Dragon's Library

Showing posts with label math. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Infinity and Me

Written by: Kate Hosford and Gabi Swiatkowska

First line: The night I got my new red shoes, I couldn't wait to wear them to school.

Why you should read this book: A little girl struggles to comprehend the concept of infinity, and after a day's worth of dizzying observations, finally come to understand the idea as the depth of her love for her grandmother. This is a really interesting and clever concept for a kids' book, very well executed, able to hold the attention of young readers with no math skills and only a tenuous grasp of finite concepts. The author's note at the end offers some interesting responses from little kids as to the meaning of infinity, and if you can, I highly recommend conducting your own research in this field, because the stuff you get when you ask five-year-olds to define "infinity" is priceless.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You don't love anyone, at least not that much.

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Friday, December 29, 2017

Good Riddance, 2017

Welcome to Dragon's Library's 10th Annual Year in Review!

As I take a moment to reflect back on my year in books, I can't help but think about how difficult 2017 was in general, and how much everyone seems to be looking forward to putting its misery behind us and harnessing the momentum of the New Year. I also can't help but notice that my reading habits are not that impressive (thank you very much, Netflix) and that I need to focus more of my overall energy on serious reading.

As always, this isn't an exhaustive list of everything I've read. I know I missed a dozen picture books, at least, and possibly some short middle grade novels, and I don't blog books that I've already blogged before, so favorite novels that I reread often aren't included in the count. Plus there's at least one book I read in ARC that won't be available until next year, so I'll blog it later. Single issue comic are not included in the count, only trade paperbacks (and one Gary Larson collection).

And now, Dragon's Library Year in Review:

Picture Books: 57
Middle Grade/YA: 21
Non-fiction: 2
Novels: 6
Graphic novels: 17
Short Story Collection: 1
Memoir: 2
Not easily categorized: 1

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Way Out in the Desert

Written by: Jennifer Ward

First line: Way out in the desert having fun in the sun lived a mother horned toad and her little toady one.

Why you should read this book: In rollicking rhyme and familiar meter, this book introduces small children to the ordinal numbers one through ten using the medium of creatures of the Sonoran Desert to illustrate concepts. Young readers enjoy the repetitive scheme, the drawings of happy mommy and baby animals, and the secret numbers hidden within the illustrations on each page, and will soon be chanting the words along with you. A wonderful, happy, crowd-pleasing children’s book with pretty pictures, bright colors, accessible language, and lots of details to examine on every page.

Why you shouldn’t read this book: You miss the safety and comfort of your mommy’s protection.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

The Number Devil

Written by: Hans Magnus Enzenberger

First line: Robert was tired of dreaming.

Why you should read this book: Plagued by day by a math teacher who assigns meaningless story problems about pretzels and at night by dreams that make him feel even more foolish, Robert learns to welcome the intrusion of the Number Devil, a quizzical creature with a magic writing implement who shows Robert that numbers are fascinating, useful, and meaningful. With diagrams and humor, this book illustrates for children advanced concepts such as infinity, factorials, combinatorics, square roots, prime numbers, Fibonacci sequences, and more. A joyful romp through the world of mathematics, perfect for burgeoning mathematicians, as well as those who are plagued by story problems and unimaginative math teachers.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You always knew the devil was lurking in your children's textbooks.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

Written by: Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.

First line: Anyone living in the United States in the early 1990s and paying even a whisper of attention to the nightly news or a daily paper could be forgiven for having been scared out of his skin.

Why you should read this book: While some of the most controversial conclusions in this book (e.g. legalizing abortion leads to a drop in crime) have been widely publicized, this entire study of popular beliefs and the actual data that disproves them is eye-opening and frankly fascinating. From a dissection of incentives, to comparisons of disparate groups (sumo wrestlers and public school teachers; real estate agents and the Ku Klux Klan) this book asks you to question your conclusions and examine your reality. When you can use numbers to prove that the most honorable people are cheating or that the most overinvolved parents aren't giving their children a whit of advantage, economics stops being boring and starts describing our world.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You don't want to know the truth if it means giving up your sacred cows.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

365 Penguins

Author: Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet

First line: On New Year's Day, at nine o-clock in the morning, a delivery man rang our doorbell.

Why you should read this book: An unknown person with a very strange sense of humor begins to send the family penguins, one every day, for an entire year. In all the craziness of a house full of penguins, young people probably won't even notice that they're actually getting a full lesson in multiplication as the penguins add up to larger and larger numbers. This is an adorable, engaging story with a satisfying, happy ending and an ecological message tacked on to a great math book.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You would have refused delivery.

FAQs

What's in Dragon's Library?

The intention was to create a record of every book that I read. I wish I'd had the idea about twenty-five years ago, but better late than never.

What's the deal with all those Amazon links?

Dragon's Library is a real, live Amazon affiliate site. Go ahead! Click those links. You can buy any book on this site (heck, you can buy any book in the world) directly from a trusted source. [Disclosure: I get 4% of the sales. Please buy a book and help support a struggling artist.]

How do you choose books?

Years of reading to elementary kids has given me a good sense of what kids respond to. I only review children's books if both my students and I enjoyed them. Otherwise, I favor speculative fiction, classic literature, and non-fiction books about science. However, I have been known to read just about anything.

Will you review my book (or a book I like, or a book I am publicizing)?

Yes. Yes, I will. I will review pretty much anything you send me, provided it does not suck. I do not review books I don't enjoy. If I like it well enough to finish it, it will appear on this site. Email me for further details.

Read to Your Dragonet

Studies show that children who regularly hear books read and see adults reading books have an easier time learning to read. If your children do not realize that books are fun and contain interesting ideas, they will be less motivated to learn how to read and write. Children who do not learn to read and write have difficulty succeeding in school and at life.

Even infants can enjoy books. You can check baby board books out of the library. Your baby will enjoy sitting on your lap as you read the words and point to the brightly colored pictures. If your baby wants to chew on the book, that's OK too.

Toddlers and pre-schoolers should understand how to hold a book (right side up) and how to turn the pages (left to right in English). Even if they're not ready to read, you can help your child prepare for school by teaching them how to talk about the stories they've heard. Pre-schoolers should be able to tell you something about character, setting, conflict, and resolution. After reading a story, prompt your child to tell you who the story was about, where it happened, what the problem was, and how it was solved.

If your grade-school child has difficulty learning to read, you can advocate for them. Your public school district is required to provide special help to kids with learning disabilities. If you suspect your child has dyslexia or some other difficulty in recognizing words, you may have to fight for your child's rights. Your child has the right to be tested by the district to determine the level of his or her disability, and your child has the right to a qualified specialist who can understand the best way for your child to learn. Some districts may be reluctant to pay for the extra help your child needs. Don't give up! Make sure your child gets the help he or she deserves. In America, every child has a right to an education.

You can learn more about children's books at the American Library Association website. Your public library is a great place to introduce your children to books. They will have special programs and incentives for kids of all ages to love reading. In most systems children are entitled to their own library cards from the time they are old enough to write their own names. It's a great way to teach responsibility as well as foster a lifelong love of learning and books.

If you can't get to the library, but you have an Internet connection, you can find many full-text books on-line. For adults, Project Gutenberg offers thousands of full-text books you can download for free.