Introducing kid's reviews of upcoming book titles! The Darien Kid Bloggers have read ARCs (advanced reader's copies) of soon to be published books. You can place a hold on the books in the Library's catalog, and be one of the first kids to get that book. Here is our first installment.

City of Wind by Pierdomenico Baccalario

Translated by: Leah D. Janecko

The book City of Wind is a wonderful book with many twists and turns. This book is the third book in the Century Quartet series. The book takes place in Paris, “the windy city” (City of Wind). In the book the main characters are Harvey, Sheng, Mistral, and Elettra. Each main character comes from a different city and country.

• Harvey, New York City U.S.

• Sheng, Shanghai China

• Mistral, Paris France

• Elettra, Rome Italy

All the characters go to Paris for different reasons and they end up in a big treasure hunt for clues that leads to an unknown treasure. While this is happening they have to battle against an evil organization for the clues. Also they have to keep the organization from stealing the clues that the group already has. There are two parts that the book could be improved upon. One is that the plot is hard to follow. Also the book has a very abrupt ending that is hard to understand. Those are the key points in the book City of Wind.

-Jonathan

The Stamford Advocate has launched a project, Speak Out Against Bullying, to raise awareness about kids and teens who are bullied in school and to help erase the stigma associated with those who have been bullied.  Two teens shared their stories in the video below, and The Advocate is encouraging other kids and teens to add their voices and experiences to the conversation.  More videos, in addition to articles, will be coming out on this very important topic. 

If you would like to contribute your story, please e-mail your video to speakout@ctnews.com or visit the Speak Out Against Bullying Facebook page.

For more information about bullying, and a booklist, take a look at our post on Dealing with Bullies

Stories come from all sorts of interesting places.  Sometimes we find great stories within the pages of a book at the Library.  Other times we may hear a terrific tale from a grandparent or teacher.  Sometimes, we create our very own! 

The collected anthology below contains real life stories written by the fifth graders at Holmes Elementary who participated in the Writing Workshop.  Each writer began by creating a writer's notebook and selecting two original stories as seed ideas.  Then they each chose two drafts to revise, edit, and ultimately, publish. 

The Darien Library is proud to host these wonderful original works for the entire community to enjoy.  Click the page below to open. 

Welcome to the first installment of a series introducing the talented people who work in the Children's Library!  This week we're proud to present...Miss Claire!

Claire is a native of Baltimore and currently lives in Brooklyn, New York (did you know three of the Children's Librarians live in New York City?).  She started working at Darien Library as the Children's Library intern in 2008, and became a full-time librarian in 2009. She is usually mustache-less.

Five Things About Miss Claire

Her favorite food is sushi.

Her hobbies include cooking, traveling, and a brief flirtation with knitting

Her favorite book genre is historical fiction.

When she was a kid, Claire wanted to be a supermodel-detective or Jane Goodall.

Right now, she is reading a grown-up book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, and a kids book, Small Acts of Amazing Courage by Gloria Whelan.

Two Things You Didn't Know About Miss Claire

She can touch her tongue to her nose!

She is an only child.

The iKids have been busy honing their tech skills in this weekly registered class. For every first session our techy tweens make avatars for their very own Darien Library accounts. Check out these kid-friendly websites where you can design an avatar.

Build Your Wild Self 

Mii Creator

ArtisanCam

On ArtisanCam kids can explore the work of contemporary artist Julian Opie. Once the portrait is created it can be included in the online gallery.  

The list of ten 2012 Nutmeg Nominees for Intermediate readers have been announced. 

And the nominees are.........

What an amazing list!  Happy Reading! 

Click here for a list of the 2012 Teen Nutmeg Nominees.

This week a new mom in town pulled out the book Muggie Maggie by Beverly Cleary and was flipping through the pages with her toddler. It turns out that the illustrator, Kay Life, chose this mom as the inspiration for her portraits of the fictional Maggie. The artist followed the child to and from school each day to truly depict the life of a third grader. It's amazing what you discover in the Children's Library!

In the book, the character Maggie is frustrated that her third grade class is beginning to learn how to write in cursive. Maggie simply cannot understand why she needs to practice her penmanship

A recent topic in the news, the relevance of penmanship in today's classroom is a hot topic. Some feel that certain forms of communication are becoming obsolete, such as letter writing and in some cases email!  Read this recent USA Today article on cursive in the classroom.

For other school dramas and classroom antics, check out these selections.

"My son is a Level G.  Can you show me that section?"

"My daughter's teacher just informed us that Katie is between a I and a K.  How to I find books at her reading level?"

"Where do you keep your C books?"

These are questions that we children's librarians are asked almost every week.  Parents, caregivers, and children will frequently come to us with a Leveled Reading list or instructions from their teachers to find books on the Guided Reading scale (this method of reading instruction, also known as the Fountas and Pinnell system, uses a scale from A to Z to indicate increasing levels of book difficulty.)

Since public libraries are organized and arranged to facilitate browsing, searching, and to inspire a lifelong love of reading, you won't find our Children's Library organized by the A to Z levels.  So, how do you locate books that are appropriate for your child's reading level? 

Here are a few ways to find great books for your child:

1. Ask a Children's Librarian. 

We pride ourselves on knowing great children's literature and enjoy making recommendations.  We will usually begin by asking you or your child what kinds of books you've read recently and whether those books felt "just right" or not.  We can help you find similar titles, ones that are a little harder, or a little easier. 

2. Check out our F5 Learn to Read and/or our Kids I Read section. 

For children just learning to read on their own, a great place to browse is in our F5 Learn to Read area.  These books, also known as beginning readers, are designed to help newly emerging readers recognize common vocabulary, anticipate rhyming words, construct meaning through carefully placed illustrations, and build confidence. 

For children who are reading independently but not quite ready to delve into Harry Potter, check out our Kids I Read section.  Filled with popular chapter book series, these books help keep new readers engaged but not overwhelmed. 

3. Use the Five Finger Rule.

What is a level H or K or D anyway?  What does it mean?  It can be frustrating for both parents and children to locate books on their assigned Guided Reading level.  Oftentimes, the Guided Reading lists given to parents contain titles that are out of print or unavailable. 

One simple and effective way to judge whether any given book is too hard or too easy is The Five Finger Rule.  Here's how it works:

- Ask your child to start reading a page from the book.  Anytime they come to a word that they cannot pronounce or don't understand, hold up a finger.

- One finger means the book in question is probably too easy.

- Four or five fingers means the book in question is probably too hard.

- Two or three fingers means the book is probably JUST RIGHT.

Looking for more information on finding great books for your child?  Stop by the Children's Library anytime or contact us at childrenslibrary@darienlibrary.org. 

photo of child reading courtesy of Flickr user John-Morgan; photo of hand courtesy of Flickr user Phineas H.

I have found a new favorite book and it is Bob Shea's Big Plans (big plans, I say!), illustrated by Lane Smith (also an incredible author and illustrator).  It's the humorous story of a little boy who really knows his own mind and goes after what he wants.  After being put in time out for his ambitiousness (the blackboard next to him says things like, "I will not prove the teacher wrong"), he imagines what would happen if his big plans were successful, accompanied by his yes-man sidekick, who is a mynah bird.  He helps his local football team win a game, becomes mayor of his town, then eventually president (the President offers him the position of "assistant President", which our hero turns down and replies with, "You can be third in charge, after the mynah bird").  A loud, fun, and very funny book for those kids with big ideas and the guts to go after them.  

Bob Shea has written some other hilarious books, including:

New Socks - A yellow, glasses-wearing chick excitedly shares his new pair of socks with the reader.

 Dinosaur vs. Bedtime - Little Dinosaur takes on all kinds of activities, like dinner and a pile of leaves, and always wins.  When he comes up against bedtime, who will come out victorious?

 Dinosaur vs. The Potty (seriously)!  If you know a little someone who can hold it in until near-explosion, they might appreciate this book.  

Last week, we had a podcasting camp here at Darien Library. The kids brainstormed plots, characters, conflict and got inspiration from radio greats such as "Who's On First?" by Abbott and Costello. They wrote and recorded a script of their own creation right here in the Library and I am so proud of the cast for their creative comedy!  I hope we can continue podcasting. Kids, if you are interested in participating in the next installment of KidCast Playhouse, please comment below and we'll get another group together!

Kidnapping on a Summer's Eve

Written and performed by Darien Library's KidCast Playhouse July 2010

http://www.darienlibrary.org/2010/07/12/kidcast-playhouse-presents

Cast (in order of appearance):

Bob:  Tyler

Miss Butterman: Morgan

Mom:  Katie

Police Officer 1:  Zach

Police Officer 2:  Olivia

Random Person:  Tyler

Chloe:  Olivia

Jeter:  Zach

Derek:  Anir

Sam:  Katie

Epilogue:  Morgan & Tyler