Guest Reviewer Lynn McSheehy is a graphic designer and single mother from Ohio. When she is not helping her parents run the family business, she spends her free time playing with her two spectacularly cute little boys. Her interests include music, art and theology, and she hopes to some day write a children's book or two of her own! We'll certainly look forward to that, Lynn. When I first saw the title of this book, Little Ant, Big Thinker: Or Where Does The Ocean End?  it made me smile because it reminded me of my 3 1/2 year-old son, Jack!…

Charlesbridge out of Watertown, Massachusetts publishes some really awesome books for kids. A particular favorite of mine was their recent title, Bubble Homes and Fish Farts by Fiona Bayrock with full-color illustrations by Carolyn Conahan. While we all adore squishy, shimmery, floating bubbles, have you ever realized they make excellent homes for Water Spiders, are a fun place to hide for the Juniper Spittlebug (did you even know there was such a thing as a Juniper Spittlebug?) and make playtime fun for Bottlenose Dolphin? I especially enjoyed reading about Snapping Shrimp. Found in coral sneefs, these shrimp make a loud…

The Guest Reviewer today is none other than my soon-to-be 8 year-old son, Coleman. He devoured (and so did I) Robert Crowther's Pop-Up House of Inventions from Candlewick Press and then wrote a book report about it for his class homework assignment. When I saw what he wrote I knew I just had to include it here. Enjoy! I just read this great pop-up book filled with facts of things around the house. Want to hear some? Then I'll tell you some. The first brassiere was invented in Greece in 2500 B.C., the first DVD player was bought in 1996.…

Not only is TOTZ ONLY a fabulous toy store, it's really a one-stop shopping, playing and learning venue for families with a warm and welcoming staff. Located in Burbank, TOTZ ONLY was featured in our Best of 2008 issue so I wanted to shout out about a SPECIAL AUTHOR EVENT they'll be having tomorrow (immediately following Storytime with Jamey Hood). Make haste and head over to this fabulous shop at 3009 W. Magnolia, Burbank. Storytelling and Booksigning by author Zachary Shapiro, (Rabbi of Temple Akiba in Culver City) We're All In the Same Boat Thursday, March 19, 2009 11:00 a.m.…

  Today's Guest Reviewer is Kim Phillips from Boston, Massachusetts. She is the mother of Andrew, 6 (pictured below) and Lia, 4. Andrew and I recently read  I'm Really Not Tired, a  children's book written by Lori Sunshine and illustrated by Jeffery Ebbeler from Flashlight Press. During a time in his life when he is normally consumed by stories about Star Wars, Bakugan, robots and superheroes, my son welcomed this change in our nightly reading! The story is about a little boy who does not want to go to bed because he is convinced that he misses out on tons…

I knew I was going to love this book simply from the title. In fact I would not change a single word of Austrian writer Heinz Janisch's  "I Have a Little Problem," said the bear, a two claws up read from North South Books;  nor could I ignore its gorgeous, whimsical illustrations by acclaimed artist, Silke Leffler. The bear needs to discuss something, something which seems to be worrying him. However in his futile yet comical attempt to find someone to lend an ear, he finds everyone and everything but! Very patiently, our big brown protagonist carries on his quest to be heard,…

It's official, I am older than Barbie! Heard on NPR this morning that today was the day the Barbie doll was launched onto the toy scene in 1959. What are your memories of Barbie? I remember trading in my old Barbie every year at our local toy store Big Top on Long Island and paying a few dollars to upgrade to the latest model. One day my older cousin Shelley gave me her old dolls which I have saved to this day. That stash included the original Barbie with all separate fingers, pristine styled blond hairdo (now minus the cut bangs…

Do you have a child, like mine, who loves to draw, invent wild and wacky characters and create little hand made books? Then I have the ideal book for you. It's called Comics To Go! by Mike Herrod from Blue Apple Books, a wonderful publishing house with lots of unique books out of Maplewood, New Jersey. Here's a sample of what my son Coleman did when he discovered the book last week. This design is the last cell for a comic strip called Rodrigo The Magnificent. The book contains 19 stories for children (or adults if you are so inclined)…