CLCD Newsletter | Volume 5, Issue 7

A picnic or a baseball game just isn't right without a Hot Dog, and July is National Hot Dog Month, which is our second feature this month. Meet Me in St. Louis: a trip to the 1904 World's Fair by Robert Jackson introduces the reader to the new taste sensations of the day, ice cream cones and hot dogs, both of which are now summertime favorites. There are giggles galore in Mo Willems' The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog! In which Pigeon is confronted by Duckling who wants a bite of the hot dog. Baseball fans rely on superstition and will go to extremes to help their team win, as witnessed in Two Hot Dogs with Everything by Paul Haven. These are just right for summertime reading.

Blueberries are a health food and taste delicious, fresh from the bush or baked in a muffin. They are also featured in several wonderful books. While Robert McCloskey's Blueberries for Sal is the quintessential picture book for preschoolers, there are other titles that also captivate the imagination and they are listed in our third themed reviews section. Blueberries for the Queen by John and Katherine Paterson is based on a true event during the summer of 1942 when Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands was staying in New England. White is for Blueberry by George Shannon is a concept book to help children look at the colors in nature from a different perspective. July is National Blueberry Month.

Author Features

An interview with Tobias S. Buckell, an exciting new talent will provide insight into his debut science fiction novel Crystal Rain which is creating quite a positive buzz. Another first-time novelist, Linzi Alex Glass, discusses the background and how she came to write The Year the Gypsies Came, a story set in apartheid South Africa 1966.

Quote of the Month

"In our district, teachers are often looking for multiple similar titles to use with small reading groups in the class. CLCD is a great tool to help you find multiple titles with a similar theme on the same or slightly varied reading levels."

Christine Findlay
CRC Director,
Centerville City Schools
Centerville, OH

		Volume 5, Issue 7 July 2006



	Search Tip of the Month This Month's Features Spreading the News I recently attended the Children's Books Ireland Summer School, an annual event in Dublin with top notch authors and illustrators and an equally interesting group of participants who were all very eager to talk about superb children's and young adult books. Among this year's speakers were Melvin Burgess who gave a thought-provoking opening session, Zizou Corder, Meg Rosoff, Frank Cottrell Boyce, and Julie Hearne. Their thoughtful comments made me realize how valuable it is to hear authors speak. It is one of the reasons that links to features on authors and illustrators as well as links to their websites can help us present with greater clarity their books to children and young adults. So when you are checking the reviews on a book, remember to click to information about the author or illustrator. The Children's Literature Comprehensive Database (CLCD) makes it easy to do. CLCD NEWS We know you will be pleased to learn that reviews from Books for Keeps and NSTA Recommends are now available at the CLCD. Books for Keeps, the UK's leading magazine about the children's book industry, was launched in 1980 and currently has a readership of over 45,000 worldwide. The journal reviews over 1,000 children's books each year including fiction, poetry and nonfiction. In 1996 Books for Keeps won the prestigious Eleanor Farjeon Award for distinguished services to children's books. NSTA Recommends, a service supported by The National Science Teachers Association, reviews high-quality books, software, kits, and videos that serve as useful science teacher resource materials for grades K-College. An experienced teacher in the appropriate subject and grade level reviews each resource for scientific accuracy, classroom usefulness, and overall value. That draft commentary is edited and enhanced by a leading science educator. More information is available in our press releases. To read them, please go to CLCD Adds British Review Source and CLCD Partners With NSTA Recommends


	This is the time of year when librarians may be weeding the collection and looking for new titles. Don't forget about the Browse feature, a very powerful way of looking at all of the books in CLCD by subject, Dewey classification, author, etc. Here are some tips to help when the results of your browse search may not seem to be correct. When I enter a Dewey Decimal catalog number, why does the browse function sometimes returns no matching records? Rather than entering the full number, start your browse by entering the root classification number (e.g., 204.5). When I enter a subject term, why does the browse function sometimes return a list of author names? The browse function defaults to browsing the author index. To browse the subject term index, be sure to select the Subject Term index before clicking on the BROWSE button. How do I display the list of titles associated with one or more subject terms? Click on one or more of the boxes to the left of the subject terms, so that the boxes contain a check mark, and then click on the SELECT button at the top of the screen. A search will be performed that will create a new results set containing all of the records for the selected index entries. The results set can be used in the same way that other result sets generated by the Search page are used.


	Monthly Features The 4th of July is rapidly approaching and with it we have some new books to tell you about. When the fireworks are over many readers will wonder how they are made. In Pyrotechnicians by Mary Firestone children will learn about the history and kinds of fireworks as well as the tools used by pyrotechnicians. July is prime vacation season and many people will drive to their destinations. Whether you are planning an actual, trip or a virtual one, Tour America: a Journey through Poems and Art presents some very interesting places in America. Readers will glimpse the beauty, variety of landscapes and even the idiosyncrasies of America through the fabulous art and thoughtful poems. A picnic or a baseball game just isn't right without a Hot Dog, and July is National Hot Dog Month, which is our second feature this month. Meet Me in St. Louis: a trip to the 1904 World's Fair by Robert Jackson introduces the reader to the new taste sensations of the day, ice cream cones and hot dogs, both of which are now summertime favorites. There are giggles galore in Mo Willems' The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog! In which Pigeon is confronted by Duckling who wants a bite of the hot dog. Baseball fans rely on superstition and will go to extremes to help their team win, as witnessed in Two Hot Dogs with Everything by Paul Haven. These are just right for summertime reading. Blueberries are a health food and taste delicious, fresh from the bush or baked in a muffin. They are also featured in several wonderful books. While Robert McCloskey's Blueberries for Sal is the quintessential picture book for preschoolers, there are other titles that also captivate the imagination and they are listed in our third themed reviews section. Blueberries for the Queen by John and Katherine Paterson is based on a true event during the summer of 1942 when Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands was staying in New England. White is for Blueberry by George Shannon is a concept book to help children look at the colors in nature from a different perspective. July is National Blueberry Month. Author Features An interview with Tobias S. Buckell, an exciting new talent will provide insight into his debut science fiction novel Crystal Rain which is creating quite a positive buzz. Another first-time novelist, Linzi Alex Glass, discusses the background and how she came to write The Year the Gypsies Came, a story set in apartheid South Africa 1966. Quote of the Month "In our district, teachers are often looking for multiple similar titles to use with small reading groups in the class. CLCD is a great tool to help you find multiple titles with a similar theme on the same or slightly varied reading levels." Christine Findlay CRC Director, Centerville City Schools Centerville, OH


	CLCD Newsletter Editor, Sharon Salluzzo serves as a library and education consultant to CLCD. In addition, Sharon is a book reviewer, a storyteller, an editorial board member of Capitol Choices and a member of The Children's Book Guild of Washington, DC. She earned her MLS at SUNY Geneseo. About the Children�s Literature Comprehensive Database Our monthly newsletter is now available to everyone within an organization, not just the primary contact. A new feature at www.childrenslit.com will provide you with a form allowing you to sign up for just the electronic newsletter. The Children's Literature Comprehensive Database, updated mid-month, is your most complete source of information about children's books. Indeed, it is the next best thing to having the book in hand, and the best tool for leading you to the best books. All at a most affordable price. To subscribe to the CLCD or contact us, go to www.childrenslit.com.