A Book of Sleep

A Book of Sleep

by Il Sung Na

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Book Description
With a spare, soothing text and beautifully rich and textured illustrations of a starry night, this is the perfect “book of sleep.” Join the owl on his moonlit journey as he watches all the other animals settle in for the night: some sleep standing up, while some sleep on the move! Some sleep peacefully alone, while others sleep all together, huddled close.

Il Sung Na makes his American debut with this gorgeous bedtime offering. While each animal rests in its own special way, little ones will also drift off to a cozy sleep.

About the Author
Originally from Korea, Il Sung Na studied illustration at Kingston University and now lives in London.

Childhood and Children in Early Christianity

Let the Little Children Come to Me: Childhood and Children in Early Christianity

by Cornelia B. Horn, John W. Martens

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Book Description
"With careful examination of the available evidence, the authors painstakingly sift through what can be known about children in early Christianity, and in doing so they offer new evaluations of old conclusions and significantly advance our understanding of this important topic for the social history of early Christianity." -- Carolyn Osiek, Charles Fischer Professor of New Testament, Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University

"This volume provides a wealth of detail about childhood, family structure, becoming an adult, and marriage in antiquity as well as renunciation of family ties in Christian asceticism. The authors pay careful attention to the impact of gender, class, and slave or free status on children's lives, and incorporate such unusual topics as toys, games, pets, and music. They argue that children from the beginning were welcome participants in all facets of Christian communal life. Clearly written and well-documented, this book is a valuable resource for students at all levels."

About the Author
Cornelia B. Horn, assistant professor of Early Christianity at Saint Louis University, is the author of Asceticism and Christological Controversy in Fifth-Century Palestine. John W. Martens is associate professor of theology at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and Director of the M.A. in Theology Program at Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity. He is the author of One God, One Law: Philo of Alexandria on the Mosaic and Greco-Roman Law.

Eight Keys

Eight Keys

by Suzanne LaFleur

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Book Description
Elise and Franklin have always been best friends. Elise has always lived in the big house with her loving Uncle and Aunt, because Elise's parents died when she was too young to remember them. There's always been a barn behind the house with eight locked doors on the second floor. When Elise and Franklin start middle school, things feel all wrong. Bullying. Not fitting in. Franklin suddenly seems babyish. Then, soon after her 12th birthday, Elise receives a mysterious key left for her by her father. A key that unlocks one of the eight doors upstairs in the bar . . .

About the Author
SUZANNE LAFLEUR received her MFA in writing for children from The New School. This is her second novel.

Llama Llama Home with Mama

Llama Llama Home with Mama

by Anna Dewdney

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Book Description
Ah-choo! Uh-oh, Llama Llama's nose is feeling tickly, his throat is feeling scratchy, and his head is feeling stuffy. Back to bed, no school today for Llama Llama! Instead, he's home with Mama. By lunchtime, though, he's beginning to feel a tiny bit better. But now someone else has the sneezes . . . Mama! And who will help her feel better? Why, Llama Llama, of course! Anna Dewdney's fun-to-read rhymes are sure to help children and their parents get through those under-the-weather days.

About the Author
Anna Dewdney (www.annadewdney.com) lives in southern Vermont.

Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf

Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff

by Jennifer L. Holm, Elicia Castaldi

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Book Description
Ginny has ten items on her big to-do list for seventh grade. None of them, however, include accidentally turning her hair pink. Or getting sent to detention for throwing frogs in class. Or losing the lead role in the ballet recital to her ex-best friend. Or the thousand other things that can go wrong between September and June. But it looks like it's shaping up to be that kind of a year! Here's the story of one girl's worst school year ever -- told completely through her stuff.

About the Author
Jenni Holm is the Newbery Honor-winning author of Our Only May Amelia, Penny from Heaven, Turtle in Paradise, and the BabyMouse graphic novel series. She lives in Northern California with her family.

The Enemy

The Enemy

by Davide Cali, Serge Bloch

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Book Description
In this moving picture book, award-winning collaborators Davide Cali and Serge Bloch present a fable for our time about two lonely soldiers facing each other across a barren battlefield. What each discovers, as the story unfolds, is that the enemy is not a faceless beast, but rather a real person with family, friends, and dreams.

Review
“Every morning I shoot at him. Then he shoots at me.” The words and pictures are minimal in this picture book, with just a short sentence and a small khaki-colored ink drawing on almost every white page. A uniformed soldier in a hole shoots an enemy in a hole on the opposite page. The soldier knows from the manual that “the enemy is not a human being,” that the enemy will kill families and pets, burn down forests, and poison water. The spare trench-warfare scenarios evoke World War I as the soldier crawls to the enemy’s hole and discovers their connections, including loving family photos and battle manuals filled with untruths. In eloquent contrast to the close-ups of the two small holes and barbed wire are the big double-page views of what the soldiers share: the starry night and the stormy sky. The elemental peace message will spark discussion. Add this to the core collection column, Peace Not War in the November 1 issue of Booklist. Grades 2-4. -- Hazel Rochman

About the Author
Davide Cali is the author of 12 illustrated books for adults and children, including I Can’t Wait (illustrated by Serge Bloch), which was an ALA Batchelder Honor Book and also received France’s Baobab Award for Best Children’s Book of the Year. He lives in Genoa, Italy.

Serge Bloch is an artist whose work appears regularly in The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, and The Los Angeles Times, He recently received a Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators, the ALA Batchelder Honor Award, and France’s Baobab Award for the book he created with Davide Cali, I Can’t Wait. He lives in New York, New York.

Uncle Bobby's Wedding

Uncle Bobby's Wedding

by Sarah S. Brannen

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Book Description
Bobby and Jamie are getting married, but Bobby’s niece Chloe is worried that she won’t be his favorite person anymore. Will Uncle Bobby still think she is special?

Sarah Brannen’s warm story is set in an alternative family as Uncle Bobby marries his boyfriend. Uncle Bobby’s Wedding embraces Bobby’s relationship with Jamie, but keeps its focus where it truly belongs: on an uncle and niece’s love for each other.

Beautifully told and charmingly illustrated, this simple yet moving story begs to be read time and again.

Review
"...story and pictures are gentle and serene rather than controversial." -- Jane Langton, Newbery Honor-winning author of The Fledgling

"I love it. It's a beautiful book that needs no explaining." -- Jacqueline Woodson, Newbery Honor-winning author of Show Way

"This is SUCH a lovely, charming book. It's about time." -- Tomie de Paola, Newbery Honor-winning author of 26 Fairmont Avenue

Winter Shadow

Winter Shadow

by Richard Knight, Richard Johnson

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Book Description
Maria lives with her grandfather in a small mountain village in the snowy north. One winter morning, she is on her way to school when she spots a small grey bundle lying under a tree, half-covered in the powdery snow - a wolf cub! Maria knows that she should leave the cub, but her curiosity and compassion are aroused. Will the cub still be there when she walks home? "Personal and Social Development: New to the Barefoot Young Fiction" series, this debut novel by Rochdale author Richard Knight explores key issues around the relationship between humans and animals, and between the individual and their community.

About the Author
Richard Knight has been a primary school teacher for over fifteen years. An avid outdoorsman, he particularly enjoys hiking and mountain climbing, and nature has always inspired his writing. Richard currently lives in England with his wife, their two children, their dog Barney and two guinea pigs. Richard Johnson lives in Lincolnshire. When he's not making pictures, he likes to fly kites and explore the woods where he lives. He is also fond of collecting strange and old toys, and hunting down interesting imagery on his travels. This is his first project with Barefoot Books.