• Fri, April 8, 2016     ACL Meeting      9 am         Oakland PL



• Sun., April 10, 2016     Ukelele Workshop    1-3 pm      Oakland Public Library



• Fri., April 15, 2016     Arbuthnot Lecture         Santa Barbara PL



• Sat., April 16, 2016     Children's Book Festival      1 - 4 pm         Palo Alto Library



• Sat., April 23, 2016     Author/Illustrator Festival      10 am - 4 pm         Oakland's Children's Fairyland



• April 29-May 1, 2016     Bay Area Storytelling Festival      10 am - 4 pm         Orinda Community Ctr, Orinda, CA



• Fri, May 13, 2016     ACL Meeting      9 am         Oakland PL



• Fri, June 3, 2016     ACL Institute      Time TBA         San Francisco PL

Have you been wanting to add an instrument to your storytime? Here's your chance! This session on learning the ukulele will be led by Mary Dubbs, a totally self/internet-taught ukulele player of 18-months, and by all accounts a tone-deaf, rhythm-blind �musician � who nevertheless successfully uses a uke at storytime every week. Which is to say, if she did it, you can totally do it.

After this training, you'll know what to look for in purchasing an instrument, how to tune your ukulele, how to play a least one song (!!!), free resources for continuing improvement, and tips for confidently incorporating the ukulele into your storytimes.

Provided by ACME House of Music in Oakland, we'll have 5-6 ukuleles to try, so BYO if you can, but feel free to come even if you are just curious or in the market for one. This is a great opportunity to try different instruments and see what feels right before making an investment.

Oakland Public Library, West Auditorium at Main (same place as ACL's regular meetings), 125 14th Street, Sunday, April 10th, 1-3pm. Please address questions and RSVP to mdubbs at oaklandlibrary.org .

Santa Barbara Hosting Arbuthnot Lecture featuring Pat Mora:

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and the Santa Barbara Public Library System announced that tickets for the 2016 May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture featuring Pat Mora are now available.

The lecture, titled "Bookjoy! �Alegr�a en los libros!," will be held at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 15, 2016 at the Santa Barbara City College's Garvin Theatre. Required tickets are free for the lecture and must be obtained through the Santa Barbara Public Library System. To learn more about acquiring tickets and event details, please visit the 2016 May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture website at www.ala.org/alsc/2016-arbuthnot-lecture . Hotel information is also available on the Arbuthnot website.

Children's Book Festival to be held in Palo Alto:

The Palo Alto Public Library is the site of the free Children's Book Festival, to be held on Saturday, April 16, 2016, 1-4pm, 250 Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto, CA. Featured speakers include Christian Robinson, April Chu, Emily Jiang, Alina Chau, and Michael Slack. For more information, see the library's calendar at: califa.evanced.info/paloalto/lib/eventcalendar.asp.

Children's Fairyland Book Festival:

On Saturday, April 23, 2016, 10am-4pm, Children's Fairyland will host a book festival celebrating authors and illustrators. Co-sponsored by Chronicle Books and featuring books sold by Laurel Book Store, the Festival will include many local authors and illustrators still to be named. Children's Fairyland is located at 699 Bellevue Ave., Oakland, CA. The usual entrance fee is required and any adult must be accompanied by a child to enter Children's Fairyland. For more information, see: To top of page

Children's Choice Book Awards Voting is Open:

Teachers and Librarians can help students choose the books that receive the Children's Choice Award. Find out how: ccbookawards.com/index.php .

Curious George 75th Anniversary Giveaways:

2016 marks the 75th anniversary of H.A. Rey's classic tale Curious George, a fun-filled story about one precocious little monkey with a boundless love for discovery. To celebrate this anniversary milestone, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers, in partnership with the American Booksellers Association, is launching a special storytime event celebration: Get Curious About Reading! One grand prize winner will receive a selection of Curious George books for your classroom, and 75 runners up will receive a copy of Curious George Learns to Count from 1 to 100. Enter < A HREF="http://sable.madmimi.com/click?id=30386.27719.d94defe3bebece1695294dcc17ad89c9&l=918&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.curiousgeorge.com%2F100-days-giveaway">here now! Are you a school, library, or bookstore interested in joining the fun? Download a free Get Curious About Reading kit here. Be sure to check out the 100 Days of School resources for teachers here .

Harper Lee Dies at Age 89:

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Harper Lee, creator of To Kill a Mockingbird, died at her home in Alabama at age 89. For more information, see: www.nytimes.com/2016/02/20/arts/harper-lee-dies.html.

Children's Poet Francisco Alarcon Dies:

Children's author and poet Francisco Alarcon died at his home in Davis, CA, at age 61 from stomach cancer. For more information, see: www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-francisco-alarcon-20160121-story.html

Author Louise Rennison Dies:

Louise Rennison, author of the young adult series that began with Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging has died. The British author was 63 years old, and had a background in performing and writing comedy before becoming a young adult novelist. For the full story, see: www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-35690685 or www.slj.com/2016/03/industry-news/ya-author-louise-rennison-dies/.

Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit on Coin in the U.K.: For the 150th anniversary of Beatrix Potter's birthday, her popular Peter Rabbit character will appear on a coin: www.theguardian.com/books/2016/feb/29/beatrix-potter-peter-rabbit-50p-coin

Alan Bern's Newest Book of Poetry:

Greater Distance: and Other Poems, Lines & Faces, November 2015, was written by Berkeley librarian Alan Bern (who is also an ACL member). It features illustrations by Robert Woods, a printmaker from Pleasant Hill, who worked with Bern on two previous books.

�In the central section of his book, greater distance, which is based on the last years of his parents' lives, poet, translator, and performer Alan Bern gives us a quiet pathway of observed moments and invites the reader to walk it with him... since we all must travel it. Also included in this volume are adaptations of two broadsides written by Bern and illustrated by his friend and collaborator, the artist and fine printer Robert Woods: under the imprint of Lines & Faces they designed and printed both original broadsides on a Vandercook proving machine, "Dialogue" and "From Futility." In "Dialogue," San Francesco d'Assisi and Hildegard von Bingen meet as breezes to speak about their lives and views. Reminiscent of Dante, this poem is translated into Italian by poet and Neapolitan educational theorist and activist, Marco Rossi-Doria. Lines & Faces is a printing and publishing company specializing in the relationships between words and images. In their illustrated broadsides, prints, and books they explore these rich relationships and produce both letterpress and digitally printed materials. Artist Robert Woods and poet Alan Bern present their own original work and the work of other writers as well: both are fine printers who grew up together in Berkeley in the 1960s.� For more on Alan's new book, see: books.google.com/books/about/Greater_Distance.html

Bay Area Storytelling Festival:

The 30th Annual Bay Area Storytelling Festival will be held at the Orinda Community Center April 29-May 1, 2016. Six nationally known storytellers will headline this event, which is the final storytelling festival planned by their current leadership. Noted participants include Antonio Rocha, Bil Lepp, Diane Ferlatte, Elizabeth Ellis, Willy Claflin, and Eth-Noh-Tec featuring Nancy Wang and Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo. To register and for ticket prices, go to: www.storysaac.org .

Picture Book Award Winner

• Little You written by Richard Van Camp. Illustrated by Julie Flett. Published in 2013 by Orca Book Publishers.
Picture Book Honor
• Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People written and illustrated by S.D. Nelson. Published in 2015 by Abrams Books for Young Readers.
Middle School Award Winner
• In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse written by Joseph Marshall III. Published in 2015 by Amulet Books.
Middle School Honor
• Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native Voices edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale. Published in 2014 by Annick Press.
Young Adult Winner
• House of Purple Cedar written by Tim Tingle. Published n 2013 by Cinco Puntos Press.
Young Adult Honor
• Her Land, Her Love written by Evangeline Parsons Yazzie. Published in 2016 by Salina Bookshelf.

Link to AILA's page: ailanet.org/2016-aiyla-announced.



To Awards List or To top of page

Children's and teen books with an LGBT focus have been nominated for the Lambda Literary Award. Check out the titles here: www.slj.com/2016/03/industry-news/2016-childrensya-lambda-literary-award-finalists-announced/# .


To Awards List or To top of page

This month's column is somewhat out of the ordinary; usually we offer outlines of craft and game programs based on a theme. But this month, we want to celebrate a new programming idea that should be on every public library's agenda for 2016 - 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten.

The Summer Olympics is scheduled for August, 2016 in Brazil, and makes a great theme for a hands-on game and craft program for kids ages 5-10. Here are some ideas you can adapt to your library, depending on the space you have. I would do many of these outside if you have an enclosed patio area.

Icebreaker activity:


Begin with an opening ceremony. Play music on a CD or MP3 player, and have children march in, each holding a small flag. Have everyone sit on the floor and help the audience identify each of the flags - what country does that flag represent? If you have a large crowd, you can divide them alphabetically by the name of the flag they are holding, and send them to various activities.

You can also begin by reading a book celebrating one of the Olympic sports. For example:

• Brunoff, Phyllis Rose de. Babar's Celesteville Games.
• Fox, Mem. Koala Lou.
• Jamieson, Victoria. Olympig!
• Morales, Yuyi. Ni�o Wrestles the World.
• Wheeler, Lisa. Dino-Swimming.

Crafts

• Olympic Torch:
  This torch uses a plastic water bottle for the base, with paper flames. But you could substitute the water bottle with a toilet roll tube covered in paper: www.activityvillage.co.uk/make-an-olympic-torch .
• Olympic Rings:
  Make these simple Olympic Rings using paper plates: www.activityvillage.co.uk/paper-plate-olympic-rings.
• Olympic Medals:
  Print these cool Olympic medals, http://www.freekidscrafts.com/wp-content/uploads/printable_olympic_medals.jpg, and glue to cardstock. Cut out the medals, punch a hole for the ribbon, and add gift wrap ribbon to hang the medal around your neck.
• Paper plate Discus:
  Use sturdy paper plates for this craft, because we will also use this for our Discus throwing game (below). Kids just color the paper plate with markers - that's it!
• Olive Leaf Crown:
  Make these easy olive leaf headbands out of construction paper: www.activityvillage.co.uk/make-an-olive-leaf-crown.

Games

• Olympic Ring Beanbag Toss:
  Set five Hula-Hoops on the ground in the shape of the Olympic Rings. Player stands on a line 5 feet from the rings, and tries to toss one beanbag into each ring. The winner is able to get the five beanbags into five separate rings.
• Olympic Ring Hoopla:
  Using the paper plate Olympic Rings you made earlier at the craft stations (see above), have player toss five rings at water bottles set up on the ground: www.activityvillage.co.uk/olympic-ring-hoopla .
• Discus Throw:
  Using the paper plate discus made at the craft area (see above), have children throw their discus as far as they can. Group children by ages so they compete with kids their own age.
• Drinking Straw Javelin:
  Have kids grouped by ages line up. Each child throws a drinking straw as far as possible; see who can throw it the farthest. This is safe enough to play indoors.
• Cotton Ball Shot Put:
  This is another simple indoor game. Show the kids how a shot put is thrown, and let them try using a cotton ball. See who can throw it the farthest.
Be sure to have water and some sliced fruit, such as watermelon slices or orange wedges, for refreshments during the event.

Penny Peck, San Jose State Univ. iSchool

Evanson, Ashley. San Francisco: a Book of Numbers. Grosset & Dunlap, 2015. [14p.]. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-448-48914-8.

Part of the "Hello, World" series which also includes titles focusing on Paris, New York, and London, this counting book uses examples from San Francisco. There is one cable car, two dragons to represent Chinatown, eight "sea lions at Pier 39," and so forth. The graphic color illustrations are engaging, but sometimes the items sound vague. "Seven fancy houses" represent the Victorian painted ladies, and the "Nine ball players" are not wearing Giants' uniforms. But overall, a nice addition with local color.

Light, Steve. Cars Go. Chronicle Books, 2016. [16p.]. $9.99. ISBN 978-1-4521-5067-3.

Similar to Light's earlier transportation board books Trains Go, Boats Go, Diggers Go, and Planes Go, this board book is a dozen inches wide but only six inches tall. This gives each spread a span of two feet, showing the car on the road, including a truck, jalopy, police car, taxi, and hot rod. The deeply saturated paint on while backgrounds make for dramatic illustrations, and the text has repetition and onomatopoeia that will grab a storytime crowd.

Barash, Chris. One Fine Shabbat. Illus. by Tatjana Mai-Wyss. Kar-Ben, 2016. [10p.]. $5.99. ISBN 978-1-4677-5871-0.

A rhyming text describes an autumn Sabbath day for twins Sophie and Seth, in this simple introduction to Shabbat. The family picnics and sees some new baby calves, on a Saturday that will be familiar to many preschoolers who have similar "day of rest" experiences.

Marshall, Linda Eloritz. Shh�Shh�Shabbat. Illus. by Evgenia Goubeva. Kar-Ben, 2016. [10p.]. $5.99. ISBN 978-1-4677-5873-4.

Each day of the week is described in a short rhyme, full of alliteration, ending with Shabbat. Oddly, the only day of the week not mentioned by name is Saturday; it may have been helpful for children to understand Shabbat is on Saturday for Judaism. The colorful animal-and people-filled cartoon illustrations add more detail.

Newman, Tracy. Passover Is Coming! Illus. by Viviana Garofoli. Kar-Ben, 2016. [10p.]. $5.99. ISBN 978-1-4677-5242-8.

A two line rhyme on each page is followed by the phrase "Passover is coming!" in this simple introduction to the holiday. Preschools can use this is for a storytime on Spring holiday traditions, with the audience calling out the repeated phrase. Some of the items mentioned, such as the afikomen, will need an adult to explain, but this book is a nice way to begin the conversation.

Holm, Jennifer L. and Matthew Holm. My First Comics series. Random House, 2016. [20p.] $7.99 each. I'm Grumpy. ISBN 978-0-553-53344-6.
I'm Sunny. ISBN 978-0-553-53346-0.

The Holm siblings, best known for the easy to read "Babymouse" graphic novels, have created a board book graphic novel series. Using a combination of full page illustrations with some paneled artwork pages, this combines traditional comic book art with a board book size. In I'm Grumpy, a cloud and the sun exchange dialogue about their moods. In I'm Sunny, the sun and a tornado share a red balloon. The simple text includes a few sentences, dialogue balloons, and some onomatopoeia that will hold the attention of a toddler. But these books will also work for emergent readers, who will be able to read these because the full color cartoon-style illustrations help those who are guessing at the text. A winning new series that is sure to be popular with a wide age range.

McPhail, David. I Get Dressed. Roaring Brook, 2015. [12p.]. $5.99 . ISBN 978-1-62672-147-0.
McPhail, David. I Play. Roaring Brook, 2015. [12p.]. $5.99 . ISBN 978-1-62672-148-7.

Technically, there is no series name for these charming books. The illustrations originally appeared in David McPhail's My Mother Goose (2013). Here, they have been repurposed to help young children learn some simple vocabulary. For example, a bear is shown in several poses to demonstrate "walk," "run," "jump," and other movements in I Play. The bear is the only character in the book. In I Get Dressed, several different animals are wearing clothing, captioned with one word, such as "dress" or "socks." Likely to be a favorite with toddlers is the pig in brightly colored underwear! A perfect fit for babies.

Miura, Taro. Bum Bum. Candlewick, 2016. [22p.]. $8.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-8784-7.
Miura, Taro. There, There. Candlewick, 2016. [22p.]. $8.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-8785-4.

Originally published in Japan in 2008, and adapted and expanded in these new English language versions, these two charming board books do not have a series title. Both celebrate animals; in There, There the animal's sound is featured, in Bum, Bum it is the animal's backside (sure to promote uproarious laughter). Each has a simple, repetitive text, but it is the eye-grabbing graphic full color illustrations that are the standout feature. They resemble cut paper and almost have a three-dimensional feel. These could even work with a baby storytime.

Nosy Crow. Sing Along With Me! series. Illus. by Yu-hsuan Huang. Nosy Crow, 2016. [10p.] $8.99 each. Old MacDonald Had a Farm. ISBN 978-0-7636-8652-9.
The Wheels on the Bus. ISBN 978-0-7636-8648-2.

The lyrics to popular preschool songs serve as the text of these engaging board books. Sliding doors embedded into the pages give the book a strong tactile element, and add more illustrative material. For example, in Wheels on the Bus, readers can move the wipers on the bus, or push a tab to turn the wheels. Both books feature full-color illustrations of animals in human clothing, depicting the words in the lyrics. Hopefully, the parent or caregiver reading the book to a child can expand by demonstrating the hand movements and adding more lyrics. The publisher includes a QR code for those who want to download the song.

Patricelli, Leslie. Potty/Bacinica. Candlewick, 2010/2016. [26p.]. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-8777-9.
Patricelli, Leslie. Yummy Yucky �am! Puaj! Candlewick, 2003/2016. [26p.]. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-8776-2.

Patricelli's delightful baby is back in these two bilingual versions of previously published books. In Potty, baby really needs to go, so he gives the potty a try, which requires patience. In Yummy Yucky, baby contrasts two things; for example, "Spaghetti is yummy. Worms are yucky." A useful library purchase.

Davies, Benji. Bizzy Bear, Deep Sea Diver. Nosy Crow, 2015. [8p.]. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-8647-5.

Bizzy Bear goes under the sea in his small yellow submarine, where he sees various animals. The rhyming text invites participation due to repeated phrases, but doesn't identify the various sea creatures by name. Like the previous books in the series (I believe this is the 18th), each spread has a sturdy wheel to turn or tabs to slide. Not essential but a nice, tactile book that is appropriate for toddlers.

Steers, Billy. Tractor Mac: Friends on the Farm. Square Fish, 2015. [16p.]. $8.99. ISBN 978-0-374-30168-2.

There are several previous "Tractor Mac" books, but this is the first with tabs and flaps to open. Using sturdy board pages and small flaps to reveal parts of the story, Tractor Mac helps Carla the chicken find her ten lost baby chicks. Each spread features one of the other vehicle characters, such as Plane Jane and Tucker Pickup, so this will please fans of books with machines. The text is a little long for a board book, using a paragraph per page when one sentence may be more appropriate for the younger age group. But many older toddlers and preschoolers will appreciate the story and tactile elements.

Deneux, Xavier. Touch Think Learn series. Chronicle Books, 2016. [16p.]. $14.99 each. Baby Animals. ISBN 978-1-4521-4519-8.
Homes. ISBN 978-1-4521-4518-1.

These French imports do not have a story, but the tactile elements will engage many babies and toddlers. Each spread features a large raised object that fits into the opposite page like a puzzle piece. For example, in Homes, the castle fits into the area showing the king, along with several words that describe items in the illustration. The graphic illustrations on white background and the small text make these for one-on-one sharing only, so this series has somewhat limited appeal.