Stick Inducted into Toy Hall of Fame

Obviously someone has a sense of humor at the Toy Hall of Fame CNN reports.

Stick"s selection was attributed to its creative play factor "It's very open-ended, all-natural, the perfect price -- there aren't any rules or instructions for its use," said Christopher Bensch, the museum's curator of collections.

One critic did note that "You could put your eye out with that!". No word on safety warnings yet.

The Best Thing You Missed...

One of the great things about owning a store is finding amazing things, and showing them to customers, who think they are amazing things too! Hooray for business! The other side of the coin is, finding amazing things, and then watching them sit, unloved and unnoticed. This is especially true for books. Toys can jump off the shelf and grab your attention better than books. I love books, and so I occasionally order what I think are really creative, clever books, and they gather dust. So I'm starting a blog feature! A book or toy you missed in our store. Maybe not you, but people kind of like you.
This week KNUCKLEHEAD
Jon Scieszka published his first book with illustrator Lane Smith, The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs!. Scieszka and Smith have collaborated on seven other books, including The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, a Caldecott Honor Book, and their most recent title, Cowboy and Octopus. Jon is also the author of the Time Warp Trio series for middle grade readers.
Obviously he is an authority on 9 year-old boy humor. Knucklehead is his tale of youth, and will have kids rolling on the floor. This book is so exhaustive in its detail that it includes an index:
P
Pee, We do not say that.
See urinate;swords, crossed;
sword fight!
Polish
counting to five in, 69
*note scieszka means "path" in Polish
poop, dog, 20-21
picking up, 20-22
puke
cat, 93; see also yak, cat
group, 93
You can see what crowd this book is aiming for.
Scieszka has also set up a blog for Knucklehead here.
Now you know.

Getting Ready!

This is just a quick post, as there has been a pretty good gap since my last post. Between the election, the last minute ordering and the checking in boxes and boxes of toys, we have been very busy! I'm posting a picture of a very cute display that the Wednesday morning crew set up, first because it is cute, and second, because it won't last a minute past the first little boy that sees it! Lots more posting should be coming now, as we are sitting in the calm before the storm!

Why American Kids Have Farther to Go

Behold the blocks of death! Yesterday at the Golden Apple, I helped a young couple find early learning toys for their two year old. One item the couple wanted was a set of good old-fashioned blocks. Unit blocks they are called, and have been a preschool staple forever. I always push unit blocks at parents, as they are the simplest, most primary toy that every child should have. They ought to be standard-issue to all babies - forget about the trendy Mozart CDs. So I led them over to where we have a lovely 60 piece Melissa and Doug set (pictured), in its beautiful wooden case. The mom pointed out to me that the package says 3+. I looked and sure enough, Ages 3+. "Ignore that" I said. They looked at me like I was selling broken glass. "These are Unit Blocks, they are a standard size, there is nothing in this box that could possibly harm any child". They started backing away. I was appalled myself. Why would someone put a warning sticker on unpainted blocks of wood? Children all over America are being kept away from the most basic learning toy available, worth more than all the infant flashcards and Baby Einstein dvds ever produced, because some risk-o-phobic team of lawyers decided it was safer for them to bump the age. We are doomed.

E-News is Out

The October edition of the Golden Apple E-news is out - and since it is technically the September edition, and it was finished before November, it was right on time! Between the blogging and the e-news I am slowly learning to complete assignments on time, which I seem to remember was one of those familiar check boxes on my report cards every quarter. It's a bit like painting the Golden Gate Bridge. Onward to the November issue!

Do You Have an Eco Cop in Your House?

More news from the NYT:
Pint-Size Eco-Police, Making Parents Proud and Sometimes Crazy
"Sometimes, Jennifer Ross feels she cannot make a move at home without inviting the scorn of her daughters, 10-year-old Grace and 7-year-old Eliza. The Acura MDX she drives? A flagrant polluter. The bath at night to help her relax? A wasteful indulgence. The reusable shopping bags she forgot, again? Tsk, tsk."
We see these junior Al Gores more and more at our store, and I love it! There are several new books coming along on this topic - Nancy Elizabeth Wallace is the author of "Recycle Everyday" pictured above - because of course you want to encourage this sort of thing!

Math Skills Suffer in US

From the NYT:
The United States is failing to develop the math skills of both girls and boys, especially among those who could excel at the highest levels, a new study asserts, and girls who do succeed in the field are almost all immigrants or the daughters of immigrants from countries where mathematics is more highly valued.