The Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook

A Three Silly Chicks' Pick

The Secret Science Alliance
and the Copycat Crook

by Eleanor Davis

Bloomsbury USA

ISBN: 9781599901428

What is it?

A graphic novel about three science nerds who come together to get their geek on in the world's coolest clubhouse while pursuing villains in their spare time!

What we love about it?

The detailed diagrams, maps and invention specs made us swoon!

What does it remind us of?

The love child of Albert Einstein and Velma from Scooby Doo.

What is it perfect for?

Sharing with tween-age brainiacs, comic book fans, and anyone who appreciates a fun, fast-paced adventure.

What do we say about it?

When does the next installment come out? Give us more SSA!

Binky the Space Cat

A Three Silly Chicks' Pick

Binky the Space Cat

by Ashley Spires

Kids Can Press

ISBN: 978-1-55453-309-1

What is it?

A hard-cover graphic novel starring the comically triangle-headed Binky the Space Cat who is charged with two vital missions: to blast off into space and to save his humans from the evil alien fly creatures that buzz around the human's abode (especially near the litter box).

What we love about it?

We love Binky's can-do attitude and delusional dedication to his mission. The jokes are funny and the illustrations are filled with sass and attitude.

What does it remind us of?

Our favorite funny fat cats with attitude like Chester and Fat Cat.

What is it perfect for?

Astronauts. Cat lovers. And 7-9 year olds who want something silly to read just for fun.

What do we say about it?

Binky the Space cat is smart, sassy and best of all, VERY funny.

Something Silly!

Wouldn't it be wonderful if all kids' shows were this funny?

It's Elephant Appreciation Day!

Share these elephant jokes with your favorite silly person:

What's the difference between eating an elephant and eating peanut butter?
Elephants don't stick to the roof of your mouth.

What is large and gray and goes around and around in circles?
An elephant stuck in a revolving door.

Who's the most famous female singing elephant?
Elephants Gerald.

Why did the elephant cross the road?
To squash the chicken on the other side!
(Hey wait! Don't share that one!)

Sir Lofty & Sir Tubb

A Three Silly Chicks' Pick!

Sir Lofty & Sir Tubb

by Binette Schroeder

North South Books

ISBN: 978-0-7358-2251-1

What is it?

A classically elegant and beautifully illustrated tale of jealousy, greed, and friendship between two very different knights.

What do we love about it?

The quirky but gentle story is laced with tenderness. Kids will get a secret tickle at discovering the backstory which begins and ends on the inside covers. Best of all, we love the fanciful knights with their kitchen-colander armour and salt-shaker shapes.

What does it remind us of?
The old-fashioned and beautifully crafted picture books we savoured as kids.

What is it perfect for?

Rainy day reading in a cozy chair by the fire. (Teas and cookies NOT optional.)

What do we think?

Sir Lofty & Sir Tubb is a beautifully illustrated charmer with quiet, gentle humor.

Crazed Pirate Chicks... ARGH!

(Andrea, Fiona, Julia, Carolyn)

A huge THANK YOU to Angela and the wonderful peeps at 57th Street Books as well as all the sponsors of the 57th Street Children's Book Fair in Chicago for a great afternoon last Sunday. Not only did they let us take the stage and be silly pirate chicks with our special guest chiclet, Fiona, but they gave away our books for FREE to kids at the Fair. Oh, happy day!

Thanks also to Rick Kogan, who interviewed us on WGN Radio to help promote the Fair. You can listen to our interview here:



So now tell us who your favorite independent bookseller is. Curious chicks wanna know!

100% Pure Fake

Hey Chickadees and Chicadont's!

We're trying something new here at the Coop. A category of reviews we call Three Silly Chicks' Picks. It's all the same nutritious goodness of our usual reviews but organized by the most important questions we can think of. (Next to What's for breakfast? What's for lunch? and What's for dinner?) Our goal is to make our reviews even more useful to you fast-paced teachers, librarians, parents, and grandparents. Enjoy!!!


A Three Silly Chicks' Pick:

100% Pure Fake
By Lyn Thomas

Photos by Cheryl Powers
Illustrations by Boris Zaytsev
Kids Can Press
ISBN: 978-1-55453-290-2

What is it?
An easy-to follow guide to creating fake brains, snot, moles, puke & other wonderfully disgusting stuff.

What do we love about it?

The way the pictures of fake puke trigger our gag response. Yep, Folks, these are seriously sweet special effects.

What does it remind us of?
Halloween, B-movies, and our favorite uncles who know ALL the right sound effects and exactly when to use them.

What is it perfect for?
Any self-respecting fourth grader who is worth his (or her) weight in whoopie cushions.

What do we think?
100% Pure Fake is grody, gooey goodness!

We Love Librarians!

We love librarians. All kinds of librarians. Tall ones. Short ones. Ones that climb on rocks. Big ones. Small ones and even ones with chickenpox.

Oh, wait. That's hot dogs. Well, we do love hot dogs with relish, but we relish librarians much more. So, so much more!

We were very excited that the American Library Association is asking everyone to vote for their favorite librarians! (It can lead to possible awards and cash rewards for the winners.) So please think about your favorite public librarian or school library media specialist or college/university librarian. And VOTE!!!!

Firefighter Ted

Firefighter Ted
by Andrea Beaty
Illustrated by Pascal Lemaitre
Margaret K. McElderry
Ages 4-8

ISBN: 978-141692829

At last, it's here! The sequel to Doctor Ted is out! Oh Ted is back an you know what that means. Fun! And trouble. But mostly FUN!!! Here's what happens . . .

One morning, Ted wakes up, sniffs the air and smells burnt toast. He needs a firefighter. Ted looks everywhere, but since firefighters are scarce in Ted's room, he becomes one.


Equipped with a can of whip-cream & and fish tank hose, Ted creates a fire extinguisher and saves his mother from a toast disaster in the making! "Remember," says Firefighter Ted, "Only you can prevent breakfast fires."

Those are words to live by!

Firefighter Ted braves a hot sidewalk to rescue a kitten, two puppies and three tricycles. His bravery leaves the crowd speechless.



At school, Firefighter Ted is a true hero. He rescues Principal Bigham and saves the school from a host of dangers lurking at the science fair.

We won't say what happens, but it does involve a magnifying glass, a pair of scissors and underwear with hearts on them. 'Nuff said.

Please Join Us

It was on this day in 1966 that The Road Runner premiered. So, at exactly 3:39 pm, we are asking everyone to say "meep meep" in honor of this highly momentous moment in showbiz history.

Think of it. All over the world, people pausing during their busy day to pay homage to the show that put Acme Corporation on the map.

So meep with us people! But please, refrain from shoving anvils off of cliffs. It's just not safe.

It's National Chicken Month!

Flap your wings and strut your stuff! It's National Chicken Month, Peeps! Here are just a few ways to celebrate:

1) Spend one whole day clucking instead of talking. Think how annoying this could be!

Boss: Do you have that report finished yet?

You: Cluck?

Boss: What's that supposed to mean?

You: Cluck, cluck, cluck.

Boss: I need it by noon!

You: CLUCK!

And on and on.

A less daring way to celebrate National Chicken Month might be to play The Chicken Dance song while eating an egg salad sandwich, or hey, read a chicken book! Need some suggestions? Okay, here you go!

Henry and the Crazed Chicken Pirates
by Carolyn Crimi
illustrated by John Manders
Another adventure about our favorite reluctant pirate, Henry, by our own awesome chick, Carolyn!!!!

And these wonderful chicken books we've recently reviewed.
Chicken Butt
by Erica Perl
illustrated by Henry Cole

Chicken Cheeks
by Michael Ian Black
illustrated by Kevin Hawkes

The Cow That Laid an Egg
by Andy Cutbill
illustrated by Russel Ayto

What are your favorite Chicken Books?

We're Back!

The Chicks are back and ready for the new school year! In addition to nice, shiny school supplies, our backpacks are loaded with fabulous new books and other silly stuff to share with you in the months ahead. And we're starting things off with a bang!


Need a new totebag to schlep around your favorite snacks? Need some new books to read while you munch on those snacks? We thought so! That's why we're giving away a fabulous Three Silly Chicks totebag filled with our latest books! All you have to do is become a Three Silly Chicks fan on Facebook and leave a comment by 9:00 am on Saturday, Sept. 19th. A random winner will be chosen from all comments. What could be easier?

But what's that we hear some of you muttering?

Dahlings, I absolutely loathe social networking; must I really join FaceBook to have some Three Silly Chicks fun?

Heck no! Just tune your radio dial to WGN this Sunday (9/13) at 7:30 am to hear our dulcet bockings as we visit with Chicago's finest, funniest journalist Rick Kogan.



But chicks, you insist, what if I want to bask in your feathered glory and join you for a round or two of the Chicken Dance?

No problemo, we've got you covered! Come join us at the 57th Street Book Fair in Chicago this Sunday afternoon (9/13). We'll be on stage at 1:30 and signing books at 2:00. Come cut a rug with us! Whisper the secret password* in our ear and we'll give you a silly treat!

Now that's more like it. But how shall I pass the long hours in the meantime?

Check out this new blog called Hit the Ground Running, a treasure trove of tips and inspiration for "new and high-spirited" educators written by Esmé Raji Codell, one of our favorite chicks on the planet!


Happy reading, friends! We're glad to be back!

* Eggs Benedict. Shhh, it's a secret!

Going Fishin'

Well, we don't know how it happened, but August has rolled around yet again and we Silly Chicks find ourselves ready to fly the coop for just a bit.

We hate to leave you, but we heard about a wonderful new spa that offers bean dip facials and guacamole wraps and thought we should check it out. Though now that we think about it, we're not sure if the guacamole wraps are for lunch or our thighs. Either way, they sound deeeelish. We'll be back after school starts with lots of new reviews, interviews, and other fun stuff including our new Chicks' Picks reviews.

Before we leave, we want to mention a fantastic campaign from one of our favorite organizations, First Book. First Book wants to get a book into the hands of every kid in America. What could be better than that? Their new campaign is called, "What Book Got You Hooked?" Chick it out today and help kids get reading!

Of course, we can't leave you without letting you know about our brand-spanking new books! All of us have new titles this August. We hope enjoy reading them as much as we enjoyed writing them!

For adventure seekers, there's Julia's amazing novel, Sea of the Dead.

Sea of the Dead
by Julia Durango
Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
ISBN-13: 9781416957782

Full of high-seas adventure and excitement, Sea of the Dead is the story of Kehl who is the son of the Warrior Prince. Kehl hates pirates who, according to his father, were responsible for his mother's death. When he is kidnapped by the Pirate King, Kehl begins to question what his father had told him, and realizes his past is linked to the future of the new world he's mapping.

It's exciting! It's adventurous! It's simply FANTASTIC!!!!

And if you need more pirate action, you can turn to Carolyn's newest . . .

Henry and the Crazed Chicken Pirates
by Carolyn Crimi
Illustrated by John Manders
Candlewick Press ISBN-13: 9780763636012

It's got pirates. It's got chickens. It's got Pirate Chickens. And they're crazed!!! What more could you ask?

.

Hush, Baby Ghostling

by Andrea Beaty

Illustrated by Pascal Lemaitre
Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
ISBN-13: 9781416925453

After battling so many pirates, you're kids (and you) will be plum tuckered out. Time for a bedtime book.

Mama Ghost is trying to get her baby ghostling to sleep. Of course, that's easier said than done when there are spooky noises in the room, Mr. Skeleton goes missing, and the light is so scary. But don't worry, Mama Ghost is there to make things right!

Happy Fishing, everybody! Hope you enjoy the rest of your summer and we'll catch you on the flip side!!!!

Fun and Games at ALA & FB

As you can see, the chicks had a BLAST at this year's American Library Assocation annual conference. We think Andrea looks like a natural with that heavy blaster rifle, and Julia and Carolyn have decided to attend all future conferences as a Gamorrean guard and Sandtrooper, respectively.

We loved seeing old friends and meeting new ones, and we've brought back armloads of funny books to share with you in the months ahead. We also met some incredibly fun and charming authors (like him and her) who graciously agreed to visit the coop and answer silly questions for us in the future. Be sure to check back often, or better yet, subscribe.

And in other news, you can now see our smiling beaks over at Facebook. We'd love to see you there!

Bea Rocks the Flock

Bea Rocks the Flock
by Victoria Jamieson
Bloomsbury USA
ISBN: 978-1599902609

Poor Bea has a problem. And although she is a sheep, we chicks can totally relate. You see, Bea doesn't want to be like the other sheep. She wants to bleach her hair and wear black leather jumpsuits and be a rock star like Blondie. Oh wait. Nevermind. That's our dream, not Bea's. But still, Bea just wants to do her own thing and show her true colors, which are anything but white. As you might imagine, this doesn't go down well with the rest of the flock. Not one bit. So Bea packs her bags and heads for the big city, where she delights in the diversity of the crowd. "Great clanging cowbells!" she exclaims. "This is where I belong!"

...Or does she? Will Bea become a city girl forever or will she start to miss her flock? Check out this delightful book by the ultra-talented Victoria Jamieson to find out how Bea eventually resolves her identity crisis. A must-read for creative chicks and sheep everywhere who wonder if they'll ever fit in.

Tumtum and Nutmeg

Tumtum & Nutmeg: Adventures Beyond Nutmouse Hall
Written by Emily Bearn, illustrated by Nick Price
Little, Brown and Company

While we hold chickens near and dear to our hearts, we also have a special fondness for mice. Okay, not real mice that scamper around our feet and make nests in our basements and leave droppings in our silverware drawers. No, not those mice. Storybook mice, like Stuart Little and Despereaux. We like our mice dressed up in little suits and drinking tea, and we just wish that the ones leaving droppings in our silverware drawer would at least leave us cute handwritten notes or perhaps a pair of tiny hand stitched gloves, or something.

We suspect that many children have the same fondness for storybook mice that we do, or else why would mice books be so darned popular? And this particular book, with its British tone, old-fashioned pen and ink drawings, and high adventure is bound to be one of the more popular ones. Poor Tumtum and Nutmeg are quiet mice, and yet they never get a moment of peace in this funny middle-grade novel. They are either battling spinster aunts, fighting pirate rats or freeing wild gerbils. And while the two main characters are endearing, the real star of the show is General Marchmouse, a foolish, impetuous chap who spends most of his time in his underwear. We love, especially, the scene in which his army of mice, dressed in fluorescent orange, battle against the evil, mouse-fearing Aunt Ivy. It was one of the funniest scenes we've read in quite a while.

This is a book to be shared with a classroom of children one chapter at a time. Fans of The Poppy series by Avi and The Redwall series by Brian Jacques will gobble up this series, too. Fast-paced and funny, this book has it all!

In the Coop with Adam Rubin

Those Darn Squirrels!
by Adam Rubin
Illustrated by Daniel Salmieri
Clarion Books
ISBN: 978-0-547-00703-8

We Three Silly Chicks have a confession to make. Yes, we are silly. We are also friendly and kind and fluffy and yellow. But sometimes, we get grumpy. Wait. That's not the confession. Everyone gets grumpy. The confession is that we enjoy it! It feels good to get cranky. In fact, sometimes we put on our house frocks, roll our feathers in curlers and don on our rattiest slippers and practice saying things like "Get off our coop!" and "You come back here and we'll tell you what we really think!" just because it feels so good. Then, we eat some dry toast and prunes after which we find the mood (among other things) passes.

So imagine our delight at meeting Old Man Fookwire, the main character in Adam Rubin's delightful picture book, Those Darn Squirrels! First of all, we love his name. But even more, we love that he is a cranky, curmudgeonly, crusty old geezer! He's so old he sneezes dust. He hates pie and he hates puppies. However, he loves birds and spends his summers painting pictures of them.

Enter the squirrels. Those darn squirrels also love birds. Well, more acurately, they love bird seed and they are ingenious at getting it. What follows is a battle of wits between the crusty Old Man Fookwire and the Einsteins of the wild kingdom. Our money is on the squirrels.

Illustrated with a funky, playful style, this book is refreshingly offbeat and truly funny. In fact, we loved it so much, we wanted to know more about the author. So we invited him into the coop which made us very happy (and not the least bit cranky)!

Here's what Adam had to say.

The main character of your book, Old Man Fookwire, hated pies and hated puppies. How would he feel about puppy pie?

I imagine he would double hate it.

How do you know when what you write is funny??
I guess I’m never sure that what I write is funny until other people tell me so. I write what I think is amusing or fun and then hope that other people share a similar sense of humor.

Do you have any tips for writing funny books?
I got a good piece of advice from Larry Day. He said, “Create things that you like. If you worry about pleasing other people, you’ll always be disappointed.”

Has being funny ever gotten you into or out of trouble?
I used to carry a clown nose in my pocket. I also stuck a small piece of red felt onto the nose of my driver’s license picture. When people asked to see my ID, I would put on the clown nose while they looked down at the picture. They would wonder what the red felt was all about, then look up at my face and burst out laughing. It got me out of a speeding ticket twice.

What are some of your favorite funny books?????

The Far Side collections were extremely influential to my sense of humor as a kid. I think Gary Larson is a genius. I also love Calvin and Hobbes, there is a magnificent sense of wonder and imagination throughout all of Bill Watterson’s work. I’m also a fan of Dave Eggers’ Haggis on Whey series.

Do you prefer The Marx Bros or Three Stooges?

I’m more of a Buster Keaton guy but given the choice, I’ll go with the Marx Brothers.

What was your best Halloween costume ever?

In sixth grade, our math teacher held a “Mathquerade” for all the students. Everyone had to dress up as something math related. One girl dressed like a car and she was an “infinity,” my teacher was pregnant so she was “multiplying,” I put a rope around my neck and tied it to a small toilet which I held above my head. I was a “High-potty-noose.”

What is your Dream Job for a Day?

I have always wanted to work as a host on the home shopping channel.

How do you really feel about squirrels?

I like squirrels. They are fast, clever and agile which are qualities I admire in both animals and humans.

Clown V. Mime Deathmatch.? Pick your winner.

If there is one less clown and mime on the planet, everyone’s a winner.

Funniest dead person you'd like to meet??

I’d like to meet Mark Twain. He had a cool mustache and a cool pseudonym.

Your resume on your website says that you were an intern at the Daily Show for a summer. How would you describe that experience?

Ugh, that reminds me of how badly I need to update my website… My time at the Daily Show was a blast. Mostly, I answered phones and bought cereal for the writers but I had an opportunity to go on a few shoots and sit in on edit sessions from time to time. Everyone there was extremely nice, especially Ed Helms and Rob Corrdry.

In the Coop with Erica Perl

Guess what? Chicken Butt! Heh heh heh. We chicks have been using that line for years and yep, it makes us laugh every time. And now, children's book author Erica Perl has taken that joke and ramped up the humor times ten. Illustrated by chick fave Henry Cole, Chicken Butt! is a non-stop snort fest of fowl humor for the whole family. You know why? Chicken thigh!

The Three Silly Chicks are very pleased to have Erica Perl in the coop with us today, on the last day of her intrepid Chicken Butt! journey through the wild and wooly blogiverse. To celebrate her safe arrival back home, she will be giving away a signed copy of Chicken Butt! and other treats to one lucky winner. That winner could be you, dear friend! All you have to do is go to Erica's blog, Chicken Feed, and leave a comment today. Easy-peasy! Erica will then pick a random commenter to win the goods. So what are you waiting for? Go go go! Scoot on over there right now and leave a comment! Then come back here, put your feet up, and enjoy our talk with Erica...

How do you know when what you write is funny?

I don't. I just cross my fingers and hope it is. Actually, I read everything I write aloud and I test it on real kids - my own, plus some that are not related to me. If they don't laugh, I know something's up.

Do you have any tips for writing funny books?

Don't write what you think kids WILL find funny, or what you think kids SHOULD find funny. Spend time with kids so you discover what they DO find funny. And also so you remember what YOU found funny at their age. That's how Chicken Butt! came about. I know both perspectives - kid and parent - in that particular goofy face-off intimately!

Has being funny ever gotten you into or out of trouble?

Growing up, I would have gotten into a lot more trouble had my mother not been funny, too (note: I did not realize this until much later). In fact, my mother has requested that when she dies, we have her gravestone engraved to say: "SHE WAS FUNNY." Seriously.

What are some of your favorite funny books?

I love James Marshall's books, especially The Stupids Step Out. I also love M.T. Anderson's Whales on Stilts and Daniel Pinkwater's The Hoboken Chicken Emergency. In fact, I think The Hoboken Chicken Emergency is perhaps the funniest chicken book ever written.

If you could live in one of your books, which one would you choose?

I wrote Ninety-Three In My Family because when I was a kid, I always wanted more pets than my parents would allow. So I decided to write a book about a family with all the pets I could possibly want. As zany as it looks (thanks to Mike Lester's fabulous illustrations), it's clear that this family has a lot of fun together.

Who do you like more, The Marx Bros or Three Stooges?

Marx Brothers, hands down.

What was your best Halloween costume?

I once insisted on dressing up as the school lunch menu. I wore a sandwich board with the week's menu written on it, plus a paper plate hat with plastic food. I like to think that I'm the only person who has ever trick-or-treated in this particular costume… not because it is so funny, but because it makes absolutely no sense.

What is your Dream Job for a Day?

Woozler. It's my invented Dream Job. It involves spending the day at the zoo, cuddling and woozling all the animals.

Clown V. Mime Deathmatch. Pick your winner.

It's a draw. Both are extremely scary.

Funniest dead person you’d like to meet?

Roald Dahl, who was apparently not funny (as in ha-ha funny) in real life. But I would still love to have met him.

Is there anything funnier than a chicken butt?

You know what's more?

Two chicken butts! No -- FOUR!

My Fair Godmother

My Fair Godmother
by Janette Rallison
Walker Books
ISBN: 978-0802797803

We three chicks freely admit to being picture book junkies. We dearly love a fun, simple story that goes straight to the punch in 32 fast-paced glorious pages. A great picture book is like the perfect dessert: a delectable pink-frosted cupcake providing immediate gratification. But when our busy schedules permit and we are not running around like…um…chickens, we often like to indulge in a nice long novel. As opposed to dessert, a novel is a full seven-course meal, a feast to be savored for as long as it takes to get to that cupcake ending.

Recently, we had the pleasure of a deliciously decadent read from start to finish. My Fair Godmother, by Janette Rallison, tells the story of Savannah, a high-school sophomore whose boyfriend dumps her for her older sister. Enter Chrissy, Savannah’s fair godmother (fair as in not all that good), to save the day. Only each time Savannah makes a wish, Chrissy manages to mangle it beyond all measure and go totally Medieval with the wish-granting. Who knew that getting a date to the prom could be so dangerous?

My Fair Godmother is one part fantasy, one part romantic comedy, and one part absolutely charming. Give this book to your favorite tween or teen, your BFF, the chick next door…anyone who likes a good, funny, clean read about wishes and proms and prince charmings. Oh, and did we mention ogres? Yes, ogres. And dragons too. (Trust us, you’re going to love it!)

Day Seven of NaPiBoWriWee--Wheeeee!!

YOU’RE ALMOST THERE! JUST ONE MORE PICTURE BOOK TO GO!

You should be darn proud, peeps! Give yourself a pat on the back and an extra glittery gold star. A brownie with a scoop of Ben and Jerry’s might be in order, too. Rewards are important! Here in the coop we keep a vat of bean dip for just such occasions.

For this last assignment, think of something in your childhood that made you extra proud. Were you the winner of the spelling bee in first grade? Did you stand up to the biggest bully on the block? Were you the best jacks player in the neighborhood?

Think of those moments today and see if you can craft a story out of one of them. Or use the above photo for inspiration.

Still stumped? See if you can use at least one of the following words in your title:

Sock
Rabbit
Zesty
Penny
Stomp

We heartily recommend the blog www.teachingauthors.com for your next venture—revision! The authors on this blog are all teachers, too, and have excellent advice for writers of all genres. Don’t stop now!