Book Review: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl Squirrel Meets World

THE UNBEATABLE SQUIRREL GIRL: SQUIRREL MEETS WORLD by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale introduces young teens to a new superhero.

Doreen Green is a typical teenager who tries to make friends after moving to a new neighborhood. When she decides to use her extraordinary powers for good, she soon becomes a hit at school. However, she also draws the attention of a villain. The author’s use of familiar language, alternative narrators, and contemporary situations including texting will appeal to teens.

Librarians will find a fan base among fans of superheroes as well as humor. Middle grade students will be attracted to this new kind of quirky superhero. Adults will appreciate the diverse cast of characters. This engaging novel provides the backstory of this fun new character. Connect the book with the collection of graphic novels about the same character.

Published by Marvel, and imprint of Disney-Hyperion on February 7, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Book Review: One Proud Penny

ONE PROUD PENNY by Randy Siegel and Serge Bloch tells the story of the American penny.

Told from the perspective of a 1983 penny, this informational picture book describes the general history and uses of the penny along with details about one specific penny’s “life”. The book concludes with additional information and resources.

The mix of simple line drawings with collage features add interest to the story.

Librarians will find this to be an excellent addition to the social studies collection. This concept book would be useful in lessons focusing on government, money, and mathematics.

To learn more about the author, go to http://randolphsiegel.com/.

Published by Roaring Brook Press, an imprint of Macmillan on January 10, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: Digital APUSH

DIGITAL APUSH features AP U.S. History student projects that apply data from the Chronicling America Historic Newspaper collection.

For the past couple years, students in AP U.S. History in Sunapee, New Hampshire have been using the Library of Congress’ newspaper database to conduct historical research into a wide range of topics from questions. This website shares their projects.

Librarians will find this website to be an excellent way to introduce high school students to digital history projects that make use of online collections. Encourage students to build their own projects.

This project was a winner in the Chronicling America Historic Newspaper Data Challenge.

To visit the website, go to http://apush.omeka.net/about.

Book Review: The Time Museum

THE TIME MUSEUM by Matthew Loux combines science and time travel for a graphic novel likely to have broad appeal.

When Delia finds out that her uncle runs the Earth Time Museum, she decides to train for an internship. Ultimately, a team of young people from across time come together to form a team of time traveling superheroes. The high-quality artwork will keep readers engaged in the action from start to finish.

Librarians will find this first book in a new middle grade graphic novel series to be popular among a wide range of readers including those who enjoy science fiction, fantasy, and superheroes. It’s possible that the historical connections to places such as the Library of Alexandria may jumpstart an interest in history too.

Published by First Second Book on January 23, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: Historical Agricultural News

HISTORICAL AGRICULTURAL NEWS is a website that helps users explore newspapers for information about agricultural topics.

This website allows easy access to newspaper articles from the Chronicling America collection at the Library of Congress. Users can narrow their search by organizations, grains crops, vegetable crops, livestock and dairy, fruit and nut crops, time, newspaper, and state.

Involve students in exploring the history of a particular type of agriculture through the lens of newspaper articles. For instance, explore sheep production in Montana, apple crops in Utah, or truck farming in California. Or, focus on the history of agriculture near the school.

To visit the collection, go to http://ag-news.net/.

Book Review: Wolf in the Snow

WOLF IN THE SNOW by Matthew Cordell is a memorable nearly wordless picture book set in a snowstorm.

When a young girl gets lost in a snowstorm on the way home from school, she rescues a wolf cub. But who will rescue her?

Cordell’s simple illustrations effectively convey the solitude of wilderness life, the quest for survival, and universal compassion among all creatures.

Librarians are always on the lookout for wordless books to stimulate the imagination of their elementary students. This book provides endless opportunities for children to discuss animals, trust, and humanity.

To learn more about the author/illustrator, go to http://matthewcordell.com/.

Published by Feiwel & Friends, an imprint of Macmillan on January 3, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Digital Spotlight: Contagion

CONTAGION: HISTORICAL VIEWS OF DISEASES AND EPIDEMICS is an open collection exploring Harvard’s history of medicine collection.

Contents: This large web project contains digitized copies of books, serials, pamphlets, incunabula, and manuscripts along with many visuals. In addition to searching the collection, users can also explore thematic collection related to cholera, plague, smallpox, flu, syphilis, tuberculosis, and yellow fever epidemics along with a notable person section.

Classroom Connections: Science and history teachers will find fascinating documents that bring the history of disease and epidemics to life. English teachers may incorporate these primary source documents into historical fiction literature circles.

Featured Digital Objects:
Cholera Epidemics http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/contagion/cholera.html
Spanish Influenza http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/contagion/influenza.html
Yellow Fever of 1793 http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/contagion/yellowfever.html

To visit the collection, http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/contagion/.

Book Review: A Tragic Kind of Wonderful

A TRAGIC KIND OF WONDERFUL by Eric Lindstrom explores the life of a teen trying to maintain friendships while dealing with mental illness.

Between the death of her brother, her parent’s divorce, and a bipolar diagnosis, Mel’s life has spiraled out of control. Trying to hide her problems only makes her relationships with friends more strained. The author’s authentic portrayal of a teen’s quest for acceptance is will appeal to many teens.

Librarians will find fans of Lindstrom’s NOT IF I SEE YOU FIRST pleased with his latest title. Many teens are drawn to contemporary young adult novels focusing on friendship and overcoming obstacles. This title does a particularly good job helping young people better understand bipolar disorder.

Published by Poppy, an imprint of Hachette on February 7, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: American Lynching

AMERICAN LYNCHING is a gripping cultural narrative website chronicling the dark history of lynching in America.

Featuring newspaper accounts from across the United States, this chilling project shares both well-known and lesser known histories of individual lynching events connecting media and race to American history. The website is divided into sections including overview, history, stories, and explore.

Users can examine sample documents, use a map to read statistics, explore history and data, search the records, or read more at the archives.

Librarians will find many teens interested in learning about this sad period of American history. Use this website to jumpstart discussions about public killings, reforms, and race in America.

To visit the website, go to http://www.americanlynchingdata.com/.

Book Reviews: Fancy Party Gowns

FANCY PARTY GOWNS: THE STORY OF FASHION DESIGNER ANN COLE LOWE by Deborah Blumenthal is a picture book biography.

This beautifully illustrated children’s book tells that story of the first African American women to become a high-end fashion designer. As a child, Ann learned to sew from her mother and grandmother. After the death of her mother, Ann took over her mother’s commissions and later went to design school. Ultimately, she designed dresses for people like Jacqueline Kennedy.

Librarians know that it can be difficult to find biographies of interest to reluctant readers. Students interested in fashion design will be happy to find this book about a little-known designer.

To learn more about the author, go to http://www.deborahblumenthal.com/.

Published by Little Bee Books on January 17, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Digital Spotlight: Historic American Sheet Music

HISTORIC AMERICAN SHEET MUSIC is a digital collection featuring sheet music of the 19th and early 20th century.

Contents: A Duke University Libraries collection, this resource includes digital images of over 3,000 pieces of music. Users can locate sheet music by composer, date, subject, instrumentation, illustrator, lyricist, publisher, and title.

Classroom Connections: Connect the music and social studies teachers for an engaging interdisciplinary project. Ask students to connect a piece of music to the time period when it was published. Use the subject search option to identify songs related to women, landscapes, entertainment, fashion, animals, society, transportation, and other interesting topics.

Featured Digital Objects:
Indiana http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/hasm_a0093/
That Railroad Rag http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/hasm_a0013/
My Pony Boy http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/hasm_a1110/

To visit the collection, go to http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/hasm/.

Digital Spotlight: American West Photographs

AMERICAN WEST PHOTOGRAPHS from the National Archives is a collection of images related to the westward movement of the 19th century.

Contents: After an introduction to the topic, users are presented with thirteen categories such as soldiering in the West, life by the sea, and towns of dust and rock. Users can also find resource by state.

Classroom Connections: Photographs are useful in helping young people visualize history concepts. Teachers will find these early photographs useful in teaching about this time period.

Featured Digital Objects:
Pony Express Rider https://www.archives.gov/…/res…/american-west/images/014.jpg
Transcontinental Railroad https://www.archives.gov/…/res…/american-west/images/017.jpg
Judge Roy Bean https://www.archives.gov/…/res…/american-west/images/084.jpg

To visit the collection, go to https://www.archives.gov/research/american-west

Book Review: The Nature Fix

THE NATURE FIX: WHY NATURE MAKES US HAPPIER, HEALTHIER, AND MORE CREATIVE by Florence Williams examines why humans need to experience nature.

Written by a journalist, this appealing work of nonfiction weaves together scientific findings with interesting observations about life in nature. With stories from Asia and Scotland to the United States, readers will be drawn to the universal need for time with nature.

Librarians will find this book appeals to a number of audiences including those who enjoy books about science, psychology, creativity, nature, health, and the outdoors, so it would be useful to include it on reading lists across genres. Although written for adults, it is likely to appeal to young adults as well.

Published by W.W. Norton and Company on January 31, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Book Reviews: Germs

GERMS by Lesa Cline-Ransome is an informational picture book exploring the world of germs.

This colorfully illustrated text describes the history of germs, the scientists who learned about them and the different types of germs. It stresses both the good and bad that germs do. The author’s conversational style and the illustrator engaging visuals will appeal to young readers. The book concludes with additional information and a glossary.

Librarians will find this informational picture book to be a useful resource to the science collection. It could also serve as a read-aloud book to introduce students to the science of germs. Ask students to learn about one of the diseases introduced in the book.

To learn more about the author, go to http://lesaclineransome.com/.

Published by Henry Holt, an imprint of Macmillan on January 10, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Digital Spotlight: Everyday Life in Thailand

EVERYDAY LIFE IN THAILAND is a database of images representing life in Thailand.

Contents: This collection contains nearly 500 images and descriptions related to daily life in Thailand. Users can browse the images or conduct a search.

Classroom Connections: Librarians will find these photos are useful in teaching language learning skills or connecting to the culture of southeast Asia in the social studies curriculum.

Featured Digital Objects:
Vendor Food http://quod.lib.umich.edu/l/lrc1ic/x-20/01020
School Cafeteria http://quod.lib.umich.edu/l/lrc1ic/x-37/01037
Bus http://quod.lib.umich.edu/l/lrc1ic/x-78/02056

To visit the collection go to http://quod.lib.umich.edu/l/lrc1ic.

Book Review: Isaac the Alchemist

ISAAC THE ALCHEMIST by Mary Losure takes a fascinating look into the life of Isaac Newton.

This work of narrative nonfiction immerses readers in the life of a boy living in an apothecary’s house. Readers will be particularly intrigued by the connections between magic and science during Isaac’s time period. The book concludes with information about Isaac’s notebooks, science, and additional sources.

Librarians will find this well-written biography to be popular with both children who enjoy narrative nonfiction as well as those simply looking for good report material. The short chapters, discussions of magic and science, and interesting primary source visuals will appeal to reluctant readers. Look for this title on “best of children’s nonfiction” lists for 2017.

Published by Candlewick on February 1, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Technology Review: Midomi

MIDOMI is a music website with an audio search tool, exploration options, and a singing feature.

Users can either do a word search for an artist, song, or album. One of the most interesting aspects of this music tool is the ability to “sing or hum” a tune. Simply sing or hum at least second seconds of a song like “you are my sunshine” and it identifies places on the web where that song is available. The website also contains a section where users can explore a wide variety of music by genre or language. Finally, users can try their skills at singing with the Studio Tool.

Librarians will find that young singers will enjoy the singing and humming options available. Teachers may find it a useful tool for locating specific songs or music in particular genre.

This music search and discovery tool is also available as an app called SoundHound.

To visit the website, go to http://www.midomi.com/.
To download the app, go to http://www.soundhound.com/soundhound.

Book Review: Gary

GARY by Leila Rudge is a picture book that shares the adventure of a pigeon who can’t fly.

As a racing pigeon who can’t fly, Gary spends his days working on his scrapbook. When he’s accidentally left in the city on his own, he must be resourceful and find his way home using his scrapbook as a guide.

Librarians will find this sweet story appeals to young readers. From overcoming disabilities to mapmaking and scrapbooking, teachers will find many classroom connections for this heartwarming story. Involve students in creating their own scrapbooks and adventures for Gary.

To learn more about the author/illustrator, go to http://www.leilarudge.com/.

Published by Candlewick on November 8, 2016. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Digital Spotlight: The Influenza Encyclopedia

The INFLUENZA ENCYCLOPEDIA is a collection of over 16,000 historical documents and photographs chronicling the epidemic of 1918.

Contents: Produced by the University of Michigan, this well organized project provides easy access to popular categories including people, places, organizations, and subjects. Users can also explore by 50 U.S. cities and towns or examine the image gallery. A key word search tool is also provided.

Classroom Connections: Teachers will find this resource to be an engaging way to explore the tragic events surrounding the 1918 influenza epidemic. Connect it with works of historical fiction and nonfiction books in the collection.

Featured Digital Objects:
Boston http://www.influenzaarchive.org/cities/city-boston.html
Cincinnati http://www.influenzaarchive.org/cities/city-cincinnati.html
New York City http://www.influenzaarchive.org/cities/city-newyork.html

To visit the collection, http://www.influenzaarchive.org/.

Book Review: Midnight without a Moon

MIDNIGHT WITHOUT A MOON by Linda Williams Jackson is a work of historical fiction exploring the lives of African Americans of the Jim Crow South.

Set in the summer of 1955, Rose Lee and her family experience life in Mississippi and the prospect of moving north. Weaving in real events about a famous trial with fictional stories set in an African American family, the story blends fact and fiction to immerse readers in the time period.

Librarians will find the connection with a real historical event adds interest to this middle grade novel. The sympathetic characters and historical backdrop make it perfect for classroom activities revolving around the Jim Crow era.

Published by HMH Books for Young Readers on January 3, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publisher.