Never Take a Shark to the Dentist (and Other Things Not to Do), by Judi Barrett, illustrated by John Nickle; Atheneum/Simon & Schuster, 2008; $16.99; www.simonsayskids.com. Funny, self-explanatory truths about animals spring from the mind of the beloved author of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. Among the things that you should “never, ever, ever do” are to sit next to a porcupine on the subway or hold hands with a lobster. Children will join in the silliness and come up with equally humorous aphorisms of their own.

Nancy Drew: Ransom of the Seven Ships, Her Interactive, 2009; $19.99; www.herinteractive.com; ages 9 to 11.

 

Requires: PC. This CD-ROM adventure game is the latest installment from the Nancy Drew PC Adventure Series. When Nancy’s friend, Bess, is kidnapped, players must solve the mystery to rescue her. The adventure leads to Dread Isle, where players find treasure along the way. In addition to diving, sailing and interacting with island wildlife, this fun mystery game includes various difficulty levels for young or more advanced detectives. This is one terrific game to help kids develop analytical and critical thinking skills. 

Putumayo Kids, 2007; $14.98; www.putumayo.com; for all ages. Even after Hurricane Katrina, the music of New Orleans never stopped: jazz, rhythm and blues, funk, zydeco and more make this CD a parade waiting to happen. These performers can play! Parents are probably familiar with some of the artists featured here (Fats Domino and Dr. John, for example), but the whole family will also enjoy danceable and delightful cuts by The Meters, Clarence “Frogman” Henry, Charmaine Neville and more, documenting the musical history of the city from the 1950s to the present. Putumayo is donating a portion of the proceeds from this album to the Louisiana Children’s Museum, helping to keep the culture of the Big Easy alive for generations to come.

 

Asian Dreamland 

Nelson Mandela’s Favorite African Folktales, written by various authors and read by various celebrities; Hachette Audio, 2009; $16.98 (three CDs), www.HachetteAudio.com.

 

Families will love sharing and discussing this cornucopia of African stories introduced by Desmond Tutu and read by celebrities to benefit African children orphaned by AIDS. This three-CD set spins 32 tales from Morocco, the Dutch colonies and South Africa that range from folktales to literary and contemporary pieces. Celebrities such as Whoopi Goldberg, Matt Damon, Benjamin Bratt, Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson, LeVar Burton and others read this rich and varied anthology. Lively African music contributes adds spice and contributes to the overall flow of the stories. While also available in print, sales of this audio book support children in Africa orphaned by AIDS.

Note: Some stories are a bit gritty and not all have happy endings, so it’s best suited for kindergarteners and older listeners. 
 

Fox Home Entertainment, 2008; 96 min.; $29.98; www.nimsisland.com; for ages 8 to 12. Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine), Jodi Foster and Gerald Butler star in this tropical adventure that will have every kid wanting a zip line installed in their own back yard. Nim, a precocious yet self-sufficient 11-year-old, and her famous scientist father live an idyllic life on a secluded island in the South Pacific, which they refer to as their “own perfect secret world.” Nim’s best friends are a lizard, a sea lion named Selkie and a pelican. Nim proves her resourcefulness when her dad disappears in a storm and she reaches across the Internet to the writer of her favorite adventure novels.

Judge’s comment: “This is like Indiana Jones for ’tweens, providing a great female adventure role model.”
 

Notes from the Dog by Gary Paulsen; Wendy Lamb Books, 2009, $15.99; www.randomhouse.com/kids. 

The solitary, bookish, 14-year-old Finn has one goal for summer: talking to as few people as possible: “It’s not that I don’t like people, but they make me uncomfortable,” he says. “I feel like an alien dropped onto a strange planet and that I always have to be on the lookout for clues and cues on how to act and what to say.” But when he meets Joanna, a college student in her twenties, he is soon helping her cope with breast cancer. Joanna uses Finn’s border collie to send him intriguing, inspiring notes, and asks him to plant a garden to help her through her treatments. He does so without any particular skill, but, in the process, discovers his talent for connecting with people.
 

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children; free; www.netsmartz.org; for families with kids ages 5 to 17. Requires: Web browser.
With a promise to “educate, engage and empower,” Netsmartz helps parents teach safe Web practices to their children. The goal is to prevent the victimization of children online and in the real world. Through stories and activities with online friends Clicky, Nettie and Webster, parents encourage and empower their kids to make safe choices as they venture out into the great unknown of cyberspace.
 

Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, Eric & Susan Davis, Child Music Online, 2005; $10.95; www.childmusiconline.com; all ages.

This CD is smooth and soothing, “lullaby” at its finest. Well-known classical music is boiled down to beautifully simple acoustic guitar and violin. This highly musical CD provides a “crash” course in dreaming.
 

Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle, by Major Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson, and Mary Nethery; Little, Brown, 2009; $17.99; www.lb-kids.com.  

As difficult as it is to find ways to talk to kids about the war in Iraq, this touching animal story succeeds and includes photos of a special friendship. Nubs, the leader of a pack of wild dogs in war-torn Iraq, is just barely surviving when a Marine befriends him. But Marines aren’t allowed to have pets, and when Major Brian has to leave for the Jordanian border, Nubs limps after him alone … for 70 miles … across the desert. The two get separated again but find each other and again, and today they live happily together in San Diego.

The story prompts good discussion around the dinner table, with such questions as, “What does a Marine’s job involve?” “What is it like living in a war zone?” “Where on the map is Iraq?” and “Who helps whom more – Nubs or Brian?”