The Secret Zoo by Bryan Chick

Megan is in the Adventure Scouts' treehouse late at night. She is searching for her glasses that she lost during the day. Suddenly Megan hears weird noises. She looks through the Adventure Scout binoculars, nothing. She hears the noise again, this time she spots a monkey jumping across the rooftops in her neighborhood. Then she sees another monkey, and another. What? There is no way!! How could the monkeys have escaped from the zoo? Megan and her brother Noah love living next to the city zoo. This is so weird, she has to tell Noah. Megan rushes to the house and wakes up Noah. By the time they get back to the treehouse the monkeys are nowhere in sight. Maybe Megan was dreaming. Megan and Noah did not have a clue, but this was the night that their adventure would begin. Days later when Megan turns up missing, Noah and his friends discover clues that lead them to the zoo, and then to the Secret Zoo. Pick up the Secret Zoo today and find out what happens to Megan, Noah and the other Adventure Scouts.

Bryan Chick is a local Michigan author and has written three titles in the Secret Zoo series.

This series came recommended to me by two of my 4th graders and I am so happy that it did. Thanks Lucas and Thomas.

UPDATE: on March 13, 2012 the students at Spencer and Hilton elemenatary schools in Brighton, MI had the honor of hosting an author visit with Mr. Chick. What a wonderful presentation and a fantastic day. Visit The Secret Zoo Facebook page.

Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian

Day One I swam around my bowl.
Day Two I swam around my bowl. Twice.

...and so Memoirs of a Goldfish begins. A goldfish tells us about his day to day life in his fishbowl. At first it is just him, swimming alone. Soon there is Mr. Bubbles; Mervin, a snail; Cha-Cha, an angel fish; Fred, a crabby crab; and others. Will his life change? Do they all get along? Can they all fit in his fish bowl?

Memoirs of a Goldfish is the Michigan Reads book for the 2011. Michigan Reads is our "One State, One Children's Book" Program. The program highlights the importance of reading and sharing books with children, especially toddlers through early elementary, and to recognize the vital role libraries play in providing access to the quality books, programs and services that lay the foundation for reading and school success. (http://www.michigan.gov/mde/)

Ask your child if they heard the story during their visit to our school library.

Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer by screenwriter Kathy Waugh and author Megan McDonald

Judy Moody has made it to the big screen! Following my own advice, "read the book BEFORE you see the movie", I read this book and was pleasantly surprised that even though it was co-written by the screenwriter for the movie, it holds very true to previous Judy Moody books.

Author Megan McDonald says it best on her website - Judy Moody gets famous - FOR REAL!

Judy and her brother Stink are super excited about summer vacation. Judy comes up with a summer challenge for her friends Amy, Frank, and Rocky. She introduced them to the "Judy Moody Mega-Rare NOT-Bummer-Summer Dare", to help avoid the "Boring with a capital B, typical summer". Judy did not count on Amy going to Borneo and Rocky going to a summer circus camp. That left her and Frank. Not so fun! Then Judy's parents tell her they are going to California for the summer to help Nana and Gramps. She was super excited, until her dad said, "you and Stink are staying here". NOW she was in a mood! They told her she would have fun with her Aunt Opal, who Judy quickly nicknamed Aunt Awful. Her entire summer was looking like a bummer. Read Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer to see how it all works out for Judy.

One by Kathryn Otoshi

Red is a bully. He picks on Blue and makes Blue feel sad. The other colors tell Blue that he is a good color, but they never say it in front of Red. Because no one stands up to Red he gets bigger and more powerful, and then comes One. One is shaped different than all the colors, he makes the colors laugh. They are all having fun until Red shows up and tells them to stop laughing. The colors all stop, but what will One do? Read One and find out what the colors and One will do.

The Wonder Book by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

April is "National Poetry Month". We are celebrating with The Wonder Book by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. The author of this book tells us, "You can open the book up anywhere and read." This is so true. Open to the middle of the book and you get:

Maternal Bureau of Investigation
If you're gonna sneak a cookie
Don't act like some young rookie
Wipe up your trail of crumbs
Lick the chocolate from your thumbs
Practice "nope, not me" faces
Just to cover all your bases
See, you never know which mother
Is working undercover
'Til the moment she yells
Freeze!
CHEF.B.I.
Drop the cookie please!

The illustrations enhance each word game, poem, story, and palindrome in this entertaining collection. ENJOY!

Curous Garden by Peter Brown

Liam was out exploring one day when he saw a secret passageway in the old abandoned railroad station. Liam went through the entrance, up some stairs and found the old railroad tracks. Right in the middle of the tracks, he discoverd some random plants growing. The plants were dying and Liam decided he would bring them back to life. He spent many days tending to the garden, which grew and spread. The illustrations in this book bring the story to life. Liam helps bring beauty back to his city and shows us that even in the darkest areas, we can grow something beautiful.

The Magic Half by Annie Barrows

How would you feel if you were the middle sibling in your family? What if you were sandwiched between two sets of twins? Miri is the "extra" in her family. Her twin brothers are older than she is and her twin sisters are younger. When Miri's family moves to an old farmhouse, the adventure begins. Miri wished she had a twin too, just like the rest of her family. She is either watching her little sisters or trying to hang out with her brothers. Her brothers decide that there is treasure buried under their house and when Miri tries to help them, they ditch her. She is very upset about being ditched and accidentally knocks out one of her brothers. Her mother sends her to her room as punishment. While she is in her room she notices the lens of an eyeglass taped to the floorboard in her room. What happens next is amazing! Miri looks through the lens, and is suddenly sucked into another time period, 1935. Miri meets a girl named Molly who actually lives in Miri's room, in the past. Molly is so excited to see Miri, she knew a "fairy" would come and rescue her! Molly is living with her aunt and cousins, they are very mean to Molly. Miri is confused about how she got there, and how to get back to her own time. After spending time with Molly, Miri decides she has to figure out a way to get Molly away from her family. Maybe she should take Molly back home with her, but how? Miri is spying on Molly's cousin in the barn when she reaches into her pocket and puts on her own glasses. Zap! Miri is pulled back into her own world, without Molly. How can she leave Molly there? Can she figure out a way to get back to 1935 to rescue Molly? The suspense will get you! Pick up this book, I guarantee you will not put it down until you know the answers.

Lulu and the Brontosaurus by Judith Viorst; illustrated by Lane Smith

Lulu is a little girl that gets everything that she wants. If her parents tell her "no", she throws a fit until they say "yes". She is really not a very nice little girl. Lulu has a birthday coming up and when she tells her parents she wants a Brontosaurus for a pet, they tell her "no". She throws her fit and her parents still say "no!" After twelve days of screeching and throwing a fit Lulu's parents still say "no!" Lulu did not know what to do, but she knew she wanted a Brontosaurus for her birthday. So she packed her suitcase and went to find a Brontosaurus in the forest. As she is going deeper into the forest Lulu sings

"I'm gonna, I'm gonna,
I'm gonna gonna get.

A bronto-bronto-bronto
Brontosaurus for a pet."

After running into a snake, a tiger, and a big black bear in the forest and being very rude to them, Lulu finally finds her Brontosaurus. The Brontosaurus is not thrilled about being Lulu's pet, instead he wants Lulu to his pet! What will happen when the polite Brontosaurus tries to keep the impolite Lulu as a pet? Will Lulu give in, or throw a fit? This book has three endings, you get to pick the one that works for you. Enjoy this delightful easy chapter book.

A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead; Illustrated by Erin E. Stead

And the winner is...A Sick Day for Amos McGee. On January 10, 2011 the American Library Association announced their youth media awards which included the Caldecott medal for the illustrations in a picture book. This year's winner is a new illustrator from Ann Arbor, Michigan, Erin Stead.

Amos McGee goes to work every day following the same routine. He fixes his breakfast, drinks his tea, takes the bus to his job at the zoo, does his job and then spends time with his animal friends. He plays chess with the elephant, races a tortoise, keeps a penguin company, and reads stories to an owl who is afraid of the dark. So what happens when Amos gets a cold and does not go to work? Read A Sick Day for Amos McGee and see how the animals return the kindness that Amos always shows them.