TOTO: THE DOG-GONE AMAZING STORY
OF THE WIZARD OF OZ
Written by Michael Morpurgo
Illustrated by Emma Chichester Clark
(HarperCollins Children’s Books; $17.99, Ages 8-12)
The beautifully illustrated middle-grade chapter book, Toto: The Dog-Gone Amazing Story of the Wizard of Ozgives voice to Toto, providing an interesting and refreshing viewpoint. Each chapter orients the reader to current day as Papa Toto recounts his adventures to seven sleepy puppies; only Tiny Toto always stays awake until the tale’s end. Kids will enjoy Papa Toto’s sausage cravings—delicious food is scarce on that long yellow brick road.
More than 250 full-color drawings by Emma Chichester Clark create vivid, engaging scenes; Papa Toto is Chichester Clark’s recognizable black scruffy dog. Both artist and writer are masters at their craft. A former Children’s Laureate, Morpurgo has published over 130 books. His novel, War Horse, was successfully adapted into a Tony Award-winning Broadway play and a Golden Globe-nominated film by Steven Spielberg.
Morpurgo, an expert storyteller, introduces new generations to the timeless Wizard of Oz. Whenever Dorothy says, “Home is home, and home is best,” Toto woofs, “You’re so dog-gone right.” A gentle reminder to appreciate life before a twister strikes.
As the story progresses it becomes clear that Scarecrow, Tin Woodman, and Lion possess what they seek; they just don’t know it. The surprise, of course, is believing in an all-powerful wizard who proves to be “nothing but a humbug, a low-down trickster, a miserable fraudster.” However, with some “upside-down thinking,” the way home is within reach.
Making a List and Checking it Twice courtesy of bookseller and reviewer Hilary Taber –
Looking for a great book for a young child in your life? Still have that hard to buy for niece, nephew or grandchild on your list? No worries! As a children’s bookseller I am fortunate enough to have the opportunity to see a lot of children’s books all year long. So, I’ve put together a list of some of my favorite board books from the 2015 publishing year to help you with your last minute shopping.
With the new Star Wars movie coming out soon what better way to indoctrinate or err…teach a new generation. Each soft, needle felted scene is a recreation appropriate for learning first words. Princess Leia teaches the word “princess,” Luke Skywalker is our example of the word “learn,” and so on. Each scene is so lovingly recreated that every page is of the utmost quality.
This gem of a board book takes toddlers through several occupations from firefighter to teacher that they might aspire to in the future in a lift-the-flap format. By listening closely to the text, your little one may be able to guess the job of the person behind the flap. These are all people in your community as well, so it’s a nice roundup of all the people who help us!
This is an adorable book! Perfect for a one-year-old or early two this lift-the-flap, tactile book uses pictures of pups to teach colors. Pull out tabs through out the book make the dogs move (even the dog on the cover pulls on the shoe string in his mouth if you pull the red tab). Rhyming text, and a chunky, durable cover make this a great gift.
The ultimate battle! Two boys meet. One has a shark toy and the other has a toy train. A hilarious imaginative battle ensues Of course if the battle is underwater then Shark is going to win, but if it’s on land then Train is going to have the upper hand! What about a visit to a library? Right, neither of them would win that one! Witty, funny, and it combines sharks and trains in one book. That’s a sure winner right there.
Yumi Heo writes and illustrates such wonderful books! Red Light, Green Light is no exception. This board book has been one of my favorites to recommend this year because it’s both interesting and straightforward. Lift-the-flap elements combine with rhyming text about all the signs that youngsters can see on the road in the car while being driven around town. This book is perfect for the little transportation enthusiast in your life, and great for both girls and boys.
Reviewed by Hilary Taber
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My kids have only seen one or two episodes of the PBS show, Peg + Cat, but you don’t need to have seen episodes to like the picture book, Peg + Cat: The Race Car Problem! It’s a fun, creative story of Peg and Cat as they build a race car for a twenty lap race to compete with three other groups for the golden cup. There are several math related situations, such as which shape will roll the best, or what number lap they are on and is that less than the competition.
At the beginning of the story Peg and Cat are at a junk yard to make their race car for the big race. They put it together with a metal cylinder and some boxes and circle items for wheels (although when one wheel falls off they quickly realize that a square replacement wouldn’t roll).
This story reminds me of how fun it is to create objects and items from “junk.” This past June my family attended the local high school’s “Day of Making” which supported STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) education and there was a non-profit called Trash 4 Teaching which had a creation station. My kids spent almost an hour or more making various creations with hot glue and all these cool industrial product left-overs. I wish I had a picture!
I loved the fun illustrations with the graph paper background. Even the way they numbered the pages was fun (see photo – right)! The message that you should never give up was a good one in addition to all the numbers and problem solving. It’s also sure to bring a laugh to adults as they read the book aloud to their young kids (especially the part about the teens’ car and how they handle the race).
Overall, in Peg + Cat: The Race Car Problem, Peg and Cat have great personalities that shine through and help them persevere and win the race (even when car trouble crept up). This book will be a great addition to kids’ libraries for many years!
Good Reads With Ronna is proud to be an IndieBookstores Affiliate. Doing so provides a means for sites like ours to occasionally earn modest fees that help pay for our time, mailing expenses, giveaway costs and other blog related expenses. If you click on an IndieBound link in a post and buy anything, we may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Your purchase supports our efforts and tells us you like the service we’re providing with our reviews, and for that we sincerely thank you.
I haven’t yet met a 2-5 year old who doesn’t know Peppa Pig. She’s becoming as popular here as she is in the U.K. and it’s no surprise. The show, which airs on Nick Jr., is its number one program for this age group, reaching over 30 million viewers every week!
Come along and join Peppa Pig and her younger brother George on their first trip to a museum with their parents. This museum is full of terrific treasures including gowns, crowns and even a royal throne that once belonged to Kings and Queens. Peppa pictures herself as a Queen, but George would much prefer checking out the “dine-saw.”
George sees a big dinosaur. “Don’t worry,” says Daddy.
“Those are just dinosaur bones.”
They may just be bones, but they are VERY BIG.
The dinos on display provide fodder for George to imagine himself as a dinosaur, finally bigger than his sister. It also gets everyone’s tummies growling meaning time for a café cake break.
After a snack it’s onto the space exhibit where the Pig family bumps into George’s elephant pal Edmond, an outer space afficionado. It’s time to take a pretend trip to the Moon including some serious lunar bouncing. Why?
“There’s less gravity!” yells Edmond.
Typically the Peppa Pig series of stories are brief, light-hearted introductions to the various activities, some new and some old, that fill a pre-schooler’s life. Here it’s an outing to a museum where sharing a good time with the family can be as much fun as learning about all the wonderful objects they’ve seen, or in Dad’s case, the snacks he’s eaten!
You can find out more about the Peppa Pig books by clicking on the links below and by visiting www.peppapig.com
Peppa Pig and the Day at Snowy Mountain (Candlewick, $12.99, Ages 2-5)
The holidays are over, but winter is here for a while yet. One of the best features of winter is playing in the snow. In Peppa Pig and the Day at Snowy Mountain, a family vacation means lots of adventures—sledding, ice skating, and skiing. But the Pig family has forgotten something! How can they go sledding without the sled? Never fear, Peppa has an idea. “Whee!” she says. “A Daddy sled!” Good old Dad gives Peppa and George a ride down the slope on his tummy. Next, the family goes skating, which isn’t easy for everyone. Peppa skates…and falls…and tries again. Mummy Pig helps. Peppa is skating! Now it’s time to ski, but Daddy Pig doesn’t like heights and Peppa’s song about sitting in the ski lift isn’t helping calm his nerves. “Don’t look down!” says Mummy. But Daddy does look down. He topples out of the ski life. Where did Daddy Pig go? Young readers will laugh when Daddy Pig emerges and just wait until they see Mummy Pig’s hijinks on the skis!
We don’t often cover films on the blog, but when a family-friendly book drive (see details below) is thrown into the Oz-some mix, we just couldn’t resist!
WHAT: Good Reads With Ronna readers, why not join Dorothy, Toto, and their new friend, Wiser the Owl, from the upcoming 3D animated feature, LEGENDS OF OZ: DOROTHY’S RETURN, as they bring the magical world of Oz to kids across the U.S. on the “Legends of Oz Express”!
WHEN: This coming Sunday, April 13, head to Hollywood & Highland and join Oz characters from 1:00p.m. until 6:00p.m.on a part of a nine city tour before it heads back over the rainbow on May 9, 2014, the opening day of LEGENDS OF OZ: DOROTHY’S RETURN in theaters.
ACTIVITIES: Families will follow their hearts at the Tin Man’s Friendship Club by making friendship pins, test their brains in the Scarecrow’s Workshop with arts and crafts, and show their courage by performing on the Lion’s “Mane” stage. They will also hang out in cozy “Candy County” and hear the story that inspired the film, Dorothy of Oz, written by celebrated children’s author Roger Stanton Baum. Kids will virtually follow the yellow brick road in the “Legends of Oz World” iPad gaming stations, and Dorothy and her friends will be there for pictures, prizes and fun!
BOOK DONATION INFO: To help even more children experience the magic of books, imagination, and the wonder of Oz, guests are encouraged to bring a new book to be donated to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
Literally Healing at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is an innovative reading program dedicated to advocating literacy and its importance to children’s success. The program gives children more than 30,000 books annually. To learn more about the program and the types of new books needed, please visit www.chla.org/books.
FILM SUMMARY: Dorothy’s only just returned home from her first incredible journey to Oz, but she’s already being called back for another adventure! After waking to post-tornado Kansas, Dorothy (Lea Michele) and Toto are whisked to Oz on a magical rainbow mover sent by their old friends the Scarecrow (Dan Aykroyd), the Lion (Jim Belushi) and the Tin Man (Kelsey Grammer). Time in Oz has passed much faster than back in Kansas, and Dorothy discovers that the Jester (Martin Short) – the devious brother of the Wicked Witch of the West – is taking Oz over one region at a time, holding their leaders captive and casting a pall of darkness over the beloved land. Even Glinda (Bernadette Peters) is unable to combat the Jester’s evil powers, making Dorothy their only hope.
When she arrives in Oz, Dorothy’s plan is to travel to the Emerald City to reunite with her old friends and join forces with them to stop the Jester. However, the yellow brick road isn’t quite as easy to follow this time around, especially with the Jester planting tricky detours to lead her astray, so she enlists the help of Wiser the owl (Oliver Platt), Marshal Mallow (Hugh Dancy), China Princess (Megan Hilty) and Tugg the tugboat (Patrick Stewart) to help find her way.
Dorothy is grateful for the support of her new friends, but when she realizes that having them by her side means putting them all in grave danger, she has to decide whether to continue to accept their assistance or forge the road alone. But with the future of Oz at stake, it’s going to take as much heart, brain and courage as they can collectively muster to defeat the Jester and return order and happiness to the Emerald City.
Clarius Entertainment presents a Summertime Entertainment production: “Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return.” The film is directed by Daniel St. Pierre and Will Finn, and the executive producers are Neil L. Kaufman, Rene Torres and Greg Centineo. The film is produced by Bonne Radford, Ryan Carroll and Roland Carroll and is based the book Dorothy of Oz by Roger Stanton Baum. The screenplay is written by Randi Barnes and Adam Balsam.
LEGENDS OF OZ: DOROTHY’S RETURN is in theaters, Friday, May 9, 2014
Today, reviewer MaryAnne Locher weighs in on Wedding Wings by Kiki Thorpe.
Disney Never Girls #5: Wedding Wings by Kiki Thorpe with illustrations by Jana Christy, Random House Books for Young Readers, 2014.
Believing in magic and fairies from the bottom of your heart can make extraordinary things happen. So, get out your fairy wings and fairy wands and get ready for an enchanting adventure!
The Never Girls are Gabby, Mia, Kate, and Lainey – four ordinary girls who have found their way into the magical realm of Never Land. In Disney Never Girls #5: Wedding Wings by Kiki Thorpe with illustrations by Jana Christy (Random House Books for Young Readers; paperback, 5.99; Ages 6-9) the fifth book in Disney’s Tinker Bell and Fairies series, Gabby has been asked to be the flower girl in her babysitter Julia’s wedding.
Gabby’s bubbling over with excitement so she puts on her dress-up fairy wings, breaks the pact she has with the other girls to never go alone into Never Land, and visits her fairy friends Tink, Prilla, Rosetta, Dulcie, and Bess to tell them her big news. The fairies are curious about what a flower girl does and what a wedding looks like. Gabby demonstrates how she’ll be throwing flower petals, but the fairies are less than impressed. Tink gives Gabby a thimble-full of fairy dust to take to the wedding so the petals will flutter and float to the ground. Gabby wants the fairies to come to the wedding so they can see her walk down the aisle, but the fairies haven’t been formally invited, so they decline. Bess can’t think of anything else she would rather do than go to the wedding. She sneaks out of Never Land and into Gabby’s room on the day of the big event. Gabby is delighted to see her, but knows she must hide her in her flower basket so no one else sees her.
What havoc can one little girl and one even tinier fairy create? Well…A LOT! Will they ruin Julia’s wedding day? Or will it be even more magical?
Although this chapter book is intended for early readers, even littler ones would enjoy the magic of having this read to them, too!
More than 250 full-color drawings by Emma Chichester Clark create vivid, engaging scenes; Papa Toto is Chichester Clark’s recognizable black scruffy dog. Both artist and writer are masters at their craft. A former Children’s Laureate, Morpurgo has published over 130 books. His novel, War Horse, was successfully adapted into a Tony Award-winning Broadway play and a Golden Globe-nominated film by Steven Spielberg.
Morpurgo, an expert storyteller, introduces new generations to the timeless Wizard of Oz. Whenever Dorothy says, “Home is home, and home is best,” Toto woofs, “You’re so dog-gone right.” A gentle reminder to appreciate life before a twister strikes.
