Finding Lincoln, by Ann Malaspina, illustrated by Colin Bootman; Albert Whitman, 2009; $16.99; www.albertwhitman.com. 

Louis has to write an essay about Abraham Lincoln, but it’s 1951 in Alabama and African Americans can’t use the “whites only” public library. When Louis tries to visit the library, he is turned away. But one librarian tells him to “come back tomorrow after five.” When Louis returns, the librarian has selected just the right book for his assignment.

Author’s notes provide information about similar events and about Lincoln. The illustrator, Colin Bootman, is a former Coretta Scott King Honor artist. This historical fiction picture book showcases injustice and bravery, and celebrates the joy of libraries and the passion of librarians.

“A perfect book to celebrate Martin Luther King’s and Abraham Lincoln’s birthdays.”
– Librarian
 

FamilyTimeFun offers a collection of dinner games for families to play while they eat. They open up lively conversation and add lots of fun to family meals. Moms especially love them because they keep her kids at the table longer than usual. Briefly, they include: • Beginner Dinner Games -- 51 wholesome dinner games for young kids ages 3-6. • Original Dinner Games -- 51 educational games for kids ages 6-12. • Gather 'Round Dinner Game -- 132 engaging dinnertime activities with push-button action for ages 5 and up. • New Gather 'Round Restaurant Game -- A great travel game. 96 games to play at restaurants. 36 games for car rides. Ages 5 +.

 

Families of Guatemala, Master Communications Inc., 2009; 30 minutes; $29.95; www.familiesoftheworld.com; ages 5 to 8.

 

A cross-section of Guatemala is shown through two families’ lives. Viewers witness life for a rural child on a large family farm that grows coffee and macadamia nuts; the second part of the video shows city life through the eyes of a doctor’s son. Viewers can compare and contrast aspects of their own lives as the children in the video attend school, do chores and attend a variety of lessons. This video teaches a great lesson in cultural awareness by showing that although we’re all different, we are so much the same.

“A great approach to helping children understand different cultures.”
– Adult Juror and father

“I felt like these kids in Guatemala could be my friends. It was fun to see how they went to school and the chores they had to do.”
– Child Juror, age 6
 

Family Album – New Music with Guitar, Vol. 7, David Starobin, Bridge Records, 2007; $17.98; www.bridgerecords.com; for ages 9 and up. A stunning intro to classical guitar for children, this CD provides introspective, meditative music for the soul and for times of reflection. Starobin, a virtuoso guitarist and composer, performs pieces by four composer friends and some originals. Some pieces are suitable for a nap or study session, while more complex pieces will make you sit up and listen. Helpful liner notes introduce the composers and the various styles they work in. This album provides a great jumping-off point for exploring modern classical music and opera with kids who get hooked on listening to it.

Favorite Children’s Songs/Canciones Favoritas Para Niños, various artists, Pacific Entertainment, 2008; $9.95 double CD; www.babygenius.com; for babies to age 3. Fifteen favorite children’s songs teach kids Spanish the sneaky way (or teach Spanish-speaking children English): Disc 1 is presented in Spanish and Disc 2 in English. This friendly and enthusiastic recording makes for fun sing-alongs and movin’ to the music.

For more bilingual fun, try:

Bilingual Zingo! by ThinkFun
Quinito, Day and Night (Book)

Introducting Paci-Plushies™ Pacifier Holders! Light weight plush characters attach to infant pacifiers, making the pacifier easy to find and easy for baby to place in it’s mouth. ♥ Ingenious Solution – Paci-Plushies™ are the first and ONLY plush pacifier holder of it’s kind to attach to Name Brand pacifiers! Button and Ring Handled pacifiers attach to a super soft and light-weight plush toy making the pacifier easy for young infants to hold and easy for Mom to find around the house! ♥ Unique Design– Lovingly designed with a flexible, silicone Hug Ring™, Paci-Plushies™ eailsy connect to Baby’s favorite pacifiers including MAM™ , Avent™ , Nuby™ , NUK™ , Evenflo™ , Playtex Binky™ and many more! ♥ Simplifies Mom’s Life – No more searching the house for those lost or misplaced pacifiers! Paci-Plushies™ make finding Baby’s pacifier easy as can be! ♥ Easy to Clean – Snap-off the pacifier and toss into the dishwasher and throw the plush toy into the washing machine to keep both clean. 

FunSlides Toys and Games, $39.99; www.funslides.com; for ages 6 and up. Hockey puck glides easily within a game frame on carpet or floor and bounces off the elastic band sides for air hockey-style play.

Judge's Top Pick! 

$39.99; www.merillian.com; for ages 7 and up. Imagination is key because setting up Flibbix is as much fun as playing it! Players make up the rules and build the game themselves with innovative magnetic game parts and inspiration gleaned from the included guide.

FunKeyBoard & FunMouse, Chester Creek, 2009; $57.95; www.chestercreek.com; ages 5 and up.

 

Requires: PC or Mac. This colorful, standard layout keyboard with mouse is designed to promote letter awareness and typing skills with colored keys: vowels are red, consonants are green, punctuation and symbols are yellow, numbers are purple, and functions are blue. This keyboard is just plain fun to use, and brightens up the family’s PC or home office. One of our kid testers insisted that our judge take this home and use it – all the time! 
 

Flapdoodle, Imagination Games, $19.95; www.imaginationgames.com; ages 6 and up.

 

Most of the play is in the cards, simple path game board and cardboard character pieces. You never know what will be on the cards, but many of them can be ridiculously educational in ways you’d never expect, such as making rhymes, naming five things you can eat that are green, or saying a sentence that no one has probably ever said before. Others, though are just plain goofy, like guessing how many fillings another player has, giving three good reasons you think it’s okay to stay up past bedtime, or performing stunts like, “Find and wear four hats simultaneously.” Imagination and creativity help you answer questions, and luck plays a role in advancement, too.