Hilltown Families 
Langston Hughes, The Dream Keeper Bring me all of your dreams, You dreamers, Bring me all of your Heart melodies That I may wrap them In a blue cloud-cloth Away from...
In Honor of Black History Month, 5 Award Winning Books Every January the American Library Association announces the much-anticipated Youth Media Awards, some of the highest honors given to books for...
The Mysteries of Harris Burdick Revealed More than twenty-five years ago, writer and illustrator, Chris Van Allsburg, introduced readers to the strange and mysterious drawings of Harris Burdick. The picture book...
Holiday Books ‘Tis the season for stories. And what better way to share a story than snuggling up with your favorite kids and turning the pages of a beloved holiday book....
Open Sesame Open Sesame’s debut review is a hot-off-the-presses picture book about an extraordinary artist and a Thanksgiving Day parade. Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s...
All Together Singing in the Kitchen by Nerissa Nields & Katryna Nields Foreword by Dan Zanes We’re thrilled to announce that our very own Western MA folk duo, sisters Nerissa and...
Mr. Bandicoot Have you ever heard of a bandicoot? I hadn’t, at least not until I was introduced to Anne Lawson’s lovely Australian nursery rhyme book, Mr. Bandicoot & Other Tales....
Book Series: Amy Hodgepodge Amy Hodgepodge: All Mixed Up by Kim Wayans & Kevin Knotts. Fourth grader Amy Hodges was nicknamed Amy Hodgepodge by her friend Lola because Amy’s Japanese, African...
Three Great Media Giveaways In Honor of Earth Day This year commemorates the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day, and Western Mass is filled with events that raise awareness and honor the...
Can a Full Moon Have More Than One Name? In many cultures a folklore name is associated with each full moon of the year. January’s full moon was called the Wolf...
100 Links (October/November 2009) Nearly every day I add recommended links to the Hilltown Families bank of on-line resources. Some of you might find these links well suited for your family,...
CCFC’s Guide to Commercial-Free Book Fairs Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood writes: Are you tired of all the items for sale at your book fair that aren’t books–such as toys, video...
Serving Up the Harvest: 175 Simple Recipes Celebrating the Goodness of Fresh Vegetables Recently I received several cook books from Storey Publishing that I’ve been busy referencing for recipes and cooking...
Your Daughter’s Halloween Costume: Tips for Dads The search for your daughter or stepdaughter’s Halloween costume can be treacherous, filled with over-sexed and stereotyped “choices.” Here are some healthy ideas from...
Thirteen Moons on Turtle’s Back: A Native American Year of Moons By J. Bruchac & J. London Illustrated by Thomas Locker “In many Native American cultures each of the thirteen moons...
Every year I send my parents a gingerbread house for their solstice dessert party, complete with their last name iced on the front door. The door with their name is left...
Banned Books Week By J. Douglas Archer Chair, American Library Association Intellectual Freedom Committee Celebrate book banning? No way! Why would you do that? The answer, of course, is that Banned...
You Did It: Scholastic Expels the Bratz From Schools By CCFC Thanks to you, Scholastic, Inc. will no longer be promoting the highly sexualized Bratz brand in schools. In April, 2007,...
The table of contents by itself is worth the price of admission. Among the chapter headings: "How to decide what you want to be when you grow up"; "Failure"; "Organized religion";...
TREES: A READING LIST By HF Contributing Writer, Tony(a) Lemos Sienna’s Arbor Day Episode on HFVS inspired me to compile a list of some of our favorite tree books I thought...
Books, Movies & TV Shows with a Green Message Common Sense Media has compiled a list of “green” books, movies and TV shows, just in time for Earth Day: Best Green...
Step Up to the Plate @ Your Library Swings into Action! The boys of summer are stepping up to the plate, so why not join them? The American Library Association and...
The best memories I try to create with my daughter are often made out of delight in silly, simple things, often times creating our most precious moments together. A detour from...
HILLTOWN FAMILY VARIETY SHOW Vintage Holiday Episode with Sienna & Persephone WXOJ LP – 103.3 FM – Valley Free Radio Northampton, MA Tuesday evening @ 7pm 12/18/07 PLAYLIST subscribe to podcast...
COBWEB CHRISTMAS By Sienna Wildfield For the Kids-Made Holiday Bazaar my 5yo daughter made holiday cards using the Christmas Spider as her motif. Why the Christmas Spider? Well, last year she...
This DELICIOUS book has 100 ideas that include songs, crafts, poetry, recipes and more.
LUGHNASADH Lughnasadh was one of the four main festivals of the medieval Irish calendar: Imbolc at the beginning of February, Beltane on the first of May, Lughnasadh in August and Samhain...
Help your library this April Catch the Beat for Your Library at Barnes and Noble, will be held on April 20-21, 2007 to raise much needed funding for Summer Reading Programs...