Top 100 Picture Books – Again!

I first started following Betsy Bird’s Fuse #8 blog back a few years ago, when she did the Top 100 Picture Books Poll. I didn’t start in time to contribute my votes, but I was captivated by her entertaining run down of the choices. She added web links, interesting facts, and other goodies on top of just the interesting facts of which books made the list.

I did participate in her Chapter Books poll. That time, I made the mistake of things like voting for the third Harry Potter book, since it was my favorite, and voting for The World of Pooh, because it includes both Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner. No one else thought of that, so my vote went nowhere.

Now, with her much wider audience (I think), Betsy’s doing it again! But hurry — there are only a few days left! Trust me, if you don’t send in your votes, you will wish you had.

She’s running both polls again. Once again, list your top 10 favorite Picture Books, and top 10 favorite Chapter Books. They will be given 10 points for first place, 9 points for second, and so on. Yes, this is very difficult to choose. She does suggest using the first book in a series. And I’m still having a problem with the definition of “chapter book.” Some of my favorites are rather in between. But I decided that when romance is one of my favorite things about the book, like The Blue Sword, by Robin McKinley, The Goose Girl, by Shannon Hale, and The Witch of Blackbird Pond, by Elizabeth George Speare, I’d leave those books out. I also decided to go with only one book by each author, so even though I like Emily of New Moon a little better (heresy, heresy) than Anne, I went with the more well-known, partly because I do think Anne is slightly more enduring, ground-breaking, and appealing to everyone.

However, I’m going to indulge myself by listing my favorites here on my blog. I will also post these lists at my Sondy’s Selections page.

Partly, I’m posting these to force myself to commit and choose my top ten!

The Books I Consider the Top Ten Picture Books of All Time:

1. Make Way for Ducklings, by Robert McCloskey

Okay, I’m going to go with nostalgia to decide which book to put on top. I actually remember, when I was a very little girl, hearing Captain Kangaroo read this book on television. I remember the way the camera panned over the ducks almost getting hit by the cars. I was fascinated with the book, and later we checked it out from the library. Later, I bought the book and read it many times to my sons. Best of all, when we visited the Boston Public Garden when my firstborn son was two years old, we visited the statues of Mrs. Mallard, followed by Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack. I took a picture of my son on Mrs. Mallard’s back, then taped that sweet picture into the front of our book.

2. Bark, George, by Jules Feiffer

This was the first book my second son could read all by himself. And since then, I’ve used it in many library story times, and it always goes over well. Always. It’s got predictability, repetition, animal sounds, expressive drawings, and lovely surprising humor.

3. Doctor DeSoto, by William Steig

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble is brilliant, but in this one, William Steig uses just the right amount of words and tells a wonderfully clever tale.

4. Millions of Cats, by Wanda Gag

More nostalgia. This one, I remember reading to myself when I was very small when we would go to my great-grandmother’s house. She had some old books in her bookcase, and I know I read this one more than once. Since then, I read it to my own sons, and I still love using it in storytime. That refrain is unforgettable, and I love getting kids to chant along with me, “Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats!”

5. The Sneetches and Other Stories, by Dr. Seuss

This book has a perfect sample of Seuss stories. The title story has social commentary. The next story, “The Zax” is a pithy tale against stubbornness. Then for perfect Seussian word play, we’ve got “Too Many Daves.” Finally, I remember that incredible shiver of fear when I read about the pale green pants with nobody inside ’em. Funny how I didn’t find that story completely hilarious until I was an adult.

6. The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig, by Eugene Trivizias, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury

I laughed and laughed when this book came in the mail from Children’s Book-of-the-Month Club. It’s a fairy tale parody perfectly carried out.

7. Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, by Mo Willems

I still get a big kick out of reading the temper tantrum page.

8. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, by Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault, illustrated by Lois Ehlert

The best alphabet book ever. Another one that is totally fun to read aloud.

9. Are You My Mother?, by P. D. Eastman

This has everything. Different animals. A car, a plane. And all the drama and emotion of the baby bird trying to find his mother. But best of all — the Snort! I think this was one of the first books I could read. I do remember that my own mother was delighted to buy me a new book; I remember how wonderfully new and shiny it was; I remember being able to READ it; and I remember how I treasured it. [Wow. I had forgotten all this until I started writing about the book. Now that I think about it, it probably wasn’t often I got a new book of my own. That may have been why the shiny new cover made such an impression. I think it was in honor of my being able to read, or else to motivate me to be able to read it. I don’t think it was a birthday gift, but it was definitely a new book that my mother gave to me.]

Though I remember much more clearly my husband reading it to my oldest son. Josh was in his lap, so he couldn’t see his face. As the Snort lifted the baby bird and the baby bird realized something was happening, I saw Josh’s face begin to crumple. When my husband cried out, “You are not my mother! You are a Snort!” my son burst into tears. Later, when I read that to him, I tried to keep all emotion out of my voice at that part, to try to reduce the trauma.

10. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, by Judith Viorst

I had to include this one. It’s such a classic, all you have to say is “even in Australia” to evoke all the emotion. Truly, some days are like that. Still.

Okay, it’s getting late. So I’m going to put off my Top 10 Chapter Books until tomorrow.

Review of What Animals Really Like, by Fiona Robinson

What Animals Really Like

by Fiona Robinson

Abrams Books for Young Readers, New York, 2011.
Starred Review

If you like silly picture books; if you like reading books that make kids giggle, this is just the book.

When a child is big enough to know basic animal facts, know how books use rhyme to give you hints, he’s going to appreciate the surprises here.

Mr. Herbert Timberteeth, a beaver, is preparing for a big event. There’s an elaborate fold-out of many animals assembled on stage, dressed in their finest. Mr. Timberteeth is the conductor.

The song begins, with the groups of animals singing:

“We are lions, and we like to prowl.
We are wolves, and we like to howl.
We are pigeons, and we like to coo.
We are cows, and we like to . . . *turn page*

“. . . dig.”

Mr. Timberteeth tries to ignore it and move on. The next page:

“We are monkeys, and we like to play.
We are horses, and we like fresh hay.
We are worms, and we like to wiggle.
We are warthogs, and we like to . . .

“. . . blow enormous bubbles.”

Eventually, the animals decide they aren’t going to sing about what Mr. Timberteeth thinks they like, but about what they really like. Thus, a truly silly song begins. It doesn’t rhyme, but the pictured antics are hilarious. In fact the silly details in the pictures will reward reading this book again and again.

Only for silly readers.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/what_animals_really_like.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 the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of The Sniffles for Bear, by Bonny Becker

The Sniffles for Bear

by Bonny Becker
illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton

Candlewick Press, 2011. 32 pages.
Starred Review
2011 Sonderbooks Stand-out: #8 Picture Books

Mouse and Bear are back! Honestly, I love every book Bonny Becker and Kady MacDonald Denton write. And Bear and Mouse have developed definite characteristics, to which they remain true.

Here’s how this installment begins:

“Bear was sick, very, very sick.
His eyes were red. His snout was red.
His throat was sore and gruffly.
In fact, Bear was quite sure no one
had ever been as sick as he.

“One morning, Bear heard a tap, tap, tapping on his front door.
‘Cub in!’ he rasped.”

Those who know Mouse and Bear will not be at all surprised when Mouse doesn’t appreciate the gravity of Bear’s situation.

After some false starts, Mouse does help Bear get upstairs to bed and does help him write his will. When Bear finally sleeps and gets better, it’s his turn to tend to Mouse.

This book will be most enjoyed by those who have already read the earlier books, because the fun comes from the interaction between fastidious, overdramatic Bear and the always cheery Mouse. This is also a perfect book to read to someone who isn’t feeling well. It will show that you fully understand the gravity of the situation.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/sniffles_for_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 the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of I Want My Hat Back, by Jon Klassen

I Want My Hat Back

by Jon Klassen

Candlewick Press, 2011. 36 pages.
Starred Review
2012 Geisel Honor Book
2011 Sonderbooks Stand-out: #4 Picture Books

This book is brilliant. I was happy it won a Geisel Honor for a book for beginning readers, because it’s written in a way that makes it easy for beginning readers and tells a story that will delight them when they understand what’s happened.

I have a co-worker whose favorite picture books are ones where someone gets eaten. I made sure to bring this book straight to her when I checked it out. I also handed it to my teenage son to read. It’s the kind of book everyone enjoys.

The illustrations are simple and flat, with the eyes looking straight at the reader. The text is color coded for the speaker, with a bear walking through the pages looking for his hat. He wants his hat. He loves his hat. Each animal he meets, he asks, “Have you seen my hat?” After their various responses, he says, “OK. Thank you anyway.”

Eventually, after he’s lying down in despair, a deer asks him what his hat looks like. When he describes it, the bear — and the reader — suddenly remember where he’s seen it before. This moment of realization is portrayed so cleverly with a red page and wide open eyes.

Describing this book takes more words than are in the book — and reading the book is so much better. The ending is left ambiguous for the tender-hearted, but most kids will be proud to figure out what really happened. And you have to admit, the bear is repeating what was said to him.

I promise all ages will enjoy this book! Check it out and read it yourself.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/i_want_my_hat_back.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 the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of A Ball for Daisy, by Chris Raschka

A Ball for Daisy

by Chris Raschka

Schwartz and Wade Books, New York, 2011. 32 pages.
Starred Review
2012 Caldecott Medal Winner
2011 Sonderbooks Stand-out: Picture Books #7

Here’s a truly wonderful wordless picture book. Chris Raschka portrays the heights and depths of emotion with simple painted lines and colors.

A Ball for Daisy features a little dog named Daisy. You can clearly see that Daisy loves her red ball. She plays with it, wags her tail when she catches it, and cuddles up next to it for a nap.

But when Daisy and her owner take it to the park, another dog begins to play, and he pops Daisy’s ball. Daisy’s sadness when this happens is unmistakeable.

Fortunately, there’s a happy ending as the other dog and its owner make things right the next day.

The pictures in this book are exuberant and varied, making the simple story great fun to read. The pages where Daisy’s trying to figure out what happened to her ball include shaking the limp casing, howling, and just being sad. The pages where Daisy is playing or sleeping reflect Daisy’s joyful and unworried existence. There’s a nice circular feeling as the end echoes the beginning, with Daisy cozying up to her new ball. All’s right in the world.

What child doesn’t know what it feels like to lose something? The story is universal, and can be “read” by the very young, yet will still fascinate older people with the beauty of the artwork.

I’m pleased with the Caldecott committee’s decision this year, as I have a feeling children will be enjoying this book for years to come.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/ball_for_daisy.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 the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of Stuck, by Oliver Jeffers

Stuck

by Oliver Jeffers

Philomel Books, New York, 2011. 36 pages.
Starred Review
2011 Sonderbooks Stand-out: #2 Picture Books

Reading this picture book made me laugh out loud, and then, of course, try to get everyone around me to read it.

“It all began when Floyd’s kite became stuck in a tree. He tried pulling and swinging, but it wouldn’t come unstuck.

“The trouble

    REALLY

began when he threw his FAVORITE SHOE to knock the kite loose. . .

“. . . and THAT got stuck too!”

Floyd throws more and more things up in the tree. The pictures help make the predicament hilarious. And there are some surprising reflections: “Cats get stuck in trees all the time, but this was getting ridiculous.”

There are a couple of times we think he’s doing something constructive, like fetching a ladder.

“. . . and up he threw it.

“I’m sure you can guess what happened.”

Floyd throws more and more things into the tree, getting bigger and more ridiculous things all along the way. My favorite one is “A curious whale in THE WRONG PLACE at THE WRONG TIME to knock down the lighthouse…”

The pictures remind me very much of the video game where you collect things by rolling over them as progressively bigger things get stuck.

Well, this is another book I don’t want to say too much and ruin it for you. Me telling you the story isn’t nearly as funny as the words and pictures of this book discovered together. Anybody who’s old enough to ever have gotten something stuck in a tree will enjoy this book.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/stuck.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 the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of Stars, by Mary Lyn Ray and Marla Frazee

Stars

by Mary Lyn Ray
illustrated by Marla Frazee

Beach Lane Books, 2011. 36 pages.
Starred Review
2011 Sonderbooks Stand-out: #1 Picture Books

I’m normally not very touched by conceptual picture books trying to give readers a warm feeling. But Stars is something special.

I love Marla Frazee’s illustrations, and the children in this book have all the emotional expression of her pictures of Clementine. The words point out how many different kinds of stars there are, from stars in the sky to stars on plants to fireworks.

The illustration on the cover appears in the book accompanied by these words:

“What if you could have a star? They shine like little silver eggs you could gather in a basket.

“Except you know you can’t. Not really.”

The next page begins a concept that carries on through further pages:

“But you can draw a star on shiny paper and cut around it. Then you can put it in your pocket. Having a star in your pocket is like having your best rock in your pocket, but different.

“Because a star is different from a rock.”

Later, we’re told:

“Some days you feel shiny as a star. If you’ve done something important, people may call you a star.

“But some days you don’t feel shiny.

“Those days, it’s good to reach for the one in your pocket.”

Of course, the perfect marriage of words and illustrations enhance these words, as well as the appropriate vertical format.

I think I may go make a star to put in my pocket.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/stars.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 the Fairfax County Public Library.

2011 Sonderbooks Standouts: Picture Books

And now, my final category of Sonderbooks Standouts: Picture Books!

This category is difficult, since some great picture books have been sitting around my house for awhile, waiting for me to review them. And I need to compare those to the outstanding picture books I read earlier in the year. I usually am not a big fan of more contemplative books without a story, but somehow I totally fell for Stars, by Mary Lyn Ray, and illustrated by Marla Frazee. I hope it wins the Caldecott Medal this year.

Both Stuck, by Oliver Jeffers, and I Want My Hat Back, by Jon Klassen, are a bit subversive, but both made me laugh out loud, are very well done, and simply have to be included.

And, well, here’s my personal list of favorite picture books read in 2011:

1. Stars, by Mary Lyn Ray, illustrated by Marla Frazee
2. Stuck, by Oliver Jeffers
3. Mitchell’s License, by Hallie Durand, illustrated by Tony Facile
4. I Want My Hat Back, by Jon Klassen
5. Chalk, by Bill Thomson
6. The Cazuela That the Farm Maiden Stirred, by Samantha R. Vamos, illustrated by Rafael Lopez
7. A Ball for Daisy, by Chris Raschka
8. The Sniffles for Bear, by Bonny Becker, illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton

Next, I’ll try to get a webpage on my main Sonderbooks site for these standouts, add the Standouts seal to their review pages, write the reviews I haven’t written yet, and post the reviews I’ve written but are waiting to be posted. So I’ll be staying busy!

Meanwhile, Happy Reading!

Review of Erika’s Story, by Ruth Vander Zee

Erika’s Story

by Ruth Vander Zee
illustrated by Roberto Innocenti

Creative Editions, Mankato, MN, 2003. 24 pages.

I actually found this book when I was weeding library books that hadn’t been checked out in two years. This one was in good condition, and when I started reading it, I was transfixed. It was too good to weed from the collection, and too powerful not to check out and review.

I should add that nonfiction picture books like this one easily get lost on the shelves. It’s not suitable for a school report, and kids usually don’t go looking in the nonfiction section for powerful stories. So they don’t get read as often as they deserve to be.

The story in this book is simple, and it’s powerfully told. The author met a Jewish lady in Rothenburg, Germany, and relates her story. The lady, Erika, speculates about how it must have been for her parents, herded onto a cattle car headed for the concentration camps. But she doesn’t know anything about them for sure.

“As the train slowed through a village, my mother must have looked up through the opening near the top of the cattle car. With my father, she must have tried spreading the barbed wire that covered the hole. My mother must have lifted me over her head and toward the dim daylight. What happened next is the only thing I know for sure.

“My mother threw me from the train.”

Erika was taken in by a woman who risked her life by caring for Erika and giving her a name and an approximate birthdate. She grew up and married and had children of her own.

The story is told simply and starkly. The pictures are beautiful and realistic. It’s interesting that the artist doesn’t show anybody’s faces except the baby, as if to emphasize all that Erika doesn’t know about her family. The pink baby blanket is also the brightest spot of color in the pictures from the past.

The story is also gently told, with an emphasis on Erika’s survival. You could read this to a child and then talk about it as much or as little as you like, but it’s a relatively gentle introduction to the horrors of the Holocaust.

And it’s definitely powerful for an adult reader, too. What would it take for a mother to throw her baby off a train? The book doesn’t ask any questions like that, which leaves the readers asking themselves.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Nonfiction/erikas_story.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 the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of Are You Awake? by Sophie Blackall

Are You Awake?

by Sophie Blackall

Christy Ottaviano Books (Henry Holt), New York, 2011. 40 pages.

I can’t decide if I would want this book if I actually still had a toddler. Would it give him ideas? Though then, when I think about it, no toddler ever needed to be given the idea of waking up his mother, so this book would simply provide an opportunity to talk about it, and maybe get across why Mommy doesn’t really want to be woken up when it’s still dark.

Everyone who’s ever had a toddler will give a groan of recognition when they see this book. However, we’ll also remember the feel of those snuggly warm toddler bodies, so the can’t help but have a surge of fondness.

The pictures make this book wonderful. Sophie Blackall has toddlerhood down! First we see the word “Mom?” in the dark, then “Mom?” with bright eyes, then we see Edward with one finger pulling his Mom’s eye open.

Then come all the WHY questions:

“Why aren’t you awake?”
“Why are you asleep?”
“Why is it still nighttime?”
“Why hasn’t the sun come up yet?”
“Why are the stars still out?”

The pages also give Mom’s responses in a familiar littany of Edward tumbling around on the bed, talking to Mom, while Mom tries to go back to sleep.

I like the realistic way Mom keeps saying, on and on, that it’s still nighttime, and comes up with new responses when Edward asks why.

Edward also asks if Daddy is awake. Mom hopes so, because he’s flying a plane.

As the book goes on, the room very slowly gets lighter. Edward tumbles around the bed and then cuddles up close to Mom. They talk about all sorts of things and, wouldn’t you know it, as the sun comes up, Mom wakes up — and Edward falls asleep.

The final picture shows Dad (home from flying the plane) trying to sleep with a mask over his eyes, and Edward asking if he’s awake. Is it wrong that I’m happy that Dad gets the treatment, too?

Like I said, I don’t know if this book would actually be effective to share with a toddler. However, it’s completely charming and delightful and evocative if you have only the memory of a toddler doing that, and no current threat. I think Grandmas and Grandpas and aunts and uncles might especially find this a good gift to share with a child! I certainly got a cozy smile from it.

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/are_you_awake.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 the Fairfax County Public Library.