Picture books

Amira’s Picture Day by Reem Faruqi, illustrated by Fahmida Azim (released April 6)

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Holiday House

Amazon.com: Amira's Picture Day (9780823440191): Faruqi, Reem, Azim, Fahmida: Books

Summary:  Amira is excited when she sees the crescent moon in the sky; Ramadan has ended and Eid is the next day.  There will be a big celebration, and she’ll get to skip school.  But then she remembers that tomorrow is also picture day, and she’ll miss being in the photo with the rest of her class.  Her mother assures her that she’ll take plenty of pictures of Amira at the big celebration, but it’s not quite the same.  The next day, though, Amira dons her shalwar kameez, leaving the pink dress she was going to wear for picture day hanging in the closet.  As predicted, Amira and her family have a wonderful celebration, but on the way home, Amira is feeling sad about having missed picture day.  An abundance of leftover goody bags gives her an idea, and she is able to make it to school in time for the picture and to share some of Eid with her classmates.  Includes an author’s note with additional information about Eid and a glossary.  40 pages; grades K-3.

Pros:  The colorful illustrations and realistic story make a great introduction to Eid for those who don’t celebrate it, and a story that will be relatable for those who do.  

Cons:  The author’s note states that Muslims “do not know the exact date for Eid until they spot the new moon’s crescent”.  This confused me, because I was able to Google the date (the evening of May 12 until the evening of May 13) for 2021.

Most Days by Michael Leannah, illustrated by Megan Elizabeth Baratta

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Published by Tilbury House

Amazon.com: Most Days (9780884487272): Leannah, Michael, Baratta, Megan Elizabeth: Books

Summary:  “Most days are ordinary days.”  We get up, brush our teeth, eat breakfast.  But if you stop and look, you will notice changes and wonders all around you.  The plant that had six leaves now has seven.  There’s a new spiderweb, and yesterday’s puddle is gone.  Fill your senses with the sounds of trucks rumbling and a saxophone playing, and the smell of freshly-baked bread.  When you go to bed, the day’s ordinary moments “glimmer in…memory like stars in the night sky.”  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  A beautiful, lyrical meditation on the wonder of ordinary moments that encourages readers to slow down and be grateful each day.  The appealing illustrations reminded me a bit of Raina Telgemeier’s work.

Cons:  Doesn’t acknowledge the more painful parts that are often also part of an ordinary day.

We Are Still Here! Native American Truths Everyone Should Know by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Frané Lissac (released April 20)

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Charlesbridge

Amazon.com: We Are Still Here!: Native American Truths Everyone Should Know (9781623541927): Sorell, Traci, Lessac, Frane: Books
We Are Still Here! – Charlesbridge

Summary: From the team that brought you We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga comes this introduction to important terms in Native American history.  A group of kids from the Native Nations Community School puts together a series of presentations for Indigenous People’s Day.  There are a dozen reports on such topics as assimilation, relocation, tribal activism, and language revival.  Each presentation is a paragraph with bullet points that introduce the topic, and each one ends with Native Nations saying, “We are still here!”   Includes additional information on each presentation, including the locale and event shown in each illustration; a 5-page timeline covering 1870-2007; a glossary of terms and a list of sources; and an author’s note giving more information about the book and her personal connection to Native history (she’s a dual citizen of the Cherokee Nation and the United States).  40 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  This is an amazing starting place for kids to learn Native American history.  Any one of the topics could be researched further and expanded upon.  The back matter, especially the timeline, really beefs up the historical information.  I love the folk art style illustrations.

Cons:  There are no dates given in any of the reports, so it’s a bit difficult to put the events into historical context without flipping back to the timeline.

The Passover Guest by Susan Kusel, illustrated by Sean Rubin

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Published by Neal Porter Books

The Passover Guest: Kusel, Susan, Rubin, Sean: 9780823445622: Amazon.com: Books
Interrogating the Passover Guest: A Susan Kusel and Sean Rubin Interview - A Fuse #8 Production

Summary:  Muriel is excited that Passover is approaching, but sobered by the knowledge that there probably won’t be much at her Seder dinner.  It’s 1933, and her father has lost his job.  As she walks home through the streets of Washington, DC, she spies a ragged man performing magic tricks in front of the Lincoln Memorial.  When she gives him the only penny she has, he tells her to hurry home where she’ll find a Seder dinner waiting.  When she gets home, though, the house is as empty as it has been for weeks.  Her parents are trying to decide whose dinner they might be able to share, when there’s a knock on the door.  It’s the man from the Lincoln Memorial, and in an instant a magical dinner has appeared.  Friends and neighbors join Muriel and her family for the meal, which goes far into the night.  Just before midnight, Muriel remembers the wine in Elijah’s cup.  When she looks, she sees that the cup is empty, and she realizes who the mysterious stranger was.  Includes notes from the author and artist and a note on the Passover holiday.  40 pages; ages 4-9.

Pros:  Based on a story by I. L. Peretz (also the basis for Uri Shulevitz’s 1973 book The Magician), this story blends magic with a real time and place (Washington, D.C. in the Great Depression), offering hope in difficult times.  The illustrations, based on Marc Chagall’s art, do an excellent job with the magic realism as well.  

Cons:  The magician is a little creepy looking in a scary clown kind of way.

The Rock from the Sky by Jon Klassen (released April 13)

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Candlewick

The Rock from the Sky: Klassen, Jon, Klassen, Jon: 9781536215625: Amazon.com: Books
The Rock from the Sky: Klassen, Jon, Klassen, Jon: 9781536215625: Amazon.com: Books

Summary:  A turtle loves to stand in his favorite spot.  Meanwhile, the reader sees that a big rock is falling from the sky.  An armadillo joins the turtle, but gets a bad feeling, and finds another spot to stand.  There’s a series of miscommunications as the rock gets closer and the turtle goes back and forth between the two spots.  Story 1 ends with the rock landing; four more stories involving the turtle, the armadillo, the rock, and, occasionally, a snake, follow.  All stories are told with dialog between the turtle and the armadillo, each one in a different font to make them easily distinguishable.  96 pages; ages 4-9.

Pros:  Fans of Jon Klassen’s “Hat” series are going to be delighted with this new entry.  I was laughing aloud, particularly at the first story.  Klassen is the master of simple facial expressions…you just know what those animals are thinking.  I’ve used his other stories for readers’ theater for first graders, and this book will definitely lend itself to that as well.

Cons:  96 pages makes for a long read-aloud.

How to Apologize by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka (released May 4)

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Published by Candlewick

How to Apologize: LaRochelle, David, Wohnoutka, Mike: 9781536209440: Amazon.com: Books
How to Apologize: LaRochelle, David, Wohnoutka, Mike: 9781536209440: Amazon.com: Books

Summary:  Everyone makes mistakes, but what’s the best way to handle them?  From a parachuting bird crashing through a bathroom roof to an elephant driver rear-ending a mouse’s car, these animals show the good and not-so-good methods for saying you’re sorry.  It can be difficult, especially if you have to apologize to someone you don’t like, but a straightforward approach works best.  Don’t make excuses.  Be sincere.  A note can work.  And it’s never too late to apologize for something from the past.  Try to fix the situation if you can, but if you can’t, work to avoid making the same mistake in the future.  In the ideal apology situation, you will feel better, and so will the recipient of your apology.  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  The brilliance here is in the simplicity.  Apologizing can be difficult for all ages, and there’s nothing I dislike more than hearing a mumbled “sorry” from a kid who’s forced to apologize.  This really lays out the whole process in a way a human being of any age can understand, and lightens things up with the funny animal illustrations.

Cons:  It’s hard to believe this concept has not been better covered in children’s literature.

The Boy Whose Head Was Filled With Stars: A Life of Edwin Hubble by Isabelle Marinov, illustrated by Deborah Marcero

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Published by Enchanted Lion Books

The Boy Whose Head Was Filled with Stars: A Life of Edwin Hubble: Marinov, Isabelle, Marcero, Deborah: 9781592703173: Amazon.com: Books
The Boy Whose Head Was Filled With Stars, A Life of Edwin Hubble — Enchanted Lion Books

Summary:  As a young boy growing up in Missouri, Edwin Hubble was fascinated by the stars.  When his grandfather gave him a telescope for his eighth birthday, he eschewed birthday cake in favor of looking at the stars.  His strict father prohibited him from studying astronomy in college, but happily for the history of science, said father died in 1914, and Edwin was able to quit teaching high school and go back to school.  He set himself to work on the problem of nebulae like Andromeda: were they within the Milky Way galaxy, or separate galaxies themselves? His discovery, which built on the research of Harvard astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt, showed that they were separate galaxies, revealing that the universe was bigger than previously thought, and that it was expanding.  Edwin helped to create the Hale telescope and was the first to use it in 1949; he was honored with the Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990.  Includes an author’s note, an illustrator’s note, additional information about Hubble’s research, and a bibliography listing three sources.  52 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  There don’t seem to be other picture book biographies of Hubble, and this one does a nice job, emphasizing Edwin’s inquisitive mind, clearly explaining the difficult concepts he was researching, and showing the wonders of the universe through the black-sky illustrations.

Cons:  A timeline would have made this a more useful research book.

Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by Jeff Gottesfeld, illustrated by Matt Tavares (released March 2)

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Published by Candlewick

Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier: Gottesfeld, Jeff, Tavares, Matt: 9781536201482: Amazon.com: Books
Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier: Gottesfeld, Jeff, Tavares, Matt: 9781536201482: Amazon.com: Books

Summary:  “The Sentinel’s Creed” appears before the title page, showing the promise made by those who guard the tomb of the unknown soldier.  The narrative is in the first person voice of the unknown soldier, telling the history of the tomb beginning with the soldier’s ultimate sacrifice made in World War I.  In 1921, an unknown was chosen to represent all those who had died in the war and could not be identified.  Over the years, crowds came to see this monument, not always respectfully, so on July 2, 1937, a sentinel began guarding it.  Each guard takes 21 steps south, turns to face east for 21 seconds, turns to face north for 21 seconds, then takes another 21 steps.  The Tomb Guard is one of the most difficult positions to attain in the military, and each sentinel strives for perfection in carrying out his or her duty.  Includes an afterword with a bit more additional information about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  32 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  File this one away for Memorial Day.  It’s a solemn acknowledgement of all the many anonymous soldiers whose lives have tragically been lost to war.  As always, Matt Tavares has created exceptional illustrations to capture the sober topic and the seriousness of purpose of the sentinels.

Cons:  While I appreciated the afterword, I could have enjoyed a lot more backmatter, including photos and information about other monuments to the unknown soldier, both in the U.S. and abroad.

Moose, Goose, and Mouse by Mordicai Gerstein, illustrated by Mordicai Gerstein and Jeff Mack

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Published by Holiday House

Amazon.com: Moose, Goose, and Mouse (9780823447602): Gerstein, Mordicai, Mack, Jeff: Books

Summary:  A mouse, moose, and goose are in the market for a new house, as theirs is old, cold, and full of mold.  Their requirements for a new place include: sunny, funny, and comes with a bunny.  They go house-hunting in a train’s caboose, but when the caboose gets loose, chaos ensues.  After a wild ride, the caboose comes to a crashing halt near the sea.  It’s sunny, living in an upside-down caboose is funny, and wouldn’t you know it, there’s even a bunny!  Mission accomplished.  Includes a note from Jeff Mack on how he and Mordicai Gerstein collaborated on this book, and how he completed it after Mordicai passed away in September of 2019.  32 pages; ages 3-7.

Pros:  The rhyming words and ridiculous situations are sure to lead to some rollicking good fun with preschoolers.  I’m usually not a fan of books published posthumously, but Jeff Mack’s note really clarified how the work was done, and this feels very true to Mordicai Gerstein’s original vision for the book.

Cons:  R.I.P. Mordicai Gerstein.

A Year of Everyday Wonders by Cheryl B. Klein, illustrated by Qin Leng

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Published by Harry N. Abrams

A Year of Everyday Wonders: Klein, Cheryl B., Leng, Qin: 9781419742088: Amazon.com: Books
A Year of Everyday Wonders: Klein, Cheryl B., Leng, Qin: 9781419742088: Amazon.com: Books

Summary: “First day of the new year,” begins this book, showing a girl, her brother, and their parents waking up on New Year’s Day. The year of “firsts” continues: first snowfall, first short sleeves, first summer storm, first new teacher. Some events are repeated: by the end of the year, the count is up to 384 for sister-brother fights, but the two manage a gift-getting, hugging reconciliation on Christmas. The final pages show the last wake-up, last snowfall, and last bedtime stories before cycling back to the first day of a new year. 40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros: This is a perfect book to start a new year, with charming watercolor and ink illustrations and milestones that will ring true for most readers.

Cons: 384 seems a conservative estimate for sibling fights in a year.