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Hat Parade

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PreS-Gr 3—Singer/songwriter Meg Russell covers a wide variety of topics in these 12 songs. "Muscles" covers the importance of eating the right foods and exercising, "Coloring," a number about making creative art projects, could be used in school settings as part of the curriculum. "Quiet Train," a good story time song, includes movement as well as the concepts of quiet and loud. Several of the other songs teach values such as smiling and saying hello to someone who is different from you such as a person in a wheel chair and sharing something special about yourself with others. The lyrics in many of the songs are repetitive, making it easy for children to sing along. Russell's voice and the backup vocals are pleasant, and there's a nice variety of upbeat and slower tempo songs. On a couple of the numbers, the lyrics sung by the young children are not always clear. An additional purchase for larger collections.—Veronica Schwartz De Fazio, Plainfield Public Library, IL
In this beautiful, heartrending, yet horrifying film, North Koreans tell their stories of imprisonment, sexual slavery, torture, murder, and escape to China or South Korea during the nearly 50-year regime of Kim Il Sung (1912—94). The interviews are illustrated through the interspersion of dance sequences, archival news footage, and drawings. Particularly interesting are the North Korean propaganda films celebrating Kim Il Sung as God and showing in the face of mass starvation happy workers, elaborate military displays, and the creation of a new flower in 1988 in honor of the 46th birthday of Kim's son and successor, Kim Jong Il. A valuable time line traces 20th-century events in Korea. Bonus features include previously unreleased footage of camp refugees. This mesmerizing film displays excellent production values and is highly recommended for Asia collections.—Kitty Chen Dean, formerly with Nassau Community Coll., Garden City, NY
Reviewed by Kitty Chen Dean , Mar 01, 2011

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