JUST FOR KIDS

The Tales of Beedle the Bard - Out today!

Since Warner Bros. delayed the release of the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince movie until July, 2009, (rats!) we can at least look forward to this little piece of Harry Potter’s World. The Tales of Beedle the Bard, the book Dumbledore gave Hermonie in his will, is available today! Don’t wait - if you want to a read a copy from the library, place that hold right now! The book has six tales in it: “The Wizard and the Hopping Pot,” “The Fountain of Fair Fortune,” “The Warlock’s Hairy Heart,” “Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump,” and the one we all remember, “The Tale of the Three Brothers.” It even includes some notes by Dumbledore. (sniff.)

FYI if you decide to buy it: From every sale of this book, Scholastic (the publisher) will give its net proceeds to the CHILDREN’S HIGH LEVEL GROUP, a charity cofounded in 2005 by J.K. Rowling and Baroness Nicholson. This group works to promote children’s rights and make their lives better. www.chlg.org Very nice.

Savvy

Mibs Beaumont is almost ready to turn thirteen and waiting to finally find out what her special talent is going to be. In Mibs’ family, turning 13 is more than just growing into your natural talents, like playing the violin or scoring soccer goals or being good at listening to other people’s troubles. In Mibs’ family turning thirteen means growing into your savvy. Mibs’ Great-aunt Jules could step back twenty minutes in time every time she sneezed. Her cousin Olive can melt ice with a single red-hot stare. Mibs’ can’t wait to figure out what she’ll get..but she’s kind of scared too. Because these talents, however magical, are also dangerous. Her savvy could be something cool, like x-ray vision. It could be something dangerous, like fire, or worse, something boring!

When Mibs’ Dad is in a terrible accident all she really wants is the savvy power of healing. She’s so sure that this is her destiny, she manages to highjack a bus in an attempt to get to the hospital and prove her talents before it’s too late. As if she isn’t in trouble enough, her brothers and the preacher’s kids are all stowaways! On the bus, Mibs’ savvy starts to show, and it isn’t at all what she had in mind! If Mibs’ can finally get the bus to the hospital, will her savvy make any difference at all?

This one is optioned for a movie by the same people who made the Narnia movies, Holes, The Bridge to Terabithia and Because of Winn-Dixie. If I could, I’d buy my ticket today.

• Read or Listen to Chapter One of Savvy
• Savvy Official Website
• Read Author Ingrid Law Interview