Book Shelf
Jack and Jill’s Treehouse
by Pamela Duncan Edwards
28 pages
@ SPL: JP Edwar
   
What better project for a summer day than building a backyard treehouse? Follow Jack and Jill as they fetch some boards of wood, haul them up to a sturdy branch, and fashion them into a roof and a floor. Watch them drape a large, colourful blanket over the roof and down the sides, and, as a final touch, hang a flashlight from the roof. Now Jack and Jill have a wonderful, cozy treehouse … much more fun than fetching a pail of water and falling down the hill with it!
Pamela Edwards’ charming picture book, illustrated by Henry Cole, is a cumulative read-aloud, or “pattern book”. (“This is the branch that held the treehouse that Jack and Jill built. This is the wood that was hauled up to the branch that held the treehouse that Jack and Jill built….”) A pattern book invites young listeners to join in with the repeating phrases and even to “read” the book later on their own, using the accompanying illustrations –  a beginning step in learning how to read.
Pamela Edwards, from Virginia, is the author of many children’s picture books, many of them illustrated with Henry Cole’s delightful pictures.
** Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years of age.
 
Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree
by Lauren Tarshis
199 pages.
@ SPL: J FIC Tash
   
Emma-Jean Lazarus did, indeed, fall out of a tree… both physically and metaphorically. Her sore ribs recovered quickly from the tumble. However, her “fall” from a well-ordered, logical world into a less certain world of changes, growing up and relationships, was not so quickly resolved.
Emma-Jean was the smartest girl at William Gladstone Middle School. She was also known as one of the strangest girls there. Emma-Jean didn’t care about that, knowing that “strange” can mean “unique” and “remarkable”. She was quite satisfied with her life, until she found Colleen Pomerantz crying in the girls’ room and decided to help her, thereby setting in motion a complicated, unforeseen chain of events. Suddenly, Emma-Jean’s life – both at school and at home – became just plain … messy!
Lauren Tarshis’ first novel is a very enjoyable read which contains a world of wisdom. It has much to say to girls of middle school age about self-acceptance, empathy, honesty, courage and dealing with bullies. The characters are very realistic, and the author uses a “spare” style of text that appears quite polished.
What’s the best thing about this book? The answer: a sequel is planned!
An interview with the author is included at the back of the book.
** Recommended for ages 9 to 12 years of age.

– Sally Hengeveld
librarian