Kid books for the week

This week's books included Adelaide's favorites for her class and books about being outdoors and seeing things grow for Elizabeth's class. I hope you like them, we sure do.

 Make sure you have your imagination tuned up.  The stories of Marcel the Shell are brilliant. In this first book we meet Marcel and find out all kinds of things about life as a shell.  A small shell.  The world is big. Marcel wears shoes and has a face....well, an eye.  He lives in a piece of bread, thus his 'breadroom' and his one regret is that he will never have a dog, but he does have a piece of lint on a leash.  The lint's name is Alan.  You just have to read Marcel's story.

This is the second Marcel the Shell book and in it he tells the story of the time he was The Most Surprised he's Ever Been.  One little incident seen from the eye of a shell. Marcel is on a blanket on the bed and when the bedcover is lifted and flicked he goes flying through the air and sees his world from a whole new perspective.  Oh, my, you must read about Marcel the Shell.  Pay close attention to the pictures.

 

 Andrew Henry loved to build things but his family didn't appreciate his talent.  One day he goes off through the woods and across a creek to a meadow where he builds a house for himself.  Here comes a friend whose talent is also unappreciated.  And then another and another until Andrew Henry built a custom home for eight of his friends, each suited to their needs, and they live there for days before being found by their grateful families.  This is a little riff on allowing our kids to nurture their particular talents, no matter the mess.

 Lydia Grace lives with her parents and Grandmother, who she adores.  She has her Grandmother's green thumb and together they bond over plants. But it's the Depression and Lydia's father lost his job.  Uncle Jim offers to take Lydia until her parents get back on their feet.  Uncle Jim owns a bakery and lives in the big city where there isn't much room for a garden.  But ever optimistic and forward thinking Lydia Grace finds a way to bring flowers and color and beauty to her corner of the city and hopefully, maybe a smile to Uncle Jim's face.  This story is told in letters home to her family and  never fails to bring a catch to my voice when I read it.  Sarah Stewart and David Small are a team, they're married and live here in Michigan and have such stories and talents to share.

Amelia Ellicott's family used to own the whole street but now she lives in a little house on a small part of that street.  Next to her is a big, ugly apartment building and she does her best to ignore it.  Amelia Ellicott is getting on in age and her once beautiful garden is going to weed and seed.  The lonely tenants in the apartment next door look out their windows and long for a small patch of her yard to grow a little bit of goodness.  One day a storm blows just about everything in Amelia's yard away and it's her neighbors who come to the rescue.

Enjoy!