Children's Books discussion

Here's a list of children's books to celebrate Groundhog Day:

1. Groundhog Weather School by Joan Holub (Putnam, Jan 1, 2010)
Hardcover picture book, humorous fiction
(includes facts pages)

2. Groundhog Day by Margaret McNamara
Early reader (Aladdin Ready-to-Read)

3. Groundhog Day! by Gail Gibbons
Picture book, NF

4. Fluffy Meets The Groundhog by Kate McMullan (Scholastic paperback)
Early reader, humorous fiction

5. The Groundhog Day Book of Facts and Fun by Wendie C. Old (Albert Whitman & Co.)
NF hardcover Picture book

6. Geoffrey Groundhog Predicts The Weather by Bruce Koscielniak
Picture book, fiction

7. Go To Sleep, Groundhog! by Judy Cox
Picture book, fiction

8. Substitute Groundhog by Pat Miller
Picture book, fiction

9. Groundhog Gets a Say by Pamela Curtis Swallow
Picture book

10. Groundhog Day (Rookie Read-About Holidays) by Michelle Aki Becker
NF Picture book

11. Ten Grumpy Groundhogs by Kathryn Heling. Scholastic, paperback, 2009

Please add any I've missed!

Thanks for the list. I am doing research on kids environmental literature to share with others. Take a look at my blog and share you comments:

wwwgreenmintnet.blogspot.com

Joan, what a fun idea for a list! I think I'll have to work a groundhog book into one of my library lessons in the next few weeks - sometime before Groundhog Day.

Just FYI, the last book on your list is actually called Ten Grouchy Groundhogs. I was trying to look it up and couldn't find it. It finally came up when I used just "groundhogs" and "heling" for my search. It sounds like even more fun now that I've read the description:

TEN GROUCHY GROUNDHOGS is a hilarious countdown story about a den of grouchy, grubby, gobbling, gabby, giggly, groovy, graceful, glitzy, gleeful, groggy groundhogs getting ready for their great big day.

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Edit: Oh, and to add a few to your list, my library also has:

* Wake Up, Groundhog! by Susan Korman
* Gregory's Shadow by Don Freeman
* Maurice Sendak's Little Bear: The Search for Spring by Else Holmelund Minarik

Claire! I dropped by your blog. Very useful info and I'm all for getting kids revved about protecting our environment. Thanks! I'm following.

Luann, Thank you for the additions and correction!
This looks very cute. I think I had The Grumpy Bunny on my mind when I was making the list. :o)

~ Joan Holub
Groundhog Weather School, Putnam 2010

Thanks for the list, Joan! BTW, I have your Groundhog Weather School and am looking forward to sharing it with my 2nd graders next week. It's lots of fun and a good addition to my holiday shelf. I have 3 of the groundhog books on your list as well. I'm going to try using the add book/author feature below--fingers crossed I can figure it out...
Joan Holub
Groundhog Weather School

I'm glad someone mentioned Ten Grouchy Groundhogs. There's an interview with the authors -- Kathryn Heling and Debbie Hembrook -- at:

http://patzietlowmiller.com/2010/01/0...

They talk about how the book came to be as well as their plans for celebrating Groundhog Day.


Pat Zietlow Miller

Pat wrote: "I'm glad someone mentioned Ten Grouchy Groundhogs. There's an interview with the authors -- Kathryn Heling and Debbie Hembrook..."

Thanks for sharing that, Pat! A very nice interview that makes me want to get a copy of the book even more than ever! I'm planning to do a library lesson on alliteration, so it sounds like it would fit in perfectly.

We just read the Caldecott Winner "The Big Snow." It is not actually about Groundhog Day, but on the last page a groundhog sees its shadow.

I'm a bit late but I want to second the recommendation for Go To Sleep, Groundhog! which I thought was an absolute delight!

An interview with Kristin Sorra, illustrator of Groundhog Weather School is at http://joanholub.blogspot.com/ (post date: January 2010) She was such a sweetie, but I didn't know the inside scoop on how she illustrated the book until this interview.

I also found another cool book called Animals in Winter by H. Bancroft for supplemental reading on Groundhog Day.

And Pat, I enjoyed your interview with Kathryn and Debbie! Thanks.

Just wanted to "revive" this thread for anyone looking for that groundhog shadow next week! ;-)

Kathryn wrote: "Just wanted to "revive" this thread for anyone looking for that groundhog shadow next week! ;-)"

Thank you, Kathryn. Great idea.

Good Groundhog books are rare. I just reviewed the charming new picture book Brownie Groundhog and the February Fox at http://booksofwonder.wordpress.com/20...

Happy Groundhog Day! As ever, my library had very few titles but I hope some of you found some good books to share with the kiddos--or enjoy yourself!

Abigail wrote: "Goodness! I completely forgot about Groundhog Day! And I understand that Punxsutawney Phil's prediction if for six more weeks of winter... Which, since we haven't had much of a winter yet, here in ..."

I agree. With a few wintery interruptions, it's pretty much felt like spring in Northern California for the past few months. We really need some rain and I woudld be fine with six weeks of snuggly, rainy winter weather--perfect to cuddle up with a good book and some hot tea :-)

Kathryn wrote: "We really need some rain and I woudld be fine with six weeks of snuggly, rainy winter weather--perfect to cuddle up with a good book and some hot tea :-) "

We're getting some on Tuesday, at least in San Francisco. Just in time for me to go to the laundromat. I'm feeling very selfish but I've been very happy with the dry weather. I'm all for snow in the Sierra without the rain down here. ;-)

Lisa wrote: "We're getting some on Tuesday, at least in San Francisco. Just in time for me to go to the laundromat. I'm feeling very selfish but I've been very happy with the dry weather. I'm all for snow in the Sierra without the rain down here. ;-) "

Bleh. Well, if I had to go out and do a lot of errands (or laundry!) in the rain, I wouldn't welcome it, either. But, I do love the rain when I can be at home, or go for a walk in the rain.

Laundry wouldn't be so bad if I knew I could park close to home when I came home with clean and dry clothes and towels, etc. I wear glasses and sandals so I don't even enjoy walks in it, but I used to like that. And my leak in my bedroom seems okay so rain when indoors is okay with me, yes. Reading or doing anything with rain outdoors can feel very cozy.

I just read (a bit late, I know) Gregory's Shadow by Don Freeman. Even though this isn't really a remarkable story otherwise, I would recommend this if you're looking for a Groundhog Day picture book as they are so few and far between. It's nowhere near the genius of Freeman's "Corduroy", but this book was also published posthumously so perhaps he hadn't the time to perfect it. In any case, it's a fun little story with a bit of adventure and a nice theme of friendship.

Add
Punxsutawney Phyllis by Hill, Susanna

Groundhog Day!
This is an excellent book and not what I was expecting. It's both a holiday book AND a science book. I didn't know most of this information! The first part is on the history of the holiday, going back to ancient times when people celebrated a spring festival in February. The groundhog day tradition goes back to immigrants to Pennsylvania who had a tradition of watching animals such as hedgehogs, bears and badgers.

This book ALSO goes into detail about the animal called groundhog or woodchuck. There's lots of great information in the text and illustrations. I'm familiar with the cute little garden pests! We had one at work we nicknamed after one of the buildings and he had a family out by the parking lot area. I doubt the gardeners thought he was cute but the rest of us enjoyed a glimpse of wildlife once in awhile.

Backmatter includes groundhog facts.

I highly recommend this to readers young and old.

QNPoohBear wrote: "Groundhog Day!
This is an excellent book and not what I was expecting. It's both a holiday book AND a science book. I didn't know most of this infor..."

Neat! I'll look for it.

Cheryl wrote: "QNPoohBear wrote: "Groundhog Day!Groundhog Day! by Gail Gibbons
This is an excellent book and not what I was expecting. It's both a holiday book AND a science book. I didn't know most of this infor..."

Neat! I'll look for it.."

Do! I picked it up off the shelf thinking it was a story about celebrating Groundhog Day Puxatawny Phil style but it's much more than that and I'm sad it was just sitting there in the holiday section and not on display. It's educational and informational in science and social studies.