Review of The Promise, by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Laura Carlin

Contemporary, Picture Book Review 0

promise_largeThe Promise

by Nicola Davies
illustrated by Laura Carlin

Candlewick Press, 2014. 48 pages.

The Promise is a simple picture book about planting trees — and thus transforming a “sad and sorry city.”

The pictures show the change from sad and gray and brown to happy and bright and colorful.

It’s the story of a girl who stole a purse from a woman who wouldn’t let go until she promised to “plant them.”

The purse was full of acorns.

The girl understood her promise.

I forgot the food and money.
And for the first time in my life, I felt lucky,
rich beyond my wildest dreams.

I slept with the acorns as my pillow,
my head full of leafy visions.

Neither the text nor the pictures are long on details. People might quibble over how it would work.

But this is a picture book for children, and I believe children will get it.

Green spread through the city like a song,
breathing to the sky, drawing down the rain like a blessing.

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Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of Oops Paint, by Kathryn Horn Coneway

Art, Children's Nonfiction Review, Picture Book Review 0

oops_paint_largeOops Paint

by Kathryn Horn Coneway

Mascot Books, Herndon, Virginia, 2013.

The “note for parents, teachers, and other creative companions” at the end of this book tells us that the author wanted to create a book about printing simple enough for toddlers to understand.

She has achieved that objective, and besides creating a book about stamping with everyday objects, “always a favorite activity and a great way to explore shape, texture, and color with young children,” she has also created a simple matching activity with the examples in this book.

Here’s how the book begins:

One day I decided to make a painting. My mom put out my colors – red, blue, and yellow – on a paper plate on the table.

There’s a picture of a paper plate with three little pools of paint on that page. On the facing page, we’ve got painted cat prints on the page.

I went to get my smock. While I was gone, someone curious jumped up on the table.

Oops! When I came back I found this painting made by my…

[page turn]

Cat.

And so it continues. Next, his brother runs a toy truck through the paint and we see that result. Then he moves to the floor and his sister runs through the paint.

After the story part is finished, there are three sets of pages which have objects on one side and the prints they make on the other side. Then finally, many objects are stamped together into a picture at the end.

This story has a few rough edges. It would have been nice if the cat prints, for example, look like they were actually made by a cat, or if the cat were shown with painted paws. (Though I realize that may be asking a bit much!) The language is not particularly catchy, and the explanations maybe a little long for toddlers.

However, overall, she has created a wonderful book for introducing printing to toddlers and preschoolers. It will start all sorts of conversations about shapes and colors. And any book for toddlers with “Oops!” on every page has got to be a good one!

Fair warning: You probably shouldn’t read this book to your child unless you’re willing to get messy and try it out yourself!

ArtAtTheCenter.org

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Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of Brother Hugo and the Bear, by Katy Beebe and S. D. Schindler

Delightfully Silly, Historical, Picture Book Review 0

brother_hugo_and_the_bear_largeBrother Hugo and the Bear

by Katy Beebe
illustrated by S. D. Schindler

Eerdman’s Books for Young Readers, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2014. 36 pages.

This lovely picture book, with elaborately illuminated capital letters and nice variety in the illustrations, is based on a detail in a letter written by a twelfth-century French Benedictine Monk.

He wanted to replace a manuscript that had been lost by brothers who had gone to a remote location to pray. Apparently, the perils of the soul were not the only dangers there. Peter wrote: “And send to us, if it please you, the great volume of letters by the holy father Augustine… For it happens that the greater part of our volume was eater by a bear.

The creators of this book play with that idea. Brother Hugo, the monk who lost a manuscript is assigned a penance of replacing the manuscript himself.

He sorely sighed and sorrowed in his heart, for he knew that once a bear has a taste of letters, his love of books grows much the more.

Brother Hugo must go to a distant monastery to get the book to copy, then prepare the parchment and supplies and get all ready before the work of copying begins. And then he must try to keep the borrowed manuscript from the hungry bear.

The author plays with language along the way, giving a taste of medieval without being incomprehensible to kids. Readers will understand that the author, like the illustrator, has embellished the tale, with a result that is a lot of fun.

And it makes the “My dog at my homework” excuse pale in comparison.

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/brother_hugo_and_the_bear.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of Shh! We Have a Plan! by Chris Haughton

Delightfully Silly, Picture Book Review, Readalouds, Starred Review 0

shh_largeShh!

We Have a Plan!

by Chris Haughton

Candlewick Press, 2014. 40 pages.
Starred Review

Chris Haughton’s books are tailor-made for storytime. His style is distinctive and unusual – but the bold and bright colors will show well in the front of the room. And the repetition will have kids quickly chanting along.

The situation is four friends going through a forest. The littlest one sees a lovely red bird. He says, “Hello, Birdie.” The others shush him with the words from the title.

Their plan?

tiptoe slowly
tiptoe slowly
now stop. SHH!

ready one
ready two
ready three . . .

GO!

The pictures show the three sneaking up on the bird with a net, and then landing in a confused heap while the bird flies serenely away.

The same pattern continues a total of three times, with results that will set kids laughing. Finally, the littlest one uses another approach, with very different results.

This is a book that children will quickly learn to “read” themselves. Definitely fun – and there’s also an opportunity for them to notice that bread works better than nets.

madebynode.com
candlewick.com
fsc.org

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Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of My Country ‘Tis of Thee, by Claire Rudolf Murphy and Bryan Collier

Children's Nonfiction Review, History, Picture Book Review 0

my_country_tis_of_thee_largeMy Country, ‘Tis of Thee

How One Song Reveals the History of Civil Rights

by Claire Rudolf Murphy
illustrated by Bryan Collier

Henry Holt and Company, New York, 2014. 46 pages.

Did you know that the patriotic song “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee” has been used as a protest song down through all the years America has been a country?

This picture book – with evocative artwork by Bryan Collier – traces the history of the song, with each double-page spread giving us another verse that was sung to the tune.

The song as we know it wasn’t written until 1831. But before that, the tune was sung in England and its colonies as “God Save the King.” Already the song was used in protest, as Scottish followers of Bonnie Prince Charlie made a verse for him. In the Colonies, preacher George Whitfield wrote new verses to express that all men are equal. As the Revolution got underway, new verses were written declaring freedom.

The author goes through history, presenting new verses that were sung at different time periods, nearly always supporting a cause or another. The Abolitionists had a version; the Confederacy had a version; women’s suffragists sang for their cause, and even migrant workers.

The book culminates in Martin Luther King Jr’s quoting the song in his “I have a dream” speech, and then Aretha Franklin singing at Barack Obama’s inauguration.

I had no idea this song can be and has been such a feisty one! I especially like the way the author ends the book:

Now it’s your turn. Write a new verse for a cause you believe in. Help freedom ring.

clairerudolfmurphy.com
bryancollier.com
mackids.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Nonfiction/my_country_tis_of_thee.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of Ling & Ting: Twice as Silly, by Grace Lin

Beginning Chapter Books, Children's Fiction Review, Contemporary, Delightfully Silly, Picture Book Review 0

twice_as_silly_largeLing & Ting

Twice as Silly

by Grace Lin

Little, Brown and Company, New York, 2014. 44 pages.

This is a chapter book for beginning readers. It includes six stories with a surprise, silly payoff for readers who get to the end of each story.

Not to be spoilery, I’ll give an example of one story. Ling and Ting are playing on swings and Ling says she can swing higher than a tree. Ting challenges her, asking “A tree that is taller than a giraffe?” then a building, a mountain, and more. Ling says “Yes” to every challenge. Here’s the end page of that story:

“Okay,” Ting says. “Show me how you can swing higher than a tree.”

“I am doing it right now,” Ling says. “We both are.”

“We are?” Ting asks. “How?”

“It is easy to swing higher than a tree,” Ling says. “A tree cannot swing.”

Another fun thing is that the last story, “Not a Silly Story,” pulls in an element from each of the earlier stories.

This book uses simple words, repetition, and picture clues to help beginning readers. But it is not boring. The silliness and fun little twists at the end will leave readers smiling, over and above the sense of accomplishment they will gain from reading these on their own.

gracelin.com
hachettebookgroup.com/kids

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Fiction/twice_as_silly.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Once Upon an Alphabet, by Oliver Jeffers

Delightfully Silly, Picture Book Review, Stand-outs, Starred Review 0

once_upon_an_alphabet_largeOnce Upon an Alphabet

Short Stories for All the Letters

by Oliver Jeffers

Philomel Books, 2014.
Starred Review

Oliver Jeffers’ books are quirky, offbeat, and, to certain people like me, utterly hilarious.

This is not a traditional alphabet book. As it says on the first page:

If words make up stories, and letters make up words, then stories are made of letters.

In this menagerie we have stories, made of words, made for all the letters.

The stories are all very short – with a title page, a two-page spread, and then a last page, all decorated with Oliver Jeffers’ loopy drawings, done large.

The stories possess that bizarre logic that makes me laugh. Many are tragic. Many seem pointless. And many show characters from a previous story. Taken together, they’ve got Oliver Jeffers’ unique charm.

I’ll include a couple of stories to give you the idea:

H

Half a House

Helen lived in half a house.
The other half had fallen into
the sea during a hurricane
a year and a half ago.

Being lazy, and not owning
a hammer, she hadn’t quite
got around to fixing it yet.
Which was fine . . .

. . . until the horrible day she
rolled out the wrong side of bed.

On this page we see Helen, open-mouthed, falling into the sea.

Another favorite, for which I’m afraid I can’t even begin to describe the drawings:

M

Made of Matter

Mary is made of matter.
So is her mother.
And her mother’s moose.

In fact, matter makes up everything
from magnets and maps to
mountains and mattresses.

Mary discovered all of this
the marvelous day she got sucked
through a microscope and
became the size of a molecule.

It’s a minor miracle that
they all made it back out
of the microscope at their
normal size again.

A few are done in rhyme:

R

Robots Don’t Like Rain Clouds

Robots don’t like rain clouds
So they steal them from the sky.

From everywhere and anywhere
That’s why it’s been so dry.

I’m sure you have been wondering,
What’s with all this dust?

Well, robots don’t like getting wet.
They don’t do well with rust.

I’ve already decided I want to booktalk this book next summer to the younger elementary school grades. I feel confident that just reading a few of the stories, and showing the large, dramatic pictures, will attract many readers, who will enjoy being in on the joke.

oliverjeffers.com

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Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of Creature Features, by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page

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

creature_features_largeCreature Features

25 Animals Explain Why They Look the Way They Do

by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, 2014. 32 pages.

Steve Jenkins’ books are unfailingly fascinating. His cut-paper art is amazingly detailed and realistic.

This book is a simple introduction to the fascinating world of animals for younger readers. The pictures present 25 animals with something strange about the way their face looks. These animals explain why these looks help them survive, using simple language.

Here are a couple of examples:

Dear Egyptian vulture: Why no feathers on your face?

Are you sure you want to know? Really? Okay, I’ll tell you. I stick my face into the bodies of the dead animals I eat, and feathers would get pretty messy . . .

Dear star-nosed mole: What is that weird thing growing on your face?

Actually, that’s my nose. I live underground, and I use the tentacles on my snout to feel my way in the dark and find tasty worms and grubs to eat.

This book is a wonderful way to excite children’s curiosity about the natural world. It’s not often that a nonfiction book would work well for both preschool storytime and keeping the attention of school-age kids, but this one falls firmly in that category.

stevejenkinsbooks.com
hmhco.com

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Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of Anna and Solomon, by Elaine Snyder and Harry Bliss

Children's Nonfiction Review, History, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

anna_and_solomon_largeAnna & Solomon

by Elaine Snyder
pictures by Harry Bliss

Margaret Ferguson Books, Farrar Straus Giroux, 2014. 32 pages.
Starred Review

Our library system has this shelved among the biographies, but to me it’s simply a warm and wonderful picture book that happens to be true. No one would do a report on these people, they aren’t famous, but their story has the flavor of a folktale.

It turns out, as I learned from the back cover, the distinguished illustrator Harry Bliss asked his mother-in-law to put the story of her grandparents into writing. He knew a good picture book story when he heard one!

The story begins in 1897 in Russia, when Solomon and Anna got married in the Jewish quarter of the town of Vitebsk. They are happy together and very much in love, but when the Czar’s soldiers come through, they think it’s time to make the journey to America.

However, they only have enough money to pay for one passage across the ocean. Anna tells Solomon to go ahead of her, and send her money when he’s made enough to pay for her passage.

Solomon goes to America and works hard, always thinking of Anna. He sends her money and goes to meet her ship with flowers. Instead of Anna, her brother Label comes off the ship.

Label was Anna’s youngest brother. He was small and skinny, and Solomon remembered how protective Anna had always been of him. Why was he here? Where was Anna?

Label carefully explained to him that Anna had used the money Solomon sent not for herself but for her brother’s passage instead.

Oy, oy, it was a great blow to Solomon, but he saw that Anna was right. Label could not be left behind; Anna had to be certain that he would be safe.

Solomon took Label home.

And it goes on. The next time Solomon sends money for passage, Anna’s older brother comes off the ship, and then Anna’s mother. She still has a sister left. Will Anna ever come?

Since the book is written by Anna and Solomon’s granddaughter, I’m not giving away too much by saying that Anna eventually does arrive. Their story is told with heart and compassion and a true Happy Ever After.

mackids.com

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Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Review of Waiting Is Not Easy! by Mo Willems

Animal Characters, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

waiting_is_not_easy_largeWaiting Is Not Easy!

by Mo Willems

Hyperion Books for Children, New York, 2014. 57 pages.
Starred Review

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Mo Willems is a genius. His books deal in universal emotions; they teach lessons; they are funny; they are simple; they span a huge age range. Every time I read a Mo Willems book to any age of kids, I get huge laughs on every page. I’ve watched other parents read them to their children, and it’s clear that the parents are enjoying them as much as the children are.

Even though these books are perfect for children just learning to read, they are short enough to be thoroughly enjoyed as read-alouds as well. And school age children who can read perfectly still enjoy them for the humor.

I also like them for the lessons. I’ve mentioned before that Are You Ready to Play Outside? is better than any sermon on contentment. And I wish Pigs Make Me Sneeze! had been published when I was teaching Statistics, because you couldn’t ask for a more entertaining presentation of the truth that Correlation does not imply Causation.

And I admit — it’s for the lesson that I love this book.

You see, back in July, I applied for my dream job. I was very excited and eager. In August, I had a phone interview. In September, I had a panel interview. That was seven weeks ago. There is going to be a third round of interviews, but they have apparently not happened yet. Truly, Waiting Is Not Easy!

The story is simple. Piggie tells Gerald she has a surprise for him, but he will have to wait, because it isn’t here yet. And the rest of the book is waiting for the surprise. Gerald is not patient. Three times, he lets out a GROAN! in a speech bubble so big, it knocks over Piggie (a little more each time). Gerald tries different things, but they mostly amount to telling Piggie he’s tired of waiting, while Piggie waits in a peaceful yoga pose.

And yes, the surprise is worth it, even to Gerald. And no, Piggie could not possibly have speeded it up. (She actually shouldn’t have told him about the surprise ahead of time, but then we wouldn’t have such a great book.)

So besides a book that will set kids giggling at Gerald’s over-the-top antics, what parent doesn’t want their child to learn a little something about patience? I can’t think of a better vehicle for talking about how hard it is to wait.

And, yes, even for me, laughing at Gerald’s impatience takes the sting out of my own wait. Thank you, Mo Willems!

pigeonpresents.com
hyperionbooksforchildren.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/waiting_is_not_easy.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

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.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!