Puffin Classics

Looking for a classic? Puffin has just released new paperback editions of several children's classics. Buy two and get a free tote bag!

Titles include:

Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, by Roger Lancelyn Green
The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Journey to the Centre of the Earth, by Jules Verne
A Little Princess, by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum
Call of the Wild, by Jack London
Black Beauty, by Anna Sewell
Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame

Each book has a nicely illustrated cover and an introduction by a current children's/YA author.

Snoring Beauty

Snoring Beauty, by Bruce Hale, is a fun retelling of the story of Sleeping Beauty. Instead of pricking her finger on a spinning wheel, the princess is run over by a pie cart and turned into a sleeping dragon--and must be awakened by a quince!

Violet the Pilot

Violet isn't like the other kids at her school. She wears greasy coveralls and plays with wrenches instead of dolls. Violet is a mechanical genius who likes to build flying machines in her spare time out of parts she scavenges from the junkyard next door. Her parents don't mind, as long as she wears a sweater and doesn't crash into the house, but the rest of the town just thinks she's weird until one day she and her flying machine are in exactly the right place at the right time.

Violet the Pilot is brightly colored and cheerful; a fun read for kids 5 and up!

Ever

Coming in May: a new book by Gail Carson Levine! So very exciting. Read more at Sarah Miller's blog and go wild.

The Willoughbys

Lois Lowry, author of The Giver and Number the Stars, among others, has written a new book. The Willoughbys are an old-fashioned family: four children, neighbors to a mysterious man on whose front steps they leave the baby they found on their stoop--with the addition of a ransom note... The book is basically a parody of children's classics. Think Hansel and Gretel combined with Mary Poppins and The Bobbsey Twins, with references to Heidi, James and the Giant Peach, and Jane Eyre, just to name a few. It comes complete with a tongue-in-cheek glossary and bibliography. The entry for Mary Poppins states:

Mary Poppins is not at all like the cheerful, spritely movie person played by Julie Andrews. She is a stern, cross, vain and mysterious nanny who arrives on the wind at the home of the Banks family in London to care for their four children... Ms. Poppins does not sing, ever, and would not like being portrayed as someone who did.

So true.

For the Parents Who Are Best at Everything!

Mom and Dad are no longer left out of the fun. Written in the same style as The Boys' Book and The Girls' Book, we now have The Moms' Book and The Dads' Book! These books claim to have "gathered the most essential tricks of the trade from some of the world's best [parents]. The result: a humorous handbook full of wisdom and wit."

For moms: You'll find sections on everything from waking kids up in the morning and putting them to bed at night to "things not to do to your kids," as well as party planning, cooking, shopping, and finding time for yourself.

For dads: Sections such as "How to Change a Diaper," "How to Avoid Changing a Dirty Diaper," "How to Teach Your Child to Ride a Bike," "Ten Best Threats," "Pocket Money--What it Will Cost You!" and "Ten Best Bribes."

These would make great Mother's Day, Father's Day or baby shower gifts.