16th February Chris Powling (1943)

Chris Powling is a British author who is quite prolific, but the majority of his books are not for my early childhood clientele. His 'Harry' series, while old now, are worth fishing out. Look for Hiccup Harry; Harry With Spots; and Harry the Superhero. Two Powling titles I refer to quite often though are children's biographies of Roald Dahl and Dick King Smith. They are particularly useful when doing an author study.

Yesterday was Galileo's birthday and I forgot to mention a favourite book by Peter Sis called Starry Messenger. The subtitle; A book depicting the life of a famous scientist, mathematician, astronomer, philosopher, physicist Galileo Galilei. This book appeals to a very wide audience. Young children will look at the illustrations and read the straight text while adults and older children can read all the added script and diagrams. It is an amazing book and no wonder it was a Caldecott honour book.

Today is Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day! This is always a fun day to celebrate with a class of children even if you don't cook pancakes. There are so many wonderful picture story books about pancakes. My favourite is an Australian title Princess Priscilla by Stacey Apeitos and Beth Norling. The library's copy is in such a bad way, but I cannot discard it as the book is out of print. Why? It is a modern fairytale with a particuarly enterprising non-stereotyped princess who defeats the dragon using pancakes and a skateboard!