If An Armadillo Went To A Restaurant

If an armadillo went to a restaurant, what would she order? Would it be spaghetti and meatballs or a plate of ants and worms with beetles, too? In this book, If An Armadillo Went To A Restaurant by Ellen Fischer and Lauren Wood, children get to find out what an armadillo might eat -- and what plenty of other animals might eat, too! 

This adorable book came highly recommended to our family this afternoon by both Miss Wendy and Miss Bonnie at The Storybook Shoppe.  We took the book home and dove right in.  We learned what a sea turtle, rattlesnake, butterfly, giraffe, wallaby, hedgehog, giraffe and a few others eat. It's a clever book, really! As children learn about the animals, where they live and what they eat, it's also funny, a bit sassy, and entertaining. It's perfectly illustrated to keep things fun, dynamic and interesting for children to follow along. 

The O'Regan children especially enjoyed the last page with a menu and this message: "What would you order?" As I read off the items (chocolate chip pancakes, PB&J Sandwich, Spaghetti and Meatballs, and other kid friendly foods), my daughter, Molly, and son, Connor, rattled off which they would choose. (I was only a bit disappointed that less cliche and more varied foods weren't included. Certainly there are plenty of children who go beyond this menu! Chicken vindaloo? Indian curry? Pad Thai? It could happen!)  But the menu idea was a fun and interactive end to the book! 

Do you know a child interested in animals? Move beyond the farm and barnyard animals and introduce them to a wallaby, octopus, and others in this adorable book.  You can buy it now, right here on our blog for 10% OFF. Just check out below using Paypal and it will be shipped straight to your door within days. Thank you for supporting The Storybook Shoppe, Bluffton, South Carolina's independent children's bookstore. 

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Originally priced at $14.95 

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Lindbergh - A Tale of a Flying Mouse

I often go into The Storybook Shoppe several times a week. Sometimes I go to take photos for our Facebook page, sometimes I go to shop for a birthday party gift, other times I go to take Molly and Connor after school or daycare to shop.  Last week was one that I had the pleasure of visiting three times in a week. On each occasion, three different staff members all recommended Lindberg, The Tale of the Flying Mouse. 

With not one glowing recommendations but THREE, I had to get this one home. Only one problem. Molly took one look at the cover and said she didn't want to read it. To my horror, I was unable to do my assignment! (And talk about judging a book by it's cover!) So I sat down by myself and read this book that Molly proclaimed "scary" and "dark." 

What's the problem? I thought. Cute book about a mouse running from cats that learns to fly. And such beautiful illustrations! 

When a  new, mechanical mousetrap is invented, all the mice flee to America, the land of the free. But how will they flee with large cats guarding the ships? This mouse must learn to fly. He must be the courageous and daring mouse who defies all odds and triumphs the dangers of the cats, owls, other mice, and of course, the plane!  What a great message about being courageous and perseverance. 

When I returned the following week, Miss Bonnie asked what I thought of Lindbergh, The Tale of The Flying Mouse. I told her that my 5 year old daughter, Molly, thought it looked to scary and it was dark. At that time, she let me in on the lesser known fact of this book. It's a World War II analogy, one that parallels Nazi Germany. 

Hiding from cats, escaping torture devices like mouse traps, sneakily planning an escape to a distant land, this mouse does everything a Jewish person running from Nazi's had to do.  I had the chills. How could I have missed it? How did Molly subconsciously get creeped out by it? I read it again and again. Each time, I picked up something new.  And yet, if you didn't know this fact -- you would just have guessed it was about aviation and a mouse's determination to build the best flying machine ever!  This is one of my favorite things about children's literature. There are just so many layers. 

The Storybook Shoppe and our staff recommends this book for students just learning about World War II and Nazi Germany, perhaps in 3rd or 4th grade, or little ones that are interested in aviation.  It's appropriate and interesting for a wide range of ages and makes a fabulous addition to your library! 

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Regularly $19.99

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Three Bears in a Boat

Are you a fan of David Soman's series Ladybug Girl? In the O'Regan household, we love the bold heroine in the series. We were introduced to his latest, Three Bears in a Boat, which is entirely different and in my opinion, even better.  My 5-year old daughter, Molly, loved it too. 

Three siblings go on an adventure of a lifetime in search of replacing their mother's broken sea shell. (The naughty bears broke it trying to get forbidden honey from the jar!)  The three bears sail on a boat to distant islands searching under water, in caves, and high and low for the perfect replacement. 

When things get rough and they start to blame each other, a terrible storm threatens their boat. And just as soon as they work together, cooperate and support one another, the storm clears and they are safe. It was a metaphor that was understood by my 5 year old.  It's smooth sailing when you work together. Rough seas when you don't. 

We loved the matriarch in this book, too. She's soft, caring and understanding when they return and admit what they have done. But in typical mom fashion, they still have some punishment and they don't get any dessert.  This brought a lovely reality to the book and showed consequences for their wrong actions. 

All in all, I loved everything about this book.  The illustrations are phenomenal, the story is well told, and the message is clear. I highly recommend this one to all of our Storybook Shoppe readers.  You can buy it here, right now on our blog by checking out with PayPal below.  Save 10% OFF and support a local independent bookstore, The Storybook Shoppe! 

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Regularly priced $17.99
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$16.11 plus tax & shipping

Emily's Balloon

There's is something magical about balloons for a youngster. Children love flying a balloon, sending it into the air, batting it around, tying it on their wrist and carrying it around with them.  There seems to be so much joy with this round, colorful "thing" floating in the air! I know my kids love them which is why I knew that Emily's Balloon by Komako Sakai would be a big hit when the staff at The Storybook Shoppe recommended it to me. It's a classic read in our house. We read it almost nightly to my 2-year old son, Connor. 

A little girl, Emily, loves her balloon so much that it comes outside with her to play house. She makes a crown for it. She takes that beloved balloon everywhere.  Which is why she's dreadfully sad when the wind takes the balloon and it gets stuck in a tree.  Emily can't eat, sleep, or play with the balloon anymore. But her reassuring mother promises to help fix the problem.  

The illustrations in this book are marvelous. The characters are done in charcoal lines and there is a muted color palate of black, white, grey, and hues of yellow.  The language reflects the simplicity of the illustrations making it very relevant to toddlers. 

I highly recommend this beautifully illustrated book about a child's love affair for balloons and a mother's promise to her child. Toddlers will love reading it over and over again, like Connor does.  And as your little ones start to read, this makes a great book for a beginner reader! It's available at The Storybook Shoppe in Bluffton, South Carolina or available buy checking out with Paypal right here on our blog. 

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Regularly $14.99

Pay $13.43 plus tax & shipping 

On a side note, thank you for being a reader of our blog! Today we are celebrating our 50th blog post!