One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia

One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia
by Miranda Paul (Author) and Elizabeth Zunon (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Plastic bags are cheap and easy to use. But what happens when a bag breaks or is no longer needed? In Njau, Gambia, people simply dropped the bags and went on their way. One plastic bag became two. Then ten. Then a hundred. The bags accumulated in ugly heaps alongside roads. Water pooled in them, bringing mosquitoes and disease. Some bags were burned, leaving behind a terrible smell. Some were buried, but they strangled gardens. They killed livestock that tried to eat them. Something had to change.

Snippet: Isatou pauses. She and Peggy have an idea. But will their friends this it is crazy? Will the idea even work?
Nervously, she explains her plan.
One friend agrees to help.
Then two.
Then five!
The women cut the bags into strips and roll them into spools of plastic thread. Before long, they teach themselves how to crochet with this thread.

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

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The Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks
by Mark Stewart (Author)

Booktalk: It’s that time again! Who will win this year’s Stanley Cup? Read about your favorite hockey team in the Team Spirit series. Here is a snippet from The Chicago Blackhawks.

Snippet: There are many ways to win a championship in the National Hockey League (NHL). Some teams depend on superstars to carry them to victory. Others overwhelm opponents with wave after wave of hardworking skaters. Then there are the unexpected champions–the teams that make fans scratch their heads and wonder: How did they do that?

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Nature Recycles – How About You?

Nature Recycles – How About You?
by Michelle Lord (Author), Cathy Morrison (Illustrator)

Booktalk: From sea urchins in the Atlantic Ocean to bandicoots on the Australian savanna, animals recycle all over the world. Explore how different animals in different habitats use recycled material to build homes, protect themselves, and get food.

Snippet: A veined octopus lives in the Indian Ocean. He explores the ocean floor. Octopus finds empty coconut halves. He carries the coconut halves for later use. Poof! When the octopus senses trouble, he claps the coconut together and hides inside.

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Pure Grit: How American World War II Nurses Survived Battle and Prison Camp in the Pacific

Pure Grit: How American World War II Nurses Survived Battle and Prison Camp in the Pacific
by Mary Cronk Farrell (Author)

Booktalk: In the early 1940s, young women enlisted for peacetime duty as U.S. Army nurses. But when the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 blasted the United States into World War II, 101 American Army and Navy nurses serving in the Philippines were suddenly treating wounded and dying soldiers while bombs exploded all around them.

Snippet: When Ethel cruised into Manila Bay in July 1940, much of the world roiled with conflict. Germany had crushed most of Europe by using a new war tactic called blitzkrieg, where troops, tanks, and airplanes all attacked at once. Now Nazi leader Adolf Hitler prepared to blitzkrieg England. On the Far East, Japan was on the march. The previous month Britain had ordered the evacuation of all British women and children from Hong Kong, fearing Japan would capture the city. The only democratic powers left in the world were the United States and Great Britain.

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Rad American Women A-Z

Rad American Women A-Z
Rebels, Trailblazers, and Visionaries Who Shaped Our History . . . and Our Future!
by Kate Schatz (Author) and Miriam Klein Stahlby (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Like all A-Z books, this one illustrates the alphabet—but instead of “A is for Apple”, A is for Angela—as in Angela Davis, the iconic political activist. B is for Billie Jean King, who shattered the glass ceiling of sports; C is for Carol Burnett, who defied assumptions about women in comedy; D is for Dolores Huerta, who organized farmworkers; and E is for Ella Baker, who mentored Dr. Martin Luther King and helped shape the Civil Rights Movement.

Snippet:

B is for Billie Jean

Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King was 12 years old when she had her first tennis lesson, and she knew right away that she wanted to play tennis for the rest of her life.

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

From Bulb to Tulip

From Bulb to Tulip (Start to Finish)
by Lisa Owings (Author)

Booktalk: How do onion-shaped tulip bulbs become the beautiful blooms in your garden? Follow each step in the process—from planting the bulbs to caring for the flowers—and see it for yourself!

Snippet:
In spring, the tulips sprout.

The tulips sprout when the weather gets warm enough in the spring. Green leaves emerge from the pointy tips of the bulbs. They slowly push up through the soil.

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

The Final Four: All about College Basketball’s Biggest Event

The Final Four: All about College Basketball’s Biggest Event
by Mary E. Schulte (Author)

Booktalk: Each year in March, college basketball teams hope to be part of one of the biggest sports events in the country. The NCAA tournament starts with 68 teams and is gradually reduced to the Final Four. But just one of them will become the national NCAA champion!

Snippet:
March Madness
Every year millions of basketball fans look forward to March Madness. Broadcaster Brent Musberger first used the phrase “March Madness” while covering the 1982 NCAA tournament, and the nickname stuck.

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

A Penguin Named Patience: A Hurricane Katrina Rescue Story

A Penguin Named Patience: A Hurricane Katrina Rescue Story
by Suzanne Lewis (Author) and Lisa Anchin (Illustrator)

Booktalk: At roughly 6 pounds and approximately 20 inches tall, Patience, the South African penguin, is small, but at 24 years old she is also the “penguin in charge” of the penguin exhibit at New Orleans’s Audubon Aquarium of the Americas. On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the city and severely damaged the aquarium.

Snippet:
Patience knew something was terribly wrong.

It was dark and steamy hot inside her home at the Audubon Aquarium in New Orleans. Being an African penguin meant she was used to a warm climate, but not this warm!

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

The White House for Kids

The White House for Kids: A History of a Home, Office, and National Symbol, with 21 Activities
by Katherine L. House (Author)

Booktalk: Have you ever wondered what it’s like to live and work in the most important house in the country, or what it’s like to grow up there?

Kids can:

* Build a model White House

* Design an official china pattern

* Play key passages of “Hail to the Chief”

* Practice signing a bill the way presidents do

* Make White House fruit punch

* Play an aerobic game designed for President Hoover

* And much more

Snippet:
The White House itself has six levels if you count its two-story subbasement. It boasts 132 rooms, 35 bathrooms, and 12 chimneys. The president and his family live mainly on the top two floors. Only family members, invited guests, and employees have the privilege of seeing those floors.

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.

Football (Fantastic Sports Facts)

Football (Fantastic Sports Facts)
by Michael Hurley (Author)

Booktalk: Discover some of the most fascinating and unusual facts about the sport.

Snippet:
Fun Fact
The Super Bowl was nearly named “The Big One.”

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

Copyright © 2015 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.