Which book would you recommend for kids over spring break? / LJWorld.com

Asked at Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vt. on March 15, 2010

“‘The Little Prince’ by Antoine de Saint Exupéry. It’s written by a guy who was a famous pilot, and he makes several observations about life. ”

— David Paez, marketing consultant, Colombia

“My boy just finished ‘The Name of this Book Is Secret’ and ‘This Book Is Not Good For You’ and ‘If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late.’”

— Andy Norris, computer programmer, Baldwin City

“I recommend ‘Stay Away From the Junkyard.’ It’s about accepting everybody for who they are and finding the good in people.”

— Hannah Seger, music therapy major, Amherst, Mass.

“‘The Kissing Hand,’ it’s about a family of raccoons. ”

— Michelle Gainor, packaging operator, Lawrence

Take a vacation from textbooks with these teen reads

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radiohawk 3 years, 2 months ago

"The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich"

nobody1793 3 years, 2 months ago

The Book of Mormon?

K_Verses_The_World 3 years, 2 months ago

Proverbs

grammaddy 3 years, 2 months ago

"Dreams From My Father".

geekin_topekan 3 years, 2 months ago

Ramones-An American Band

snap_pop_no_crackle 3 years, 2 months ago

The Little Bear Who Itched

vertigo 3 years, 2 months ago

Karl Rove's "Truth or Consequences".

The memoir is almost entirely made up of Rove's denials of his involvement in various scandals, from the rumor about John McCain's illegitimate black baby to the swiftboat rumors about John Kerry.

It's a thrilling who-didn't-do-it.

snap_pop_no_crackle 3 years, 2 months ago

"Dreams from my Father", the heartwarming story of an abusive alcoholic who abandoned his wife and child to get into a better graduate school before going on to die drunk on the highway.

Ceallach 3 years, 2 months ago

That sounds inspiring, snap, whatever became of the child?

Mel Briscoe 3 years, 2 months ago

LOL books?! over spring break?! LOL that's very very funny.....

labmonkey 3 years, 2 months ago

It is supposed to be nice this week....get their asses outside.

rando1965 3 years, 2 months ago

CAT IN THE HAT

classclown 3 years, 2 months ago

Would they read anything besides cheat codes to the latest video game?

somedude20 3 years, 2 months ago

Madonna's "Sex" book. The book has lots of pics for the dumb kids who can not read

dajudge 3 years, 2 months ago

The Captain from Castille or The Three Cornerd Hat, in spanish, of course.

wasawest 3 years, 2 months ago

Animal Farm... All my kids have or are going to read it. Looks like they are going to need the education from the looks of this forum. After that they are reading Common Sense. Yes my kids are able to read both of them on spring break...

cait48 3 years, 2 months ago

Common Sense? By Thomas Paine? Why Mr./Ms. West don't you realize that is just Godless thinking? Godless!!!!!!! Why, Texas dropped Thomas Jefferson's writings (other than the Declaration of Independence, that's "special") from it's curriculum!!! And Thomas Paine is worse, I tell you, Worse! He was one of them there Enlightenment thinkers who actually put it into common, easy to read language! No, no a thousand times No! We can't have our children growing up thinking our forefather's weren't Christian gentlemen who founded this country on Christian Ideals! That is just unthinkable!

rubyslipper 3 years, 2 months ago

I would recommend either Harry Potter series (for those who haven't read it) or the Percy Jackson series. Both are entertaining for kids and very creative!

cait48 3 years, 2 months ago

On a serious note, I applaud you for plugging the holes in the education of your children. It's ironic to think that when I was in high school Animal Farm was required reading. And by the way, labmonkey, you can read outside. My dad put up a little pup tent in our yard and it was one of my favorite places to go read when I got tired from running around, If they are middle school age I would recommend The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. But be careful. It recently got pulled from school shelves in Mississippi for having the word "vagina" in it.

somedude20 3 years, 2 months ago

read Irish's many zany blogs

meggers 3 years, 2 months ago

Going Rogue, by Sarah Palin

It probably wouldn't be challenging enough for children third grade or beyond, however.

meggers 3 years, 2 months ago

On a serious note, The Great Brain series, by John Dennis Fitzgerald is a good read.

SLOPOKE 3 years, 2 months ago

Book by Bill Wilson ! :)

snap_pop_no_crackle 3 years, 2 months ago

Speaking of the former Governor of Alaska… “Sarah Palin is Obama by proxy. …Palin’s admirers often marvel at how the charges leveled against her are far more applicable to the current President. People who voted for an undistinguished junior senator from Illinois with few accomplishments are quick to assault Palin’s “lack of experience.” The same folks who instruct us that Barack Obama is a physical paragon, and Michelle Obama is the most beautiful woman in the world – a goddess who causes fashion models to slink from her path in shame – belittle Palin for her good looks. Defenders of the most fabulously corrupt administration in modern history mumble about the murky details of obscure “scandals” manufactured by Alaskan bloggers. They turn away from the sad spectacle of a manifestly incompetent President to sneer that a woman who alters the course of legislative battles with blog posts is some kind of an idiot. They dismiss Going Rogue as “ghost written” while ignoring the specter of Bill Ayers plodding through Obama’s books, a sputtering bomb clutched in its skeletal fingers. A few lines scribbled on Palin’s palm glow more brightly in their imaginations than terabytes of data flowing across the screen of Obama’s teleprompter. They accuse Palin of being a “divisive” and “polarizing” figure, while Obama launches Taxi Driver rants against evil insurance companies, cops acting stupidly, tonsil-stealing doctors, and everyone else who crosses his path. I used to dismiss these contradictions as simply hypocrisy, but perhaps these people are angry at Palin because of her perceived similarities to Barack Obama, not in spite of them. They need someplace to ground the lightning of their frustration and disappointment, and they’re not allowed to be angry at Obama. They wear a set of rusty intellectual chains that require them to believe all criticism of Obama is racist, or paid for by his fat-cat arch-enemies. Accepting the notion that government power is morally superior to free enterprise, and a virtuous nation therefore has a very large government, requires belief in the masters of the State as titans of mind and spirit. How could a gigantic State be morally defensible, if its leaders aren’t supermen? If you find yourself suspecting the architect of the largest, most expensive government America has ever known might not be as smart or wise as you were led to believe last November, your entire world-view is threatened. ..” http://hotair.com/greenroom/archives/2010/03/12/obama-by-proxy/

SLOPOKE 3 years, 2 months ago

Book by Bill Wilson ! :)

vertigo 3 years, 2 months ago

Snap-

"A few lines scribbled on Palin’s palm glow more brightly in their imaginations than terabytes of data flowing across the screen of Obama’s teleprompter."

The reason "they" bring such things up is because she is constantly railing against the President for using a teleprompter while she writes on her hand. That's the hypocrisy. If you call the president out and then do it yourself expect to get called out on your hypocrisy.

SLOPOKE 3 years ago

Sorry it did"nt help, But at least you read it, and I'm sure it has'nt hurt you any..!!

vertigo 3 years, 2 months ago

Or how about when she calls for the firing of Rahm Emmanuel for using the word "retard" but Rush Limbaugh gets a pass by her. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/07/palin-considering-2012-ru_n_452602.html

Oh but wait... that was meant as satire. Isn't Family Guy satire as well? Why is ok for Rush Limbaugh to use "retard" as satire but not Family Guy? http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,586383,00.html

How about the hypocrisy of her stating that socialized health care is "downright evil" at the same time her grandson Trig is on socialized health care with the Indian Health Service and the Alaska Native Medical Center.

Yes Grandma is a millionaire thanks to her book deal, but the taxpayers get to pay for her grandson's health care. You would think that if you were a millionaire and that socialized medicine was " downright evil" that you would try to keep your family members away from such things... that is unless you're a hypocrite.

http://images.eonline.com/static/news/pdf/PlaygirlSubpoena.pdf (pages 8 and 9)

meggers 3 years, 2 months ago

snap,

That piece is one of the most incoherent, fantasy-laced tales I've ever had the displeasure of reading. The Palin nuts are pulling straws out of their straw men's arses! I suppose they can stir their tea with them, since they aren't good for much else. ;)

looza 3 years, 2 months ago

ESPN Fantasy Baseball 2010. Read the pitchers and catchers section. Most kids like that section.

GardenMomma 3 years, 2 months ago

The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan

The Warriors series by Erin Hunter

or better yet, get outside and PLAY!

punkrockmom 3 years, 2 months ago

I agree about the Percy Jackson books. Just don't see the movie.

tubs_of_love 3 years, 2 months ago

I'd have to agree about The Little Prince. Just re-read it and re-watched the movie from the 70's recently, I remember it being good when I was a child and surprisingly, it was just as good! Cute kid too!

BorderRuffian 3 years, 2 months ago

Again, why is it we think that if a child is simply playing, it is a bad and unproductive thing? Let the little rug rats have a bit of time for themselves that we idiot adults are not busy structuring. That's how imaginations are grown and stretched, and that is how stres is relieved.

Have you ever noticed how so much of Europe requires at least 4 weeks of vacation time for their workers? Why is it that USA is so driven that vacation time is kept so short? Ever wonder why it is that we Americans are so stressed and wound-up?

Let the kids relax over spring break. Giving them more to do, more to study, more to read, more structure is antithetical to the whole idea of 'break.'

A few of us adults might do better to reread our bibles and rediscover the idea of Sabbath. Break time is NOT wasted time!