Spellbound

The Jungle Grapevine
by Alex Beard
Suggested for ages 4 to 8
$16.95

Artist Alex Beard talks about his new picture book, The Jungle Grapevine. In the book, Beard brings to life an African savanna filled with humor and misunderstandings.

When Bird mixes up something Turtle says, he accidentally starts a rumor about the watering hole drying up. One misunderstanding leads to another, with animals making their own hilarious assumptions. No one is hearing anything right, and soon the animals are in an uproar from one end of the jungle to the other. Elephant is trumpeting, Croc is snapping, and the Flamingos are fleeing! Beard’s story will have every child wondering if peace can ever be restored in the animal kingdom.

Named one of the Best Books for Children 2009 by the Association of Booksellers for Children, The Jungle Grapevine is available now. $16.95. Suggested for ages 4 to 8.

Author & illustrator Nick Bruel will be at Spellbound on Saturday, November 7 at 5pm to read and sign books! You probably know his nationally bestselling picture books Boing! and Bad Kitty.

His new book is Happy Birthday, Bad Kitty, a heavily illustrated early chapter book. Nick will be in the Tarheel state to accept the 2009 North Carolina Picture Book of the Year award for Who Is Melvin Bubble? We’re thrilled to be hosting Nick for the second time at Spellbound. If the company he keeps tells you anything, in October Nick appeared with 5 real luminaries of the children’s book world at a group signing in New York’s largest bookstore for kids: LANE SMITH, MARK TEAGUE, ROBIE HARRIS, MAC BARNETT, and the Children’s Book Laureate himself JON SCIESZKA.
 
Best to have the kids in the door by 5:15 at the latest for a reading, though Nick will be here to talk with readers and sign books until 7:oopm.

 It’s Bad Kitty’s birthday, and you’re invited! Bad Kitty’s second illustrated novel is packed with deadpan humor, rich tidbits of cat information — and even some suspense! Who took Kitty’s presents? Why are Kitty’s friends so bizzare? Readers will laugh out loud at Kitty’s feline mood swings, and they’ll be touched by the heartwarming visit from a surprise guest. Follow-up to Bad Kitty Gets a Bath, now available in paperback.

Who is this kid with the funny name? Well, that depends on who you ask. Everybody who knows Melvin—his mom, his dad, his best friend Jimmy, his dog—even Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, and the big ugly monster with three eyes who lives in his closet have a different opinion.  This original and riotous picture book has a lot to say—not only about Melvin, but also about perspective, point of view, and a six-and-a-half-year-old’s place in the world.