Books: Supplementing Reading

Books To Sing With and Sleep With

By Julie L. Jones
February 2007

Bedtime reading is almost inevitable with Senario’s big plush Storybook Pillow that features favorite licensed characters in its soft fabric pages. Abrams Books uses comic-book-style line drawings to relate a middle-schooler’s tribulations in “Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” and Baby Abuelita Productions inspires bilingual sing-alongs with Sing Along With Abuelita Rosa.

Other companies who told TDmonthly Magazine that their 2007 books were more than just your average tome included Five Star Publications (ToyDirectory), which invites readers to trust recipes from a 7-year-old in “Cooking With Max.”

Read on for other innovations:

Cooking With Max by FIVE STAR PUBLICATIONS INC.

Cooking With Max by FIVE STAR PUBLICATIONS INC. Seven-year-old Max Nania knows kids and food. Max’s new cookbook contains 45 truly inventive recipes he has created. With each recipe, Max’s mom provides “grown-up” tips.
— “There aren’t many cookbooks written by a child for children,” Sue DeFabis of Five Star Publications told TDmonthly of the book’s uniqueness. Launch date: April 2007. 1/5/2007 (MSRP: $14.99; Age: 3 to 7)

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by ABRAMS BOOKS

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by ABRAMS BOOKS Published under the Amulet Books imprint, this “novel in cartoons” by Jeff Kinney chronicles the experiences of an unlikely hero, Greg Heffley, who finds himself thrust into middle school, where undersized weaklings share the hallways with kids who are taller, meaner and already shaving. Greg tries to use his best friend’s popularity to his advantage, kicking off a chain of events that tests their friendship in hilarious fashion. The book features approximately 300 black-and-white illustrations.
— It is “a completely unique approach to middle-grade fiction — combining hilarious diary-style narrative with web comic art,” Valerie Ralph, in publicity for Abrams Books, told TDmonthly. Launch date: April 2007.
- “For the younger reader, the best seller is “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” by Jeff Kinney,” Jessica Wood, buyer for Northshire Bookstore in Manchester Center, Vt., told TDmonthly in November 2008.
— Barbara Fineblum, owner of Barstons Childs Play in Rockville, Md., told TDmonthly in a December 2014 interview that Diary of a Wimpy kid books are best-sellers at her store. 1/5/2007 (MSRP: $12.95; Age: 8 to 13)

l8r, g8r by ABRAMS BOOKS

l8r, g8r by ABRAMS BOOKS Angela, Zoe and Maddie are feeling invincible as they say “l8r” to high school in this sequel to the New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestsellers ttyl and ttfn. Through instant messages, these inseparable friends have shared the ups and downs of high school. Now Jana, the Queen Bee who made their sophomore year a nightmare, is on the warpath again. It’s up to Maddie and Angela to defend good girl Zoe. A series of pranks escalates, culminating in a senior prom that no one will forget.
— “This wildly popular series is written entirely in instant messages and deals with teen issues in the language they helped create,” Valerie Ralph of Abrams Books told TDmonthly about the book’s uniqueness. Launch date: March 2007. 1/5/2007 (MSRP: $15.95; Age: 14 and Up)

My Forever Teeth by ALL 4 KIDZ ENTERPRISES

My Forever Teeth by ALL 4 KIDZ ENTERPRISES This book is part of the Urban Kidz I Promise Series of multicultural books that exposes young children to values that impact their thinking at a young age. "My Forever Teeth" is a tale about Billy learning to be brave when losing a first tooth. His mom introduces a "unique" way to save his tooth "forever,” and he learns that losing a tooth is not so bad after all. The book retails with a CD for $17.95. Launch date: December 2006.
— “Hanna and Aaron [both 5] were enthralled and wanted to be read or to listen to several stories in a row,” reported Elise Yousoufian, a Preschool Roundtable mom who reviewed the series for TDmonthly. “They listened very attentively and talked about some of the characters hours or days after having been read the stories.” ( Watch Video) 1/9/2007 (MSRP: $12.95; Age: 2 to 9)

Making Healthy Choices - A Story to Inspire Fit, Weight-Wise Kids by STARBOUND BOOKS

This illustrated fictional children's book is intended to enlighten, empower and motivate kids to get, and stay, weight-wise. It is not just for overweight or obese kids. In this first-of-its-kind book, important health themes are “served up” in an easy-to-read style to help overweight kids get on a healthy track and motivate others to continue making wise lifestyle choices and better understand peers currently struggling with a weight problem. Both boys’ and girls’ editions are available. This product received a 2006 iParenting Media Award.
— “There is no other fictional illustrated children’s book that speaks directly to kids about childhood obesity from both ends of the continuum,” author Merilee Kern told TDmonthly. “It’s also a tool caregivers can use to initiate discussion with children on this sensitive topic.” Launch date: January 2007. 1/5/2007 (MSRP: $11.95; Age: 7 to 14)