Sleep Tight Garden Residents

Several weeks ago, marked the arrival of two boxes of materials to construct raised-garden beds.  Yesterday an order for twenty bags of soil was sent.  Packets of seeds are waiting for the right combination of warmth and water for planting.  Centuries of practice dictate it will soon be time for personal, community and large-scale gardeners, farmers, to begin their work.

Gardening is a partnership between humans and Mother Nature involving hard work and respect.  Goodnight, Veggies (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, March 10, 2020) written by Diane Murray with illustrations by Zachariah OHora is a lovely, loving lullaby to edibles and their efforts.  From beginning to end, readers will feel their appreciation for produce expanding as each word and image fashions a comforting, cheerful harmony.

Sunset in the garden.

Robins watch from a nest as a sole gardener tends to a community garden.  One by one the individual vegetables are visited and observed as evening descends.  Below the dirt turnips and potatoes get ready to rest.

Tomatoes, eyes closing in fatigue, quietly murmur a melody.  Cocooned in leaves, cauliflowers snuggle as nearby neighbors sag with weariness.  Storytime begins in the rhubarb patch as broccoli and baby plants listen.

Teeny, tiny eggplants, new to the world, dream dreams of travel.  Where will they go?  Other scrumptious roots relax.  Cabbage, celery and corn are eager to doze.  (Some need to sleep more than others.)

As moonlight shimmers and stars sparkle, the vegetables cozy in their beds slumber.  If we happen to tiptoe past, we will see why this pause has purpose.  Can you surmise?


This lilting bedtime poem written by Diana Murray is certain to soothe readers of all ages.  The use of descriptive alliteration and rhyming words at phrase endings is certain to have you humming if not singing a song softly aloud.  The array of vegetables will have you reaching for the nearest seed catalog as soon as possible.  Here is a passage.

Turnips tucked in tightly.
Potatoes closing eyes.

Tuckered-out tomatoes
humming lullabies.


When you open the dust jacket the cross-section of vegetables in repose spreads over the spine to the back edge.  Another sleeping turnip and dozing carrot are featured on the back.  The smiling, dapper worm wearing a cap and single shoe on the front is a showcased extra in the garden throughout the book.  The color palette is eye-catching and engaging.

On a white canvas a variety of veggies are highlighted on the book case.  From the back to the front thirteen are shown, smiling.  Each one is labeled.  On the front the worm stands in the lower, right-hand corner.  By him words read:

What will
you grow in 
YOUR
garden?

A bright, cross-hatched design in turquoise covers the opening and closing endpapers.  On the title page in a charming display, the worm is reclining on a striped sun lounger underneath a trio of poles entwined in vines of peas.  Each image is rendered

with 100% vegetarian printmaking and acrylic paint.

Each double-page picture is an illustrative, interpretive joy.  Illustrator Zachariah OHora presents shifting perspectives, as well as, combining different points of view in a single visual.  In the first scene we see an adult and child sitting on steps on the street below as the sun sets.  As our eyes move to the right, solar panels on a roof capture heat as a woman waters plants in the rooftop garden.  Alongside the building is a large tree, home to a robin's nest.  In the next image we zoom closer to the tree, as our worm adventurer and guide hops from the tree to the garden.  We continually move closer and closer to the vegetables.

The vegetables are happily winding down a day of growing with smiles and drowsy eyes.  Rocks and roots are shown underground as a tiny yellow butterfly flutters above them.  Bees are busy as tiny blossoms bloom.  The final illustration of the worm in his home is priceless.  The matte-finished paper is perfect for these pictures by providing and increasing texture.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is of the cauliflowers and peas.  The bottom half of the picture is a look at the ground below the surface.  The pathway of the worm cuts through the dirt across and up as he pops out for a look at the peas on the right.  Roots of the cauliflowers on the left and peas on the right stretch down.  A larger cauliflower embraces a smaller one with a curled leaf.  Two bees fly from the cauliflowers.  The peas in their pods hang down from a tripod made of sturdy sticks.


In spreading a sense of calm to readers Goodnight, Veggies written by Diana Murray with illustrations by Zachariah OHora, we also take a delicious, delightful journey through a garden.  This book is an excellent addition to the bedtime collection of books and is certain to inspire gardening.  I highly recommend it for your personal and professional collections. 

You might want to include this title with Bedtime for Sweet Creatures, Just Because, Sleep Train, Good Day, Good Night, The Perfect Siesta, All ears, all eyes, It Is Not Time For Sleeping: (A Bedtime Story), The Moon's Almost Here, Goodnight Everyone, or Cricket Song. You might like to use books contained in Sweet Dreams Picture Book August 10 for 10.  Hoping you will all maintain a sense of peace.

To learn more about Diana Murray and Zachariah OHora, please follow the links attached to their names to access their respective websites.  Diana Murray has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter.  Zachariah OHora has accounts on Instagram, Tumblr and Twitter.

If You Would Only . . .

The cost for it is usually free.  Some heed it immediately.  Others don't initially follow it, but realize the benefit of taking it.  There are those stubborn few who rarely listen.  Sometimes they have a good reason.

When author Ame Dyckman and illustrator Zachariah OHora collaborate readers are certain to find themselves part of numerous humorous situations.  In their newest title, READ THE BOOK, LEMMINGS! (Little, Brown And Company, November 7, 2017) we travel to the northern regions of the Arctic.  A trio of lemmings repeatedly fails to listen to advice, participating in risky behavior.

Foxy found a quiet spot 
to read his book
about lemmings.

This First Mate aboard the S. S. Cliff is shocked to discover the age-old belief of lemmings jumping off cliffs is simply not true.  After he utters this statement aloud, three passengers, lemmings, hearing the word jump respond by crying out

GERONIMO-O-O-O-O!

as they leap over the side of the ship.  Captain PB (Polar Bear), seated on a stool and reading his newspaper, barely acknowledges this mishap but makes a single statement.  Foxy, too, realizes they obviously did not read the book.

Peering at them through a telescope Foxy notices they need assistance to keep from drowning.  Using the Captain's bucket, filled with fish, he retrieves them from the chilly sea.  He promptly gives them different colored hats, red, yellow and pale gray, and names, Jumper, Me Too and Ditto. He has a few choice words for the trio.

He admonishes them to read the book, Everything About Lemmings.  It says lemmings don't jump off cliffs.  As soon as he says the word, jump, they jump . . . again.  Making an astute observation, Captain PB agrees.  The lemmings did not read the book.  Foxy saves them . . . again.

A little less friendly in his rescue, Foxy reprimands the lemmings giving them the book.  They return it a little too quickly.  Foxy does not say the word jump once but someone wearing a captain's hat does.  Three lemmings jump into the icy water.

This time Foxy dives, swims and saves the lemmings but he is clearly upset with them.  He can't figure out why they didn't read the book.  Their reply activates Foxy into full educator mode. The results give the Mate and his Captain the free time they need to continue their reading but something and three individuals are missing.  LEMMINGS!


In a short author's note Ame Dyckman explains how the idea for this book grew from a movie she saw as a child.  In her inventive mind a scenario unfolds giving us a hilarious story and a tribute to the power of reading.  No one but Ame could create the three names for those lemmings.

In the true fashion of a master weaver of tales she has Jumper, Me Too and Ditto jumping off the ship three times before the plot shifts revealing the difficulty.  The characters of Foxy the Mate and Captain Polar Bear are a perfect duo, the one clearly cleverer than the other, a speaker of few words and a repeated remark.  It makes for interesting conversations brimming with comedy.  Here is a sample passage.

"You know . . ." said Captain PB.
"I don't think they read the book."

HELP!
NEED HELP! called Jumper.
ME TOO! called Me Too.
DITTO! called Ditto. (page turn)

Foxy groaned.  "I hate to ask again . . ."


Upon opening the dust jacket (I'm working with an F & G.) an entire Arctic scene comes into view.  The three lemmings in their hats reading Foxy's book, upside down, is a huge hint of events to come.  To the left, on the back, the S. S. Cliff is drifting on a calm sea.  The cargo ship also happens to be an expressive whale.  It's equipped with a helicopter, a submarine, a crane, and a wheelhouse with satellite dishes.  A speech balloon coming from the ship states:

1.  READ THE BOOK.
2.  Don't jump off cliffs.
3.  Repeat.

We are also introduced to the limited color palette selected by illustrator Zachariah OHora.  The dark peach, white, gray, black, red, yellow and shades of teal are used throughout the book.  The title page is a close up of the ship with the text on the largest part of the whale.  We can see three tiny lemmings in the water by the whale's smile.  The opening endpapers have an explanatory sign attached to an iceberg stating the status of lemming jumping and their literacy.  The three yet unnamed lemmings are leaping from a nearby icy cliff.  On the closing endpapers, containing the dedications, author's note and publication information, the lemmings are now on that same iceberg with the sign.  Changes are being made as the S. S. Cliff sails away in the distance.

Rendered in acrylic on 90-pound acid-free Stonehedge paper the images alternate between two-page spreads, single-page pictures and several visuals on a single page.  We are even treated to a vertical illustration as the lemmings sink into the sea. These size shifts contribute to the pacing and emphasis on the narrative.  Zachariah also changes the perspective giving us an overview before bringing us close to the characters.

Careful readers will notice the extra details he includes like the lemmings on the book's spine, the message using the nautical signal flags, the captain giving a thumb's up for success and the narwhal swimming in the distance.  The expressions on the characters' faces leave no doubt as to their mood.  They range from bewilderment, fear, disgust, anger, indifference, affection and bliss, ignorant and otherwise.

One of my favorite of many illustrations is the first time all the characters are together on the S. S. Cliff.  We see Captain PB holding his newspaper and fishing rod with the currently empty bucket next to him.  Foxy is reading the Everything About Lemmings book.  The nautical signal flags are stretched over them.  The lemmings, on the right, are ready to jump after Foxy unknowingly says the word jump.  Tall icebergs tower from the sea, having been placed on either side of the peach sky. You can already feel the laughter inside you ready to burst out.


This book is like your favorite snack food, irresistible.  You can't read READ THE BOOK, LEMMINGS! written by Ame Dyckman with illustrations by Zachariah OHora only once either.  Each time you read it another tiny detail will catch your attention as you are giggling, louder and louder.  This is sure to be requested repeatedly at bedtime and story time.  You need to have a copy for your professional and personal bookshelves.

To discover more about Ame Dyckman and Zachariah OHora, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Zachariah maintains a Tumblr account.  At the publisher's website you can download an activity kit.  At Scholastic's Ambassador of School Libraries, John Schumacher's blog, Watch. Connect. Read., the cover is revealed as well as the book trailer premiere.  Zachariah OHora is featured on Brightly and PictureBooking, Episode 72.  I know you'll enjoy watching the fun and funny reading of this book by Ame and Zachariah at KidLit TV Read Out Loud.

Mishap Mayhem

As clearly as if heard yesterday instead of decades ago, I can remember our instructor of Safety Ed 101, a required course for freshman at Central Michigan University, saying there is no such thing as an accident.  In his opinion every such event can be traced to human error.  Based upon personal experience I would say his assessment is fairly accurate.

With that being said is life truly all of one thing or the other?  Are there not incidents with unplanned and surprising results?  The energetic collaborative duo of Ame Dyckman and Zachariah OHora that brought readers, Wolfie The Bunny (Little Brown and Company, February 17, 2015), has returned with a new title.  Horrible Bear! (Little, Brown and Company, April 5, 2016).  With a snap a kite flying expedition ends in uproarious and ruinous results.

A girl peeked into Bear's cave.  She reached---but he rolled.

The unsuspecting Bear has no idea he just crushed the girl's kite which unfortunately drifted through his doorway, landing on his sizable stomach.  Immediately yelling she erupts in anger, charges out the door, down the mountain, and past a picnicking goat.  Every step fuels her outrage as she heads for home.

Meanwhile back at the top of the mountain Bear is indignant, working himself into a terrible temper.  As he gives voice to all the unjust actions of the girl, an idea pops into Bear's mind.  He has a purposeful plan.  He pursues this purposeful plan which could not end well.  As Bear leaves his cave furious, the girl enters her home equally angry.

Nothing can deter the girl from continuing to rant.  Without thought or design she causes damage.  With sudden realization she runs to the door of her home.  Swinging it open she comes face to face with Bear.

Altered perceptions alter circumstances which alter behavior.  Usually.  For everyone.  But...


Ame Dyckman has a distinct knack for depicting pure true emotion.  Her characters feel deeply and with passion. Using a blend of dialogue and narrative every thought and action in any given moment is precisely portrayed.

Each sentence is carefully and simply worded contributing to impeccable pacing.  Through the repetition of key words and phrases readers will find themselves willingly joining the characters in their story.  Here is a sample passage.

The girl stomped down the mountain.
HORRIBLE BEAR!
She stomped through the meadow.
HORRIBLE BEAR!
She stomped all the way home
HORRIBLE BEAR!


The color palette, red, orange, yellow, purple, green, black, white and gray, selected by Zachariah OHora signals fun, lots of fun.  On the open dust jacket his signature use of black lines draw our attention to his finer details, facial expressions, the flowers, footwear, fur and the mop of red hair on the girl.  To the left, on the back, Bear is riding his purple bicycle, carrying his bat pal in the basket.  They are surrounded by a circle of flower heads.

Using the same background color as a canvas on the book case, OHora gives us a before (on the right) and after (on the left) portrait of the kite, sans string.  The opening and closing endpapers, on white, are extreme close-ups of the characters' heads.  On the former is the girl.  On the latter is Bear.  On the dedication and title pages, a single image begins the story of the kite flying mishap.

The illustrations, rendered in acrylic paint on 90-pound acid-free Stonehenge printing paper, contribute to the considerable charm of the story alternating in size based upon a desired impact.  Most of them are either single or double page spreads with two exceptions; when a group of three shows a quick succession of change.  OHora's perspectives are masterful bringing us close or farther away from the flow of the story.

I found myself stopping at every page turn looking at the details; Bear holding a tiny teddy bear, the goat's dressy attire and his squirrel companion's movements, Bear's camp T-shirt, the title of one of the girl's books, the familiarity of her favorite toy and the disheveled look of Bear when he arrives at the girl's house. One of my favorite illustrations is a close-up of Bear's reaction to the girl's dilemma.  It is on a single page of white. (I really like the use of the heavier matte-finished paper, too.) All we see is a close-up of one of Bear's paws.  It is extended and holding a solution to one of the girl's problems.  It's a powerful representation.


Horrible Bear! written by Ame Dyckman with illustrations by Zachariah OHora is a delightful story about jumping to and out of conclusions.  A willingness to admit a mistake makes the path to a lasting friendship much shorter.  You could not ask for a better read aloud or a book begging to be shaped into a reader's theater.

To learn more about Ame Dyckman and Zachariah OHora and their other work please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Zachariah OHora maintains updates on his Tumblr pages.  Ame Dyckman is interviewed at 12 x12 12 Picture Books 12 Months.  Zachariah OHora is interviewed at Brightly and Culture of Soul.  John Schumacher, Scholastic's Ambassador of School Libraries, hosted the book trailer premiere at Watch. Connect. Read. as well as a chat with Ame Dyckman.  TeachingBooks. net contains pronunciations for both Ame Dyckman's name and Zachariah OHora's name.  Enjoy the book trailer.

It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's A Relative

Holidays, summer reunions, weddings and funerals bring together kin who may or may not see each other often. There will be those relatives you avoid at all costs.  There will be those relatives you wish you could see every single day.  There will be those relatives you hardly know at all.

Visits with certain relations, those with notable standing on the family tree, are highly anticipated.  My Cousin Momo (Dial Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA), June 2, 2015) written and illustrated by Zachariah OHora depicts an unforgettable stopover by a rather unique individual.  They broke the proverbial mold when this squirrel was born.


This is my cousin Momo!
He's a flying squirrel!

The excitement of a boy squirrel and his younger sister (Mom and Dad too) at the arrival of their cousin is noticeable.  His capacity for flight heightens their happiness.  They tell everyone in the neighborhood about his special talent.

All requests for him to demonstrate his skills are met with silence.  Momo is hesitant to perform.  Mom and Dad offer encouragement to the siblings.

To make Momo feel more at home they suggest a rousing game of superhero.  Momo's costume would make more sense in a shop selling confections.  A healthy competition of Acorn-Pong ends with a crunch.  A final attempt, playing hide-and-seek, finishes with a frustrated outburst by sister squirrel.

Feelings hurt; Momo packs his suitcase leaving their house.  Realizing the wrong they have done, the two beg Momo to stay.  The duo decides to approach activities grooving in the Momo mood.  Superheroes, Acorn-Pong and a game of hide-and-seek are definitely different.  Life explored with a shift in point-of-view results in more fun than you can imagine.


Simple, straight forward statements by the narrator provide the perfect contrast to the images shown by Zachariah OHora.  By including dialogue and comments shown in speech bubbles OHora increases the emotional impact and elevates the humor.  The placement of the text provides splendid pacing.  Here is a sample passage.

So we decided we should
play superhero.

MUFFIN MAN! (Momo)

But Momo's idea of "superhero" was a little strange.

THAT DOESN'T 
EVEN MAKE SENSE! (sister squirrel)


Unfolding the dust jacket reveals a continuation of the bright retro palette used by Zachariah OHora on the front and throughout this title.  Initially your attention is caught by the colors and the camera-exercise-band wearing squirrel.  On the back, to the left, we get a peek at the residence of the squirrel family; a tree house with a variety of rooms anyone would love to visit.  A real treat is seen on the book case.  The background is the green from the grass (love the avocado shade).  On the left is the opened suitcase of Momo complete with stickers illuminating his travels.  To the right his suitcase is flipped to reveal the contents.  Both offer gems for the reader who notices the "little" things.  The opening and closing endpapers are the same hue as Momo's shirt with tiny drawings in white placed in the lower right-hand and left-hand corners.

Beneath the title with a canvas of white OHora begins his story with the brother and sister making the sign they will display at Momo's arrival.  A page turn reveals the first double-page illustration of fourteen containing the publication information and the beginning of the narrative.  There are three single page pictures, other than the first, supplying pauses and a truly satisfying conclusion.

The details OHora includes in all these visuals invite readers to stop.  They extend the story with charm, liveliness and laughter.  Dad using a rotary push mower, a chipmunk with a video camera, the bookshelves and bunk beds, the capital F on the siblings' superhero costumes and the tools held for the new superhero scene all contribute to the overall sense of playful purpose.

One of my many favorite illustrations is the one displaying the passage shown above. Cousin Momo, the brother and sister are playing superhero.  They are in the children's bedroom. Through an archway on the left you can see into the living room.  On the left, bigger than life, is Momo wearing an enormous muffin costume holding a spatula.  A tree truck is placed to the left of the gutter.  On it are shelves of books.  Sister wearing a mask, hero shirt and cape is climbing the bunk bed ladder.  Brother, looking like Batman with a capital F on his shirt, is standing on the rug below her.  I burst out laughing every time I look at this picture and read the text.


My Cousin Momo written and illustrated by Zachariah OHora celebrates embracing differences.  It is full of funny moments but also depicts, especially on the wordless two-page visual, real-life sadness.  It brings into focus the importance of what we say and do.  At story time, bedtime or any time of the day this title will be a joy to read.

To learn more about Zachariah OHora and his work please follow the links attached to his names to access his website and his Tumblr.  Zachariah OHora has been interviewed about this book and his other work at Juana Children's Illustrator, Picture Book Builders, The Little Crooked Cottage, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast and Brightly.   

Look At The Size Of That Rabbit!

No matter how much we pleaded and presented our case for having a dog, my parents stood firm in their resolve.  My dad, the oldest of four brothers, was the only one to ever have any children.  Perhaps my Uncle Don took pity on my sister and I or maybe he was trying to pull a prank on my dad but one Easter, a pure black and a white rabbit with black spots appeared as if left but the famous Bunny himself.  Midnight and Sniffer were immediately welcomed into the family.

Good sport and genius designer that he was, Dad built a great house for our two new furry friends including an enclosed open air porch in the front and cozy hutches in the back.  We had harnesses and leashes for walking them.  As far as we were concerned they were our "dogs".

When you want something more than anything else, sometimes you see what you want to see.  Your belief defies common sense or the very laws of nature.  Wolfie The Bunny (Little, Brown and Company, February 17, 2015) written by Ame Dyckman with illustrations by Zachariah OHora is full of one surprise after another.

The Bunny family came home to find a bundle outside their door.

Lo and behold when Mama, Papa and Dot take a look they discover a baby wolf.  Thrilled could not even begin to describe the glee the parents feel.  Dot, on the other hand, is sure the family is doomed to be an entree.

Dot does not dare sleep a wink at night.  She is like a voice crying in the wilderness, a voice of reason, amid all the picture taking and praise making of her mom and dad.  Her friends can see the problem but her parents are blind to reality.

Wolfie does hear Dot and her friends.  To her distinct displeasure Wolfie decides to become Dot's new best friend, shadowing her everywhere.  Wolfie does not stay little for long.  Everything is growing on this Canis Lupus including his appetite.

The Bunny family cupboard, like Mother's Hubbard's, is completely bare; there is not a carrot in sight.  Bag in hand Dot leaves for the market but to her disgust Wolfie wants to help.  Ever ready to fight for her life, Dot's suspicions are confirmed when at the market Wolfie's mouth opens wide.

A massive bear makes his presence and purpose known.  It's time for some bunny-tastic action.  A bunny does what a bunny needs to do.


The first thing you notice about the text of this title is the pure flawless pacing designed by author Ame Dyckman.  The play of dialogue between Mama and Papa and Dot will have you howling with laughter no matter how many times you read it.  The added sentences in the voice of an unseen narrator elevate the humor even higher.

Dyckman has us all following with the back and forth cadence between Dot and her parents, only to throw in a couple of twists near the end.  A bear can do this to a plot.  A bear can change everything; everything for the better.  Here is a sample passage.

Mama served carrots for breakfast.
"He likes them!" said Mama.
"He's a good eater!" said Papa.
"Speaking of eating," said Dot, 
"HE'S GOING TO EAT US ALL UP!"

But Mama and Papa were too busy taking pictures to listen.


We've all seen wolves dressed up in sheep's clothing in children's literature again and again but rarely, if ever, have we seen one dressed to the nines in a pink bunny suit grasping a carrot in his paw.  On the back of the matching dust jacket and book case are three snapshots of Wolfie taken from interior illustrations.  (The book case back is different but my lips are sealed.) The spine has tiny face pictures of Wolfie and Dot along with a trio of teeny carrots.  Already the attention to detail by Zachariah OHora is notable.

The opening and closing endpapers done in the same pink as the suit provide a background for the faces of Mama, Papa, and Dot in a pattern with a bunch of carrots framing their faces on the bottom of each.  A single portrait of Wolfie can be found in the mix.  On the verso we see Dot in her red hooded jacket, arms on her hips, looking with a no-nonsense glare at Wolfie in the basket beneath the title on the opposite page.

Most of the illustrations rendered in

acrylic on 90-pound acid-free Stonehenge paper

span two pages.  OHora extends the text with his size shifts and perspectives, zooming in on the characters to add emotional impact.  His use of white space in several images is fantastic as is the limited color palette.  The heavier black lines, a signature style, especially for the fur works to marvelous effect.  Readers will delight in the details; the cameras used by Mama and Papa, the carrot on Wolfie's bib as he sits in his high chair, Mama knitting the bunny suit, or the design on the bear's T-shirt and the items in his shopping basket.

One of my absolute favorite illustrations is the first night Wolfie and Dot sleep together.  It's a close-up of their faces with the covers pulled up around their necks.  Dot is wide awake wearing a head lamp, shining it at a blissfully asleep Wolfie.  The shadow cast by her light shows a grinning wolf behind Wolfie.  In this picture the only colors are black white, gray, golden brown and a spot of red on the lamp band.


Wolfie The Bunny written by Ame Dyckman with illustrations by Zachariah OHora is going to be one of 2015 best books.  The mix of writing and pictures invite, no insist, this book be read aloud.  For even more fun, if that's possible, try it as a reader's theater.  I've read this book over and over.  Every single time I continue to laugh especially at one phrase by Dot before they head to the market.  The look on her face with those words will have listeners rolling on the floor in fits of giggles.  Both Ame Dyckman and Zachariah OHora have notes at the book's end which you should read.  I'm off to stock up on carrots.

To discover more about Ame Dyckman and Zachariah OHora please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Zachariah has several proposed dust jackets shown on his blog at Tumblr.  Zachariah is interviewed at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast by author and blogger Julie Danielson and at The Little Crooked Cottage.  

When I communicated with Ame recently she said she had a sort of fuzzy without glasses image of Wolfie following her around as she wrote this book but when she saw Zach's early sketches he appeared crystal clear, perfectly perfect.  Zach was gracious enough to send me three sketches showing the evolution of Wolfie.  What's not to love about this guy?

Update:  Ame Dyckman and Zachariah Ohora are guests at KidLit TV twice.  Follow this link to view videos about this book.  January 15, 2016

You Say You Want A Pet?

You have to wonder if we are somehow genetically wired to desire the companionship of creatures, large or small, in our homes as part of our daily lives.  From an early age gals and guys most certainly not only want but feel they need a pet.  Maybe it's as simple as desiring to nurture being a part of our inherent nature.

From experience I know most parents have a long, detailed list of reasons for not getting any kind of a pet.  But even mine would have looked with admiration and in stunned silence at the parents of this pigtailed prodigy.  You'll feel a grin begin to grow from as early as the jacket flaps when reading The Pet Project: Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses (Atheneum Books for Young Readers) by Lisa Wheeler with illustrations by Zachariah OHora.

I asked my parents for a pet.

My parents answered, "Not quite yet."

The parents of this girl have responded with a requirement of  research; what kind of pet she wants, all the associated costs and to personally observe each possibility.  As proof of these endeavors, they've requested she write everything down.  Her first stop is the farm.

A rather cranky cow, a  haranguing hen, a persnickety pony, a dove who delights in dropping doo-doo and stinky sheep have our gal making a hasty retreat to another animal residence, the zoo.  Her findings there are equally frustrating; a monkey with disgusting habits, a tiger who tastes humans (gulp), a penguin with no mind or mannerisms of his own,  a hippo who is much too large and a polar bear with dietary requirements a tad on the gross side.  Reflecting on her possibilities, she decides to head closer to home.

Into the woods the smells of a skunk cement her original thoughts on the species, the bustling of squirrels have her dreaming of their handiness as landscapers, and the garden marauding of bunnies let her know there's another place she needs to go.  Now in her home she wonders about a gobbling goldfish, ambitious ants, a too small dog and a turncoat cat.  No...no...no...and no have her exploring once more.  Her frustration is growing as her hope of finding the perfect pet gets smaller.

A stop at the pet store is disheartening; from the slow-moving turtle to the multiplying gerbils to the unpredictable guinea pig to the parrot with no social skills to the why-are-there-so-many mice and the hungry snake, our traveling investigator is left in a quandary.  With the precision of a career scientist, with all possibilities exhausted, there is only once conclusion that can be drawn.  These twenty-seven plus poetic thoughts written with care will lead readers to a surprising last line. ( I can hear the exclamations now--"She wants a what!")

Our elementary school was fortunate enough several years ago through our generous PTO to have Lisa Wheeler spend a day in our building.  The wit and wisdom, rhythm and rhyme, and playful use of language found in her books is part and parcel of her bubbling personality.  In this title the poetry simply rolls off your tongue with pacing creating a catchy beat.  With the honest, no-holds-barred notes of the girl, readers will find it hard to not burst out laughing.  

Rendered in acrylic paints the illustrations in this title roar out at readers beginning with the double-page matching jacket and cover.  Zachariah OHora's use of heavy black lines to accentuate the elements in his visuals draw readers' eyes exactly where they need to go.  The jacket flaps cleverly align with the opening and closing endpapers; a row of thirteen different animals all cheerfully facing us in the beginning but showing us the backside of each in the end.  One animal does seem to be missing though...and the snake slithering off the page has a huge lump in its middle.  A limited color palette, shades of green, red, gold, orange and tan heighten focus.

The close-up of the top of the girl's head, pigtails sticking out, spread out across both the title pages is the first hint of numerous touches of humor.  It's easy to see with pictures featuring varying but distinctive perspectives exactly how the girl feels about her latest inquiries.  OHora's interpretation, his extension of the text, is downright clever.  While I like the pony appearing in a beauty salon chair under the dryer, getting a pedicure, my favorite is the illustration accompanying the bunnies rhyme.  We get to see the furry fiends in action underground. 

The Pet Project: Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses by Lisa Wheeler with illustrations by Zachariah OHora is a riotous, romp, an exploration brimming with humor, not to be missed.  The poems beginning on the jacket flap, continuing with an introductory warning and filling the remaining pages are fun...fun...fun.  This title is sure to be a favorite with readers and listeners alike.

For more information about the author and illustrator follow the links embedded in their names to their websites.  Follow this link to Zachariah OHora's blog for a look at the process involved in the cover development.  Here is a link to an interview of Zachariah OHora at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.