"Alchemy and Meggy Swann" by Karen Cushman, Clarion, 167 pages

Read aloud: age 8, 9 and older

Read yourself: age 10 and older

At the end of the 16th century, young Meggy Swann has been sent from her rural home to meet her father for the first time. He is an alchemist who resides in London and says he requires Meggy's help with his work. Meggy's mother had been glad to see her go. Her father seems anything but glad she has arrived.

First befriended by Roger, and then others, Meggy forges her own path and tries to get along as best as she can. Her crippled legs deter her from moving about quickly, but she presses on despite the pain and difficulty, and eventually assists her father in his work. But when Meggy discovers her father is involved in something far more than alchemy, Meggy persuades Roger to help her set things right.

Incorporating strong remnants of the colorful language of Elizabethan London, Karen Cushman has once again transported readers back in time.

LIBRARIAN'S CHOICE

Library: Slater Library, 26 Main St., Jewett City

Library Director: Meg Vantine

Children's Librarian: Ann Grzelak

Choices this week: "Three Pebbles and a Song" by Eileen Spinelli; "Duck on a Bike" by David Shannon; "Hero Dogs: Courageous Canines in Action" by Donna M. Jackson

AT THE BOOKSTORE

"Meeting Cézanne" by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by Francois Place, Candlewick, 2013, 53 pages

Read aloud: age 7 to 10

Read yourself: age 8 to 10

Ten-year-old Yannick is going south from his home in Paris to Provence to spend a month with his aunt and her family. His mother assures him he will love it there, and to remember that the greatest painter in the world, Cézanne, loved Provence and created many paintings there. Yannick's mother also tells him he will meet his cousin Amandine for the first time.

Once Yannick is adjusted, he helps with the family restaurant and spends his free time roaming the countryside, daydreaming about this wonderful place, his beautiful older cousin, and the greatest artist in the world. Life seems perfect until an important guest comes to the restaurant and Yannick accidentally throws away a drawing the man leaves behind as a tip. Yannick decides he will do his best to right his wrong, and the results of his efforts are more than he could have asked for.

"At the Same Moment Around the World" by Clotilde Perrin, Chronicle Books, 2014, 32 pages with bonus fold-out map

Read aloud: age 5 to 9

Read yourself: age 8 to 9

At the same moment, many things are happening around the world. When Keita wakes up early to help his father count the fish caught in the night in Dakar, Senegal, Ivan takes his dog for their early evening walk in Anadyr, Russia, and Pablo is fast asleep dreaming magical things in Mexico City.

Join this fascinating round-the-world eastward journey from day to night through each of the 24 time zones.

kendal@sunlink.net