Find treasures galore at the library

Making weekly visits to your local library is an important habit to establish with children. Your local library is a treasure house filled with books that will provide kids with endless opportunities to grow, expand, learn and have fun.

And don't forget to tap into the wonderful resource that is your local librarian. These people are real pros and can quickly help you find what you're looking for and also direct you to the gems you didn't even know existed.

One of the most important jobs we have as adults is to help children connect with reading and learning in a positive way. Make that person you.

Books to Borrow

The following book is available at many public libraries.

"Tuck Everlasting" by Natalie Babbitt, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 139 pages

Read aloud: age 8 and older

Read yourself: age 9 — 10 and older

Sometimes things come together in strange ways with no apparent connection. But, like pieces in a puzzle, one begins to see how they fit. So it was for 10-year-old Winnie Foster, the Tuck family and the strange man in the yellow suit.

Winnie is an only child and doted upon by her mother and grandmother. But what Winnie really wants is to be by herself for a change and do something interesting. Fed up with being overprotected, Winnie decides to run away, just for a little while, into the woods. It is there that she meets Jesse Tuck.

The Tuck family had stumbled upon eternal life after they drank from a magic spring 87 years ago. From that time on, they never aged and couldn't die. They were stuck at exactly the age they were when they drank that water.

When Winnie discovers the Tucks' secret, Jesse and his family are frantic. No one must find out about the magic spring, and the Tucks must make Winnie understand why — that living forever is not the blessing one might think.

But a strange man in a yellow suit has followed Winnie and Jesse and, having a different opinion of eternal life, tries to cash in on the Tucks' long-kept secret. It's up to Winnie to save the Tucks and ultimately do what she's longed for — to make a difference in the world.

Magnificently written, it is little wonder that this classic story continues to be enthusiastically embraced since it was first published more than two decades ago.

Librarian's Choice

Library: Biggs Branch, Butte County Library, 464-A B St., Biggs

Library Director: Linda Mielke

Branch Librarian: Cynthia Pustejovsky

Choices this week: "101 Things to Do With a Baby" by Jan Ormerod; "The Little Rabbit Who Liked to Say Moo" by Jonathan Allen; "The 39 Clues" series by various authors

Books to Buy

The following books are available at your favorite bookstores.

"Bananas in My Ears: A Collection of Nonsense Stories, Poems, Riddles & Rhymes" by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Quentin Blake, Candlewick, 2012, 84 pages, $15.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 6 and older

Read yourself: age 7 — 8 and older

This collection of 26 nonsense stories, poems, riddles and rhymes written by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Quentin Blake is packed with fun. Covering such concepts as breakfast, bedtime, going to the seaside and the doctor, this hilarious romp through typical (and not-so-typical) moments in life will elicit smiles and laughter and is guaranteed to charge the imagination in every good way.

"King Arthur's Very Great Grandson" written and illustrated by Kenneth Kraegel, Candlewick, 2012, 36 pages, $15.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 4 and older

Read yourself: age 7 — 8

Henry is the great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson of one of the bravest knights to ever live — King Arthur. Knowing full well that waging battle runs in his blood, on the morning of Henry's 6th birthday, he puts on his armor, takes his sword and sets off on his donkey in search of adventure.

Eager to engage in combat, Henry first seeks out a Dragon, then a Cyclops, a Griffin and at last the dreaded Leviathan. Much to Henry's astonishment, no one will fight with him. But his adventure is hardly a let down, for Henry discovers something far greater than he imagined.

A delightful story in every way, this selection is bound to please readers both young and old.

Kendal A. Rautzhan writes and lectures about children's literature. She can be reached at her website: greatestbooksforkids.com.