An Advance of the Next Calvin Coconut

A while back I posted about a new series I had found called Calvin Coconut. The series takes place in Hawaii and I liked it a lot. Saturday I was at my favorite book store, Cover to Cover on High Street in Columbus and I ran into my blogging friends Franki and Katie and of course owner Sally. We had some great conversations about the title in each other's stacks and then WOO HOO! Sally came out with a cart full of ARCs! We felt like we had found gold, I picked up a few and the conversations continued. At some point I mentioned the Calvin Coconut series and Sally went to her office and handed me an ARC of the next book in the series, Calvin Coconut: The Zippy Fix. YESS! SCORE!! JACKPOT!! (I'm doing a little happy dance here!) I couldn't wait to get home to read it. Here's the artwork for the cover and illustrator Jacqueline Rogers website. I'm happy to report that I like the second just as much as the first. Graham Salisbury is on to something here!

In this Calvin Coconut adventure, Calvin gets even with Stella, a high school girl that lives with his family, by putting a cat named Zippy on her pillow. Since Stella is highly allergic to cats her reaction causes her to miss going on a date. Even though Calvin gets in trouble, he is not without a conscience and begins to feel guilty. When he finds out that Stella's birthday is few days away he decides, with his mother's help, to buy her a CD of her favorite musician. The catch is that he doesn't have enough money. Calvin is determined to buy the CD and works odd jobs, collects pop cans for the refund, and selling shave ice from Uncle Scoop's Lucky Lunch truck at the beach. Through it all, Calvin deals with the bully Tito, learns the value of hard work and money, and feels better in the end when Stella absolutely loves his gift. In fact, she loves it so much that she invites Calvin and his little sister Darci into her room to listen to it.

As in the first book Graham Salisbury portrays Hawaiian children in a fun and informative way. The setting of the story is based on his childhood home and school and is completely realistic and authentic. I love that Calvin is not a perfect kid, just a normal kid that gets into some trouble but figures out a way to make things right in the end. I love the characters created, from Tito the bully to Mr. Purdy the ex-Army school teacher to Julio and Willy, Calvin's best friends. I love that Graham Salisbury has given us books set in a culture that is unfamiliar to most of us and I love that both books are well written.

Look for Calvin Coconut: The Zippy Fix next fall. Look for Calvin Coconut: Trouble Magnet NOW!

Katie, this one is headed your way next, I think your son will enjoy it!

Two New Early Reader Series

Last year we moved all of the series that are between a first grade an end of second grade reading level to a special section in the library. Since then, we have been watching the circulation to see if some of the titles need to be weeded out. Many of them are old and sort of dated and the kids just aren't reading them. Still popular are the Magic Tree House, Cam Jansen, Junie B. Jones, and Geronimo Stilton among others. Not so popular are The Secrets of Droon, the Olsen Twins and some Berenstein Bear chapter books. So I've been looking for some new series to replace them and I've found Roscoe Riley and Ivy and Bean two that have been flying off the shelves and have the kids, all ages, asking for more.

Recently I've found two more that I really like and have on order at Cover to Cover, my favorite bookstore.

The first is Andy Shane by Jennifer Richard Jacobson and there are four titles to date. Andy puts up with his friend Delores who is bossy and very smart. The most recent title is called Andy Shane is Not in Love. When a new girl moves into the class, Delores is hoping to get to be her assigned buddy, but instead Andy gets the call. Andy and Lark Alice Bell hit it off immediately and when Andy finds out Lark's dog has puppies, he wants one bad. The puppies are golden labs, and they are all Andy can think of, to the point that he writes LAB inside of a heart on his notebook. Delores thinks they are Lark's initials, and is very jealous. The chapters move along quickly and the vocabulary is perfect for first or early second graders. I've read two in the series and like both.
The second series only has one title out and the second is coming this summer but promises to be a lot of fun for kids. Calvin Coconut: Trouble Magnet takes place in Hawaii where the author Graham Salisbury grew up. Calvin and his friends are just regular kids living on the islands, but trouble seems to find them. They just happen to be across the street when an older bully character gets in trouble for shop lifting and Calvin can't keep his mouth shut about it so he becomes the target. Calvin's single mom agrees to allow her friend's daughter live with them, so Calvin has to give up his room and move to the storage room in the garage. Calvin's father is a singer who left the family after one hit song and legally changes their last name to Coconut. Lots of action and great characters, including an Army veteran who is Calvin's very cool teacher. I really like the multicultural themes in this book, especially when the new kid moves in and doesn't know anything about the local food like kimchi and shave ice. This book could easily serve as a jumping off point for some research into the Hawaiian culture. I can't wait for Calvin Coconut: The Zippy Fix this summer. I found this cool video with author Graham Salisbury addressing the children of Hawaii about his new books.