When I was young, I’d spend the day at the pool and then come home to Tang and cheese popcorn. Or me and my friend would pretend we were horses. Or I’d read until my mom told me to go play outside, so I’d go read outside. There were birthday parties where you tied a… Read more »
Storytime
Storytime: Oceans
I celebrated my 30th anniversary with my husband in Kauai, where we spent a lot of time in the ocean, whether snorkeling or wading or tide-pooling or riding boats up and down the Napali coast. We saw a whale breach . . . . . . and dolphins racing our boat, a white and black… Read more »
Storytime: Journeys
Desert Girl, Monsoon Boy by Tara Dairman, illustrated by Archana Sreenivasan The simplicity of this book, only a few rhyming words per page, makes it a really great readaloud. Patterned veil Covered hair Desert here Monsoon there The format, showing the desert and monsoon terrains separately for most of the book, is a great way to follow two… Read more »
Storytime: The World
I recently did school visits in eighteen different elementary schools in Richardson, Texas. At each one, I shared the story of Rebeka Uwitonze, my coauthor for Her Own Two Feet: A Rwanda Girl’s Brave Fight to Walk. What I realized as I shared was that many of these children were first or second generation immigrants from… Read more »
Storytime: Love
Whether your sweetheart is a tiny toddler in your lap, the kid across the aisle in homeroom, your child, your dog, your date, your mate . . . these books about love are the perfect excuse to cozy up and share some time together. Love, Splat by Rob Scotton Splat is such a great character. I love… Read more »
Storytime: Courage
There are so many books that can be read about courage, and so many reasons kids (and adults) need them. These are just a few of the ones that capture my heart and inspire me. Pablo by Rascal This is a simple, odd book, and it’s about so much more than a chick hatching out of a… Read more »
Storytime: Christmas
I love seasonal books, maybe because I only take them out once a year and they go along with so many memories of family gathered and good meals. In December, they beckon me to slow down in the midst of busyness. I put as many as I can face out, setting them against the spines… Read more »
Storytime: Thanksgiving
To see summaries of the five Thanksgiving books, scroll to the bottom of this post. If you have a couple minutes . . . I’m finding so much to be grateful for these days. Sunsets. The most precious grandbaby in the whole wide world. Tater tots and books, a library and bookstore within walking distance,… Read more »
Storytime: Be Yourself
To see summaries of the five books we used to talk about being yourself, scroll to the bottom of this post. If you have a couple minutes . . . I envisioned doing storytime posts once a month this summer, but here we are in July and here I am with my first summertime storytime… Read more »
Storytime: Be Wise
To see summaries of the five books we used to talk about being wise, scroll to the bottom of this post. If you have a couple minutes . . . it’s almost summer! Just look at this beaut of a sunflower, insisting we take note. And even though I’m not a slave to a school… Read more »
I love sharing stories like Rebeka’s in Her Own Two Feet. That’s what this blog is all about. My stories. Other people’s stories. Writing stories for children. Once upon a time I told the story of our family traveling around the world for nine and a half months. You can find those here at Faces in the Street.
