Gift Guide 2011   Tags: adults, babies, biographies, book_lovers, books, buying, entertainment, faq, giving, kids, literature, reading, teens  

CHILLS people...it gave me chills. Mickie, Youth Services Librarian

A sure thing for a budding artist. Tamara, Web Content Librarian

Presents equations such as anything + sprinkles = better. Very sweet. Becky, Teen Librarian

Brilliant. Various things happen to the square...and each time it transforms itself into something new. Robin, Youth Services Librarian

The author found a rock in the shape of every letter...Then, she found something that begins with each letter - some of these are immediately obvious, and some require peering. Becky, Teen Librarian

"If a duckling grows and becomes a duck, can a car grow and become . . . [open flap] a truck?" With large, sturdy flaps that open in different directions, children will have fun guessing/predicting what the objects will turn into. Robin, Youth Services Librarian

Would make a great gift book for fact-loving kids. Tamara, Web Content Librarian

Who knew bones could be so fascinating? Many are shown actual size -- such as the impressive fold-out spread of a small python, displaying nearly 200 pairs of ribs. Robin, Youth Services Librarian

This is SO much cooler than Magic Eye (which I never could see). Becky, Teen Librarian

Fairies. Magic. Need I say more? Tamara, Web Content Librarian

For the kid with a case of morbid curiosity. Tamara, Web Content Librarian

Simple instructions and tips make each game, including classics such as Tug of War, Ultimate Frisbee, Hopscotch and Jump Rope. Fun and easy way to amuse kids for hours. Recommended by Becky, Teen Librarian

A great resource for new parents looking to recreate the fun and action storytimes at home, especially for babies. Includes rhymes with actions to accompany them. Tamara, Web Content Librarian

Boy, is this full of some great early literacy and ready-to-read activities. If I taught preschool or had a youngun, I'd want my own copy of this! Becky, Teen Librarian

In this wordless story, the humans leave, and the animals get into as much trouble as they can. This would be great for a seek-and-find fan or building narrative skills, because each animal has its own story as the pages turn.
Becky, Teen Librarian

A fun follow-up to There Are Cats In This Book, in which the cats, still very aware of their book space and relationship with you, the reader, decide it's time to break out of the book and Into the World. Becky, Teen Librarian

A popular-author, read-aloud, shout-along, concept storybook hit!
Becky, Teen Librarian

So much fun! Whoever thought of this is a genius.
Becky, Teen Librarian

Got some good laughs reading this one out loud. Love the unique illustration style.
Becky, Teen Librarian

A fun interactive, shout-at-the-book story in the vein of Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus and The Monster at the End of This Book. Good illustrations.
Becky, Teen Librarian

It's got chickens, fractured fairy tales, interruptions, loud snoring, and the option to do a lot of voices. Sure to be a favorite, especially for a slightly older, K-2 crowd.
Becky, Teen Librarian

This is not your typical picture book. Its table of contents, 6 1/2 stories, and repeated vocabulary make it more like an easy reader in large, horizontal format. It's got the typical Mo Willems humor that fans will love. Becky, Teen Librarian

There's mystery, suspense, excellent character writing, and lots of "trying to figure it all out" from a kid's perspective. And I think the kid's perspective in this book is probably pretty accurate.
Marisa, Youth Services Librarian

This book is a.m.a.z.i.n.g. It is surely the best thing I've read this summer by far! It is a sit-down-and-read-cover-to-cover book; it's a "don't expect to eat until I finish this" sort of book; if you give it to a kid, don't expect that kid to come to dinner or turn out his/her lights until it's done sort of book. The parallel stories are engrossing and compelling--you HAVE to find out what happens.
Susan, Youth Services Librarian

Dystopian it may be (who wants to live in a plastic house or have a cell phone embedded in your skull?) but it has a sweetness, a sense of hope (we can be saved if we connect with each other), and a set of characters that I'd like to get to know better!
Susan, Youth Services Librarian

Tommy is trying to find out if the Yoda origami finger puppet can really predict the future. Funny and clever. For grades 4-7.
Recommended by Marisa, Youth Services Librarian

Sophisticated Gollie and rumpled, fun loving Bink are best friends. In this collection of three short stories we learn of Bink’s love for socks, Gollie’s love for solo adventure, and their love for each other. As we can expect from any such mismatched pair, hilarity ensues.
Marisa, Youth Services Librarian

Delightful, charming tale of a girl who has almost no heart at all (but more than most kids her age) until she goes on an amazing journey and grows one. Funny and exciting, heartbreaking and very endearing. If you are a fairy tale lover, this book may be right up your alley.
Marisa, Youth Services Librarian

Like a modern-day Hardy Boys. Susan, Youth Services Librarian

An amazing picture book biography of Mark Twain, seen through the eyes of his thirteen year old daughter Susy. Robin, Youth Services Librarian

The family is in a book and each member has their own story, including the dog, cat and the fish. The girl isn't sure of her story though, and spends most of the book looking for it. She tries fairy tales, where she's invited to try on a glass slipper, kiss a frog, and race the wolf to grandma's house. A detective helps her seek out a mystery, she visits her brother, an astronaut, in science fiction, and she decides historical fiction is simply too much work (milk the cow! watch out for the tornado!) Robin, Youth Services Librarian

Cute story about taking the risks needed to grow. Can be given to graduates instead of Oh, the Places You'll Go! Becky, Teen Librarian

Utterly charming. Blue chameleon is . . . blue, as in lonely. He tries to find a friend by mimicking a variety of creatures (from a banana to a cowboy boot) with no luck...Though it is not a new story, the artwork is remarkable. The text is minimal -- just one word to a page in most cases...
Robin, Youth Services Librarian

A story that requires the "reader" (here, viewer) to look carefully and even use a little map-reading and imagination. Lehman conveys a sense of place, the passage of time, building curiousity as the page turns. Robin, Youth Services Librarian

A sweet bedtime book that ties nicely into narrative skills and consequences (restating the events of the day backward -- when something bad happened, what happened right before to cause it? What would have been the better choice?). Becky, Teen Librarian

From lucky peacock feathers in India, coins in Rome's Trevi fountain, to a coin in a shoe in Russia and dandelions in Ireland... Robin, Youth Services Librarian