Gus, the Dinosaur Bus (2013) Julia Liu, Bei Lynn (ill.)

Gus, the Dinosaur Bus (2013) – Julia Liu, Bei Lynn (Ill.)

This is a fun concept – what if, instead of riding by car or bus, you could ride a dinosaur bus? This picture book takes readers and listeners through the trials and tribulations of Gus, the Dinosaur Bus as he travels through town. The book is fun, but the drawings are too small for larger groups. I’m also not sure about the art – which looks like a kid drew it. I don’t mean that in a derogatory way; lots of kids love art that’s not too far removed from what they can actually do, but I think this would work better in one-on-one situations. 

Storytelling  3
Color Attractiveness  2
Size of Book  4
Text Size  3
Illustrations 2
Participation Potential  2
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime  2.5

Dinosaur Storytime

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

We had a great time in Storytime on Wednesday, reading, talking, singing, dancing and roaring about dinosaurs!

“Shake Your Sillies Out” – Raffi - opening song

The Dinosaurs – activity

How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food? – Jane Yolen, Mark Teague

Dinosaur drawing with shapes

I’m a Mean Old Dinosaur – activity

Little Dinos Don’t Push – Michael Dahl, Adam Record

The Dino Pokey (The Hokey Pokey) – activity/dance

Dinosaur vs. the Library – Bob Shea

“Dinosaur in Your Bathtub” song

“If You’re Happy and You Know It” - closing song

Craft – Color your dinosaur – tape to stick

We had 31 kids and 23 adults – a little smaller group than we’re used to and a very young group! Everyone enjoyed the stories, singing, dancing, activities and roaring!

She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain (2006) Jonathan Emmett, Debirag Allwright

She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain (2006) Jonathan Emmett, Debirag Allwright

She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain is great fun! It's large enough for large storytime groups, colorful, and contains lots of potential for group participation. You might want to have the "responses" written on a chalkboard or poster so you and the other grown-ups can help the kids remember what order they go in (since they do build with each verse). Sometimes the pictures of the little girl are a bit small, but since the author is trying to give you a broad scope, this is somewhat expected. Great fun!

Storytelling  4
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  5
Text Size  4
Illustrations 4
Participation Potential  5
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime  4.5

Tiny Little Fly (2010) - Michael Rosen, Kevin Waldron

Tiny Little Fly (2010) – Michael Rosen, Kevin Waldron (Ill.)

A tiny little fly has a close encounter with an elephant’s great big toes, nose, and eyes before moving to adventures with other animals. The poor fly is just trying to stay out of trouble… Or is he?

Tiny Little Fly is filled with great rhymes and sounds kids can imitate. A double fold-out page really makes the massive size of the animals unmistakable. This should be a lot of fun for animal storytimes.  

Storytelling  4
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  5
Text Size  5
Illustrations 5
Participation Potential  4
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime  4.5

Dig, Dogs, Dig (2013) - James Horvath

Dig, Dogs, Dig (2013) - James Horvath

Dogs and construction: what's not to like? These working dogs, along with their trucks, machines, and digging tools are lot of fun. The rhymes are generally good. The book suffers, however, from two problems: the story goes a little too long and there's just too much activity on several of the pages. This would be a better book for smaller groups (better still for one-on-one situations) than large ones.

Storytelling  4
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  4
Text Size  3
Illustrations 4
Participation Potential  3
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 4

Tiptoe Joe (2013) - Ginger Foglesong Gibson, Laura Rankin

Tiptoe Joe (2013) - Ginger Foglesong Gibson, illustrated by Laura Rankin 

Tiptoe Joe is a tennis shoe-wearing bear who's all about gathering his friends to show them something they should really see. Tiptoe Joe's adventure is filled with lots of rhymes and opportunities for group participation. The pictures are large and colorful, the story engaging and fun for all. Don't miss this one!

Storytelling  5
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  5
Text Size  5
Illustrations 5
Participation Potential  5
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime  5

Earth to Clunk (2011) Pam Smallcomb & Joe Berger

Earth to Clunk (2011) Pam Smallcomb & Joe Berger

Earth to Clunk is a wonderful story about a boy who’s forced to have a pen pal, even though he doesn’t want one, not even an alien pen pal named Clunk. The boy sends all sorts of disgusting things (including his sister) to Clunk, hoping that each package will end the “friendship.” But Clunk keeps sending the boy cool, strange presents. 

I loved what Earth to Clunk has to teach kids about friendship and diversity. It’s a fun story that would be most engaging for an older Storytime audience. Vibrant colors, imaginative artwork and a compelling story make this one a winner for smaller, older groups. (If your group has more than 20 kids with most of them in the 2-3 year-old age range, this one probably won’t work so well.)

Storytelling  5
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  4
Text Size  4
Illustrations 4
Participation Potential  3
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime  4