Booklist Online: Book Reviews from the American Library Association

Lynn: Unfortunately the flu is spreading fast. Children are worried too and it is important to provide them with accurate information. This new book in the Gross Body Science series is about the body’s defenses and reactions to minute invaders. Crust and Spray (Lerner/Millbrook 2009) addresses this timely subject with humor and [...]

Lynn: Over the years an alarming number of creatures have shared my house. I was hopelessly prone to bringing home orphaned babies, strays and fascinating discoveries to my long-suffering mother. My now-grown sons shared my proclivities and my grandsons look likely to carry on the tradition. Being book lovers we also read [...]

Cindy: Here’s a fun new series for elementary and younger middle school readers. In volume one, The Gecko & Sticky: Villain’s Lair (Knopf, 2009), Dave has a talking pet gecko named Sticky, who gets him involved with a dastardly, demented villain due to a magical Aztec wristband Sticky has stolen that Damien Black (said villain) [...]

Lynn: Charles Darwin was born February 12, 1809, a birthday shared with Abraham Lincoln. Deborah Heiligman begins this biography not with Darwin’s birth but with his debate about whether to marry. The result is a fresh and unique book that allows readers not only to know the Darwins but also to understand Charles’ [...]