Next Book Club Meeting!

Don't forget that our next meeting of the Ashburn Kids Book Club
will be Thursday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. We will be discussing the book,
"Mr. Popper's Penguins," by Richard and Florence Atwater. I've
got a fun activity planned and maybe we will discover that not
everything Mr. Popper believes about penguins is really true.

Mr. Popper's Penguins

I hope it has been fun for you to read Mr. Popper's Penguins! This entertaining book was published a long time ago, in 1938. That's sixty-nine years ago! The truly remarkable thing is that this book has NEVER been out-of-print since it was published. There are only a handful of books that can make this claim. It has been translated into over fourteen languages, even Braille!

I wonder, though, if you noticed anything in the book that seemed really different from the way it is today? For example, the Popper's rely on their radio to get important news. That's because they didn't have any televisions in 1938! And there was no such thing as a computer or the Internet! Do you think that's why people didn't even know what a penguin looked like?

What other differences or oddities did you notice in the book? Leave us a comment and share your ideas!

Author Phyllis Reynolds Naylor -- Live!

Readers! I just found out about a very neat opportunity! Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, the author of Shiloh, will present a program for ages 8 and up entitled "Shiloh and Other Stuff" this coming Friday, Nov. 16, at 7 p.m., in the Board Auditorium of the Fairfax County Government Center 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax. This program is being sponsored by the Fairfax County Library to celebrate National Children's Book Week, November 12-18. Books will be available for sale and signing. For details and to reserve a seat, call 703-324-8428 or e-mail libraryevents@fairfaxcounty.gov.

I hope some of you get the chance to go and see Ms. Naylor in person and get your Shiloh books signed. I've driven from Ashburn to the Fairfax Gov't Center several times. It's about a 30 minute drive. If you do go, please write a comment for our blog and share the event with all of us.