July 2006

Seattle's Child Reads:
New Summertime Books are...

By Wenda Reed

Silly

Oh My Darling, Porcupine and Other Silly Sing-Along Songs is perfect for the campfire or backyard barbecue. Poets from around the country put silly words to 19 familiar tunes, including “Clementine” and “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.”

“And my darling, she was snarling –
should have seen that as a sign.
To impress her and caress her
was a big mistake of mine.”

And,

“Take me out of the ballgame.
Take me off of the mound.
Get me out quickly – oh, please don’t wait.
I throw hard, but I can’t reach home plate.”

The book is created by “King of Giggle Poetry” Bruce Lansky, illustrated by Stephen Carpenter and tested by 500 elementary school kids (Meadowbrook Press, May 2006; $15.95; any age).

Inspiring

Children are little people, but they can do great things. In I Can Make a Difference: A Treasury to Inspire our Children, best-selling author Marian Wright Edelman brings together dozens of stories, poems, fables, sayings and songs from the world’s cultures and religions to encourage children to be all that they can be. The selections are loosely arranged under 12 attributes, including love, courage and perseverance, and would be perfect for reading, one or two at a time, at bedtime. The stories are especially well told, and children will not feel “preached at.”

Contributors range from Martin Luther King and Jesus to Shel Silverstein, the Brothers Grimm and Pete Seeger. Barry Moser’s illustrations are beautifully varied and detailed (HarperCollins, 2005; $19.99; all ages).

Thought-provoking

What if you’d had different parents? What if an accident had changed the trajectory of your life experiences? Would you still be you? Would you still end up in the same place?

In the riveting Grand and Humble by Tacoma author Brent Hartinger, two high school boys – one a popular jock, another a self-admitted geek – experience headaches, suffocating premonitions and nightmares. Something in their pasts is pushing into their present lives, and also forcing them to confront their parents. As soon as I read the amazing ending, I went back and re-read the book from this new perspective. In too many young adult books, the characters are stick figures spouting teen-speak. In Hartinger’s books (also including Geography Club and Last Chance Texaco) they are respected, realistic individuals (HarperCollins, January 2006; $15.99; ages 14 and older).

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Seattle's Child, a publication of the Washington Post Company
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