Hot Kids' Books Donated To "Early's Angel"
Six book publishers have all earned their angel wings in the "Early's Angel" series, by donating 100 copies of their hottest summer releases, so each member of our audience on Friday could have a new book.
These publishers are also making a commitment to help Jennifer Frances, named an "Early's Angel" for her efforts to give books to underprivileged children, reach her goal of giving away 50,000 books this year.
"Ranger's Apprentice, Book 1: The Ruins of Gorlin" by John Flanagan from Penguin
Read an excerpt here.
"Ranger's Apprentice" is an epic fantasy series featuring fast pacing, cinematic battle scenes, sympathetic characters and heart-stopping drama. In "Book 1: The Ruins of Gorlan," 15-year-old Will is adopted into a mysterious and secretive group called the Ranger corps that uses stealth, archery, and courage to defend the kingdom. Highly-trained in the skills of battle and surveillance, they fight the battles before the battles reach the people. And as Will is about to learn, there is a large battle brewing. The exiled Morgarath, Lord of the Mountains of Rain and Night, is gathering his forces for an attack on the kingdom. This time, he will not be denied…
"The Lost Island of Tamarind" by Nadia Aguiar from Macmillan
Read an excerpt here.
The Lost Island of Tamarind doesn't exist on any map. It is beautiful and enchanting, but also very frightening-pirates patrol the waters, and an evil child-stealing enchantress rules the jungle. In The Lost Island of Tamarind, Nadia Aguiar writes the Peter Pan of our time, an adventure in which Maya, Simon, and Penny, three shipwrecked children, must find their way back to their parents-and off of the island.
"All In A Day" by Cynthia Rylant from Abrams Books
To see pages from "All In A Day" go to the slideshow above.
The word "lovely" gets tossed around, but it seems to fit both the words and the art of this ode to the day. Rylant, whose talent has many sides, here turns to her inner poet as she asks children to look at a day in new ways: "a perfect piece of time to live a life, / to plant a seed." As she takes readers through the day of a farm boy who feeds his chickens and checks his plants, she reminds children that a day can bring hope and kindness: "You can make a wish, / and start again." And while a day might bring rain, that very shower could teach you how to dance. She tells children what even adults should always keep in mind: "The past is sailing off to sea, / the future's fast asleep. / A day is all you have to be, / it's all you get to keep." Matching Rylant's warm words is McClure's amazing artwork. At first glance, the bold figures in black and white set against pure gold or sky-blue backgrounds seem to be woodcuts, but they are actually a sturdier variant of cut paper. If McClure makes a mistake, she notes, she "just has to keep cutting and find a solution." Perhaps there were mistakes along the way, but viewers wouldn't ever know it, and the finished product is a handsome, effective piece of bookmaking that captures the glory of a day and the possibilities it holds.
"Cats" by Matthew Van Fleet from Simon & Schuster
Read an excerpt here.
In Matthew Van Fleet's irresistibly pettable, brilliantly innovative and fun multi-concept book, watch twenty-three breeds of frolicking felines pounce, prance and parade through concepts, pull-tabs, textures and interactive surprises. And you'll never believe what cat dragged in! Pleasingly purr-fect fun from start to finish! Meow...meow...meow...
"Cats" is pubished by Simon & Schuster, which is part fo the CBS Corporation, as is CBSNews.com.
"Let's Do Nothing" by Tony Fucile from Candlewick Press
To see pages from "Let's Do Nothing" go to the slideshow above.
Frankie and Sal have already played every sport and board game invented, baked and eaten batches of cookies, and painted a zillion pictures. What's left to do? Nothing! Ten seconds of nothing! Can they do it? Can they act like stone statues in the park? Can they simply hold their breath and not blink an eye? With a wink to the reader and a command of visual humor, feature film animator Tony Fucile demonstrates the Zen-like art of doing nothing...oops! Couldn't do it!
Don't move! A master of animation explores the elusive art of doing nothing in this comical tale of two very active imaginations.
Scholastic will also be donating 50 Clifford books and 75 other books from their series.