Contest: Scholastic’s Halloween DVD

Posted on October 17, 2014 at 8:00 am

Get ready for Halloween with Scholastic’s “Day of the Dead” DVD, featuring four spooky (but not too scary) tales. In the title story, by Bob Barner and narrated by Rita Moreno, two children celebrate their ancestors on this Latin American holiday. A kitten has a wild adventure in “Kitten’s First Moon,” by Kevin Henkes. “Fletcher and the Falling Leaves,” by Tiphanie Beeke, celebrates autumn. And in “The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything,” by Linda Williams, some creepy noises give the title character the first scare of her life.

I have one copy to give away! Send me an email at moviemom@moviemom.com with Halloween in the subject line and tell me your favorite thing about this time of year. Don’t forget your address! (US addresses only.) I’ll pick a winner at random on October 21, 2014. Good luck!

Contest: Merry Christmas, Splat

Posted on November 29, 2013 at 8:00 am

I am delighted to be able to give away a copy of the adorable Merry Christmas Splat & More Winter Stories, from my very favorite series for kids, Scholastic Storybook Treasures.

Splat the cat is worried that he hasn’t been as good as he’d hoped on Christmas Eve. In Fletcher and the Snowflake Christmas, the little fox and his rabbit friends are worried that Santa won’t be able to reach them. More soft white stuff falls in Snowflake Bentley, in this true story about the pioneering scientist who studied water crystals. And in Owl Moon, and owl and his daughter go exploring together.

Send me an email at moviemom@moviemom.com with Snow in the subject line and tell me your favorite winter activity. Don’t forget your address! (US addresses only) I’ll pick a winner at random on December 5. Good luck!

Contest: Halloween Story Collection from Scholastic Storybook Treasures

Posted on October 8, 2013 at 3:55 pm

My very favorite series for kids has a wonderful new collection for Halloween and I have three to give away! Enjoy the ghoulish pleasures and scary delights and ghostly giggles of stories like The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything, Kitten’s First Full Moon, Dem Bones, and The Boy With Two Shadows.

If you’d like to win this Halloween treat, send me an email at moviemom@moviemom.com with Halloween in the subject line and tell me your best Halloween costume. Don’t forget your address! (US addresses only.) I’ll pick a winner at random on lucky October 13!

Contest: Bink & Gollie

Posted on May 23, 2013 at 12:00 pm

I am always especially excited to have one of the fabulous Scholastic Storybook DVDs to give away, and this one is extra important for families because it is about what it means to be a friend. This all-new compilation is headlined by “Bink & Gollie” from Kate DiCamillo, the Newbery Medal-winning author of Because of Winn Dixie and The Tale of Despereaux and Alison McGhee. It is the story of two very different girls who are the best of friends. Bink is a fashionable, confident girl and Gollie is a rumpled and spontaneous. They both have ideas about how things should go. Bink and Gollie don’t agree on anything. In order to keep their friendship going strong they have to learn about cooperation, compromise, and communication.

The original story for early readers, illustrated by Tony Fucile, won the Theodore Geisel Award. A sequel, “Bink & Gollie: Best Friends Forever,” from Candlewick Press, was released last month.

Three other stories about friendship are also included on the DVD, along with interviews with writers and illustrators:

“A Sick Day for Amos Mcgee” (by Philip C. Stead, illustrated by Erin E. Stead, narrated by David de Vries) – Amos receives unexpected guests from the zoo when he’s home with the sniffles and sneezes.

“The Other Side” (by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by E.B. Lewis, narrated by Toshi Widoff-Woodson) – A friendship develops between two kids from opposite sides of a segregated town.

“Cat and Canary” (written and illustrated by Michael Foreman) – Cat’s unlikely friend Canary shows him a great time when his master is away at work.

I have one copy to give away. Send me an email with “Gollie” in the subject line and tell me the name of a special friend in your life. Don’t forget your address! (US addresses only). I’ll pick a winner at random on May 29. Good luck!

Celebrate Black History Month with “March On!”

Posted on February 1, 2013 at 1:00 am

My very favorite DVD series for kids is Scholastic Storybook Treasures and their new release for Black History Month is a special treat. It is called “Stories about African American Heritage Featuring March On!” The title story is written by Dr. Christine King Farris, who tells the story of her brother Martin’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech. It also includes the popular “Martin’s Big Words,” stories about Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald, the classic folk tale “Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears,” and “Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad.”

I have one copy to give away. Send me an email at moviemom@moviemom.com and tell me about an African American you admire. Don’t forget your address! (US addresses only.) I’ll pick a winner at random on February 5. Good luck!