links

links

The Advanced Book Exchange is a great resource on the web for locating used and out of print books. This marvelous search engine links together literally thousands of independent book stores world-wide. It’s fast, it’s accurate, and it’s the ultimate resource for the savvy bibliophile!

If you want to hear more about the Animorphs, what’s coming in the upcoming months, read an interview with the author, http://www.scholastic.com/animorphs is the place to do it. Or maybe you’d just like to download some very cool desktop graphics, or post a question for the author to answer – check it out yourself!

Have you visited Harper Collins Publisher’s Big Busy House ® ? It’s full of all sorts of things for children to explore: games, contests, activities, coloring pages and more!

Visit with your favorite author! Check out the theme of the month! Their entire book catalog is on-line with all of your child’s favorites…Runaway Bunny, Amelia Bedelia, Frances the Badger, Crictor and Rotten Ralph. It’s all waiting for you at http://www.harperchildrens.com/

If you’d like to see more pictures of the quality puppets that Giant Steps sells, check out the Folkmanis web site at http://www.folkmanis.com. Their current catalog is listed there, and to see their puppets all you have to do is click on the listing.

If you can’t get enough of the Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling, don’t despair. Scholastic has created a terrific site, with games, crossword puzzles, screensavers, and a chance for you to get to know the author better. Test your knowledge – see if you remember the name of Filch’s scrawney cat. Do you know who is Gryffindor Tower’s resident ghost (or is that who was)? You’ll need these answers if you want to get ahead at Hogwort’s! To visit the site, either click on the logo or go to http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/index.htm. Have a magical visit!

Come and visit Mary Pope Osborne’s Magic Tree House. Write a review of your favorite book. Vote on the plots of upcoming books! Post a question for the author, and check out her answer! Join the Magic Treehouse club, and get a Magic Treehouse surprise! It’s all waiting for you at http://www.randomhouse.com/magictreehouse.

Giant Steps Children’s Books is proud to be a member of the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association. At the Associations web site, you’ll find a terrific resource for readers, book lovers and consumers alike. You can find summaries of bestsellers, a store directory, recommended reading, book news, locate a local independent bookstore or links to web sites…all this and more can be found here at http://www.nciba.com!

Phunny Phonics is an audio tape with a color and activity book. The program features simple songs and familar music that will quickly and easily help your child memorize the sounds of the letters. When played in your car tape deck, the cassette will help your child master these concepts. A must for a child with a second language or who is being home schooled, the sing songy tunes will appeal to all! Find out more about Phunny Phonics at their website, located at http://www.phunnyphonics.com!

If you just can’t get enough of the Beanie Babies, have you thought of checking out the Ty company web site? It’s packed full of Beanie Baby Official Club information, pictures of all the Beanies ever made, and all sorts of cool things to see. Check it out at www.ty.com!

ou’ve got to see the animals from the Wild Republic! They’re cute, they’re cuddly and they just love to hang around – literally! The arms of these adorable stuffed animals are long enough to go around your neck, and their hands have velcro so they don’t let go! Wild Republic has a very kid friendly site, located at http://www.wildrepublic.com. Just click on the Wild Republic logo and you’re there!

The Writer’s Voice is a virtual bookstore reading — by the authors, in their own voices. Select a photo of one of the writers to read a brief biography and to hear a digital audio recording of the writer reading from his or her work. Hearing the recording requires RealAudio 5.0 or higher, but if you don’t have that, you can download it from the Writer’s Voice site (they have a link). The recordings currently only cover adult books, but may include children’s books in the future! You can find the Writer’s Voice at http://www.best.com/~writersv/.