Brave Young Monster Hunters Battle Lurking Terrors!
Halloween may be notorious for having monsters running wild, but infestations of strange and dreadful creatures are becoming more common throughout the year. And the vanguard in the battle against the monsters has been a ragtag collection of brave young adventurers who have taken part in Mom’s Choice Award Winner Jason Edwards’ Monster Hunt Library Skills-building Program at libraries across the country. Now, it isn’t often that raucous children are encouraged to roam freely through the library and pour through the stacks of books, but that’s exactly what happens when these boisterous young adventurers search for and capture lurking monsters. In these Monster Hunts, which are based upon the concepts and characters from Mr. Edwards’ book series for young readers, The Chronicles of the Monster Detective Agency, kids build library research skills as they track down and decode hidden clues that guide them to the monsters' secret lair. Participants learn to use the library's research resources including the library catalog and Dewey Decimal System to find books containing the coded clues that help them find and capture the hidden beast. Upon the successful capture of the monster, everyone is rewarded by being commissioned as a deputy detective in the Monster Detective Agency.
Mr. Edwards, the creator of this program, is a man of many hats. In addition to storyteller and monster hunter, he is also a teacher, father, coach, Mom’s Choice Award-Winning Author, and an authority on children’s anxieties who possesses a B.S. in Psychology and a M.A. in Education, with more than 20 years of experience helping children. His talent for illuminating this issue for children and adults alike has been featured in print and on radio and TV, including Talk of Connecticut Radio and WCBS TV in New York. His published works have appeared in newspapers, magazines, and on the internet sites of the Anxiety Disorder Association of America and the national anxiety advocacy group Freedom From Fear.
