The annual Bookish Ball

This Saturday is Harvard Square's annual Bookish Ball, celebrating the neighborhood's many bookstores. Travel between the bookstores, enjoying events and special sales, getting your "passport" stamped at each location to enter a raffle at the end of the day. Curious George will be offering a 15% discount off the entire purchase of passport holders, with our weekly story-time taking place at noon.

Moon over the March Book Club

This Thursday at 5pm will be our third meeting of our monthly reading group. We'll be discussing this year's Newbery Medal winner, Moon Over Manifest, the debut historical fiction novel by Clare Vanderpool. You can still pick up a discounted copy in the store to read in time for the meeting, or come for the cookies, conversation, and choosing of our next month's book.

Looking for a reading group?

Curious George is starting a new monthly book club for adults and teens. The first meeting, at 5pm on January 13th, will be a discussion of books we love and books we would love to read. The group as a whole will decide what we read for the following months. All ages and reading experiences are welcome, but we will focus primarily on young adult literature. Curious George will discount each month's reading choice, which will also be available on our store's website.


Call us at 617-498-0062, e-mail blog@curiousg.com, or comment on the blog to sign up or get more information.

Event Wrap up: The Last Train

It was a busy weekend for Harvard Square: the square's centennial celebrations, the Harvard vs Yale game, and for our part of Folk Music Month, Gordon Titcomb and Wendell Minor signed copies of their new picture book, The Last Train.


Both author and illustrator talked about their creative process: Minor about his intense research into the train engineer, conductor, and fireman's life, as well as his hunt for train memorabilia; Titcomb told us how their book editor wanted him to add more verses to his song to meet a picture book's 32 page length. Fans of Titcomb's music were also pleased to hear the original song, especially when a friend with a mandolin (I wish I had caught his name!) joined the group. It was a great experience for kids and adults alike - maybe even more so for the adult music fans! We even had a few celebrities drop by! Anita Silvey, whose latest book, Henry Knox: Bookseller, Soldier, Patriot, was illustrated by Minor, signed a few of her books and posed for photographs with Minor, Titcomb and fans. I also caught up with the fabulously well informed and friendly Nan Sorenson, the fabulous assistant executive director of New England Independent Booksellers Association. All in all, it was a very fun, celebrity-packed, musical day here at Curious George!

During the holiday season we are halting author events and story time, but we will resume store events in January.

Little Pim and Doodlebug event wrap ups

October has been chock full of fun events so far!

On October 9th, we had a visit from Julia Pimsleur Levine, the creator of the early language learning series, Little Pim. She showed a few sample DVD episodes and answered parents' questions about raising young children to be multilingual. Rafael Medina, a local musician, performed songs in Spanish and English, and even got some singing help from the audience and Julia on songs from the Little Pim music CDs.

Julia emphasized that young children - toddlers and preschoolers - are the most impressionable and fastest to pick up languages. As we get older, learning a language becomes significantly more difficult (as many of us may remember from high school French classes). In addition to further developing the brain, being multilingual in our globalized culture can present more social and economic opportunities. From the planning of the event through describing Little Pim's goals and answering parents' questions, I was impressed with Julia's passion: this is a woman who discovered there weren't many resources available to teach young children foreign languages, and so simply developed the resources for herself and other parents to do so.
There are DVDs, music CDs, and flash cards available in French, Spanish, Chinese, among other languages.



A few weeks later, author and illustrator Karen Romano Young read an excerpt from her new middle grade graphic novel, Doodlebug: A Novel in Doodles. Kids and adults alike made a beeline for the mural paper and crayons. We saw some pretty amazing doodles!

My favorite part of Doodlebug is how Dodo, or "Doodlebug," uses her drawing: it helps her focus in school, it sorts out her thoughts and feelings about moving, homework, and her family, and best of all, drawing helps her learning. I found the resolution of the story very satisfying; Dodo's teachers and parents acknowledge that there are many ways to learn, and some kids do need to translate information visually. The best example I thought was how Dodo taught her younger sister about decimals using diagrams of a song playing on a iPod. Karen and I had a great conversation after the event about how the growing market of graphic novels is wonderful for "reluctant readers" or kids with learning disabilities - not only do these books offer an alternative way to interpret a story, they're also fun.

Our next author event will be on November 20th at noon: musician Gordon Titcomb will read from his new picture book, The Last Train. Bring your train whistles!

You can also come by the store the Saturday before Halloween, the 30th, for some creepy crafts and scary snacks during story-time at noon.

Guest blog post: Karen Romano Young

In preparation for our Doodlebug: A Novel in Doodles event with her later this month, author and illustrator Karen Romano Young has kindly volunteered to be a guest on our blog. Appropriately enough, she doodled her post...

Join us Sunday, October 17th at 1pm for an excerpt reading, book signing, and drawing activity. How do you doodle?

Doodlebug is a middle grade graphic novel. If your junior high kid likes to draw, or better yet, simply wants to learn to draw, this event is perfect for her/him!

Store event debrief: My Name Is Not Isabella

Our event with Jennifer Fosberry for her first picture book My Name Is Not Isabella went fabulously! We had multiple rounds of a few groups of families who each heard an impassioned reading (Fosberry stamps her feet and shakes her head at Isabella's every repetition of "My name is not Isabella!") and had great discussions about why Fosberry wrote this book. She has a daughter who loved to play pretend as a princess, and she wanted her daughter to have a book with more imaginative possibilities; as Fosberry says, "a life beyond the tiara."

Not only preschoolers will like this picture book: elementary schoolers through adults will, too: it's empowering and funny. I am so happy that there's a book like this out there now. Girls and boys (and men and women) need books like Isabella to remind them just how big they can dream. We still have some Dream Big! cards in the store, so when you come by to check out the book, be sure to share your dream and we can post it here on the blog.





In March, you can look for My Name Is Not Alexander, a corresponding book starring a young boy who also has a big imagination.

Thanks so much to Jennifer for coming out here! She's going to be an author to look out for. Thanks to everyone (especially Heidi and Kay) at Sourcebooks for their enthusiasm and help with planning this event. Because of all of you, and our great customers, we've completely sold out of the books! We'll be reordering and hope to have the author swing by to sign stock before she heads back to California.

It's better than the Panda Cam...

..It's Little Pim on the Today Show!

Little Pim, a series of DVDs, flashcards, and music for learning languages, was featured in an NBC Today Show segment entitled "Kids Get Ahead with Mandarin, Spanish," about the many developmental benefits of introducing multiple languages to young children.

We'll be hosting Little Pim's creator, Julia Pimsleur, next week on October 9th, at noon. Stop by for a question and answer session for parents, and enjoy some multicultural music and tasty treats.

Upcoming event: Little Pim at Curious George

Are you or do you want to raise your child to be multilingual?
Julia Pimsleur is the creator of Little Pim, a series of DVDs, flashcards, and music CDs for early language learning and development. She will show sample episodes and host a question and answer sessions for parents, with music, international treats, and coloring activities for kids.

Join us Saturday, October 9th, at 1pm. If possible, please comment or sign up in store.

Upcoming event: My Name Is Not Isabella

Have you ever wanted to be somebody else - somebody that mattered, somebody that made a difference? As Isabella goes through her day, she becomes great women who have made a mark on history, science, and everyday life, including Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman doctor, and the chemist Marie Curie.

Join us Sunday, October 3rd at 1pm for a reading of My Name Is Not Isabella by Jennifer Fosberry, and share your big dreams.

Check out the author's blog: Jennifer Fosberry: Unlike Any Other Berry.

Yay for Julia, Cecil, and Grandma's Gloves!

We had a blast on Saturday making flowers, sipping lemonade, and -- best of all -- hanging out with both Cecil Castellucci and Julia Denos, creators of Grandma's Gloves. Here's the lovely ladies reading from their picture book:

If you weren't able to make it to this very special event, well... I'm sorry you missed such a great time! Fortunately, you can live vicariously through Cecil's sweet book trailer and her recap. (Definitely see Julia's touching post about her grandmothers and their impact on her GG illustrations, too!) Then you can come in and get a signed Grandma's Gloves of your own if you hurry -- they're going fast.

While you're here, be sure to check out some of Cecil's YA books in the chapter book room: Rose Sees Red, Beige, and Boyproof. For even MORE Cecil, look in the short story section for Geektastic: Tales from the Nerd Herd, an anthology she edited with Holly Black.

T-minus 6 days and counting!

A reminder: This Saturday at 12pm we'll have a visit from author Cecil Castellucci and illustrator/CG alumna Julia Denos! They'll be reading and signing their brand-new picture book, Grandma's Gloves. Afterwards, we'll make paper flowers and sip lemonade.

Hope to see you there!

You're invited to a garden party!

I am so pleased to announce that our dear friend Julia Denos, illustrator extraordinaire and George alum, is coming to visit!

Her brand-new picture book, Grandma's Gloves, comes out on August 10. We're lucky enough to have both Julia AND author Cecil Castellucci as story time guests that Saturday, August 14 at 12pm! Ms. Castellucci and Julia will read and sign Grandma's Gloves; then we'll have a craft activity and refreshments. Stay tuned for more details.

If you're not yet familiar with Julia's work, I've gushed about it here several times before, so be sure to take a look at those posts (and her own amazing blog, The Cinnamon Rabbit) and prepare to be enchanted.

I'm also a huge fan of Cecil Castellucci's (and you should be, too!). She's the brilliant author of YA novels Boy Proof, Beige, The Queen of Cool, and the Plain Janes graphic novel series, as well as co-editor (with Holly Black) of the short story collection Geektastic: Tales from the Nerd Herd. Her characters range from "geektastic" in the best possible way to punk rock, but all of them feel like people you'd like to sit down for a coffee and a good chat -- or maybe some ice cream and a Star Wars marathon. Cecil herself seems like that kind of person from her writing and her blog, so I'm really excited to meet her! Natasha recently participated in a live video chat with her on Goodreads (and while you're viewing that, hop over to our store page and see what we're reading!).

Make sure to mark your calendar now, because this event is not to be missed.

Ready to learn monkey pose?

A reminder: Abbie Davies, founder of the My First Yoga program and author of My First Yoga: Animal Poses, will teach a yoga session and sign her book on Saturday at 12pm during our story time. Here's a little about the yoga curriculum Abbie's developed:

My First Yoga offers an engaging, exciting and innovative approach to youth’s yoga education. A series of age appropriate exercises and educational activities stretch both mind and body, providing students with the mental and physical tools necessary to lead healthy, balanced lives.

More info about the program, the My First Yoga email list, and an Animal Poses iPhone app are all available on the website!

See you Saturday!

Stretch like a giraffe, roar like a lion, and flap like a butterfly!

On Saturday, July 10, yoga instructor and author of My First Yoga: Animal Poses ABBIE DAVIES will lead a yoga workshop appropriate for toddlers/pre-K and up. Kids will use shapes inspired by animals to stretch and strengthen their bodies while they focus their minds. (Think she'll let us grown-ups join in?) She'll also sign copies of the book!

More information on Abbie and the My First Yoga program is available at www.myfirstyoga.com. From there you can learn about the yoga curriculum for kids Abbie developed, see upcoming classes for kids, find training workshops for adults interested in teaching My First Yoga classes, and even download an Animal Poses iPhone app!

(If you want to practice at home before or after the workshop, or if you'd like to have a pint-sized yoga mat for class, make sure to check out the WaiLana Little Yogis line upstairs!)

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

We're thrilled to announced the winners of this year's annual Art and Writing Contest (fanfare and ticker-tape, please!):

	ages 5-7 art
1st	Augie Oppenheimer	"The Dragons of Wayward Crescent"
2nd	Ben Pratt	"Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus"
3rd	Piper Larin	"Arthur Writes a Story"
HM	Julia Rasmussen	"The Old Meadow"
	ages 8-10 art
1st	Bennett Graff	"National Audubon Society Field Guide to Fishes of North America"
2nd	Valerie Dubinsky	"The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate"
3rd	Irene Wu	"If You Give a Pig a Pancake"
HM	Lena Rhie	"Yummers"
	ages 11-13 art
1st	Charlotte Holt	"The Hundred Dresses"
2nd	Kay Goodhart	"Indigo's Star"
3rd	Sara Mittelmeier Curtis	"Silent Pond"
HM	Abigail Dickson	"Highwire 66"
	ages 5-7 writing
1st	Pete Christensen	"The Monkeys are Scared"
2nd	Grace Valaskovic	"We Us Mittens"
3rd	Peter Loutzenhiser	"The Bear and the Hare Were Fighting Over a Pear"
HM	Kayla Bernard	"Jazz"
	ages 8-10 writing
1st	John Vernaglia	"Ode to Baseball"
2nd	Sam Wachman	"Dugongs"
3rd	Ben Ringler	"A Flock of Leaping Words"
HM	Eliza Broughton	"A Pilgrim's Diary"
HM	Lila Cardillo	"The Pre-Birthday Mystery"
HM	Gabriel Colburn	"The Unknown, the Mysteries, the Death"
	ages 11-13 writing
1st	Max Zegans	"Like a Rat"
2nd	Dasol Lee	"Peculiar Happenings"
3rd	Coby Gray	"Inheritance"
HM	Eva Koplow	"Reading Emily"

All the writing and artwork is posted on our separate contest-centric blog. See the winning entries here and congratulate the authors and artists!

Reminder: R.L. LaFevers and Kelly Murphy signing TOMORROW!

Tomorrow (that's Wednesday, May 19th), author R.L. LaFevers will be here to discuss and sign her Theodosia Throckmorton and Nathaniel Fludd, Beastologist books! A brand-new installment of each of these middle-grade fantasy series just came out (Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus and The Basilisk's Lair), so there's a new adventure for Egyptologists and Beastologists alike.

As if that weren't awesome enough, Kelly Murphy -- illustrator of the Nate Fludd books, Masterpiece, and many picture books -- will be here as well to draw and sign.

I'm so excited I might have to put my Eye of Horus tattoo on early!

Two great events for your little (and middle-grade) monkeys!

We have a busy, event-filled spring ahead of us, starting with one this Saturday!

LESLEA NEWMAN, author of Heather Has Two Mommies, has a new mommy-centric picture book out just in time for Mother's Day. She'll be here this Saturday, May 8th, at 12pm for an extra-special story time. She'll read and sign Just Like Mama and make Mother's Day cards with us! Show your mama (or mommy, or mother, or mum) you know no one loves you just the way she does -- and no one loves HER just like you do! -- with a signed copy of this sweet mother and child story and a handmade card.



As if that weren't fun enough, R.L. LaFEVERS will be here May 19th at 4pm to sign the third Theodosia Throckmorton installment, Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus, and the second Nathaniel Fludd Beastologist book, The Basilisk's Lair -- and all the previous Theodosia and Nathaniel Fludd books. Whether your interests run more toward Egyptology or beastology (or perhaps, brave soul, you're adventurous enough for both!), there'll be activities galore at this exciting evening event!

Tie a string around your finger...

...because time is running out to pick up vouchers for FREE TICKETS to Curious George LIVE!, coming to Tsongas Center in Lowell next weekend.

Don't worry, though; if you miss the freebies, we do have coupons for discounted tickets as well.

Here's your weekly reminder...

...to ask us for Curious George LIVE! ticket vouchers!

Just let us know you saw the offer on our blog and we'll give you a set of four vouchers so your whole family can attend a performance of this Curious George musical extravaganza at Tsongas Center. The shows are April 23, 24, and 25, so come in sooner rather than later!