Star Wars: The Clone Wars

So apparently there's a new Star Wars movie coming out? An animated one? I guess I'm a little out of the loop, because I didn't know about it until I checked all these books in. We have a Clone Wars Galactic Photobook, Clone Wars chapter books for two different levels, two early-reader books (levels 1 and 2), an activity book, a sticker book, a picture book, and The Clone Wars: The Visual Guide! Wow. My brothers would have gone crazy for these back in their Star Wars-obsessed phase.

Spring Events

We have a number of fun events coming up at The Alphabet Garden!

The first is our Teachers Only Night on May 21st from 6:00-8:00 PM. There will be refreshments; door prizes; and a 20% discount; as well as guest speaker Susannah Richards, assistant professor of reading/language arts at Eastern Connecticut State University; and author Bob Shea, author of the picture book Big Plans. Please call (203) 439-7766 to RSVP.

On Thursday, May 29th, at 4:00 PM, we are excited to welcome Billy Steers, author of the Tractor Mac books. Come meet the author and make a fun craft! Call to reserve a signed Tractor Mac book.



And on Thursday, June 12th, at 4:00 PM, we will be visited by Bill Thomson, illustrator of Karate Hour, Building with Dad, and most recently, Baseball Hour. These books would make great gifts for Father's Day, teachers, coaches, and kids!

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.

First National Ambassador for Young People's Literature

According to this NY Times article, Jon Scieszka is to be named national ambassador for young people's literature by the librarian of Congress. Scieszka (pronounced "SHEH-ska," apparently. I've always wondered.) has written many books for children, including the Time Warp Trio books, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, and The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs. His job as ambassador for children's books will be to "travel and speak to groups of children, parents and teachers to 'evangelize the need for reading.'"

The article also mentions Scieszka's "web-based literacy program aimed at boys called Guys Read," which can be found at www.guysread.com.