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Book Reviews

Max Spaniel Dinosaur Hunt
By David Catrow
Join Max Spaniel as he uses his superior hunting skills to track down dinosaurs. Watch him use his ears, eyes, and nose to locate real (or at least real to Max Spaniel) dinosaur artifacts in his own backyard. Young children will love this silly story along with the humorous illustration.








A Friend Like You
By Tanja Askani
Tanja Askani's A Friend Like You is a heartwarming story about friendship that young children are sure to love. Tanja Askani has been adopting animals that that were either orphaned or injured since she was a small child. She used pictures she has collected over the years to illustrate this story. For every sentence in the book there is an adorable matching picture of an unexpected pair of animals playing together. The story portrays the message that friendship comes in all shapes and sizes. As an added bonus, the author gives a mini biography of each of the featured animals at the end of the story.



The Mitten
Retold by Jim Aylesworth
Illustrated by Barbara McClintock
Readers young and old will enjoy this retelling of the classic winter story The Mitten. After a long day of fun playing out in the snow a little boy realizes that he lost one of the mittens knit for him by his grandmother. His grandmother tells him not to worry as they will go out to find the mitten the next day. Meanwhile, a squirrel, rabbit, fox, and even a bear have been using the mitten to warm up their frozen toes. What will come of the mitten when one more visitor asks the animals to share just a little more space?



Merry Christmas, Splat
By Rob Scotton
After writing his Christmas wish list to Santa, Splat the cat wonders if he has been good enough all year to deserve the really big present he is hoping for. He is pretty sure he has been good enough...but decides to help his mother get ready for Christmas just in case. After washing the already clean dishes and decorating the already decorated tree, Splat heads to bed and listens all night for Santa. When morning comes with no sign of Santa, Splat is sure he will not be receiving his big present. Did Santa skip over Splat, or will Splat get the present of his dreams after all...



Big Frog Can't Fit In
A Pop Out Book by Mo Willems
Paper Engineering by Bruce Foster
Big Frog is sad because she cannot fit into her book! Will her friends be able to come up with a solution to help her out? Children will love the large pop out images and pull out tabs in this creatively crafted book.





My Little Polar Bear
By Claudia Rueda
A new baby polar bear has arrived in the frozen Arctic. Little polar bear follows her mother over snow and melting ice, through the freezing ocean water, and into a blowing snowstorm. Little polar bear has doubts about whether she is a real polar bear, but feels much better after listening to her mother's reassuring words. My Little Polar Bear is a beautifully illustrated story about a mother's love for her child.




How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You?
By Jane Yolen and Mark Teague
Even after lots of moping, kicking, and making messes, the mothers and fathers of the little dinosaurs still love them. This humorous story will leave readers ready for some dinosaurs sized hugs. How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You? is a wonderful new edition to Jane Yolen and Mark Teague's award winning How Do Dinosaurs...? children's series.




Stagecoach Sal
By Deborah Hopkinson
Pictures by Carson Ellis
Sal loved riding around with her father and singing on his stagecoach, but the one thing she wanted more than anything else was to drive herself. After an unfortunate accident Pa needed a break from driving the stagecoach, and Sal finally received her chance to drive alone. However, with the infamous stagecoach robber Poetic Pete on the loose, Sal is bound to have an interesting night. Stagecoach Sal is a fictional story based on the life of Delia Haskett Rawson. Delia was the first, and possibly the only, female stagecoach mail deliverer in California. This book offers up a healthy dose of history for children ages four to seven.



Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol
Illustrated by Brett Helquist
Witness the story of Ebenezer Scrooge breathtakingly illustrated by Brett Helquist. Watch Scrooge transform from a stingy business man to a caring and Christmas loving citizen after visits from three Christmas ghosts. Brett Helquist's intricate art paired with this classic Christmas story is sure to please the entire family.

One Shoe Blues Event

It's a BYOS (bring your own sock) Event at Dragonwings Bookstore on Saturday, November 21 at 3:00 PM. You'll get to see a music video with B.B. King himself singing the blues about his missing shoe, while he gets advice from Momsock and a chorus of sock puppets. See the post below for a "making of" One Shoe Blues video.

After the music we'll have stations around the store where you can make your sock into a puppet, put on a puppet show, have your photo taken with your sock puppet, get a sock puppet tattoo, play Boynton Bingo, and dance the Barnyard Dance.

Call 715-256-9186 for reservations. All ages are welcome. Parents are asked to take their little ones through the stations, and we always appreciate having you lend a hand here and there.

Admission fee: a new pair of socks or mittens for the Dragonwings Donation Box. We give seasonal donations of books and/or winter wear to the Family Crisis Center, Healthy Beginnings, and the Food Pantry.

Our Favorite New Books

Stick Man by Julia Donaldson illustrated by Axel Scheffler

Early one spring morning Stick Man is carried away from his family tree by a passing dog. He has one narrow escape after another trying to find his way home and ends up in a fireplace. All seems lost until her meets a Stuck Man in the chimney, and his luck finally changes. I loved the sly humor in the illustrations, and hope there will be more adventures about the endearing Stick Man and his family. - Ellen

The Christmas Magic by Lauren Thompson illustrated by Jon J. Muth

Santa's house sits alone in a vast, snowy landscape under an endless night sky. As the magic draws closer, he calls the deer, buffs the sleigh, and polishes the bells. With a cundle of gifts, he waits quietly for the magic of the night to fill his heart and carry him off on a journey through the stars. Gentle prose and thriling illustrations will bring goose bumps to the readers of this timeless tale. - Ellen

Raiders' Ransom by Emily Diamand

Ages 9-12

In a futuristic England mostly submerged by water, people have long forgotten the power of technology, except for a dangerous few to whom it is worth any ransom - even the Prime Minister's daughter. Winner of the Chicken House/London Times Children's Fiction Competition, this tale has a swift-moving plot that will surprise readers over and over again. - Ellen

How The Grinch Stole Christmas Lacing Cards
This lacing card kit includes five silly lacing cards, five brightly-colored laces, and several activities. The lacing cards help children develop fine motor skills, learn to count, and improve hand-eye co-ordination. The front of the lace cards outlines favorite Grinch characters and the back of each card has a numbers and shapes lacing activity. The set includes a workbook with several brain stimulating activities such as a maze, search-and-find page, and a word scramble that are sure to please. - Angie


Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas
by Jane O'Connor Illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser
There is nothing Fancy Nancy loves more than Christmas. Decorating the Christmas tree with family heirlooms, wrapping presents with pretty paper, the aroma of delectable Christmas cookies with sprinkles, and all that tinsel! Ooh la la! Nancy has used her birthday money from last summer to buy a spinning, flashing, and color-changing tree topper. However, after things take a turn for the worse, a devastated Fancy Nancy learns a lesson in improvising that will help her Christmas day to turn out as splendiferous as ever. - Angie

How to Talk to Santa

By Alec Greven Illustrations by Kei Acedera

Ten-year-old Alec Greven’s How to Talk to Santa teaches kids that Christmas is about having fun, believing in magic, getting together with friends, and giving to others. He outlines each part of the Christmas season, beginning with Operation Christmas (OC), which transforms normal people into Christmas-crazed shoppers, decorators, and partyers. Alec explains the importance of being nice at least 75% of the time if you hope to receive any of the gifts from your carefully revised and edited wish list (Santa does not like greedy children). He reminds everyone to leave a thank-you letter and snacks for Santa and the reindeer for all of their hard work. If you hope to keep your parents happy on Christmas morning, don’t wake them until after 7 a.m. Most importantly, Alec reminds kids that you can be 100 and still believe in Santa. - Angie

Tyrannoclaus

By Janet Lawler Pictures by John Shroades

‘Twas the night before Christmas when Tyrannoclaus along with his helpers were hard at work wrapping gifts for all of the little dinosaurs of dinosaur land. Danger arose when the earth below the volcano-based workshop split open and began to erupt! Will the children of dinosaur land have a present-less Christmas morning, or will Tyrannoclaus be able to save the gifts? Read this colorfully illustrated children’s story to find out! - Angie

Art Class

Take an Art Class with visiting artist Brian Strassburg!

On Saturday, November 7 Brian Strassburg will be in town for a gallery show of his unique art boxes at Originals Gallery. He will also bring some of his pieces to an Art Class at Dragonwings, where he will show us how he constructed them and share some techniques.

Each of Brian's art boxes uses mixed-media, 3-D elements, and collage to illustrate a theme, a story, a famous personality, or even a letter of the alphabet. Unique and quirky, unlike anything we've ever seen before, these boxes are guaranteed to inspire kids to create an amazing box filled with art from their own imagination. Once they know how, they could make art boxes for holiday decorations, for gifts, as a scout project etc.

Art Class with a Visiting Artist
Saturday, November 7
3:00 PM - 4:15 PM
Ages 9 and up
Fee: $7.50 includes all supplies
Registration: 715-256-9186
CLASS SIZE LIMITED!