Children's Bookshelf
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Max and Layla's epic adventure: The secret garden
By Dominic Presscott
A hidden garden, a trail of clues, and a race to uncover the truth. An unforgettable adventure in Central Park for children aged 8-12. The first book in an exciting new series! When Layla Thompson and her family discover a mysterious jar during a day in Central Park, it sets them on a thrilling quest to uncover a long-lost secret hidden within the park’s sprawling pathways, fountains, and landmarks. With her loyal golden retriever, Max, by her side, Layla follows cryptic clues that reveal fascinating pieces of Central Park’s history—and lead them closer to an incredible secret. But they’re not alone. A shadowy figure is always one step behind, watching, waiting, and determined to reach the truth first. As Layla pieces together the puzzle, she must rely on her curiosity, courage, and the unbreakable bond she shares with Max to solve the mystery before time runs out. Full of twists, turns, and heartwarming moments, it will keep readers guessing until the final page. Next book in the series is coming soon!

The Spectacular Life of Benito Martin Del Canto
By David Towner
I was pleasantly surprised by this story, it really stuck with me. I found myself thinking about it days after I had finished reading it. No doubt the hallmark of a great book! The story masterfully jumps back and forth between two storylines. One storyline is about a present-day girl named Taryn who is given an old book by her father, who bought it while in Spain. She starts reading the book and quickly becomes captivated with the amazing and wildly outrageous life of Benito Martin del Canto in the 1500s. This becomes the second storyline. The story within the book is set in the 1500s, follows a boy named Benito. At an early age Benito found great success working various jobs and sailing around the world on many ships. His adventures are outlandish and have people and other elements from history like William Shakespeare or King Phillip, all intertwined with fantastic elements like dragons or even friendly sharks. It’s interesting how the author combines history, fantasy, mystery and adventure all together in a wonderful way. Seamlessly intertwining the two storylines, blurring the lines between fact and fiction and most certainly leaving the reader wanting more. Meanwhile in the real world Taryn’s father is in the hospital, she regularly visits him and reads to him while he’s in a coma. On top of that she has to deal with a nosey teacher who believes this book is possibly a long-lost work of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, the author of Don Quixote. For younger readers, this book offers an enchanting adventure full of wonder. While with slightly older audiences it opens up interesting ideas about the power of storytelling, escapism and the roll literature can play in shaping us. I read it with the 10 year olds over the course of a few weeks, (it’s about 112 pages). We stopped a lot to point out the various historical accuracies and then would do a deep dive to learn more on that topic. They really enjoyed it and certainly learned a lot of things they might not have otherwise learned. If you’re looking for books in this genre, you’ll absolutely love this one!

The Book of Comparisons
By Clive Gifford
Perfect for young curious minds, this has become the most popular book on my third grade bookshelf! Those kids can’t get enough of these interesting facts and comparisons. The title says it all 👏 this book is loaded with interesting facts and unusual comparisons you might not have considered before… eg: It would take 84 electric eel shocks to power a 100watt lightbulb for just 1 second, or how many giraffes high is the tallest tree? I can hear the students repeating some of these facts to each other while they play, (which is exactly what you want in a book like this). The facts are just silly enough to excite the kids and keep them asking for more 👍 definitely one of my new favs, the illustrations are great and the educational value is amazing! Also makes for a funny read aloud and it’s guaranteed to teach you something new too.