Today would have been Janis Joplin's birthday

Had this legendary singer lived, she would have turned 68 today.

Her powerful and soulful voice blazed a trail for other female rockers. Born in Port Arthur, Texas, Janis found her place in life was onstage. She sang with Big Brother and the Holding Company, a band from San Francisco. She became a household name after the Monterey Pop Festival.

Despite her early death, her accomplishments and influence are felt throughout the music industry today. She continues to be an inspiration to musicians everywhere.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

In 2005, the UN General Assembly designated January 27th as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The date corresponds with the anniversary of the Soviet army's liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp complex in 1945.

The anniversary presents teachers with an opportunity to focus a lesson on the Holocaust, its causes, and its pertinence to contemporary affairs. Enslow Publishers' excellent new Holocaust series -- "True Stories of Teens in the Holocaust" -- provides revealing primary souce material that's woven into clear, well-written narratives. The teen voices emerging from these texts deliver powerful, personal testimony about the Holocaust and its impact on young and old alike.

Enslow also offers biographies of people who defied Nazi racism and hatred. One of those figures was Jesse Owens, the African-American track star whose 1936 Berlin Olympics victories were widely viewed as a triumph over Nazism's racist ideology. Enslow's new biography of Owens, written by NAACP Image Award nominee Jeff Burlingame, explores the athlete's participation in the Olympics, as well as Owens' legacy on and off the track.

Add these and other content-rich Enslow titles to your library's collection today!

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

The idea for a federal holiday in King's honor began soon after he was assassinated in 1968. Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983, but it wasn't observed until January 20, 1986. At first, some states resisted observing the holiday but it was officially observed in all 50 states for the first time in 2000.


Enslow has two titles to help schools and libraries celebrate this holiday. Our
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Revised and Updated explains the origin of the holiday and how it is celebrated.

Count your way through Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by using our Martin Luther King, Jr., Day–Count and Celebrate title.

Students will enjoy fun ways to practice counting with this title and others in our Holidays–Count and Celebrate! series.

Today is Friday so it's Joke Book day!

From the Food Jokes to Tickle Your Funny Bone book:

What's worse than finding a worm in your apple? Finding half a worm!

Here's a fact from the book: Did you know that the color of the yolk depends on what the hen eats? Egg yolks can vary in color from deep yellow to almost colorless.

This title is part of Enslow Elementary's Spring 2011 list. Interested in learning more? Click here.

Another event in history

In 1968, Johnny Cash recorded a live concert at Folsom Prison in California. When he took the stage, he solidified the public's perception of him as a rebel who followed his own path.

Part of the American Rebels series, Johnny Cash: "The Man in Black" talks about his growing up in poverty in Arkansas, the death of his older brother, his difficult relationship with his father, and more. Written for high school students, this biography will keep Johnny Cash fans reading!

On this day in 1969

Led Zeppelin's self-titled first album was released.


Formed in Britain as The New Yardbirds in the late 1960s, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Bonham, and John Paul Jones soon changed their band's name to Led Zeppelin. With their bluesy rock 'n' roll songs and rousing lyrics, they became one of the greatest rock bands of all time.
 
Interested in learning more about this band? Enslow has both library and paperback versions of Led Zeppelin: Legendary Rock Band, written for the middle school reader.

Baby Snow Animals

January snowstorms, a common occurance in many regions of the United States, present opportunities to raise a child's awareness of the interaction between the natural world and climate. To support this educational approach, teachers and parents can use Enslow Publishers' Baby Snow Animals. The title, included in the "All About Baby Animals" series, invites emerging readers to delightfully discover young animals who live in charactertistically wintry conditions. Author Jane Katirgis' 24-page book provides a thoughtfully chosen combination of sight words and associated, full-color photographs that children can enjoy. Instructors will welcome Baby Snow Animals' teacher's guide, which includes useful class activities suitable for the book's Guided Reading Level "B" text and pre-K to grade one interest level.

The teacher's guide is available as a free downloadable document. Baby Snow Animals is available in paperback for $6.95; a library-bound version is also available.

New Series: Which Animal is Which?

Some animals are easily confused. In our new series Which Animal is Which? students can join in solving the guessing game of which animal is which. These titles support the K–4 National Science Education Standards Science for Science as Inquiry. Titles in the series include:

Is it an Alligator or Crocodile? Readers may be surprised to learn just how different these two animals are.

 Is it a Butterfly or Moth? What's the difference? Students will learn to indentify these animals using critical thinking skills.

Is it a Frog or Toad? One is thin and the other is fat. Readers will learn which is which.

Is it an Insect or Spider? scurrying across the floor? By taking a closer look at bugs, readers will be able to tell the difference.

One has wet skin and the other has dry skin. So is it a Salamander or Lizard? Readers will find plenty of tips for telling a salamander from lizard.

They both live in the ocean. They are both large, gray, and eat fish. Is it a Shark or Dolphin? Author Melissa Stewart's text paired with stunning underwater photography shows readers just how different these two animals really are.

Young readers love books about animals and we guarantee these will fly off the library shelf. These easy-to-read titles are great for improving critical thinking skills through comparing, contrasting, indentifying, and observing. Superb full-page color, side-by-side photos appear on every spread so that readers can visually compare the animals' differences.

Happy Friday! Another joke from Enslow's Funny Bone Jokes series

Last week we started off the New Year with a joke from Ha-Ha Holiday Jokes to Tickle Your Funny Bone. Today it will be from Animal Jokes to Tickle Your Funny Bone.

What do you call a crazy chicken? A cuckoo cluck.

Here's a fast fact about chickens: did you know that there are more chickens on earth than there are humans? China has the most people in the world and also the most chickens. There are more than 3 billion chickens in China! The United States has only 450 million chickens.

Why did I pick chickens to write about? I don't know. Just thought it would be interesting to see what kind of jokes can be written about chickens, I guess.

This joke book includes chapters on jokes about cats, dogs, birds, ocean animals, chickens, jungle animals, farm animals, snakes, insects, and bears. It also includes an activity to write your own joke book.

posted by Pam

Enslow author Linda Bozzo and search and rescue book featured in newspaper article

Linda Bozzo, an Enslow author, was featured in an article in the New Jersey Herald.

After interviewing a police officer, Linda wrote Search and Rescue Dog Heroes, using that interview with Lt. Ellicott in the book. Both Blaze, Lt. Ellicott's current canine partner, and Radar, his former canine partner, are discussed in the book, along with descriptions of their job responsibilities.

To read the article, click here.

Congratulations to Enslow author Ed Sobey!

Ed Sobey, author of the upcoming Cool Science Projects with Technology series for Enslow, was recently given an appointment as Fulbright Scholar Specialist in Science Education.

Mr. Sobey has written two Science Fair Success titles for Enslow in addition to the four Cool Science Projects with Technology titles, scheduled to be published this spring.

Those four titles are: Electric Motor Experiments, Radio-Controlled Car Experiments, Robot Experiments, and Solar Cell and Renewable Energy Experiments.

Congratulations to our newest raffle winner!

Diana Booth from the Fort Frye Local School District in Ohio recently won our monthly raffle of $100 in free books!

Congratulations!

Snowmobilers Warm Up to Record Snowfalls

For the past month, snowbirds have cheered the record snowfalls across the United States. Over seventeen feet of snow has fallen in sections of California's Sierra Nevada mountain range. Central New York's "lake effect" snow belt recorded snowfalls of 70-plus inches in December. Thanks to a surfeit of snow, slopes from New England to the Rockies are having a strong season.

All that snow has encouraged snowmobile enthusiasts to enjoy the great outdoors in their machines. Young readers curious about this popular winter activity can learn more when they read Enslow Publishers' Snowmobile Racers. Author Bob Woods' 48-page book, part of Enslow's "Kid Racers" series, provides a delightful introduction to snowmobiling's challenges and excitement. The work's design, combining engaging "pull-outs," dynamic photographs, and a well-written narrative, draws enthusiastic and reluctant readers to enjoy this curriculum leveled, Guided Reading Level "S" title. Instructors and classroom paraprofessionals also benefit from using the book's free, downloadable teacher's guide.

A paperback edition of Snowmobile Racers is available via Enslow Classroom for $7.95; a library-bound version is also available through http://www.enslow.com/.

Alma Flor Ada and J.R.R. Tolkien

What do these two famous authors have in common? They both share January 3rd as their birthday. Alma Flor Ada was born January 3, 1938 and J. R. R. Tolkien was born January 3, 1892.
Enslow is celebrating the fact that we have great biographies on both of these popular authors.

From our Authors Kids Love series, Alma Flor Ada: An Author Kids Love is 48 pages for grades 3–4. Written by Michelle Parker-Rock all of the titles in this series include new information from personal interviews.

Our J.R.R. Tolkien: Master of Imaginary Worlds from our Authors Teens Love series is 128 pages and perfect for readers in grades 6–up. Each title in this series includes the author's perspective of the writer's craft as well as personal interviews and insightful quotes about each author.

Enslow celebrates two amazing authors on their birthdays!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all!

Enslow's spring list includes a new series called Funny Bone Jokes. There are six titles in this series, covering animals, food, the body, holidays, sports, and science. Geared toward the elementary market, these jokes, limericks, fun facts, and tongue twisters will keep students entertained and wanting to read more.

Here's an example:

Yesterday always comes before today—or does it? Where is the place where yesterday follows today? Answer: In the dictionary

Happy Birthday Denzel Washington

When Denzel Washington first went to college, he hoped to become a doctor. But he soon found he liked drama better than his science classes. This easy biography shows how Washington became one of the best-known movie actors in America, eventually winning two Academy Awards. Colorful illustrations, lively layout, and accessible vocabulary make the book ideal for early independent readers and useful for beginning reports.

Happy Birthday Stephenie Meyer

Stephenie Meyer is celebrating a birthday today. Lisa Rondinelli Albert's biography about Ms. Meyer is available. This 112-page title is great for middle school readers wanting to learn more about this author and her Twilight series of books.

Thinking about getting a new pet for Christmas?

If you are considering a pet for someone for Christmas, make sure you include reading material for that particular pet.

Enslow has recently published a series, Beginning Pet Care with American Humane, on how to care for different types of pets. This series covers birds, cats, dogs, horses, fish, reptiles and amphibians, and small mammals. Written for the elementary reader, these titles are also reminders to adults of just what goes into caring for a new friend.

Happy Birthday Bonnie Pryor!

Having written several titles in Enslow's Historical Fiction Adventures series, Bonnie Pryor's Hannah Pritchard titles have sold quite well for Enslow Publishers.

Hannah Pritchard was published in 2008 and Pirate Hannah Pritchard was published in 2009. There will be a third Hannah Pritchard title, due out in fall of 2011. Watch for it!

Holiday Closing

The offices of Enslow Publishing, Inc. will be closed starting Friday, December 24 and will reopen on Monday, January 3, 2011.

We would like to take this time to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday. We appreciate your business and look forward to doing business with you in the new year.