Who's There? Beware!

There's nothing quite as wonderful as walking through a nature park in Michigan on a beautiful spring morning until your dog stops dead in her tracks.  She sharply turns her head looking intently into the woods.  Then a deep rumbling growl begins in her throat before the angry warning barks start.  You listen to see if the bird song has changed.  You look for any color or movement out of the ordinary but you see nothing.  You are still afraid knowing your canine companion has detected something unfriendly.

Quickly you alter your course.  The unknown has spoken to a keen primal instinct for preservation.  The Giant Jumperee (Dial Books for Young Readers, Penguin Young Readers Group, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, April 18, 2017) written and illustrated by beloved names in children's literature, Julia Donaldson and Helen Oxenbury, considers how beings approach what they cannot see and therefore might fear.

Rabbit was hopping home one day when he heard a loud voice coming from inside his burrow.

"I'm the GIANT JUMPEREE
and I'm scary 
as can be!"

After this frightening announcement Rabbit was not willing to enter the burrow.  Cries for assistance were answered by a nearby friend, Cat.  Cat was going to sneak inside and jump right on top of the boisterous intruder.

Cat was almost through the entrance when an ominous voice called out a warning.  She froze too spooked to move.  When she yelped for help Bear happened to reply.  Bear was more than ready to offer a "paw-sitive" outcome.

A bear is a pretty fearsome creature but when that voice bellowed out a dangerous promise, he paused.  Three animals do not want to enter the burrow but a fourth, Elephant, is willing to stick in his trunk and wrap it around the dastardly monster.  When the GIANT JUMPEREE speaks, you can with certainty guess the consequence.  These four friends have a serious problem.

Up in the top of a tree, Mama Frog hears Elephant's trumpets.  As casual as can be, Mama Frog volunteers to rid Rabbit's abode of this monstrosity.  Rabbit, Cat, Bear and Elephant all reiterate what might befall the courageous amphibian.  She bravely proceeds and issues her own challenge.  Will it be met?  Who or what can the GIANT JUMPEREE be?


Each time this title is read a smile will be forming and growing bigger as each animal approaches the burrow opening.  Julie Donaldson is a master at using repetition to build to a surprising conclusion; each animal replies to the challenge with the same response.  When a new animal asks a question, the answer is the same.  The warning issued by the GIANT JUMPEREE is different each time but the endings rhyme.  These repetitions and the rhyming create a marvelous cadence inviting reader participation.  There is not a reader in the world who has not heard Mama Frog's ultimate choice for the inhabitant of the burrow.  Here is a sample passage.

"Help! Help!" meowed Cat.
"What's the matter, Cat?" asked Bear.
"There's a Giant Jumperee in
Rabbit's burrow!" said Cat.
"Don't worry," said Bear.  "I'll put my
big furry paw inside and knock him down."


Rendered in watercolor the illustrations throughout and on the matching dust jacket and book case create a classic, comforting feel for the reader.  It's unlikely a rabbit, elephant, cat and bear would ever be seated in a field of flowers together but when Helen Oxenbury is the illustrator, it's as normal and extraordinary as can be.  Her play of light and shadow, delicate details, expressive facial features and soft, textured backgrounds and characters are a joy to see.  To the left, on the back, Rabbit is standing startled outside his burrow having just heard the declaration from the GIANT JUMPEREE.

The opening and closing endpapers are done in a soft, warm brown wash; almost like sepia tone.  On the first Rabbit is standing on a hill looking down at his burrow.  On the second all the characters are scampering with happiness down a hill.  On the first title page Rabbit is hopping along wearing a smile.  The formal title page and verso is a full color version of the opening endpapers.

With the exception of five smaller pictures, all of the images span two pages.  Careful readers will notice the passage of time in the shifting shades of color in the background skies.  For most of the visuals we are close to the characters.   Their body postures are endearing to the point you find yourself reaching out to hug them.

One of my many favorite illustrations is when Bear has been scared by the GIANT JUMPEREE.  He is pictured on the left side of the picture, leaning back on his front paws with his back paws close together in front of him.  Elephant is seated opposite him.  He is earnestly leaning forward reassuring Bear of his ability to rid them all of the GIANT JUMPEREE.  His back feet are in front with his two front feet resting between them.  They are sitting on a grassy meadow with hills and trees behind them.  Birds in the distance are flying.


You can be guaranteed of hearing listeners ask you to read The Giant Jumperee by Julia Donaldson with illustrations by Helen Oxenbury over and over again.  It's a delightful story of four faithful friends and a fifth companion willing to take a risk.  The results are surprising...and funny.  I highly recommend this as a read aloud, reader's theater or get out your puppets for some creative drama.  I would not be a bit surprised to see this title appear on the nominations for the 2018 Kate Greenaway Medal.

To learn more about Julia Donaldson and her other work, please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  Helen Oxenbury is interviewed at Reading Rockets.  Author, reviewer, and blogger Julie Danielson talks about this title on her blog Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.  Julia Donaldson and Helen Oxenbury are featured regarding this title at Publishers Weekly.  Enjoy this video where Julia Donaldson and Helen Oxenbury talk about their collaboration on this book.

For The Very First Time, Again

People with puppy pals have first-hand experience in knowing the emotional ups and downs of their friends.  Those people without this understanding might not be sure what to do in the presence of a dog; they're not sure how they feel or how the dog is feeling about them.  On the other paw...hand... canines are particularly astute at reading people's emotions and responding accordingly to them.

When readers are first introduced to Henry's new puppy in Charley's First Night (Candlewick Press, 2012), it is impossible not to fall in love with Charley and Henry.  As the boy's affection for his friend continues to grow, he can hardly wait to share his joy with others he loves.  Author Amy Hest and illustrator Helen Oxenbury continue the story of the two in When Charley Met Grampa (Candlewick Press).

Dear Grampa,
We got a dog.  His name is Charley.

So begins the correspondence between Henry and his grandfather.  Henry describes Charley and wants his grandfather to bring a big suitcase so he can stay for more than a short visit.  Grampa replies with his arrival day at the train station and closes with his uncertainty about the dog.

On a snowy Sunday the duo leave the house to meet Grampa pulling a sled for his suitcase.  Charley is happily leaping through the snow, tail up.  Henry is pretty sure Charley knows the way to the depot.

To pass the time while waiting on the bench outside for Grampa, Henry talks to Charley about his grandfather's unique personality.  Charley seems to wilt a little when Henry mentions Grampa does not know how to make friends with a dog.  After what seems like forever the train's whistle is heard in the distance.

Before Henry and Charley know it, there's Grampa waving his hand as promised wearing his green cap.  Introductions are made.  The silence stretches.  Charley smiles but Grampa does not.

Even though the snow is falling faster with a fierce wind blowing, Charley knows the way home.  Whoosh! Oh no! There goes Grampa's cap.  There goes Charley.

Charley and the cap have disappeared into the swirling whiteness.  Frantic Henry and Grampa shout Charley's name over and over.  Will the puppy's persistence prevail?


To begin by using the exchange of the two letters between Henry and Grampa,  Amy Hest introduces readers to the loving relationship between the two as well as the visit to come.  Blending Henry's narrative with his and Grampa's conversations with Charley makes us intimate observers in this day of their lives.  Henry's interpretation of Charley's intentions lets us know how strong the bond is between this boy and his dog.  Of note, as Charley's vanishes into the snow, Hest is especially skillful at increasing the tension we feel by quickly shifting her sentence structure. Here is a single example from the book.

Charley barked at the train for a while,
and when it was gone, he held his
head tall, which is code for Follow me,
gentlemen! I know the way home! 


Helen Oxenbury treats readers to a double page spread across the jacket and cover, presenting the three characters, Charley, Henry and Grampa on their snowy walk from the train station with the village tucked in the background on the left.  A different color, soft steel blue instead of a dusty brown, the opening and closing endpapers feature the same small, endearing  caricatures of Charley in various poses as did the first book.  All of the illustrations, including the title page and verso, are framed either in a warm light tan or a pale blue-gray with a narrower brown and white line on the inside next to the illustrations.  The first four pages in the beginning and at the end are done in the tan.

Oxenbury has masterfully conveyed, using watercolor and pencil, all of Charley's puppy playfulness, Henry's love for both he and his grandfather and the wisdom that comes with age.  Her details of the landscape, village and Henry's home, the clothing each is wearing (how it blows in the wind), and all the facial expressions are simply lovely. As she did in the first book, each text page, opposite the full-page pictures, includes a small picture of Charley.  Although I adore all the illustrations in this book, the one of Henry and Charley sitting on the bench outside the train depot waiting for Grampa, snowflakes falling, is probably my favorite.


Whether you share this story one on one or with an entire group, when the final sentence is read and the final illustration is shown, I know there will be a collective silence before you are asked to read it again.  When Charley Met Grampa written by Amy Hest with illustrations by Helen Oxenbury is as beautiful as the first title.  This books has staying power, a timeless quality.  I certainly hope the adventures of these two continue within the pages of many more books.

To learn more about author Amy Hest visit her website by following the link embedded in her name.  Enjoy the video below where Helen Oxenbury speaks about her work.






Interestingly enough a study was released recently by Gregory Berns, professor of neuroeconomics at Emory University and author of How Dogs Love Us: A Neuroscientist and His Adopted Dog Decode the Canine Brain, demonstrating dog's emotional capacity along with their sensitivity to our emotions. (Here is a link to a great video included in a post today titled Do Animals Have Feelings Like Humans?)

For The Very First Time

There are memories with emotional attachments so strong they will never fade, being permanently as vivid as the day they were created.  On the day a new puppy chooses you, for most children (and adults), this is a moment firmly planted and nurtured by our minds.  Even though the bond is fresh and new, its strength is assured.

Despite their desire to be with you, puppies are used to being with their other brothers and sisters, a pack, gathering around and needing their mother.  Being freshly separated from what is comfortable, natural, to them is not easy.  In Charley's First Night (Candlewick Press) written by Amy Hest with illustrations by Helen Oxenbury, we are given an intimate, insider view of a boy's budding love, his understanding, of his new canine companion.

It was snowing that night, and Charley wanted me to carry him home.

Henry is out walking with his new puppy when it's clear the little guy is totally tuckered out.  With a gentle tenderness the puppy is wrapped in an old baby blanket, cradled in his new human friend's arms, who is ever so careful not to slip in the snow on the way home.  Once inside Henry introduces Charley to all the unique nooks and crannies in his house, reminding him that this is home.

His parents are very specific about who will be walking and feeding Charley.  Henry can hardly wait to 

walk Charley every day forever and feed Charley every day forever.

Mr. and Mrs. Korn also remind Henry that Charley will be sleeping in the kitchen even though Henry is sure he would rather sleep in his bedroom.  He can not imagine how his puppy will like being there at night...forever.  They fix up a large, soft, cozy bed for Charley under the table next to the heat register complete with Henry's old stuffed bear, Bobo, and a ticking clock.

Even though Henry waits for his pal to fall asleep before heading upstairs to bed, a crying awakens him in the middle of the night.  Quickly he runs to Charley, picking him up, comforting him and giving him another tour of the house.  It isn't until the puppy's soft snoring is heard that Henry leaves him in the kitchen once more.

When the whimpering starts much later, Henry runs to his friend showing him the moonlight, holding him close as they walk through the house ending up in his bedroom.  Amazingly enough Charley wants Henry to put him on his bed.  In the morning when a mother peeks her head in the bedroom door, guess what she sees?


With every turn of page it becomes abundantly clear that Amy Hest knows how a young boy thinks and feels about a new puppy under his care.  Through Henry's voice we walk in the snow, tour his home, listen to his parents and his unspoken thoughts in response, kneel down with him next to Charley's bed and run with him as he goes to comfort Charley.  Sentence by sentence, word by word,  Hest draws us into Henry's and Charley's first night together.  Here is but one example.

Charley curled up in a ball and I put my 
face next to his and I waited for Charley
to fall asleep, and I thought about how my
mother and father sometimes used to wait
for me to fall asleep and soon Charley fell asleep.


Setting the tone for the entire book is the jacket and cover picture of Henry carrying Charley through their first snowy evening walk together.  Soft, warm brown on brown smaller versions of Charley in various poses are placed across the opening and closing endpapers.  Pale gray arching lines create a series of interlocking scallops acting as larger frames against the narrow gray lines around the text boxes on the left side and the illustrations on the right.

Helen Oxenbury's watercolor and pencil pictures paint a world as dear and charming as does Hest's text.  Within each of the text boxes she places a small significant visual enhancing the narrative.  She has captured with a sure, practiced hand the essence of a puppy and his human pal.  Every single one of her illustrations are worthy of framing.  My two favorite pictures are of Henry kneeling under the kitchen table to place his red wind-up clock next to Charley who is laying on his back, four paws extending in the air, with the stuffed teddy bear next to him.  The other is of Henry holding Charley in the darkened kitchen both of them looking out the window at the moon.


With the feel of a classic Charley's First Night with words by Amy Hest and illustrations by Helen Oxenbury is in every way a perfect picture book.  Every single reader who has every had a puppy or longed for one, will see themselves in this story.  The second most beautiful three words, coming after I love you, Read it again will be heard more than once...without a doubt.

To gain access to Amy Hest's website follow the link embedded in her name.  By following the link within Helen Oxenbury's name you are taken to a Reading Rockets video interview.  This link takes you to the publisher's website for a peek at a two page spread and a story hour kit with some possible follow-up activities.