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First Annual Children's Book Festival (2006)

For 2006, Friends of Axe has decided to organize a different type of fundraiser: a "Children's Book Festival". Authors from all over the world have been kind enough to donate a representative sample of their work, usually signed and frequently decorated with a small drawing or a note. We have books which appeal to youngsters of preschool and elementary school age and others that appeal to a middle and high school audience. We will be located in the East Lobby of the Weede gymnasium, just outside the Lance Arena. The books are not only signed but we offer a 25 percent discount Enjoy!

NOTE: This year the Children's Book Festival will be held in conjunction with the annual Young Authors' Conference. The featured speakers at the conference will be children's author Brad Sneed and storytellers Richard and Judy Dockrey Young. While their lectures are only open to attendees of the Young Authors' Conference they will be autographing their own books which will be on sale after 3PM in the West Lobby.

Hope to see you in the Weede on April 22nd!!

Elementary Grade Level :

ABC, What Do You See? and 123, What Do You See?, by Arlene Alda. (Ms. Alda uses her lovely photographs to do a new take on the traditional alphabet and number books, which are the staple of every nursery. Preschool to Kindergarten.)

Almost Gone: The World's Rarest Animals, by Steve Jenkins. (Beautifully illustrated and sad book about animals driven to the brink of extinction. Includes animals which are almost gone, such as the Yangtzee River Dolphin or the California Condor, animals which have disappeared, such as the Stellar Sea Cow or Guam Flying Fox; and those which are experiencing a comeback, such as the Whooping Crane or the Alpine Ibex. Kindergarten and up.)

A Bear Called Paddington, by Michael Bond. (How Mr. and Mrs. Brown met the famous bear in Paddington Station, London, where he claimed to be a "stowaway from Darkest Peru." Preschool to 2nd grade.)

The Blind Hunter, written and illustrated by Kristina Rodanas. (Hunter from southern African village who can "see with his nose, ear and skin" turns the tables on a trickster. Beautiful illustrations. 2nd to 5th grade.)

A Blue Ribbon for Sugar, by Elaine Clayton. (When her plastic hobby horse breaks, Bonnie's father teaches her to ride a real horse. Kindergarten to 2nd grade.)

By the Baobab Tree written by John Archambault and illustrated by Robert Bender. (Animals of the savannah dig themselves a new water hole by, you guessed it, the baobab tree. Autographed with an elephant by the illustrator. (a sweet guy!) Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Chicken Little, illustrated by K. Michael Crawford. (autographed by the illustrator. Foxy Woxy outwits his barnyard friends again in this charming retelling. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Count on Us: American Women in the Military, by Amy Nathan. (Beautifully illustrated book from National Geographic detailing how American women, in and out of uniform) have supported the armed forces throughout our history. 4th to 8th grade.)

Dave at Night, by Gail Carson Levine. (In audio book format. Four cassettes. Wise guy Dave becomes an orphan in 1926 New York, and is only offered shelter at the Hebrew Home for Boys, aka the Hell Hole for Brats. 4th to 8th grades.)

A Ghost Story, by Nina Crews. (Young Jonathan chases a ghost from the house with the help of his Uncle Pete. Preschool to first grade.)

The Gift, by award winning Australian writer Libby Hathorn (a new take on the Pied Piper legend. 3rd to 8th grade)

Guy Wire, by Sarah Weeks. (Two boys who were friends since 2nd grade face splitting up. 4th to 7th grade.)

Hello World! by Manya Stojic. (Charming pictures, painted by the author, of children around the world saying hello in 42 languages. Uses phonetic spelling to aid pronunciation. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Hill Hawk Hattie (After losing her mother, Hattie tries rafting with her father on the Delaware River) and Hattie on Her Way (Pa puts Hattie in her Grandmother's house in the city to get an education), by Clara Gillow Clark. (5th to 9th grade.)

Hotdog on TV, by Karen T. Taha. (Mr. And Mrs. Beans' dog, "Hotdog", tries to get a job endorsing Doggy Yums on TV. Kindergarten to 3rd grade.)

I know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie, by Alison Jackson. (Old children's song rewritten for Thanksgiving. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

I'm So Embarrassed! by Robert Munsch. (Andrew and Taylor-Jae's Moms embarrass them at the mall. Cute illustrations by Michael Martchenko, who autographed the book. Kindergaten to 2nd grade.)

Illustration examples from 'I'm So Embarrased', by Munsch and Martchenko.

In Style with Grandma Antoinette, by Judith Caseley. (Young Rosie spends the day at the beauty parlor where Grandma Antoinette just got a job. Kindergarten to 2nd grade.)

In the Spin of Things: Poetry of Motion, by Rebecca Kai Dotlich. (Poems about waterfalls, helicopters, lawn mowers, washing machines and everything that moves. 2nd to 4th grade.)

Inner Chimes: Poems on Poetry, selected by Bobbye S. Goldstein. (Eleanor Farjeon, Nikki Giovanni and other poets write about their art. 3rd grade and up.)

Inside Mouse, Outside Mouse, by Lindsay Barrett George. (Differences (?) between the life of a field mouse and a house mouse. Beautifully illustrated by the author. Preschool to the 2nd grade)

The Invisible Moose, by Dennis Haseley. (Young moose drinks an invisibility potion so that he can rescue his girlfriend from an evil poacher. Adorable illustrations by Steven Kellogg. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Jeannette Rankin: First Lady of Congress, by Trish Marks. (Montana's famous Congresswoman, who came into the House of Representatives before women got the vote. Her firm commitment to peace destroyed her career but earned her the respect of the Sage of Emporia, William Allen White. 5th grade and up.)

A Little Witch Magic, written and illustrated by Robert Bender. (Lonely Broomhelga turns into a good witch after a visit from young Wanda. Author added a witch's face to his autograph. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Looking for Jaguar and Other Rain Forest Poems, by Susan Katz; illustrated by Lee Christiansen. (Wonderful illustrations for poems about the plant and animal life of the rainforest. 1st to 4th grade.)

Mrs. Goodstory, by Joy Cowley and illustrated by Erica Dornbusch. (Young boy has wonderful adventures with an excellent storyteller. Kindergarten to third grade.)

My Daddy is a Pretzel: Yoga for Parents and Kids, by Baron Baptiste. (Book of exercise for whole families to enjoy. 2nd to 6th grade.)

My Feet, by Aliki. (A book all about what your feet do and how to care for them. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

North American Wolves, by Barbara K. Parker. (Great photos of wolves hunting, playing and taking care of young. Interesting and understandable text. 2nd to 5th grade.)

Northern Lullaby, by Nancy White Carlstrom. (Baby bids good night to "Papa Star, Grandpa Mountain, Brother Bear, Auntie Willow, Uncle Moose, Sister Owl" and other creatures of the night. Amazing Inuit inspired illustrations by Leo and Diane Dillon. Preschool to first grade.)

Illustration from 'Northern Lullaby', by Leo and Diane Dillon.

Playtime Rhymes for Little People, by Clare Beaton. (Author illustrates her poems with sew on felt appliqué. Beautiful and clever. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Prehistoric Actual Size, by Steve Jenkins. (For those persons who think all prehistoric animals are huge, this books shows the immense variety from giant roaches (4 in.) and millipedes (6.5 ft.) to the chicken like saltopus (2 ft.) to a baby (6 in.) and adult (6 ft.) protoceratops. In order to show "actual size", sometimes only the head, claw or teeth of the animal are shown. A terrific book! Kindergarten and up.)

Projects about the American Revolution, by Marian Broida. (Make your own tricorn hat, liberty flag and 18th century medical kit while learning about life in Revolutionary America. 1st to 5th grades.)

Pumpkins (a kind old man saves and abandoned field from urban sprawl by planting pumpkins) and Red Rubber Boot Day ( a youngster spends a rainy day joyfully jumping in puddles) by Mary Lyn Ray. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

R is for Rhyme, by Judy Young. (An alphabetical book based on the different genres of poetry ("B is for Ballad", "H is for Haiku") or the specialized vocabulary we use to understand poetry. (M is for Metaphor", "O is for Onomatopoeia") Oppulently illustrated by Victor Juhasz. 3rd grade and up.)

Sandbear, by Shen Roddie. (Young rabbit goes to the beach and models a bear out of sand. The bear later comes alive. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

A School Year of Poems: 180 Favorites from Highlights. (Highlights magazine selects poems on seasons, animals, holidays, family, friends and other things which children love. 1st to 5th grade.)

Sea Giants of Dinosaur Time, by "Dino" Don Lessem. (All about the archelon, kronsaurus, mosasaurus, plesiosaurus, shonisaurus and I could go on and onisaurus; but the book is much more fun. 1st to 4th grade.)

Solar System and Splash: a Book about Whales and Dolphins, by Melvin and Gilda Berger. (Beautifully illustrated science readers for the young. 2nd to 6th grade.)

The Spiderwick Chronicles: Book 1: The Field Guide, by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black. (Three children move into the Spiderwick Estate and find it is haunted, not by ghosts, but by faeries! Book signed by Tony DiTerlizzi with one of his charming drawings. 2nd to 5th grade.)

Spy Hops and Belly Flops: Curious Behaviors of Woodland Animals, by Lynda Graham-Barber; illustrated by Brian Lies. (Shows youngsters how animals move in strange ways, such as the red fox's hopping to detect prey, or the nose first dive-bombing of the Kingfisher to catch fish. Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Stella's Dancing Days, by Sandy Asher. (Young cat with a passion for pirouettes, tumbles and flips grows up. Kindergarten to 2nd grade.)

Stop, Drop and Roll, by Margery Cuyler. (Worry wart Jessica loses her fears when her school teaches her to "Stop, Drop and Roll". Kindergarten to 2nd grade.)

Suki's Kimono, by Chieri Uegaki. (Suki wears the Kimono that her Grandma brought to her from Japan to her first grade class, even though she gets a little teasing from her sisters and her classmates. Kindergarten to 2nd grade.)

Illustrations from 'Suki's kimono', by Chieri Uegaki.

Talley O'Malley (kindergarten to 2nd grade, teaches counting), One...Two...Three... Sassafras! (kindergarten to 2nd grade, teaches order) and Polly's Pen Pal (1st to third grade, teaches about the metric system), all by Stuart J. Murphy, writer for the MathStart company.

Tell Me My Story, Mama, by Deb Lund. (Young toddler prepares for the birth of a new sibling by reviewing the story of her own gestation and birth. Deals with ultrasound, parental jitters, prenatal classes, changes in Mom's appearance, morning sickness, etc. Preschool to the 2nd grade)

Thunder from the Sea, by Joan Harlow. (Set in 1929 Canada. Young orphan Tom finds a new family in the form of a fisherman and his wife and a Newfoundland dog named Thunder. 3rd to 9th grade.)

A Time to Keep: the Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays, by Tasha Tudor. Famed illustrator of A Child's Garden of Verses has written and illustrated a book about a traditional year of 19th century Vermont holidays. Kindergarten to 2nd grade.)

Up the Hill and Down, compiled by William J. Smith (poems by the author plus a number of other renowned authors such as Carson McCullers and F. Scott Fitzgerald.) and Laughing Time and Around my Room, by William J. Smith. (nonsense verse by the author. Everything preschool to 3rd grade.)

The Viper, by Lisa Thiesing. (Ancient childhood joke refurbished with illustrations of "Peggy the Pig". Preschool to 2nd grade.)

Voices of the Trojan War (Passages from Aeschylus, Ovid, Homer, Virgil and other classical writers alternate with the author's own poems about Troy) and Ancient Voices (Author's poetry about our favorite Greek myths.) Both books by Kate Hovey and beautifully illustrated by Murray Kimber.) 3rd grade and up.

Voyage to Shelter Cove, by Ralph da Costa Nunez. (Homeless sea creatures need to find a new home when the "landlubbers" destroy their reef. Author is president and CEO of Homes for the Homeless: Institute for Children and Poverty. Preschool to third grade.)

When Morning Comes, by Ron Hirschi. (Beautiful photographs and easy text illustrate how plants and animals greet the new day. 1st to 5th grade.)

Wishing Moon, by Michael O. Tunnell. (The author's take on what happened to the lamp after the familiar story of Aladdin is over. 3rd to 6th grade.)

Middle School Level :

Bad Girls in Love, by Cynthia Voigt. (The fourth installment in Cynthia Voigt's "Bad Girls" series finds eighth grader bad girls Mikey Elsinger and Margalo Epps falling in love. 7th grade and up.)

Bahrain, by Carol Ann Gillespie. (Culture, land, history, economy and government of this ancient neighbor of Saudi Arabia profiled for younger readers and researchers. Middle school and up.)

Dealing with the Stuff that Makes Life Tough: The 10 Things that Stress Girls Out and How to Cope with Them, by Jill Zimmerman Rutledge. (A psychotherapist's advice on dealing with boys, dieting, peer pressure, bullies, depression, drugs and other teenage horrors. 8th grade and up.)

Demystifying Dreams, and The Effects of Stress and Anxiety on the Family, by Marvin Rosen. (Clinical psychologist and author explains psychology to teenagers. Middle school and up.)

Dog of Discovery, by Laurence Pringle. (Story of Seaman, the extraordinary Newfoundland dog who accompanied Meriwether Lewis and the Corps of Discovery on the Lewis and Clark expedition. A great, forgotten story. 5th grade and up.)

Finders Keepers, by Ann Halam. (Young girl cannot figure out if the statue she found brings good magic or bad. 7th to 9th grade.)

Guatemala, by Carol Ann Gillespie. (Culture, land, history, economy and government of this Central American republic with its astounding Maya heritage profiled for younger readers and researchers. Middle school and up.)

Half and Half, by Lensey Namioka. (Chinese-Scottish girl, who looks more Chinese than Scottish, gets flak from her interethnic family and friends when she wants to dance in her Scottish grandfather's folk dancing troupe. 6th to 10th grades)

Kyrgyzstan and The Hudson River (History and culture of the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan and New York's most famous river.) and Men of the Bible (Profiles Jonathan, David, Moses, Joshua, Peter, Paul, Jesus and many others in Dictionary format.) , by Daniel Elton Harmon. Middle school and up.

Mystery of the Island Jewels and Mystery at Kittiwake Bay, by Joyce A. Stengel. (exciting adventures of young teen age sleuth Cassie Hartt in Kittiwake Bay, Maine and on a cruise to Martinique. 6th to 10th grade.)

Peter Becomes a Trail Man, by William G.B. and William C. Carson, illustrated by Pat Oliphant. (Set in the 1850s, the exciting adventures of 12 year old Peter, who sets out on the Santa Fe trail in search of his father. Illustrated by famed political cartoonist Pat Oliphant. 5th to 10th grade.)

The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, by Shirley Jordan. (Absorbing account of ancient monuments such as the Pyramids, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Colossus of Rhodes, etc. 6th to 9th grades.)

Shadows on the Sea, by Joan Harlow. (Fourteen Year old Canadian finds herself entangled in a spy mystery when she is sent to Maine to live with her grandmother. Set in 1942. 6th grade and up.)

The Silver Spoon of Solomon Snow, by Kaye Umansky. (Abused orphan child laborer of the Victorian era reclaims his identity with the help of his ragamuffin friends. Inspired by Charles Dickens. Middle school and up.)

Thunderwith, by award winning Australian writer Libby Hathorn (Teenager, grieving for her mother, goes to the Australian rain forest to live with her father and his wife and children. 6th grade and up)

Waiting for Odysseus, by Clemence McLaren. (Story of Penelope, Circe and other patient women who waited for the great hero. Middle school and up.)

High School Level :

The Cherokee Lottery, by William Jay Smith. (A series of heart rending poems about the Trail of Tears. 9th grade and up.)

Crusader, by Edward Bloor. (Roberta wants to find the man who murdered her mother as well as the instigator of a series of hate crimes in her town. 9th grade and up.)

The Drowning (Young Cornish girl's life is wrecked by a family accident.), Lost and Found, (Orphaned British teen's new found love is threatened by a mystery from the past), Coming of Age (Young Amy loses her mother in a riding accident, then tries to pull her life back together) and Girl in the Attic (Cornish teenager finds a mysterious girl during his Christmas vacation who holds a family secret.) All by British mystery writer Valerie Mendes. (9th grade and up.)

Girl, Nearly 16, Absolute Torture, by Sue Limb. (Jess' trip to the Cornish countryside during the summer promises to be boring, but it holds some surprises. 9th to 12th grade.)

How to Write Fiction Like a Pro, by Robert Peck. (Famed writer of "A Day No Pigs Would Die" talks about the writers' craft. 9th grade and up.)

An Ocean Apart, a World Away and Ties that Bind, Ties that Break, by Lensey Namioka. (Chinese women in 1920s china deal with ancient and modern problems such as foot binding, education, marriage and immigration. 9th grade and up.)

Phoenix Rising, by Karen Hesse. (An accident at a nuclear power plant threatens a girl's quiet life on her grandmother's farm in Vermont. 9th grade and up.)

Praying to A.L., by Judith Caseley. (Young girl soothes her grief when her father dies by confiding to a junk shop photo of Abraham Lincoln hanging on her wall. 8th grade and up.)

Wrecked, Friction (in hardback and audiobook format) and Life is Funny, by E.R. Frank. (Thought provoking novels about teenagers dealing with bullies, cliques, poverty, death, family problems, etc. 8th grade and up.)

Zoo, by Graham Marks. (17 year old Cameron Stewart finds himself chased by kidnappers and cops from LA to Seattle and back again in this tense, sci-fi thriller. 9th grade and up.)

Illustration from 'Looking for Jaguar and Other Rain Forest Poems'.