News & Events
Eggs 1, 2, 3 Wins Awards!
Eggs 1, 2, 3, Who Will the Babies Be? won the Lupine Honor Book Award from the Maine Librarians Association. It also was a Cybils Awards 2012 Finalist, and was named to the NY Public Library's List of 100 Best Children's Books for Reading and Sharing!
The Lupine Award is given annually to books of outstanding merit, and to recognize an oustanding contribution to children's literature of Maine. The book's illustrator, Betsy Thompson, lives in Maine.
The Cybils awards, based on literary merit and kid appeal, are the annual literary awards of a large community of internet bloggers who write about children's books. Here's how the Cybils judges described Eggs 1, 2, 3: "Is it a counting book, is it a poetry book, is it an informational picture book (the category for which it is nominated), is it a pattern book, does it allow for predicting and inferring, or is it a book full of wonderful language? Delightfully for the reader, it is all of the above! Janet Halfmann has done a lovely job teaching the reader about different animals and the eggs from which they come."
Click here to read more about the book's Cybils award.
Click here to read more about the book's NY Public Library award.
Star of the Sea Wins Wisconsin Writers Award
Star of the Sea won the Tofte/Wright Children's Literature Award from the Council for Wisconsin Writers. The judge had this to say about the book: "an example of wonderful narrative non-fiction in a picture book. The story is engaging and accurate...The writing is clear, age-appropriate and has a good story arc...Good for solitary reading, reading aloud and to stimulate further interest in sea stars and shore life. Well done."
Star of the Sea Wins
Outstanding Science Trade Book Award
The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and the Children's Book Council (CBC) have chosen Star of the Sea: A Day in the Life of a Starfish as a 2012 Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students K-12. In its review NSTA said: "The book's narration is full of descriptive phrases that paint a minds-eye picture of the daily life of a starfish in its natural environment. For example, 'Beneath the crashing waves, another kind of star clings to the rocks with hundreds of sticky tube feet.' The words set the stage for the visual imagery of the life of a starfish. The illustrations show the large view of a starfish as well as close-up images of its tube feet. The blend of words and art provides young readers with accurate scientific information and will inspire wonder in their minds." Click here to read the entire NSTA review.
Fur and Feathers Wins 2012 Teachers' Choice Award
Learning Magazine has chosen Fur and Feathers as a 2012 Teachers' Choice Award for Children's Book winner. The llustrator is Laurie Allen Klein. Judging is done by a team of teachers from across the United States. This is the only award that requres its judges to be both a teacher and a parent. Winning titles are chosen based on qualities such as originality, creativity, and high-interest level and motivation for children. This year, only ten children's books received the distinction. Little Skink's Tail, by the same author-illustrator team, previously won the award. Read the publisher's press release here.
Two Free Classroom Guides for 
Seven Miles to Freedom
Fur and Feathers Wins 2010 Gold Moonbeam Award
The Amazing Art Journey of Fur and Feathers 
Teachers Love Little Skink's Tail
Classroom teachers chose Little Skink’s Tail for a 2009 Teachers' Choice Award from Learning Magazine. They had this to say about the book:
- "It is a great book for character education and teaching the children to appreciate themselves just the way they are."
- "The story is one that encourages the listeners to really use their imagination."
- "It could be used with social studies, language arts, science. It addressed all the above areas."
- "The book is interesting, educational, and most important fun!"