WHERE DOES THE GARBAGE GO? and THE EMPTY POT

First, I want to announce the date for the next EDIWTB book club – We Need To Talk About Kevin, by Lionel Shriver. If you want to participate, please plan to visit this site on Wednesday, December 10 to discuss the book. That should give us plenty of time to finish – it's a long book.

Second, here are two cute children's books we've been reading this week.

Garbage Where Does The Garbage Go?, by Paul Showers, teaches kids about trash – garbage, landfills, recycling, and creating less waste. It's written simply enough for a 4-year old to understand, with colorful pictures and some funny asides, like a dog watching wistfully as its owner puts lots of food trash into a garbage can. Best of all, it can lead to some good discussions with kids about consumption and waste and not filling up the earth with trash. We've been talking more about what we put in the recycling and what can be used again. I was pleasantly surprised when my daughter requested this book two nights in a row!

Emptypot-718431 The Empty Pot. This is not a new book; in fact, it's a very old Chinese tale about an Emperor looking for his successor. It's a simple story – easy to follow with beautiful Chinese-like drawings. Without giving too much away, it's about honesty, and I swear this book must have inspired the nostalgic favorite Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I can't remember who gave us this book, but it's a treasured member of our library.