New and Recently Released!

There Was an Old Monster! - by Rebecca, Adrian, and Ed Emberley

Publisher: Orchard Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 07/01/2009
ISBN-13: 9780545101455
ISBN-10: 054510145X

Produced by not one, not two, but three generations of Emberleys, this variation on the well-known cumulative song "I Know an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly" gives it new vigor and panache. A spotted, bright purple monster with orange horns and big, multi-colored googly eyes starts out swallowing a tick (which makes him feel sick) and chases it with ants, a lizard, a bat, a jackal, and a bear...but the lion he attempts to swallow next turns the tables on him. Download the highly percussive song from the publisher's website and turn the pages--full of riotous color against black backgrounds--for an infectiously rhythmic storytime.

Whoo! Whoo! Goes the Train - written and illustrated by Anne F. Rockwell; with colorization by Vanessa van der Baan

Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 07/01/2009
ISBN-13: 9780060562281
ISBN-10: 0060562285

Allan the kitten LOVES trains--but he's never ridden on one. One day, his parents take him on his very first train ride, clickety-clacking over bridges, through a tunnel, past cows in a field, and finally to their destination. Allan is sad that the ride has ended until he realizes where they've traveled: Trainland! Plenty of bright colors, sound effects, and details about trains make this book a winner for locomotive-loving toddlers.

Books to Read Along with Where the Wild Things Are

Ginger Bear - by Mini Grey

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 06/12/2007
ISBN-13: 9780375942532
ISBN-10: 037594253X

Poor little Horace makes a gingerbread bear, but his Mum quashes all his attempts to eat it before bedtime. This reprieve allows Ginger Bear to wake up at midnight and quite literally "make some friends." He bakes a batch of buddies, dresses them in icing and sugar-sprinkle finery, and instigates a wild circus in the kitchen. When the family dog launches a baked-goods blitzkrieg, Ginger Bear is the only one who escapes. Little ones drawn to the after-hours rumpus in Where the Wild Things Are should enjoy the raucous circus that Ginger Bear leads--and they'll be reassured to learn how this smart cookie alters his destiny.

Grump Groan Growl - by bell hooks; illustrated by Chris Raschka

Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/08/2008
ISBN-13: 9780786808168
ISBN-10: 0786808160

Everyone gets angry sometimes--and a bad mood can make a person feel monstrous. In this book's bold illustrations and simple, poetic text, an enraged youngster is joined by an alter-ego monster that personifies his "bad mood on the prowl," and the two of them storm through a range of feelings before finally getting them under control. With visceral impact reminiscent of Where the Wild Things Are and an outlet for anger that, like the one portrayed in Betsy Everitt's Mean Soup, is productive rather than preachy, it's perfect for a toddler or preschooler who's having a really bad day.

Last Night - by Hyewon Yum

Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 09/30/2008
ISBN-13: 9780374343583
ISBN-10: 0374343586

Without a single word, Last Night expressively conveys the story of a little girl who is sent to bed early for refusing her dinner and takes a dream-time trip to revel in the woods with her now-real toy bear and other wild animals. There's no small amount of magic in this beautiful book's illustrations--Korean artist Hyewon Yum's linoleum block prints have many layers of both color and meaning, and carry the story forward subtly yet clearly.

Focus on: Fear and Scary Things

Go Away, Big Green Monster! - by Ed Emberley

Publisher: Little, Brown
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/01/1993
ISBN-13: 9780316236539
ISBN-10: 0316236535

Forget building a bear--with this graphically delightful book, little ones can build (and then dismantle) a big green monster, part by part! Each die-cut page reveals an additional monstrous characteristic, starting with two big yellow eyes peeping out of a black background and adding a "big red mouth with sharp white teeth," scraggly purple hair, and more. Once the scary monster is in full view, each subsequent page turn banishes a feature until he's completely gone, squiggly ears and all. Great, empowering fun.

Some Things are Scary - by Florence Parry Heide; illustrated by Jules Feiffer

Publisher: Candlewick Press
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 09/01/2003
ISBN-13: 9780763621476
ISBN-10: 0763621471

Lots of things can be scary: stepping on something squishy in your bare feet, skating downhill when you don't know how to stop, having your best friend move away, and even knowing you'll be a grownup someday. This book's pictures (by Jules Feiffer, illustrator of Norton Juster's classic The Phantom Tollbooth) manage to be both amusing and slightly disturbing in their depiction of a lengthy catalog of scary things big and small. There's no real story to speak of here--just plenty of empathy for very real childhood fears.

Wemberly Worried - by Kevin Henkes

Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 08/01/2000
ISBN-13: 9780688170288
ISBN-10: 0688170285

Nervous little mouse Wemberly frets about everything. She worries that she might shrink in the tub and fears that the cracks in her home's walls will grow and scary things will come out of them. As Wemberly's first day of school approaches, she worries more than ever before. "What if no one else wears stripes?" and "What if the teacher is mean?" are but two items on her long list of scary possibilities. When the day comes and Wemberly makes a friend at school, however, she starts having fun...and worrying less. Children who admire creator Kevin Henkes' Lily (of the Purple Plastic Purse) but are a bit more timid than she is will love Wemberly.

Precious and the Boo Hag - by Pat McKissack and Onawumi Jean Moss; illustrated by Kyrsten Brooker

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 01/06/2005
ISBN-13: 9780689851940
ISBN-10: 0689851944

After being up all night with a stomachache, young Precious must stay at home alone when the rest of her family goes out to work in the fields. Her mama instructs her not to "let nothing and nobody in this house," and her big brother warns her about Pruella the Boo Hag, a very scary, shape-shifting creature who's heaps of trouble...but who can't come in uninvited. Sure enough, the Boo Hag tries all sorts of tricks to get inside--but Precious outsmarts her every time. Folksy mixed-media illustrations seem to leap off the pages of this warm and comforting tale about besting one's fears.

Contact your librarian for more great books!

In This Issue

New and Recently Released!
Books to Read Along with Where the Wild Things Are
Focus on: Fear and Scary Things

Events

CENTRAL LIBRARY (231-5534)
Leslie's Saturday Arts n' Crafts Program: Corn Husk Dolls, Saturday, November 21, 1:00 PM-3:00 PM. Instead of making turkeys this year, we'll be making corn husk dolls to set around our Thanksgiving tables. Reservations required.

BEAUMONT BRANCH (231-5570)
Parenting a Child with Food Allergies, Thursday, November 19, 6:30 PM-8:00 PM. Learn about the variety of resources and strategies available to help parents and children safely manage severe food allergies. Presented by Laura Jackson, coordinator of Kentucky Families with Food Allergies Support Group. Reservations required.

Beaumont's Boo Bash, Friday, October 30, 10:30 AM. Come dressed in your costume for Halloween party fun. Activities, snacks, and a trick-or-treat parade through the library. Reservations required.

Little Leonardos, Tuesday, November 17, 2:30 PM-3:15 PM. Be creative through art activities using a variety of materials and methods. Please come dressed for a fun (and messy time). Sponsored by the Friends of the Library. Reservations required.

Kelly's Kindergarten, Wednesday, November 18, 3:30 PM. A literacy readiness program just for kindergartners. Have fun with books and special activities. This month, let's experiment with science. Sponsored by the Friends of the Library. Reservations required.

EAGLE CREEK BRANCH (231-5560)
Boo to You! A Special Halloween Storytime, Wednesday, October 28, 11:00 AM. Stories, songs, finger plays, learning centers, and an activity.

Halloween Story Time, Thursday, October 29, 11:00 AM-Noon. Dress in your Halloween costume and join us for stories, songs, activities, and some in-house trick or treating. Reservations required.

Shining Stars, Wednesdays, November 4 through 18, 11:00 AM. Stories, songs, finger plays, learning centers, and an activity

TATES CREEK BRANCH (231-5580)
Lil' Pumpkin Party, Friday, October 30, 10:30 AM. Tates Creek's annual "not-so-scary" party is back. Come dressed in your "spook-tacular" best and enjoy lots of fun, treats, and a costume parade. Reservations required.

Little Hands, Big Ideas: Let's Go to the Grocery Store, Wednesday,, November 4, 1:30 PM. Kids learn best from play, so bring your preschooler to play and learn. Reservations required.

Little Hands Math & Science: Grocery, Wednesday, November 18, 1:30 PM. Join us for a brand new Little Hands program involving math and science concepts. Take a trip to the grocery to see where math and science might pop up. Reservations required.

VILLAGE BRANCH (231-5575)
Slightly Spooky Stories, Wednesday, October 28, 7:00 PM. A Halloween story time with just enough fright for young children. Feel free to come in costume.

Bilingual Family Storytime, Wednesdays, November 4 through 18, 7:00 PM. Preschool children and their families will enjoy stories, songs, and activities in English and Spanish.

Links