Author: Dusty

Top 10 Children’s DVDs January 2017

Dusty

So good to have a movie to watch while we deal with Wellington’s crazy summer weather! kuboSometimes playing in the rain can be lots of fun if you have on your Wellies and a dry towel for afterwards. We
have some great books for those of you that enjoy jumping in puddles 🙂  but back to the movies…

Kubo and the two strings is looking awesome! This movie has stop motion sorcery, tiny puppets moved little bit by little bit to create movie magic. This tale of a young Samurai adventurer facing ice age 5mythic odds will keep you on the edge of your seats! Have you tried making a flip book or using stop motion to create a bit of film?  Let us know in the comments 🙂

  1. My little pony, friendship is magic.
  2. Octonauts.
  3. Zootopia
  4. BFGFireman Sam.
  5. Finding Dory
  6. Peter Rabbit.
  7. The BFG
  8. Ice age.
  9. Kubo and the two strings.
  10. Chuggington

 

 

 

Top 10 Children’s comics January 2017

Dusty

Plants vs Zombies has hit the Top 10!  If you like the comic do you like the game? Get the background on how the suburbs became the battleground for warring zombies and mutant plant life.

Have you discovered a new comic series in the holidays? Let us know your favourites in the comments =)

  1. Pokémon, by Hidenori Kusaka
  2. Big Nate, by Lincoln Peirce
  3. Peanuts series, by Charles M. Schulz
  4. Garfield series, by Mark Evanier, Cedric Michiels and created by Jim Davis
  5. Tintin series, by Hergé
  6. Asterix series, by Goscinny and Udzero
  7. Adventure Time, by Ryan North
  8. Amulet, by Kazu Kibuishi
  9. Plants vs Zombies, by Paul Tobin
  10. The Smurfs anthologies, by Peyo

 

 

 

Top 10 Children’s non-fiction January 2017

Dusty

Ocean dwelling creatures and literature make the grade this month.  The clever people at Te Papa can take you on a virtual journey to the deepest depths, the Abyssopelagic zone, this is even deeper than where they believe the colossal squid had it’s hunting grounds.
Anyone braved the sea out there this summer? Let us know in the comments if you found any cool sea creatures in your ocean exploring =)

  1. Minecraft annual 2017, by Stephanie Milton
  2. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, by Jack Thorne, John Tiffany and J. K. Rowling
  3. Minecraft : Redstone Handbook, by Nick Farwell
  4. Supershark and other creatures of the deep, by Derek Harvey
  5. The LEGO ideas book, by Daniel Lipkowitz
  6. Small scenes from a big galaxy, by Vesa Lehtimäki
  7. Minecraft hacks master builder, by Megan Miller
  8. Pokémon gotta catch ’em all, published by Scholastic
  9. Minecraft, by Matthew Needler and Phil Southam
  10. Picturepedia, edited by Ann Baggaley

Top 10 Children’s Fiction January 2017

Dusty

So it’s the holidays – who’s bored? and who is reading? Want to bring some of those tales into real life? Want something delicious to eat but it will totally disgust your younger/older, brother/sister/friend/cousin/relative staying over for the holidays? Well Roald Dahl (who I just learned to pronounce correctly, “Roo-aal”) invented snozzcumbers for his non-human eating giant, you may remember these from the movie! An edible version for humans can be found in Roald Dahl’s revolting recipes, page 12 =)

And what’s been really popular over the holidays…?

  1. Tom Gates series, by Liz Pichon
  2. Diary of a wimpy kid series, by Jeff Kinney
  3. Storey treehouse series, by Andy Griffiths
  4. Dork Diaries, by Rachel Renée Russell
  5. Harry Potter series, by J. K. Rowling
  6. The Secret Seven, by Enid Blyton
  7. Magnus Chase series, by Rick Riordan
  8. The BFG, by Roald Dahl
  9. Where’s Wally? by Martin Handford
  10. Ruby Redfort, by Lauren Child

Top 10 Children’s DVDs December 2016

Dusty

Its summer holidays! But we all know Wellington is tricksy when it comes to beaching weather, so having a couple of DVDs up your sleeve for a wet day is a good plan.

Movies and TV programmes with your favourite characters are a great way to fill in a few hours and inspire imaginative play. Do you have dress ups as your favourite characters?

 

bananas in pajamas1. Octonauts

2. Fireman Sam

3. Thomas and Friends

4. My Little Pony, friendship is magic

5. Peter Rabbit

6. Bananas in pyjamas

kidsblog27. Zootopia

8. Chuggington

9. Inside Out

10. The Angry Birds Movie

 

Top 10 children’s non-fiction for December 2016

Dusty

This month’s Top 10 has so many great books in it!  The new Annual a group of New Zealand writers, illustrators, musicians and poets have come together, sourced by Kate deGoldi and Kate Paris from Gecko Press.

Lego and Minecrafters have the virtual and real life block worlds covered and beautiful photos from Vesa  Lehtimäki show off the lego model world.

Maori myths and legends illustrator and author Peter Gossage, died this year, so it’s a fitting tribute that his books should still be so popular with younger readers.  His iconic images live on in the books he created.  His illustrations were also part of animated versions, here for your viewing pleasure.

 

Here’s your Top 10 for December: 

1. LEGO, by Daniel Lipkowitz

2. Hacks for Minecrafters, by Megan Miller

3. Harry Potter and the cursed child, by Jack Thorne, John Tiffany and J. K. Rowling

4. Minecraft : Redstone Handbook, by Nick Farwell

5. Star Wars character encyclopedia, by Simon Beecroft and Pablo Hidalgo

6. Minecraft. Construction Handbook, by Matthew Needler

7. Small scenes from a big galaxy, by Vesa  Lehtimaki

8. Pokemon gotta catch ’em all! published by Scholastic

9. Annual edited by Kate de Goldi and Susan Paris

10. Maui and other Maori legends, by Peter Gossage

 

Top 10 Children’s eBooks December 2016

Dusty

There no doubt in anyone’s mind that J. K. Rowling totally owns the December’s eBook Top 10.  The world of Harry Potter continues to inspire new readers, but also people love to re-read these books.  Re-visiting the books often reveals passages that were missed the first time round.  Or when you read a book at a different age you get new things out of the writing, and J. K. Rowling explores different aspects of her characters as the series expands through the school years.

But wait what is that at the end of the list? Squeaking in at the end… Thea Stilton.  The Thea sisters are out to solve the theft of a precious ring on a trip to Russia. A figure skating medal and a good reputation is at stake!

1.  Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, by J. K. Rowling

2.  Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, by J. K. Rowling

3.  Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, by J. K. Rowling

4.  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, by J. K. Rowling

5.  Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J. K. Rowling

6.  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by J. K. Rowling

7.  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J. K. Rowling

8.  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, by J. K. Rowling

9.  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, by J. K. Rowling

10.Thea Stilton and the Lost Letters, by Thea Stilton

Top 10 Children’s comics December 2016

Dusty

Summer is here! So it’s time to take a pile of comics, find a big shady tree and spend some time letting the gentle breezes turn the pages for you. What would you take with you? Pages of Pokémon? Will you giggle at Garfeild and Titter at Tintin? Some more serious adventuring with Amulet?

There are other really cool titles with great illustrations, we have new titles coming in all the time so come in for a browse or have a look with ComicPlus online.

If you use a tablet or other device you can download so you can read them when you’re you’re out of wifi range or stream them while you’re connected.

1. Pokemon, by Hidenori Kusaka and Satoshi Yamamoto

2. Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz

3. Garfield, by Mark Evanier and Jim Davis, Cedric Michiels

4. Big Nate, by Lincoln Peirce

5. Adventure time, by Ryan North and Chris Hastings

6. Tintin, by Herge

7. The Smurfs, by Peyo

8. Amulet, by Kazu Kibuishi

9. Asterix, by Goscinni and Udzero

10. Chi’s sweet home, by Kanata Konami

Top 10 Children’s fiction December 2016

Dusty

Alan MacDonald is in the Top 10 again with his Dirty Bertie series. Stuck for things to do in the holidays? Then this page was made for you (Dirty Bertie fans only!).

The Dirtie Bertie author honed his skills writing and performing for children in a travelling theatre troupe that visited schools.  Having an audience that threw paper at you when they were bored quickly showed him what kids like and dislike! Alan MacDonald has a page on his site dedicated to the drawings that children send him.  Do you have access to a scanner? We have one at the library if you don’t. You could send him a picture yourself !

1. Diary of a wimpy kid, by Jeff Kinney

2. Tom Gates series, by Liz Pichon

3. Storey Treehouse series, by Andy Griffiths

4. Where’s Wally? by Martin Handford

5. Dirty Bertie series, by Alan MacDonald

6. The Secret Seven series, by Enid Blyton

7. The BFG, by Roald Dahl

8. The enormous crocodile, by Roald Dahl

9. The world’s worst children, by David Walliams

10. Matilda, by Roald Dahl

Top 10 Childrens’ DVDs November 2016

Dusty

kidsblog1Animal adventurers find themselves in and out of trouble in a number of November’s favourite animations.  Is your favourite among them?

The Octonauts, topped the charts in November.  The underwater explorers show us loads of exciting submarine creatures.  Sometimes we get to see them on our door step.  Did anyone see the Orcas in Wellington Harbour the other day? Here’s a quick video someone took of one them at Matiu/ Somes Island.

kidsblog21. Octonauts

2. My little pony, friendship is magic

3. Zootopia

4. Bananas in pyjamas

5. Peter Rabbit

6. Fireman Sam

cover image7. Strawberry Shortcake

8. Thomas & friends

9. Inside out

10. Hotel Transylvania