Book time for reading during children’s book week

Since 1919, the Children’s Book Council has declared the week

before Thanksgiving Children’s Book Week -- a time for young people

to relish the joys of reading.

Grade-schoolers can embrace this year’s theme, “Book Time,” with

new fiction from award-winning authors. Some of the best explores

dealing with social and emotional conflicts growing up.

From Newberry Medal-winning author Jerry Spinelli comes “Loser,” a

touching take on the plight of the class outcast -- the kid who

laughs too loudly, trips over his own feet and raises his hand with

all the wrong answers. While his classmates let enthusiastic Donald

Zinkoff’s ineptitude slide in the first years of school, they brand

him a “loser” by third grade.

Too busy being himself to notice, Zinkoff has what his peers lack:

a joie de vivre that keeps him smiling despite being the butt of

jokes, the last chosen for the team and a favorite prey of bullies.

How his sunny spirit pulls him through frames a tale about what it

really takes to be a winner.

The downside of grade school is also the stage for “Starting With

Alice,” a prequel to Phyllis Reynolds Naylor’s popular series. In

this introduction to the spunky 8-year-old, Alice gets off to a bumpy

start at her new school, where she has difficulty making friends in

unfamiliar territory. Other trials include keeping an eye on a

neighbor boy’s mom, who seems to have an eye on Alice’s dad -- a

scenario that could lead to other challenges.

More serious dilemmas beset Angel Morgan, heroine of Katherine

Paterson’s “The Same Stuff as Stars.” As functional head of a clan

that includes a father in jail and a mom who has abandoned the

preteen and her little brother, Angel has plenty on her plate. When a

mysterious “star man” introduces her to the wonders of the universe,

a positive perspective on life takes shape.

Keeping loneliness at bay is the challenge for 9-year-old Jon, who

lives with his parents in an isolated lighthouse in Theodore Taylor’s

“The Boy Who Could Fly Without a Motor.” After an article in Popular

Science connects him with the ghost of a magician who teaches him to

levitate, an adventure begins that almost launches an international

incident.

Equally unconventional are the newest adventures of John

Scieszka’s Time Warp Trio in “Sam Samurai.” Never expecting a

haiku-writing assignment to trigger a trip back in time to ancient

Japan, intrepid adventurers Joe, Sam and Fred are mystified when they

land face-to-face with an angry samurai warrior. Whether they can

make it back to Brooklyn is less important than the fun to be had

along the way in another hilarious romp that will make kids glad they

booked time for reading.

* CHECK IT OUT is written by the staff of the Newport Beach

Public Library. This week’s column is by Melissa Adams in

collaboration with Bonnie McLaren. All titles may be reserved from

home or office computers by accessing the catalog at

www.newportbeachlibrary.org.