Comedy Times Two

For those who have read a book aloud to one or more listeners and the response is laughter, there is truly little, if anything, better in life.  Once the laughter starts, it is contagious, spreading from person to person, until the entire room is enveloped in merriment.  Even after the story is complete, and each participant leaves, the shared happiness remains, tucked away to be remembered when it is needed the most.

At times, a single word can carry humor to fun-filled heights.  In Chick Chat (North|South, January 19, 2021) written and illustrated by Janie Bynum, a baby cannot stop talking during any waking moment of their day.  As you might expect, this talking is done through a single sound, repeated profusely. 

Baby Chick has a lot to say.

She peeps so much at the breakfast table; an older sister wishes the chit-chat would stop.  She's already exhausted from hearing the constant noise.  Mama and Papa are much too busy with their own tasks to listen.

Pulling a trusty red wagon loaded with prize possessions, Baby Chick tries one more time to lure Sister into a discussion.  Too busy reading, she tells Baby Chick to play.  The little chicken finds a likely spot to stop and starts digging with her trowel.  Suddenly,

Thunk!

Baby Chick finds an egg.  It's big.  It's round.  And it is silent.  Unable to leave the egg all by itself, it's loaded into the trusty red wagon.  Concerned, a sibling and parents convince and ask Baby Chick to return the egg.  Back at the hole in the dirt, she provides the egg with all the comforts of friendship, safety, warmth and conversation.

She falls asleep there and is taken home.  As the sun rises, the ever-talkative bundle of fluff hurries to the egg.  After a startling discover, a pleasant surprise awaits the gregarious Baby Chick.

With limited sentences, descriptive and declarative, author Janie Bynum introduces readers to a lovable character who resides in an equally affectionate family.  A pleasing blend of narrative and conversation add to the comedy.  Punctuation after the multitude of peeps furnishes readers with emphasis and meaning.  Here is a passage.

Peep.  Peep.  Peep?

"Not now.  I'm working,"

crowed Papa.  "Talk to Sister."

eRR-

eRR-

eRRRRR

On the open book case, a robin's egg blue is the canvas.  On either side of the spine the image shows Baby Chick pulling her trusty red wagon loaded with her treasures.  She pulls it with one wing.  In the other wing she holds her trowel.  On top of the watering can is a tiny beetle.  The line drawings here, and throughout the book, are detailed and colorful.  On the back, the left of the open book case, is text one might find on the front flap of a dust jacket.

A grass green hue covers the opening and closing endpapers.  On the first set are the tracks of Baby Chick.  On the second set another set of tracks accompany those of Baby Chick, referencing her newly hatched friend.

On the title page, the title text is placed within a speech balloon.  Beneath this, Baby Chick is leaning into a hole saying---

Peep?

The sizes of the illustrations vary from marvelous two-page pictures to full-page pictures or several visuals on a single page.  The alternating sizes contribute favorably to the wondrous pacing.  Readers will be charmed by all the tiny appropriate elements in each illustration.  Baby Chick is eating a bowl of worms for breakfast.  Her Mama wears an apron and Sister is wearing a tied scarf.  Later, Mom gathers beetles in a basket.  Sister is reading a book titled A Coop of One's Own.  

Careful readers will see that Baby Chick never wanders far from the coop.  You can see the coop from where Sister is reading against a tree.  The egg is found near the tree with Sister seen reading in the distance.  Readers will enjoy seeing how Baby Chick keeps the egg safe, warm, and company.

One of my many favorite illustrations, a full-page picture, is after the sun has set.  Sister finds Baby Chick with the egg.  The egg is wrapped in a blanket.  Baby Chick, covered with another blanket, is on top of the egg.  She is holding her purple stuffed toy elephant.  She is down in the hole with a grassy slope behind her.  There are two sheep there and Sister.  The other items Baby Chick has with her in the hole are enchanting.

Get ready for readers to peep, peep, and peep some more when listening to or after reading Chick Chat written and illustrated by Janie Bynum.  Cheerful is the word to use depicting this tale of friendship found.  All the peeps welcome participation by readers and listeners.  If you are looking for laughter, this book is for you, either on your personal or professional bookshelves.

To learn more about Janie Bynum and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  The book, Chick Chat, has its own site here.  There are interior illustrations found at the publisher's website and at Simon & Schuster.  The publisher has an interview with the creator here.  Jamie Bynum has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  The blog tour for this title starts at Good Reads with Ronna with links to the other stops.

CHICK CHAT the Picture Book (trailer) from Janie Bynum on Vimeo.

The patience of parents is tested more than once on road trips with children.  After endless games of I Spy, There's A Flag, 50-State License Plates, Bingo scavenger hunts, and boredom from coloring and puzzles sets in, the bickering begins.  Siblings who tolerate each other outside a car tend to become bitter rivals when confined to the back seat inside a car.  Squish Squash Squished (Nancy Paulsen Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, February 16, 2021) written by Rebecca Kraft Rector with illustrations by Dana Wulfekotte is hilarity multiplied.  Fantastic wordplay paired with whimsical images of animals and humans living together in a small community fashions a textured tale of you never know how good it is until it isn't.

"Hurry-scurry, kids," called Mom.

"Let's jiggety-jog into town in our

gracious-spacious automobile."

As soon as the sister and brother get inside the car, the pushing and shoving commence.  One leans into the other and vice versa.  Mom has a solution.  She invites a father, Peter Jeeter, and son, pigs, to join them. Brother and sister yell in unison about the more crowded backseat.

Mom replies with the same phrase,

"Too tight for two?

I know what to do."

She welcomes Dolly Waddle and two ducklings to join the passengers in their automobile.  Now the siblings are more squished and squashed.  

As the yelling from Max and Molly gets louder, Mom makes another stop.  Four more creatures enter the car.  There is more shouting, oinking, quacking and woofing.  Mom slows her automobile near the largest of animal friends they've yet to meet.  Their numbers are greater than any of the other guests.  Do Max and Molly keep yelling?  What do they do next?  

A school, pond, and the market supply answers.  Max and Molly have discovered a valuable truth about the definition of squish and squash.  Their perspective on the family car might have changed.

Rhyming, alliteration and repetition of key phrases are a wonderful, winning combination penned by author Rebecca Kraft Rector in this rollicking tale of complaints versus cleverness.  The use of dialogue and text is fabulous as is the rhythm they create.  With each new encounter of an animal family on the road, the laughter factor grows.  Here is a passage.

Two ducklings 

flit-feathered onto Molly's head,

quack-quacking,

and one piglet on Max's lap

oink-oinked right in his ear.

"Mom!" Max and Molly yelled.

"We're squished and squashed!"

You can't help but laugh out loud when you look at the matching dust jacket and book case.  The animal friends are having the ride of their collective lives.  Mom is calm and cool as the proverbial cucumber.  Max and Molly are not happy.  They look right at us in discomfort and frustration.  The facial expressions on the characters here by artist Dana Wulfekotte are priceless.  The hill you see going up on the right, front of the jacket and cover, continues on the other side of the spine.  Just left of the spine is a large tree, fully leafed.  Another darker hill with a barn at its top, extends from the middle of the first hill to the far-left side.  A pigeon wearing a hat stands on the ISBN with its suitcase.  Perhaps, it is a homing (carrier) pigeon.

On the opening and closing matching endpapers, done in two tones of teal with black outlines, we see each of the four animal families displaying a variety of activities and positions.  You can't look at these without smiling or giggling.  The double-page picture for the verso and title pages features a low rolling hill with the road along the bottom.  A giraffe in jogging gear is placed on the left.  On the right, Inch Pinch and her three backpack-wearing puppies are riding a bicycle built for four.  

In illustrations, 

rendered in pencil and then digitally colored, 

and shifting in size from double-page images to full-page pictures or single, double, or triple fine-lined-framed geometric shapes on a single page, each one generates superb pacing.  Readers will find more playfulness in the attire worn by the passengers and the objects they carry.  These elements seem to indicate the ultimate goal of each family as shown at the end of the story.  One of the funnier scenes is for Scooter Mooter and his calves.  The calves are wearing pink tutus.  One is also wearing glasses and reading a book.  The gathering of animals and people of mixed races and ages at the market is perfect.

One of my many favorite illustrations is one of three on a single page.  It is a rectangle-shaped picture.  It is a close-up of the faces of Molly and Max, open-mouthed and yelling.  Max has a missing tooth.  Dolly Waddle is to the left of Molly.  Her two ducklings are quacking on top of Molly's head.  The upper portion of their bodies break the frame.  To the right is Max with the piglet on his right.  At this moment, the piglet has paused its oinking and appears to be peeking around the corner of the border.

This book, Squish Squash Squished written by Rebecca Kraft Rector with illustrations by Dana Wulfekotte, is pure delight.  The cadence of the words and the comical visuals will have readers laughing and giggling long after the last word is read.  There will be requests of read it again.  I know you'll want a copy for your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Rebecca Kraft Rector and Dana Wulfekotte, and their other work, please follow the link attached to their names to access their websites.  Rebecca Kraft Rector has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Dana Wulfekotte has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  At the publisher's website you can view the endpapers.  There are posts about this book and interviews at Kid Lit Village and Kathleen Temean's Writing and Illustrating.

Can't Stop Talking

There are more than a few educators who believe it's true.  They know just before and after a full moon, their students will be a little "more" of everything.  On those days when a class comes to the library, it seems as if every single student is talking.  They all have thoughts to share . . . vocally and at the same time.

Usually there are only one or maybe two people a week who can't stop talking.  They are well-known by their classmates and for the most part fondly accepted.  Author Tammi Sauer and illustrator Dave Mottram introduced readers to such an individual in Wordy Birdy (Doubleday Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Random House Children's Books, February 8, 2018). Fortunately, this bird with a gift for gab has great friends.

Meet Wordy Birdy.
Wordy Birdy has lots to say.
It starts the moment she wakes up.
See?

Every tint of the sunrise sky is noted.  Wordy Birdy even stops to greet herself in a mirror.  She chats about her likes and dislikes.  The questions are non-stop.  Does she ever listen for the answers?  No. No. No.  Her forest friends, Rabbit, Raccoon, and Squirrel, realize this quirk in her behavior, continuously commenting.

One morning Wordy Birdy needs to listen. She does not.  She ignores warning signs.  Squirrel asks her to stop.  Rabbit tells her to turn around.  Wordy Birdy keeps walking and talking.  Raccoon begs her to

RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! 

This walking and talking non-listener finally notices a lot of darkness ahead.  She notices big white circles and large white triangles.  Several loud roars later, it dawns on her trouble is too close for comfort.

In her time of need her trio of companions courageously suggests a course of action.  Does she heed their words?  Will she live to talk another day? 



Apparently, she does because this month a companion title is released.  This bird is as chatty as ever.  Wordy Birdy Meets Mr. Cougarpants (Doubleday Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Random House Children's Books, February 5, 2019) written by Tammi Sauer with illustrations by Dave Mottram will have talkers and non-talkers alike sharing loads of laughter.

In case you haven't heard, this is Wordy Birdy.

I LOVE my name.
Wordy Birdy. Wordy Birdy. Wordy Birdy.
Hey! That rhymes!

This bird is unable to breathe without speaking.  She is also always on the move.  One fine day she and her three trusty pals go camping.

After enjoying the hike, setting up their tents and snacking on s'mores by a comfy, crackling fire, Wordy Birdy is still offering non-stop observations and declarations of love about everything and everyone in sight.  As you can imagine, much later Squirrel, Raccoon and Rabbit are exhausted and ready for bed.  Wordy Birdy is not.

Wordy Birdy is excited to commence snacking on pickles, bean burritos and mashed potatoes.  With the mini-feast consumed Wordy Birdy should desire to shut her eyes along with her three companions.  She does not. 

Telescope to her eye, she spots the perfect stars, wishing stars.  In the middle of wishing for everything from a pony to a tuba, Wordy Birdy discovers a rather large, hungry cougar stalking into their camp.  Does Wordy Birdy finally choose to stop talking?  Before you answer that question readers, remember this is Wordy Birdy. 



Both titles are overflowing with comedy.  With the skill of a master wordsmith Tammi Sauer blends short narrative sentences with character dialogue.  There is an ongoing discourse between the two.  Repetitive questions are answered with repetitive replies; supplying readers with an engaging cadence.  We are a part of the story.  You might also encounter a pun.  Here are two passages from the first and recent book.

But she never stops talking long enough to get the answers.
Wordy Birdy is not the world's best listener.

Oh, puh-lease. (Rabbit)

Are we talking
about the same
bird here? (Raccoon)

Okay. Okay. Wordy Birdy is
terrible at listening.

That's more like it. (Squirrel)

She never listens to anybody.


Late that night, Squirrel rubs his eyes.

Time for bed, everybody. (Squirrel)

Squirrel goes to bed.
Rabbit goes to bed.
Raccoon goes to bed.
Does Wordy Birdy go to bed?


If you don't wonder what's going to happen next by looking at the front of the matching dust jackets and book cases, you'll might want to check for a pulse.  The expressions on Wordy Birdy's face and the look the cougar is giving readers are completely giggle-worthy.  Careful readers can see the outline of words lining the background canvas of both books.  The title text is varnished on the jackets as are the characters.  The title text is also raised. 

To place emphasis on the chattiness of Wordy Birdy, to the left, on the back conversations are replete.  On the first Wordy Birdy is standing with her three pals talking to readers.  Raccoon has a reply ready.  On the second book, Wordy Birdy Meets Mr. Cougarpants, five photographs placed on a yellow background with leaves, are labeled with more Wordy Birdy chatter.

On the opening and closing endpapers of the first book, the story starts and ends, verbally and visually.  The characters and their conversations in speech bubbles are shown on a white background.  On the new title a series of different photographs, without captions, cover the opening and closing endpapers.  They feature the friends and those things Wordy Birdy enjoys the most.

With a page turn illustrator Dave Mottram begins his pictorial enhancement of the text with a double-page image for the verso and title pages.  Wordy Birdy is displayed as her exuberant self exclusively on a white canvas.  In the second title Wordy Birdy, Rabbit, Squirrel and Raccoon are seated around a campfire with the forest and starry sky surrounding them.

Keeping in mind the narrative and pacing, Dave Mottram alternates between double-page pictures and a few full-page images.  Readers will pause with each page turn to notice the included small details; a paw print on a sign, a hidden sign slowly revealed, a shadow that moves from illustration to illustration and the zipper pull on Wordy Birdy's backpack.  Most hilarious are the facial expressions and body postures on the characters.  They are burst-out-laughing excellent.

Two of my many, many favorite illustrations, one from each book, are in the first Wordy Birdy is blissfully unaware of any danger despite Rabbit's warning.  In the second title it's when everyone notices the cougar at the campsite.  First trees frame the characters and line the forest path.  On the left Squirrel, clinging to a tree trunk, is speaking.  Wordy Birdy is pointing and talking about a pinecone, a sign (reading WRONG WAY), a rock and a leaf.  On the right Rabbit is frantically pointing for Wordy Birdy to turn around and retrace her steps.  I love the mop of hair on top of Rabbit's head.

In the second image on the right items from the campsite have flown in the air.  A mug, juice box, telescope. frying pan, Bag O' Burritos, lantern, cup, jar of pickles, camera and another cup border a huge speech bubble reading:

WHAT!?!

Portions of their tents are visible.  On the right a terrified, wide-eyed Rabbit and Raccoon are standing, frozen to the ground.  Equally frightened is Squirrel who jumped up and is being held in Raccoon's arms.  Behind this stars shine in the night sky.


You won't be able to read Wordy Birdy and Wordy Birdy Meets Mr. Cougarpants written by Tammi Sauer with illustrations by Dave Mottram just once.  You will read, or be requested to read, them repeatedly.  You won't be able to stop smiling or bursting out loud with laughter.  Not only are these two books hilarious but they show the value in knowing when to listen and when to speak out.  At the core of both is the power of friendship.  I highly recommend them for both your personal and professional collections. 

To learn more about Tammi Sauer and Dave Mottram, please visit their websites by following the links attached to their names.  You can find Tammi and Dave on Instagram.  They also have accounts here and here on Twitter.  At Penguin Random House you can view interior images from Wordy Birdy and Wordy Birdy Meets Mr. Cougarpants.  For the release of the first book Tammi Sauer has a guest post on humor at Picture Book Builders.  Tammi Sauer was interviewed at Critter Lit on July 26, 2018.