Good morning my toy-dusty friends! I think it's time for another book recommendation, so here we go: JOURNEY was published by Candlewick Press in 2013 and won the Caldecott Medal. A girl opens a doorway to another land with a red marker and goes on an adventure! The illustrations are outstanding and I love the … Continue reading JOURNEY by Aaron Becker
Do not wait for home video! FREE SOLO must be seen on a theater-sized screen, or you will rob yourself of the full effect. This is the best documentary I've ever seen. On June 3, 2017, Alex Honnold climbed El Capitan in Yosemite National Park without ropes or any safety gear. The only known person … Continue reading FREE SOLO: A must-see in the theater!
Which was COBRA's greatest crime against humanity? Attempting to conquer the world, or... their fashion sense. I often lose sleep pondering such things. The end.
Happy Halloween, everyone! And what a great day to read CREEPY CARROTS! Written by Aaron Reynolds, and illustrated by Peter Brown, CREEPY CARROTS! was published by Simon & Schuster in 2012, and went on to become a Caldecott Honor book. Jasper Rabbit loved carrots... ...until the day they started to stalk him. What happens next? … Continue reading CREEPY CARROTS! by Aaron Reynolds
Today's post takes us back to 1997 when Parker Brothers released a limited edition of MONOPOLY: STAR WARS to coincide with the 20th anniversary of STAR WARS. It came with eight pewter SW character game-pieces. The Darth Vader and Boba Fett ones are my favorites! And check out the super cool currency (Imperial credits) that … Continue reading 1997 Star Wars Monopoly
Being Halloween time, here we go with another creepy story suggestion. ZOMBIE KID! Written by J. Scott Savage and published in 2013 by HarperCollins. Recommended for ages 8 to 12. Nick is super excited to go trick-or-treating with his friends, but is forced to travel to Louisiana for his great-aunt's funeral instead. He thinks this … Continue reading ZOMBIE KID by J. Scott Savage
Ah, Halloween time. It makes me think of years past, dressing up as characters such as Batman. Here's me on Halloween in the first grade. Okay, fine. I still dress like Batman. Here's me on Halloween, teaching 4th grade: Seeing these pictures makes me realize, wow, I've been a Batman fan for a … Continue reading Batman!
Amazon has the new six-inch General Veers action figure available for $35 (as of last Saturday). It's a Walgreens exclusive with a $20 retail value. I figured it must be hard to find, for sellers to charge that much for it, but thought I'd give it a try anyway, and made a trip to my … Continue reading Walgreens Exclusive General Veers Figure
Welcome back to toydust.com where we talk books, toys, and writing! With Halloween around the corner, it's a great time to talk about scary stories. A fantastic, spooky read (recommended for ages 10 to 14) is DOLL BONES by Holly Black. DOLL BONES was published by McElderry Books in 2013 and is a Newbery Honor … Continue reading DOLL BONES by Holly Black
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980). The debut of Star Wars superstars Lando, Yoda, the Emperor, and Boba Fett. This is me, towards the end of April 1980, less than a month before the original release of EMPIRE: I was well aware that "Star Wars 2" was on the way, and had already sent four cut-out … Continue reading THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK – some thoughts and memories
