Boston-area families! Looking for something fun to do together this weekend? Consider the 14th annual Belmont Family Festival (also known as the Belmont World Film Festival), which runs from January 13-16, 2017.
The theme for the festival this year is “Where Books Come Alive.” Some of the films will be world premiers and many of the featured films will be based on children’s books. Read more…Belmont Family Film Festival (Jan 13-16 2017): Where Books Come Alive!
Title: A Boy and His Bot
Author: Daniel H. Wilson
Narrator: David Ackroyd
Length: 4h 40m
Format: Audiobook
Age group: 10+
Code Lightyear is a shy young Cherokee boy. At school, he keeps his head down and tries to avoid the taunts of bullies. Rather than standing up for himself, Code prefers to concentrate on doodling robot designs. He also misses his beloved grandfather, who disappeared on a visit to Mek Mound, the hilly site of an ancient, Native American civilization.
On a field-trip to this hallowed place, Code wanders off from his classmates only to stumble through a portal into Mekhos, a bizarre and dangerous land populated entirely by robots. Read more…Audiobook review: A Boy and His Bot
Here are the books my boys got for Christmas, from us, family members, and Santa (yes, still! With the biggest winks and nods yet!). And yes, they did get gifts other than books as well 🙂 Read more…Book bonanza!
Title: Big Hero 6 Junior Novelization (Disney’s Big Hero 6)
Author: Irene Trimble
Narrator: MacLeod Andrews
Length: 2h 18m
Format: Audiobook
Age group: 8+
Fourteen-year old Hiro Hamada is brilliant but wastes all his time hustling at ‘bot fights in dark alleys instead of focusing on his future. He worships Tadashi, his older brother, who rescues him from scrapes and encourages him to think bigger. Everything changes when Hiro loses his big brother in a terrible accident at a famous robotics lab where Tadashi was developing a health-care robot named Baymax. Heartbroken, Hiro teams up with Baymax and with 5 of Tadashi’s friends when he realizes that the explosion at the lab may not have been an accident at all.
You may be surprised to hear about Big Hero 6, the audiobook! The movie was of course a huge hit and no doubt your kids, like mine, saw it when it was released. But the audiobook is really well written and read with a beautifully resonant voice by MacLeod Andrews. Read more…Audiobook review: Big Hero 6
Title: Ricky Ricotta’s Mighty Robot
Author: Dav Pilkey
Illustrator: Dan Santat
Format: Book series (9 books)
Age group: 5+
Poor Squeakyville! This town and its mousey inhabitants seem perpetually on the hit-list of some mad scientist or colony-craving alien. Luckily for Squeakyville, one of its littlest residents – boy-mouse Ricky Ricotta – has teamed up with his best buddy, The Mighty Robot, to hold chaos at bay. From facing down school bullies, to combatting all manner of mutants from around the planetary system, Ricky and his Robot embark on 9, action-packed adventures. Read more…Book review: Ricky Ricotta’s Mighty Robot
Well, actually, it is the Harvard Museum of Natural History (HMNH). But this gem of a museum may well claim the above title, with the amazing specimens in its permanent displays.
And this winter, through January 8, 2017, HMNH is going a step further, celebrating the latest Harry Potter movie with a Fantastic Beasts Scavenger Hunt. Read more…The Harvard Museum of Fantastic Beasts
Wow, December already! List-making time if ever there was one. So, what’s on your bookish gift-list this holiday season? I’d love to know. And so would other readers, as we all scramble to get organized for the holidays.
As for the lists I am making, here’s one from me to you: 20+ gift ideas for the boys in your lives. From tried-and-true classics to unusual finds, BookishBoys has you covered. Read more…You’re covered: 20+ book ideas for boys this holiday season
It’s Thanksgiving here in the U.S., and with that comes the onset of the holiday season. Maybe you’re driving to your parents’ right now for a Thanksgiving feast… maybe you will only be heading home in a few weeks for Christmas, Hannukah or the New Year. Perhaps you will travel by air or by sea, by road or by rail, or perhaps only by way of your dreams.
No matter what the mode, know that the journey home is a universal experience. It remains a powerful and persistent motif in all of literature, with children’s literature being no exception. Read more…Headed toward family, hearth and home
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