Who Wins? - a review

From time to time, Workman Publishing is kind enough to let me check out their new offerings. Today I take a look at Who Wins?

Who Wins? 100 Historical Figures Go Head-to-Head and You Decide the Winner!

By Clay Swartz, Illustrated by Tom Booth

Workman Publishing Company, 2016

Who Wins? is similar to the Brain Quest games also published by Workman, but Who Wins?, while less portable (it's a larger size and doesn't have a plastic storage box), has two advantages over Brain Quest.

1. From a kid's perspective, Who Wins? is more than just a collection of facts to memorize or use to challenge each other.  It's a "throw down" between historical characters using any of 50 challenges including vampire hunting, babysitting, escaping Alcatraz, and  running a Fortune 500 company - just the type of thing that's likely to appeal to gamer kids. Consider this: would Sojourner Truth's bravery serve her better than Thomas Edison's intelligence when searching out the nocturnal undead?  In short, Who Wins? is cooler than its predecessor, Brain Quest.
2.  From an adult perspective, Who Wins? is a great tool for using critical thinking skills.  Kids must read the short bio of each historical figure; factor in their numerical ratings for Wealth, Fitness, Wisdom, Bravery, Artistry, Leadership, and Intelligence; and argue their positions using facts. Each reader is free to draw her own fact-based conclusion.

The only thing lacking in Who Wins? is the source material for the facts presented. The book's tri-section, spiral-bound format does not offer an easy place to display this information, but it would be nice to see it available online.

So, who wins?  Anyone who plays Who Wins? !

#BannedBooksWeek begins today!

 Catcher in the Rye . . . Harry Potter . . . Captain Underpants . . . Every year, there are hundreds of attempts to remove books from schools and libraries. Celebrate YOUR freedom to read and right to choose your book during Banned Books Week, September 25 to October 1. For more information, visit http://www.ala.org/bbooks.

Eat your greens reds yellows and purples - a review

Eat your greens reds yellows and purples

DK Children's Cookbook
DK Publishing, 2016

I'll admit that I checked this book out for me.  Eat your greens reds yellows and purples (why there are no commas, I'm not sure)  The photographs are beautiful and the recipes are great!  Each color (orange - ever the slighted one, was left out of the title but included in the book) receives an introductory page and photo, a double-spread collage of all its edible goodness (see the "red" photo below), and at least four recipes.

 

I made the Zucchini Frittata, and not only was it delicious, it popped right out of the pan like nobody's business!  I thought for sure that it would stick.   I didn't have time to try any others, but I will likely check this book out again.  If you have a budding chef in the family, or are trying to introduce kids to healthier eating, this is the book for you!

Nursery Rhymes - the horror genre of the preschool set

Today you can find me blogging at the ALSC Blog with a post titled, 

"She did what?! Nursery Rhyme Horrors"

I've opened up a discussion about using some of the more gruesome nursery rhymes in storytime.  If you'd like to weigh in on the topic, or have your own particularly horrific favorite, please click over to the ALSC Blog.

In the meantime, here's my own childhood favorite,

Ladybug, ladybug, 

fly away home.

Your house is on fire.

Your children will burn.

 Note:
I married a firefighter. ;)

Images in the Public Domain and available from Project Gutenberg.

2016 National Book Awards - Longlist for Young People's Lit

Be sure to check out the 2016 National Book Awards.  Yesterday, the longlist was released for 

the category of Young People's Literature. 

2016 National Book Awards

The longlists for Poetry, Nonfiction, and Fiction will be released today, tomorrow, and Thursday.