A Handful of Quiet: Happiness in Four Pebbles by Thich Nhat Hanh (2008, Plum Blossom; 64 pages) Thich Nhat Hanh is one of the best known Zen Buddhist teachers in the world. He has developed a fun, unique, and innovative method of introducing children to the practice of meditation called "pebble meditation." A Handful of Quiet brings readers that method; The book contains easy-to-understand instructions to experience our interconnection with nature and calm busy bodies and minds. This is a great tool for young adults or parents wanting to learn and practice meditation to pass it along to their children. Pebble meditation can be practiced alone or with the whole family, and, according to the author, the benefits are many. It can help relieve stress, increase concentration, nourish gratitude, and help children and young adults deal with difficult emotions. The book is short, easy to read, and filled with wonderful and helpful illustrations. The reader will be able to take advantage or the method right away. It also includes resources for family practice, a pebble meditation practice sheet, pebble meditation cards, and more. Strongly recommended to those searching for a method to learn meditation. Recommended to all ages. Find this title in our catalog: A Handful of Quiet Recommended by: Maite
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Finding Wonders: Three Girls Who Changed Science by Jeannine Atkins (2017, Atheneum Books for Young Readers; 208 pages) This is a delightful book about Maria Merian, Mary Anning, and Maria Mitchell: three girls who changed science. The book is written in poetry form and it is divided into three chapters, each of them honoring one of the three scientists and narrating an episode on their lives. Maria Merian wondered how caterpillars turned into beautiful creatures with wings, and through careful observation she discovered the truth about metamorphosis. She learned to look into details from her father, a painter, and using artistic skills she documented her findings in gorgeous paintings of the life cycles of insects. More than one century later, Mary Anning helped her father collect stone sea creatures from the cliffs in southwest England. Fascinated by those creatures, the intrepid and patient girl discovered a passion that eventually led to her discovery of fossils that would change people's vision of the past. In the third chapter we learn about another girl who changed science. This time the author takes us across the Atlantic to meet Maria Mitchell, who helped her mapmaker father in the whaling village of Nantucket. At night they explored the starry sky through a telescope. Maria longed to discover a new comet, and her desire came true after years of studying the night sky. The book is weaved along the idea of how those who observe can find wonder in the world around them, and the evocative poems honor these three remarkable girls. A beautiful, gorgeous book to be enjoyed by all ages. A gem. Find this title in our catalog: Finding Wonders Recommended by: Maite layton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia (2017, HarperCollins Publishers; 181 pages) If you are up to reading a powerful novel about loss, family, and love, and you are not afraid to find a heartfelt book that both middle graders and adults can enjoy, this is the book for you. It has been written by beloved Newbery Honor winner and three-time Coretta Scott King Award winner Rita Williams-Garcia, who is always able to bring to life incredibly interesting characters. The title of the book tells us the name of one of them. Clayton Byrd loves to play the blues on his "blues harp," or harmonica, with his grandfather, the great Cool Papa Byrd. But when the unthinkable happens and Cool Papa Byrd dies, Clayton's mother makes clear that the pain she feels won't ever heal if she hears any of the instruments that her dad played, so she forbids Clayton from playing the blues and she gives away all his instruments. For Clayton, playing blues made him feel alive. He needs to find a solution, and he thinks he does when he decides to run away armed with his grandfather's brown porkpie hat and his blues harps. His mind is set in finding the Bluesmen, hoping he can join them on the road. And then his journey begins, and while he searches, he is going to find more than he thought he would, learn about himself, about his family, and also about what it takes to really play the blues. Fantastic reading. Adorable. Powerful. Go get the book. Find this title in our catalog: Clayton Byrd Goes Underground Recommended by: Maite Lola, a Ghost Story by J. Torres & Elbert Or (2011, Oni Press) Lola is an extraordinary graphic novel about a boy named Jesse who can see dead people, monsters, demons, and lots of other things, things that no one else can see. No one, that is, except his ailing grandmother. His grandmother used her visions to help those living in her small town, a rural community in the Philippines that has been the setting of all the scary stories that Jesse has heard as a child, stories about man-eating ogres in trees, farmhouses haunted by wraiths and even pigs possessed by the devil. The story starts when his grandma passes. Jesse has no choice but to face his demons and all that may be awaiting him at Lola's house. Lola is the tagalog word for grandmother. J. Torres and Elbert Or are the authors of this brilliant book. Or writes and illustrates comic books in Manila, Philippines. Torres is the Eisner Award-nominated creator of Days Like This, one of the Young Adult Library Services Association’s “Great Graphic Novels”. Lola, a novel with a fascinating ending, could also be added to the basket of great graphic novels. Recommended for tweens and teens looking for ghosts stories with a cultural touch or for those in search of a great narrative plot and illustrations. Find this title in our catalog: Lola: A Ghost Story Recommended by: Maite Saving Marty by Paul Griffin (2017, Dial Books; 208 pages) This is a delightfully tender and heartbreaking story about a pig who thinks he's a dog and a boy who needs a friend. The boy is eleven-year-old Lorenzo Ventura. He actually goes by “Renzo” instead of Lorenzo. He would never describe himself as a hero, because a hero is someone rare like his father, who died in the war, or his friend Paloma Lee, who fearlessly pursues her dream of being a famous musician. But one day, Renzo decides to adopt Marty, a runt piglet, and suddenly he understands that heroes come in every size and shape. Marty the piglet thinks he is a dog and acts like one too. Renzo and Marty become one. But Marty, of course, is a pig, and pigs grow. One day he is almost 350 pounds, and Renzo's family starts worrying, especially after Marty causes an unfortunate, dangerous and expensive accident. Renzo worries too, but for different reasons. He understands that his friend's time at home may be up and he knows he'd do anything and everything to keep him alive. The question is, will everything be enough to save him? This book arrived as an advance copy, and it is a jewel. Animal lovers will melt in it, with it, for it. Beautifully written by Paul Griffin, Saving Marty manages to embrace a heartrending story with a hopeful one in this tale about the power of friendship and the unsung heroes all around us. Recommended for kids 10 years old and up, and adults with a deep love for animals. Find this title in our catalog: Saving Marty Recommended by: Maite Nightlights by Lorena Alvarez (2017, Nobrow Press; 56 pages) Born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia, Lorena Alvarez´s work is influenced by the vibrancy and color of her hometown, as well as the experiences and atmosphere of the Catholic school she attended as a child. Those memories and those colors are vitally present in Nightlights, a beautiful story about fear, insecurity, and creativity. In graphic novel format, the book tells the story of Sandy, a girl with an extraordinary imagination and a vivid sense of her sourroundings. When tiny lights appear out of the darkness in her bedroom, she opts for catching them to create wonderful creatures to play with until she falls asleep. In the morning, she brings them back to life in her whimsical drawings. One day, a mysterious new girl named Morfie appears at her school. The school is run by strict nuns. The mysterious new girl will give attention to the drawings that nobody else has cared for before. The problems start when Morfie´s fascination turn into something far more dark and sinister. With great suspense, gorgeous art, and interesting characters, this book would be perfect for children 10 years old and up in search of stories that explore different dimensions. Find this title in our catalog: Nightlights Recommended by: Maite Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams Brought to Life by Ashley Bryan (2016, Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books; 56 pages) This is a book about pieces of property and dreamers of freedom. It is also a jewel born from the tenacity and poetry of Ashley Bryan who discovered a real document about real people who were treated as pieces of property on a real plantation. This is a monumental and incredibly powerful tribute to the strength of the human spirit and the power of hope. It is a tribute formed by words and art. Through poems and through paintings, Ashley has imagined eleven lives beyond their simple descriptions, beyond their prices, “for dreams and hopes and loves can never be chained and can never be sold.” Peggy, age 48, was sold for $150. Imagined and empowered by the author, she tells the reader about herself: “I am the Fairchilds' cook. I work in the Big House, day in, day out, making special meals for the Fairchilds, plain foods for the slaves. Like a field hand, I work hard - all profit to the estate ...” The title of this book comes from the spiritual “Oh Freedom!,” which likely came into being, tells the author, soon after the end of slavery. Ashley also shares with the reader that she was inspired by the spare information about the slaves. They were listed for sale with the cows, hogs, and cotton, and only their names and prices were noted in the document that she found dated from the 1820s to the 1860s. The goal was to humanize them. The art in the book is spectacular and gorgeous. It wakes up the soul, and brings the human beings to life. She created painted portraits of each of the eleven slaves, studied each one and listened to each voice. Reading the creation process the author went through is absolutely inspiring and a delight. A must read for all, every age. Indispensable. Find this title in our catalog: Freedom Over Me Recommended by: Maite The Book Itch: Freedom, Truth & Harlem's Greatest Bookstore by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson and R. Gregory Christie (2015, Carolrhoda Books; 32 pages) This is the story of how Lewis Michaux Sr. and his bookstore fostered new ideas and helped people stand up for what they believed in. The story happens in the 1930s and the reader follows Lewis, a boy whose dad, Lewis Michaux Sr., had an itch he needed to scratch - a book itch. To do that, he decided to start a bookstore in Harlem and named it the National Memorial African Bookstore. The bookstore was one of a kind. After all, people from all over came to visit it, including Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X and Langston Hughes! The bookstore was a place to learn, from the books and also from each other; people shared and traded ideas and talked a lot about how things could change for the better. The book has been illustrated by R. Gregory Christie, and both the text and the illustrations accompany the reader to a time of history when words were ultimately important. "Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you're a man, you take it." We listen to Malcom X words through the ears of our friend Lewis, and we accompany him through a story with a hopeful ending, hope coming in the shape of words, books, and a bookstore. Lewis' perspective introduces young readers to the elder Lewis and the National Memorial African Bookstore. The book includes a selected biography, a note about Lewis Henri Michaux (1895-1976) with a picture inside his store in the late 1960s, and also an author's note in which he shares the reason why he started researching Mr. Michaux and the National Memorial African Bookstore, and how that interest in him and his store made this book possible. Great book in picture book format for young readers interested in the history of United States of America. Find this title in our catalog: The Book Itch Recommended by: Maite My Brigadista Year by Katherine Paterson (2017, Candlewick; 160 pages) This is a book inspired by the socially tumultuous and violent real-life events of 1961 in Cuba and it is a coming-of-age story of a girl named Lora. The book is historical fiction, narrating the adventures of Lora when she decides to join an army of volunteer teachers to bring literacy to all of Cuba in just twelve months. Lora, 13 years old at the time, tells her parents that she wants to travel into the impoverished countryside to help teach her fellow Cubans how to read and write. Her parents are unhappy with the decision, since Lora has barely been outside of Havana, but the girl is determined, and doesn't mind the idea of surviving in a remote shack with no electricity and sleeping in a hammock. She is an idealist, and she wants to share with people in need. I loved this book, which came to me as an advance copy (the publication date is Oct. 10, 2017). Lora's adventures, her persona, her determination and courage are inspiring. Recommended to young readers who would love to be powerful agents for change. A beautiful book. Recommended by: Maite WONDER -- a narrative full of heart and hope about a young boy born with a facial difference8/31/2017 Wonder by R. J. Palacio (2012, Knopf Books For Young Readers; 320 pages) "I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse." That's how this entertaining and touching story about August Pullman, a young boy born with facial birth defects, begins. It follows the boy, his family, and his new friends as he enters his first year in public school. A #1 New York Times bestseller and included on the Texas Bluebonnet Award master list, Wonder begins from Auggie’s point of view, but soon switches to include his classmates, his sister, her boyfriend, and others. These perspectives converge in a portrait of one community’s struggle with empathy, compassion, and acceptance. Find this title in our catalog: Wonder Recommended by: Brooke |