Purr-fectly Perfect

Our furry feline friends have personalities as distinctive as our own.  They can be unpredictable and creatures of habit at the same time. We find ourselves embracing them despite these contrasting characteristics.  Unlike most of their canine counterparts, sometimes it can take years before they allow themselves to be a part of a human family.

It takes a special kind of person to persist in loving a cat when they have not thought of loving anyone at all.  Negative Cat (Nancy Paulsen Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, August 31, 2021) written and illustrated by Sophie Blackall is about a persistent boy.  The cat he loves is also persistent, but not in the way the boy desires.  This is their story, a "tail" waiting to be told.

On Day 427 of asking for a cat . . .

a miracle happened.  The boy's parents said yes!  There were conditions attached to this affirmative response.  The least appealing was the necessity of reading for twenty minutes every day.  

Reading was not this child's favorite thing to do.  He read slowly.  He had to read aloud.

At the shelter, it was hard to select only one cat, but he did.  He named the cat Maxmilian Augustus Xavier, Max.  At home, the cat paid no attention to the comforts and treats, and toys supplied by the boy.  This cat stared at the wall.  This cat was negative in every respect.

In return for kindness by family members, the cat did undesirable things like putting its tail in the butter and eating flowers.  The parents and older sister were ready to return it to the shelter.  A call was placed.

In a last-ditch effort to keep this cat he loved, the boy scrambled to do some of the items on the conditions' list, most importantly, his least popular.  And another miracle happened.  In fact, the boy's classmates joined him at the shelter once a week, expanding on that unexpected revelation.

What readers might not grasp at the beginning, but is our first clue about this boy's nature, is the fact he asked for a cat for 427 days.  Sophie Blackall wants us to know the significance to this child of having a cat.  She wants us to understand his tenacity.  This builds page by page through first-person narrative and dialogue, past and present, until the joyful addition to their family.  When it looks as though the joy is fleeting, we are once again reminded of this boy's deepest desire to do anything to keep Max.  At this point you don't know whether to sigh or cheer, so you do a little bit of both.  Here is a passage.

The next day, I surprise Max with a toy mouse.

(He is not surprised.)

I tickle him with a feather.  (He is not ticklish.)

I tell him all my best jokes.  (He doesn't even smile.)

The wide band of blue on the spine complements the shades of orange (and tan) used in the canvas, wall, flooring and cat on the front, right, and back, left, of the open book case.  In looking at the front, you wonder what would prompt a cat to stare at a wall.  On the back, we are given a hint of things to come.  Text above and below a circular image is that usually found on the front and back flaps of a dust jacket.  It introduces us to the book and to author illustrator, Sophie Blackall.  In that illustration the boy is writing on his laptop as Max watches, seated in the boy's lap.

On the opening and closing endpapers in blue and white is an array of childlike drawings of cats of all shapes and sizes.  The cats and their features are outlines.  The canvas is polka dotted.    On the title page the tiny mouse toy is placed between the text.  The publication information and dedication page are opposite the first page.  In fact, the illustration on the first page is the right side of a double-page picture.  

The illustrations in this book were created digitally and superimposed on the reverse side of vintage wallpaper salvaged from a falling-down house.

Readers, with every page turn, will stop to notice the details. These details are full of humor.  It isn't that the boy simply begs for a cat with drawings, but he makes a cat-shaped snowman in winter.  He makes cat ears on his head from soap during his bath.  He has his mother read him Brendan Wenzel's They All Saw A Cat.  And . . . he reads Max one of the oldest picture books in the United States still in print, Wanda Gag's Newbery Honor book, Millions Of Cats.

The perspectives in the visuals and their sizes shift to convey emotions and enhance the pacing.  There are groups of small insets, double-page pictures, single-page images, horizontal panels, and diagonal panels.  The dialogue is shown in longer, loose speech balloons.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is a double-page picture of the boy celebrating the yes answer from his parents.  On the pale orange background is a green-striped oval rug.  He is kneeling on the rug on his knees supported by his hands.  His head is back, his eyes are closed, and he is laughing as he kicks up his heels.  He repeats three times:

I'm getting a cat!

Look no further than Negative Cat written and illustrated by Sophie Blackall for the ultimate silver-lining title.  With a marvelous blend of images and text, page turn by page turn, when hope is fading, it rises again through the magic of reading aloud.  I highly recommend this book for both your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Sophie Blackall and her other work, please access her website by following the link attached to her name.  Sophie Blackall has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Sophie Blackall writes a guest post about this book at the Nerdy Book Club.  Sophie Blackall is interviewed about this book, others, and her work at The Children's Book Review.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images.

We know when we look at the world through the eyes of another, the world can become completely altered.  Two or more individuals can be looking at the same space and focus on entirely different elements.  This is how our perceptions of our immediate and extended surroundings increase and our imaginations are keener.  Inside Cat (Chronicle Books, October 12, 2021) written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel presents a cat's eye view as it moves throughout its building.  This cat believes what it sees, floor by floor, is a realistic representation of the outside.

Inside Cat knows many windows,

finds a view wherever it goes.

This Inside Cat sees portions of the outside.  It looks through windows of all shapes and sizes, geometric designs on walls, floors, and ceilings.  Some windows stand alone, and others share a space next to each other.

Each window is a chance to pause and ponder.  Each display a bit different, look by look.  The glass in these windows is clean, dirty, bubbled, and broken.  It is shuttered.  It is open.

Some things seen through the windows remain the same, frozen.  Other things are in motion.  Is it a group of on-your-mark-get-set-go birds or a swarm swooping through the city?  It that an enormous snack or the display on an ice cream truck?

As Inside Cat moves from floor to floor, there are small treats and short snoozes to take.  Now wide awake, Inside Cat maintains it knows people up and down and all around.  It maintains it knows what it sees, and smells is true.  Inside Cat is certain it knows everything, until . . .

The use of language in this book by Brendan Wenzel is superb.  It is written like a poem with the first sentence and another three sentences bookending the center portions.  There is beautiful alliteration and rhyming.  The last sentence at the beginning of a new portion, a group of words, leads to multiple examples of that statement.  With every reading, the text becomes more melodic.  Here is a passage.

Glass all dusty.

Glass so streaky.

Glass gone gloomy.

Glass way freaky.  . . .

View to view,

floor to floor.

Knows the windows,

walls, and more.

Upon opening the dust jacket, flap edge to flap edge, the entire body of Inside Cat is supplied to readers.  The body and tail extend to the left of the spine.  The large eyes on the front draw our focus to the central theme of the narrative.  What is this cat's point of view?  The white of the cat's eyes and the title text are varnished.

A rusty red is the canvas on the book case.  Large portions of the front, right, and back, left, are filled with the cat's home.  It appears to be a unique building in the shape of a cat.  Inside Cat is peering through one of the windows, a cat's eye.  This is wonderfully ingenious.

On the opening endpapers the background shifts to a midnight blue.  The house is now shown in blue and white soft, flowing lines giving us the inside view of all the rooms.  In this perspective wherever there is a window, we see the outside.  The cat is still looking out the same window, although its eyes have shifted to the side.

With a page turn, we are on the double-page image for the title page.  Inside Cat is looking outside at a sunny floral depiction.  (I will say nothing about the closing endpapers which hold the publication and dedication information.  Everyone needs to see that for the first time without explanation.)

These images by Brendan Wenzel 

were rendered in a variety of media, including cut paper, colored pencil, oil pastels, marker, and the computer.

Every picture invites you to stop and stare as does the cat.  The inside views are in blue and white, faint outlines like you would expect to see on an architect's drafting board.  The outside views are in full color.  In each setting, inside and outside, they are bursting with items revealing the lives of the human dwellers or the cat's imagination toward the conclusion.  Readers will be looking in each visual for the tiny creature which seems to follow Inside Cat, at a discreet distance, of course.  Inside Cat is drawn with loose lines indicative of a careful, curious explorer.  Though Inside Cat is indeed careful and curious, it is also highly animated.

One of my many favorite pictures, two-page as they all are, is for the text above-noted.  Inside Cat is portrayed in five different poses at four windows.  The first one is so dirty Inside Cat's paws are covered with dirt, leaving behind paw prints on the steps, ottoman, the next window and the wall.  The third window is covered in dark paper to fashion a Halloween scene, one corner turned down to show the world outside.  The final window is an abstract, stained-glass of the sun in pastel colors with bright orange.  In this visual, it is as if Inside Cat is strolling through an art gallery.

No matter how often you read Inside Cat written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel, you will find something new each time.  The words will sing to you and the illustrations are like a map leading you to an amazing discovery.  I can't imagine a personal or professional collection without this title.

By following the link attached to Brendan Wenzel's name you can access his website to learn more about him and his work.  Brendan Wenzel has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images.  At librarian, guest lecturer at Rutgers, and writer John Schumacher's Watch. Connect. Read., Brendan Wenzel talks about this book.

Solid As A . . .

You can't live in northern Michigan without encountering rocks.  Just beneath the mostly sandy soil is an entire community of stones of every conceivable shape and size.  When excavating to build the basement for a house now sitting on a hill, these giants were unearthed.  Now they grace the top of the garden along a driveway.  A day at the beach, near the tip of the Mitt, will yield Petoskey stones found primarily in Michigan.  Large or small, this area has them all.  Wherever you go, there they are.

You can pick them up, skip them on the water, use them to build a wall or sit for a bit to just listen or look.  A Stone Sat Still (Chronicle Books, August 27, 2019) written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel (They All Saw a Cat, Caldecott Honor winner, and Hello Hello) is a wonderful imagining of sensory perceptions with respect to a stone.  For all of you who have every wished an inanimate object could talk, this book speaks volumes.

A stone sat still
with the water, grass, and dirt

and it was as it was
where it was in the world.

Depending on the hour of day this stone appeared dark or light.  Depending on its current occupants, it was noisy or silent.  Depending on its age, to the touch, it was jaggy or polished.  Weather and the seasons changed its colors.

Even though its size remained basically the same, to one creature it seemed to be a place to step and to another critter a mountain rose up before them. Animals used the stone for a variety of purposes; as a sanctuary, a food preparation space or a vantage point for a predator.  Like other natural landforms, it served as a guide and a challenge.

The stone continued to be many things to many residents of the wild.  It told tales.  It hosted concerts.  In the spectrum of this planet's history, the stone was both old and new.

As climate shifted the stone was no longer sitting with

water, grass, and dirt.

Water rose until it was surrounded.  Then it vanished.  Or did it?


Even with repeated readings, the fascination of how one thing, a stone, can be much to many, does not diminish but grows.  Brendan Wenzel, with this narrative, stretches our thinking.  He asks us to use all our senses and to place ourselves in the position of an array of animals to determine the purposes this stone serves.

His pacing is impeccable.  His repetition of several phrases ties one portion of his lyrical observations to another portion.  Alliteration creates a welcoming cadence.  Here is a passage.

And the stone was the wild

and the stone was a home

and the stone was a kitchen

and the stone was a throne.


The liberal use of crisp white on the open dust jacket places emphasis squarely on the stone and the snail.  The lower left corner of the stone crosses the spine and extends to the back.  There blades of grass, some sprouting seeds, span most of the lower portion to the flap edge.  The stone and the blades of grass fashion a nook for the ISBN.  On the right side of the stone, on the front, its corner continues to the right flap with grass to the edge, also.  The title text, the snail and the stone are varnished.

On both sides of the book case we are given a close-up view of the stone.  It covers it completely.  The meanderings of the snail supply an intricate maze which, if the case is moved in the light, reflects its varnished trail.  The opening and closing endpapers tell a story of the stone.  On the first the stone is as it is.  On the second the stone is no longer in view on land as evidenced by what is now attached to its sides.

Rendered in a variety of media, including cut paper, colored pencil, oil pastels, marker, and the computer,

these illustrations, most spanning two pages, supply readers with an excellent sense of place and time.  For the purpose of altering the rhythm of his words, Brendan Wenzel inserts full-page pictures, a series of vertical vignettes, four, three and four, over two pages. For dramatic effect there are two horizontal images together on two pages.  These are followed by a wordless, double-page image which silently makes a huge statement.

Readers will want to ponder each picture.  They will want to follow the snail's progress and the resting and flight of the owl.   Will they notice the growth of the grass, plants and tree?  What will they think of the encroaching water?

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is for the words

and the stone was bright

At the top of a darkened sky with speckles of stars is a circular portion of a full moon on either side of the gutter.  Beneath it, ablaze with moonlight, is the stone covering most of both pages.  A few clumps of new grass are growing through the dirt around the stone.  A sapling has sprouted to its left.  On the stone, wide-eyed and on the right, sits an owl, feather tips gleaming in the glow.  What has the owl's attention?


Readers and listeners will want and need to re-visit this book, A Stone Sat Still written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel, repeatedly.  It presents us with the advantages of viewing the world through multiple sets of sensory points of view.  It asks us to appreciate and admire our planet and all its inhabitants.  It requires us to question our purpose in caring for Earth.  This title is highly recommended for your personal and professional shelves.

To learn more about Brendan Wenzel and his other work, please visit his website by following the link attached to his name.  Brendan Wenzel has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  At each of these places, Brendan Wenzel shares his processes for this title and other titles.  Here is a link to a video he posted on Instagram about the development of the stone.  Here is another one about the creation of his cut paper moose.  There is a Q&A with Brendan Wenzel about this book at Publishers Weekly.  Enjoy these two marvelous videos.




UPDATE:  This title is featured at author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson's Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast on November 6, 2019.

Greet Those Who Need Us

The longer you live the more you acknowledge the fragility of all life.  As humans we have the power to protect and preserve but it's a conscience choice we need to make every single day.  The more we discover and learn about all living beings on this planet, the harder we will work to maintain an environment which will support all of us.

Caldecott Honor Book recipient (2017), Brendan Wenzel for They All Saw A Cat (Chronicle Books, August 30, 2016) presents a new title to readers.  In Hello Hello (Chronicle Books, March 20, 2018) he is asking us to meet an array of animals, many of their names appearing on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's list as creatures in trouble.  Several are critically endangered.

Hello Hello

Black and White

Two cats, one white on the left and one black on the right of the gutter gaze at each other in greeting.  For the phrase black and white on the next two page picture, the black cat strolls toward an American black bear.  On the opposite side of the gutter a giant panda looks at a plains zebra which looks back at it.  A small three-stripe damselfish (black and white) swims toward the right lower corner.

With ease we then welcome color.  It's rather bright, too.  With the turn of each page we are introduced to a group displaying opposites or differences.  These contrasts continue by comparing lines and dots and size.  The focus shifts bringing our attention to prominent body parts like tongues and noses.

Patterns, body positions, unusual shapes and displays of physical characteristics are astounding.  Some critters are quiet.  Other critters are not quiet.  Breathtaking beauty attracts.

Friendships are formed.  Sound abounds and animals move.  There is much to see.  It starts with you and me . . . and hello.


Even as you read the words silently you begin to feel the beat supplied by Brendan Wenzel's word choices.  Without any intentional effort, you find yourself reading the phrases aloud.  The word hello is usually followed by a single word noting the emphasis on the animals portrayed.  The second and fourth endings rhyme for most of the narrative building toward a joyful conclusion which circles back to the beginning.  Here is a sample.

Hello Shape
Hello Show
Hello Wonder
Hello WHOA! 


When you open the dust jacket on this title, you realize Brendan Wenzel has extended the illustrations to the flaps.  A pristine white background accentuates the vibrant animals depicted.  The textures, colors and shapes are sure to have you smiling in appreciation of these animals.  The tail of the rhinoceros hornbill goes over the edge to create a frame for two butterflies. To the left, on the back, the cheetah's tail goes up to the top of the left-hand corner pointing to the three-stripe damselfish on the back flap.

The remarkable book case is in two tones of blue.  A pattern of the animals moves from the far left to the far right.  The animal silhouettes are a darker, varnished blue.  On the opening endpapers the animals are shown again as silhouettes, silver on a pale gray.  On the closing endpapers the design is replicated but the animals are in full color.

On the two pages for the title display the two words are shown in shades of gray.  This leads us into black and white and then color.  Rendered in a variety of media, including cut paper, colored pencil, oil pastels, marker, and the computer Brendan connects one page to the next by having the last creature on the right be the first one to appear on the left of the next image.  It's a continuous gallery of animals found around the world.

One of the several things the beings have in common is the signature large eyes. It's like they want to see everything that can be seen.  They want to know everything about the animal next to them.  While some of the critters appear to be at rest, they also give the appearance of being ready to leap into action within seconds.  The design, the placement of the animals on the pages, is outstanding.

One of my many favorite pictures is for the second two lines so noted.  A mute swan from the previous page comes in from the left edge with its neck and face showing and nods to a platypus.  This is followed with a North American beaver up close and personal starring at the next creature.  Just across the gutter and close to us, a Brazilian porcupine has its eyes on the beaver.  In the upper right-hand corner a Western long-beaked echidna is not sure what is going to happen next.  This is one of those images beckoning to readers to reach out and touch the animals.


In an author's note Brendan Wenzel explains to us his purpose for writing and illustrating this book.  With Hello Hello he wishes to increase our awareness of some of his favorite animals.  Readers will be running to research one or more of these lively and lovely beings as soon as the book is completed.  Or they will most certainly ask you to read Hello Hello again and again.  There is so much to see in our wonderful world.  Brendan also has four pages at the conclusion dedicated to identifying the animals shown to us in this title.  This book is one you need in both your professional and personal collections. 

To learn more about Brendan Wenzel and his other work, please visit his website by following the link attached to his name.  The cover was revealed by teacher librarian Travis Jonker on his site, 100 Scope Notes.  We are also given a sneak peek at a few interior illustrations.  Be sure to take a look at how teacher librarian Jennifer Reed's students responded to this book at Reederama.  The publisher has created a special page for this title and Brendan's Caldecott Honor book.  Enjoy the book trailer!

Ongoing

Regardless of the natural disaster it rebuilds.  It does not happen overnight but over time.  Little by little, day by day it grows until it becomes visible. As long as there is the hope of life, life continues.  What appears fragile and in a delicate balance acts through incredible strength and adaptability.

All lives undergo change but there are things in the world which are constant; sustaining each step taken.  Life (Beach Lane Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, June 27, 2017) written by Newbery Medalist (Missing May) Cynthia Rylant with illustrations by Caldecott Honoree (They All Saw A Cat) Brendan Wenzel reminds us of the splendor to be found in the glorious thing we call life.  This book, like life, is beautiful to behold.

Life begins small.

Even for the largest of beings, it begins small.  What starts tiny does necessarily stay this way; it becomes larger and larger like elephants.  As these things grow they all do so under the same sky with the same sun, same moon and same stars.

Each living being enjoys certain aspects of life more than others.  It all depends on whom or what is answering the question.  For some the sky is far grander than sand or grass or water.

Within this marvelous thing we call life, dark times will come.  These times are hard to navigate.  They seem to go on and on with no end in sight but light finds a way.  This light can reveal a new direction, a new path to follow.

We are asked to reflect on several undeniable facts; there are always those to love and to protect.  If a day should come when we look around and do not see all that life lays before us, we should stop.  We should watch the animals who endure despite change.  They understand change is the heartbeat of life.


There are certain picture books we keep near to us to read and reread; each one for a particular purpose.  The words in this title penned by Cynthia Rylant read like a morning prayer to begin a day.  Each line is full of truth and gratitude.

One constant woven throughout the lyrical narrative is the word grows.  It ties the different portions together; beginning small, what animals love about life, the troubles which darken life and some which open doorways to new directions, and looking to animals for answers. Each carefully chosen word works together to supply a sense of peace.  Here is a sample passage.

The turtle may remain quiet.
It has seen much in its hundred years.
But the turtle loves life.  How could it not,
with so much rain on its back? 


Beneath the full moon and stars the lush forest along the river teems with life on the matching dust jacket and book case.  Careful readers will spy several animals hidden in the greenery framing the title text.  If you run your hands over the front of the dust jacket portions are varnished and others, the flora, are matte-finished and slightly raised.  To the left, on the back, the sun is shining in a partly cloudy sky over mountain peaks with plants beginning to grow along the bottom.

The opening and closing endpapers are a star-studded sky; a constant in our ever-changing world.  On the title page we see a two-page image.  It's night with the starry sky mirrored in a pond surrounded by rocky hills.  A small animal swimming in the water looks upward.

Brendan Wenzel uses white space to great effect on those pages with smaller illustrations.  They are all loosely framed but other elements appear on the sides, bottom and top.  Sometimes entire scenes appear in miniature along the bottom.  In one particular visual items drift from the frame across the white space on two pages.  For dramatic effect two pages are used in great panoramic views.  Readers will definitely pause to enjoy the numerous intricate details.  Is there a reason one special bird is colored blue?

One of my many favorite illustrations spans two pages.  Beneath the ocean surface a pod of whales is sleeping.  Schools of small fishes move about them.  Air bubbles rise to the surface.  A small seal swims upward to the sunlight.  Mulan's favorite illustration is of a dog sitting on a woodland path holding a stick in its mouth, looking directly at the reader.  A tunnel is fashioned from the overhead branches.  Sunlight streams behind the dog.  Ferns and an assortment of leaves pattern the forest floor.


You will want to read Life written by Cynthia Rylant with illustrations by Brendan Wenzel several times for the sheer joy of it.  The blend of text and images creates a comforting blanket of calm.  As a read aloud, it would be wonderful to ask listeners to name what individual animals love about life before asking them what they love about life.  Every bookshelf needs to have a copy of this book.

To discover more about Cynthia Rylant and Brendan Wenzel and their other work please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images. Author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson features images on her blog Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.  Dylan Teut, the director of the Plum Creek Children's Literacy Festival in Seward, Nebraska, interviews Cynthia Rylant on his blog, Mile High Reading.

In The Eyes Of The Beholder

When individuals use their eyes there is a mixture of factors determining their perceptions.  The weather, time of day and the season affect the light and shadows.  Even if an image remains fixed the amount of time given to viewing it can determine what is seen or not seen. How often have you looked at something a second or even a third time and noticed a detail you did not perceive at first?  A whole host of life experiences decide what we see.  This wide range of emotions is attached to each element in our line of vision, even when we focus on a single portion.

Sometimes the emotional attachment is so strong it may keep us from even taking a peek at something or we may spend hours gazing at it.  They All Saw A Cat (Chronicle Books, August 30, 2016) written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel (Some Bugs, One Day in the Eucalyptus Eucalyptus Tree, and Some Pets) is an insightful exploration of alternating viewpoints.  It entices us in the most welcoming manner to discover.

The cat walked through the world,
with its whiskers, ears, and paws...

The first being to see the cat is a child.  Our perspective on our pets is definitely slanted.  They are a part of our family.  The cat is seen as more fluffy and cuddly than the sleek, feline it is in truth.  As you might surmise, the family dog is not happy to see the cat, viewing it as an evil shadow of itself.

Once out in the world the cat encounters other animals who view it as dinner or a monster.  The physical characteristics of sight may create a series of dots forming the cat. Or can you imagine seeing things as if you are wearing night vision goggles?  What if everything had no color at all?

 The distance from the cat shapes the size.  A bird flying above will not see the same cat as a flea embedded in its fur.  Perhaps an animal will not use eyes to see the cat.  They may feel its presence through vibrations felt in the ground that surrounds them.

However the worlds' occupants see a cat, no view will surprise the cat (or us) more than the final illustration.  This closing perspective is sure to garner laughter as others have done.  What a marvelous world this is!


Regardless of how much you may know of Brendan Wenzel from interviews, this book presents his respect and love of the animal world through the inclusiveness in the narrative.  Domesticated animals familiar to readers, cat, dog and goldfish, and those in the wild, fox, bee, bird, snake, worm and others are given equal measure.  He has carefully selected those a cat might naturally meet.

The repetition of key phrases three times supplies a storytelling cadence.  One of two repeating phrases intensifies a significant pause.  When Wenzel chooses to list all the animals as part of the story, it gives us another time to pause, identifying each one.  This type of pacing makes the final question even more important.


The snow white canvas draws our attention immediately to the cat on the front.  On the back, to the left, the initial phrase from the book appears. The blue from the title text is the shade used on the background for the book case with the cat in white.  It is a striking reversal in the use of color.  The opening and closing endpapers supply readers with two different viewpoints of the cat's fur. On the title page Brendan Wenzel has substituted the image of the cat with the collar and ringing bell.  The illustrations seen here and throughout the book are

rendered in almost everything imaginable, including colored pencils, oil pastels, acrylic paint, watercolor, charcoal, Magic Markers, good old number 2 pencils, and even an iBook.

Continuing with the white background for the first few pages leads readers into the bright and vivid portraits which follow, some on single pages, others across two pages. Wenzel concludes with the same canvas bringing us full circle.  Important to the narrative his perspectives shift pulling us close to the cat or moving farther away.  We become those beings looking at the cat.

One of my favorite illustrations of many is for the bat.  Deep dark hues of blue provide the background for the night sky and flora.  Small lighter dots of blue form the stars.  In the far right-hand corner a bat hovers looking down.  The cat is "seen" through echolocation which Wenzel depicts as a series of larger and small white dots in the shape of the cat.

They All Saw A Cat written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel is a marvelous work of art inviting us to participate in the life of other beings.  It increases our appreciation for animal life.  It adds to our respect for artistic expression.  I know it will prompt exploration of each of these animals and how they perceive their world through their senses. I can't imagine a bookshelf, personal or professional, without a copy of this book.

To learn more about Brendan Wenzel and his other work please access his website by following the link attached to his name.  The publisher, Chronicle Books, provides us with an activity kit and a discussion guide.  Brendan Wenzel is interviewed at twenty by jenny and The Children's Book Review.  This title is featured at teacher librarian and author, Carter Higgins, Design of the Picture Book.  It is the topic of conversation in an All the Wonders, Episode 285 podcast between teacher librarian Matthew C. Winner and Brendan Wenzel.  This book is showcased with Emily Arrow's new song for They All Saw A Cat.



They All Saw A Cat is discussed at The Horn Book's Calling Caldecott.

Enjoy the book trailer.

Pets, More Pets And Still More Pets

We many not know it but they choose us.  They appear when we seem to need them the most which can translate into total surprise for us.  In time we start to manifest their physical characteristics and emotional moods.  Of this we are probably the last to know.

Observations of humans and their animal companions will lead most people to the conclusion there is the perfect pet, the perfect pal for everyone.  On April 5, 2016 The Grumpy Pets (Abrams Books for Young Readers) written and illustrated by Kristine A. Lombardi growled into the world.  Now I don't know about you but as soon as I saw the title, I knew I had to read this book.

Mom took Billy and Sara to 
Perfect Pets one Saturday.

Billy is a cantankerous character whose mom hopes this trip to a shop filled with rescue animals will perk up his personality.  With so much love floating around the room, certainly Billy will crack a smile.  Every child who walks in connects with a critter, even his sister Sara.

The more cheerful the animals, the bigger the scowl grows on Billy's face.  This is too much happiness for him. He starts to meander through the shop and discovers a back area with more crates.  These residences are filled with the least friendly canines you have ever seen.  Their body language, their fur, their looks and voices shout out orneriness with a capital o.  Good grief!  There are even a couple of cranky cats in the bunch.

These animals are exactly like Billy; in fact one particular dog catches his eye.  A starring contest develops and expands with crabby exchanges until they astonish one another.  Those two lives are never going to be the same.


Simple sentences by Kristine A. Lombardi provide excellent pacing.  Each one creates and expands on the peevish personality of Billy leading us to the surprise.  We realize Billy is not swayed by cuteness; rather it makes him feel worse.  Here is a sample passage.

He began to look around,
but every single pet was just so happy.
Blech, Billy thought to himself.


The row of grouchy, cranky faces on Billy and the assorted dogs and cats on the front of the dust jacket are intriguing.  Are these individuals always grumpy? Did something happen to them?  When you open the jacket and look to the left you get an entirely different perspective from three other dogs in front of the buildings.

 On the book case amid teal brush strokes are oval frames on the front and back.  A very bad-tempered Billy looking like a volcano about to erupt is on the front.  On the back is an interior image of three blissful looking dogs labeled appropriately.  A pattern of grumpy pets drawn in several shades of turquoise are displayed on the opening and closing endpapers.  A trio of crabby pets begins on the title page and stretches with more grumps across the verso and dedication pages which follow.

Many of the illustrations span two pages.  On the single page pictures Lombardi uses circles and ovals to frame the individual images.  The layering, shading and details ask readers to pause and let the atmosphere surround them.

One of my favorite illustrations is a close-up of Billy on the left and of the petulant pup on the right.  Their staring contest is in full swing.  In this particular picture you can readily see the use of texture in Lombardi's work in the outlines, clothing and fur.  The arch of both individuals' eyebrows and the set of their mouths are grumpy in its purest form.

To learn more about Kristine A. Lombardi and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website. Be sure to read her blog linked there to enjoy her other artwork and process examples.  Here is an interview with Kristine A. Lombardi after the publication of her first book at Monica Wellington's news.  Enjoy the book trailer.






Sometimes our pet pals don't make any sense at all to others.  They fail to see the connection.  They fail to see the attraction. They are dumbfounded.

It would stand to reason a boy living on a farm would develop a fondness for one of the animal inhabitants.  Gus has an attachment to a lot more than one.  My Favorite Pets by Gus W. For Ms. Smolinski's Class with words by Jeanne Birdsall and pictures by Harry Bliss is a laugh a minute look at a boy's obsession and report writing.

My favorite pet is sheep.  We have
seventeen in our yard.  Seventeen
sheep are still sheep, not sheeps.

Gus acquaints us with boy sheep, girl sheep and baby sheep.  We now know the horns on a male do not come off, a female sheep will not respond to a call of "What are ewe doing?" and if you swap your little brother for a lamb, your mom will definitely notice.  Clothing on sheep is also not a good idea.

If you should happen to use a sheep as an umbrella in a blinding rainstorm, your dad will also definitely notice.  Do not use scissors on a sheep's behind.  Do not use sheep to give your little brother a "horsey" ride.  Sheep are not good playmates for boys. They simply can't move from point "A" to point "B" as boys or even adults travel.

Bringing sheep into your home is NEVER a good idea. Their presence gives new meaning to the word mess.  Your parents will both definitely notice simultaneously.  You and the sheep will quickly be dispatched to other areas.  Of course a boy and his sheep can't be parted.


The first person point of view in this narrative formed by Jeanne Birdsall to replicate a school report is hilarious.  Gus seems to be stating the obvious but it is really leading to specific comedic moments.  The humor is increased with occasional questions and outbursts by Gus's mom and dad in contrast to the representations made by Gus. Here is a sample passage.

A baby sheep is a lamb.  If you
trade your little brother for a lamb,
your mother will say,
Why is Sammy 
covered in
hay?


At first glance the matching dust jacket and book case with the notebook paper above and below the characters, hint at the form of the narrative.  Two things are certain though, the boy loves those sheep and those sheep love to nibble and chew.  To the left, on the back, the words

One boy.
Seventeen sheep.
What could go wrong?

are placed over a sheep climbing out of the chimney on the house's roof.

On the opening and closing endpapers Harry Bliss gives us a view as if we are seated at Gus's desk looking out the window in his yard filled with sheep.  Readers get a glimpse of what is important to him, comics, Gus's Sheep Diary and a note to finish his report.  Rendered in black India ink and watercolor the heavier matte-finished paper enhances the double and single page images throughout the title.

Bliss's interpretation of the text raises the laughter factor providing an extension of the story.  For the observation regarding sheep's wool, cutting some off and Gus's mother's reaction, Bliss supplies a visual of Gus seated on the lawn, scissors, glue and a book titled Beards of History next to him.  He has glued the sheep's wool to his face and is holding a mirror to observe his handiwork.  Bliss embeds humor in every image.  He conveys much emotion which the shape of his lines and the position of a single dot.

One of my favorite illustrations of many is when the sheep are in the kitchen.  It is a scene of utter chaos. One of the sheep is on the kitchen sink grabbing the nozzle in its mouth and squirting water. Another is wide-eyed and slipping on the wet floor.  One is about to nibble the table runner. And a fourth has its head stuck between the chair slats.

To discover more about Jeanne Birdsall and Harry Bliss and their other work please follow the links attached to their names to access their individual websites.  At this publisher's website you can get a sneak peek at a few of the interior images.




What is colorful?  What is noisy?  What is totally alive with action?  These are words used to describe a gathering of creatures and their humans.  It's a day set aside to showcase attributes. It's a day to showcase those who have our affection.

The duo who brought readers Some Insects (Beach Lane Books, March 4, 2014) have returned with another delightful take on the animal world.  Some Pets (Beach Lane Books, August 23, 2016) words by Angela DiTerlizzi and pets by Brendan Wenzel present all those things which make pets the beloved individuals they are.  Let's join the conversation!

Some pets
SIT.
Some pets
STAY.
Some pets
FETCH.
Some pets
PLAY!

Dogs and cats are getting ready to be put on display.  They are still acting in their normal canine and feline way.  An obstacle course is the spot for a wriggling reptile and a leaping rabbit.  They do what they do out of habit.

Wheels spin and the noise begins.  Critters raise their voices in a clamorous chorus.  In the midst of all this fantastic fun, the hunger bug bites each and every one.

As the day draws to a close, pets let their humans know how much they care.  When all is said and all is done, love is in the air.  Friendship first and friendships that last.


Whether these words are read in silence or spoken aloud you can't help but feel the rhythm of the verses penned by Angela DiTerlizzi.  They have a playful pizzazz courtesy of rhymes and alliteration which mirror the essence of each animal.  There is nonstop action at every page turn leading readers to the final magical moment.


When you open the matching dust jacket and book case the gathering of eager animals crosses the spine to the left and the back. A string of pennants with paw prints hangs announcing the gala. Brendan Wenzel's use of color joyfully lifts the spirit of DiTerlizzi's words.  His pets are ready for the story to begin.  On the opening and closing endpapers one of the orange hues is used.

The illustrations for this book were rendered in almost everything imaginable. From the initial title page to the closing image at the back of the book containing the author and illustrator note and publication information, these images are lively depicting the best in the human and animal connection.  On the formal title page we see a bird's eye, panoramic view of the Pet Show venue.  The happiness pops off the page.

Thirteen more double-page images with details which will have you grinning from ear to ear give readers the inside scoop on the day's activities. We see a dog enduring a tooth brushing, toothpaste foaming from his mouth, cats leaping from their pedestals reaching for a toy mouse, pigs running a race, dogs in costumes and a girl snuggling with her hedgehog.  The facial expressions on the pets and their people are simply precious.  Wenzel creates wondrous wide-eyed looks.

One of my favorite illustrations is the group of dogs at the Costume Party. Bowls of kibble are filled and placed around the ground. A pug in a lobster suit is gobbling up his food. There is a Golden retriever wearing a stethoscope. Another pup is ready to buzz like a bee pausing over his meal served in a black and yellow striped dish.  The Great Dane dressed like a dragon is fabulous.  Oh, and there is a wild squirrel sneaking a snack.

After the narrative two pages are devoted to all the pets present in the book giving readers their common name and the name given to them by their people. To learn more about Angela DiTerlizzi and Brendan Wenzel and their other work please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  At the publisher's website you can view some interior images.  There is also a link to four printable activity sheets. Angela DiTerlizzi is interviewed at Watch. Connect. Read., the blog maintained by Scholastic's Ambassador of School Libraries, John Schumacher.  Brendan Wenzel is a guest at All The Wonders, Episode 285 hosted by teacher librarian Matthew Winner. 


These three titles, The Grumpy Pets written and illustrated by Kristine A. Lombardi, My Favorite Pets by Gus W. For Ms. Smolinski's Class words by Jeanne Birdsall and pictures by Harry Bliss and Some Pets words by Angela DiTerlizzi and pets by Brendan Wenzel are guaranteed to make for a spirited storytime. Listeners will be begging you to read them again and again.  And you will do it because these books have that special quality we recognize in marvelous storytelling.

Just One More...

Sometimes we have an appetite for more than we really need especially when it comes to food.  Our nose tells us to taste something because the aroma is downright heavenly.  Perhaps our eyes see a combination of colors and design in the presentation on a plate which is an open invitation.  Our stomach is full but our senses are saying just one more helping.

We believe an extra little bite can't make a difference.  One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree (Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, May 3, 2016) written by Daniel Bernstrom with pictures by Brendan Wenzel is a tantalizing tale of relinquishing common sense.  Clever coaxing wins over a greedy gourmand.

One day in the leaves 
of the eucalyptus tree
hung a scare in the air
where no eye could see,

when along skipped a boy
with a whirly-twirly toy,
to the shade of the eucalyptus,
eucalyptus tree.

The lad wasn't aware a sly snake silently moved toward him, its mouth open wide.  In a blink of an eye, he was inside; inside the stomach of the wily reptile.  The boy's voice called out, encouraging the cagey creature to seek another entree as there was plenty of room.  Before you could say chirp, chirp a bird and his worm friend were consumed, both certain of their doom.

Deep from the dark, the little guy yelled again.  Not surprisingly the snake complied, savoring an unsuspecting cat.  In case you think it was getting crowded in the beast's belly, rest assured it was not.  The crafty child spoke a third time with even more purpose, convincing the snake the empty space was spacious.  Gulp!  A sloth was much too slow.

The creature continued to devour at the boy's insistence, the size of each meal increasing.  When the snake asked the child deep in the dark if

"I should take one more bite
while my tummy feels so tight?, 

you know exactly what he said.  In fact, after the next big swallow when the reptile could barely wobble, the boy suggested he eat more.

The snake said no once.  The snake said no twice.  Then he weakened seeking a teensy-weensy morsel.  Ssssssip!  OH! MY! GOODNESS!


With every reading as the tale unfolds and the snake's stomach grows, you can feel your grin expanding in proportion.  Daniel Bernstrom's words burst forth in a fabulous rhythmic melody.  His spirited verb choices, skipped, gobbled, zipped, descriptive sounds, crinkle, wrinkle, slurp, buuuuurrrrp and repetitions, especially the boy's tempting suggestions, encourage participation.  Here is another sample passage.

Munch, munch came a
crunch from the leaves of the tree.
Oh! A rare kind of bear munching
tasty, tasty greens.


Readers have no idea what is about to ensue when looking at the front of the matching dust jacket and book case.  The tiny critters in the trees are simply observing wide-eyed at the boy and snake duo.  In fact, by the smiles on the faces of the twosome, you assume they are friends.  The framing of the forest tree, flowers and vines around the title text suggests a circle, perfect for this cumulative story.  To the left, on the back, readers get an entirely different sense of where this tale is going to go.  The boy is held in the tight grip of the snake's tail as the open mouth is ready to swallow him whole.  The same hue as used in the title text provides the background for the opening and closing endpapers.

Rendered in everything imaginable to create the digital illustrations Brendan Wenzel captures and enhances the liveliness of the narrative.  His creatures of the forest and the boy see with large expressive eyes.  Their body movements are in keeping with their personalities.  Wenzel also manages to instill humor in his characters with their typical but exaggerated physical characteristics and habits.

Many of the images cross the gutter spanning from page edge to page edge.  Wenzel fashions panels of varying sizes and shapes to signify changing scenes or portions of a single scene.  Their design and layout is superb drawing our eyes to a specific place.  As the belly of the snake continues to bulge the area of the visual focusing on the darkened interior increases.  A bright color palette appropriate to the flora and fauna adds to the joy found on every page turn.  Careful readers will notice several things on the final page of publication information in the picture.

One of my favorite of many illustrations is when the snake is about to swallow the bear.  To the left and crossing a portion of the gutter is the darkened stomach of the snake with the shapes of the animals already in residence visible.  We can see the whites of their frightened eyes.  On the right the bulging belly of the snake extends behind a portion of its body as its large mouth aims at the rear end of the bear.  The bear, mouth full of leaves, is turned looking in fright.  You can't help but wonder how the snake is going to eat this big bear.


One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree story by Daniel Bernstrom with pictures by Brendan Wenzel is a read aloud treasure.  It's a triumphant entry in the folklore family sure to be requested repeatedly.  I know listeners are going to be joining in with the repetitious phrases.  Can't you just see this performed as a reader's theater?  I know I can.

To discover more about Daniel Bernstrom and Brendan Wenzel please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Brendan Wenzel has some interior images displayed.  Julie Danielson, author, reviewer and blogger at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast interviews Daniel Bernstrom at Kirkus (Don't miss this!) and follows with artwork on her blog the following week.  Brendan Wenzel is interviewed by educator Dylan Teut at Mile High Reading.  

Marvelous Menagerie

Careful gardeners spend much of their time at plant level, working the soil and tending to the growth of the flowers, vegetables and shrubs.  When doing this, they are greeted by intriguing sights.  Hikers who realize they are alone in a forest, depending on the time of year, will find the silence gradually filling with sound.  These beings we see and hear may be small, but they are mighty in importance.

Their communities fill our undeveloped landscapes, backyards and cities.  Just in time to herald in another spring Some Bugs (Beach Lane Books, March 4, 2014) written by Angela DiTerlizzi with illustrations by Brendan Wenzel inched, leaped and flew into readers' hands last week.  Let's go for a walk on the buggy side of life.

Some bugs STING.
Some bugs BITE.
Some bugs STINK.
And some bugs FIGHT.

With those four statements we are winding our way down the possibility path of questions and answers.  Which bugs do which things?  Which bugs would never sting, bite, stink or fight?  Let's explore some more to get it right.

These interesting, incredible insects either move on land, through the air, over and under water slowly, quickly, smoothly or in spurts.  They can form a ball to make themselves appear small.  Is that a leaf, a twig, stem or stalk?  Hiding to stay safe, you won't hear them talk.

Later, danger departed, their noise fills the air like a crazy critter band.  They create, carry and search according to some internal command.  Let's seek, peek and find these living prizes whether wearing their finest or sporting disguises.


Angela DiTerlizzi certainly know her audience; conveying the realm of insects with a rhythm and rhyme certain to generate interest and movement in equal measure.  Using the title words repetitively she encourages a give-and-take relationship between the reader and the narrative while pointing out the individual characteristics of her bug personalities.  When authors piece words together to form a cadence, a musical melody takes shape.  DiTerlizzi takes readers up to a delightful crescendo, dropping down to a softer moment before releasing us to partake in a joyous adventure.


Upon opening up the dust jacket covering the matching book case, we see a single illustration stretching from flap edge to flap edge. We zoom in on the bug's world as if we have become one of them.  It's a mixed media montage of color, light and suspended sound. The bright golden yellow in the flower petals becomes the solid background of the opening and closing endpapers.

On the initial title page a single bug peeks out from blades of grass.  The two page spread for the formal title page begins the illustrative story; a cat walks outside down a stone pathway, insect nets and a glass jar in sight.  A lone ladybug crawls down a stick from the rain gutter. (On the final page, the verso, the ladybug is crawling back up into the spout.)

All of the visuals span across two pages; each a bug's eye view except for the final two.  What Brendan Wenzel does is to focus on certain sections of a greater whole, until the wide angle view of the entire backyard.  It's a wonderful concept, beautifully executed.

To tell you the truth, it's almost impossible to pick a favorite illustration.  What Wenzel does with a single sentence is fantastic and fun.  His pictures for

Some bugs curl up in a Ball.
And some bugs TAKE.  

are lighthearted and captivating.  For the first we see a raccoon peering over a log with fungus ledges at a forest floor covered in mushrooms, pill bugs, a lady bug and a woolly bear caterpillar.  In the second we see an army of ants busily removing items from a picnic basket above and below the ground.


No matter how many times I've read this book, Some Bugs written by Angela DiTerlizzi with illustrations by Brendan Wenzel, I end up smiling.  It's a lively look, a bright and busy book, about a world within our world.  Prior to the publication information and dedication, two pages are dedicated to identifying all the pictured insects.

I can see using this book as a reader's theater or turning it into a small play.  It could be paired with Ladybugs by Gail Gibbons, Bugs Galore by Peter Stein with illustrations by Bob Staake or Bugs by the Numbers:  facts and figures for multiple types of bugbeasties by Sharon Werner and Sarah Forss.  For more information about Brendan Wenzel please follow the link to his website embedded in his name above.  Follow this link to a recent interview of Angela DiTerlizzi at John Schumacher's website, Watch. Connect. Read.