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8 books that will keep their imaginative interest. As soon as you have your children’s attention, you want to read to them and get them reading. What’s also important is to keep them reading well beyond the sit-on-my-lap moments. Here are 8 books that should carry the young reader quite a ways – at least into the teen years. We particularly like “The Boy Who Built the Boat,” but you decide which one(s) is best for now, and for later. [FOR AGES 7-10] At Ellis Island: A History in Many Voices Written by Louise Peacock; illustrated by Walter Lyon Krudop (Atheneum, hardcover, 48 pages, $18.99) Imagine a child, alone, making the Atlantic crossing on a ship packed with other immigrants, enduring the bad food and nauseating conditions for the chance to live in America. That is the story told by the young narrator Sera from Armenia, whose mother was killed in the genocide there, who leaves home to join her father in America. Louise Partridge skillfully weaves letters from her fictional character with comments from real immigrants, and their thoughts about leaving their home countries and family in Europe to start a new life in America, entering through the gateway at the time, Ellis Island. The sacrifice and courage of those people is moving, and the gouache paintings, done in soft tones, capture the era and its emotions. [FOR AGES 4-8] The Boy Who Built the Boat Written by Ross Meuller; illustrated by Craig Smith (Allen & Unwin, hardcover, 32 pages, $14.95) Henry decides to build a boat, just like what his dad does for a living. So, on his own, Henry gathers the materials and tools that he will need: wood, saw, hammer, nails, a sister to help him measure and so on. This is a nicely illustrated book, with a clever, singsong text that will be most appealing to younger readers, who will also appreciate Henry’s adventurous spirit and success at creating something on his own. Half a World Away Written by Libby Gleeson; illustrated by Freya Blackwood (Arthur A. Levine Books, hardcover, 32 pages, $15.99) Amy and Louie are the best of friends. They play and laugh together, and come to each other’s houses through a hole in the fence. But Amy’s family must move “halfway around the world” and the two young friends are bereft. How will they get along? Louie asks his grandmother if he calls Amy’s name really loudly, will she hear him, to which his grandmother replies, “You can only try.” The cry turns the clouds into the shapes of seahorses and dragons, and they float their way to Amy across the ocean. The lovely watercolor paintings by Freya Blackwood are full of touching details and nuances; the story is nicely told, as well. It’s simple enough for young readers to understand, yet has the emotional complexity that comes with losing a best friend. Wind Flyers Written by Angela Johnson; illustrated by Loren Long (Simon & Schuster, hardcover, 32 pages, $16.99) The opening illustration in Angela Johnson’s poetic ode to the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II says it all: A young black man, with leather jacket, helmet and his goggles on, long white scarf whipping in the wind as he gazes into the sky. The text goes on to tell about a child’s great-great-uncle and his love for flight. It started when he was a child and jumped off the chicken coop; at age 11, he went up in a plane with a barnstormer. As a young man, he became a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen, a squadron of black pilots, segregated by the times, but who served their country bravely. The beautiful acrylic paintings are wonderfully evocative and affectionate. [FOR AGES 6-10] The Ghost Ship Written by Mary Higgins Clark; illustrated by Wendell Minor (Simon & Schuster, hardcover, 40 pages, $17.99) In her first children’s book, author Mary Higgins Clark tells the story of Thomas, who visits his grandmother at her Cape Cod beach home. He unearths in the sand a belt buckle from so long ago and is visited by a boy named Silas, who served as the cabin boy for a ship captain, whose home Thomas’ grandmother now lives in. Silas tells Thomas of his adventures, including how he saved the captain’s ship from local thieves. The watercolor illustrations are quite stunning, but the text is a bit wordy and might appeal more to older children and adult fans of Clark. Cave Detectives: Unraveling the Mystery of an Ice Age Cave Written by David L. Harrison; illustrated by Ashley Mims (Chronicle Books, hardcover, 50 pages, $15.95) In 2001 in Missouri, a construction crew was going about its usual business building a road near Springfield. A detonation is set off, when the hillside falls in and reveals a cave containing fossils and secrets from millions of years ago, when giant sloths, huge bears and even the American lion roamed. The story is a fascinating one that details the detective work that paleontology involves, and the book contains a nice combination of photographs of the site and watercolor-and-pencil illustrations. Diego Written by Jonah Winter; illustrated by Jeanette Winter (Alfred A. Knopf, hardcover, 40 pages, $15.99) This is a worthy reissue of a book, originally published in 1991, covering the early years of the Mexican muralist Diego Rivera. Using the bright and colorful style of Rivera’s paintings, award-winning illustrator Jeanette Winter details his early life as a sickly child raised in the mountains by his nurse, whose early obsession with art made him a poor student, but an observant and creative artist. The text is clear, yet compelling, written in both English and Spanish. [FOR AGES 8-12] Our Solar System By Seymour Simon (Collins, hardcover, 78 pages, $19.99) The award-winning science writer Seymour Simon, who has worked his way through the universe in a previous series of books, gives a fantastic overview of the solar system for young readers. Done in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution, and featuring some spectacular photographs, Simon’s book discusses each planet and their characteristics, as well as the sun, comets, asteroids and meteoroids. Accompanying charts and glossaries serve as a nice, quick-glance feature. |
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