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HPL Kids

The Kidzone has programs galore as well as books, movies, and other cool stuff. Read our blog below for more information and check out our upcoming events to get an idea of what's happening at the Kidzone! Our main phone number is 205.444.7830.

Recent Book Reviews

Horten's Incredible Illusions: Magic, Mystery & Another Very Strange Adventure
Lula Bell on Geekdom, Freakdom & the Challenges of Bad Hair
A Mutiny in Time
Starry River of the Sky
Pickle: The (Formerly) Anonymous Prank Club of Fountain Point Middle School
Iron Hearted Violet
Jake and Lily
Paris Pan Takes the Dare
Me and the Pumpkin Queen
Read All About It!
The Boy on Cinnamon Street
Nerd Camp
The Classroom
Smells Like Dog
Mission Unstoppable
On the Road to Mr. Mineo's
The Mark of Athena
A Whole Lot of Lucky
Alien on a Rampage
One for the Murphys

More of our favorite books on GoodReads »

Kidzone Blog

The Newest Multi-Platform Book Phenomenon

Now, I know that some of you are wondering just what exactly I mean by "multi-platform book phenomenon".  I'm referring to the current craze in tween literature where a series (1) publishes a new title every three months, (2) rotates writing responsibilities among popular authors, and (3) expands the experience through an online game.  The 39 Clues series established the trend; Spirit Animals continues it.  In the realm of Erdas, every child who comes of age must discover in they have a spirit animal bond, a rare link that conveys incredible power.  The first title, Wild Born by Brandon Mull (author of both the Fablehaven and Beyonders series), debuted today, September 10, 2013. 

Let's Learn #1

You're never too little to learn!  This four-week blog series is dedicated to all the toddlers and preschoolers who are eager for knowledge.  We'll start with an entire rainbow of books about COLORS.
Baby Bear Sees Blue by Ashley Wolff
Baby Shoes by Dashka Slater
A Beasty Story by Bill Martin, Jr.
Blue Goose by Nancy Tafuri
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin, Jr.
Brown: Seeing Brown All Around Us by Michael Dahl (part of series, book for each color)
Carlo Likes Colors by Jessica Spanyol
Cat's Colors by Jane Cabrera
Color Dance by Ann Jonas
The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt
Dog's Colorful Day: A Messy Story About Colors and Counting by Emma Dodd
Duckie's Rainbow by Frances Barry
Growing Colors by Bruce McMillan
Hello, Yellow! by Christianne C. Jones (part of series, one book for each color)
I Ain't Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont
I Know a Wee Piggy by Kim Norman
I Went Walking by Sue Williams
Kid Tea by Elizabeth Ficocelli
Mary Wore Her Red Dress, and Henry Wore His Green Sneakers by Merle Peek

The End of N.E.R.D.S.

I love a good acronym, a word formed from the first letters of each word in a phrase and pronounced as a separate word. 
NASA = National Aeronautical and Space Administration
ZIP code = Zone Improvement Plan
SHIELD = Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division

Yes, that last one is from the Avengers franchise, and it provides a very nice seque into the real subject of today's blog post -- the N.E.R.D.S. series by Michael Buckley.  NERDS stands for National Espionage, Rescue and Defense Society.  The members of this society use their talents and an array of gadgets to fight evil from a secret headquarters beneath their school.  The fifth and final book, Attack of the BULLIES, comes out today, September 3, 2013.  Did you notice it features another acronym?  Your observation skills are obviously off-the-chart!  Put them to use.  Find all of these titles on the shelves at Hoover Public Library.
1. N.E.R.D.S.: National Espionage, Rescue and Defense Society
2. M Is for Mama's Boy
3. The Cheerleaders of Doom
4. The Villain Virus
5. Attack of the BULLIES

Get Fired Up about Dragonbreath!

It should be an easy thing to do.  For one thing, the book series by Ursula Vernon is a traditional/comic book hybrid about a dragon at school with mere reptiles and amphibians.  For another, the title of the ninth and newest book is The Case of the Toxic Mutants.  Even if you've never before heard of Dragonbreath, I bet you're intrigued.  A quick look at the rest of the titles in the series (all available at Hoover Public Library) will definitely ignite your desire to find out what you've been missing.
1. Dragonbreath
2. Attack of the Ninja Frogs
3. Curse of the Were-wiener
4. Lair of the Bat Monster
5. No Such Thing as Ghosts
6. Revenge of the Horned Bunnies
7. When Fairies Go Bad
8. Nightmare of the Iguana
9. The Case of the Toxic Mutants
 

It's Reading Cats and Dogs #4

WARNING!  This is a list of Dog Tales.  And some of them are sad.  Yes, I'm talking about you, Old Yeller.  But all of them capture the joy that dogs bring to this world.
The 101 Dalmatians by Dodie Smith
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
Big Red by Jim Kjelgaard
Buddy by Kate Klimo
The Call of the Wild by Jack London
City of Dogs by Livi Michael
Dachshund Disaster by Tui T. Sutherland
A Dog and His Girl Mysteries: Play Dead by Jane B. Mason & Sarah Hines Stephens (#1)
A Dog Called Kitty by Bill Wallace
Dogboy by Christopher Russell (#1)
Dogs in the Dead of Night by Mary Pope Osborne
A Dog's Life: The Autobiography of a Stray by Ann M. Martin
Dogs of the Drowned City: The Storm by Dayna Lorentz (#1)
The Dogs of Winter by Bobie Pyron
Elvis and the Underdogs by Jenny Lee
Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes
The Good Dog by Avi

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