BUILDING by Henry Cole Henry Cole's newly released picture book, Building, is beautiful! Following the lives of beavers, Cole uses black Micropens with the addition of blue and green acrylic paint colors to highlight his amazing illustrations. The result is pictures that you want to study and absorb. Cole was a science teacher for many years, so he is gifted at making nature come to life for kids. Very well done!

HOW WE GOT TO THE MOON by John Rocco July 20th marks the anniversary of the Apollo moon landing, so I will dedicate a few posts to this historical event.  Kicking off our book lineup is How We Got to the Moon by John Rocco. Rocco is an amazing author/illustrator. He is a Caldecott winner for his book, Blackout. However, he is probably best known for designing the covers for Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series. For many years he was the Creative Director for Walt Disney's Imagineering. So when a person with this type of credentials turns his sights to space, you know it's going to be good! The result is 243 pages of visual and information feast for the senses. Beautifully researched beginning with the Space Race and ending with a list of Apollo's piloted missions, this book is a marvelous launching pad to answering children and adults' questions about this famous mission. If you know someone that loves space, this is a great book! ALONGSIDE ACTIVITY- Google the moonwalk and watch video footage of this historic event! You can order MREs (Meals, Ready to Eat) from Amazon (a little pricey) or go to Rainbow Resource (homeschool education provider) and search for astronaut food to try some astronaut styled cuisine.

COME ON, RAIN by Karen Hesse. Illustrated by Jon J. Muth Come on, Rain by Karen Hesse is a beautiful picture book that I love to read! I have been waiting for the summer heat to arrive and the cooling rain to break it (even if it's just for a moment) before sharing this story! Set in the inner city, the summer heat is sweltering, and a little girl and her friends don their swimsuits and wait for the drops to begin. When it begins to happen, their joy is contagious! I can relate so much to this longing when we are clad in jeans at the horse barn in the hot summer heat and humidity preparing for fair. "Come on, rain." I whisper as I step outside for a moment to look for clouds. When the drops start the relief is immediate! This book is a vivid reminder of the simple joys of childhood and adulthood!

HOLES by Louis Sachar Wow! I had forgotten how good Holes by Louis Sachar is! If you have a child that fits the middle grade age that likes adventure and mystery, this is a win! Stanley Yelnats (yes his last name is his first name spelled backwards) has always been unlucky in life. In fact, his whole family traces their bad luck all the way back to Stanley's no-good-dirty-rotten- pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather. So when Stanley is convicted of a crime he didn't commit and sentenced to serve his time at Camp Green Lake, it's really no surprise. What is a surprise is that Camp Green Lake isn't green at all, and the lake is all dried up and gone. What's even more of a surprise is every day the boys sentenced there have to each dig a hole that is five feet deep and five feet wide. They're told that it will build character, but it may have more to do with the fact that a long time ago a school teacher named Katherine Barlow lived in this area when there was a lake and a town. Through a series of events she was wronged and turned into Outlaw Kissing Kate Barlow. Her treasure has never been found. The chapters are very short, and I can honestly say this is a book Isaac kept asking for another chapter. I was happy to comply!

THE EVE OF REVOLUTION by Barbara Burt LIBERTY: HOW THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR BEGAN by Lucille Recht Penner I will apologize in advance, but the Fourth snuck up on me so quickly and there were several books I wanted to share with you, so you are about to be flooded with American History books! Let's talk about the actual Revolution! I chose these two books to share with you. The Eve of Revolution by Barbara Burt is part of a National Geographic series called I Am American. It is historical fiction, but what makes it so good is that it is set up in a series of journal entries and letters. It discusses real events and real concerns in a personal format. The second is a Landmark picture book called Liberty! How the Revolutionary War Began. It has several ( what I will call) short sections on different topics. They cover a wide range including standard things like The Stamp Act and not so standard as Tar and Feathering. The pictures are cartoonish in nature and appeal to kids. It is a book you can read straight through or just choose topics of interest.

BUNNICULA by Deborah and James Howe Even though the cover looks scary, this is not a scary book! It is more humorous than scary! Bunnicula by James Howe, written in 1979, was a favorite book of mine as an upper elementary kid! Callie and I just finished it, and even though she chuckled through part of it, she wasn't as smitten as I was. I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed re-reading this "classic!" Bunnicula is the story of a bunny left behind in a movie theater showing Dracula. The Munroe family discover him when one of their boys accidentally sits on him. They bring him home and promptly adopt him into the family adding him to the current pet population of Chester the cat and Harold the dog. I need to interject here for a moment that this book is told from the perspective of Harold the dog! After some strange things start happening around the home like the discovery of stark white zucchini and tomatoes in the fridge, the fact that Bunnicula is only awake at night and is affected by garlic, Chester, the suspicious cat, thinks they need to act to protect the family from a vampire rabbit. Lots of hilarious antics ensue. Great fun!

HORSE by Geraldine Brooks Horse by Pulitzer Prize winner Geraldine Brooks overall is an amazing book. I have been thoroughly hooked reading the story of Lexington, who was an actual recordbreaking racehorse from the 1850s. Horse, however, is a novel inspired by Lexington's life and races. The story is set in 3 different time periods each affected by the famous racehorse through his actual life of racing and those who cared for him, science through the study of his bones, and the collection of racehorse art. The original story is set before and during the Civil War and is very moving. Be prepared to fall in love with the characters especially Warfield's Jarrett (later Ted Broeck's Jarret) Lexington's black, slave groom. So why do I say "overall an amazing book?" There are a few minor blips that are overlookable. However, right at the end, we deal with a police brutality issue that just doesn't feel like it fits the narrative of the story. It really feels like the author's attempt to get her 2¢ out into her story. It really is a shame, because I was ready to sing the praises of this book until that was thrown in. If I can compare Horse to a horserace, we had a beautiful race going. It started out of the gate with a bang and left its competitors in the dust. Round and round we went in beautiful, smooth, fluid motion, and then just as the horse was about to cross the finish line, it stumbled. We got across and won, but its shoe was definitely askew and missing some nails. Horse is a book that I will read again and that is saying something. I just will know that an unfortunate bump is coming in the end. HEADS UP- There are a few words including a couple f-bombs. It is very little. There is a gay relationship that is mentioned but not described. There is a couple that you know has sex without details.

PAUL REVERE'S RIDE by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow AND THEN WHAT HAPPENED, PAUL REVERE by Jean Fritz We can't have a Revolutionary War lineup without mentioning Paul Revere! Starting with Paul Revere's Ride, the infamous poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, this book is a delight of action, danger, and mystery if you don't know if Revere will be able to finish the ride without being caught. Longfellow's choice of descriptive words helps you feel as though you are right there viewing the night's activities first hand. It is brilliant! Charles Santore's artwork is spectacular in a Washington Irving, Sleepy Hollow sort of way. From the pictures of the inside of the bell tower at night to the graveyard to Revere's horse's shoe striking sparks on the cobblestones that would light a fire of passion throughout this newly emerging country, you will not be disappointed! Author Jean Fritz dedicated a large part of her life to writing American history fiction and nonfiction for children. Her book And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? is a simple, yet well-written biography to read with your children. Beginning with his boyhood to his becoming the leader of the Sons of Liberty, Fritz shows us what a go-getter Revere was. He had some very narrow escapes in his life that are interesting to read about, and for all the dog lovers out there, Revere's dog had an amazing part in the famous ride! (Oh if my dog was so well trained!) And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? is a great read that is well worth your time! Heads Up- There is one d*** in a quote by an English officer in And Then What Happened, Paul Revere.

HENRY AND THE CANNONS by Don Brown GUNS FOR GENERAL WASHINGTON by Seymour Reit Henry and the Cannons by Don Brown and Guns for General Washington by Seymour Reit both cover the same Revolutionary War event, the amazing feat of moving 59 cannons and mortars over 300 miles of mountainous terrain. Brothers Henry and Will Knox led a band of men who drug the heavy artillery from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston delivering them to General Washington. The battle that followed became the turning point in the Revolutionary War for the colonists. These books tell a breath taking story of strength and determination that we continue to benefit from today!

GLITCH by Laura Martin Glitch by Laura Martin is a fun, futuristic read. Reagan and Elliot are Glitchers, a group of people who are time travelers that keep people from going back in time and changing history. It is forbidden to alter time in any way, but when Regan receives a message from her futuristic self with a series of instructions, she knows something serious is around the corner that will test those rules. Glitch is a good read that teaches the importance of working alongside someone in a respectful manner that you may not really like and the selfless act of putting others ahead of yourself.

ANYBODY HERE SEEN FRENCHIE? by Leslie Connor Aurora Petrequin is the complete opposite of her best friend, Frenchie Livernois. She is loud, always on the go, obnoxious. Frenchie has never spoken a word. He is autistic, and yet, the two of them are best friends. Aurora can "hear" what Frenchie wants, likes, or doesn't like through his slight body movements. They are down right inseparable until, for the first time ever, they are put in different classrooms at school. Aurora still makes sure that Frenchie gets to his room okay except for one day. She gets caught up with her classmates, and Frenchie heads into the Maine woods following a piebald deer. (Yes, I said piebald deer. Goggle it and see what it is if you don't know! I had to, and they are so cool!) Now the whole community is on the hunt trying to find Frenchie. Anybody Here Seen Frenchie? by Leslie Connor is a very special story about true friendship between two unlikely people. It is a timely story for our culture about the value of a person, even one with a disability, and how they can affect a whole community. Highly recommend!

THE FLAG WE LOVE by Pam Munoz Ryan. Illustrated by Ralph Masiello. The Flag we Love by Pam Munoz Ryan (author of the amazing book Echo) is a beautiful tribute to the American Flag. The text is written in poetic form and touches on the flag's origins, historic moments it has been a part of, where you see it displayedr, and what it stands for. Beautifully illustrated by Ralph Masiello, this picture book will get your patriotic heart beating in your chest again if it has been faltering lately!