August 2010 Notable Toys — Books

Smelly Bill is back, and he's as smelly as ever ... but now he's in love! Can Bill win the affections of a perfectly preened pup without cleaning up his act? This book features the "return of a well-loved, funny and smelly dog,"Albert Whitman & Company Marketing Director Michelle F. Bayuk told TDmonthly.

Adam avoids accidents. Brianna is busy in the bathroom. Caleb is comfy and clean. Danny and his friends know twenty-six ways to be done with diapers. Rebecca O'Connell's familiar examples and Amanda Gulliver's bright, cheery art aim to help kids practice their potty knowledge and learn their letters, too.

Santa and Mrs. Claus must rush to find a home for a foundling kitten named Cookie. Santa would love to keep the kitten, but he's allergic, and there's a little girl out there with the perfect home. This book offers "A heartwarming peek behind the scenes at the North Pole," Albert Whitman & Company Marketing Director Michelle F. Bayuk told TDmonthly.

"My name is Buddy. I am a dog. I am also a detective." Dog lovers and mystery fans will be swept up in Dori Hillestad Butler’s appealing, easy-reading chapter books.

Young readers are introduced to the alphabet and corresponding animals at the same time. Wild Animals literally jump, slither, and fly off the page in this illustrated pop-up featuring 26 creatures hidden within the pages of the book. Antelope bursts through the letter A; Leopard lurches from behind L; Giraffe reaches its long neck over G; Koala peeks from behind K; and Penguin waddles out from behind P. The book also includes accompanying playful first-person text designed for reading aloud with a young child and photographs of each animal.

The Handstand Kids Cookbooks are fully-illustrated, international children's cookbooks that introduce children to the language, culture and cuisine of three different countries (Italy, Mexico and China) while encouraging healthy eating, community involvement and helping out in the kitchen. Each kit comes uniquely packaged with a cooking accessory. The Italian Cookbook is packaged in a pizza box with a chef's hat, the Mexican Cookbook comes in a tortilla bag with a child-sized oven mitt and Chinese Cookbook is packaged in a take-out box with a set of chopsticks.

Sabu & Me is the true story of Maura and her dog Sabu and the wonderful times they spent together during Maura’s early life. The book is a re-telling of her earliest memories with her best friend. Through a rainbow of colors, the illustrations of Hazel Mitchell bring the story of Sabu & Me to life. Since Sabu was a rescue dog, profits benefit the charity PAWS Chicago. "The book was written by a 7-year-old girl who had the idea not only to write the book but to donate the proceeds to an excellent cause due to her love for animals," Alton Road Publishing CEO Jeffrey Markowitz told TDmonthly.
Awards: 2010 Creative Child Magazine Children's Picture Book of the Year; 2010 The Toy Man Editor's Choice; 2010 The Toy Man Top 10 Products of the Quarter; The Toy Man 2010 Award for Excellence; 2010 Dr. Toy Best Summer Products.

These short mysteries have a clever twist — readers have to tap into their science wisdom to solve them. Each story, just one page long, tests readers' knowledge of earth, space, life, physical, chemical and general science. Written by a father/daughter team, this educational book is designed for anyone who loves engaging mysteries, challenging science or both. These "clever one-page stories turn curious kids into scientists," Science, Naturally! President Dia Michels told TDmonthly.
Awards: NAPPA Honors; 2008 Nattional Best Books Award Finalist; 2008 NSTA Recommends; Library Media Connection Editor's Choice

Who said a giant squid can't find the perfect job? Sid has scoured the ocean but now he gets a lead: go ashore! But how can a squid out of water find suitable work? Luckily he meets a girl named Alice, who helps him on his quest. Kids are encouraged to try many activities and pursue their dreams. Adults, who want a steady paycheck but yearn for personal fulfillment, will also identify with Sid's experience of trials, errors, and finally, success. This book is illustrated by a Dreamworks animator.

This book is designed to help children unlock the door to imagination and possibilities with easily readable text. Kids transform strange shapes into words and experience the adventure of reading. This 9" x 9" hardcover features 90 full-color pages. "Magic Words: Discovering the Adventure of Reading is designed to empower beginning readers with fun, predictable stories that encourage the decoding of simple words and reinforce sight word knowledge," Lightning Bug Learning President Julie Rebboah told TDmonthly. 
Awards: 2010 Reader's Favorite Finalist - Kindergarten Category

This reading adventure is designed to teach children the connection between letters and sounds. Predictable stories promote participation and sight word knowledge, and aim to give children the keys to the mysterious world of words. This 9" x 9" hardcover edition includes 136 full-color pages. "Magic Letters: The Keys to the World of Words was written by an experienced kindergarten teacher and sets beginning readers up for success with predictable stories that help children build a storehouse of sight words," Lightning Bug Learning President Julie Rebboah told TDmonthly.
Awards: 2010 Reader's Favorite Finalist - Kindergarten Category

With eye-catching interiors and playful activities, this open-ended sketchbook encourages would-be artists of all ages to look at the world around them and take chances expressing what they see.

This full-color, extensively illustrated 125-page visual guide reveals stories and moments from the first two seasons of the "Clone Wars" TV series New images, character poses and exotic worlds are included.
— This product is generally well-reviewed. As of August 2010, it had earned 4.5 out of 5 stars from 3 reviews on Amazon.com, and was available online for a price range of $13.59 to $19.99. PROS: Parents liked its ability to engage early readers, and thought the included glossary was a helpful addition.

This 42-page book lets kids build robots for several activities. Children can explore volcanoes, space and the human body, using the included guide to learn about each scene.

This comic book, designed to educate children about feelings, features the lovable Emotes characters.

Kids can count from one to ten with this musical group in "Knick Knack Paddy Whack," sung by children's performer SteveSongs.

From before "Toy Story" to beyond "Up!," this one-of-a-kind encyclopedia captures all the films, shorts, characters, history and information of Pixar Studios. Thousands of photographs and illustrations combine with behind-the-scenes information to form the  300-page Pixarpedia.

This photographic instruction book is full of tips, techniques and hundreds of designs to paint on fingernails. The book comes with six non-toxic, peel-off nail colors.
— “We do a lot of Klutz for the 10- to 12-year-old girl,” Jason Curtis of Funtopia Toys in Middletown, Calif., told TDmonthly in June 2010.
— Eight percent of 40 retailers cited Klutz books as a top seller for girls in early summer 2010.
— Mary Holmes from Go Bananas LLC in Ashburn, Va., told TDmonthly in a December 2011 survey that books from Klutz were her best seller in that category, selling about 12 each month. Two other retailers also named Klutz books as their best sellers.

In A Game of Thrones: The Board Game, three to five players take on the roles of the great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros as they vie for control of the Iron Throne through the use of diplomacy and warfare. Based on the best-selling "A Song of Ice and Fire" series of fantasy novels by George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones is an epic board game in which it will take more than military might to win. Through strategic planning, slick diplomacy, and clever card play, players must spread their influence over Westeros to finally claim the Iron Throne.

In A Heart Pumping Adventure, Merrin wonders about her father's eating habits and the condition of his heart. Suddenly, Merrin and Pearl find themselves riding on a red, pillowy donut-shaped boat, floating through his bloodstream. This book includes 23 pages of educational activities, 44 color stickers and an audio story CD.
— “It is, to be honest, one of the most interesting and engaging human body learning tools I’ve come across in a very long time,” declared Robin Rivers of Our Good Earth.  Exploring the set with her daughter, Robin was surprised at “how much she took to the story, the lessons (eat healthy to have a healthy body) and the educational content that at times was a bit beyond her 5-year-old level.”
— The reviewer at One Zillion Books listened to the CD with her kids and noticed “that there were a couple of vocabulary- and concept-heavy moments, but overall the fun mood carried throughout the 15+ minute audio story.” She rated the set eight out of ten because “The story and characters were easy to relate to and led well into the activity book focusing of human anatomy and healthy living” while remaining “neither dull nor scary.”

In Battle with the Bugs, the girls find themselves in their cousin Max’s body, witnessing firsthand the immune system in action. This book includes 23 pages of educational activities, 44 color stickers and an audio story CD.

In The Lucky Escape, Merrin and Pearl are magically catapulted into their baby brother’s digestive system to help him extract a penny he swallowed. This book includes 23 pages of educational activities, 44 color stickers and an audio story CD.

Compiled by distinguished conflict historian Dana Lombardy (Streets of Stralingrad), the Tide of Iron: Designer Series is a hardcover collection of 20 scenarios crafted by today's most famous wargame designers. Using the mechanics of the Tide of Iron base game, these design masters have crafted the first volume in one of the most exciting collections of wargaming history. A copy of Tide of Iron is required to play. Rick Nauertz, sales associate for Fantasy Flight Games, told TDmonthly, "The Tide of Iron: Designer Series is an incredible addition to the Tide of Iron base game, offering a whole new level of depth and historical context for players to enjoy." Features: Scenarios vary from short, fast-play skirmishes to massive tactical battles. Historical backgrounds and anecdotes for each scenario written by the scenario designer. Several scenarios incorporate the North Africa Days of the Fox Expansion. One epic scenario which requires two copies of Tide of Iron for a massive, multiplayer experience.

How Do You Read to A Rabbit? is a fun picture book that looks into one child's attempts at reading a book to thirteen different animals; from alligators, to bats, to kangaroos. Each animal poses a different challenge, but all ends well as we see the child finds someone to read to — his parents.