Over the moon for Broadway lullabies

over the moon

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. How, you may ask, does this connect with children’s books? Over the Moon: The Broadway Lullaby Project (Easton Studio Press, May 2012) includes a book of illustrated poems/lullabies, two CDs of the songs, and an e-book. Actress Kate Dawson developed this project to honor her cousin, who died of [...]

Lisa, we missed you.

lisa loeb

Lisa Loeb (and her iconic, adorable cat-eye glasses) burst into popular consciousness in 1994 with the smash single “Stay (I Missed You).” She apparently didn’t fall off the face of the earth since then: Lisa Loeb’s Silly Sing-Along: The Disappointing Pancake and Other Zany Songs (Sterling, January) will have children of this decade—and their nostalgic [...]

He sings, too?

nighty night

As you may recall, I’ve got a bit of a crush on author Neil Gaiman. Today I’ve been obsessively listening to “Nighty Night” by 8in8, the self-described “world’s least super supergroup” (comprised of lyricist Gaiman with musicians Amanda Palmer, Ben Folds, and Damian Kulash). The album was written, recorded, released for download, and performed live—all [...]

Squeak by growl

I have to say I laughed when the audiobook edition of Jerry Pinkney‘s famously wordless The Lion and the Mouse came into the office. But the production is from Weston Woods and I should have known better. While faithfully and realistically reproducing the sound effects that constitute the only printed text in the book, the [...]

Newbery shocker!

What?? Glee: The Beginning isn’t even an honor book? I know! Shocking. And I wouldn’t have even brought it up (mostly because a novel based on a TV show that’s successful due to the fabulous musical numbers doesn’t have much to offer—even if it does include a “Gleetastic Poster Inside”), but when we received ALA’s [...]

Merry Christmakwanzukkah!

I have to admit, my initial response to Mark Binder’s CD A Holiday Present! Christmas, Kwanzaa, Chanukah, Ramadan, Diwali, Solstice, New Year’s (Light Publications) was unenthusiastic. The carefully non-denominational cover illustration and the tagline “Warm, joyful, and fun adventures celebrating giving and family” had me bracing for some seriously touchy-feely PC crap. Includes “We Wish [...]