Halloween Tricks and Treats

A good horror story has it’s charms any time of year, but even more so as the days grow darker and colder. Weird tales and ghost stories are even more entertaining when delivered by a great storyteller. Nothing beats a professionally narrated audio book for evoking tales told around campfires and whispered under blankets with a flashlight held to your chin…
 
For Little Monsters (ages 4-8)
BATS AT THE BALLGAME  
Okay, so this isn’t really a scary book, but there are bats involved, and this bestselling title raises shrieks of delight  from young listeners. It also ties in nicely with the baseball playoffs. Perfect!
 
THE ODIOUS OGRE
A scary-enough story that leaves kids smiling rather than shivering, from the creators of the classic THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH – which, by the by, will be celebrating its 50th  anniversary in 2011.
 
QUACKENSTEIN HATCHES A FAMILY 
An antisocial duck adopts an egg that hatches out very differently than he expects. A real find for the rhyme and rep set.  
 
NEVER RACE A RUNAWAY PUMPKIN (Roscoe Riley Rules #7) 
Funny stuff for kids who’ve graduated to chapter books. This time out, Roscoe tries to win books for his library by guessing the weight of a great pumpkin. Check out all the ROSCOE RILEY RULES books. You hear one, you’ll want to hear them all.

For Guys and Ghouls (ages 8-10)
ZOMBIEKINS
Zombie stuffed toy terrorizes middle school? Enough said. (For a chance to have your students’ questions answered by author Kevin Bolger and to win Zombiekins on CD, click here!)
 
NINTH WARD
Not your usual ghost story. A haunting tale of loss and renewal set during the Katrina disaster in New Orleans.  
 
THE STRANGE CASE OF ORIGAMI YODA
There may be more to Dwight’s paper finger puppet than meets the eye. Can Origami Yoda really read minds and predict the future? Kids are loving this and recommending it to their friends. Watch out, it may well be the next WIMPY KID. (Speaking of wimpy kids, have you entered yet to win a life-size Wimpy Kid for your classroom?)
 
Not for the Faint of Heart (ages 12 and up)
ROT AND RUIN
Might just be the best dystopian zombie hunter story EVER, from that bestselling prince of darkness Jonathan Maberry.  
 
MISGUIDED ANGEL (Blue Bloods #5)
New York Times bestselling BLUE BLOODS series has it all: vampires, fallen angels AND over-privileged rich kids partying like there’s no tomorrow. The latest installment will not disappoint. View the book trailer at MTV!
 
THE CURSE OF THE WENDIGO (Monstrumologist #2)
The sequel to 2010 Printz Honor Book and bestseller THE MONSTROMOLOGIST takes our Fearless monster hunters to Canada in search of a life-sucking immortal that puts vampires to shame. Gory? Yes. But totally engrossing.
 
JEKEL LOVES HYDE
The author of last year’s surprise bestseller JESSICA’S GUIDE TO DATING ON THE DARK SIDE reanimates the Robert Louis Stevenson classic with the tale of two teen descendants of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde who seem doomed to repeat their ancestor’s mistakes.

Guest Post: Back to School Book Picks

Recently, we featured audiobook reviews from guest blogger Jana Warnell, an elementary school librarian in Montana. You can read her reviews of Clementine, The Thief, and The Ranger’s Apprentice: Ruins of Gorlan. She also shared with us how to hook reluctant readers with audio, audiobooks and comprehension, and on audiobooks and fluency. Check out more reviews and librarian insights from Jana at her blog, http://janasbooklist.blogspot.com/.

Jana put together a list of fun back to school titles for us. Let us know what you think and make some suggestions of your own!

Life here in has been a whirlwind with school starting for me and my sons. I started as a librarian at a new school this year (middle school!) and it has been hectic getting my footing. But, I am really enjoying myself and am looking forward to a great year at school. I hope you all have had a good start to your year as well. If you are looking for some audio books to get your students or children into the swing of things this fall here are some great ones:

Do you have a student starting middle school? Try Diary of a Wimpy Kid [NOTE: Have you entered our contest yet to WIN a a life-size wimpy kid for your classroom? Have you submitted a question for Zombiekins author Kevin Bolger?]. This is the story of Greg (a wimpy kid who just doesn’t realize that he is a wimpy kid) and it is hysterical.

Franny K. Stein (Lunch Walks Among Us) by Jim Benton is about a young girl who fancies herself a mad scientist. When she finds herself the new kid in school she approaches making friends with the analytical mind of a scientist. She has to save the day, though, when a monster snatches her teacher!

Judy Moody by Megan McDonald is about a girl starting third grade who is afraid she will not fit in with her new classmates. When her teacher assigns a “me” collage art project, she learns that not only she has things in common with them, but she also is able to contribute ideas that interest her new group of friends.

When Annabelle is forced to move with her mom to a new part of town and attend a coed school for the first time in her life she discovers that Boys are Dogs (by Leslie Margolis). When she gets a new puppy she puts the training manual for the dog to use when dealing with boys—with some very positive and funny results. (I must admit that as a mother of boys I didn’t like how boys were portrayed in this book—there were no real likeable ones, but, it made for some fun reading!).

Introduce younger readers to Froggy with Froggy Goes to School by Johnathan London. It’s always good for little ones to see that everyone gets nervous their first day of school—even frogs.

Can you imagine going from living on a commune being homeschooled to going to middle school? Makes you shudder doesn’t it? That’s the plot of Schooled by Gordon Korman. Capricorn Anderson has to attend public school for the first time in his life when his grandmother lands in the hospital after an accident. How will his “weird” ways mesh with his classmates?

One of my favorite books growing up was The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. I loved the Herdmans. So, I was delighted to find a “sequel” to that book called The Best School Year Ever. I have seen some wild kids in my time, but I think the Herdmans take the cake!

How does attending school to become a spy sound to you? For Cammie Morgan it is the only life she has ever known (or has ever wanted to know). All is well until she meets a “normal” guy. Can she juggle school with dating him without her mother (the headmistress) finding out? I Could Tell You I Love You But Then I’d Have To Kill You by Ally Carter has adventure, strong girls and romance, a perfect formula for middle school girls!

Have You Listened to a Banned Book Lately?

Celebrate banned books week by reading or listening to a banned book this week. See a list of some banned books available on audio from Recorded Books HERE and check out some links on censorship HERE.

If you’re listening to a banned book (one that’s on the list or not!), copy the image above to link to this blog post and share how you’re celebrating Banned Books Week. Your trackback will be shown in the comments section, or you can leave a comment linking to your blog post below. We’ll pick some of our favorites to win a copy of a banned (audio)book!

Here are some additional resources you might find useful:
–Top 10 Things to Do with a Banned Text
-Several books have recently been challenged, and Twitter users and bloggers are rallying against it. Here’s a great list of resources about the current challenge and about banned/challenged books in general (plus several more giveaways).

Winners of the Best Children’s Audiobooks Contest Announced

It was definitely not an easy task to pick the winners of the Top 20 Children’s Audiobooks post. We had 35 commenters and all had wonderful suggestions and comments. There were many great suggestions that did not make it into the final top 20 lists, so please check out all the comments for some great reading suggestions.

In the end, by tallying up titles with repeat votes, I compiled two lists: one of the top 20 Recorded Books children’s audiobooks, and one of the top 20 audiobooks from Recorded Books and other publishers combined. The winners are in no particular order. I also included some descriptive quotes from some commenters on why they chose the book.

So…drumroll please!…

Top 20 Recorded Books Children’s Audiobooks
(Titles included in the Grand Prize Giveaway are italicized)
The Bears on Hemlock Mountain – Narrated by John McDonough
Blackbringer – Narrated by Davina Porter
Bridge to Terabithia – Narrated by Tom Stechschulte
City of Bones – Narrated by Ari Graynor
Clementine – Narrated by Jessica Almasy
Dragon Rider – Narrated by Brendan Fraser
Flight #116 Is Down – Narrated by George Guidall – “This put me on the edge of my seat! I was literally breathless through some parts.”—Maggi (Mama Librarian)
Island of the Blue Dolphins – Narrated by Christina Moore
No Talking – Narrated by Keith Nobbs
Poppy – Narrated by John McDonough
Rules – Narrated by Jessica Almasy
A Series of Unfortunate Events (series) – Narrated by Lemony Snicket and Tim Curry
Stuck in Neutral – Narrated by Johnny Heller – “The audiobook gives voice to the voiceless Shawn.”—Lee Catalano
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian – Narrated by Sherman Alexie – “The “Rez” accent is not essential to appreciate this adolescent chronicle of straddling two worlds, but is sure doesn’t hurt.”—DaNae
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time – Narrated by Jeff Woodman
Good Masters, Sweet Ladies – Narrated by a full cast – “Sure I’d read the book before it won the big award, and sure I was mighty impressed with Schlitz’s skill with words. But hearing it how it was meant to be heard, moved it from a grand award-winner to pure genius.”—DaNae
The Graveyard Book – Narrated by Neil Gaiman – “I’m not sure if a children’s book should sound this sexy, but I will happily take my ghost stories with this kind of verbal velvet.”—DaNae
The Last Apprentice (series) – Narrated by Christopher Evan Welch – “Even though Christopher Evan Welch isn’t British, he skillfully creates some scary times out in the English countryside.”—Lee Catalano
The Ranger’s Apprentice – Narrated by John Keating
The Whipping Boy – Narrated by Spike McClure

Top 20 Children’s Audiobooks
(Starred titles are Recorded Books-produced titles)
Bridge to Terabithia* – Narrated by Tom Stechschulte
Charlotte’s Web – Narrated by E.B. White – “I can just imagine Mr. White telling the story to a group of kids. His voice takes the listener right into that intimate circle.”—Katrina Johnson
Good Masters, Sweet Ladies* – Narrated by a full cast
The Harry Potter Series – Narrated by Jim Dale
Hatchet – Narrated by Peter Coyote
Beverly Cleary’s books narrated by Neil Patrick Harris
Holes – Narrated by Kerry Beyer
The Inkheart Trilogy (series) – Narrated by Brendan Fraser – “I understand why Brendan Fraser was cast as Mo in the movie, he has got a great reading voice.”—Jana Warnell
Maniac Magee – Narrated by S. Epatha Merkeson
Rules – Narrated by Jessica Almasy
Saffy’s Angel – Narrated by Julia Sawatha
A Series of Unfortunate Events* (series) – Narrated by Lemony Snicket and Tim Curry
Stargirl – Narrated by Mandy Siegfried
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian* – Narrated by Sherman Alexie
The Giver – Narrated by Ron Rifkin
The Golden Compass – Narrated by the Author and a Full Cast
The Last Apprentice* (series) – Narrated by Christopher Evan Welch
The Lightning Thief – Narrated by Jesse Bernstein
Where the Red Fern Grows – Narrated by Anthony Heald – “I listened to this with my sons and they loved the story. Anthony Heald did a great job, but I am still more fond of my fourth grade teacher’s narration (good memories).”—Jana Warnell
Year Down Yonder – Narrated by Lois Smith – “I don’t know who this Lois Smith is, but in my world she will have closet full of Lane Bryant dresses and a passel of shenanigans up her sleeve that would do Grandma Dowdle proud.”—DaNae

So, who is the winner of the grand prize? Jana Warnell of Montana! Congratulations! I will be contacting you by email so you can claim your prize.

What Are the Top 20 Children’s Audiobooks?

The Fuse #8 blog at School Library Journal has been tallying up the results of the Top 100 Children’s Novels Poll. That got us wondering, “What are the Top Children’s Audiobooks?” While many of the books would be the same, adding audio into the mix may change the list a little. So we want to hear from you!

We’ll be compiling a list of the top 20—beginning readers, children’s books, children’s classics, or YA novels are all acceptable submissions. Please see below for rules. Everyone who sends in a list of nominations will be entered to win a the grand prize: a set of 10 audiobooks from the top 20!

1. Leave a comment below listing your top 20 children’s audiobooks, from number 20 all the way up to number 1, in order. Feel free to leave a sentence or two describing your favorites. If you don’t have 20 favorites, list as many as you’d like.
2. Submissions will close on May 30, 2010. We’ll tally up the results, assigning points to titles based on their ranking in your list.
3. We’ll pick one random grand prize winner on June 14, 2010. That winner will receive 10 CD audiobooks from the compiled top 20 audiobooks list. Grand prize audiobooks will be chosen by Recorded Books.
4. Contest is open to all K-12 educators in the United States. Recorded Books reserves the right to confirm eligibility and alter rules to this contest at any time.

Read Across America

Tomorrow, March 2, is Read Across America day this year. Celebrated each year on the birthday of Dr. Seuss, the aim is to create lifelong readers by having every child in America read to. Teachers, parents, and volunteers take part every year to bring fun books to kids around the country. What is your school doing to celebrate?

Recorded Books has several books that have been honored by the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award—AKA the Dr. Seuss Award. The award, started in 2006, is given annually by the ALA to the best book for beginning readers. Each of the Recorded Books titles that have won the award are part of a series, so we highly recommend you check out the rest of the series’ offerings as well! Any of these would make great read aloud choices for Read Across America day and would be wonderful additions to any audiobook library.

Zelda and Ivy: The Runaways by Laura McGee Kvasnosky – 2007 winner
Henry and Mudge and the Great Grandpas by Cynthia Rylant – 2006 winner
Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa by Erica Silverman – 2006 honor book

If you’re talking about your school’s plans for Read Across America, be sure to use the #readacross hash tag!

Katherine Paterson: “Read out loud!”

After reading the New York Times piece “New Envoy’s Old Advice for Children—Read More” this morning, I was glad to see that the newly named and soon-to-be-crowned National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, Katherine Paterson encourages parents to read aloud to their children.

Long-touted as a tool for reading readiness, reading aloud to children at least three times a week has been shown to help children identify letter-sound relationships, have sight-word recognition, and understand words in context (Denton and West, 2002). The 1985 Report of the Commission on Reading, Becoming a Nation of Readers, states that, “the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading is reading aloud to children.” But reading aloud is also a great tool for older students. SLJ has lauded it as a way to get teens hooked on books: “students who are read to are more motivated to read themselves—increasing the likelihood that they will one day become independent, lifelong readers.” And Education World reminds us that “since children listen on a higher level than they read, listening to other readers stimulates growth and understanding of vocabulary and language patterns. ”

Audiobooks are a great partner for read alouds. While teacher and parent read alouds are valuable, audiobooks offer kids the chance to read aloud independently, following along with the text while listening to a professional narrator read aloud to them. With independent listening to audiobooks, students are also given the power to stop, start, and relisten as necessary. Whole-class audiobook read alouds offer the same benefits as a teacher read aloud, but allow you, the teacher, to walk around the classroom, monitor understanding, and give individual attention to students who may need it.

We applaud Katherine Paterson for bringing reading aloud to the forefront of her campaign, and we hope that she spreads the word that read alouds aren’t just for beginning readers—they’re for everyone!

For more information on how reading aloud and using audiobooks can improve literacy, check out our Teacher Resources tab on the website or request a Recorded Books Work! research guide.

Do you use audiobooks for read alouds in your classroom? Tell us how and why!

Also, check out our FREE lesson plans and audio for Bridge to Terabithia – Part 1 and Part 2.

Katherine Paterson Named National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature

Hans Christian Andersen Medal and Newbery Award-winning author Katherine Paterson has been named the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, replacing previous ambassador Jon Scieszka. Paterson has chosen “Read for Life” as her platform and will serve a two-year term as ambassador.

Recorded Books is proud to offer 12 of Paterson’s works on audiobook, including Newbery Medal winner Bridge to Terabithia. Also be sure to check out our free lesson plans (both part 1 and part 2) and audiobook excerpts for the book.

Celebrate Banned Books Week

Banned Books Week will be celebrated September 26–October 3, 2009. The ALA encourages librarians to “challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment” as stated in the Library Bill of Rights, and since 1990 the ALA’s Office of Intellectual Freedom has compiled information on banned and challenged books.

If you’d like to share some of these banned and challenged books with your students, audiobooks are a great way to spark classroom discussion. Below (in nor particular order) is a partial list of some banned and challenged books (culled from ALA’s many lists) Recorded Books offers unabridged on audio. For the record, we have actually been asked in the past if we offer an abridged version of To Kill a Mockingbird (to avoid certain controversial words). Our recording is, as always, complete and unabridged! Free guides for some of these books are available at http://www.recordedbooks.com/guides. Have you read or listened to any of the below banned books? What is your favorite banned book?

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous/Beatrice Sparks
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (FREE lesson plans with audio! See Lesson 1 and Lesson 2.)
Taming the Star Runner by S.E. Hinton
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
The Summer of My German Soldier Bette Greene
Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Ulysses by James Joyce An AudioFile Earphones Award Winner
1984 by George Orwell
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
Native Son by Richard Wright
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson An AudioFIle Earphones Award Winner & ALSC Notable Recording
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline B. Cooney

For a few additional links on book censorship, see our previous post: School Libraries and Censorship.

Giveaway at Our Sister Blog

If you missed out on our giveaway of My Sister’s Keeper in July, our sister blog at Recorded Books Direct is giving away the audiobook by Jodi Picoult on CD this month. Just leave a comment on the post at their blog sharing your favorite audiobook author. You can always leave a comment here and share with us, too! Stay tuned for our next giveaway, a great back to school title for middle grades, coming up during the first week of September!

We’d also still love your input on Teacher’s Guides and lesson plans from Recorded Books on our previous post—go ahead and download some of our over 50 guides we offer for free while you’re there. Do you use our guides? What do you like about them? What would you like to see us offer. Let us know!