Happy New Year from Pete the Cat!

We are huge fans of Pete the Cat around here, as you can see from the sampling of our books, the keychain I keep on my bag, and the pouch I use for pens and USB drives.

(Yes, all the cute accessories are mine. Selfish? No - my son can have them when he's old enough to appreciate them. For now, they are mine all mine!)

For several days now, we have been watching the new Pete the Cat show on Amazon Prime. Have you seen it? Only one episode is up right now; it was released on Christmas Day but the story is about New Years resolutions. It's cute to see Pete as a "real" cat, and all his friends are so much fun!

The only negative I can think of, and this is incredibly minor, is that Pete doesn't talk until the very end of the episode. All of the other characters are pretty chatty, and even my three-year-old son said "Pete can't talk because he doesn't have a mouth." Which is true - there is no mouth most of the time, but Pete does talk at the end, so clearly that's not the issue. I just would have like to hear more from him.

I think Pete the Cat books make a huge difference with kids' literacy, reading enjoyment, and vocabulary, based on what I have seen with my son and the kids at school where I teach. Having Pete not talk on the show seemed to be a strange decision. But it's still an enjoyable episode, and we've watched it a few times and it hasn't gotten old. We're looking forward to more episodes.

Amazon does a pretty good job with their kids' shows based on books - we're also huge fans of the Stinky and Dirty Show, based on the books by Kate McMullan and Jim McMullan.

Code 7: Cracking the Code for an Epic Life

Code 7: Cracking the Code for an Epic Life by Bryan R. Johnson

I initially thought this was a book of short stories for middle graders... and it kind of is. The chapters can be read as stand alone stories, but the characters all go to the same school, and work together in the last story. It reminds me a lot of Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar - each chapter can be read as a complete short story, but all the characters go to the same school and interact with each other. Like Sachar's book, there is humor is the Code 7 stories, though it is more subtle and tongue-in-cheek than Wayside. 

These stories have a positive spin, with the students taking action for an idea they're passionate about. This shows the kids reading that they have the power to change the world around them, just like the characters they're meeting in Code 7.

Code 7 is a great book for parents and teachers to read aloud to, or read along with, their middle grade kids. These engaging, quick stories are sure to inspire the readers to take action.

Disclaimer: I was sent this book in exchange for an honest review.