Today is my first day to join the Nonfiction Monday crowd in the kidlitosphere. I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time, because I don’t read and review enough nonfiction, so I’m happy to be hosting the group today.

For my part, I want to call attention to a fun history book–well, is it a history book, or a gossip book?–whatever it is, it grabbed my children by their short attention spans and didn’t let them go for a good long time. Click here for my review of Carlyn Beccia’s The Raucous Royals.

One of the reasons I love this author is that she has a wonderful site to go along with the book. If you want to give your children a break from the books once in a while, let them loose on Carlyn’s blog.

Sign up for her newsletter or play Executioner’s Hangman. Beccia is careful in her facts and in her wonderful illustrations. I thoroughly enjoyed The Raucous Royals.

Now, have fun visiting these other Nonfiction Monday Participants! (And keep checking back because I’ll be updating all day.)

1. Anastastacia Suen gives a lesson idea for Darwin, by Alice B. McGinty (Author) and Mary Azarian (Illustrator)
2. From In Need of Chocolate we hear about rain forests
3. Diane Chen of Practically Paradise shares the Team Spirit sports books today from Norwood House Press.
4. At A Patchwork of Books we find reviews of Animals Charles Darwin Saw and Animals Marco Polo Saw
5. Tasha reviews An Eye For Color
6. and Tasha also reviews  Life in the Boreal Forest
7. Heidi Bee Roemer reviews W is for Waves: An Ocean Alphabet at the Wild About Nature blog.
8. MotherReader has A Pearl in the Storm
9. Roberta takes an inside look at tarantulas with her review of Uncover a Tarantula
10. Bookscoops reviews The Frog Scientist
11. A review of Erie Canal at Maples and Fiddleheads
12. Miss Rumphius Effect has What Bluebirds Do
13. SimplyScience has Count Down to Fall
14. At Abby (the) Librarian there is a review of Strong Man by Meghan McCarthy
15. At Lori Calabrese Writes, there is a review of The Girls’ Guide to Rocking
16. Booklist’s Bookends Blog is just squeaking in with a post about Elizabeth Partridge’s new book, Marching for Freedom, another stellar addition to the Civil Rights Movement cannon

Today is the last day of our KidzBookBuzz.com blog tour for The Raucous Royals, a wonderful history book/rag mag, by Carlyn Beccia.

Today I want to look more at Carlyn herself, rather than at this one book of hers, because I believe this is an author we’re going to be seeing more of in the future. She’s a brilliant artist and author, and she’s witty. A killer combination.

So today, I urge you again to visit her raucous blog if you’ve not already done so. I love her site and I’m going to use it as a reward for my kids. One day a week, if they’ve done well at school, I will let them have a fun history day, reading on Carlyn’s blog and web sites.

And I want to point out that Carlyn is, right now as I blog, offering a free signed book to one lucky person who signs up for her monthly newsletter. Full details here. That’s two gifts in one. A free newsletter (and this is not of the crapola variety of which so many newsletter consist–this woman couldn’t put out crapola if she tried.) and a free signed book to one lucky person. GO NOW!

There are games to play (I was condemned as a witch–bummer. On the upside Will Shakespeare uses the word hugger-mugger, which has long been one of my favorite words. He uses it as a noun, which I’ve never heard done before, so I was happy to learn something new involving that lovely word). There are also book suggestions (organized by royal personages–need a book on Mary Queen of Scots? Look no further) and discussions on the art in the book.

I look over these pages and I am amazed at the detail and beauty that Carlyn is handing out for free. This is a woman who is meticulous in her work and generous to her readers. If you haven’t been to her site, go now, and see why I’m gushing.

If you go to her blog there are two links in the left sidebar of interest. One is a way to subscribe to her newletter (which, as I mentioned above, will snag you a chance to win a free, signed book if you do it in the next week or so) and then further down you can subscribe to her blog. I do subscribe to my favorite blogs by feedburner so the posts come to my inbox. I love this easy way of keeping up with blogs I love. I never have to miss a post that way.

OK I’m done with her Raucous site, but wait, there’s more. Did you know that Carlyn’s first book was a gem called Who Put the B in the Ballyhoo? At the Ballyhoo site you will find a teacher’s guide, games, and much more.

Beccia is two for two with the critics–both of her books have gotten starred reviews from PW and both have gotten glowing reviews from everyone else. Ballyhoo was also the winner of the 2007 Golden Kite Honor for Picture Book Illustration. It’s easy to see why. It’s wonderful.

Go check out Carlyn Beccia for yourself. She’s a class act.

Whenever I find a book I really love, I immediately start thinking about who I can give the book to, after I read it.

So…today is the first day of the KidzBookBuzz.com’s book tour for the wonderful history book cum rag mag for enquiring minds, The Raucous Royals, and I want to have a contest.

It’s not the kind of book I normally give away–it’s not a novel that made me laugh and cry. It’s a book of facts laid out in an interesting format, with wonderful illustrations and hilarity throughout. It’s beautifully crafted, a joy to read, and I want to pass it on.

And since I love the little poetry contests I’ve been having, I have to combine this one with poetry. Pick any historical figure and write a poem about him or her.

This is almost impossible for me since I’m not a history buff. But here’s my effort.

Good King Wenceslaus looked out…

I’m Henry the eighth, I am. Henry the eighth I am, I am.

OK here we go–to the beat of Humpty Dumpty…kind of.

Little Georgie had a fine ax,
Little Georgie’s morals were lax,
When he chopped down his dad’s cherry tree,
he lied through his teeth and said, “‘Twasn’t me.”

OK give me a poem by midnight EST Monday, December 8. That way I can get the book to you in time for Christmas. I’ll pick the winner and mail the book on Tuesday, December 9th. If you have a middle school teacher in your life, or if you have middle school kids, or homeschooling families, this will make a great gift.

And, yes, the flavor of Raucous Royals is irreverent so extra points will be given to feechie-flavored poems this time. Come up with a good poem about the queen who used puppy urine to whiten her teeth and you’ll be a shoo-in.

Tomorrow I’ll give you my review of this book, written and illustrated by Carlyn Beccia. in the mean time go and visit other bloggers on the tour.

01 Charger, the 160acrewoods, A Mom Speaks, All About Children’s Books, Becky’s Book Reviews, Cafe of Dreams, Dolce Bellezza, Fireside Musings, The Friendly Book Nook, The Hidden Side of a Leaf, Homeschool Buzz, Hyperbole, KidzBookBuzz.com, Looking Glass Reviews, Maw Books Blog, Never Jam Today, Our Big Earth, Quiverfull Family, Reading is My Superpower, SmallWorld Reads, SMS Book Reviews