Review of Imaginary Fred, by Eoin Colfer and Oliver Jeffers

Fantasy, Picture Book Review 0

imaginary_fred_largeImaginary Fred

by Eoin Colfer
illustrated by Oliver Jeffers

Harper, 2015. 48 pages.

I have to admit, I have a problem with Imaginary Friend books. Including award-winning ones. Somewhere, the mechanism (that they do have a life of their own) breaks down. My suspension of disbelief is never perfect, and I can’t thoroughly enjoy the book.

That said, this one has less lack of logic than most. And the illustrations are by Oliver Jeffers!

Perhaps I was won over that the book acknowledges right from the start that not everyone who wishes for an imaginary friend gets one. It will only happen if “the conditions are just right, and if you add a little electricity, or luck, or even magic.”

Fred is an imaginary friend who likes it when he’s summoned. He tries to be a good imaginary friend.

But no matter how hard Fred tried, the same thing happened every time. One day, his friend would find a real friend in the real world.

A friend who did not have to be ignored when grown-ups were around.

When this day came, as it always did, Fred would feel himself fade.

Eventually, the wind would blow him up to a cloud, where he’d wait to be summoned by another lonely child.

When Sam summons Fred, Fred knows he’s different. They share more interests than any friend Fred has had before. When Sam makes a real friend, Sammi, Fred is sure he’s doomed… until he meets Sammi’s imaginary friend Frieda.

From there, things don’t proceed as they have before. Eventually we learn that “friendship is friendship. Imaginary or not, the same laws apply.”

Part of the fun of this book is in the details. Sam and Fred, who both love to read, are pictured reading the authors’ books, Artemis Fowl and Lost and Found. When the four friends perform in a quartet, grown-ups in the audience are very confused. I like when the friends practice speaking French.

Okay, there are still quibbles. If there’s an “imaginary community” as we learn at the end, how is this the first friendship between two imaginary friends, anyway?

But when it comes down to it, I can overlook my quibbles, because I kept coming back to and enjoying this book. If it tried to be general it would fail, but as a story about these particular four friends? This is an entertaining story which rewards repeated readings and gets you thinking about imagination and friendship and how they come together.

eoincolfer.com
oliverjeffersworld.com
harpercollinschildrens.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of McToad Mows Tiny Island, by Tom Angleberger and John Hendrix

Animal Characters, Picture Book Review 0

mctoad_mows_tiny_island_largeMcToad Mows Tiny Island

A Transportation Tale by Tom Angleberger

Pictures by John Hendrix

Abrams Books for Young Readers, New York, 2015. 32 pages.

As its caption says, this is a Transportation Tale for little ones who love cars and trucks and things that go.

The text is simple, and the pictures carry the story.

McToad likes Thursdays.

Every other day of the week he mows the grass on Big Island.
But Thursday is the day he mows Tiny Island.

A map filling the double-page spread shows that Big Island is indeed Big and Tiny Island is indeed tiny.

But to get the lawn mower to Tiny Island? That process is what this book is about.

McToad drives the lawn mower onto a truck, which takes it to a train, where it’s loaded using a forklift, and then is taken to the airport. At the airport a conveyor belt takes it onto an airplane which flies to the other side of Big Island. There a baggage buggy takes the lawn mower to a helicopter, which flies it to a dock where it’s lowered onto the deck of a boat. Then a crane on the boat lowers the lawn mower onto Tiny Island.

Tiny Island is indeed tiny. So it’s amusing that McToad takes a break in the middle of the job. When he finishes mowing, it’s time to take the lawn mower back.

It’s funny to me that adding the simple storyline makes this book much more interesting than your typical list-of-vehicles book. Of course, the pictures are delightful. McToad pilots every vehicle with his never-changing, satisfied smile.

McToad likes Thursdays.

Kids who like vehicles will like this book.

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of When Dad Showed Me the Universe, by Ulf Stark and Eva Eriksson

Contemporary, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

when_dad_showed_me_the_universe_largeWhen Dad Showed Me the Universe

by Ulf Stark
illustrated by Eva Eriksson

Gecko Press, 2015. First published in Sweden in 1998. 28 pages.
Starred Review

This book is completely charming.

One day Dad said he thought I was old enough for him to show me the universe.

The pictures show a little boy about preschool age. The dentist Dad puts on a black beret, a leather jacket, and tall boots. We go with the pair on their walk to see the universe.

“What actually is the universe?” I asked.

“The entire universe,” said Dad, “includes everything, my friend.”

The way there was straight ahead and then to the left.

I like the moment when they go to buy provisions for their expedition, because it reminds me of Winnie-the-Pooh’s “Expotition to the North Pole.”

They walk through town and see the night begin to fall and the shops closing. They go out to a field with no street lights, where people walk their dogs during the day.

I love the way, when they get there and Dad asks if he can see, the little boy notices all sorts of things on the ground:

I could see, even though it was almost dark.
I saw a snail from the universe creeping over a stone.
I saw a blade of grass swaying in the winds of the universe.
There was a flower called a thistle.
And there was Dad, staring at the sky.
“Yes, Dad,” I whispered, “I see it.”
All of this was the universe!
I thought it was the most beautiful place I’d ever seen.

Then Dad tells him he’s supposed to look up, and we see all the stars stretched out. Dad points out all the constellations, including Big Dog, and there’s a moment of child-sized humor when Dad steps in something left by Big Dog.

When we got home, we had sandwiches and hot chocolate.
“So, how was the universe?” asked my mother.
“It was beautiful,” I said. “And funny.”

And so is this wonderful book, a quiet story about a boy, with his Dad, seeing something he will never forget.

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

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Review of Tucky Jo and Little Heart, by Patricia Polacco

Historical, Picture Book Review 0

tucky_jo_largeTucky Jo and Little Heart

by Patricia Polacco

Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2015. 48 pages.

This is another of Patricia Polacco’s tear-jerker touching true stories. This one’s about war, so it’s more for school-age kids, even though it is a richly illustrated picture book.

The story is told in the words of a man who fought as a youngster in World War II. It’s not completely grammatical, but it gives the flavor of his words with phrases like “faster than a scared jackrabbit” and “hit the eye out of a gnat.”

When stationed in the jungle, “Kentucky Jo” meets a little village girl, who tells him about a plant to put on his bug bites. He gets to know the girl, brings her food and toys, and eventually his troop adopts the whole village – until they have to be evacuated.

Well, the tearjerker part brings us to the present – when that little girl again shows up in Tucky Jo’s life when he’s an old man needing medical care.

It’s good Patricia Polacco tells us this is a true story, or we wouldn’t believe things had turned out so beautifully!

Although this is a story of war, and we do hear that Little Heart’s mother was killed by soldiers and her father and brother taken away, the author doesn’t dwell on gory details. Instead, she focuses on the heartwarming part of this little girl and her village in the jungle, providing a bright spot in the middle of war.

And in its lovely way, the book shows the lasting impact of love and good deeds.

PatriciaPolacco.com
KIDS.SimonandSchuster.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of I’m New Here, by Anne Sibley O’Brien

Contemporary, Cross Cultural, Picture Book Review 0

im_new_here_largeI’m New Here

by Anne Sibley O’Brien

Charlesbridge, 2015. 32 pages.

I’m wary of books that try to approach a problem and show it solved in a simplistic way. But this book goes deeper than that.

It is a book designed to give us a window into what it feels like to be an immigrant. And yes, the stories are simplified somewhat for very young readers. But the artwork is lovely, and we’re shown how it feels to be in a new place, totally different from where you came from.

We meet three children, as they stand alone, to be introduced to their new class.

Maria is from Guatemala. “Back home I knew the language.” Pictures show Maria playing soccer happily with her friends.

Here there are new words.
I can’t understand them.
The sounds are strange to my ears.

The pictures show a cacophony of sounds on a playground.

Jin is from Korea. “Back home I could read and write.”

Here there are new letters.
They lie on the page like scribbles and scratches.
All the windows and doors are shut tight.

The picture shows Jin looking at letters and seeing them in a nonsensical pile jumbled together.

Fatimah is from Somalia. She wears a flowered headscarf. “Back home I was part of the class.”

Here there are new ways.
I cannot see the patterns.
I cannot find my place.

One by one, each finds a way to begin fitting in.

My favorite is Maria, who practices saying the words and finally manages to ask if she can play soccer. The part I like is where right away one of the other kids says, “She’s on our team!”

Jin gets help spelling cloud from a friend, and then shows that friend how to write cloud in Korean.

And it turns out that Fatimah is a very good artist and finds she can express herself by drawing and painting.

Here there are new beginnings.

Here there is a place for me.

Here is a new home.

I’m afraid that explaining this book won’t communicate how well the pictures tell the story along with the words. And the children portrayed are lovely children, not seen as other. Anne Sibley O’Brien manages to make their eyes look wistful at the beginning, but in a way that makes us want to embrace and comfort them.

And we’re all happy about their change of expression and demeanor by the end.

I suspect this book would be good for immigrant children to read as well as for children who will have new immigrants as classmates. But it’s also a good story, a story that helps the reader imagine what it would be like to stand in someone else’s shoes.

annesibleyobrien.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

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Review of The Inventor’s Secret, by Suzanne Slade

Biography, Children's Nonfiction Review, Picture Book Review, Science 0

inventors_secret_largeThe Inventor’s Secret

What Thomas Edison Told Henry Ford

by Suzanne Slade
illustrated by Jennifer Black Reinhardt

Charlesbridge, 2015. 48 pages.

This is an introductory picture book about the work of two great inventors, Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. The overarching message of the book applies to any aspiring inventor: It’s what Thomas Edison told Henry Ford the night they first met: “Keep at it!”

The Author states in a note at the end (along with plenty of interesting backmatter):

For nonfiction authors a new story often begins with a fascinating, little-known fact that sparks a magical “goose-bump” moment. When I learned Thomas Edison, one of the greatest inventors of all time, pounded his fist on the table and shouted, “Keep at it!” to Henry Ford, that was one of those moments for me.

She weaves their stories together, with this meeting the central event. She used patent records to establish a timeline, and we get a taste, especially for Henry Ford, how much of his success was based on multiple attempts.

This is an entertaining story with cheery (but informative) and cartoon-like illustrations. But it also presents an encouraging message for future inventions. Follow your dreams. And don’t worry if your first several efforts don’t achieve success.

Keep at it!

suzanneslade.com
jbreinhardt.com
charlesbridge.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of Mango, Abuela, and Me, by Meg Medina and Angela Dominguez

Award Challenge, Contemporary, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

mango_abuela_and_me_largeMango, Abuela, and Me

by Meg Medina
illustrated by Angela Dominguez

Candlewick Press, 2015. 32 pages.
Starred Review
2015 Cybils Fiction Picture Books Finalist
2016 Pura Belpré Author Honor Book
2016 Pura Belpre Illustrator Honor Book

Mia’s grandmother, her Abuela, has come to live with her family. But Abuela doesn’t speak English and Mia doesn’t speak Spanish. But little by little, they learn to communicate, and some of the help comes from a parrot named Mango, who learns both languages as well.

This is simply a lovely cross-cultural story. It does address that it’s difficult to learn a new language, and takes lots of practice, but all the motivation in this story is love.

The first night, before Abuela goes to sleep, she shows Mia a red feather from a parrot that nested in her mango trees back in her old home. This is the episode that gives Mia the idea to purchase the parrot in the pet store for Abuela and name him Mango.

Spanish words are peppered throughout the story. It’s just a nice twist on the stranger-in-a-new-country story. This time it’s not the girl herself, but her Abuela who clearly loves her and learns to tell her stories about her Abuelo, and also learns to hear all the stories Mia has to tell.

megmedina.com
angeladominguezstudio.com
candlewick.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of Dog Train, by Sandra Boynton

Audiobooks, Delightfully Silly, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 1

dog_train_largeDog Train

Music by Sandra Boynton & Michael Ford
Lyrics and drawings by Sandra Boynton

Workman Publishing, New York, 2005. 64 pages. 16 songs.
Starred Review

I so love Sandra Boynton’s songbooks and CDs. How did I not know about this one until now?

What I love about her songs is the wonderful child-centered lyrics – treated with complete seriousness. I can so easily imagine a child in a Broadway musical bursting into song with “Wave Bye Bye” or “Broccoli” or “I Need a Nap” telling Mom what to do. (Time to leave the party. “Don’t give me that broccoli. Yes, I know I’ve never tried it, but it doesn’t look right. I want no brocc’li tonight.” And “I Need a Nap” speaks for itself, but to hear the plaintive singing! “I just can’t take it any more. I need a nap!” If only our kids were so articulate – but you know this is how they’d put it if we lived in a world where everyone expressed their emotions in song.)

These books make me wish I still had young kids and an excuse to play these songs over and over. As it is, they brightened up a few commutes! They simply make me laugh.

My favorites of the 16 songs: “Sneakers,” “Boring Song,” “Penguin Lament,” “Pots and Pans,” and “I Need a Nap.” I also love that she always includes a love song, perfect for singing to your child, in this case, “Evermore.”

The songs on this album are rock and roll, but include a wide variety. One of my favorites, “Boring Song,” is an old-fashioned schmaltzy song with backup singers, and a man with a wonderful velvet sound singing, “And though you find me boring, I’m still adoring my voice.” So funny, but played completely straight.

I so relate to the Penguin’s Lament! “I’m a little too cute. Oh yes, I know. I’m all dressed up, but I’ve got no place to go. I want to be cool, like the polar bear guys. I want to be tall and somewhat mysterious. But nothing profound comes in penguin size. Can anyone small be anyone serious? I’m serious!”

The song “Sneakers” is about a bear’s favorite shoes. “When you’re unaware that a bear is there, well, here’s the reason why: it’s the SNEAKERS. Now you know.”

And they’ve gotten a great line up of talent to sing the songs. People like Weird Al Yankovic, the Bacon Brothers, and Hootie and the Blowfish.

But I can talk on and on about it and you won’t get the idea nearly as effectively as from five minutes of listening. Check this out from the library, and if you have kids, I predict you’re going to want your own copy. Too much fun.

sandraboynton.com
workman.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of 8: An Animal Alphabet, by Elisha Cooper

Children's Nonfiction Review, Good for the Very Young, Picture Book Review, Science, Starred Review 0

8_large8

An Animal Alphabet

by Elisha Cooper

Orchard Books, New York, 2015. 36 pages.
Starred Review

Okay, this book is wonderful. For teaching about the alphabet, about counting (to eight!), about identifying multiple animals.

You get the concept of the concepts presented here right on the first page:

Find the one animal on each page that is pictured 8 times – 8 ants, 8 badgers, 8 chickens. Find all the other animals, too. Some may be familiar, such as a cat, and some not, such as a muskrat. (For help, see the “Did you know” section in the back.) But every animal is amazing and beautiful in its own way. Especially the hippopotamus. Let the exploring begin!

*Why the number 8? Because 8 is great. Because 8 is round and adorable. Because 8 is fun to count to (move over, 10). Because 8 is not too big, and not so small, but just right. Because 8 is my favorite number.

This is indeed a book for exploring. You can pretty quickly see on each page which animal is pictured 8 times, but it’s not a rubber stamp. The animal is pictured in 8 different poses, or perhaps even 8 different varieties of the animal. I grant you, the 8 ants aren’t terribly varied, but the 8 chickens include roosters as well as hens, the 8 goats include some kids, and the 8 moths and 8 newts come in many different colors.

As mentioned in the introduction, not all the animals are familiar. Some notable pages include:

Aardvark, abalone, albatross, alligator, alpaca, ant, anteater, antelope, armadillo

Camel, cat, caterpillar, chameleon, cheetah, chicken, chimpanzee, chipmunk, cicada, clam, cockroach, cow, coyote, crab

Panda, parrot, pelican, penguin, pheasant, pig, pigeon, platypus, porcupine, possum, puffin

Salmon, sandpiper, seagull, sea horse, seal, sea turtle, shark, sheep, skunk, sloth, slug, snail, squid, squirrel, starfish, swallow, swan, swordfish

The format of the book is the large and small letter in a corner of the page and the names of the animals at the bottom. The animals are all mixed up on the page, not necessarily to scale. These are paintings, not photos, but they’re lovely paintings, and you definitely get the idea. But the key in the back of the book will be needed.

So this is a good book for kids who like “Where’s Waldo” or any book of detailed pictures. I suspect it will take a few times through the book before parents know which animal matches every single name. And of course, one of the animals on each page shows up 8 times. So of course you will count them!

The key at the back has the heading “Did you know?” and each of the 184 animals in the book has a small picture and some facts about it. Here are some examples:

AARDVARK
Aardvarks are sometimes known as “ant bears.”

ARMADILLO
Armadillos spend almost eighteen hours a day napping.

BUTTERFLY
Butterflies taste with their feet.

DEER
Deer can see blue, yellow, and green, but not orange or red.

DUNG BEETLE
Dung beetles are able to tell which direction they are going from the position of the sun and the stars.

FERRET
A group of ferrets is called a “business.”

GIBBON
Gibbon couples start each day by hooting at each other.

GNAT
An evening swarm of male gnats is called a “ghost.”

LEMUR
Lemurs enjoy sunbathing.

OYSTER
A single oyster filters over forty gallons of water a day, cleaning water for other animal life.

RHINOCEROS
The skin of the rhinoceros is more than an inch thick.

VULTURE
Vultures poop and pee on their legs to keep themselves cool.

XERUS
Xeruses hold their tails over their heads to shade themselves from the sun.

YABBY
A yabby’s shell will match the color of the water it grew up in.

YAPOK
Yapoks have both webbed feet and stomach pouches.

Savvy parents probably won’t get started reading all 184 animal facts the first few times through the book. Pointing and naming and counting will keep you plenty busy.

This looks like a perfect book for my toddler-soon-to-be-preschooler nieces, or for anyone interested in exploring, naming, learning, and counting.

elishacooper.com
scholastic.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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Review of Madame Martine Breaks the Rules, by Sarah S. Brannen

Contemporary, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

madame_martine_breaks_the_rules_largeMadame Martine Breaks the Rules

by Sarah S. Brannen

Albert Whitman & Company, Chicago, Illinois, 2015. 32 pages.
Starred Review

Madame Martine Breaks the Rules features the same lady who lives in Paris with her dog, Max, whom we met in Madame Martine. As at the end of Madame Martine, she wears a bright red coat and every Saturday tries new things.

Her friend, Louis, often meets her at the café where she always has breakfast. He is a guard at the Louvre Museum and invites her to visit.

“Oh no,” said Madame Martine. “It’s so crowded, and they don’t allow dogs.”

“For you and Max, we might break the rules,” said Louis.

Madame Martine was shocked. “We would never ask you to do that!” she said.

But no one told Max. Later, when Madame Martine is talking with Louis near the Louvre, Max dashes in through the employee entrance. They end up getting a tour after all. It turns out that rules can be bent for friends of Louis.

This book isn’t as inspirational as Madame Martine, since the message of trying something new is much more uplifting than a message that rules can be bent. However, like Madame Martine, lovers of Paris will love this book. The art takes us on our own small tour of the Louvre.

This is a quiet book about our friend Madame Martine, and her little dog Max who again knows how to find wonderful things in the beautiful city of Paris.

sarahbrannen.com
albertwhitman.com

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Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

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