Grace Lin has been one of our family's favorite authors/illustrators for a long time. And she continues to win a spot in our hearts. We are currently in the middle of reading Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. It isn't always easy to find books for family reading that appeal to a seven year old boy and a four year girl, but this is a good one. Filled with adventure, lively characters, and peppered with Lin's vibrant illustrations, we are hooked and look forward to reading a few more chapters each night. We are anxiously waiting and hoping that she will continue to produce more books in her series that started with The Year of the Dog. Those are also great family books, especially during Chinese New Year.
In addition to keeping her place in our hearts, Lin is now in our pockets. Picpocket Books is one of my new favorite apps for my I-touch. We started with Round As A Mooncake which is one of Camille's all-time favorite books. I have to admit that I was initially very skeptical and even a little leery about the whole idea of any type of digital book, but the Picpocket books are so easy to use, beautifully executed, great for new readers with the highlighted text, and perfect for traveling. I am already planning to upload some Picpocket books for our upcoming trip to Germany. Reading books on the I-touch will never replace reading in the traditional way (we are truly a family of bookworms!) but I have a feeling we will be loving our Picpocket books even more when standing in those long passport/security lines.
Have any good family reads to share? Or favorite I-touch apps? Or just want to share in the Grace Lin love?
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We love Grace Lin, too! Our favorite is Red is a Dragon.
BTW, I have been meaning to check the D'Aulaires Book of Greek Myths out of the library forever--and then your book link jarred my memory the other day. It turns out my daughter loves, loves this book and we read 70 pages at one sitting.
Love your blog!
as a fellow skeptic of electronic books, you've convinced me to at least go take a look at the app--i can definitely see how this would be useful on trips!
Nancy, nice to meet you! My son is also gobbling up D'Aulaires right now. Have you guys read or listened to any of the Story of the World ancient history stuff? She would probably like that, too.
Emily, give it a try. I'll be interested to hear your impression. I was pleasantly surprised by it and really think it is a good thing for family travelers, especially those with young kids.
Thanks for the recommendation I will have to check he books out!
I was also a big e-book skeptic, but for those of us who can't find English books easily/cheaply *and* for traveling, you really can't beat them. There are a few other e-book apps: Kindle, eReader, Barnes and Noble, and Stanza :)
Sheely and I really enjoyed The Year of the Dog :)
I love the iPod Touch in general. I am a huge NPR fan - addict really - and they have an app called Public Radio listener. It allows you to listen to your local station or stations from around the county LIVE. I love it. I have no idea if it works abroad...let me know if it does. You can search on the program name, or take a look at their showcased programs, or just listen to your favorite station. Of course Boggle and Scrabble are also favorite apps.
I don't know if you listen to /watch podcasts, but I have been listening to the now shuttered Gourmet's video podcasts. They are short, about 20 mins, and I just saw a great one on food of Turkey and one on Tasmania. Good stuff.
Our favorite read aloud of all time--The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate Di Camillo. Made an impression on all of us. She also has a new book called The Magicians Elephant-can't wait to read it!
Thanks for the I-touch and reading suggestions.
Michelle, I am hoping to try out the kindle app on the I-touch during our German trip. Do you have a Kindle or other specific reader? Everyone who has one seems to love it.
Jeanette, I MUST check out that NPR app today. One of the things we miss most is easy,constant access to NPR. We are big NPR junkies in major withdrawl! Will also check out Gourmet soon, too.
Stacy, we have the Edward Tulane book ready and waiting on our book shelf. Thanks for the reminder. We will start it after we finish the Moon Book. What are you reading lately?
I am reading The Help, and just finished The Book Thief. Sarah is reading To Kill a Mockingbird for school and I think I will reread it when she is finished. Happy Valentine's Day to the whole family!
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