Review of My People, by Langston Hughes, photographs by Charles R. Smith Jr.

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

My People

by Langston Hughes
Photographs by Charles R. Smith Jr.

Ginee Seo Books (Atheneum Books for Young Readers), New York, 2009. 36 pages.
2010 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award
Starred Review

My People is a beautiful, glorious, gorgeous book. I can’t adequately speak in its praise. It’s also, I believe, the first time a photographer has won the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award — but the award is completely deserved, as the images used are stunning and so wonderfully accompany the poem.

The text is the Langston Hughes poem, “My People,” which talks about how beautiful his people are. “The night is beautiful, so the faces of my people…”

Charles R. Smith Jr. uses incredible close-up pictures of African-Americans to illustrate each phrase. The faces are truly beautiful, radiant and glowing. I think my favorite pictures are the ones that illustrate the phrase “are the souls,” with children dancing, completely unself-conscious. But all the people featured — elders, adults, children and babies — are photographed in a way that makes us see the wonder of their joy and humanity. Truly beautiful.

You simply have to see this book to understand how wonderful it is.

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

Review of The Book That Eats People, by John Perry

Delightfully Silly, Picture Book Review 0

The Book That Eats People

by John Perry
illustrations by Mark Fearing

Tricycle Press, 2009. 36 pages.

This book is hilarious. I don’t think I can use it for storytime, because the body count is quite high, and I don’t want to scare very young children. For school-age children old enough to be pretty sure it’s all a joke (Though they may be careful just the same.), this book is perfect.

It all started one day in Little Rock, Arkansas, when Sammy Ruskin forgot to wash his hands after lunch, and the book tasted peanut butter on his fingers.

“So the book — this book — went SNAP! And took a bite! And then another and another. Sammy squirmed and wriggled. Sammy squealed and yelled. Sammy pulled as hard as he could, but the book ate him. Then it coughed up his bones and they clattered across the floor like wooden blocks.”

Sammy was only the first person the book ate. Then its pages tell of further nefarious adventures. It ate a security guard at the library. It ate innocent children. When they tried putting it in jail, it ate its cellmate.

Eventually, when the zookeepers weren’t able to tame it, they put a label on it that says THE BOOK THAT EATS PEOPLE in big, bold letters.

So if you find a book that looks like that, be careful.

Never read it with syrupy fingers.

Never read it with cookies in your pocket.

Remember, it’s always hungry.

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Review of Grandpa for Sale, by Vicki Sansum and Dotti Enderle

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

Grandpa for Sale

by Dotti Enderle and Vicki Sansum

illustrated by T. Kyle Gentry

Flashlight Press, New York, 2007. 32 pages.
Starred Review.
2008 Sonderbooks Standout, #5 Picture Books

Here’s another book I’ve been meaning to review for a very long time. Vicki Sansum, one of the authors, is my good friend and writing critique group buddy. We met at a Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators conference in Paris. I saw this book when she first wrote it, and rejoiced with her when it was published. The result is a charming story about how Grandpas are more fun than anything.

Lizzie is watching her mother’s antique shop for a few minutes, while Grandpa is sleeping on a Louis XVI settee. A rich, snooty lady with a poodle breezes in and starts purchasing antiques. Then she sees Grandpa:

“Oh, my stars! Look at this! I don’t think I’ve ever seen one for sale. How much?”

Once Lizzie figures out the lady wants to buy Grandpa, she tells her he is not for sale. The lady says everyone has a price. She offers more and more money.

With each offer, Lizzie imagines the wonderful things she can buy, kid-friendly ideas like an ice cream shop or amusement park. But with each one, she realizes that they wouldn’t be much fun if Grandpa weren’t there to share them with her.

Finally, there’s a lovely showdown with the two glaring at each other.

“Lizzie took a deep breath and leaned in too. ‘Mrs. Larchmont,’ she announced, ‘not everyone has a price, and not everything is for sale.'”

The artist does a fine job using color contrasted with black and white to illustrate what Lizzie is imagining and all that Grandpa would do if he were there, too.

The nice silly idea of buying a Grandpa makes a fun and sweet story to share with a child. Truly, not everyone has a price.

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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.

Review of Big Wolf & Little Wolf: The Little Leaf that Wouldn’t Fall, by Nadine Brun-Cosme

Animal Characters, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

Big Wolf and Little Wolf

The Little Leaf that Wouldn’t Fall

by Nadine Brun-Cosme and Olivier Tallec

Enchanted Lion Books, New York, 2009. 28 pages.
Starred Review.

In springtime, Little Wolf notices a particularly sweet and tender green leaf high in a tree, and he asks Big Wolf to get it for him. Big Wolf tells him to wait. Eventually the leaf will fall.

In summer, the leaf is a shiny deep green, and in autumn it’s a lovely soft brown. Both times, when Little Wolf asks Big Wolf to get it, Big Wolf tells him to wait.

But when winter comes, there is one leaf left on the tree — exactly the leaf that Little Wolf wanted.

Big Wolf decides to get the leaf for Little Wolf. Is it worth the trouble?

This book is a lovely, heart-warming story of friendship and the beauty of nature. The pictures are impressionistic, with wolves quite different from other picture book wolves. I like the different perspectives the artist uses, making the quiet story all the more interesting.

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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.

Review of A Birthday for Bear, by Bonny Becker

Animal Characters, Beginning Chapter Books, Picture Book Review, Stand-outs, Starred Review 0

A Birthday for Bear

by Bonny Becker
illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton

Candlewick Press, 2009. 50 pages.
Starred Review
Sonderbooks Stand-out 2010: #4 Picture Books

A Birthday for Bear, is a follow-up to one of my favorite picture books, A Visitor for Bear. In the first book, Bear doesn’t like visitors, but persistent Mouse wears him down and shows him how nice having a friend can be.

Now it is Bear’s birthday. Unfortunately, bear does not like birthdays. He would much rather spend a day cleaning his house than celebrate his birthday. Or so he thinks.

In this beginning chapter book with four simple chapters, Mouse brings one thing after another to celebrate Bear’s birthday, until he finally realizes he doesn’t mind birthdays so much after all.

Once again, the delightful illustrations show Bear’s and Mouse’s emotions. The progression gets kids wondering what Mouse will do next. Even though this is longer, I’d like to see if it’s as big a hit at Storytime as the first book, which appealed to all age levels.

Bear and Mouse have definitely gained a special place in my heart.

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Review of The Lion and the Mouse, by Jerry Pinkney

Animal Characters, Award Winners, Folk Tales, Picture Book Review, Stand-outs, Starred Review 0

The Lion and the Mouse

by Jerry Pinkney

Little, Brown and Company Books for Young Readers, New York, 2009. 36 pages.
Starred Review
2010 Caldecott Medal Winner
Sonderbooks Stand-out 2010: #6 Picture Books

This stunning picture book is my pick for the 2010 Caldecott Medal. The amazingly detailed paintings tell the story of the well-known fable without words, the only text being animal sounds as part of the pictures.

Without words, I was surprised at what a success this book was at Storytime. The big, beautiful pictures captured the children’s attention, and there was lots for them to talk about on each page. The expressions on the faces of the characters show emotion beautifully. There’s lots of variety in the format, from close-ups to wide angle shots. It would take many readings before you had noticed all the detail in the backgrounds.

I got to hear Jerry Pinkney talk about writing this book at the National Book Festival. He clearly loves animals, and that comes across in this magnificent book.

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Review of Knitty Kitty, by David Elliott

Animal Characters, Bedtime stories, Picture Book Review, Readalouds 0

knitty_kittyKnitty Kitty

by David Elliott

illustrated by Christopher Denise

Candlewick Press, 2008. 32 pages.

Okay, I’m a sucker for picture books with knitting in them. This one’s a simple bedtime story book with a cozy theme.

Clickety-click.
Tickety-tick.
Knitty Kitty sits and knits.

Knitty Kitty knits a hat to keep the first kitten cozy, mittens to keep the next kitten toasty, and a scarf to keep the third kitten comfy.

But the kittens decide to use the new things on their snowman, so at bedtime they need something — or someone — else to keep them cozy, comfy, and toasty.

The solution is snuggly and warm with lots of “Night-night”s to send your child off to sleep. It just makes me want to have a sleepered child to snuggle off to bed with this book. The warm and cozy illustrations are just perfect. I hope this book is still around when I have grandkids because this will be a perfect book for the knitting grandma I will be to read!

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Review of Thunder-Boomer! by Shutta Crum

Contemporary, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

thunder_boomerThunder-Boomer!

by Shutta Crum

illustrated by Carol Thompson

Clarion Books (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), 2009. 32 pages.
Starred Review

I should have reviewed this book in the summer, when I first read it, and when I meant to review it. And that’s simply a reflection of how behind I am on getting reviews written.

This book is a positively wonderful expression of a summer storm. The illustrations and the text combine with the onomatopoetic expressions written in the pictures (Who’s responsible for that? The author or the illustrator or both together?) to transport you into a summer storm, complete with thunder and lightning and hail.

The book starts with an oppressively hot summer day. Mother fans herself with her hat (“Swish, swish, swish”) and puts her feet in the pond next to Tom who’s slapping his feet against the surface (“plap, plap, plop”), and says, “We need a thunder-boomer.”

We see the wind pick up. It catches the clothes on the line. The dog catches Dad’s underwear! The sky darkens ominously. I love the way Carol Thompson captures the way the colors of the day dramatically change as the storm approaches and leaves. Together, they catch the sounds of the storm, the drama and the emotions of the storm.

At the end, they discover a gift from the storm, a little kitten whose purr is like the voice of the storm.

This is truly a beautiful book. Okay, it’s a little more appropriate for late summer than for early winter, but the story is nice any time of year.

If I were choosing books for consideration for next year’s Caldecott, I’d definitely hope this one gets considered for an Honor for the beautiful way the watercolors evoke the power and spirit of the stormy day, with the rain even bleeding out of the picture areas into the white space, like water leaking into the house. (Oh, except reading the note about the illustrator, I learn that she lives in England, so she wouldn’t be eligible. Well, this book is a truly distinguished work of art.)

A wonderful cozy adventure of waiting out a thunderstorm in a nice safe shelter.

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Review of Jeremy Draws a Monster, by Peter McCarty

Fantasy, Picture Book Review, Readalouds, Stand-outs, Starred Review 0

jeremy_draws_a_monsterJeremy Draws a Monster

by Peter McCarty

Henry Holt and Company, New York, 2009. 36 pages.
Starred Review
Sonderbooks Stand-out 2010: #1 Picture Books

Here’s another picture book I’ve tested out at Storytime with great success. The monster definitely gets the kids’ attention, and the plot is short and sweet enough to keep it.

Jeremy lives on the third story of an apartment building. He never goes out.

One day, he draws a monster. The monster is not very nice. He demands that Jeremy draw more things for him, and doesn’t even say thank you.

The monster goes out, and Jeremy thinks he is free of him, but the monster comes back in the night and takes over Jeremy’s bed.

Jeremy’s solution for dealing with the monster is ingenious and just right. After he sees the monster off, the neighborhood children ask Jeremy to play with them, and he does.

I’ve been following School Library Journal’s Heavy Medal blog, discussing Newbery Medal possibilities, and the moderators suggested some picture books. Technically, a picture book can win the Newbery Medal on the basis of its text. However, I wasn’t impressed by the text of the two books suggested.

Rereading Jeremy Draws a Monster to write this review, I realize that I’ve found a candidate! The pictures are delightful and do add to the story, but you can read the text alone as well. In simple and spare language, it presents a plot — a troublesome monster that must be dealt with. There is character growth: Jeremy goes from isolation to playing with the neighborhood children. Even the setting of the third-story apartment plays a part. The style is spare and the theme of a lonely child finding human companionship is inspiring.

I confess, I still prefer that Newbery winners have stories that are more fleshed out, and I’d rather see this book win a Caldecott Honor. (The artwork is excellent, too, and I still think of the Caldecott for picture books.) But I want to point out that this book tells a poignant story in only 225 words.

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Review of Chicken Dance, by Tammi Sauer and Dan Santat

Animal Characters, Delightfully Silly, Picture Book Review, Readalouds 0

chicken_danceChicken Dance

written by Tammi Sauer

illustrated by Dan Santat

Sterling, New York, 2009. 40 pages.

Here’s a hilarious, completely fun tale of two chickens pursuing their dream.

Marge and Lola see a poster about the barnyard talent show, with top prize tickets to the Elvis Poultry Concert. But what can they do for talent? The ducks taunt them every step of the way, since chickens can’t swim, and can’t fly.

I love the way the ducks get their comeuppance and the chickens have their dreams come true — even without actually winning the talent show.

This story is short enough and full of action enough for preschool storytime, but also has plenty of humor for the parents to enjoy. I only wish I did a better Elvis voice.

Delightful! It will have you flapping and shaking.

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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.