Picture books

A Busy Creature’s Day Eating! by Mo Willems

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Published by Disney-Hyperion

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Summary:  The creature starts his day with apples, berries, cereal, doughnuts, eggs, and…furniture?  A mix of food and non-food items causes some problems by the middle of the alphabet, with “Ooooohhh, Potty!”.  A parent creature asks, “Queasy?”, then offers rice and saltines. Sadly, V is for vomit, and by Z, the young creature has zonked out.  32 pages; ages 3-6.

Pros:  Preschoolers will love this hilarious romp through alphabet (vomit…ewww!), and will enjoy looking for cameos of some of Willems’ well-known characters in the illustrations.

Cons:  Lacks the sweet charm of Elephant, Piggie, and Knuffle Bunny.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

A Round of Robins by Katie Hesterman, illustrated by Sergio Ruzzier

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Published by Nancy Paulsen Books

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Summary: A male and female robin build a nest; before long, there are four eggs inside. Twelve days later, the babies hatch. After a period of mostly sleeping and eating, the fledglings are ready to fly. They learn to find their own food and defend themselves, and before long, Mom and Dad have an empty nest. Not for long, though; the mother lays four more eggs, and twelve days later….40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros: The first part of a robin’s life cycle is described with playful rhymes and cute illustrations that reminded me of P. D. Eastman’s The Best Nest and Are You My Mother?

Cons: Some back matter would have helped explain some of the poems and made this more useful as an informational book.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

A House That Once Was by Julie Fogliano, illustrated by Lane Smith

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Published by Roaring Brook Press

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Summary:  Two children discover an old house in the woods and climb in through a broken window.  As they explore what they find there, they imagine who might have lived there before and what has happened to them.  Finally, they return to their own house, cozy and warm with dinner waiting, remembering that “Deep in the woods/is a house/just a house/that once was/but now isn’t/a home.”  48 pages; ages 3-8.

Pros:  Award winners Julie Fogliano and Lane Smith combine their talents for a haunting, evocative picture book.  The slightly surreal, detailed illustrations deserve to be savored, and the poetic text flows smoothly.  A perfect read-aloud.

Cons:  Peeling exterior paint and mice peering out of holes in the walls = a little too close to home for me.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

What If… by Samantha Berger, illustrated by Mike Curato

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Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

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Summary:  A young girl loves to create stories and pictures with her pencil.  But what if the pencil disappeared?  She’d create by folding the paper.  If that was gone?  She’d carve up the table and chair to make something new.  And so it goes, her creativity unstoppable even if her tools aren’t available anymore.  The second to last page reads, “If I had nothing, but still had my mind…” with a close-up of her face on a foldout page that opens to an imaginative spread of her riding a pink unicorn, then continues: “If I know nothing but one bit of fate…As long as I live, I will always create.”  The final page shows her working in her apartment window; other windows portray her neighbors playing music, dancing, decorating a cake, and pursuing other creative endeavors.  A note from the author and illustrator tells how Samantha Berger was inspired to write this book after a flood forced her to evacuate her apartment with only her dog and her sketchbook.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Maybe Mike Curato will finally win a well-deserved Caldecott for this beautiful meditation on creativity and the ability to make something new in any situation.

Cons:  The pink unicorn and rainbow on the foldout page felt a little clichéd.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Candlewick

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Summary:  When Alma Sofia Esperanza Jose Pura Candela complains that her name is too long, her father tells five stories about the different family members for whom she is named.  Each one connects to her in a special way.  Her sixth name, Alma, is just for her.  “You are the one and only Alma,” her father tells her.  “You will make your own story.”  The author’s note tells the story of her own full name, Juana Carlota Martinez Pizarro, and how it reminds her of her roots in Peru.  Also available in a Spanish edition, Alma y Como Obtuvo su Nombre.  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  A lovely story by award-winning illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal that invites readers to learn and tell the stories of their own names.

Cons:  Alma may struggle with all those names when filling out online forms.

Click to buy on Amazon:  the English edition or the Spanish edition

A Most Unusual Day by Sydra Mallery, illustrated by E. B. Goodale

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Published by Greenwillow Books

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Summary:  Caroline’s day is unusual from the moment she wakes up.  Her usually organized family is forgetful, and Caroline’s grandmother sends her to school without socks or a lunch.  She’s distracted during the day, accidentally knocking a friend’s loose tooth out, playing with her food at lunch, and drawing an airplane on the wall at the end of the day.  When her parents arrive to pick her up, she notices that her father’s glasses are taped and her mother is wearing mismatched socks. Then her mom reaches into the back seat, and brings out…Caroline’s new baby sister!  The family is adopting a little girl. “This baby made everything, every usual thing, unusually new and perfectly right.” 40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Older siblings will appreciate this story, no matter how the new baby at their house got there.  The illustrations are nicely diverse, both in their portrayals of Caroline’s classmates and her family.

Cons:  Young readers may not realize the new baby is adopted, as this has to be inferred from the story and pictures.

If you’d like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Dude! word by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Dan Santat

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Published by Roaring Brook Press

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Summary:  Cowabunga, dude, this book only has one word, but lots of gnarly pictures!  A platypus and a beaver head out on surfboards one sunny day, disregarding a sign with a big red exclamation mark on it.  The beaver is laughing hysterically after the platypus gets pooped on by a seagull, when suddenly–DUDE!–a great white shark appears.  Thinking fast, the beaver produces an ice cream cone, and the three become friends.  Surf’s up until a big wave smashes the boards into the rocks.  The shark has a solution, and the three head out to sea again, the two smaller animals catching a wave on the back of their great white pal.  Everyone on the beach flees in terror, and the trio enjoy samples from the vacant ice cream stand.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Aaron Reynolds and Dan Santat is a pretty brilliant pairing, and this book of summer fun that includes ice cream, a great white shark, cartoon bubbles, and a poop joke, is pretty much a guaranteed hit at any storytime.

Cons:  If you’re trying to get your offspring to practice reading this summer, this probably isn’t the book for you.  Dude.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

When Paul Met Artie: The Story of Simon and Garfunkel by G. Neri, illustrated by David Litchfield

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Published by Candlewick

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Summary:  This story of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel begins at their Central Park concert on September 19, 1981, then travels back in time 30 years to when the two boys were growing up in 1950’s Queens.  They became friends in a sixth-grade production of Alice in Wonderland, and were inspired by Elvis and other early rockers to try harmonizing, later adding Paul on guitar. At 15, they had their first hit record as Tom and Jerry (Simon and Garfunkel was deemed to Jewish-sounding for 1950’s America), but later recordings failed to catch on.  They met up again in the early 1960’s and released another record, Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M., another flop, except that one song, “The Sound of Silence”, slowly started climbing the charts.  The book ends on New Year’s Day, 1966, when that song reached number one. Includes an afterword, discography, bibliography, and list of musical connections.  48 pages; ages 10 and up.

Pros:  An absorbing history of one of the greatest duos of the rock and roll era.  Each page is a poem titled with one of Simon and Garfunkel’s songs, beginning with “My Little Town”, describing the suburb of Queens where the two grew up.  The illustrations are occasionally goofy, as the two boys were, but really capture the changing times from the 1950’s to the 1960’s. Any fan of their music will enjoy this history and undoubtedly learn a few things as well.

Cons:  Although this looks like an elementary school purchase, it would probably be more interesting to middle schoolers and older, and definitely requires some familiarity with Simon and Garfunkel’s music to be fully appreciated.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

I Walk With Vanessa: A Story About a Simple Act of Kindness by Kerascoet

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Schwartz & Wade Books

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Summary:  In this wordless book, Vanessa is new at school, and seems to be feeling isolated on her first day.  She sits quietly in class and watches kids playing in the gym without joining in.  As she walks home alone, a boy walks up to her and starts yelling.  Another girl witnesses the incident and is clearly bothered by it, continuing to think about it after she gets home.  The next day she wakes up with an idea.  She saw where Vanessa lives, so she stops by her house and asks to walk to school with her.  As the two girls walk, others join them, first one at a time and then in groups, until there are dozens of kids walking together, Vanessa in their midst.  The bully is shown on the edge of the crowd, his face red and angry.  The happy crowd of kids enters the school, and Vanessa has found a new friend.  The last page has a message for kids about how to help someone who is being bullied and some helpful words for adults to use when talking about the book with children.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Although there are no words, kids will get this book right away.  There’s a truly feel-good ending, and the story will lend itself easily to discussion afterward.  The cartoon kids are adorable.

Cons:  The issue of bullying is not always as simple as this book makes it out to be.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.

 

The Field by Baptiste Paul, pictures by Jacqueline Alcantara

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by NorthSouth Books

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Summary:  A group of enthusiastic children starts a soccer game on a grassy field in St. Lucia, shooing away a group of cows and building their own goal posts.  Passersby lean on the fence around the field, watching the action.  Even a rainstorm doesn’t stop the game, as the players take off their shoes and socks to slip, slide, and belly flop in the mud.  Finally, the mamas call everyone in for dinner; the children go home, but continue to dream about futbol as they sleep.  Includes an author’s note about his childhood playing soccer in St. Lucia and a list of Creole words and phrases used in the story.  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Soccer fans will love the action in both the illustrations and the clipped text, interspersed with Creole words.  Even those not familiar with the game will enjoy the sense of play radiating from each scene.

Cons:  The text could have flowed a bit more smoothly.

If you would like to buy this book on Amazon, click here.