie books.
Kedi lives in a small village in the African country of Cameroon. Her teacher is a young man from America who has told Kedi and her classmates about the Great Depression and the children who are starving in New York City because they have no money for food. Kedi sympathizes with these children so greatly that her “heart stands up and will not sit down” until she has done something about it. But what? The families in Kedi’s village have food – they work hard growing, fishing, and hunting so they can eat – but they have little money. However, once Kedi’s heart has stood up, one by one, the rest of the villagers’ hearts stand as well, and they offer what little coins they have to help the starving children in America.
Right now, my son’s favorite day of the week is garbage day. Smash! Mash! Crash! There Goes the Trash! by Barbara Odanaka is a fun book to read with any child that loves garbage trucks. Two little pigs eagerly await the arrival of the garbage truck, and they are able to see it gobble up a broken chair along with some apple cores and moldy bread. The rhyming, upbeat text catches the anticipation, excitement, and thrill of waiting for the garbage truck. Read it along with my other favorite book about garbage, Trashy Town by Zimmerman, for a trash-a-riffic storytime.
As the oldest sister in a family of four, I immediately related to Davey, the sheep who, for the first four years of his life enjoyed the good life. Then, Petey came along, and then Mike and then Stu until there were 12 other brothers! It should be mentioned that Davey’s family is a family of sheep, not people, but people of all ages will relate to Davey’s plight as each brother appears and further exasperates poor Davey. Davey’s main problem with all of those brothers is how they try to copy everything he does. The book is composed of hilarious illustrations of Davey riding his bike, followed by his 12 brothers, Davey asking for Toot Loops for breakfast and all 12 brothers wanting the same breakfast and finally, Davey glaring at his brothers and pulling his hair in frustration and all 12 doing it right back to him. Eventually, Davey’s brothers start to develop their own interests, and Davey finds himself all alone in his empty bedroom, that is, until a new little sister saves him from his loneliness.
Kevin Spencer is the most romantic 14-year- old guy you will ever meet – or so he would like to have us believe. He has a crush on Tina Zabinski who, in Kevin’s eyes, is the most beautiful girl in the world. He just knows he would make a perfect boyfriend. He realizes that he must swing into immediate action when the new boy in school, Cash, starts showing attention to Tina.
Among many other things, the good sisters at my high school instilled in me a strong love of song and a deep sense of social justice. When books like Which Side Are You On? by Kentucky native George Ella Lyon come along, both of those passions are well satisfied.
