Stretch your dollar: Borrow, buy, share books

Building a home library for a child is important. Carefully selected books will become treasured by the child, frequently read and remembered for a lifetime. But the fact is, no one can afford to buy all the books a child should be exposed to. Below are a few ideas to help solve that dilemma.

An obvious solution is to frequently visit your local public library. You can borrow books at no charge, and when the child comes across a particular favorite, check to see if you can purchase it from your local bookstore. If they don't carry it, perhaps they can order it for you. If it's out of print, try online bookstores (such as www.amazon.com) where there will be a direct link to purchase out-of-print books for peanuts on the dollar.

Consider creating a circulating library among your friends who also have children. They buy, you buy and everyone shares.

There's no excuse not to continue to read to children. The economy may be in the sinker, but with a little creativity, you can stretch your dollar and achieve great results while the children in your charge reap the endless benefits that reading provides.

Books to borrow

The following book is available at many public libraries.

• "Diary of a Worm" by Doreen Cronin, illustrated by Harry Bliss, HarperCollins, 36 pages

Read aloud: age 6 — 7 and older

Read yourself: age 7 — 8 and older

Kids and earthworms have more in common than most people might think. Earthworms go to school and the teacher gets mad if something happens to their homework (such as eating it). According to earthworm moms, nightmares can be caused by eating too much garbage before bed. And yes, worms even make macaroni necklaces in art class (although they eat theirs for dinner).

If you've ever wondered what it would be like to be an earthworm, wonder no more. "Dairy of a Worm" spells it out, folks, and this hilarious tale will have kids cracking up on every page.

Librarian's choice

Library: Butte County Library — Gridley Branch, 299 Spruce St., Gridley

Library Director: Derek Wolfgram

Branch Librarian: Cynthia Pustejovsky

Choices this week: "Madeline" by Ludwig Bemelmans; "The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash" by Steven Kellogg; "The Borrowers" by Mary Norton

Books to buy

The following books are available at your favorite bookstores.

• "The Mitten" written and illustrated by Jan Brett, Putnam, 2009, 32 pages, $17.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 3 and older

Read yourself: age 7 — 8

A boy's grandmother has knit him a new pair of mittens. He insisted the mittens be white, and she warned him that if he dropped one in the snow, he wouldn't be able to find it. She finally gave in, the boy set off outside to play and he lost one white mitten straightaway.

One by one, cold and curious animals make their way to the mitten, taking refuge inside. First a mole, then a rabbit and many others until surely the mitten could not possibly hold any more residents. When the tiny brown mouse arrived and snuggled in on top of the big bear's nose, a hilarious event occurs that ejects all the animals out of the cozy mitten nest.

Glorious illustrations present two parallel stories on every page, making the visual element as exiting and intriguing as the story. First published in 1989, this 20th Anniversary Edition of "The Mitten" is a must-read.

• "Archie and the Pirates" written and illustrated by Marc Rosenthal, HarperCollins, 2009, 36 pages, $16.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 4 and older

Read yourself: age 7 — 8

Upon finding himself shipwrecked on an island, Archie the monkey sets to work. He builds a tree house, finds food and soon makes friends with a friendly Ibis, Clarice, and Beatrice the tiger. Life seems wonderful until one morning, Archie learns that "rough and smelly pirates have landed on the island and captured Beatrice!"

Archie and Clarice devise a plan to free Beatrice and rid their island of those rotten pirates. It involves a soothing lullaby, fierce painted monkey faces, rotten fruit and more.

Brimming with adventure, action and humor, this selection is certain to appeal to kids in many ways.

Kendal A. Rautzhan writes and lectures on children's literature. She can be reached at kendal@sunlink.net.