MadLuck Books Blog

A Children's Books Blog - information on award winning children's books, personalized books, reading tips, and book reviews.

Thursday, July 27, 2006

Newberry Award Winners, 1986-2007

2007: The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, illustrated by Matt Phelan (Simon & Schuster/Richard Jackson)

2006: Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins)

2005: Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster)

2004: The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering, (Candlewick Press)

2003: Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi (Hyperion Books for Children)

2002: A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin)

2001: A Year Down Yonder by by Richard Peck (Dial)

2000: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (Delacorte)

1999: Holes by Louis Sachar (Frances Foster)

1998: Out Of The Dust by Karen Hesse (Scholastic)

1997: The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg (Jean Karl/Atheneum)

1996: The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman (Clarion)

1995: Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (HarperCollins)

1994: The Giver by Lois Lowry (Houghton)

1993: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant (Jackson/Orchard)

1992: Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (Atheneum)

1991: Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli (Little, Brown)

1990: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry (Houghton)

1989: Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman (Harper)

1988: Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman (Clarion)

1987: The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman (Greenwillow)

1986: Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan (Harper)

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Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Dreams, books, are each a world...

Quote of the Week:

Dreams, books, are each a world; and books,
we know,
Are a substantial world, both pure and good


- William Wordsworth

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Tuesday, July 25, 2006

2006 Children's Books Award Winners

Newberry Award



Honors:
Whittington by Alan Armstrong, illus. by S. C. Schindler

Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

Princess Academy (Newbery Honor Book) by Shannon Hale

Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson

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Caldecott Award




Honors:

Rosa by Nikki Govanni, illus. by Bryan Collier

Zen Shorts by Jon j. Muth

Hot Air : The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride by Marjorie Priceman

Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems by Joyce Sidman, illus. by Beckie Prange

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Sibert Informational Book Medal




Honor:

Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

Theodor Seuss Geisel Award



Honors:

Fly Guy #1: Hi, Fly Guy! by Tedd Arnold

A Splendid Friend, Indeed by Suzanne Bloom

Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa by Erica Silverman, illus. by Betsy Lewin

Amanda Pig and the Really Hot Day by Jean Van Leeuwen, illus. by AnnSchweninger

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Coretta Scott King Awards

Author
by Julius lester
honors:
Maritcha : A Nineteenth-Century American Girl by Tonya Bolden

Dark Sons by Nikki Grimes

A Wreath for Emmett Till by Marilyn Nelson, illus. by Philippe Lardy

Illustrator


Honor:
Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan by Mary Williams, illus. by R. Gregory Christie

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Thursday, July 20, 2006

My Tea Party Personalized Book

Product Spotlight


Title: My Tea Party Personalized Book
Author: Cathy Adams
Illustrator: Grace Lee
Manufacturer: Create-A-Book
Seller: Personalized Books by MadLuck Books
Description: In this personalized book, your special child will enjoy her very own tea party with her friends. Includes tips on manners.

Buy the Book

A lifetime keepsake:
  • Wipe-clean hard cover
  • Personalized dedication
  • Professionally printed
  • Quality craftmanship
  • Full color illustrations throughout


Full text of book with sample illustration pages:

In this book, there are two full color pages followed by two pages of text. With every turn of the page you have a full color picture on one side and a page with text on the other.

Your personalized data replaces words in red.
But will NOT be in red in the book.


Pages 1 & 2 - illustration pages

Page 3
My Tea Party

Hosted by

Jessica Ann Smith
at the age of 6


With love from
Mommy and Daddy
December 25, 2005

Page 4
It was a nice, sunny afternoon. Jessica Smith of Warrenton sat on the porch swing listening to Mom tell the story of Queen Victoria's first tea party.

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Pages 5 & 6 - illustration pages

Page 7
"It was a beautiful afternoon just like today," Mom said. "Anna, one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting was instructed to serve tea and a little cake in her room."
"The Queen enjoyed the delightful experience and instructed Anna to continue to bring tea and cake every afternoon."

Page 8
As Jessica listened to Mom tell the story, she began to think she would like to have a tea party and invite Amy, Kelly, and Angie.

Pages 9 & 10 - illustration pages

Page 11
"Mom, do you think that I could have a tea party just like Queen Victoria?"
"I think a tea party is a wonderful idea, Jessica," Mom said. "I will help you plan your special tea party."

Page 12
"Before you send out your invitations Jessica, we need to decide on when to have a tea party, and what you want to serve your guests," Mom said. Jessica sat down at her table and began to think and write down what she could serve.

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Pages 13 & 14 - illustration pages

Page 15
"I will have an Afternoon Tea at two o'clock. Should I serve tender biscuits hot from the oven with jam and butter, or English Muffins?" Jessica asked.
"You mean scones and crumpets. I am sure that we can serve both," Mom said. "What would you like to drink? There are many varieties of tea."
"I would like Raspberry tea, Cherry and Grape Ginger Ale and chocolate milk," replied Jessica.

Page 16
Finally, the big day arrived. Amy, Kelly, and Angie helped Jessica decorate the room with ribbon garlands and bows.

Pages 17 & 18

Page 19
Amy helped set the table with china, glasses, and silverware. The finishing touch was a beautiful spray of roses on the center of the table.

Page 20
Mom entered the room with a very large box. As she lifted the cover of the box, she said, "Before you can attend a tea party, you must be properly dressed." Dresses, boas, tiaras, jewelry, shoes, gloves, and purses of all colors and styles filled the box.

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Pages 21 & 22 - illustration pages

Page 23
"Oh, Jessica. Look, you can be the princess," said Kelly. Kelly placed the tiara on her head. The girls began to dress up in their special clothes.

Page 24
"Mom is going to show us how to make tea" said Jessica.
"First, you will need to boil the water in a kettle. Be sure to use cold tap water, as it is fresher, and let it run for a minute. One secret for a good tea is not to use warm water," Mom said.

Pages 25 & 26 - illustration pages

Page 27
"Next, add hot water to the teapot until you are ready to pour in the boiling water. This will keep the teapot warm and it will already be warm when you add the tea leaves. Add 1 tablespoon of tea leaves in teapot. Pour boiling water over tea leaves. Allow brewing for 3 minutes. This will allow the tea leaves to reach their full flavor and is considered the perfect brewing time."

Page 28
"Jessica, would you, Amy, Kelly, and Angie like to help me make the Watercress sandwiches?" asked Mom.
Mom gave them the recipe and all of the ingredients to make the sandwiches: Use 1 small bunch of watercress, 6 slices white bread with crust removed. Butter the insides of both slices of bread for each sandwich.

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Pages 29 & 30 - illustration pages

Page 31
When all of the preparations for the afternoon tea were finished, Mom announced, "Tea is served. But before you eat, be sure you know your manners."

Page 32
Table manners for Children

Wash your hands before sitting down.
Leave toys, books, and pets behind.
When you sit down, place the napkin in your lap.
Sit up straight and don't slouch.
Ask politely for dishes to be passed.
Never reach across the table.
Wait until everyone is seated and served before starting to eat.
If grace is said, wait to eat until it is completed.
Don't giggle during grace.
Keep your elbows off the table.
Never chew with your mouth open.
Never talk with food in your mouth.
Use utensils quietly without banging them on the table or plate.
You should place your knife on the edge of the plate when not in use.
Slice butter from the butter dish and place it on your butter plate or other plate.
The butter knife should stay with the butter dish.
Never wave or throw utensils.
Keep your knife out of your mouth.
Never play with your food.
Never grab food from other's plates.
Ask politely for seconds if you want them.
Ask to be excused from the table.
Remember, good manners are important and make meals more enjoyable.
You will be proud if you practice these rules at home.


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What we become...

Quote of the Week


What we become depends on what we read after all of the professors have finished with us. The greatest university of all is a collection of books.

- Thomas Carlyle

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Sunday, July 16, 2006

Caldecott Medal Winners, 1986-2006


2006: The Hello, Goodbye Window Illustrated by Chris Raschka, written by Norton Juster

2005: Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes

2004: The Man Who Walked Between The Towers by Mordicai Gerstein

2003: My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann

2002: The Three Pigs by David Wiesner

2001: So You Want to Be President? Illustrated by David Small; text by Judith St. George

2000: Joseph Had a Little Overcoat Simms Taback

1999: Snowflake Bentley Illustrated by Mary Azarian; text by Jacqueline Briggs Martin

1998: Rapunzel by Paul O. Zelinsky

1997: Golem by David Wisniewski

1996: Officer Buckle & Gloria by Peggy Rathmann

1995: Smoky Night illustrated by David Diaz; text: Eve Bunting

1994: Grandfather's Journey (Caldecott Medal Book) by Allen Say; text: edited by Walter Lorraine

1993: Mirette on the High Wire by Emily Arnold McCully

1992: Tuesday by David Wiesner

1991: Black and White by David Macaulay

1990: Lon Po Po by Ed Young

1989: Song and Dance Man illustrated by Stephen Gammell; text: Karen Ackerman

1988: Owl Moon illustrated by John Schoenherr; text: Jane Yolen

1987: Hey, Al illustrated by Richard Egielski; text: Arthur Yorinks

1986: The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg


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Tuesday, July 11, 2006

Real World Full of Magic...

Quote of the week

Haroun kept his feelings about Mr. Buttoo to himself. He knew what he knew: that the real world was full of magic, so magical worlds could easily be real.

-
Salmon Rushdie

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Friday, July 07, 2006

My Farm Adventure Personalized Book

Product Spotlight

Title: My Farm Adventure Personalized Book
Description: Your child is a famous detective hired by the farm animals to help locate the missing rooster.
Manufacturer: Create-A-Book
Seller: MadLuck Books Personalized Books

A Lifetime Keepsake:
  • Wipe-clean hard cover
  • Personalized dedication
  • Professionally printed
  • Quality craftmanship
  • Full-color illustrations throughout


Full text of book with sample illustration pages:

In this book, there are two full color pages followed by two pages of text. With every turn of the page you have a full color picture on one side and a page with text on the other.

Your personalized data replaces words in red.
But will NOT be in red in the book.


Title Page
Tommy's
Adventure
On The Farm


Pages 1 & 2 - illustration pages
Page 3
This book was created
especially for

Thomas David Smith
at the age of 6

With Love From
Mommy
April 23, 1996


Page 4
"Rooster is up to his old tricks again," sighed Harriet Holstein. "If we don't find him soon, it will be one of those days again. By the way, who's that boy standing over there?"
Dasher Hound, who knew absolutely everything about what happened on the farm, looked over and saw a young boy walking around the barn.
"If my eyes don't deceive me," said Dasher excitedly, "I think it's Tommy Smith, that famous child detective. I've heard that he has solved more mysteries in 6 years than Sherlock Holmes solved in his lifetime. This could be our lucky day."

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Pages 5 & 6 - illustration pages


Page 7
"Lucky day!" sighed Harriet Holstein again. "You must be kidding. Do you remember the last time Rooster disappeared? Why, Penny Pig was so angry about missing her breakfast that she didn't speak to Rooster for 3 days, and you know how much Penny Pig likes to talk!"
"Hey, here comes Tommy," said Dasher. "He looks cool."


Page 8
The animals turned to greet Tommy. "Welcome to our farm," said Dasher. "I've heard that you are one of the best detectives in the whole world. I have a nose for these things, you know."
"You have a nose for everything," kidded Penny. "In fact, there's enough nose on you to share with everyone on the farm."
Dasher didn't mind making jokes about his own nose. However, he did mind it when others made jokes at his expense.
"Silence!" he shouted at Penny. "At least I have a nose."


Pages 9 & 10 - illustration pages


Page 11
Dasher turned back to Tommy. "We have a major problem here," he explained. "You see, Rooster has disappeared and when that happens the farm, well, the farm kind of falls apart. Rooster knows this and he likes to hide and make everyone look for him. But no one has ever found him - he's just too clever. Perhaps a world famous detective, such as yourself, could find him."


Page 12
Tommy looked at the worried faces of Dasher, Penny and Harriet. "But why don't you just wait for Rooster to come out of his hiding place?" he asked, puzzled.
"And you call yourself a detective!" wailed Charlene Chicken who had just arrived to join the conversation. "We can't wait. Don't you know what happens when Rooster isn't here?"
Tommy didn't know. But that didn't matter. "I'd love to help," said Tommy happily. "And so will Lisa, Karen and Mike."
"If only I knew why this is so important," he whispered to himself.

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Pages 13 & 14 - illustration pages

Page 15
Tommy asked Dasher to gather the farm animals for an important meeting. Everyone was soon in attendance. There was Charlene Chicken, Penny Pig, Harriet Holstein, Rhonda Rabbit, Cheshire Charlie, Hoot Owl and Clydesdale.
Dasher didn't waste any time getting to the point. "Rooster is hiding," he said.


Page 16
"Not again!" shrieked Cheshire Charlie.
"Why us!" cried Rhonda Rabbit.
The other animals moaned and whined.
"No problem," said Hoot Owl. "I'll do the job." This only made everyone moan and whine louder.
Dasher finally shouted to get everyone's attention. "We are going to find Rooster," he said. "Right here, right now, right on this farm, is Tommy Smith, the world famous detective. He has come here from Warrenton and has promised to find Rooster."
"No I didn't," protested Tommy to no avail. "I said I'd try to find Rooster."
No one heard him. All the animals were cheering wildly. The pressure was on Tommy.

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Pages 17 & 18 - illustration pages


Page 19
Detective Tommy put on his thinking cap. Well, it wasn't really a thinking cap, just his favorite old hat, but he always had better ideas when he wore it. More importantly, he looked awesome in it.
Tommy turned slowly to Lisa, Karen and Mike. "I have a plan," he said. "Let's go to the pond."


Page 20
Four ducks were swimming in the pond. Tommy looked at them very, very closely. Three ducks were good swimmers, while one seemed to be struggling to stay afloat.
"Do you know where I can find Rooster?" he asked.
"It's not possible to find Rooster," the duck replied. "No one ever has, and no one ever will find him. He's too clever."
Tommy's eyebrows twitched. This always happened when he discovered a clue.


Pages 21 & 22 - illustration pages


Page 23
Next they walked to a field where some crows were hurriedly eating their dinner, while Scarecrow took one of his frequent naps.
"Can I ask you crows a question?" began Tommy. "Does anyone know where Rooster is?"
"Everything is not always as it seems," said one crow.
Just then Scarecrow opened his eyes. All the crows flew away, except the one who had talked to Tommy. He ran away.
Tommy's eyebrows twitched.


Page 24
Then Tommy went with Lisa, Karen and Mike to visit the pig pen. Penny Pig was glad to see them and started talking excitedly. Tommy scanned the pen and turned his attention to a rather thin looking pig.
"Do you know where I can find Rooster?" he asked.
"No one on this farm knows where Rooster is," the pig answered. "But I'll give you a clue. Rooster is never far from the action."

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Pages 25 & 26 - illustration pages


Page 27
The next stop was the barn where all the cows were settling down for the night. Tommy walked around the stalls, carefully watching where he stepped. He turned to a cow standing close to Harriet Holstein and asked, "Why is everyone so upset about Rooster not being here?"
"That would be obvious," the cow replied, "if you lived on a farm. Why, without Rooster, these poor cows, whoops, I mean, us poor cows would have too long a night's sleep, our udders would fill up with milk, and we would be very uncomfortable."
Tommy's eyebrows twitched again.


Page 28
"Where are we going next?" asked Lisa, Karen and Mike.
"To visit the horses," replied Tommy, "and watch where you step when we get there." Tommy did not know everything about life on a farm, but he did know about watching his step around cows and horses.


Pages 29 & 30 - illustration pages


Page 31
The horses seemed restless. Clydesdale was nervously pacing back and forth, his big hooves making large footprints in the dirt. Another horse was pecking corn off the ground. Tommy's eyebrows twitched rapidly.
The horse, who was eating corn, suddenly realized that Tommy was watching. Quickly he turned his attention to a pile of hay.
Tommy turned to Dasher. "Please ask the other animals to meet me in front of the barn, and make sure the sheep are there."
"I will," replied Dasher, "if they are not in the baa-throom." Dasher laughed at his own joke as he went out to gather the animals.


Page 32
All the animals gathered in front of the barn, but Tommy was nowhere to be seen. The sheep were very calm, except for one, who kept looking nervously back and forth.
Suddenly, one of the sheep stood up on two legs. "This is unusual," said Clydesdale in a slow drawl. "Sheep can't stand on two legs."
He was right. It was really Tommy in disguise. "Guess what," he said. "Someone else is also in disguise." He pulled a mask off a startled Rooster. He had been caught!

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Pages 33 & 34 - illustration pages


Page 35
"How did you solve the case?" asked a disappointed Rooster. "No one has ever done that before."
"It was easy," replied Tommy. "You had trouble swimming like a duck, you didn't fly away like the other crows, you were too thin to be a pig, and horses don't peck corn. Case closed."
"Rooster is found!" shouted the farm animals. "Now he will wake us up tomorrow. He has the most important job on the farm."
Detective Tommy had saved the farm. He had also discovered why Rooster was so important.


Page 36
The next morning at 5:37 a.m. Rooster woke up. Several minutes later, everyone else was awake thanks to a rather vigorous cock-a-doodle-doo.
Owl closed his eyes and went to sleep. "I could have done that," he said. "No one gives a hoot about my feelings."

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