Bella and I are excited to share our latest reads in It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR is a community of bloggers who link up to share what they are reading. Kellee Moye of Unleashing Readers and Jen Vincent of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give it a #kidlit focus and encourage everyone who participates to visit at least 3 of the other #kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.
Kitty-Cam (Ready to Ready Pre-Level 1) by Margie Palatini Illustrated by Dan Yaccarino
When a cat has a camera attached to its head, emergent readers get to see the world from the kitty’s point of view. Kitty attempts to tackle a fish bowl, succeeds in scoring treats, and enjoys a romp with yarn. A mouse interrupts its play. When the rodent escapes in its hole In the wall, Kitty waits but sleep overcomes the feline.
Shark happily swims with a camera on its head, but all ocean animals see is teeth. When the animals quickly leave, Shark is sad. Fortunately, Shark meets a polite octopus who accepts the offer to dance. Shark continues on its journey crossing paths first with a whale and then a fisherman. Don’t worry. No living thing was harmed in this story but kids will laugh as Shark chills on the fisherman’s boat as he frantically swims away.
Lively illustrations full of action and and an accessible text with mostly decodable words make both Kitty-Cam and Shark Cam perfect stories for kids just learning to read. Thanks to Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing for sharing a copy. Kitty-Cam and Shark-Cam recently published on June 27, 2023. More books in the series will release in August 2023.
O is for Ossicone: A Surprising Animal Alphabet by Hannah Eliot Illustrated by Sarah Papworth
This is an animal alphabet board book that breaks the mold. The words chose for each letter are not the norm; as a result, they will support building content knowledge about animals. For instance, B is for baleen educating young children on a particular type of whale, R is for retina, S is for scutes, and Z is for zygote. When readers (young and old) lift the flap, they learn more about the meaning of the word. I must admit I didn’t know what an ossicone was until I read this board book (In case you are uninformed like me, ossicone is the hornlike parts of a giraffe’s head). My only ask is I wish pronunciations were included for particular vocabulary to support decoding for me as an adult. Thanks to Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing for sharing a copy. O is for Ossicone recently published on June 27, 2023.
Bella’s Dog Pick of the Week
Wanting to spread the dog love, Beagles and Books has a weekly feature of highlighting a literary selection with a canine character.
Styx and Scones: The Sticky Wand (Ready to Read Graphics 2) by Jay Cooper
A cat, Styx and a dog, Scones live with two witches. When the witches leave, the animals are told what they can’t touch. But they didn’t mention the stick on the fireplace mantle. Once Scones picks it up and utters KA-ZING, magic happens. Styx becomes a bat, skunk, snake, squirrel and giraffe. Styx wants a turn with the stick and Scones is unwillingly to share leadimg to not only unintended magic but also the stick breaking in two. Uh oh! What will happen when the witches come home? Can Styx and Scones work together to solve their problem?
Styx and Scones is a great introduction to graphic novels for early readers. Before the story, children and their parents learn the fundamentals having elements such as speech bubbles, panels defined and directions on how to read them. The story is easily accessible with a mix of panels from full page to five. Cooper’s engaging characters, fun plot, and expressive illustrations also support kids as they become independent readers. So excited that more adventures are to come. Book 2: Styx and Scones in the Cracked Crystal publishes in August 2023. Thanks to Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing for sharing a copy. Styx and Stones recently published on June 27, 2023.
Bella and I thank you for visiting Beagles and Books!
Jim Butcher
#IMWAYR is dedicated to dear Etta, my original book beagle. Blessed that Etta is part of my story.
Beagles & Books 
I have to check out the Critter Cam series. I like that you said these have mostly decodable words. Some of the ready to read type books have language that is too sophisticated for the target audience.
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