BOOK MARKED
Happy Birthday to
Kathryn Lasky!
Each month, we celebrate a
birthday of literary significance.

“To Live on an Island”
by Emma Bland Smith
What’s it like to live on an island? It can
sometimes be hard, sometimes sweet and
sometimes quiet ... it just depends on the
day. In this colorful picture book, experience
what it’s like to be a child growing up on a
Pacific Northwest island. Ages 4-8.

“Seashells: More Than a Home”
by Melissa Stewart
This book is quite a gem for little natural-
ists who love seashells! Discover thirteen
seashells inside, including an introduction
to the most fascinating aspects of each shell.

Watercolor illustrations help bring these
shells to life and make it easy for readers to
feel like they are seeing these shells first-
hand. Ages 4-8.

“Fish Everywhere”
by Britta Teckentrup
This educational book explores the many
aspects of fish. From fresh water fish to
ones that live in the desert, there are fish all
around us. Little readers will learn where
these different types of fish can be found and
what makes each type particularly unique
and special! Ages 6-9.

Kathryn Lasky is a
Newbery Honor-winning
author who embraces
the genre of fantasy, but
also historical fiction.

She has written more
than 100 novels and
picture books for chil-
dren and young adults, including
the “Guardians of Ga’Hoole” fantasy
series and the “Wolves of the Beyond”
series. Some of her most popular titles
include “A Time for Courage,” “The
Night Witches,” “Beyond the Burning
Time” and “True North.”
Her latest series is “Bears of
the Ice,” which centers on polar
bears. Lasky told Scholastic that she
wrote these books to celebrate
their magnificence and because
she worries that one day they will be
extinct. On her website, Lasky describes
her career, calling herself a late
bloomer who really started to shine in
college, where she majored in English.

Her first job was at a fashion maga-
zine and later she became a teacher,
before settling into her true calling of
writing children’s books. ■
“Bummer in the Summer!”
by Dan Gutman
“A Christmas Carol” meets summer in this
fun and humorous children’s story. As A.J
is almost done with school, he dreams one
night about all the fun adventures he’s going
to have over break. But, his dreams suddenly
get interfered by three ghosts who appear in
order to show him summer’s past, present
and future. What will A.J learn? Ages 6-9.

“Stubby the Fearless Squid”
by Barbara Davis-Pyles
Intimidated by his new pen pal, who tells
extraordinary stories, Stubby the squid feels
the need to embellish his own stories to
make himself look more brave and interest-
ing. This, of course, ends up getting him in
trouble and he gets put in a bad situation.

Stubby soon learns the hard way about the
importance of accepting oneself in this fun
and cleverly told story. Ages 6-9. ■
WashingtonFAMILY.com 35