Meeting Reminder

Just a reminder that the Book Buddies Book Club will meet this coming Monday, February 13th at 3:30pm to discuss our February book, Oggie Cooder by Sarah Weeks. We will meet in the John Clarke Children's Program Room adjacent to the Children's Department.

Hope to see you there!

Talent Shows and Reality TV

If you've enjoyed Oggie Cooder, here are a few other books about talent shows and reality TV:

The Talent Show by Dan Gutman
After a devastating tornado destroys much of Cape Bluff, Kansas, residents come together as a community to put on a talent show as a fund-raiser.








The Talented Clementine by Sara Pennypacker
Eight-year-old Clementine, convinced that she has no talents, tries to find a way to avoid participating in the class talent show.








Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star by Rachel Rene Russell
When scholarship student Nikki Maxwell, whose father is the school exterminator, decides to enter the talent show at her expensive private school, her nemesis MacKenzie threatens to reveal Nikki's status to the rest of the school.






Chomp by Carl Hiassen
When the difficult star of the reality television show "Expedition Survival" disappears while filming an episode in the Florida Everglades using animals from the wildlife refuge run by Wahoo Crane's family, Wahoo and classmate Tuna Gordon set out to find him while avoiding Tuna's gun-happy father.

Learn About the States!

In Oggie Cooder, Oggie charves (chew and carves) pieces of cheese into the shapes of states. Learn all about the what the states look like at this interactive website and read more about them with one of these great books:

Go, Go America by Dan Yaccarino (j973 Yak)
A collection of odd facts, including festivals, contests, and laws,about the states of the United States.









Celebrate the 50 States by Loreen Leedy (j973 lee)
Introduces statistics, emblems, notable cities, products, and other facts about the fifty states, United States territories, and Washington, D.C.






Weird U.S.: A Freaky Field Trip through the 50 States by Matthew Lake (j973 Lak)
An introduction to bizarre objects, oddities, and strange sites throughout the United States.

February Author: Sarah Weeks

Sarah Weeks is the fantastic author of our February book, Oggie Cooder. Back in 2008 we discussed her equally wonderful book, So B. It. Find out all about her at her website and watch the Oggie Cooder book trailer.

Read more from Sarah Weeks!

As Simple As It Seems
Eleven-year-old Verbena Polter gets through a difficult summer of turbulent emotions and the revelation of a disturbing family secret with an odd new friend who believes she is the ghost of a girl who drowned many years before.







Pie
After the death of Polly Portman, whose award-winning pies put the town of Ipswitch, Pennsylvania, on the map in the 1950s, her devoted niece Alice and Alice's friend Charlie investigate who is going to extremes to find Aunt Polly's secret pie crust recipe. Includes fourteen pie recipes.






Oggie Cooder, Party Animal
Neither a long list of rules, nor the inability to find the perfect gift--Cheddar Jam--nor being locked in a bathroom with a juggling bear will keep quirky fourth-grader Oggie Cooder from attending neighbor Donnica Perfecto's birthday pool party.

February Book Selection

Our February book will be Oggie Cooder by Sarah Weeks. We will meet on Monday, February 13th at 3:30pm to discuss the book. Hope to see you there!

Oggie Cooder has a talent. He charves (chews and carves) pieces of cheese into any shape he wants them to be. He doesn't think charving is anything special, and most of the kids at his school think it's a little weird. But then a big TV show comes looking for people with weird talents, and Oggie is suddenly Mr. Popular... especially with Donnica Perfecto, the girl across the street who wants to be famous, no matter what. Will Oggie be able to charve his way to the top and become a Big Cheese?

Copies of the book are available at the Children's Desk and new members are always welcome. To register for book club visit the Children's Desk, call 401-847-8720 ext. 204 or email cantonio@newportlibraryri.org.

January Meeting Wrap-Up

The Book Buddies Book Club met on Monday afternoon to discuss our January book, The Star Maker by Laurence Yep, and to celebrate the Chinese New Year. We had a wonderful discussion, enjoyed snacks including fortune cookies, and made a terrific firecracker craft.

The Star Maker is set in 1953 so we began by discussing how we related to the historical setting. Some liked seeing how kids lived differently then than we do now. We all agreed that the story could have been set in 2012, that it felt current and that Artie's struggles were not unlike our own. The only thing we felt was specific to 1953 was the kid's widespread use of firecrackers which are illegal today!

Some felt that the book got off to a slow start but that it really picked up as it went on. We all liked that Uncle Chester kept his promise to Artie and that Petey was forced to apologize for being such a jerk.

We all thought that Artie shouldn't have let Petey tease him into making a promise he couldn't keep but thought it was really important for Artie to come through, not only because Petey would have made his life miserable but also because it's very important to keep your word; if you commit to something you should see it through.

We thought that Uncle Chester probably learned his lesson about gambling after losing the watch he was so proud of and that Mimi will be a good influence on him in the future.

Overall we really enjoyed The Star Maker and look forward to reading more from Laurence Yep!

Thanks to all the Book Buddies members who attended.

Newbery Award Winner and Honor Books!

The Newbery Award Winner and Honor Books were announced yesterday at the American Library Association's annual Midwinter meeting in Dallas, Texas. The Newbery Medal is given to the author of "the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children." And the winner for 2012 is....

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

In the historic town of Norvelt, Pennsylvania, twelve-year-old Jack Gantos spends the summer of 1962 grounded for various offenses until he is assigned to help an elderly neighbor with a most unusual chore involving the newly dead, molten wax, twisted promises, Girl Scout cookies, underage driving, lessons from history, typewriting, and countless bloody noses.




There were also two Honor books:

Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai

Through a series of poems, a young girl chronicles the life-changing year of 1975, when she, her mother, and her brothers leave Vietnam and resettle in Alabama.






Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Yelchin

In the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union, ten-year-old Sasha idolizes his father, a devoted Communist, but when police take his father away and leave Sasha homeless, he is forced to examine his own perceptions, values, and beliefs.






Congratulations to all!