Aunt Severe and the Toy Thieves by Nick Garlick

Daniel gets more than he bargained for when he visits his Great-Aunt Emily. She’s grumpy and extremely severe because her fiance, the Colonel, has vanished into thin air. And it looks as though two evil toy thieves were responsible.

Soon Daniel is in hot pursuit. But he’s not alone. Along for the ride are his aunt, two clumsy ostriches, three even clumsier monkeys and a penguin who never stops talking. Not to mention a very, very sad pink crocodile.

Daniel is in for the ride of his life!

Sir Isaac Newtown was one of the greatest scientists who ever lived. But he didn’t have it easy; he survived plague, civil war and poverty to become a Professor of Mathematics at 26!  He went on to live an amazing life and make many important discoveries that changed science forever.

Awesome Adventures at the Smithsonian

This is the official guide to the Smithsonian Institution, which is not just one but a collection of museums mostly located in Washington D.C.  There are exhibitions on everything, from human flight (The National Air and Space Museum) to the origins of human life (  National Museum of Natural History.) While this would be a great book to take on a trip to the U.S.A, it’s really interesting to read in its own right.

ANZAC Day The New Zealand story : what it is and why it matters

This is an important book about New Zealand’s role in World War I. Although it does talk about Gallipoli, it also mentions other places that New Zealanders fought, such as the Western front.  The Maori and Pacific Island soldiers who fought are also discussed. The book also looks at what happened after the war; what life for the soldiers who came back was like, how the dead were memorialised and the first ANZAC day services.

Dogs: a very peculiar history

This is a great little book will tell you all about the history of dogs,  from the wild dogs that our ancestors domesticated to the pampered pooches of today’s top celebrities. Not only will this book tell you the history of dogs, it also explains their doggy behaviors and quirks.  Also included are stories about heroic dogs, fictional dogs and movie star dogs! Basically this is a great book for you canine lovers. However, if you’re more of a cat person, there’s also Cats: A very peculiar history. 

The Book of Blood

A lot less gruesome than its name suggests, this book will tell you everything you need or want to know about blood. As well as looking at the science of blood, this book also takes a look at what people in the past thought about blood (and how it worked) and how that changed over time.  There’s also some really interesting sections on bloodsuckers, from the real ones, like mosquitoes to the fictional, like vampires.  It’s a well written book with great pictures and lots of interesting information.

The Arab-Israeli conflict

The Arab-Israeli conflict is one of the most contentious issues of our time and sometimes it’s hard to know what to think. This book lays out the history of the conflict and how it’s shaped international relationships.

Medicine through the Ages: Modern, Renaissance, Medieval and Industrial Age

These are some really fantastic books about how medicine changed and developed over time.  They’re extremely informative, and filled with great (if gory!) illustrations.  They’re a bit more serious than books like the Horrible Histories, but they’re still very interesting and worth a read.

Kate Morrell used to have it all – fun, friends and family. But since her mum died three years ago, Kate can’t remember what it’s like to feel properly happy any more. A summer job at the local garden centre gives Kate a chance to re-discover the spark she once had – and arguing with her arrogant (but gorgeous) co-worker Simon makes her really come out of her shell! But then there’s an attack on the centre – and Kate begins to wonder if Simon knows more than he’s letting on…

Pea’s Book of Best Friends by Susie Day

 Meet eleven-year-old Pea and her definitely not ordinary life! When Pea’s dizzy but dazzling single mum becomes the super-selling author of the Mermaid Girls series, everything changes overnight. It’s time to leave their tiny flat in Tenby for a fancy house in London, and a whole new life! Pea likes the red front door, and the attic bedroom all to herself. She even likes her hideous school uniform, in a masochistic Malory Towers sort of way. But something is missing. There’s an empty chair beside her in every lesson, and no one seems to want to fill it. In the absence of volunteers, Pea is going to have to acquire a best friend.

Smells like Pirates by Suzanne Selfors

“Homer thought membership in L.O.S.T., the mysterious Society of Legends, Objects, Secrets, and Treasures, would help him find pirate Rumpold Smeller’s missing treasure. But when Homer’s enemy, Lorelei, forms an evil organization called FOUND, Homer and Dog face an impossible decision: Work with Lorelei to find the prize once and for all, or abandon their lifelong quest to locate the treasure”–Provided by publisher.

Itch by Simon Mayo

Meet Itch, a fourteen-year-old, accident-prone accidental hero. Science is his weapon. Elements are his gadgets. This is Alex Rider with Geek-Power! Itchingham Lofte — known as Itch — is fourteen, and loves science, especially chemistry. He’s also an element-hunter: he’s decided to collect all the elements in the periodic table. Which has some interesting and rather destructive results in his bedroom. Then, Itch makes a discovery. A new element, never seen before. At first no one believes him but soon, someone hears about the strange new rock and wants it for himself. And Itch is in serious danger…

Fawn by Margi McAllister

Kirsty Weaver loves watching a herd of deer in the hills behind her house. She discovers that a fawn has been left abandoned on the hill. She rescues him and coaxes him down from the hill and into a shed. As Kirsty battles to keep Fawn both safe and a secret, she realizes she can’t keep doing everything alone and has to decided whether she can trust Toby, the local farmer’s boy, with her secret.

About 40 kids and parents had fun playing instruments, singing, dancing and even using toys and puppets to music.

Check out our great pictures. We have lots of budding musicians in the making.

Thirteen-year-old exchange student Jenna has nabbed an appointment in New York’s coolest hair salon, but when her teacher insists she stay with the group at the boring Metropolitan Museum, she storms off and stumbles into what she thinks is a fancy-dress party. And it is a party. In ancient Egypt. 3500 years ago.

Once Jenna accepts she’s really travelled back in time, she realises she has to work out a way home – with only her big mouth, a smart phone and a pair of second-hand Marc Jacobs sandals to get her out alive.

Jenna’s attempts to bluff her way out of her precarious situation are often brave, sometimes ingenious and guaranteeably funny.

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Call the Ghost Club now on 555-SPOOK.

In the Haunted School, Angeline and Edgar have to go to their Senior School Sleepover, but Angeline is dreading having to talk to the other kids.

The night goes wrong when a ghost appears in the dormitory where they are camped out. Their classmates are terrified – and Principal Primm is not happy!

With the aid of Ghost Club, Angeline and Edgar must find out who the ghost is so they can help her. But first they have to convince their principal that kids can be ghost-catchers too, and they have to avoid Travis the bully, who is spying on them – causing trouble wherever they go.

Mother’s Day is this Sunday - May 12th, and I’m pretty sure Mum would love to be surprised with a yummy breakfast to start the day -this is a tradition for Mother’s Day in New Zealand along with giving cards and gifts.

Modern-day Mother’s day started in 1908 in West Virginia (USA) by a woman called Anna Jarvis. Previous attempts at getting a formal Mother’s Day celebration recognised in the 1800s had failed, but Anna was successful in having it recognised as an official holiday in the USA in 1914.

As this American holiday was adopted by other countries and cultures around the world, the date was changed to fit other celebrations that honor motherhood. That’s why different countries celebrate Mother’s Day on different dates. The second Sunday in May is when New Zealand celebrates Mother’s day, along with 81 other countries. Other popular days that countries celebrate Mother’s Day are March 8th, March 21st and the last Sunday in May.

Wikipedia has a great article about Mother’s day. Check it out for more info.

We also have some great books about Mother’s Day:

Want to make mum a present? Try these crafty books for some ideas:

Don’t forget the breakfast in bed! Here are some favourite cooking books for you to get some inspiration and recipes from:

Sue Keall from Victoria University did a wonderful talk on the the life cycle of the tuatara and talked about how we can help save this incredible animal. She then brought Spike out of his box and took him around so everyone could see him up close and touch his very soft skin. Spike was a champion – although he did get a bit wiggly at times. We loved having him visit.

Seussville is the home of everything Dr Seuss, from the Cat in the Hat, to Yertle the Turtle (my personal favourite).

Along with checking out all the Dr Seuss books, you can play games, download and print activity sheets, find out about all the many Dr Seuss characters and Dr Seuss himself (did you know his real name was Theodore Geisel?). There are even recipes, crafts and activities you can do at home.

This fun, noisy and interactive site is really worth checking out!

 What are some of your favourite author/book websites?

One thing you can do is name your books, and you can do this by using book plates. Book plates are a label that you stick inside the front cover of the book to tell people who it belongs to. There is a really cool website that has HEAPS of book plates that you can print off and stick in your books. Check out My Home Library – you’ll find small, medium and large book plates, and lots of them in colour. The coolest bit is that many of them have been designed by favourite and well-known illustrators (like Quentin Blake!).

Here are some of my favs:

There are even bookmarks you can print off. Have fun, but remember – don’t put book plates in our library books, only the ones you own at home.