r is for rugby by mike petri and max thompson

If I asked you how to play rugby, would you know how?  Is it played on a field or in an arena?  What does a rugby ball look like? (rugby is played with a ball, right?) I will confess that I didn't know the answer to any of these questions until I got an email from US Rugby World Cup team member, Mike Petri.  Mike sent me a copy of his new book all about the game of rugby, R is for Rugby.  

I was really happy that Mike got in touch with us he is doing a lot of really great work not only as a talented rugby player but also as a high school math and science teacher, a dad, and now a children's book author.  Mike is using his book, R is Rugby, to teach kids about the game he loves.  I love that it incorporates the alphabet too, so both of my kids liked reading it.  My older son already knows his alphabet and read it for the sports terms.  My younger son is learning his letters, and I liked that he got a little bit of a letter recognition lesson in there.  

The pictures by Max Thompson are colorful and fun, and your kids will love them.  This unique book would make a great holiday gift for little sports fans.  

If you would like to learn more about Mike Petri and R is for Rugby, check out his website here. It has a lot of useful information about the sport and ways to get involved with rugby in your area.  

Thank you to Mike Petri for getting in touch with us about his work!  It is always inspiring to see someone who is using their gifts for the most good, and Mr. Petri seems to have made it his goal to not only promote the sport of rugby but also to promote learning and education for kids.  Good work, Mike!  

jan brett christmas books!

**This post contains affiliate links which means that if you buy something from that link, Booktomato gets a small fee.  However, the book picks and opinions are 100% Booktomato.  Thanks for supporting businesses that help us produce our content.  

What's your favorite Christmas book?  There are so many out there to choose from, and some are great and some are not so great.  Have you read anything by legendary kid's author, Jan Brett?  Mrs. Brett has got you covered for the holiday season!  

We are big fans of Jan Brett and have featured her stories on the blog before.  They focus on tales from specific countries.  A lot of them have a Scandinavian flair which I enjoy, and I have absolutely fallen in love with her art work.  Each page has super detailed and elaborate drawings to illustrate the story.  Here are the Jan Brett books you need on your bookshelf for Christmas.  

Gingerbread Christmas

By Jan Brett

Buy on Amazon

Gingerbread Christmas is one of three books featuring the character Gingerbread Baby.  In this book, he goes to a Christmas festival and has a great time until the smell of gingerbread makes all the kids hungry!  recommended age: 3-5

The Wild Christmas Reindeer

By Jan Brett

Buy on Amazon

The Wild Christmas Reindeer is about a little girl named Teeka who is in charge of getting Santa's reindeer ready for his Christmas eve flight.  It's a hard job, and she gets too bossy with the animals.  She has to learn to be kind to them and earn their trust and cooperation. recommended age: 3-8

Trouble with Trolls

By Jan Brett

Buy on Amazon

Trouble with Trolls follows a young Scandinavian girl who must journey up and over the mountain that separates her home from the town.  Along the way, some tricky but not too smart trolls try to stop her.  She has to use her cleverness to make it where she wants to go.  recommended age: 3-10

Home for Christmas

By Jan Brett

Buy on Amazon

Home for Christmas is about a troll boy named Rollo.  When his parents make him do his chores, he decides that he would rather run away than work.  After living with different animals in their wild homes, he decides that his troll home is the best place for him.  recommended age: 3-8

The Animals' Santa

By Jan Brett

Buy on Amazon

The Animals' Santa is set in a wintry forest where all the forest animals are waiting for the Animals' Santa, a snowy owl who comes and gives each animal a special treat.  recommended age: 3-5

Who's That Knocking on Christmas Eve?

By Jan Brett

Buy on Amazon

In Who's That Knocking on Christmas Eve?, trolls come to Kyri's house every year to steal her family's holiday feast, but this year a mysterious boy and his magical ice bear appear at her door.  Together, they protect the feast from troublesome trolls.  recommended age: 3-10

you tube tuesday: the best christmas pageant ever and make your own nativity

This week's You Tube Tuesday is getting us ready for the holiday season with a classic Christmas story and a DIY nativity scene to get us in the Christmas spirit!  

it's beginning to look a lot like gift guides . . . . .

Whether you place your gifts under a tree, give them out over eight special nights, fill stockings or shoes, go big, or keep it simple, it's time to start that holiday shopping.  Over the next two weeks, we will feature age-appropriate gift guides with some the favorites we have been reading this year.  Check back soon for the first guide featuring the perfect book to buy for ages baby to two years old!  

10 little ninjas by miranda paul and nate wragg

Do you know a kid who loves to pretend?  My four year old is an intense pretender.  He wakes up in the morning, hops out of bed, and he's immediately in character.  He comes down the stairs for breakfast as a pirate, a viking, a dog.  I never know what he's going to be until I say, "Good morning!"  and he answers back in character.  

This book is full of kids pretending, and its full of counting and number recognition too!  On each page, the kids are dressed in a new character - ninjas, pirates, race car drivers, and astronauts.   It follows the classic "No More Monkeys Jumping On The Bed" story and song.  Every time the kids get rowdy, someone gets a boo boo and has to sit out on play the next go round, so the book counts down from ten to one.  

These kids have imagination and energy!  My four year old found it very funny, and we both loved the pictures.  This would make a great holiday gift. 

Do you have a favorite counting book?  There are so many good ones. Let me know you recommendations in the comments. Have a great day!

grace, diversity, talent: a book about ballerina misty copeland and make your own misty the ballerina!

"I was a dancer just like you, a dreaming shooting star of a girl, with work and worlds ahead."

Misty Copeland, the first African-American ballerina to be promoted to principal dancer in the American Ballet Theater, is an amazingly talented woman!  She has danced in classic roles like Clara in The Nutcracker, and now she has written a picture book encouraging young ballet dancers to follow their dreams.  The book is called Firebird, and it's awesome!  

The book follows a young girl who dreams of being a professional ballerina but doesn't believe she will ever get there.  In a dream-like narrative, Misty talks to the young girl and shows her what it took for Misty to achieve greatness.  She shows her how hard work and determination pay off.  

To honor Misty Copeland, we have created our own Misty the Ballerina to dance around the house after we read the story! 

Here's what you need to make your very own Misty:

popsicle sticks

brown paint or marker

black marker

red construction paper

red cupcake liner

glue or tape

Step one: color the popsicle stick to match Misty's skin tone with brown paint or marker.  Give her a face with hair, eyes and a smile.

Step two: make the tutu skirt by folding the red cupcake liner in half and then cutting the flat part of the liner off. 

Step three: Cut a bodice out of red construction paper. 

Step four: tape or glue the bodice and tutu skirt onto the popsicle stick.  Play some classical music and let Misty the ballerina twirl around!

you tube tuesday with snacks! flossie and the fox by patricia c. mckissak and a classic southern pie

It's You Tube Tuesday!  This week, we are sharing a southern-style retelling of Little Red Riding Hood and a pie recipe inspired by the book.  Check it out!

three to read right now: babies in the bayou, manners, underwater/underearth

What are you reading right now with your kids?  What are you reading right now by yourself?  Do you ever find yourself feeling like this?  I finished a string of books that I loved.  I read What Would Mary Berry Do? by Claire Sandy and then a couple of Maeve Binchy books back to back, and I loved all of them.  For some reason, whenever I finish a book that I absolutely love, I find it hard to start something new.  What should I read next?  

Here are three books that we are going to read with our kids this week: Babies in the Bayou by Jim Arnosky, Manners by Aliki, and Underwater/Underearth by Alexsandra Mizielinska.

Aliki is so in tune with how kids think, and her books speak to kids in a way that engages them completely.  Her book on manners is structured in a genius way.  Instead of lecturing kids about sharing, saying please/thank you, and other common topics that I end up having to remind my kids of over and over (all the while cringing for sounding like my mother), Manners is set up with comic strips illustrating different scenarios and how to handle each one. No lecturing!  No kids tuning out lecturing!

Here's one that my youngest son experiences a lot - a bigger kid (usually his older brother) comes up and stomps on your sandcastle/knocks over your block tower.  What do you do?  How do you handle it?  Manners gives kids real world answers all while building social skills like empathy and compassion. 

Babies in the Bayou by Jim Arnoksy brings us into the wild world of nature and shows readers what animals live in the bayou habitat.  A bayou is a marshy bay body of water that plays home to alligators, ducks, turtles, snakes, and fish.  The bayou in the book is teeming with cute babies of all different species.  

Underwater/Underearth is two books for the price of one.  One side is devoted to creatures and natural habitats under the ocean.  Anything and everything you have ever wanted to know about sea creatures can be found in the text and super detailed illustrations of Underwater.

Flip it over, and you have Under Earth, a whole new book!  Under Earth talks about creatures in nature that burrow underground to make their homes like foxes, prairie dogs, and rabbits.  Under Earth also illustrates what archaeologists do at a dig site as they look for ancient artifacts left behind under the dirt.  The pictures in this book are awesome, and the book itself is a super-sized, jumbo volume.  

What are you reading this week?  Let me know in the comments! 

you tube tuesday! get your kids to love shakespeare

It's YouTube Tuesday!  Here is today's video about my fave books to get your kids reading/understanding/loving William Shakespeare! 

12 kids books about the letter B

Balls, bears, boats, ballerinas, and bicycles!  So many great "b" words to read about and learn about.  If kids in your house are learning about the letter "B", here are twelve great books to give inspiration to their lesson. This post contains affiliated links that I receive compensation for posting.  However, I only share books and products that I love on my own.  Thanks for supporting businesses that support this blog. 

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

By Bill Martin Jr., Eric Carle

Buy on Amazon

We all know and love Eric Carle, and his colorful Brown Bear, Brown Bear book is great for letter recognition because it has a nice repetition that brings lots of opportunities to find the letter B as you read. 

The Berenstain Bears: Kindness Counts (Berenstain Bears/Living Lights)

By Jan Berenstain, Mike Berenstain

Buy on Amazon

The Berenstain Bears books are always reliable when you want a book that teaches a kids a life lesson, and The Berenstain Bears Kindness Counts is no exception.  Brother Bear learns that good things come to those who share with others.  He shares his prized airplane at the park even when he feels nervous about letting someone else touch it.  He ends up making a kind new friend because of his good choice.  

How Many Bugs in a Box?: A Pop-up Counting Book (David Carter's Bugs)

By David A. Carter

Buy on Amazon

This pop-up book has everything!  The letter B, counting, lift-the-flaps with cute little bugs that will get a laugh from kids.  

Richard Scarry's Boats (Richard Scarry's Busy World)

By Richard Scarry

Buy on Amazon

We love how Richard Scarry's books are so detailed with tons and tons of vehicles to find and name.  This book is all about boats of different shapes and sizes with different jobs to do.  

Bear Wants More

By Karma Wilson

Buy on Amazon

Have you read any of the books in this series for preschoolers?  If you click on the Amazon link, you will see that the Bear books have tons and tons of positive reviews from readers.  They are simple, well-illustrated, and kids just love them.  In Bear Wants More, Bear wakes up from his winter sleep in the Spring, and he is hungry!  He needs lots and lots of food to fill his big bear belly.  

We're Going on a Bear Hunt (Classic Board Books)

By Helen Oxenbury, Michael Rosen

Buy on Amazon

A dad and his kids are going on a bear hunt in this bouncy, jolly classic.  The rhyming words perfectly match the happy family's adventure into the woods. 

A Bear and His Boy

By Sean Bryan

Buy on Amazon

This bear and this boy are best friends who do everything together, but there's just one problem.  The bear has a crazy to do list that is a million miles long, and he drags the boy all over town.  The boy got stressed out!  In the end, he teaches the bear to slow down, relax, and enjoy life. 

Scholastic Reader Level 1: A Bug, a Bear, and a Boy

By David Mcphail

Buy on Amazon

Three friends - a bug, a bear, and a boy - spend their days together playing games, planting a garden, and eating yummy food.  Use this book for learning the letter B with preschoolers now, and keep it for later, when you need an easy-reader for elementary schoolers. 

Busy Boats (Amazing Machines)

By Tony Mitton, Ant Parker

Buy on Amazon

Author Tony Mitton is an award winning children's poet, and his story about animal critters sailing on different types of boats is filled with rhyming fun. 

The Berenstains' B Book (Bright & Early Books(R))

By Stan Berenstain, Jan Berenstain

Buy on Amazon

Do you find that some of the Berenstain Bears books are just a tad too lengthy for younger, preschool readers?  I have to confess that I do too.  This is the solution - a collection of Berenstain bears bright and early books.  This one is all about - you guessed it - the letter b. 

I'm a Ballerina! (Little Golden Book)

By Sue Fliess

Buy on Amazon

Author Sue Fliess is a preschooler-mastermind!  She knows just what will engage readers ages 3-5.  In her book I'm A Ballerina, a little girl takes the reader into her ballet class and show us what its like to perform her dance on stage! 

Ballerina Bess

By Dorothy Jane Mills

Buy on Amazon

A great learn-to-read book about Bess taking her first Ballet lesson.  Dorothy Jane Mills is a fantastic resource for kids just learning to read.  She has written so many great easy-reading books. 

you tube tuesday! 5 books we read before going to ireland

If you have been reading along this year, you probably know that our family took a little trip across the pond to Ireland.  Before we went, we read lots and lots of kids books about Irish stories.  Here is our experience travelling and some of our faves! 

books we read over and over again: the whisper by pamela zagarenski

Do you ever have this problem?  You buy a new book for your kid to read because it looks cute or was displayed in your local book shop, or maybe it won a lot of awards and has a lot of buzz.  You take it home, read it once, and your kid never asks to read it again.  Isn't that frustrating?  Picture books aren't cheap! We want to invest in books that our kids will come back to again and again not ones that look good but aren't fun to read.  

I think The Whisper by Pamela Zagarenski is one of those books that looks good but also has a story that kids will love.  We have owned our copy for over a year, and we still return to it and enjoy it.  

The Whisper is a new release from artist Pamela Zagarenski, winner of two Caldecott honors, and it is beautiful.  A young girl loves to read and loves getting lost in her books.  She borrows a very special book from her school teacher, and when she gets home she is disappointed.  The book has no words, only pictures.  She has nothing to read.  Just as she is about to put the book back on the shelf to read something else, she hears a whisper.  It is coming from the book!  The whisper tells her that she has the ability to create her own stories, to imagine them herself with the pictures as inspiration.  She makes up story after story from the book's illustrations.  The stories become so real that she feels that she herself is inside the story.  

I liked the way this story promotes interaction and engagement with art.  I didn't learn to really enjoy art on canvas until I was an adult, and it really is a skill.  Because the girl has to create stories from the picture she sees, she learns to observe a piece of art and appreciate details.  This would be great to read and then go to our local art museum.  We could practice imagining our own stories from the paintings we see.  I recommend this book for upper elementary school kids.  The pictures would interest any age, but the story is very lengthy and uses a vocabulary on the level of third graders and up.  Younger readers might not be ready to engage with this story.  

Have you read The Whisper?  Do you have any books that look good but also have stories that you can read over and over again?  Any experiences where a book you thought would be good didn't deliver?  Let me know!   

the weekend roundup!

What are you up to this weekend?  My fourth grader has a chess tournament today, and honestly, I love that he gets the experience but I kind of dread them.  They last for hours and hours and usually I have my four year old in tow.  For some reason, watching people play chess in silence for six hours isn't his idea of a good time.  BUT . . . Today I am not secretly dreading the chess tournament because it is being hosted by our city's annual India Festival!  My fourth grader can play chess while we while away the hours shopping through the colorful wares and filling our bellies with awesome Indian food.  Win/Win! 

There were some interesting kid's book reviews around the web this week.  Here is a selection for your perusal.  Have a great weekend! 

Kids Book Review shares a well-illustrated new edition of a classic tale - The Pied Pipper, and here is their review of a fabulous looking new book, A Most Magical Girl.  

A Kids Book A Day writes about a picture book for upper elementary school kids that deals with nature conservation called The Tragic Tale of the Great Auk by Jan Thornhill. 

Every year, Pragmatic Mom partners with bloggers to bring us Multicultural Children's Book Day.  This year, it will be on January 27, 2017.  Here is the poster for this year.  

build a great reading space!

If you build it, they will come . . . Creating a good reading space for your kids is pretty simple as long as you follow this formula:

bookcase with sufficient space + cozy seat + fun rug and pillows + good lighting.  

Here I have created a cute cactus themed book nook, and I think the fun theme plus comfy digs will draw kids in and invite them to stay and read a while.  

1. This bookcase from Ikea is perfect for holding a growing book collection.  The first reading space that I put together for my own kids had one of those canvas sling bookshelves that are great because they allow each book to be displayed with the cover facing out.  This made the kids want to read them more because they could see them better, but I eventually had to get rid of the canvas shelf because it just doesn't hold that many books.  This case holds a lot.
2. This chair from Amazon looks so comfortable!  I know my kids would fight over who gets to snuggle up in this chair first.
3. This lamp is so fun! The playful shape adds to the theme, but the neutral color keeps it from being cheesy.
4. I found this art on Etsy here and here.  Oh, Etsy.  My credit card hates you.  My credit card company loves you.  Too many cute things that I can't live without.
5. Every good book nook needs a soft rug.  Half the time, my kids would rather lay on the floor while reading as opposed to sitting in a chair, so finding a good rug is key.  I like this one from Ikea.  The graphic print is happy, and the price is happy too! 
6. Lastly, cute and comfy pillows bring it all together.  The two pillows here are from Land of Nod.

Do you have a special reading area in your house? What did you put in it?  Let me know below! 

language and literacy boosting kids book! one thousand things by anna kovecses

Your little ones will really enjoy this language boosting beauty by Anna K.  The illustrations are retro cute and colorful, and I love the idea of collecting the first one thousand words in a child's world. This book was helpful when my younger son was learning to talk, and now that he is older, this is a great source for working on sight words. The pages are divided into sections organized as seen below, and each section is filled with eye-catching scenes that will engage young readers.  

I sometimes read product reviews on Amazon before I buy the book, and one of the reviews of this book pointed out that this the pictures in this are too stylized to be recognized by little kids, for example, the picture of books on a shelf looks like a bunch of mid-century modern rectangles and kids couldn't see that they were books.  Well, I can see what the reviewer means, and there are definitely picture books that I read and think that they were designed for adults to find them pretty instead of kids connecting with the story.  However, my three year old didn't have trouble with the pictures, and I liked that the book does cover the common words that we see in most of these word books - ball, cat, cup - and it also covers more unique terms like leek and eggplant.  Have a great day all! 

cute new tale of friendship: stick and stone by beth ferry and tom lichtenheld

"Meet Stick and Stone.  They stick up for each other, because friends rock!"

Stone is lonely.  Stick has no friends.  They meet each other and love having fun.  This unlikely pair learn what friendship is all about - fun playtime but also supporting one another, sticking up (stick sticks up, get it?) to bullies, and helping each other through difficult times.  The words in this tale are light and easy for the youngest of readers to understand.  It has a nice rhyming melody that makes the story playful and fun.  Stick and Stone do a lot of active tactile play that keep young minds engaged.  My four year old LOVED the part where Stone splashes in a puddle and makes a loud splooshing sound. 

"Stone whispers, 'Gee, you stuck up for me!' 'That's just what sticks do. Friends do it too.'"

This darling story also teaches the lesson of bullying to an age group that probably is just starting to experience real playground interacting time.  Preschoolers are just beginning the life long lesson of socializing in happy, productive ways and not bullying ways.  Reading this story would make a great introduction to that conversation.  

I love the pictures by Tom Lichtenheld!  They have a sketched with color pencil quality that is bright and friendly with a lot of life and energy.  They add a lot to the story.  recommended reader age: 1-4 

my brand new youtube channel!

I've started a new You Tube channel for Booktomato!  Every week I hope to add a new video. I hope to do more of these picture book history videos and also commentary on new kids books.  What would you like to see in my videos? Take a look! 

8 kids books about the letter A

Hi there! Today we are sharing eight books that highlight the letter A.  A is for apples, alligators, ants, airplanes, and so much more.  I'm trying to work more alphabet lessons into my preschooler's everyday playtime.  This book list is going to help me slip a little letter-learnin' into his day. 

Apples, Apples, Apples

By Nancy Elizabeth Wallace

Buy on Amazon

Apple Farmer Annie

By Monica Wellington

Buy on Amazon

Richard Scarry's A Day at the Airport (Pictureback(R))

By Richard Scarry

Buy on Amazon

Alligator Alphabet

By Stella Blackstone

Buy on Amazon

The Lady with the Alligator Purse

By Nadine Bernard Westcott

Buy on Amazon

Zack's Alligator (An I Can Read Book)

By Shirley Mozelle

Buy on Amazon

Ant Cities (Lets Read and Find Out Books) (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science 2)

By Arthur Dorros

Buy on Amazon

The Life and Times of the Ant

By Charles Micucci

Buy on Amazon

what the dinosaurs did last night: a very messy adventure by refe and susan tuma

Usually I write these posts for adults looking for a good book to read with the kids in their lives, but right now, I want to take a moment to address the kids in the room, so bring them closer to the screen.  Hello, kids.  Before I share this wonderful, funny, crazy book with you and the adult in your life that will bring you to the library/book store to find and read said book, I need you to promise me one little thing.  DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT make messes when your adult isn't looking and think that you can blame it on dinosaurs.  Your adult will not like it and may stop reading my book recommendations, so please, just don't.  

In this hilarious story, the toy dinosaurs who live in this house are running amok and wreaking havoc every time their owner's back is turned!  When no one is watching these dinos are drawing on the walls, getting into the shaving cream, tangling up the yarn in the knitting basket, you name it.  But when the parents get angry about the mess, they blame it on the kids in the house.  They won't believe it was actually those mischievous toy dinosaurs. 

The authors leave a cute little explanation in the back of the book about how they created an annual tradition - Dinovember - where every morning, their kids would wake up to find their toy dinosaurs in a different trouble-making scene.  So cute!  

the weekend round up!

What does your weekend look like?  The air is cool and crisp here in Memphis, and I wore my fuzzy house slippers for the first time since the spring!  We have nothing big planned this weekend, just puttering around town.  My son has a math tutoring session.  We might go eat Israeli food for lunch.  We are laying low this weekend in preparation for our big plans next week.  We are headed to Orlando, Florida and Walt Disney World for a blogging conference.  I'm so excited to meet new blogging friends and say hello again to old blogging friends.  

Here are some of the best in book posts from around the web.  Have a happy weekend!

Pragmatic Mom shares a list of books about dogs and cats that are sure to get laughs here and a robotic STEM toy review here. 

What Do We Do All Day has some great free and printable coloring pages with a Halloween theme here. 

Kids Book Review reviews a new picture book, A Dog Called Bear here. 

Kids Books Without Borders shares a fascinating and in depth interview with author, Jean Little, here. 

A Kids Book A Day shares a historical biography picture book about the childhood of Louis Braille (the inventor of Braille writing for the blind) here.