Library Notes
Erika Kosin
Back to School Fun

During the summer months many kids avoid books that have school or teachers in the title, unless it is on their school summer reading list. Now that school is back in session, these same children want to read stories that revolve around the world they are currently in and can relate to, therefore gravitating to books that take place at school. Some of these books revolve around homework, pertain to a big test, include the wacky antics of some students, or even revolve around a holiday pageant. In the world of children’s literature many of the books have scenes that take place at school, including popular series such as Junie B. Jones and the Little House books. Here are a few available titles at Rowan Public Library that might interest upper elementary school kids that take place at school.

Almost Late to School and More School Poems by Carol Diggory Shields: A collection of 22 school related poems about various things such as giggle attacks, being late, detention, having to hold it, and participating in fund-raisers.

Framed by Gordon Korman: Griffin Bing is known to his friends as “the man with the plan”. In fact his plans have gotten them into a bit of trouble in the past. Now they are starting middle school and the new principal, Mr. Egan, is already weary of Griffin and his friends. When the schools treasured super bowl ring is replaced with Griffins retainer in the display case, Griffin finds that no one of authority will listen to him and sets out to prove his innocence only his plans keep getting him into more and more trouble.

Fourth-Grade Fuss by Johanna Hurwitz: Julio and his best-friend Lucas find fourth grade to be a lot of fun but are worried about the big fourth-grade test. Their teacher told them not to worry about the test until after the holiday break, but now that the standardized test is drawing near, it is time to hunker down and get serious. As they plot and plan ways to succeed on the test, using a pencil that has never written a wrong answer or wearing their underpants inside out, they find there are some things in life you just can’t plan for.

The Report Card by Andrew Clements: Fifth-grader Nora Rowley is a genius. She is so smart, that she has spent the last few years making sure she seemed average. After the fourth-grade standardized testing seemed to divide the students of her school, making those who scored high feel smarter and those who scored low feel like they were dumb, Nora knew she had do to something. By purposely getting all D’s on her report card, she will prove to everyone that grades do not matter, but will her secret be revealed in the process?

Preschoolers: Dream Big – Read

We had a wonderful Summer Reading Program at Rowan Public Library! The theme this year was “Dream Big-Read” and the staff had a lot of fun selecting books to share with three to five year-olds at the Moon Wisher program. When the staff thought of the concept of “Night” we thought of bedtime, a time of lullabies and bedtime stories. We also thought of dreams (including a child’s aspirations and a few other scary things). I would like to recap some of the great books that were used in our preschool story times this summer. Let us revel in the surprises of the night as we Dream Big – Read! with our children.

Your child is sure to enjoy Nathaniel Willy, Scared Silly, a fun folklore retold by Judith Mathews and Fay Robinson. When grandma says good-night and shuts Nathaniel Willy’s door there’s a terrible squeak. Nathaniel Willy is scared silly and believes he heard a ghost. Full of joyous rhyme and fun sound effects Grandma tries to comfort Willy by setting off a chain of noisy events as she runs to get the cat to comfort him.

“When I grow up what will I be?” is the theme of the book I Can Be Anything by Jerry Spinelli. A young boy’s hopes and dreams are infinite as he learns he can be anything from a dizzy-dance spinner to a silly-joke teller. This book serves as a great reminder that life is full of possibilities and you can be anything that you want to be when you grow up.

Sometimes one of the hardest things to do is to get your little one tucked into bed at the end of the day. In Dinosaur vs. Bedtime by Bob Shea little dinosaur faces the many challenges of the day and succeeds! Nothing can stop little dinosaur as he tackles the leaves, the slide, a bowl of spaghetti, talking grown-ups; that is until bedtime approaches. You’ll have to read the story to find out who will win, little dinosaur or bedtime.

When you think of monsters we tend to think of big, mean, and scary. But not all monsters are scary. In Big Green Monster Ed Emberley uses die-cut pages to reveal parts of a monster. This book is great to help aide a child control nighttime fears of monsters. Another fun monster book is Monster Musical Chairs by Stuart J. Murphy. This entertaining story is a great way for your child to practice his subtraction skills. As six monsters play a crazy game of musical chairs, readers learn to subtract one chair at a time and count the remaining monsters in the game.

In Sooey, South Dakota, on an itchy straw bed, loudmouth Little Runt can’t get to sleep in Bed Hogs by Kelly DiPucchio. Rose, the reigning beauty queen, has stinky feet, big sister Flo’s drools enough to fill a milkin’ pail, brother Ed shakes and jiggles when he dreams, mama dances in her sleep, and papa snores. It’s no wonder Little Runt can’t fall asleep! When Little Runt cleverly and inconspicuously kicks each member out of bed, he realizes he’s cold, scared, and lonely all by himself. Sometimes you don’t appreciate what you have until it is gone.

The book Can’t Sleep Without Sheep by Susanna Leonard Hill is a hilarious take on a familiar bedtime ritual. When a young girl named Ava has trouble falling asleep she always counts sheep. That is until one night the sheep admit that they are exhausted of jumping. The sheep send in replacements only to find out that horses are too pretty, chickens are too ridiculous, pigs are too slow, cows are a complete disaster, and buffalo are too chaotic. Ava learns that her sheep are irreplaceable and a little appreciation can go a long way.

Don’t forget all of these nighttime titles are available at Rowan Public Library!

“Red Brick, Black Mountain, White Clay,” a Meandering Memoir of North Carolina


By Pam Everhardt Bloom, August 3, 2012



“Red Brick, Black Mountain, White Clay” by Christopher Benfey tells an intriguing story of art and crafts, history, Black Mountain College and the North Carolina connections found in Benfey’s lineage. A family memoir, the author describes his title, “Red Brick, Black Mountain, White Clay,” as three different paths, “each mapping the experiences of relatives or ancestors of mine trying - by art, by travel, or by sheer survival - to find a foothold in the American South.” The journey won’t disappoint. From the red clay of the North Carolina Piedmont to the hidden white clay pits of the Cherokee and on to the creative world of Black Mountain College, Benfey weaves a fascinating and true story that will surprise with its twists and turns and uncanny parallels.



He definitely has a fascinating family. Benfey takes their stories and finds tangents to explore that meander through equally interesting connections. His maternal ancestors and their ties to the red clay of the Piedmont, the red brick mentioned in the title, become a natural extension for Jugtown and its pottery. Stories of another ancestor, Quaker explorer and naturalist William Bartram, link with accounts of the quest by colonial explorers for the snow white clay of the Cherokee; a new world clay that would hopefully reveal the secret of Chinese porcelain.



Benfey’s father, a Jewish refugee from Berlin, had an uncle and aunt named Josef and Anni Albers. These famed Bauhaus artists found refuge at Black Mountain College, an experimental school in the mountains of North Carolina, founded in 1933. Recommended by American architect Phillip Johnson, Josef and Anni Albers brought innovative ideas and cutting edge artists to Black Mountain. That list of artists and innovators included Buckminster Fuller, Willem de Kooning, Jacob Lawrence and Robert Rauschenberg to name only a few. The Albers were most influential in the field of modern art and had an amazing impact on American art.



While delightful on its own, “Red Brick, Black Mountain, White Clay” could easily be the catalyst needed to explore North Carolina arts, past and present. Additional selections at the library about Black Mountain include books such as “Black Mountain, An Exploration in Community” by Martin Duberman and “Fully Awake: Black Mountain College,” a film by Catherine Davis Zommer and Neeley House. For more about Jugtown and the Seagrove area and the Cherokee, find these titles and others; “The Traditional Potters of Seagrove, North Carolina and Surrounding Areas from the 1800’s to the Present” by Robert C. Lock, “Jugtown Pottery, History and Design” by Jean Crawford, “Arts and Crafts of the Cherokee” by Rodney L. Leftwich, “North Carolina Art Pottery, 1900 - 1960” by A. Everette James, “Turners and Burners, the Folk Potters of North Carolina” by Charles G. Zug III, “The Potters Eye, Art Tradition in North Carolina Pottery” by Mark Hewitt and Nancy Sweezy and “North Carolina Pottery, the Collection of the Mint Museums.”