Looking for a fun activity book to work on or give over the holidays? How about some fabulous cookbooks for that chef in the family! Look no further; here is a list of some outstanding new books in both categories.
Klutz publishing packages fun activity boxes that have easy-to-follow directions for kids. Mini Shake Shop includes a book of colorful instructions, colorful clay, paint and other sundries to create this cute, sweet shop. Age seven and above. Beadlings is a kit to make small beaded charms. It includes an instruction booklet, colorful beads, charms and more to create charm straps and more. Ages eight and older. Pokémon Color-In 3D Puffy Stickers includes an instruction booklet, 3 pages of puffy sticker paper and more. Ages six and above. Make You Own Mini Erasers Kawaii Style includes clay in eight colors, small buttons for eyes and more. Ages eight and above. Gravity Drop: Design & Build a Chain Reaction Machine includes LEGO pieces, wooden balls and more. Ages eight and above. Harry Potter Clay Charms includes colorful clay, a charm braclet and more. Ages eight and above.
The Tinkering Workshop: Explore, Invent & Build with Everyday Materials, by Ryan Jenkins, is the perfect book for science-oriented kids, ages eight and above. This book is packed with inventive ideas that will sharpen kids’ problem-solving skills and encourage creativity as they work with their hands to build items with electricity, gravity and more.
Kid Quest: The Game Where Kids Find Out What Grown-Ups were Like as Kids, published by Chronicle is a small-sized box filled with cards asking a hundred questions. Here is the perfect game to laugh and enjoy as family members learn more about their parents. And the best thing is you don’t have to use any device! Best for ages five to ninety-nine.
Rainbow Science: Discover How Rainbows are Made, by Artemis Roehrig and brightly illustrated by Sarah Walsh, includes twenty-three experiments along with activities that go along with the experiments. This picture book explores the science behind rainbows and includes prism glasses for children, ages six through ten, to see rainbows through light refraction.
Most Requested Copycat Dishes: 101 Homemade Versions of Your Favorite Restaurant Recipes, by Favorite Family Recipes, is a most unusual cookbook perfect for the adult chef in your family. The recipes are a nice composite of fast-food meals as well as gourmet recipes that will take time but are worth every bite. There are mouth-watering photos included with every recipe
Mouse Town: 30+ Kids Crafts Made from Recycled and Everyday Materials, by Jodi Levine and perfectly illustrated showing the end products by Margaret McCartney, helps youngsters create a town and habitat of this cute little mouse. This craft book takes kids, ages five through ten, through a typical day by creating Mouse and all that Mouse will need. This could include grocery store items and bakery shop items which kids will easily be shown what and how to make. Then they can make up their own stories about Mouse.
Bear Grylls Outdoor Skills Handbook series, is a nonfiction series that also has activity books that can go right along with these short succinct handbooks. These outstanding books showcase easy step-by-step directions to help prepare young adventurers for the outside and wilderness. There are colorful illustrations that help convey what is being taught. Six handbooks include Dangers and Emergencies, Hiking Adventures and Campfire Cooking.
Cooking Class: 73 Fun Recipes Kids Will Love to Make (and Eat!), by Deanna F. Cook, is a hardback book packed with delicious looking meals for kids ages eight and up. The instructions are super easy to follow along with photos and are safe to make with some adult supervision. The chapters are categorized by breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and desserts. There are also pull-out pages for recipe cards and stickers for labeling.
Cluedle: The Case of the Golden Pomengranate, by Hartman Browne, is the perfect book for that code-cracking person. This book reads like a story but is full of puzzles and riddles as you attempt to help catch the thief. This outstanding book is interactive and great fun. The first book is Cluedle: The Case of the Dumpleton Diamond.
Backpack Explorer, published by Storey, has two new books for ages four through eight. Nature Adventure includes 300 stickers for kids to use as they go on their nature walks. There are activities that include placing sticking on items they find outside as well as making a trail map. Discovering Plants and Flowers has kids search for different kinds of flowers according to their descriptions in this book. They will learn about wildflowers, ferns, grasses and even have a scavenger hunt. There is a magnifying glass included.
