The Tragedy of Children’s Sports and What You can Do About it

If you’re like me, all discussions of sports begin with trauma. Growing up, I was that cliché, the pudgy kid picked last for every team. My signature sports moment came around fifth grade when the little league team I played on (as the kid in left field who couldn’t catch a fly ball) designated me to be traded to the first-place team. If you’re an athlete, this might strike you as good news. But our league had a practice of making the teams more competitive at midseason by trading the worst player from the last place team (my team) for the best player from the first-place team. Imagine the ignominy of meeting your new teammates: “Hi, I’m here to ruin your chances.”

Review: My Family, Your Family!

Aimed primarily at the youngest “readers,” the book provides a good introduction to the different types of families that have existed for centuries in our world. In a simple expository format, basically show and tell, the book takes the child on a tour of various familial groupings.

Review: Scared of the Dark? It’s Really Scared of You

Scared of the Dark? It’s Really Scared of You is a charming little story that helps young children face their fear of the dark, by personifying darkness, and giving it a personality and emotions that children can relate to.

Author Interview: Nancy Hartry

This in-depth interview goes over the advantages of a wordless picture book in promoting reading comprehension, vocabulary development and the development of social/emotional skills 4-8 year olds. The interview also discusses the process undertaken by Hartry in developing the book and getting it to publication; as well as her collaboration with the illustrator.

Review: Snow Doves

Snow Doves, Hartry’s compelling entry into the world of wordless picture books, “tells” the story of Sami, who has arrived in a new country, very different from his own.

Review – Wonderful You

What did you feel like when you found out a baby was on the way? It doesn’t matter how that baby was expected to arrive. The accompanying feelings are pretty much the same for any parent to be: excitement, fear, uncertainty, anticipation, anxiety; and a long list of other descriptors certainly come to mind.

Review: The Bread Pet – A Sourdough Story

The key to making the book successful, however, is that it actually has a well-developed, original storyline that unifies all of the elements. De Palma knows that children are capable of understanding complex stories even at a young age.

Over in the Woodland Team Interview Part II

The Team behind OVER IN THE WOODLAND A MYTHOLOGICAL COUNTING JOURNEY opens up to Mr. Alex about the creative process and the pedagogical purposes behind the book. This time we focus on the Illustrations!

Review: Dance Like a Leaf

A gentle book that slowly introduces the concept of death, Dance like a Leaf, tells the story of a young girl who shares many Autumn traditions with her grandmother. As her grandmother’s health deteriorates, the young girl begins to lead, rather than follow. Until ultimately, she carries-on the traditions with only her grandmother’s spirit by her side.

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