Exciting New APH Products Announced!
Read on to learn about these new products - now available!
Stars of the Latest APH Museum Exhibit Videos!
There is a new exhibit in the museum that shares information on the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind (1879). Videos show students using APH products as well as APH Ex Officio Trustees sharing their responsibilities. Historical information is offered by several government leaders.
Here are the three videos that play every day from that exhibit – and from our YouTube site.
APH Wings of Freedom Winner Ralph Brewer Spins a Tale of Gratitude
Would you like to be inspired and awed? If yes, then listen to this 12 minute presentation by our 2011 Wings of Freedom award winner, Ralph Brewer. Ralph, the retired Tennessee School for the Blind Superintendent, shares his life story. Your heart will be touched!
If you are interested in learning the history of the Wings of Freedom Award, the other APH Awards, and those who won them, visit our Awards From APH web page.
Need a New Year's Resolution?
Start the year off being artistic!
APH seeks 12 field test sites for a prototype painter’s palette. Each kit comes with paintbrushes, watercolor paints, cups, braille color tags, and a special palette to hold all items. The kit ships with eight print/embossed drawings. The product is for students ages five and up. Prototypes will ship the first week of January. Each teacher or parent completes one evaluation form. Each participating student completes one evaluation form. If interested, send Monica Vaught (mvaught@aph.org) the following:
- Your name
- School name
- Shipping address (no P.O. Boxes)
- Number of students and their ages
Math! Math! Math!
APH has received several informal submissions for math products at various meetings. We would like to know which of these you would like to see as a product. Please go to the survey page and tell us the top five products you feel would be most helpful/needed to teach math skills to students with visual impairments.
Annual Meeting 2011 Photo Album
Here are memories of our very special celebration: Annual Meeting photo album.
Famed Narrator Mitzi Friedlander Speaks!
APH Narrator Mitzi Friedlander, left, gave a presentation at the Open House to introduce the new technology lab at Clovernook Center for the Blind in Cincinnati, Ohio on November 9.
Low Vision Meta-Analysis Available
Dr. Kay Ferrell, right, and Elaine Kitchel, APH Low Vision Project Leader
APH commissioned "A Meta-Analysis of Educational Applications of Low Vision Research." The report, finalized in fiscal year 2011, was authored by Dr. Kay Alicyn Ferrell, Dr. Cherylann Dozier, and Dr. Martin Monson. It represents a comprehensive search of scientifically based research in the area of low vision. APH is appreciative of the collaborative efforts and contributions of all those who worked under the umbrella of the National Center on Severe and Sensory Disabilities to complete this work. Please visit the following link to access the full report: http://www.unco.edu/ncssd/research/LowVisionMeta-Analysis.shtml
On the Country Road Again in West Virginia
"Signs and Visions for 21st Century Education" was the theme of this year’s annual professional development conference hosted by the West Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind in Romney, WV, November 10. The conference included 35 concurrent or extended workshop sessions addressing topics to serve students with visual impairments, deafness/hard of hearing, and multisensory disabilities. The conference drew 200 professionals including school staff members, statewide professionals, and students in the university training programs. Field Service Representatives Maria Delgado and Cathy Johnson were on hand to present sessions including an APH New Product Showcase, as well as hands-on training with the Book Port Plus and the Braille+ Mobile Manager. APH was happy to assist our EOTs Dr. Lynn Boyer and Donna See with their efforts to provide quality professional development.
Assessing St. Louis Visual Skills
APH Ex Officio Trustee Yvonne Ali, left and Jennie Mascheck, center, are administrators at the Missouri School for the Blind. They were great hosts to APH's Kerry Isham, event presenter.
On November 9, Field Services Representative Kerry Isham presented a workshop entitled "Tools for the Assessment & Development of Visual Skills" at the Missouri School for the Blind (MSB) in St. Louis, MO. Event planners from MSB were EOT Yvonne Ali, Supervisor of the Instructional Resource Center, and Jennie Mascheck, Coordinator of Outreach Services. The approximately 60 participants included direct-care professionals and clinicians in the areas of occupational therapy, special education, and vision.
The day-long workshop focused on two APH products, the ToAD and TADPOLE kits, which have a dual function as assessment materials and as tools for the development of visual skills. Kerry also covered the use of the ISAVE kit as an assessment instrument, and discussed how all three kits may be used together.
The attendees took part in two interactive exercises with ToAD and TADPOLE components. The day also allowed for helpful dialog, networking and problem-solving associated with visual assessment and development for individuals with visual impairments and multiple handicaps.
2012 Nomination Process for the Hall of Fame: Leaders and Legends of the Blindness Field
The Hall of Fame is now accepting nominations for 2012 induction consideration. If you are interested in learning more about the process for submitting a nominee to join the 46 inductees, please visit: www.aph.org/hall_fame/nominate.html. The nomination process will close March 30, 2012.
"The Hall of Fame for Leaders and Legends of the Blindness Field is dedicated to preserving, honoring, and promoting the tradition of excellence manifested by the specific individuals inducted into the Hall of Fame and through the history of outstanding services provided to people who are blind or visually impaired."
Army Captures Kentucky School for the Blind!
How are you commemorating the impact of the Civil War on the schools in your state? Few were left untouched by the terrible conflict. In the autumn of 1862, as the tides of combat rolled across Kentucky, Louisville was in a constant state of turmoil. Confederate armies had entered Kentucky that summer, determined to capture the city and destroy the Union army’s most important western supply depot. On Frankfort Avenue, a series of entrenchments were constructed, and for a time, it looked like war would halt the start of the school year at the Kentucky Institution for the Education of the Blind (KIEB). Union army officers had their eye on the school buildings, planning to convert the modern main building into a hospital. But the board of visitors at the Institution was well connected and, for a time, used their influence to stave off moves to seize the campus.
After the battle of Perryville on October 8th, however, thousands of wounded were flooding into Louisville. Although their superiors had encouraged them to use other buildings, federal doctors used the crisis to order the blind students and their faculty out within twenty-four hours. The students were carted off to the Alexander House on Workhouse Road on land that later became part of Cherokee Park. By the second week in November, there were 270 sick and wounded patients in classrooms and dormitories converted into hospital wards and operating rooms.
Other residential schools suffered similar fates, in Tennessee, Virginia, and Mississippi. In Kentucky, however, the KIEB board decided to fight. Led by their president, William F. Bullock, who also served as president of the board at APH for many years, the board first appealed to the generals in charge of the city’s defense. When that failed, they went to Washington. Within days, orders came by telegraph to return the building to the control of the board. Drs. John Head and Middleton Goldsmith countered, however, that other hospitals were unfit, that squads of wounded in scattered homes was no way to run a hospital, and that they could not believe the War Department intended for them to put 300 wounded soldiers out in the road for a few blind children.
In the end, the KIEB board produced an order from somewhere—three were judges and the fourth a prominent physician—giving them authority to command a troop of soldiers, which they used in early January to evict the federal doctors. The campus was a mess. Board reports noted that fences and other wooden structures on the property had been destroyed and the halls were cluttered with hospital beds and equipment. It would be June 1863 before things at the school approached their pre-crisis normality.
If you would like help learning about the Civil War and life at your own state school for blind and visually impaired kids, contact Mike Hudson in our museum at mhudson@aph.org or 502-899-2365.
Oldies but Goodies: The "Established" APH Product Series
The Chang Tactual Diagram Kit is made up of a board covered with black hook/loop material and over 100 Velcro-backed geometric forms in 27 shapes and sizes, which allow for a wide variety of concept development activities. This versatile tactile aid allows for instruction in orientation and mobility concepts as well as other curricula areas.
The kit comes with a printed instructional guidebook. This guidebook provides 36 lesson plans that cover topics which include:
- Introducing symbolic representation of objects and structures (scanning workspace, room representation, making a picture, left-right relationships, etc.)
- Mathematics (angle construction, area comparison, grouping, and equivalent fractions)
- Social studies (representation of organizational patterns, population information, and governmental body seating)
- Science (representation of wiring diagrams)
- Daily living skills (table setting, and dial-face orientations)
- Orientation and mobility (representation of street layouts, intersections, cardinal directions, traffic movement, etc.)
The Chang kit is easy for young children to manipulate and has a pleasing texture. The stick people that are included have different left and right hands and the face is only incised on one side of the figure. This allows these figures to be used to mirror left-right relationships. They can also simply add an element of play to the lessons since they can be used to navigate the layouts that are created by the student.
The kit can be easily added to and modified as needed by the instructor. For example, the kit does not contain small point symbols, but these can be made by adhering the included Velcro strips onto items to be used as symbols or by using Feel n’ Peel Stickers. This kit can also be used in conjunction with the Picture Maker: Wheatley Tactile Diagramming Kit (its smaller, more colorful, and more complex predecessor), the All-In-One Board, or the Invisiboard.
If you have any suggestions for other products you would like to see highlighted in this monthly feature, please send your comments to Monica Turner at mmturner@aph.org.
BANA Elects New Chair, Approves New Corporate Member, and Votes on Revision of Braille Formats Guidelines
The Braille Authority of North America (BANA) held its fall meeting on November 3–6, 2011, in Baltimore, MD. The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), a BANA member organization, hosted the meeting, which included an Open Forum that provided an opportunity for participants to learn more about the workings of BANA and to provide feedback to the Board about braille.
During its three-day meeting, the BANA Board reviewed and acted on semiannual reports from its eighteen committees and deliberated issues and challenges facing braille users and producers. Additionally, BANA welcomed two new Board Representatives – Ruth McKinney from Braille Institute of America and Susan Spicknall from National Braille Press.
The newly elected BANA officers for 2012 are:
- Chair: Frances Mary D’Andrea, representing the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), replaces Judy Dixon who is completing a five-year tenure as BANA Chair;
- Vice Chair: Mary Nelle McLennan, representing the American Printing House for the Blind (APH);
- Secretary: Jennifer Dunnam, representing the National Federation of the Blind (NFB);
- Treasurer: Sue Reilly, representing the California Transcribers and Educators of the Blind and Visually Impaired (CTEBVI).
Based on extensive review prior to the meeting, the Board evaluated the proposed revision to the Braille Formats publication. The previous edition of these guidelines for making structural decisions when transcribing was last published in 1997. In an email vote completed in mid-November, the BANA Board approved the adoption of the Braille Formats: Principles of Print to Braille Transcription, 2011. In the coming months, after publishing preparations are complete, the final document will be posted on the BANA website and will be produced for purchase. BANA recognizes the hard work and remarkable commitment of the Braille Formats Technical Committee in completing this complex project.
In the months before the Board meeting, Horizons for the Blind, a not-for-profit organization located in Crystal Lake, IL, applied for full corporate membership in BANA. After reviewing the extensive application, the BANA Board approved full membership for Horizons for the Blind and welcomed them into the organization.
BANA’s next meeting will take place in connection with the National Braille Association’s conference in St. Louis. The dates of this spring meeting will be April 28 through 30, 2012.
For additional resource information, visit www.brailleauthority.org.
Around the House:
David McGee
Sarah Koenig
Rod Dixon
Anita Rutledge
Joshua Ziegler
Congratulations to David McGee, newly-named APH Facilities Manager. David began at APH as a technician in the Tape Duplication Department in 1979. He went on to serve as a Manufacturing Specialist in Technical Research and Facilities Supervisor prior to being named to this crucial company-wide position. The legendary Ron Gadson, who is retiring, will continue mentoring David through December.
Welcome to Sarah Koenig, a recent addition to the production supervisory team, as Director of the Tape Duplication Department. Sarah has progressed through the APH management training program, benefitting from the experiences of many supervisors in addition to learning internal processes. Lou Tingle will be assisting her until his official retirement on January 3, 2012.
We welcome Rod Dixon to the Technical Research Department as a Manufacturing Specialist. Rod comes to the department from Braille Translation with over two years of service to APH. In addition to experience in braille translation, Rod has hands-on experience in braille tooling as well.
Welcome to Anita Rutledge as our new Facilities Supervisor. Anita began at APH as a coop student in the Engineering Department and became a full time employee there in 2004. In November she successfully completed management training and accepted this position.
Welcome to Joshua Ziegler, our newest Copy Holder in Braille Translation! Josh is a native of Louisville and a recent graduate of U of L, with a BA in English. We are very glad to have Josh on our team.
Encourage Your Students to Dare to Dream
Applications Now Available for Braille Institute's 2012 Cinema Without Sight Film Festival!
Cinema Without Sight (CWS) is a unique film festival sponsored by the Braille Institute of American for visually impaired students, grades 7-12. It challenges participants to apply their creativity and shepherd a film concept from script to screen. The goals of the program are to foster literacy through the art of script writing, enable students to contribute their own unique perspective to society, and demonstrate their ability to interpret and engage in visual media.
The full video must be no more than five minutes long and may be a fully scripted, acted and edited story, or simply a collection of images and scenes. Entries should be based on this year’s theme: Dare to Dream.
A panel of film industry experts from Hollywood will judge films accepted into the contest. The winner of the festival will be flown to Los Angeles and given a full scholarship to attend the New York Film Academy's prestigious one-week film making summer program at Universal Studios in Hollywood, CA.
Participants must submit their original work as a DVD or electronic file to the CWS festival director on or before May 1, 2012. Go to www.cinemawithoutsight.org for more information, to view past years' entries, or to download an application!
Holiday Gift Guide 2011
Our 2011 Holiday Gift Guide is here,
With lots of ideas to spread winter cheer!
Send the APH elves your order quick,
Receive your goodies in time to help out St. Nick!
Note: Order these items on or before December 10 to receive prior to December 25.
You Can Create a Holiday Game Using APH's Game Kit!
Frequent Fred's Head blog contributor Kristie Smith-Armand has created a clever holiday game using parts from APH's Game Kit.
Players take a virtual trip through a shopping mall, gaining money to spend or to give to the "bell ringers." Depending on how you set up the game, it can include smells such as soaps or foods. It can also include educational questions. For some seasonal fun, check out the holiday mall game instructions here.
"Like" APH at Our Facebook Page!
We invite you to visit our Facebook page and "Like" us! You can find APH at these social media sites: Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, and at our blog, Fred's Head from APH.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/American-Printing-House-for-the-Blind/122879984400686
APH Welcomes New Ex Officio Trustees
Lisa Wright, the Maryland State Department of Education, replacing Linda Rosendall.
Joyce Cox, the East Central Regional Hospital in Georgia, replacing Deb Griffin.
APH Travel Calendar
December
December 1, 2011
Meeting with Wilson Publishing and Perkins Representatives to present APH materials and secure approval to produce and sell modified Wilson Reading Materials;
Crowne Plaza in Newton, MA
December 7-10, 2011
Getting In Touch With Literacy Conference 2011;
Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, KY
January
January 26-28, 2012
ATIA 2012;
Caribe Royal located in Orlando, FL
February
February 4, 2011
Long Island Regional Braille Challenge 2012;
Long Island, NY
February 8, 2011
FVLMA Workshop (in conjunction with Minnesota and Minnesota South Central Service Cooperative);
South Central Service Center in North Mankato, MN
February 27-March 3, 2012
CSUN 2012;
Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego, CA
March
March 1, 2012
APH Products, Services, Resources, and More Training;
Anne Arundel Community College in Arnold, MD
March 13-17, 2012
AAHPERD 2012;
Boston, MA
March 15-18, 2012
CTEBVI 53rd Annual Conference (California Transcribers & Educators for the Blind & Visually Impaired)(was CTEVH);
Los Angeles Airport Marriott in Los Angeles, CA
March 14, 2012
Focus on Vision Impairment & Blindness Conference
March 29-30, 2012
APH Product Fair;
Carroll Center for the Blind in Newton, MA
March 22, 2012
NIP Event – SLK;
Ocean City, MD
Sneak Preview: APH Talking PC Maps Version 2 Is Coming Soon
In early December, current owners of APH Talking PC Maps (Catalog number 1-04105-00) will receive a welcome announcement when they open their software and are connected to the Internet. They will learn that they are eligible to download a free upgrade to Version 2, and they will receive directions for downloading this new version. December buyers will receive Version 2 automatically. Version 2 features a graphical on-screen map as well as the text map descriptions, the ability to move by Point of Interest, and much, much more.
Fall Harvest Sale
Load up a world of savings on selected APH products with APH's Fall Harvest Sale 2011, October 1—December 31. As always, first come, first served.
www.aph.org/products/harvest.html
New Downloadable Manuals Available
Get the manual you need instantly! APH offers a selected list of product manuals available for free download (www.aph.org/manuals/). You may print or emboss these as needed. We will continue to package hard copies of these manuals with their products and sell hard copy replacements.
Newly added manuals include:
- Multiplication and Division Table: REVISED Instruction Booklet, braille file
- Program to Develop Efficiency in Visual Functioning: Volume I, Diagnostic Assessment Procedure (8-16040-00)
- Tactile Graphics Starter Kit: Manual, Print (8-08839-00)
- Touch and Tell: Instruction Booklet, Print (8-44660-00)
- Word Associations Print-Braille Labels: Manual, Large Print (8-39051-00)
APH InSights Calendar 2012: A Holiday Gift Like No Other!
Single Copy: 5-18971-12 -- $7.50
Amazing artwork from visually impaired artists of all ages is featured in the beautiful large print/braille APH InSights Art Calendar 2012!
Months, days, holidays, and moon phases appear in both braille and large print. You won't find this high-quality calendar at the mall, and it is priced lower than most other calendars.
And there is still time to receive your 2012 CUSTOM calendar orders!
Makes a great corporate gift or fund-raiser! A special version of this calendar can be custom-printed with your organization's name and logo. For more information, please contact our Contract Administration office at 1-800-223-1839.
NEW! Building on Patterns: Second Grade, Unit 2
Print Kit: 8-78470-U2 -- $219.00
Braille Kit: 6-78470-U2 -- $219.00
Replacement Items
Unit 2 Teacher’s Edition:
Print: 8-78471-U2 -- $119.00
Braille: 6-78471-U2 -- $119.00
Unit 2 Student Textbook: 6-78473-U2 -- $17.00
Unit 2 Consumable Unit Assessment Packet (print & braille): 8-78476-U2 -- $39.00
Unit 2 Lesson Monitoring Sheets (print & braille): 8-78473-U2 -- $17.00
Unit 2 Worksheets Pack: 6-78474-U2 -- $23.00
Related Product
Building on Patterns: Second Grade, Unit 1:
Print Kit: 8-78470-U1 -- $199.00
Braille Kit: 6-78470-U1 -- $199.00
Building on Patterns (BOP) is a complete primary literacy program designed to teach beginning braille users all language arts -- reading, writing, and spelling.
Note: Building on Patterns: Second Grade replaces Patterns Second and Third Reader Levels.
The Building on Patterns series addresses phonemic awareness (ability to hear and interpret sounds in speech), phonics (the association of written symbols with the sounds they represent), comprehension, fluency, and oral vocabulary, all of which have been identified as important for reading instruction.
This program also addresses specific skill areas needed by the child who is blind, such as language development, sound discrimination, tactual discrimination, and concept development. Braille contractions are introduced from the beginning along with sound and letter associations. Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC) skills such as using tactile graphics and technology are also included.
New Features
- Timed reading in each lesson
- More independent reading suggestions
- Simplified lesson monitoring sheets
- Quick Read for silent reading and reading comprehension practice
- Meet the Authors with information on the BOP writers in each unit
BOP Second Grade includes more worksheets, part-word braille contractions, and other remaining literary contractions and symbols, along with the rules for using them. The curriculum also emphasizes syllables and multisyllabic words, and the effect of certain letter combinations on vowel sounds. For optional map work, each lesson gives the foreign origin of at least one spelling word.
Prerequisite: Building on Patterns: First Grade or equivalent skills.
Recommended ages: 7 to 8 years and up.
NEW! Moving Ahead Series: Turtle and Rabbit, Print/Braille Book with Large Print Reader's Guide
6-77901-00 -- $62.00
Optional Item:
Turtle and Rabbit Reader's Guide only, Braille: 6-77905-00 -- $17.00
Related Products: Moving Ahead Series
The Boy and the Wolf, Print/Braille Book with Large Print Reader's Guide: 6-77900-00 -- $50.00
Splish the Fish, Print/Braille Book with Large Print Reader's Guide: 6-77902-00 -- $56.00
Goin' on a Bear Hunt, Print/Braille Book with Large Print Reader's Guide: 6-77903-00 -- $45.50
Moving Ahead: Tactile Graphic Storybooks are designed to be the next step for preschool and kindergarten students who have had some experience with simple tactile representations, such as those in APH's On the Way to Literacy series.
While On the Way to Literacy storybooks use real objects, molded images, and simple raised outlines, Moving Ahead storybooks introduce symbolic representation, more complex illustrations, and an increased emphasis on text by combining tactile pictures, print/braille text, and a fun story. Each read-aloud book invites the child to have fun while listening to the story and exploring its tactile pictures and print/braille text.
Turtle and Rabbit is the fourth title in the Moving Ahead Series and is a retelling of the classic tale about the race between the tortoise and the hare, which shows that the race is not always won by the swiftest. Simple raised-line symbols represent the main characters (Turtle and Rabbit) and several secondary characters. The tactile illustrations allow the child to follow the progress of the race by tracking from left to right along the raised lines of Turtle (smooth, thin line) and Rabbit (wide, dotted line).
As the story is read, the child is invited to tactually search the page for these characters, and to track and compare each racer's position. The story and its graphics introduce a variety of concepts: left, right, top, bottom, near, far, first, last, fast, slow, start, finish. A simple key presents the symbols used in the book.
The accompanying storyboard and symbols for the story's characters (Velcro®-backed pieces) permit the child to create his or her own tactile displays as he or she retells the story. As the story is being retold, the child gains an understanding of how tactile graphics can be used to symbolize objects and show spatial position.
Recommended ages: Preschool through 2nd grade.
REVISED! Multiplication/Division Table Kit
5-82700-01 -- $19.50
Replacement Item
Print Guidebook
17-125-013 -- $6.00
Related Product
Addition/Subtraction Table Kit
5-82699-00 -- $19.50
This handy kit helps students quickly find the products and quotients of whole numbers.
Large print/braille tool helps math students with multiplication and division problems. The chart is printed/embossed on white index stock and is punched for a 3-ring binder. Alternating rows are highlighted to help low vision students easily track numbers. The Multiplication/Division Table Kit has been expanded so students can find the products of two whole numbers from 1–10 or the quotient of a related division problem.
Includes
- 10 charts (grids)
- Print guidebook
Note: APH does not sell a braille edition of The Multiplication/Division Guidebook. This publication is available from the APH website as a free download in the accessible formats of .brf and .txt.
NEW! SQUID Tactile Activities Magazine, Issue 7
1-08862-07 -- $69.00
Related Products: SQUID Tactile Activities Magazines
These activities magazines introduce a recreational approach to tactile literacy.
SQUID Magazine is deceptively fun: while your child or student enjoys a variety of activities, he or she will acquire skills needed to become a more proficient tactile reader. These puzzles, games, and brainteasers will foster:
- Texture discrimination
- Shape identification
- Pattern building and recognition
- Systematic searching
- Tracking line paths
- Understanding symbols
Each Issue Includes:
- Large Print/Braille Activity Booklet
- Puzzle Solutions
- Tactile Activity Packet with an assortment of 3-hole punched tactile activities (to include into your own binder)
SQUID, Issue 7
Some activities include:
- Daisy's Doodles
- Ruff Maze
- Knot that Hard
- A Wink and a Smile
- Window Pain
Note: Many of the tactile puzzles are reusable and are intended to grow with the child as he or she acquires new skills and tactile understanding. Recommended ages: 5 years and up.
Again Available for Purchase!
APH Light-Touch Perkins Brailler®
1-00815-00 -- $730.00
A classic updated! The APH Light-Touch Perkins Brailler® is now in stock and ready to be shipped.
This manual brailler keeps all of the great features of the classic Perkins Brailler, but adds several enhanced features:
- 1/3 less pressure required to depress keys
- Ergonomic extended key design to increase usability and comfort
- Exclusive Sapphire Blue color
- Light gray keys provide contrast against blue frame
The APH Light-Touch Perkins Brailler preserves the qualities you love about the classic Perkins Brailler:
- Durability
- Reliability
- Ability to braille wide paper
Order Today!
APH offers a number of recreational books in braille (Quota funds can be used). Each of these titles was originally transcribed and produced by APH for the National Library Service which has graciously granted permission for this offering. As usual, these titles have been added to the APH Louis Database where you can find thousands of titles produced in accessible formats.
Note: all books are produced upon receipt of orders, therefore, please allow several weeks for delivery.
Melonhead
by Katy Kelly: T-N1832-90 -- $29.50
Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. Ten-year-old Adam "Melonhead" Melon, a friend of Lucy Rose, has a talent for landing in trouble. But right now he and his pal Sam are dreaming up inventions to win a science contest. For grades 2-4. *(AR Quiz #129258, BL 4.0, Pts. 4.0)
The Cats of Roxville Station
by Jean Craighead George: T-N1834-80 -- $26.50
Thrown into a river by a cruel human, a tiger-striped kitten fights to survive among feral cats and other creatures that live near the Roxville train station. Mike, a foster boy who is forbidden to have any pets, calls her "Rachet" and gradually becomes her friend. For grades 3-6. *(AR Quiz #129830, BL 5.4, Pts. 4.0)
The Ghosts of Kerfol
by Deborah Noyes: T-N1834-70 -- $32.00
Five intertwined stories involving Kerfol, the fictional mansion of author Edith Wharton. Over the centuries its inhabitants are haunted by dead dogs, fractured relationships, and the taste of bitter revenge. For senior high readers. *(AR Quiz #123957, BL 6.4, Pts. 6.0)
All My Patients Have Tales: Favorite Stories from a Vet’s Practice
by Jeff Wells, D.V.M.: T-N1833-40 -- $55.00
Wells recounts his Iowa vet-school experience and the early years of his veterinary practice in South Dakota and Colorado. Describes chasing an excrement-spewing feral cat through the clinic, treating a Tibetan yak named Jack, and realizing that an ex-marine had fainted while Wells sutured a horse's nose. Uncontracted braille.
Takeover
by Lisa Black: T-N1834-60 -- $82.00
Cleveland. Forensic scientist Theresa MacLean works a murder scene with her fiancé, homicide detective Paul Cleary. When Paul goes to the federal reserve bank where the victim worked, he stumbles upon a related robbery and becomes one of the hostages. Some violence and some strong language.
*Accelerated Reader quiz number, book level, and point value. For more information on the Accelerated Reader program, see the January 2006 APH News or www.renlearn.com/ar/
