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November Greetings from Hedgehog Books!
The Holidays are almost upon us. It's time to start thinking about lasting gifts for friends and families...
Congratulations to Belinda of Leola, Pennsylvania and Kimberly of Vancouver, Washington, winners in our last two Hedgie Tshirt giveaways!
We have another Hedgie Tshirt drawing running - the winners will be selected
on November 30th. If you'd like to enter, click
here. Or, take a look at our cute
Hedgie Tshirts and help promote reading aloud to children!
Click this link to visit our
homepage - Featured books, grade level lists, series, Top
10s, categories, and search.
Click this link for your very own copy
of
Hedgie's Monthly Newsletter.
If you like this newsletter, please
email it to a friend!
A Note to Teachers: We know you don't have much time, but if you get the inclination, we now welcome teacher reviews for all of our books. If Hedgie hasn't done a review, a teacher review will be selected at random to be the main review. Put in your two cents about what students should read!
Thinking of sending books as gifts? On our checkout form, we've added the option to include a short message to the recipient of the books.
Recommended this month (For Babies/Toddlers)
One Beautiful Baby
What a lovely counting book! Each page builds upon the last in this tender story of a mother counting all of the special things that make up her beautiful baby. From one sweet smile to ten sticky fingers, this baby's day is full of wonderful surprises.
The artwork is gorgeous and clearly recognizable for the youngest of children, making this a perfect choice for toddlers. Parents, expecting parents, and young children will delight in this playful counting and sharing book!
Recommended this month (For Early Readers)
Oliver Finds His Way
Our test audience rooted for Oliver - through his adorable antics of following a leaf down the hill and away from his yard, to his dawning discovery that he was indeed lost...and finally to his decision to take matters into his own hands and "Roar!" which leads to a very happy homecoming.
Christopher Denise's charcoal and pastel illustrations are positively gorgeous, with colors so perfectly autumny you can practically smell the leaves. Little Oliver is so compellingly drawn that his emotions are clearly visible to his audience. We're searching for a big poster of him for our "reading room!"
Recommended this month (For Fluent Readers)
The Pictures of Hollis Woods
Wow. When I finished THE PICTURES OF HOLLIS WOODS, I couldn't speak for several minutes...savoring the profound brilliance of this tale of belonging.
The ever-talented Patricia Reilly Giff writes of an unforgettable child yearning for a place to belong in this warm-hearted story, which stresses the importance of artistic vision, creativity, and above all, family.
I highly suggest this title for Literature Circles and Reading Groups. Themes include abandonment, friendship, belonging, family, hope, trust and truth.
Our Featured Book this Month...
Christmas in Canaan
CHRISTMAS IN CANAAN is a wonderfully inspired tale from two talented authors, and I feel honored to have read it. It isn't everyday a book has enough wit to make me laugh out loud and then bring me to tears, all within just a few pages. It contains realistic characters I desperately wanted to meet, and some I loathed for their evilness.
There were two things that kept me spellbound. One was the marvelously creative storytelling by Rodney, the young black aspiring writer. The other was observing the growth of the characters and the resulting gift they receive (and I don't mean material goods) simply by opening their home and hearts to someone in need. This one's a year-round gem...definitely NOT just for Christmas!
New Series Additions
Two beloved series came out with new titles this month. Carnivorous Carnival is the latest in Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events. Thanksgiving on Thursday joins the ever-popular Magic Tree House series.
Reading Tip From Hedgie
It's important that children are constantly exposed to a variety reading material. Books, magazines and newspapers inform children about the world around them. These materials spark interest, and help children become well-rounded learners. Now go one step further...After giving your children access to information, make it a point to talk about what your child reads...you'll be amazed at what they say!
What? Another Book Report?!
Our
Grade level reading lists can
help you and your children choose the right books.
Great Books for Me Too?
Research has proven how important it is
to model reading to children. Now
at Hedgehog Books we've made that even easier. Check out our
Techie's Grown-up Books Page.
The Lecturer's Tale Two of my favorite authors are Saul Bellow and John Irving, and the Lecture's Tale seemed almost like a collaboration of these two. It's very literary with non-stop references which will please those of us who are intrigued by English Literature. But at the same time, it is a satire of academic life, relationships, white men versus women in society, and ambition.
The ending gets a bit wild, but this book still very worthwhile. It's an ambitious work in itself, and proves to be educational and insightful, while remaining remarkably entertaining. It's not the lightest reading, but it is quick, and if you have the literature background or have seen university life firsthand, you'll enjoy it. Note that there are strong sexual references, usually played for humor or for serious representation of male and female roles, so I don't recommend this for the faint of heart or for readers under 18.
Have you got a question for Hedgie?
Don't forget our "
Ask a Teacher " page. Hedgie's
professional teaching staff is there to answer all of your literary questions.
Hedgie loves to help!
Hedgie's Friends
Be sure to visit all of Hedgie's friends!
By shopping at
www.greatergood.com a percentage
of your purchase can be donated to the charity of your choice including The
Breast Cancer Site, Hunger Site, and The Rainforest Site. At
www.ebates.com you'll get back
cash with every purchase you make from Hedgehogbooks.
Until next month,
Hedgie
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