BOOKS TO BORROW

"Ruby in Her Own Time" by Jonathan Emmett, illustrated by Rebecca Harry, Scholastic, 28 pages

Read aloud: age 3 and older

Read yourself: age 7 and older

Ruby is the littlest of five ducklings. She was the last to hatch, the last to eat, the last to swim, the last to do everything the other ducklings did. Her father worries that Ruby will never catch up, but Mother Duck knows better, and gently tells Father Duck that Ruby will do all these things and more "in her own time."

Beautifully written and illustrated, this selection will make readers feel good all over while providing an important thought about the beauty of allowing each person to grow at their own pace.

LIBRARIAN'S CHOICE

Library: Otis Library, 261 Main St., Norwich

Library Director: Bob Farwell

Choices this week: "In the Rain with Baby Duck" by Amy Hest; "Sign of the Beaver" by Elizabeth George Speare; "Charlotte's Web" by E.B. White

AT THE BOOKSTORE

"The Terrible Thing that Happened to Barnaby Brocket" by John Boyne, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers, Alfred A. Knopf, 2013, 279 pages, $16.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 8 and older

Read yourself: age 10 and older

Barnaby Brocket is just like any other 8-year-old except for one peculiar thing: he floats. From the moment he was born, Barnaby isn't able to keep himself on the ground. His parents have never liked anything or anyone that is different, so a son who floats is a horrific embarrassment to them. Finally fed up with it all, Mr. and Mrs. Brocket come to a decision: to literally cut Barnaby loose and let him float away forever.

Barnaby's journey takes him to distant lands where he meets all sorts of people who share their life stories and influence Barnaby in many ways.

This story is charged with imagination, a cast of colorful characters, and it conveys important messages about accepting the differences of others.

"true colors" by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock, Alfred A. Knopf, 2012, 242 pages, $15.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 9, 10 and older

Read yourself: age 11 and older

Ten years ago, kind-hearted Hannah found a 2-day-old infant wrapped on the doorstep of her farm in Vermont. Hannah named her Blue and took her into her home, her life and her heart. Even though Hannah was old enough to be Blue's grandmother, the two became a family filled with love, hard work and good values.

Blue always wanted to know more about the mother who abandoned her, and she begins to feel that need more strongly after discovering small clues that Blue believes will lead to a reunion with her mother. But between strained relations with her best friend Natalie, an accident that lands Hannah in the hospital, and a host of other events, Blue discovers a lot about herself and others in her small community.

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