Winter Favorites

For someone who’s hooked on reading, Michelle Whelpley has the perfect job. She’s general manager of the new Borders Books & Café at Nut Tree Plaza in Vacaville. Whelpley says she grew up on books. “I love fiction, especially mysteries. But I’m very much into childrens books because I have three nieces and I love reading to them. I’m passing my love of reading on to them.” She also picks the kids books for staff selections in the store and writes little blurbs about why she picked each one.
    Borders hosts story time for children ages 3 and up every Wednesday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to noon in the kids’ department. “We have a great response to story time. We do two or three picture books and an independent reader book for 7 to 9-year-olds. We get a lot of home-schooled kids during the week so we give our teacher discount to parents who are home-schooling their children.”
    For her recommendations, Whelpley chose books that she loves and that Borders’ customers do, too. Here are her picks.

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Baby-preschool

Whelpley loves the classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (Henry Holt and Co., $7.95) by Bill Martin Jr., illustrated by Eric Carle. “Eric Carle is a famous children’s book illustrator with over a dozen books in print. This is definitely one of his best.” First published as a picture book, it’s now available as a board book for babies and toddlers. “I don’t care how old I get, I’m always going to love board books. This one is full of gentle rhyming and gorgeous, tissue-paper collage illustrations. The singsong text is great for young children and easy for them to follow.” Carle’s good-natured style and colorful illustrations make this a dog-eared favorite that teaches colors, animals and rhyme to pre-readers. There’s no story per se, but this book begs rereading by children who are just beginning to discover language.

Ages 4-8

Where the Wild Things Are (HarperCollins, $16.95) by Maurice Sendak, a Caldecott Medal winner, is a classic Whelpley favors. “You can never go wrong with any of Sendak’s books. The story concerns little Max, a kind of wild child, who is sent to bed without his supper. He’s upset but lets his imagination take him someplace else.” Max transforms his bedroom into a jungle, an ocean and an island where he becomes king of the Wild Things. “Max has great adventures, a little frustration and a lot of wonder before he returns home, hungry and sleepy. This is one of our best-selling kids books. The illustrations are fun but for me it’s the story.” This book contains some of Sendak’s finest illustrations: Wild Things that are a little bit monster-like yet cuddly and loveable, scary-looking without really being scary. And the book reaffirms the notion that there’s no place like home.

Ages 9-12

Whelpley recommends Miracle on 49th Street (Philomel, $17.99) by Mike Lupica because of its broad appeal. “Lupica is famous for his sports fiction for kids, especially boys between 8 and 12. The book’s central character is 12-year-old Molly, who is just returning to America after her mother’s death from cancer. Her father is a star basketball player with the Boston Celtics and he doesn’t know about Molly. When they meet, he wants to take part in her life but is worried about his good-guy, bachelor image as a basketball star. The story is about their growing relationship and about her getting to know her father.”
    Whelpley likes Lupica’s realistic portrayal of Molly. “She’s not idealized. She’s not the girl-next-door. She’s fragile but tough. Her vulnerability really comes through. Lupica gives readers a look into the pampered world of superstar athletes. For most of us, that life is far from the lives we live and I think that’s true for kids, too.” This beautifully written story of a child searching for her father is a good story for both girls and boys.

Young Adult

Eragon: Inheritance, Book 1 (Knopf Books for Young Readers, $18.95) by Christopher Paolini is the first book in the Inheritance trilogy. Whelpley says this book is definitely for kids who are smitten with the Harry Potter books. “Eragon has been a huge success and it’s been made into a movie that came out during the holidays. The author, who was home-schooled, began writing the trilogy when he was 15. One of the book’s big appeals is that it’s coming from a young adult. The story is about a poor farm boy learning to be a dragon rider, learning to deal with glory and power, learning to fight with his ancient sword to save the world.” This epic fantasy follows the 15-year-old hero, Eragon, and Saphira, the dragon he raised from a baby. Together they endure perilous travels, battles, capture and escape while learning about exile, magic, love and destiny.

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