Professional Reading

By Staff -- School Library Journal, 2/1/2007

BAUMBACH, Donna J. & Linda L. Miller Less Is More: A Practical Guide to Weeding School Library Collections. 194p. charts. illus. photos. reprods. appendix. index. Web sites. CIP. ALA. 2006. pap. $32. ISBN 0-8389-0919-1. LC 2006007490.

This helpful guide encourages even the most fearful librarians to tackle the daunting task of weeding through careful and regular analysis. Based upon the SUNLINK Weed of the Month project, it begins by addressing the rationale behind the process, as well as many excuses for avoiding the task. Other chapters include a discussion of guidelines, like the CREW ("Continuous Review, Evaluation, and Weeding") method, with a review of other important criteria. One section provides criteria for weeding in 71 areas, arranged by Dewey number. Final chapters attend to pertinent details of finishing the process. Web resources, an appendix of weeding criteria in table format that includes ideal and maximum number of years for the various subject areas, and an alphabetical and Dewey index conclude this invaluable, succinctly written resource.—Susan Shaver, Hemingford Public Schools, NE

In the late '80s, the Children's Literature Association, a group of academicians and scholars, published three volumes of essays concerning titles proposed as a literary canon in children's literature. Except for the recognized classics Heidi and Pinocchio, the books considered in Perry Nodelman's Touchstones: Reflections on the Best in Children's Literature (1985–'89) were all written in English. This new title is intended to complement Touchstones by presenting essays on outstanding works of European children's literature that have been translated into English. The articles cover books familiar to most American librarians: Astrid Lindgren's "Pippi Longstocking" books (grievously mistranslated, according to Nikolajeva); Tove Jansson's Moomintroll stories; Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince; and Michael Ende's The Neverending Story. Other titles that may be less familiar are introduced by scholarly advocates: Janusz Korczak's King Matt the First, Gianni Rodari's The Befana's Toyshop, Jostein Gaarder's Sophie's World, and others. Nikolajeva's illuminating essay on translation of children's books is alone worth the price. While this collection is aimed at a scholarly audience, it is also essential background reading for librarians and teachers who seek to promote international understanding through children's books.—Margaret A. Chang, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams

Believing in the power of stories to help children understand themselves, Golding has compiled an annotated list of more than 500 picture books on topics ranging from simple friendship to more complex themes of illness and divorce. In her introduction, she gives practical tips for adults who will be choosing books from this collection. The author reminds them that books alone can't solve all problems, but that they are excellent tools for starting a conversation. Carolyn W. Lima and John A. Lima's A to Zoo (2005) groups titles by similar topic without the benefit of annotations, whereas John T. Gillespie and Catherine Barr's Best Books for Children (2003, both Libraries Unlimited) provides a one-sentence annotation with evaluative comments for using the titles as discussion starters with children. Both parents and librarians can use these suggested books either for bibliotherapy or for theme-building for storytimes. However, because Golding suggests many older, out-of-print titles, this book would not be as worthwhile as a collection-development guide.—Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA

Volume six of this retrospective selection tool includes 239 annotated titles that the authors feel will most likely appeal to elementary school students. The well-chosen books are listed by author with a lengthy annotation and cross-referenced by subject and title index. Titles were included based on "excellence in writing, the book's ability to inspire and motivate, its effectiveness in getting the message across, intriguing and/or humorous topics, the interest and reading level, and visual beauty." The titles were all published between 2000 and 2005 and include five graphic novels. Well-known series such as "Harry Potter" or "A Series of Unfortunate Events" are not included as the authors felt that these titles are already familiar to most readers. Useful aspects include listings by reading levels (from 1.3 to 6.9) and interest levels. Library media specialists, public librarians, library school educators, and classroom teachers will find this book useful.—Bobbee Pennington, Bryan Public Library, TX

This thoroughly researched handbook is directed toward those educators who see the value of using stories, informational books, and collaboration in early-childhood project-based units. The projects focus on topics of interest and relevance such as hats, weather, seasons, plants, animal friends, etc., with specific learning goals and assessments provided. The first two chapters focus on standards; learning differences in individual children; and social, emotional, physical, and nutritional needs. An extensive description and characteristics of the inquiry-project-based approach, figures, and a planning sheet complete chapter one. Chapter two continues with advantages of these units, how to use and identify informational resources, dialogic reading, and using print as well as digital resources. Remaining chapters each address one specific level of early-childhood education and discuss working with that age group, creating age-appropriate classrooms, and using specific strategies. Each chapter has four projects; components include "Relevance," "Discussion," Investigation," and "End Product," as well as a list of age-appropriate related books and videos.—Susan Shaver, Hemingford Public Schools, NE

A well-crafted addition to any professional-reading shelf, this guide describes the creation of the award, gives a short biography of its namesake, and supplies a wealth of teaching ideas for implementing the award-winning books into library programs or school curricula. Short summaries and quotations are provided for each title. Sample booktalks are provided for titles that won the author award, while a list of activities is given for the books that received the illustrator award. Illustrations include black-and-white photographs as well as a few full-color plates. A short DVD introduces the award and includes comments provided by the authors and illustrators of the award-winning books. Unfortunately, in a few segments, the audio quality is not as good as it should be. Overall though, this superb guide will be valuable to librarians, teachers, and children's literature enthusiasts.—Melissa Christy Buron, Epps Island Elementary, Houston, TX