Full Transcript for The Haunted Playground/Five More Sleeps Til Halloween

on for books once the board 00:02:18.900 --> 00:02:45.129 approves it. Hello, I'm Patrick Adams. And I'm 00:02:45.129 --> 00:02:49.569 Caroline Legere. And this is Librarians of Littles, 00:02:49.669 --> 00:02:52.969 a podcast where we discuss books, give makerspace 00:02:52.969 --> 00:02:55.949 ideas, and give tips and tricks for working with 00:02:55.949 --> 00:02:58.750 our youngest learners in the library setting. 00:02:58.900 --> 00:03:04.439 This week we have some fun Halloween themed books 00:03:04.439 --> 00:03:08.500 to discuss. The first of which is The Haunted 00:03:08.500 --> 00:03:13.379 Playground written by R .J. Palacio, illustrated 00:03:13.379 --> 00:03:17.020 by Brett Helquist, and published by Random House 00:03:17.020 --> 00:03:21.699 Books for Young Readers in 2026. Because this 00:03:21.699 --> 00:03:25.300 book is so new, it does not have any awards or 00:03:25.300 --> 00:03:29.240 is on any lists yet. but it's a really good one 00:03:29.240 --> 00:03:31.219 that I wouldn't be surprised if it ends up on 00:03:31.219 --> 00:03:36.509 some lists in the future. So we'll move on to 00:03:36.509 --> 00:03:41.530 our author history and RJ Palacio from the Penguin 00:03:41.530 --> 00:03:44.310 Random House website, because I couldn't actually 00:03:44.310 --> 00:03:47.990 find that she has her own website, but RJ Palacio 00:03:47.990 --> 00:03:50.530 is the author of the number one New York Times 00:03:50.530 --> 00:03:54.610 bestseller, Wonder, which has sold over 16 million 00:03:54.610 --> 00:03:57.560 copies worldwide. The book's message inspired 00:03:57.560 --> 00:04:00.240 the Choose Kind movement and has been embraced 00:04:00.240 --> 00:04:03.539 by readers around the world, with the book published 00:04:03.539 --> 00:04:07.610 in over 50 languages. Palacio actually lives 00:04:07.610 --> 00:04:10.409 in Brooklyn with her husband and their dogs, 00:04:10.610 --> 00:04:14.949 Teddy and Vivian. And some of the other books 00:04:14.949 --> 00:04:18.649 by RJ Palacio include Wonder, Augie and Me, The 00:04:18.649 --> 00:04:22.449 Three Wonder Stories, We Are All Wonders, Pluto, 00:04:22.670 --> 00:04:27.160 a Wonder Story, 365 Days of Wonder, Mr. Brown's 00:04:27.160 --> 00:04:31.740 book of precepts, and then also Pony and the 00:04:31.740 --> 00:04:37.160 White Bird. Our illustrator is Brett Helquist, 00:04:37.600 --> 00:04:40.899 and from his website he says, When I was young, 00:04:41.139 --> 00:04:44.180 I loved to read comic strips in the daily paper. 00:04:44.399 --> 00:04:47.500 My favorite one was called Alley -oop about a 00:04:47.500 --> 00:04:50.579 time traveling caveman. I dreamed about drawing 00:04:50.579 --> 00:04:53.660 my own comic strip. This is my first memory of 00:04:53.660 --> 00:04:56.319 wanting to be an illustrator. After graduating 00:04:56.319 --> 00:04:59.620 from college, I left for New York City. My first 00:04:59.620 --> 00:05:02.420 job was as an intern with an illustrator named 00:05:02.420

--> 00:05:06.300 Robert Neubecker. I began showing my portfolio 00:05:06.300 --> 00:05:09.500 whenever I had the chance. Slowly, very slowly, 00:05:09.779 --> 00:05:12.639 the jobs began to trickle in. My first jobs were 00:05:12.639 --> 00:05:15.399 for newspapers and magazines. I did this type 00:05:15.399 --> 00:05:18.120 of work for about seven years. During this time, 00:05:18.139 --> 00:05:21.459 I also had a day job as a graphic designer. I 00:05:21.459 --> 00:05:24.180 eventually decided to pursue some work in children's 00:05:24.180 --> 00:05:27.040 books. The first book I had the chance to illustrate 00:05:27.040 --> 00:05:31.459 was The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket. And 00:05:31.459 --> 00:05:37.060 so, yes, this illustrator also has quite a few 00:05:37.060 --> 00:05:39.800 other books that he has illustrated, including 00:05:39.800 --> 00:05:44.279 the entire series of unfortunate events by Lemony 00:05:44.279 --> 00:05:50.199 Snicket, as well as The Mona Lisa Vanishes. A 00:05:50.199 --> 00:05:52.639 Legendary Painter, a Shocking Heist, and the 00:05:52.639 --> 00:05:55.199 Birth of a Global Celebrity, written by Nicholas 00:05:55.199 --> 00:05:58.560 Day. Odd and the Frost Giant, written by Neil 00:05:58.560 --> 00:06:03.680 Gaiman. The Chasing Vermeer series, written by 00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:08.009 Blue Belay. The League of Seven, written by Alan 00:06:08.009 --> 00:06:11.870 Gratz. The Doll People Set Sale, written by Ann 00:06:11.870 --> 00:06:17.529 M. Martin and Laura Godwin. Martina and Chrissy, 00:06:17.589 --> 00:06:19.990 the Greatest Rivalry in the History of Sports. 00:06:20.160 --> 00:06:26.060 written by Phil Biltner, as well as the Tales 00:06:26.060 --> 00:06:29.860 of the House of Benicula, that series, which 00:06:29.860 --> 00:06:33.920 is written by James Howe, and many, many more. 00:06:35.649 --> 00:06:42.379 And so this book, The Haunted Playground, is 00:06:42.379 --> 00:06:48.279 a rhyming story of the ghost king Rex Magnificus. 00:06:48.810 --> 00:06:52.589 And on midnight after Halloween, Rex Magnificus 00:06:52.589 --> 00:06:56.329 uses his magic to transform an ordinary playground 00:06:56.329 --> 00:06:59.889 into a wonderland for ghosts and spirits. This 00:06:59.889 --> 00:07:02.829 is the ghosts one opportunity a year to be happy 00:07:02.829 --> 00:07:06.470 and not scary. And when the festivities are interrupted 00:07:06.470 --> 00:07:09.149 by two neighborhood children who wake up because 00:07:09.149 --> 00:07:13.529 of the noise, Rex is at first angry and then 00:07:13.529 --> 00:07:17.209 perplexed as the children are not afraid. When 00:07:17.209 --> 00:07:19.730 Rex notices that the other ghosts are enjoying 00:07:19.730 --> 00:07:22.490 playing with the children, he capitulates and 00:07:22.490 --> 00:07:24.990 finds that playing with the children is indeed 00:07:24.990 --> 00:07:28.350 fun. When morning comes, both the children and 00:07:28.350 --> 00:07:32.000 the ghosts are sad to see

each other leave. And 00:07:32.000 --> 00:07:36.699 so this book is truly beautiful. The illustrations 00:07:36.699 --> 00:07:39.680 are amazing. It makes the ghosts seem like they're 00:07:39.680 --> 00:07:42.399 these wisps of smoke on the page, which is just 00:07:42.399 --> 00:07:47.290 a really cool effect. the pictures just kind 00:07:47.290 --> 00:07:49.889 of bring you right into the world. It's pretty 00:07:49.889 --> 00:07:53.930 amazing. The rhyme scheme will definitely help 00:07:53.930 --> 00:07:55.949 the students stay focused because this book, 00:07:56.350 --> 00:07:58.550 there's a lot of text to it. It's a little bit 00:07:58.550 --> 00:08:03.050 longer. But I think that the rhyme and the flow 00:08:03.089 --> 00:08:06.269 will definitely keep the kids engaged. So that's 00:08:06.269 --> 00:08:10.790 not gonna be a big issue, I don't think. Especially 00:08:10.790 --> 00:08:13.490 since at this point in the year, like by October, 00:08:14.050 --> 00:08:17.370 the kids have kind of built up a little bit of 00:08:17.370 --> 00:08:19.889 a stamina for being able to sit still and pay 00:08:19.889 --> 00:08:22.350 attention. Like I wouldn't probably do this book 00:08:22.350 --> 00:08:24.069 at the very beginning of the year when they're 00:08:24.069 --> 00:08:27.949 still figuring out what's going on, but by October, 00:08:28.170 --> 00:08:31.939 by Halloween -ish, they, I think they'll be fine 00:08:31.939 --> 00:08:35.120 with this one. It's just a really cool story. 00:08:35.279 --> 00:08:37.639 The pictures are beautiful. It even does have 00:08:37.889 --> 00:08:40.490 page that folds out so it's like a three page 00:08:40.490 --> 00:08:44.269 spread at one point which is Always really exciting 00:08:44.269 --> 00:08:47.049 and special the kids really enjoy that and love 00:08:47.049 --> 00:08:49.470 it. It's just such a really cool story I think 00:08:49.470 --> 00:08:52.710 it's a lot of fun and It does kind of give like 00:08:52.710 --> 00:08:58.049 that like being inclusive and not making preconceptions 00:08:58.049 --> 00:09:01.190 about others in the story as well It's kind of 00:09:01.190 --> 00:09:04.049 like a subtext going on and so it's a it's got 00:09:04.049 --> 00:09:07.350 a cute little message. It's it's very beautiful 00:09:07.419 --> 00:09:11.279 and it's just a fun story and I always just like 00:09:11.509 --> 00:09:15.250 when the author takes the time to make it rhyme 00:09:15.250 --> 00:09:18.289 it just feels like there's a lot of intent in 00:09:18.289 --> 00:09:20.649 it and it just I think it makes the story a lot 00:09:20.649 --> 00:09:23.090 more fun and the students really engage with 00:09:23.090 --> 00:09:26.730 it a lot more. Yeah I haven't gotten to read 00:09:26.730 --> 00:09:29.309 this one yet because it is so new and I wasn't 00:09:29.309 --> 00:09:34.730 able to find it just yet um but I mean RJ Palacio 00:09:34.730 --> 00:09:38.220 is kind of great. and she does she is very well 00:09:38.220 --> 00:09:41.399 known for you know having those themes of inclusivity 00:09:41.399 --> 00:09:45.539 and kindness and such in her stories um so it 00:09:45.539 --> 00:09:48.379 i mean it sounds wonderful and i'm looking forward 00:09:48.379 --> 00:09:51.620 to reading it um i'm probably gonna put this 00:09:51.620 --> 00:09:54.440 one on my order list too like it just sounds 00:09:54.440 --> 00:10:01.200 um like a lovely kind of not too scary halloween 00:10:01.200 --> 00:10:04.899 type story it sounds great love that it's rhyming 00:10:04.899 --> 00:10:08.070 and everything that's Wonderful for younger readers 00:10:08.070 --> 00:10:12.250 who need some gentle cadences there to connect 00:10:12.250 --> 00:10:17.090 with. It sounds great. Yeah, it's it's really 00:10:17.090 --> 00:10:19.370 a great story. And like you said, it's not the 00:10:19.370 --> 00:10:23.190 ghosts aren't scary. They're most of the ghosts 00:10:23.190 --> 00:10:26.429 like in the story, the ghosts pick up like the 00:10:26.429 --> 00:10:29.529 old Halloween costumes that kids have shed as 00:10:29.529 --> 00:10:32.149 Halloween ended. And so like, the ghosts are 00:10:32.149 --> 00:10:36.019 walking, walking around wearing children's Halloween 00:10:36.019 --> 00:10:39.159 costumes and dressed up as silly little things 00:10:39.159 --> 00:10:41.799 and stuff. So yeah, they're definitely not scary. 00:10:41.960 --> 00:10:43.299 It's not going to be one of those ones where 00:10:43.299 --> 00:10:45.320 you have kids going home complaining to parents 00:10:45.320 --> 00:10:47.000 about nightmares or anything like that. It's 00:10:47.000 --> 00:10:50.220 really the theme and the tone is really light 00:10:50.220 --> 00:10:54.820 and fun. And so that's a nice thing to have around 00:10:54.820 --> 00:10:58.440 this time of year for our younger kids. Yeah, 00:10:58.960 --> 00:11:02.399 it sounds great. So I definitely give this book 00:11:02.399 --> 00:11:05.539 a five out of five bookmarks. I think it's great. 00:11:05.720 --> 00:11:08.639 I think everyone should go pick it up and enjoy 00:11:08.639 --> 00:11:13.139 it. And so for a makerspace activity, I think 00:11:13.139 --> 00:11:15.360 it'd be really fun to use the Legos and have 00:11:15.360 --> 00:11:19.179 the kids design either a whole playground or 00:11:19.179 --> 00:11:22.679 just a piece of playground equipment that they 00:11:22.679 --> 00:11:25.159 would like to see a ghost use, that they think 00:11:25.159 --> 00:11:28.620 would be fun for a ghost to use. Because in the 00:11:28.620 --> 00:11:32.590 story, the main character, the ghost king, uses 00:11:32.590 --> 00:11:35.629 his magic to change a normal playground into 00:11:35.629 --> 00:11:39.649 a bigger playground with carousels and stuff 00:11:39.649 --> 00:11:43.549 like that. And so taking a playground and making 00:11:43.549 --> 00:11:45.289 it work for a ghost, what would the kids do? 00:11:45.370 --> 00:11:47.809 How would they make it

something that a ghost 00:11:47.809 --> 00:11:50.870 would enjoy and let them be creative and build 00:11:50.870 --> 00:11:55.100 using the Legos? Yeah. That sounds like a lot 00:11:55.100 --> 00:11:57.539 of fun. I like that they're being a lot more 00:11:57.539 --> 00:12:01.399 creative there and getting to use their imaginations 00:12:01.399 --> 00:12:03.600 and building something that would be fun for 00:12:03.600 --> 00:12:05.700 the ghosts to use. I love it. That sounds great. 00:12:07.139 --> 00:12:11.419 Yeah. It's a really good story. Yeah. I'm looking 00:12:11.419 --> 00:12:13.559 forward to reading that one. I really am. Yeah. 00:12:14.759 --> 00:12:17.860 All right, for our library littles management 00:12:17.860 --> 00:12:20.419 tip today, we're going to be talking about an 00:12:20.419 --> 00:12:23.399 organization called First Book. They have a website 00:12:23.399 --> 00:12:26.539 called firstbook .org that you can visit if you 00:12:26.539 --> 00:12:29.799 want to learn more about them. But they are a 00:12:29.799 --> 00:12:37.019 charity that works with publishers to get deeply 00:12:37.019 --> 00:12:42.600 discounted books to children and libraries who 00:12:42.600 --> 00:12:47.120 are in need. So this one is really great if you 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:50.980 work with children who have lower socioeconomic 00:12:50.980 --> 00:12:54.320 status or who are underprivileged in some way. 00:12:55.830 --> 00:12:59.409 They do, they have something that I use a lot 00:12:59.409 --> 00:13:02.269 called a book bank. That's what they refer to 00:13:02.269 --> 00:13:07.330 it as the book bank. And pretty much if you qualify 00:13:07.330 --> 00:13:12.330 to purchase through them, you can get whole bunch 00:13:12.330 --> 00:13:16.450 of books for just the cost of shipping. So actually 00:13:16.450 --> 00:13:18.629 I just ordered some stuff from First Book last 00:13:18.629 --> 00:13:23.289 week. for our campus book vending machine because 00:13:23.289 --> 00:13:26.269 this year we're giving away books to students 00:13:26.269 --> 00:13:28.250 on their birthdays. So we're going to be giving 00:13:28.250 --> 00:13:32.590 away probably just for birthdays about 650 books 00:13:32.590 --> 00:13:34.509 or so. So we're going to need a lot of books. 00:13:34.549 --> 00:13:37.970 So I bought a bunch of Diary of a Wimpy Kid books 00:13:37.970 --> 00:13:40.730 for our vending machine. It was like a dollar 00:13:40.730 --> 00:13:43.409 a book to have it shipped over here. So that's 00:13:43.409 --> 00:13:48.029 pretty great. To qualify, there is a form that 00:13:48.029 --> 00:13:51.690 you have to fill out that states where your school 00:13:51.690 --> 00:13:55.409 is, name of your school, things like that. It'll 00:13:55.409 --> 00:13:59.549 also ask you the percentage of your students 00:13:59.549 --> 00:14:02.929 who are English language learners and the percentage 00:14:02.929 --> 00:14:05.610 of students who qualify for free and reduced 00:14:05.610

--> 00:14:10.200 lunch. Just to get a general idea of your diversity 00:14:10.200 --> 00:14:15.629 and your The demographics of your students, but 00:14:15.629 --> 00:14:17.629 if you qualify through them like you can get 00:14:17.629 --> 00:14:20.250 a lot of really great things And it isn't just 00:14:20.250 --> 00:14:23.570 books actually There's other things that are 00:14:23.570 --> 00:14:28.009 just related to education. There's a Lot of you 00:14:28.009 --> 00:14:31.529 can buy Legos through them. I got a lot of really 00:14:31.529 --> 00:14:35.309 cheap Legos this last year too. That was like 00:14:35.309 --> 00:14:38.929 I got several boxes of just like and it's just 00:14:38.929 --> 00:14:42.169 a cardboard box filled with random Lego pieces, 00:14:42.210 --> 00:14:48.460 which was amazing and perfect. But it was like, 00:14:48.860 --> 00:14:51.480 I don't remember how much, real cheap, but again 00:14:51.480 --> 00:14:53.620 it's like the cost, it's just the cost of shipping 00:14:53.620 --> 00:14:56.460 because it was part of the book bank. And you 00:14:56.460 --> 00:14:58.759 can also buy like, they have Play -Doh in the 00:14:58.759 --> 00:15:01.080 book bank right now, and I think they have markers, 00:15:01.419 --> 00:15:04.360 like a lot of just random educational things. 00:15:04.679 --> 00:15:07.019 And you do have to check it kind of frequently. 00:15:07.419 --> 00:15:11.110 I try and, they, If you can sign up to get their 00:15:11.110 --> 00:15:14.129 emails and that's what I do just to remind me 00:15:14.129 --> 00:15:17.649 that they exist because There's just a lot of 00:15:17.649 --> 00:15:20.049 things in the library Especially where I'm like 00:15:20.049 --> 00:15:22.110 there we have so many great resources that I'm 00:15:22.110 --> 00:15:24.309 like, I don't know where to go and I get overwhelmed 00:15:24.309 --> 00:15:29.730 and I forget but They do email because I'm on 00:15:29.730 --> 00:15:32.610 their email list About once a week with like 00:15:32.610 --> 00:15:36.090 their new releases or I guess not releases their 00:15:36.090 --> 00:15:40.090 New products that are available and different 00:15:40.090 --> 00:15:42.610 resources that they're offering. You can also 00:15:42.610 --> 00:15:45.629 do like webinars through them. Last week I did 00:15:45.629 --> 00:15:51.210 a Lego webinar about how to use, about playful 00:15:51.210 --> 00:15:54.230 libraries and how to use Legos within the library. 00:15:54.250 --> 00:15:58.210 And it had a really cool idea actually for asking 00:15:58.210 --> 00:16:03.750 students to use Legos to build the covers of 00:16:03.750 --> 00:16:06.009 books and have like their own book covers out 00:16:06.009 --> 00:16:10.190 of just Legos. It was really cute. I'm still 00:16:10.190 --> 00:16:11.950 kind of trying to figure out how I would implement 00:16:11.950 --> 00:16:13.990 that within my library with the amount of time 00:16:13.990 --> 00:16:17.750 I'm allotted and everything. But I just love 00:16:17.750 --> 00:16:21.669 that they did have like, you know, a webinar 00:16:21.669 --> 00:16:25.190 available that was very applicable. Just had 00:16:25.190 --> 00:16:28.190 to register and that was it. It was totally free 00:16:28.190 --> 00:16:32.090 and did give some really good resources. So the 00:16:32.090 --> 00:16:35.289 name of that organization again is First Book. 00:16:35.450 --> 00:16:40.370 and their website is firstbook .org. First Book 00:16:40.370 --> 00:16:42.590 Marketplace is the name of the website where 00:16:42.590 --> 00:16:47.149 you can purchase from them. Yeah, it's just like 00:16:47.149 --> 00:16:48.990 I said, you do have to check through kind of 00:16:48.990 --> 00:16:52.230 frequently because it does their stock changes 00:16:52.230 --> 00:16:56.649 a lot depending on what publishers give them 00:16:56.649 --> 00:16:58.250 because they partner with publishers and then 00:16:58.250 --> 00:17:01.210 when publishers have overstock or when they're 00:17:01.210 --> 00:17:02.990 switching out books or something or they just 00:17:02.990 --> 00:17:05.430 didn't sell a whole lot of something they'll 00:17:05.450 --> 00:17:08.650 give it to First Book so that First Book can 00:17:08.650 --> 00:17:13.910 disperse it amongst, you know, amongst children 00:17:13.910 --> 00:17:17.829 and libraries who need those resources. So they're 00:17:17.829 --> 00:17:21.589 not just wasted. So I absolutely love them. I 00:17:21.589 --> 00:17:25.430 think they're great. And there are several people 00:17:25.430 --> 00:17:30.690 at my campus who use First Book as well. So highly 00:17:30.690 --> 00:17:32.970 recommended if you haven't checked them out yet. 00:17:33.430 --> 00:17:39.539 Please do. Sounds amazing. This is not one of 00:17:39.539 --> 00:17:43.970 the things that I have taken the time to participate 00:17:43.970 --> 00:17:46.130 in before, but it sounds awesome. And the fact 00:17:46.130 --> 00:17:48.630 that it's not just books, but other things like 00:17:48.630 --> 00:17:50.549 Legos and Play -Doh and stuff like that just 00:17:50.549 --> 00:17:54.150 makes it all the more valuable a resource. So 00:17:54.150 --> 00:17:56.430 I'm definitely going to have to set up an account 00:17:56.430 --> 00:18:00.349 for my campus and see what I might qualify for 00:18:00.349 --> 00:18:05.579 and what we can do. Because yeah, this would 00:18:05.579 --> 00:18:09.819 be a really great opportunity for a lot of librarians 00:18:09.819 --> 00:18:13.500 and a lot of campuses that have lower income 00:18:13.500 --> 00:18:15.799 students and just getting kind of books into 00:18:15.799 --> 00:18:20.180 their hands would be amazing. Yeah and they do 00:18:20.180 --> 00:18:24.680 have occasionally they'll have grants that you 00:18:24.680 --> 00:18:28.079 can apply for usually the grants are for like 00:18:28.079 --> 00:18:30.180 a hundred dollars each and they're sponsored 00:18:30.180 --> 00:18:35.329 by Usually I've seen

Pizza Hut and Build -A -Bear 00:18:35.329 --> 00:18:40.150 are the ones that sponsor the most grants. To 00:18:40.150 --> 00:18:44.130 get those I've just filled out a form and they'll 00:18:44.130 --> 00:18:46.710 ask you like what are you gonna do with the money 00:18:46.710 --> 00:18:50.589 and usually I tell them, well not usually, primarily 00:18:50.589 --> 00:18:54.009 I go to First Book to give books to kids. That's 00:18:54.009 --> 00:18:57.569 like what I use them for. It's just giving free 00:18:57.569 --> 00:18:59.309 books out to kids because it's all brand new 00:18:59.309 --> 00:19:02.089 stuff and I don't want to give If I'm gonna gift 00:19:02.089 --> 00:19:04.849 a student with a book, like I want it to be a 00:19:04.849 --> 00:19:08.130 nice book. I don't, I mean, I will give second, 00:19:08.210 --> 00:19:10.650 there's nothing wrong with giving secondhand 00:19:10.650 --> 00:19:13.009 or something that looks a little bit more tattered, 00:19:14.349 --> 00:19:17.289 but especially working with kids who are underprivileged, 00:19:17.329 --> 00:19:21.230 a lot of them, if they have stuff, it is gonna 00:19:21.230 --> 00:19:24.190 be secondhand already. And I, to me, it's important 00:19:24.190 --> 00:19:26.269 that they get something that's brand new every 00:19:26.269 --> 00:19:29.980 now and then, like, because they, I value them 00:19:29.980 --> 00:19:33.220 as a person and I think they deserve new things 00:19:33.220 --> 00:19:36.220 and to have nice things and then also so that 00:19:36.220 --> 00:19:40.799 they can see like that this matters this is something 00:19:40.799 --> 00:19:44.140 we need to take care of like literacy matters 00:19:44.140 --> 00:19:47.779 taking care of our books matter so those are 00:19:47.779 --> 00:19:49.400 the two reasons why I want to give new things 00:19:49.400 --> 00:19:51.539 so that's why I go to them so often but anyway 00:19:51.539 --> 00:19:54.259 I started talking about grants Yes, you can get 00:19:54.259 --> 00:19:56.779 grants through them every now and then, not all 00:19:56.779 --> 00:19:58.579 the time. You kind of have to pay attention for 00:19:58.579 --> 00:20:00.920 that too. Again, that's why I do the email list. 00:20:02.799 --> 00:20:05.640 But I've never been rejected for a grant from 00:20:05.640 --> 00:20:11.380 them. And they also will randomly do, you know, 00:20:11.460 --> 00:20:14.839 a code for just free books. So this last week 00:20:14.839 --> 00:20:17.779 when I ordered Wimpy Kid, it was because I got 00:20:17.779 --> 00:20:23.539 a $35 free, like, I guess a coupon. where you 00:20:23.539 --> 00:20:26.599 just spent, you know, $35 for something for free. 00:20:27.000 --> 00:20:30.180 So I ended up getting the Wimpy Kids, I think 00:20:30.180 --> 00:20:32.319 were a little over a dollar each for shipping. 00:20:32.819 --> 00:20:36.359 So I got like 30 books. It did have taxes on 00:20:36.359 --> 00:20:40.390 it because I personally was the one paying for 00:20:40.390 --> 00:20:42.309 it because they're not a vendor of the school. 00:20:42.450 --> 00:20:44.509 So since I was paying for it, I did have to pay 00:20:44.509 --> 00:20:49.789 taxes. So I ended up paying like $3 to get those 00:20:49.789 --> 00:20:52.829 like 30 books shipped here. And that was it. 00:20:52.859 --> 00:20:57.069 Which i'm okay with That's pretty awesome Yes, 00:20:57.349 --> 00:21:02.059 yes it was And everybody loves wimpy kid. Well, 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:04.119 the bigger kids do anyway I know our littles 00:21:04.119 --> 00:21:05.960 i'm talking about wimpy kid when our littles 00:21:05.960 --> 00:21:08.180 aren't ready for that yet, but that's okay There 00:21:08.180 --> 00:21:12.200 was also some pigeon books on there It was a 00:21:12.200 --> 00:21:16.200 pigeon neck Uh -huh. That is good for our littles 00:21:16.809 --> 00:21:20.089 Yeah, there was a pigeon I don't remember the 00:21:20.089 --> 00:21:23.799 title. It wasn't like a Pigeon pigeon book like 00:21:23.799 --> 00:21:28.210 it was like an activity It's like an activity 00:21:28.210 --> 00:21:31.900 book of some kind. It wasn't a traditional like 00:21:31.900 --> 00:21:34.559 don't let the pigeon drive the bus book. I don't 00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:38.079 remember the name of it. Anyway, some activity 00:21:38.079 --> 00:21:40.720 book. It was good. It was a good deal. So I got 00:21:40.720 --> 00:21:42.960 a lot of those because that is good for all ages. 00:21:43.059 --> 00:21:45.740 And I think even my like fourth and fifth graders 00:21:45.740 --> 00:21:49.539 would like a pigeon book sometimes. So yeah, 00:21:50.200 --> 00:21:54.359 that's awesome. Yeah. Yep. I'm definitely going 00:21:54.359 --> 00:21:56.720 to have to go through and set that account up. 00:21:57.450 --> 00:21:59.710 start looking at what they've got available because 00:21:59.710 --> 00:22:03.509 this would be great for getting books in the 00:22:03.509 --> 00:22:05.789 hands of kids especially like I have a lot of 00:22:05.789 --> 00:22:10.589 kids like my campus should be title one but isn't 00:22:10.589 --> 00:22:13.450 and so like I have kids who the only books that 00:22:13.450 --> 00:22:15.089 they have at home are the ones they check out 00:22:15.089 --> 00:22:17.450 from the library and so to be able to get some 00:22:17.450 --> 00:22:21.049 more books that they can keep and have at home 00:22:21.049 --> 00:22:23.369 and stuff like that this sounds like a great 00:22:23.369 --> 00:22:26.690 opportunity to to be able to do some of that 00:22:27.579 --> 00:22:33.359 It is. It's good stuff. Go check it out. All 00:22:33.359 --> 00:22:35.160 right. Well, the next book that we're going to 00:22:35.160 --> 00:22:39.380 talk to talk about today is Five More Sleeps 00:22:39.380 --> 00:22:42.720 Till Halloween. It was published by Fuel and 00:22:42.720 --> 00:22:45.220 Friends. Is that how you say that? Firewell Fuel. 00:22:45.640 --> 00:22:49.069 Hmm. One of those. It was published

in 2024. 00:22:50.089 --> 00:22:54.069 The author is Jimmy Fallon and the author, the 00:22:54.069 --> 00:22:56.569 author is Jimmy Fallon. The illustrator is Rich 00:22:56.569 --> 00:22:58.450 T .S. I think that's how you say his last name. 00:22:58.779 --> 00:23:03.990 This book is not on any awards or lists, but 00:23:03.990 --> 00:23:10.309 it's a fun read. The blurb from Jimmy Fallon's 00:23:10.309 --> 00:23:14.910 publisher's website reads, Emmy and Grammy Award 00:23:14.910 --> 00:23:17.609 winner Jimmy Fallon is the author of number one 00:23:17.609 --> 00:23:20.109 New York Times bestselling children's books. 00:23:21.029 --> 00:23:24.130 Your baby's first word will be dada. Everything 00:23:24.130 --> 00:23:28.220 is mama. This is baby. Nana loves you more. Papa 00:23:28.220 --> 00:23:31.180 doesn't do anything. Five more sleeps till Christmas, 00:23:31.619 --> 00:23:34.180 five more sleeps till Halloween, and Con Pollo, 00:23:34.420 --> 00:23:37.660 a bilingual playtime adventure. Fallon lives 00:23:37.660 --> 00:23:40.039 in New York with his wife Nancy, their two daughters 00:23:40.039 --> 00:23:44.130 Winnie and Franny, and their dog Gary. And that 00:23:44.130 --> 00:23:46.849 also, that blurb list included a list of all 00:23:46.849 --> 00:23:51.210 of the books that he's had published. I do love, 00:23:51.309 --> 00:23:55.890 honestly, that the author history only included 00:23:55.890 --> 00:24:00.029 his writing and only had like things that he's 00:24:00.029 --> 00:24:02.990 done as far as like books that he's published 00:24:02.990 --> 00:24:05.829 even though it is Jimmy Fallon and obviously 00:24:05.859 --> 00:24:10.039 he has done a lot more than published books and 00:24:10.039 --> 00:24:11.819 but I mean that's what he's known for is his 00:24:11.819 --> 00:24:16.019 books right I know right I love that they focused 00:24:16.019 --> 00:24:20.390 on that though that made me happy and then the 00:24:20.390 --> 00:24:23.769 illustrator again from the publisher's website 00:24:23.769 --> 00:24:26.529 because neither of them have websites dedicated 00:24:26.529 --> 00:24:29.420 to publishing or anything in the publishing world. 00:24:30.579 --> 00:24:33.000 So the publisher does, though, and they want 00:24:33.000 --> 00:24:36.000 you to know all about them. So Rich Diaz is a 00:24:36.000 --> 00:24:39.019 designer, an illustrator, and a senior creative 00:24:39.019 --> 00:24:42.500 director at Macmillan Children's Publishing Group 00:24:42.500 --> 00:24:44.740 in New York City. He has designed hundreds of 00:24:44.740 --> 00:24:46.880 book covers and has illustrated several picture 00:24:46.880 --> 00:24:48.880 books, including Five More Sleeps Till Christmas. 00:24:49.420 --> 00:24:51.720 He resides in Glen Ridge, New Jersey with his 00:24:51.720 --> 00:24:56.490 wife and two sons. And when I looked up his page 00:24:56.490 --> 00:25:00.740 on the publisher's website, like Yeah, like they 00:25:00.740 --> 00:25:03.339 showed

pictures of all the book covers that he's 00:25:03.339 --> 00:25:07.539 illustrated and yeah, it is, uh -huh. Hundreds, 00:25:08.180 --> 00:25:11.240 hundreds indeed. He's done a lot. But he does 00:25:11.240 --> 00:25:14.920 primarily illustrate just book covers. And I 00:25:14.920 --> 00:25:17.880 think when you read this book, you can kind of, 00:25:18.299 --> 00:25:23.650 I see that, I see that. Yeah. So for the book 00:25:23.650 --> 00:25:26.640 summary for this, it's... pretty much it follows 00:25:26.640 --> 00:25:29.079 a young boy who's having a five -day countdown 00:25:29.079 --> 00:25:31.759 to Halloween in anticipation of the holiday. 00:25:31.900 --> 00:25:36.279 It's written in rhyme, so it sounds like a long 00:25:36.279 --> 00:25:39.279 -form poem. I really love the cadence of it and 00:25:39.279 --> 00:25:42.240 just the flow of the words. It's fabulous for 00:25:42.240 --> 00:25:45.940 young children. Like I was saying, as far as 00:25:45.940 --> 00:25:51.380 the pictures go, when you read it, I can totally 00:25:51.380 --> 00:25:55.519 tell that the guy who illustrated it does primarily 00:25:55.519 --> 00:26:01.140 do book covers. Like, the entire page is covered 00:26:01.140 --> 00:26:04.200 from, like, the whole thing. There's absolutely 00:26:04.200 --> 00:26:08.880 no blank space in this book at all, which can 00:26:08.880 --> 00:26:11.900 get a little bit overwhelming at times. It is 00:26:11.900 --> 00:26:16.700 bright and it is colorful, but it does get a 00:26:16.700 --> 00:26:19.019 little overwhelming sometimes with all of the, 00:26:19.650 --> 00:26:24.539 like, just because it's all covered. I do like 00:26:24.539 --> 00:26:27.480 that between like it'll say you know five more 00:26:27.480 --> 00:26:29.220 sleeps till Halloween and it'll have a little 00:26:29.220 --> 00:26:31.700 bit about it and then when you turn the page 00:26:31.700 --> 00:26:34.420 it'll have a big number four because now there's 00:26:34.420 --> 00:26:37.240 only four more sleeps till Halloween and I like 00:26:37.240 --> 00:26:40.920 that it like emphasizes how many more sleeps 00:26:40.920 --> 00:26:45.059 it is until we get to the big day. There's lots 00:26:45.059 --> 00:26:48.119 of references to all the Halloween traditions 00:26:48.119 --> 00:26:50.660 in here so like it goes through you know trick 00:26:50.660 --> 00:26:53.400 -or -treating and dressing up and all the decorations 00:26:53.400 --> 00:26:55.279 that you would see and what kind of monsters 00:26:55.279 --> 00:26:59.240 you would see and I do think all the kids in 00:26:59.240 --> 00:27:01.720 the world are going to be able to relate to counting 00:27:01.720 --> 00:27:07.259 down to the big day of any kind. I do as far 00:27:07.259 --> 00:27:10.400 as like reading it in the school library goes 00:27:10.400 --> 00:27:14.000 I'm not sure I would there's a lot of kids who 00:27:14.000 --> 00:27:18.619 don't celebrate Halloween especially there's 00:27:18.619 --> 00:27:21.259 you know celebrating specific holidays is kind 00:27:21.259 --> 00:27:25.660 of like hit or miss you know there's most kids 00:27:25.660 --> 00:27:29.339 are like gonna be okay with celebrating the traditional 00:27:29.339 --> 00:27:32.880 American things but Halloween especially I feel 00:27:32.880 --> 00:27:36.650 like that's one where more people are gonna opt 00:27:36.650 --> 00:27:40.509 out of that. This book isn't really scary at 00:27:40.509 --> 00:27:46.269 all, but I do think as far as reading it at home 00:27:46.269 --> 00:27:50.829 to my own children, this would 100 % have been 00:27:50.829 --> 00:27:54.329 a favorite of me as a mom reading this to my 00:27:54.329 --> 00:27:57.049 kids when they were younger. absolutely I could 00:27:57.049 --> 00:27:59.430 see us reading this like over and over and over 00:27:59.430 --> 00:28:01.829 again and I think this would be a great read 00:28:01.829 --> 00:28:05.190 for a public library where it's a little bit 00:28:05.190 --> 00:28:08.769 easier for people to opt in and out and you can 00:28:08.769 --> 00:28:11.950 do a little bit more of like maybe you do you 00:28:11.950 --> 00:28:14.109 know different holidays and maybe you do one 00:28:14.109 --> 00:28:17.130 one you know specific halloween read aloud and 00:28:17.130 --> 00:28:18.690 this would be it and then the next one you could 00:28:18.690 --> 00:28:21.730 do like dia de los muertos or something and do 00:28:21.730 --> 00:28:25.230 um you have a little bit more freedom there But 00:28:25.230 --> 00:28:27.210 a school one where the kids are like just kind 00:28:27.210 --> 00:28:28.990 of stuck there and like we're doing this with 00:28:28.990 --> 00:28:31.289 everybody Honestly, I'm not sure I would do it, 00:28:31.289 --> 00:28:34.809 but I still really like it a lot so I probably 00:28:34.809 --> 00:28:38.509 give it like overall a four out of five because 00:28:38.509 --> 00:28:41.210 it isn't gonna be for everybody because not everybody 00:28:41.210 --> 00:28:45.809 does Halloween and Like specific Halloween. I 00:28:45.809 --> 00:28:48.170 would still do like usually around Halloween. 00:28:48.170 --> 00:28:54.940 I do do like I said that I do read books that 00:28:54.940 --> 00:28:58.619 are like Halloween adjacent with ghosts and such 00:28:58.619 --> 00:29:00.720 and I you know The book that you talked about 00:29:00.720 --> 00:29:03.480 would do that 100 % of the school library this 00:29:03.480 --> 00:29:05.160 one I'm not sure I would but I still really liked 00:29:05.160 --> 00:29:08.539 a lot. So anyway four and a five bookmarks for 00:29:08.539 --> 00:29:13.519 me And it's still a good one. So yeah. Yeah Yeah, 00:29:13.539 --> 00:29:16.119 I enjoyed it. It's a lot of fun. I agree that 00:29:16.119 --> 00:29:21.680 you can see that DS rich DS is the like a cover 00:29:22.049 --> 00:29:25.190 kind of guy because each page looks like a giant 00:29:25.190 --> 00:29:29.470 splash page for a cover. It's very

intricate 00:29:29.470 --> 00:29:31.650 and very detailed and there's a lot going on. 00:29:32.549 --> 00:29:36.230 You can look for certain things that keep popping 00:29:36.230 --> 00:29:39.769 up throughout it. His art style is really great. 00:29:41.109 --> 00:29:46.180 It's a lot on every page, I agree. But some kids 00:29:46.180 --> 00:29:47.980 will really find that interesting to be able 00:29:47.980 --> 00:29:49.799 to look for all those little pieces and stuff. 00:29:49.799 --> 00:29:51.809 For others, it's gonna be... really distracting, 00:29:52.309 --> 00:29:54.769 but it's a cute, very, very cute story. It's 00:29:54.769 --> 00:29:59.779 a lot of fun. Um, you can actually also, I, the 00:29:59.779 --> 00:30:02.700 first time I looked at it, I did it through, 00:30:02.700 --> 00:30:06.900 um, YouTube because they have a Barnes and Noble 00:30:07.309 --> 00:30:10.009 reading, uh, and Jimmy Fallon is the one that 00:30:10.009 --> 00:30:12.920 actually reads it on YouTube. So you can do it 00:30:12.920 --> 00:30:17.059 that way too. If, um, any of our listeners are 00:30:17.059 --> 00:30:19.000 interested, that's a cool way to be introduced 00:30:19.000 --> 00:30:20.680 to it. So it's Jimmy Fallon actually reading 00:30:20.680 --> 00:30:24.259 his own book. But yeah, the pictures are pretty 00:30:24.259 --> 00:30:28.119 great. Honestly, that's the kind of thing that 00:30:28.119 --> 00:30:29.799 we need to think about that I didn't as much 00:30:29.799 --> 00:30:33.299 is like, would this be good for a public school 00:30:33.299 --> 00:30:37.359 during Halloween? And I agree. Most of the time 00:30:37.359 --> 00:30:42.269 when I do Halloween books, they're not specific 00:30:42.269 --> 00:30:45.970 to Halloween. They're like monster books or ghost 00:30:45.970 --> 00:30:50.029 books. And we do it around that time, but don't 00:30:50.029 --> 00:30:54.599 specifically choose. to do like Halloween books. 00:30:55.019 --> 00:30:57.099 So that wasn't something that I thought about, 00:30:57.099 --> 00:31:01.740 but yeah, you're right. Maybe, maybe not for 00:31:01.740 --> 00:31:04.319 a read aloud, still a good book to have on the 00:31:04.319 --> 00:31:07.160 library shelf and had let kids pick out to read. 00:31:07.200 --> 00:31:11.420 Cause then it's their choice. Yeah. I like it 00:31:11.420 --> 00:31:14.160 a lot. It was fun. I do actually, now that you 00:31:14.160 --> 00:31:17.579 mentioned that, I forgot to say that I do own 00:31:17.579 --> 00:31:22.650 this in my library. I do have it, but It's gonna 00:31:22.650 --> 00:31:25.549 stay on the shelf and available for checkout. 00:31:25.809 --> 00:31:27.650 And when a kid checks it out, I'm like, it's 00:31:27.650 --> 00:31:29.490 about Halloween. Is that cool with you? Yes. 00:31:29.710 --> 00:31:34.099 Okay, cool. Have a good day. Even just pull it 00:31:34.099 --> 00:31:36.000 out and have it on display so they can see it. 00:31:37.019 --> 00:31:41.180 Yeah, that's where it is right now. Even though 00:31:41.180 --> 00:31:43.519 we're a month away from Halloween it's the first 00:31:43.519 --> 00:31:46.079 big holiday and kids are getting excited and 00:31:46.079 --> 00:31:48.180 they're already asking for all the Halloween 00:31:48.180 --> 00:31:52.099 stuff and I do have a display already of a few 00:31:52.099 --> 00:31:56.160 Halloween books and this is on there and like 00:31:56.160 --> 00:31:58.539 I'm gonna let kids check it out bring it home 00:31:58.539 --> 00:32:01.579 it's it's a good book great one to read at home 00:32:01.579 --> 00:32:05.039 so yeah it's a good one for the library maybe 00:32:05.039 --> 00:32:08.380 not for a read -a -lab yeah but that's okay it's 00:32:08.380 --> 00:32:12.599 still good And then for a makerspace activity 00:32:12.599 --> 00:32:14.920 for this one, I mean, really anything Halloween 00:32:14.920 --> 00:32:19.420 related because it's all Halloween. My favorite 00:32:19.420 --> 00:32:22.039 Halloween activity that I think I've talked about 00:32:22.039 --> 00:32:25.200 on this before because I love it, but I love 00:32:25.200 --> 00:32:28.099 it, so I'm gonna say it again anyway, is for 00:32:28.099 --> 00:32:30.819 the younger kids, I really like to get like a 00:32:30.819 --> 00:32:36.750 smaller pumpkins, like five or six like pie pumpkins, 00:32:37.089 --> 00:32:42.500 not huge. and expo markers and let the kids draw 00:32:42.500 --> 00:32:45.440 their own jack -o -lanterns because you can mark 00:32:45.440 --> 00:32:50.819 up the pumpkins as much as you want and then 00:32:50.819 --> 00:32:52.960 you can wipe them off with a baby wipe. It's 00:32:52.960 --> 00:32:56.299 really easy to clean off. Kids absolutely love 00:32:56.299 --> 00:33:00.140 it. It's great for fine motor skills and practicing 00:33:00.140 --> 00:33:05.259 any kind of writing and just encouraging just 00:33:05.259 --> 00:33:08.019 all that wonderful writing that they need to 00:33:08.019 --> 00:33:11.880 do and really hate to do. So that is going to 00:33:11.880 --> 00:33:16.039 be my makerspace activity for the week of Halloween. 00:33:16.839 --> 00:33:20.079 I don't know what book I'll do yet but like this 00:33:20.079 --> 00:33:22.319 one would have fit in with that one real well 00:33:22.319 --> 00:33:25.019 if you wanted to do that. I love that. I love 00:33:25.019 --> 00:33:27.460 that idea. I need to do that this year because 00:33:27.460 --> 00:33:29.500 I think a lot of my students would really enjoy 00:33:29.500 --> 00:33:33.420 it. I agree. That would be a lot of fun and it's 00:33:33.700 --> 00:33:37.470 easy. It's not like let them kind of decorate 00:33:37.470 --> 00:33:41.589 yeah yeah super fast and easy kids get to be 00:33:41.589 --> 00:33:46.180 creative with it all the things yeah i love that 00:33:46.180 --> 00:33:50.400 low prep low prep is my favorite yes especially 00:33:50.400 --> 00:33:53.759 like we said october gets busy so low prep things 00:33:53.759 --> 00:33:57.920 are very important during october low prep but 00:33:57.920 --> 00:34:02.910 still themed and fun there you go All right. 00:34:02.930 --> 00:34:05.029 Well, thank you all for joining us on this episode 00:34:05.029 --> 00:34:07.109 of Librarians of Littles, and we hope you found 00:34:07.109 --> 00:34:09.570 some fresh ideas for inspiring our youngest learners. 00:34:10.230 --> 00:34:11.889 Please be sure to subscribe and connect with 00:34:11.889 --> 00:34:16.579 us on social media. Happy reading. Thank you 00:34:16.579 --> 00:34:19.360 for listening to this episode of Librarians of 00:34:19.360 --> 00:34:21.920 Littles. We hope that you've enjoyed it. Check 00:34:21.920 --> 00:34:26.309 back each Wednesday for a new episode. Librarians 00:34:26.309 --> 00:34:29.070 of Littles is a podcast produced and hosted by 00:34:29.070 --> 00:34:32.730 Patrick Adams and Caroline Ligier. Editor, Patrick 00:34:32.730 --> 00:34:36.530 Adams. Our theme song is performed by JD Adams. 00:34:36.969 --> 00:34:40.389 You can follow us on Instagram at librariansoflittles. 00:34:40.550 --> 00:34:44.670 You can follow us on bluesky at littleslibrarian 00:34:44.670 --> 00:34:49.349 .bsky .social. And you can send us your emails 00:34:49.349 --> 00:34:57.059 at librarianoflittlespod at gmail .com. I found 00:34:57.059 --> 00:35:00.320 out that I'm basically the crypt keeper. I am 00:35:00.320 --> 00:35:04.179 so old. It's not even funny anymore. What did 00:35:04.179 --> 00:35:07.610 you do? What happened? What do you mean? So JD, 00:35:08.570 --> 00:35:11.730 the other night, Thursday night, I guess, um, 00:35:11.730 --> 00:35:13.469 after band practice gets in the car and he's 00:35:13.469 --> 00:35:16.699 like that. What schools did you teach at again? 00:35:17.389 --> 00:35:23.159 So I told him and he was like, yeah, Mr. Davidson, 00:35:23.219 --> 00:35:27.519 his, uh, percussion director just got married 00:35:27.519 --> 00:35:32.300 this summer. He's like, yeah. Um, his wife is 00:35:32.300 --> 00:35:34.849 the percussion director over. at one of the other 00:35:34.849 --> 00:35:37.150 high schools in the district. I was like, okay, 00:35:37.900 --> 00:35:44.659 yeah, you taught her. And then I had to go and 00:35:44.659 --> 00:35:49.320 look and yeah, my second year teaching, she was 00:35:49.320 --> 00:36:03.250 in my fourth grade class. That's fun. Wow. Yup. 00:36:06.110 --> 00:36:09.329 Congratulations. Cause that means I taught her 00:36:09.329 --> 00:36:15.159 about 17 years ago. Wow. Yeah.