Non-fiction Archive - Staff Picks 4 Kids

Staff Picks 4 Kids

Arf! Beg! Catch!: Dogs From A to Z by Henry Horenstein

I really enjoyed the book Arf! Beg! Catch!: Dogs From A to Z by Henry Horenstein. This book follows the alphabet with one word on each page and a picture of a dog that relates to the word. This book is different from your every day alphabet book though because the pictures of the dogs are so huge! Plus, the picture on the cover made me laugh! This book is great for beginning readers, tiny listeners, and especially dog lovers.

By MPPL on June 10, 2008 Categories: Non-fiction

Strong Man: the Story of Charles Atlas by Meghan McCarthy

Strong Man: the Story of Charles Atlas by Meghan McCarthy is true story with funny picture. Over one hundred years ago Angelo Siciliano traveled on a steamship from Italy to Ellis Island in New York. Even though Angelo didn’t know it, he was destined for great things. Angelo was a smaller kid so growing up in Brooklyn, New York was tough! He was teased and beat up by bullies. Even as he grew older, Angelo was harassed and humiliated by others. He decided it needed to stop, and after seeing a statue of Hercules, he came up with a plan! Angelo decided to start lifting weights. The weight lifting didn’t work so well, but a lion at a zoo gave him a new idea. Angelo came up with own fitness routine. As he exercised, he began to grow stronger and stronger until he was as strong as an OX!!

Once his friends started noticing his new muscles, they commented that he looked like the statue of Atlas holding the heavens on his shoulders. From that time on Angelo, whose nickname was already Charlie, became known as Charles Atlas. Wanting to show his body off, Angelo became a strongman at a Coney Island sideshow. What famous feats did Charles Atlas complete? How did the world react to him? Come check out Strong Man to find out!

By MPPL on April 29, 2008 Categories: For Grades 2-4, For Grades 4-6, Non-fiction

O God Ganesha! and O God Ganesha, Volume 2

The first review I ever did for this blog was on a book about the Indian god Ganesha, The Broken Tusk. I never mentioned that the Library has two cartoon DVDs, which tell stories and sing songs about him, O God Ganesha!and O God Ganesha, Volume 2. These two one-hour episodes, which tell many stories, were created because stories about Ganesha are not very well known even though he is the most worshiped Hindu god. Some of these stories surprised me because they are different than the tales I knew. For example, Ganesha doesn’t lose his human head in a fight with his father, Shiva, as I reported in my first post. Here he loses it when the god Shani looks at “Baby Ganesha” with his evil eye and the baby’s head vanishes! You’ll have to watch the video to see the next step in how he gets an elephant head. There are loads of other stories. I thought it was most interesting how Ganesha came to have a mouse as his “Number One Devotee.” The second DVD even includes an animated Ganesha pooja, a religious ritual. It has a song so catchy that you might be humming it to yourself all day no matter what you believe in. Oh, one word, the voices are very cute – in English, no less – but somewhat hard to understand until you get used to the accent.

By MPPL on February 18, 2008 Categories: Non-fiction

Going to School in India

Going to School in India is an award-winning educational video that will surprise you. It’s a collection of 9 short films about children in vastly different places throughout India. Some of the spots are beautifully exotic. There’s a boy who lives in a mud desert so flat and empty of plants and large buildings that the teacher announces the start of the day by shining a mirror towards all the houses. When the children see the flashing, they know it’s time to get to school. Can you imagine living somewhere completely flat, with no trees, bushes, or grass? Then there’s a girl who lives in the Himalayan foothills on a lake. Her school is in a houseboat. There’s another girl who has her school on an island and her gym class includes kayak racing. The stories show the strength and difficulties some children face. One girl has to go to school at night and learn by candlelight because she has to work all day long. One boy doesn’t have a house to live in. Instead, he lives on the sidewalk with his family in a large city. His school comes to him on a bus. This film will teach you, delight you, and get you to think about all the different kinds of lives people live.

By MPPL on November 12, 2007 Categories: For Grades 4-6, Non-fiction

Out and About at the Baseball Stadium by Bitsy Kemper

Out and About at the Baseball Stadium by Bitsy Kemper is a cool book. First, it talks about different parts of the ballpark, including parts you wouldn’t normally think about, like that there’s a hot tub for the players to soak their aching muscles. Our guide Pete takes us through the training rooms, the concourse, the dugout, and many other places found in the ball park. Exciting facts are highlighted on a pad of paper in the corner of every page. Did you know that new baseballs can be too slippery so players rub dirt on them to make them easier to handle? This book is a great read for any baseball fan.

By MPPL on October 1, 2007 Categories: For Grades 2-4, Non-fiction

The Broken Tusk: Stories of the Hindu God Ganesha by Uma Krishnaswami

One of the most recognizable Hindu gods is the elephant-headed Ganesha. But who is he? Why does he have an elephant’s head rather than a person’s? Uma Krishnaswami tells you why in The Broken Tusk: Stories of the Hindu God Ganesha. One day the Goddess Parvati was lonely and made a doll out of clay, breathed life into it, and called it Ganesha. She sent the boy to guard the door while she took a bath and her husband, the God Shiva, came home and found this boy not letting him pass. After a great battle, Shiva got past the boy, but the boy lost his head, literally. Parvati was so upset about the loss of her son that Shiva went and found the head of the first living thing in his path. It was an elephant. So now Ganesha has the head and temper of an elephant. And that’s just one of the many stories you’ll learn in The Broken Tusk.

By MPPL on September 4, 2007 Categories: For Grades 4-6, Non-fiction