You Wonderful You

As we go through life, we are from time to time our worst critics. We forget that goals are guides and not expectations etched in the stone of perfection.  Our possibilities are limited with a negative outlook.

If we embrace everything we do, even if it's not what is planned, there is always a sliver of the desired silver lining.  Rock What Ya Got (Little, Brown and Company, September 25, 2018) written by Samantha Berger (What If . . .) with illustrations by Kerascoet (Malala's Magic Pencil) is a lively look at being satisfied with who you are.  It champions self-acceptance with total joy.

Once upon a

blank piece of paper,

where anything could happen . . .

There was an artist who took a pencil and drew a little girl.  She named her Viva.  As she studied the drawing, the artist felt the drawing could be better.  She lifted her pencil, again, to erase Viva. 

Viva reached out and took that pencil in her hands.  Viva believed she was fine the way she was.  She asked the artist if she could 

rock what I got?

The artist thought maybe the hair was wrong, so she experimented on another page with all kinds of styles and colors.  None of them seemed to be right and Viva had plenty to say.  The artist was still dissatisfied.  It had to be the body that needed changing.

No matter what shape and size she tried on yet another page, none fit Viva.  This gave Viva the perfect opportunity.  She could not stop talking about herself and cheering for all her potential.  This artist was not ready to give up, but neither was Viva.  

When another attempt still left the artist unsure, Viva had a question of her own.  Finding the answer brought back a memory the artist had forgotten.  Together she and Viva started a new once upon a . . .

Taking the familiar and enchanting words used to begin a tale, Samantha Berger attaches new words taking readers into a whole new world of wonder.  Samantha uses repetition masterfully in tying the beginning of the narrative to the end bringing us full circle.  Each time the artist pauses and starts to change Viva, the same three phrases are used supplying us with a cadence inviting participation.  When Viva speaks each of her spirited declarations ends in words that rhyme heightening the happiness of the entire story.  Here is a passage with Viva shouting out with glee.

Everyone has their own special thing---

find what is yours,

and bring what you bring . . .

Find your own voice

and sing how you sing.

Find your own OOMPH!

Find your own ZING!

Mirroring the exuberance of the text the husband and wife team of Kerascoet splashes colorful artwork across the opened dust jacket.  Every line is charged with bliss.  Looking at Viva makes you want to jump for joy too.  The watercolor crosses the spine to the back, framing text.  The text appears to be written in pencil.  The artist's hand is holding a blue pencil beneath it.  The paragraph explains the delight revealed inside the book.

On a white canvas on the book case Viva skips across a field of watercolor and bright sketches.  On the right of the opened case she is carrying the pencil.  It's twice as big as she is but she carries it well.  

The opening and closing endpapers are the inside of an open sketchbook.  The spirals in the center of the sketchbook are placed in the center of the images.  Each one, the opening and closing, are different, depicting possible settings with a variety of flora and buildings.  On the title page Viva is peeking out from the pages of a small, handmade book standing up on the artist's table.  This book holds the title text.  Colored pencils are shown in a cup and on the table.  

To complement the narrative the illustrations rendered in watercolor and colored pencils on Arches paper vary in their perspective bringing us close to the work of the artist, to Viva and the inside of the sketchbook.  Each image spans two pages.  The details bring us directly into the creative process of an artist.  The hand lettering enhances this involvement of Viva with the artist and of us with the entire story.

One of my many favorite illustrations is when the artist is seeking to answer Viva's question.  In this picture, on the right, Viva is kneeling on one of the pages of the open sketchbook on the desk.  Above her, on the right and left, is the illustrator, seated and opening a drawer in her desk.  She is removing the handmade book.  All we see of the illustrator is a portion of her body, arms and hands.  Viva is smiling as she watches.  It is a pivotal point.  

Rock What Ya Got written by the effervescent Samantha Berger with illustrations by the creative team, Kerascoet, is a gem to be shared repeatedly, preferably as a read aloud.  You will want to have plenty of paper and colored pencils handy for readers to enjoy drawing exactly what they want to draw to express what they got.  This one will sing off the shelves.  Be sure to have a copy on your professional and personal bookshelves.

To learn more about Samantha Berger and Kerascoet and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Both Samantha and Kerascoet maintain accounts on Instagram.  Samantha has an account on Twitter.

Finding Your Place

If you were to ask a group of children what they do best, their answers will span a broad spectrum, some understandably typical, others refreshingly original.  Continuing the conversation I wonder what one thing they will see themselves doing as adults.  What will be their occupation?  What will they dedicate their lives to doing?

It is not easy to discover your talent.  When you search your mind and heart, you need to listen closely so the voice of your gift can be heard.  Once you understand this, where will you go, what can you do or who will you help?  Ellie (Disney Hyperion, May 12, 2015) written and illustrated by debut picture book author illustrator Mike Wu is about a zoo, the animals making their home there and an elephant longing to make a discovery.

On a bright winter day, when Ellie was just finishing her lunch, the zookeeper came by with an announcement.  

The news was not good, not good at all.  The zoo, the place where the animals lived, was closing.  Ellie and her friends needed a plan.

Gerard, the gorilla, suggested they make the zoo look a little more presentable.  Lucy, the giraffe, began by shaping the trees.  This made for a tasty lunch too.  Gerard flexed his muscles, moving rocks.  Even the monkeys got in on the action by cleaning.  Ellie was small as elephants go.  What could she do?

She thought Walt, the zookeeper, might have an answer but he was hard at work.  Momentarily called away, Walt left the tool he was using for his job.  Ellie picked it up.

When Walt came back, he took one look at Ellie's work and ran.  Oh, oh!  What had she done?  Pulling a wagon loaded with cans of paint, Walt returned grinning from ear to ear.

Soon Ellie's efforts were adding color where there had been none.  Her creativity sparked a demand for portraits and paintings.  People from everywhere gathered at the zoo.  Ellie found her savvy using it exactly where it was needed for those most important to her.


Using a blend of narrative and dialogue Mike Wu reaches out a hand for us to hold as he takes us on a tour of the zoo and Ellie's life there.  Ellie's gentle soul shines on every page.  Readers can sense a quiet tension building through Wu's words choices.  It makes Ellie's discovery more heartwarming.  Here is another sample passage.

"I'll prune the trees,"
Lucy said, nibbling a leaf.
"If only my trunk were longer!" said Ellie.
"I'll move this rock," Gerard
huffed, clearing it off the path.
"If only my muscles 
were bigger!" said Ellie. 


Ellie's creative potential is showcased on the front and back of the dust jacket.  By all the paint splatters on the ground, canvas and Ellie we know she has been busy.  To the left the image is reversed showing us the back of Ellie and what she has painted.  She is most excellent at capturing a true likeness of her friends.  Upon removing the dust jacket readers will see the different colored spine.  It's gone from orange to sky blue.  Splashes of paint cover both sides in hues of green, blue, orange and pink.

Mike Wu has included the opening and closing endpapers in his narrative, a visual beginning and ending.  Each depicts the entrance and wall surrounding the zoo.  They do convey totally different perspectives.  The verso to the left of the title page is a city skyline at dusk.

Each image has a classic, retro design.  Rendered in watercolor the delicate line work supplies the right emotional impact at the right time.  Small details reflect the personalities of the characters, Ellie's large eyes, Gerald wearing glasses and reading a book, and Lucy's advantageous height.  Walt, the zookeeper, is pencil thin; a man on the move with a mission.

White space is used to excellent advantage no matter the size of the picture.  It frames and defines the elements.  It also acts as an agent to change.  As Ellie's skill grows the whiteness is replaced with a more colorful background.

One of my many favorite illustrations is when Walt returns pulling the wagon stacked with paint cans.  When Ellie, her feet spattered in paint, sees him her eyes light up and a smile spreads across her face.  Walt is nearly running on air, eyes closed, smiling, and carrying an extra can of paint.  This exhibits a colorful shift in the story.


Hand Ellie written and illustrated by Mike Wu to anyone who enjoys an uplifting tale.  It speaks to each person and the path leading to knowing what we will love to do with all our heart.  We are reminded of the individual talent(s) we hold within ourselves.

To learn more about Mike Wu, his work and other endeavors please follow the link attached to his name to access his website.  His children's clothing line is adorable.  (Xena thinks I should get the Woof t-shirt.  I tried to tell her I left the toddler stage ages ago.)  Teacher librarian extraordinaire, John Schumacher interview Mike Wu on his blog, Watch. Connect. Read.  Ellie is featured at author, teacher librarian and blogger Carter Higgins' site, Design Of The Picture Book. Mike Wu is interviewed about this book at Geek Dad.  The book trailer is available at all three sites.  In a word, it's precious.

Living, Breathing Art

What makes a legend a legend?  They are an interesting branch of the folklore tree. They are a mirror of the people, place and customs from which they originate.  By definition they are part of an earlier oral tradition, handed down over the generations, based upon a combination of known and unverified historical fact.

It is true that one of the most famous painters in Chinese history is Wu Daozi.  It is true he lived during the T'ang dynasty.  Brush of the Gods (Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House Children's Books) written by Lenore Look with illustrations by Meilo So imagines what his life and more importantly, his death, might have been.

Wu Daozi looked at the brush in his hand and felt the soft hairs.  They tickled.

Wu is seated with other students learning the fine and honored art of calligraphy.  There is a precise way to make the ink with pebbles, another stone and water.  Holding the brush centered with their nose, careful strokes are made to create numbers.

As the other students copy the lines made on a tortoise shell by their teacher, a monk, Wu's brush seems to have a life of its own.  His brush does not make the necessary characters. His brush makes objects, flora and fauna native to his country.

Wu can't stop painting; his creations are getting bigger and better.  Walls in buildings and surrounding his city are his preferred surface.  His hands move quickly; perhaps the images are forming with such speed in his mind they are spilling out through his brush.  Over time his skills increase even more; to the point one day the inexplicable happens.

His painting of a butterfly is so intricate, so lifelike, as he watches, it takes wing and leaves.  Thinking his mind must be playing tricks, he paints another.  It too flies up and away.

Nothing he makes with his brush stays, everything comes to life.  People no longer give coins or food for his work.  The walls are bare.  The crowds who used to come and watch have left except...for the children on the streets.

They gather and their numbers grow.  Time marches on; those children bring their children to watch Wu Daozi paint.  What comes forth from his brush not only looks real but is real.

Such unearthly skill does not go unnoticed by even those in the highest ranks of society.  Wu is commissioned to paint a masterpiece by the emperor himself.  Years and years and years pass as Wu Daozi works to complete his finest piece, a piece which will reveal the the best mystery of all.


In an author's note as part of the verso, Lenore Look informs readers of her sources for information on which to base this book.  Her command of language beautifully brings his youth, his growth as a painter and the legends to life.  It's as if the soul of Wu Daozi's work has found its way into her words.  The story is told with a rhythmic flow of narrative mixed with possible conversations.  Here are a couple of passages.

With one eye wide open, the other in a dream, he painted so much that he knew not whether the sun was up or down or whether he was standing or sitting.  

Tattered and shoeless, they formed a hedge around their friend.

Using watercolor, ink, gouache, and colored pencil Meilo So 's fine lines, delicate details and blend of colorful hues with blacks and grays take readers back in time.  Her initial illustration spread across the front and back jacket and cover portrays the marvelous magic people felt when looking at the art of Wu Daozi.  It was compelling, captivating and full of life...more than they ever knew.  It's interesting to note the color difference in the opening and closing endpapers; the first, a golden hue of morning, the second, the tranquil blue of twilight.

With the first page, a picture of Wu Daozi holding a brush staring out at the reader, we are as compelled and captivated by the work of So as those in Chinese history were by the frescoes and scrolls of Daozi.  Her pictures are fluid moving around the text creating a single impression, a stunning blend of the two.  Breathtaking two page spreads capture the brilliance of this master's work and the time period in which he lived.  One of my favorite illustrations is of Wu painting the first butterfly which flies away.  It is a beautiful example of Meilo So's adept use of varied mediums.


Brush of the Gods written by Lenore Look with illustrations by Meilo So is a stellar portrayal of an artist and his art.  It's one of those books which bridges the gap between then and now, bringing the best of one culture into many more.  It's about a little boy who allowed his heart to direct his brush leaving riches for the world to enjoy.  This title has already garnered four starred reviews.  I am hoping that even more honors will follow.


To read more about Lenore Look follow the link embedded in her name above.  Debbie Alvarez hosted a visit by Lenore Look at her school this year.  Follow a link to her blog, The Styling Librarian, and John Schumacher's blog, Watch. Connect. Read., to gain more insight about this visit.  Colby Sharp interviews Lenore Look here.  Julie Danielson, features the book at Kirkus and interviews Meilo So on her blog, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast (and more artwork here). For a pronunciation of Meilo So's name follow this link.  For additional information about the work of Meilo So follow the link to her website embedded in her name.  If you would like to see more images from this title follow this link to the publisher site.