Tiny Treasury

A Lakota Story

A traditional Native American character gets a modern update in this charming Christmas tale.

On Christmas Eve on Standing Rock Indian Reservation, Coyote wants to find some people to trick out of a hot meal. Sneaky Coyote is known in the Native American tradition as the Trickster. He knows that there’s one character people can’t refuse on Christmas Eve: Santa Claus!

Using straw for a jolly belly and wool for his Santa’s beard, the Trickster fools a family into welcoming him to their Christmas meal. But just when he thinks he’s gotten away with his ruse, taking their food and leaving the family with nothing, he’s
foiled by a strange occurrence.

Could it be a Christmas miracle?

Coyote’s antics, beautifully told and illustrated by S. D. Nelson,
will delight readers, and his eventual comeuppance just in time for Christmas makes this a perfect holiday tale.

S. D. Nelson is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in the Dakotas. He is the author of two previous children’s books, Gift Horse and Star People. School Library Journal called Gift Horse “fluid in both narrative and illustrations,” and Kirkus called Star People “an exemplary offering.” He lives in Flagstaff, Arizona. Check out his work at www.sdnelson.net.

I’ve been looking for books about the Jewish High Holidays appropriate for toddlers. A board book would be ideal with short sentences and bright, interesting pictures. According to Amazon no such book exists. All I could find were books appropriate for ages 4-8. But a closer look showed several books that seem to be toddler appropriate.
Sammy Spider’s First Rosh Hashanah doesn’t have an age range listed, but using the search inside feature it looks like it would be on target for ages 3-6.

Apples and Honey: A Rosh Hashanah Lift-the- Flap as a lift-the-flap book is probably geared towards pre-schoolers based on the excerpt on amazon, but with the lift-the-flap feature I’d think they were aiming for younger children as well. Unfortunately the lone reviewer says the pages are flimsy. Flimsy doesn’t last with my toddler. Even sturdy doesn’t last when he’s teething.

If your child is older you’ve got several books to choose from. Here are a few fiction books about the High Holidays
On Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur
Reading level: ages 4-8
40 pages

The World’s Birthday: A Rosh Hashanah Story
Reading level: ages 4-8

And a few non-fiction

Apples and Pomegranates: A Family Seder For Rosh Hashanah
Reading level: ages 4-8

Celebrate Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur: With Honey, Prayers, and the Shofar
ages 4-8

Do any readers have any suggestions for books I haven’t linked? Board books I may not have found?

Happy New Year!

I asked earlier today what your own summer reading lists were like… You can check out children’s book guru Elizabeth Kennedy’s Top Summer Reading Lists for Kids and Teens here.

Gosh, it’s just around the bend. Katie’s last day of school before the summer break is next Friday - how did it get here so quickly?

I am now into super-charged “what are we doing for summer?” mode and I’m curious. What are your kids doing? Any book clubs or reading oriented plans? Summer book lists?

I’d love to know what you’re planning!

I read an article that suggested that you buy kids’ books for mom on Mother’s Day. A number of moms took issue with the article and thought it was rude to recommend buying a gift for mom that was really for someone else (the kids). I disagree. Those must be moms with more time, patience and money than I have.

I think buying kids’ books for mom on Mother’s Day is a super idea if you get books that mom will enjoy. Let’s face it, we all have those dreaded books that we just can’t stand reading… I have hidden the dancing pig book (I won’t even give it a nod by mentioning the real title) more times than I care to admit just to have it out of the way. As a mom, I don’t want to spend the half hour before my kids’ bedtime reading annoying books. I prefer to have fun.

So, if my kids decided to buy a few interesting reads to share with me for Mother’s Day, I say “THANKS!” I would love to spend time with my children reading books that we can all enjoy.

Mother’s Day, books, reading

I love crafts. I always have. As a kid, I loved any excuse to create a little something out of paper, glue and some embellishments (I still do, which is why I love Kari’s paper blog!). I didn’t want to wait for Christmas and Easter to be crafty - and why should you? St. Patrick’s is a great holiday to be crafty - lots of color, lots of pageantry, lots of fantasy.

You can find cute and eminently do-able crafts in Kathy Ross’ Crafts for St. Patrick’s Day. Crafts include a host of shamrock-related projects, jewelry and an Irish magic wand (we have one of those in my house right now). It’s the perfect book for days like today in Philadelphia - cold and snowy out.

S. Patrick’s Day, crafts, shamrocks, paper

Thanksgiving Is for Giving Thanks
by Margaret Sutherland, Sonja Lamut
Thanksgiving is about pilgrims and history-and turkey, of course!-but most importantly, it’s a holiday all about everything that we are thankful for. Cheerful, colorful illustrations accompany the simple text in this celebration of family, friends, and the holiday that brings them all together.

The Night Before Thanksgiving
by Natasha Wing, Tammie Lyon (Illustrator)
A Thanksgiving twist on a classic story.

A Turkey for Thanksgiving
by Eve Bunting, Diane de Groat (Illustrator)
Mrs. Moose’s table is set with a paper turkey but a real turkey is what she really wants. Her husband sets out to find her one. He is joined by his soon-to-be dinner guests: Rabbit, poky Porcupine and ravenous Mr. Goat, who devours everything in sight, including Sheep’s plaid hat. They find Turkey hiding in his nest, surrounded by signs that discourage guests. Mr. Moose trys to calm the terrified bird by explaining: “We just want you for Thanksgiving dinner,” which only scares Turkey more. Young readers will be as thrilled as Turkey to hear that Mrs. Moose wants him at her table, not on it.

Five Silly Turkeys
by Salina Yoon
A fun counting book full of silly turkeys doing very silly things! From twirling on a dance floor to being chased by a bee to tanning in the sun, these are no ordinary Thanksgiving turkeys.

The Perfect Thanksgiving
by Eileen Spinelli, Joann Adinolfi (Illustrator)
A tale of two Thanksgivings. A little girl compares her family’s less than perfect Thanksgiving to the perfect Thanksgiving of another little girl.

It’s Thanksgiving
by Jack Prelutsky, Marylin Hafner (Illustrator)
Presents twelve poems about Thanksgiving, including “When Daddy carves the Turkey,” “I Ate Too Much,” “Daddy’s Football Game,” and “If Turkeys Thought.”

P is for Pilgrim: A Thanksgiving Alphabet
by Carol Crane
P is for Pilgrim covers the history and traditions of Thanksgiving from its earliest days to modern times. Educators will find the inclusion of the Core Democratic Values, and how our early settlers laid the foundations for these ideals.

Fried Feathers for Thanksgiving
by James Stevenson
Emma’s friends beg her not to invite mean witches Dolores and Lavinia to their Thanksgiving. The group is surprised when the witches’ invite them to come to their house for Thanksgiving, the group is even more surprised when they are expected to clean the house and receive no dinner. When they finish at the witches’ the group sets off to prepare their own dinner. They catch wind of a plan by the witches to crash their feast and make their own plan to set a trap.

Thanks for Thanksgiving
by Julie Markes, Doris Barrette (Illustrator)
We all know that Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks but where to begin? From the turkey on the table to warm, cozy cuddles, life is full of small things and big pleasures. The most important thing is being able to share them with family!

Thanksgiving Day
by Anne Rockwell, Lizzy Rockwell (Illustrator)
Charlie and his classmates take different roles in a class play, and each character explains why he or she is thankful. The page opposite each child in costume features a picture of a historical incident such as the landing at Plymouth Rock or the Thanksgiving feast.

thanksgiving, books, children’s books

The 24th installment of the Junie B. Jones series centers around Halloween. After a classmate fills Junie B.’s head full of Halloween tales…she does her best to avoid trick or treating. Finally she gives in but only after deciding to be the scariest of the scariest. Readers will be relieved to know they are not the only ones who get anxious about Halloween and that Junie B. makes it through Halloween safely (and with a bag full of candy).

The Junie B. Jones series is well written and uniquely insightful. Park really seems to really understand what it is like to be a first grader.
first grade, junie b. jones, children’s books, halloween

first grade, junie b. jones, children’s books, halloween

A spirited collection of 13 poems tells the story of 3 young people and their event filled adventure! The rhymes are catchy and the illustrations are the perfect compliment. Just the right amount of creepiness for little ones! An enjoyable way to share poetry with children.

Halloween, poetry, children’s books, Prelutsky

A wonderful counting book for you and your little monster. The rhythmic text is fun to read aloud. The illustrations are bold and exciting. A spook-tacular Halloween read!

This is the story of Oscar, a young dog who doesn’t quite fit in with the other dogs at obedience school. The other dogs make fun of him for being a “wienerâ€? dog. His mother only makes matters worse by referring to him as her “little vienna sausage.â€? Then she commits the ultimate sin…a ridiculous Halloween costume. Of course in the end Oscar prevails as the hero and wins the bullies over. The children will love the captivating illustrations and parents will enjoy the wordplay. A great Halloween read!

Reading Level - 3.2
Accelerated Reader Points - 0.5

Halloween, Halloween book, wiener dog, children’s books

The perfect “scary” book for little ones. This not so scary Halloween treat combines the wonderfully fun rhymes of Eve Bunting with the beautiful illustrations of Jan Brett. A perfect match. The story and the pictures work together to create a tale that is just spooky enough for little ones. Little goblins can see that there is fun and mischief to be had on Halloween without worrying about the scary things that go bump in the night.

Reading Level - 2.5
Accelerated Reader Points. - 0.5