Archive for category The Reading Room

On a winter's day, Jack and Jill scope out the ideal tree branch on which to build. By the next page, spring has arrived, and the kids have started construction. Their progress is mirrored by two robins who are piecing together their own abode. Step by step, the children add the floor, the roof (a brightly patterned quilt placed over rope), the light (a flashlight), the table, the treats, and the friends. At story's end, the robins, who have completed their nest, and other birds sing the youngsters to sleep as they camp out in the cozy construction. The story ends on a triumphant note: "Hooray for the treehouse that Jack and Jill built!"

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The latest in the series, the Magic Treehouse books tell the story of how jack and Annie (the series stars) first find the Magic Tree House and learn how the books can transport them to magical lands and worlds. Jack and Annie are on their second mission to find—and inspire—artists to bring happiness to millions. After traveling to New Orleans, Jack and Annie come head to head with some real ghosts, as well as discover the world of jazz when they meet a young Louis Armstrong!
 

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A terrible storm strands a Swiss pastor, with his wife and four sons, on a tropical island. Luckily, the Robinsons are optimistic and inventive, and with what they salvage from the wrecked ship, the island's abundant fruits, plants, and animals, they soon adapt—each day discovering new dangers, skills, and delights in their strange new life.

**This version is abridged from the 400 page plus original. If your child is a reader, go with the original. If not, this 160 page version is a good place to start**

Perfect rainy day activity: Pair reading the book with renting the movie! For more on the movie visit: http://disney.go.com/vault/archives/movies/swissfam/swissfam.html

 

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It's sleepy time in Alphabet Town. But the twenty-six little letters of the alphabet all have something they need—or want—to do before big-letter moms and dads tuck them in. Not since the classsic Chicka Chicka Boom Boom has there been such an appealing way to teach the youngest child the ABCs while providing a one-minute goodnight story. Of course, Melissa Sweet's animated watercolor, pencil, and collage illustrations may beg for a little more time to match up all the toys with the right letters, and Judy Sierra's rollicking rhymed story will want to be heard again and again. Okay, so maybe it's a three-minute story!

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This deceptively simple, thoroughly engaging story is a child's account of her family's cross-country road trip (complete with hand-drawn maps) to visit the old homestead. Before they embark, Mom gives her two children instant cameras and notebooks to document their travels. But the kids quickly discover that what they record on film has little in common with what they actually experience.

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V is for Vampire . . .
Grab your garlic, Green Lawn! When Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose follow a pale, dark-haired stranger into Ellie's Diner, he vanishes! But Ellie has a cut on her neck . . . or could it be a bite? Could there really be a vampire in Green Lawn? And could Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose be his next victims? An appealing combination of intrigue, ingenuity, and good fun. A great recreational choice for newly independent readers.

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Mothers' hilarious, outrageous, heartfelt admissions:

"Sometimes I lock myself in the bathroom."?

"I put an educational DVD on so I could have sex. It wasn't with my husband."?

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DOES YOUR MOM WRITE IN ALL CAPS? Do her emails appear exclusively in the subject line? Does she email you to remind you to wear a hat when it's cold out?

Sweet, funny, endearing, slightly technologically inept, and always just a little nagging, emails from mothers to their adult children are much more fun to read when it's somebody else's mother.

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Julie & Julia is the story of Julie Powell's attempt to revitalize her marriage, restore her ambition, and save her soul by cooking all 524 recipes in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume I, in a period of 365 days. The result is a masterful medley of Bridget Jones' Diary meets Like Water for Chocolate, mixed with a healthy dose of original wit, warmth, and inspiration that sets this memoir apart from most tales of personal redemption.

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But if homework makes you uneasy or queasy, this book is for you. Author Trevor Romain understands how horrible homework can be. And he knows how you can do yours without throwing up. As you laugh along with Trevor's jokes and cartoons, you'll learn important homework truths, like:

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