March Carnival of Children's Literature

I don't know about you, but I love a good carnival. Can you smell the fried dough? Hear the screams from the Round Up and the belly laughs from the Tilt-a-Whirl? Will you pay a dollar to see the world's largest bull? Or the snake with two heads?

I've paid the price of admission, slapped on a wrist band, and am heading off to the midway. Just like a good ride, a book takes you places you might never have expected to go. Here are some reviews of books that will definitely take you away.

Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews shares a review of The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood.

Sheila Ruth of Wands and Worlds shares a review of POD by Stephen Wallenfels. Can you say creeptacular?

When do I know I must add a book to my TBR pile? When two bloggers I highly respect tell me I need to read it!

• Mary Lee of A Year of Reading shares a review of The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz.
• Kate Coombs of Book Aunt also shares her thoughts on The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz.

Mary Ann Scheuer of Great Kid Books shares a review of the graphic novel Smile by Raina Telgemeier.

Matt Cunningham of Literary Asylum shares a review of The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger.

Challenging the Bookworm shares a review of The Brooklyn Nine: A Novel in Nine Innings by Alan Gratz.

Shirley Duke of SimplyScience Blog shares a review of Monster Fliers, a book about pterosaurs and other winged animals living in the time of the dinosaurs.

Hey! Don't forget the kiddie rides! Let's see what folks are sharing for the younger set.

boheime of Living Peacefully With Children shares a review of the book A Ride on Mother's Back by Emery Bernhard.

Sarah of In Need Of Chocolate shares ideas for reading with expression and silliness to engage babies, toddlers, and preschoolers in her post Let the Sillies Out: Reading to Babies and Young Children.

Becky Laney of Young Readers shares a review of the book Young Zeus by G. Brian Karas.

How many blogs is too many? I don't know the answer, but don't ask Anastasia Suen who has started yet another blog! At her new literacy blog for babies, toddlers and preschoolers she shares a review of the book Happy Easter, Mouse! by Laura Numeroff.

Sally Apokedak of Whispers of Dawn shares a review of the book Beach Tail by Karen Lynn Williams.

Melissa Wiley shares her fond memories of Sid Fleischman's McBroom books.

Jeff Barger of NC Teacher Stuff reviews the book presents Ants by Melissa Stewart.

Jennifer of Jean Little Library celebrates Melanie Watt's fabulous Chester picture books with summaries, storytime suggestions, and ideas for how to use Chester with all kinds of readers.

Anastasia Suen of 5 Great Books offers some suggestions for sharing nonfiction with new readers.

Anastasia Suen of Picture Book of the Day shares mini-lesson ideas for the book Chicken Dance by Tammi Sauer.

Kathy Bloomfield of forwordsbooks shares ideas for linking secular books to Jewish valuesand examines books with the theme of Courage/Ometz Lev in honor of Passover.

Food, glorious food!
Hot sausage and mustard!
Books and food--is there any better combination?

Anne-Marie of This Mama Cooks! On a Diet shares some ideas for reading and cooking with the Little House books in March is Reading Month: Read and Cook With Your Kids.

Heather Mann of Croq Zine shares some fabulous snack and craft ideas for celebrating the birthday of Dr. Seuss. I'll be the first one in line when Thing 1 and Thing 2 cupcakes show up at my local fair!

Jama Rattigan of jama rattigan's alphabet soup shares a delicious post about picture book bakers.

Games of skills, games of chance, the age and wight guessing booth, and lots of other excitements await you as you wander around the carnival. Who knows what fun you'll have and who you might meet? At this carnival you get the chance to meet those amazing people known as authors.

Elizabeth O. Dulemba shares an interview with author and photographer Sarah Campbell.

Eric Van Raepenbusch of Happy Birthday Author shines a spotlight on Bill Martin Jr..

Carmela Martino of Teaching Authors shares an interview with Johanna Hurwitz and features ideas for using her new book I FOOLED YOU in the classroom.

Amanda Hartman of The Literary Family shares some mad love for Kadir Nelson.

Lori Calabrese of Lori Calabrese Writes! interviews award-winning children's author Rene Colato Lainez on his latest book, My Shoes and I.

Sharon Hrycewicz of Reading Chick shares an interview with Gayle Brandeis, author of My Life With the Lincolns.

Jone (MsMac) of Check It Out shares an interview with Lisa Schroeder.

Samantha Clark of Day By Day Writer shares an interview with Bonnie Hearn Hill, author of the new YA Star Crossed book series about a teenager's life with astrology.

Help! I've lost my umbrella. The lady next to me lost her kid. Yes, we're both off the the lost and found booth. You just never know what you're going to find there.

Wendy Wax of The Girl Who Cried Book! shares some thoughts for writers about getting over the fear and worry of having their ideas stolen by someone else.

Stephen Aitken of Scribble Sketch shares his thoughts about writing and reading non-fiction for children. It also links to a post on the INK blog.

Helaine Becker of Track & Display Changes: A Writer's Blog shares some thoughts about meeting with kids' book club.

Megan Abrahams of On Beyond Words & Pictures gives us a look at what two teens are reading and why.

From the thumping beat on the Himalaya to the sounds coming from the concert stage, what would a carnival be without music?

Zoe Toft of Playing by the Book rounds up several picture book versions of Peter and the Wolf as part of a new series, Stories in Tune, as a way to bring more classical music into family life through picture books. What a GREAT idea!

Songs about reading? You bet! Andi of a wrung sponge shares the viral video of middle school kids celebrating reading in song and dance. Black Eyed Peas eat your heart out!

When I was in high school, nearly every summer weekend meant escaping to a fireman's carnival in a neighboring town or village. In addition to the rides, games and food, there were actually outlets for creativity. Spin art and tie dye booths were big back then! Just like those carnivals, we've got our own version of art.

Elizabeth O. Dulemba has been sharing art on coloring page Tuesday for quite some time now.. She's created a widget that allows you to share this free resource with your readers. It's also a great reminder to look for new pages each week!

Lynn Hazen of Imaginary Blog has some very cool ideas for moss art. I can't wait to see how these turn out!

Deborah Freedman of writes with pictures shares some Poetry Spam.

When you are ready to head home after a fun-filled day, falling into bed comes ONLY after the most important time of the day. What is that you ask? Well time to read, of course!

Fiona Ingram of Word Magic: Articles & Tips for Authors shares some thoughts on the importance of reading aloud with your kids.

Lee Wind of I'm Here. I'm Queer. What the Hell do I read? shared some secrets for dads reading to their daughters.

Gregory K. of GottaBook shares his thoughts on sharing stories and why this is a gift that lasts a lifetime.

Terry Doherty of Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, a Reading Tub Blog shares her journey as a reading mentor and the lessons she's learned.

Jen Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page shares a round up of the final day of the Share a Story Literacy Blog Tour with links to posts about raising and encouraging the next generation of readers.

Pam Coughlan of MotherReader shares her thoughts on reading with kids in a piece entitled Reading is Boring (Sometimes). Don't let the title fool you, as you'll get some good advice on varying your reading routine.

That's a wrap folks. I hope you've had fun. Next month's Carnival of Children's Literature will be hosted by Kathy Bloomfield at forwordsbooks. You can submit your article for that event using the carnival submission form. For more information about the carnival and how to participate, visit Anastasia's carnival page. Thanks for visiting!