Are You Ready To Dance?

It doesn't take much for children to dance.  They have no worries about expressing the cadence they hear whether it's found in words, music or a combination of words and music. Not only do they dance but they take great joy in doing it.  It only takes one to start grooving and it spreads in mere seconds.  And oh . . . the laughter accompanying their dancing makes your soul soar.

The air vibrates with happiness when children dance.  Hip-Hop Lollipop (Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House Children's Books, October 2, 2018) written by Susan McElroy Montanari with illustrations by Brian Pinkney is certain to have people in motion as soon as the title is read. They will also feel themselves grinning with gladness.  They know something good, really good, is about to happen.

Mama says, "Lollipop, stop!

Stop!

Jumping snapping
Nonstop."
Arms and shoulders pop 'n' lock.
Lollie's dancing hip-hop.

There is no stopping this little gal.  Her hands, knees, arms and hips are constantly moving.  She is jumping with jubilation. 

When Mama calls out it's bedtime, does she stop? She does not.  She moves down the hallway pausing by her sister's bedroom doorway.  Without missing a beat, Lollie and Tasha become a dancing duo.  Tick. Tock.  Now Daddy adds his voice to the time-for-bed declaration.

As the music bounces off the bathroom walls, the siblings brush their teeth in preparation.  Copper, the family dog, is done for the day.  Boo Boo, the family cat, uses Lollie for a pillow.  Lollie snuggles on top of Copper.  Mama ushers the sleepy trio into Lollie's bedroom.

Pajamas donned, and blankets drawn up to her chin, Lollie still listens to the music, lower and less loud. Daddy gives a goodnight kiss.  Copper curls on the bedroom floor.  Boo Boo snuggles on the cozy bed.  What twirls in Lollie's dreams?


It's impossible to read the words in this story written by Susan McElroy Montanari without nodding your head, shimmying your shoulders, or tapping your toes.  Each phrase is designed to provide a pulse which promptly syncs with readers' internal rhythms.  The rhyming nearly shouts off the pages in total merriment. Here is a passage.

Hands tutting.
Knees jutting.
Arms cranking.
Body swanking.
Hip gyration.

Exultation! 

  
One look, just one look, at this opened and matching dust jacket and book case is certain to have readers smiling and ready to dance.  Like the swirls of rhythm around Lollie, Copper and Boo Boo, this trio is happily stepping to the music.  You can't sit still.  You want to jump into the image and join them.

To the left, on the back, in other curves of color (more green) Tasha and Lollie lift their legs in perfect nearly poetic action.  Copper gladly joins them.  Part of the words from the above quoted passage appears over this illustration. 

The shade of purple used in the title text covers the opening and closing endpapers.  Beneath the words on the title page, Lollie smiles as she holds her portable music player.  Rendered in

watercolor and India ink on Strathmore watercolor paper

by Brian Pinkney, the illustrations are highly animated and loaded with familial cheer and comfort.

More than once the double-page images contain several smaller scenarios to heighten the pacing.  Brian's signature whirls of color combinations and fluid lines will surely engage readers on each page.  Readers will find themselves smiling at the exuberant expressions on the characters faces, even Mama and Daddy. 

One of my many favorite illustrations spans two pages (as do all the pictures).  A sunny yellow is a prominent hue in the wash of color.  Brush strokes and lines of pink, blue and a bit of green join this vibrant palette.  In the center her body moving to the left and right of the gutter, Lollie dances with abandon.  She is joined by Copper on the left and Boo Boo on the right.  I think I can hear the music and laughter, too.  This image is accompanied by the above-quoted text.


For story time, bed time (sweet dreams are assured), for a unit on music, dance or creative drama, Hip-Hop Lollipop written by Susan McElroy Montanari with illustrations by Brian Pinkney is an excellent choice.  The charm, playfulness and enthusiasm of Lollipop and the members of her family will wrap around you through these words and artwork.  You will want to include this title in your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Susan McElroy Montanari and Brian Pinkney and their other work, please visit their respective websites by following the links attached to their names.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images.  Susan maintains accounts on Twitter and Instagram. 

Three Is A Company

Finding and being a true friend takes time.  It's a form of harmony composed of give and take, compromise and compassion.  When a duo becomes a trio, finding an equilibrium can be a little bit trickier.  Sometimes one of the three feels out of the loop, as the other two appear to be closer.  When everything is in sync though, a friendship formed by three is a thing of beauty.

The girl who charmed her way into our collective hearts has returned in a third title.  Garnering a Caldecott Honor medal in 2014 Flora and the Flamingo was followed by the second book, Flora and the Penguin in autumn of the same year.  Conceived and illustrated by Molly Idle Flora and the Peacocks (Chronicle Books, May 3, 2016) finds two companions vying for the attention and affection of the dancer.  As in the two previous titles this is a story told without words.  

On the title page the tale unfolds as an extended arm on the left, holding an open fan, reaches toward the text.  On the right two peacocks in repose fan their feathers to create an identical half-circle shape.  With a page turn Flora is standing in a crossed ballet pose fan open in front of her face.  Readers are invited to lower the flaps.  Flora is looking at the peacocks.  They are gazing at each other.  

Flora greets and bows to these graceful, gorgeous avian creatures as they look at her with mixed curiosity.  One appears to be more open to meeting her than the other.  That one looks at her with definite indifference.  As Flora and the first peacock discover similarities, the other hides, head bowed, feathers spread.

Wanting to include the second bird, Flora moves over; her body movements suggestive of kindness.  The first peacock is certainly not happy about the attention given to the other bird, stalking over to its pal in anger.  A staring match erupts in a tug-of-war with Flora's fan.  OH NO!

The fan, Flora's visual connection to the peacocks and a part of her formal attire is torn in half.  She looks at them holding the damaged fan, drops the pieces and walks away.  Staring at the fan and then each other, the peacocks pick up a half.  Distraught over the loss of her possession and the potential for new feathered friends, Flora, knees to her chest, sits with her head on her crossed arms.  

In an act of considerable cleverness the peacocks in unison approach Flora.  Their efforts ignite a transformation.  Blossomed birds are held together by warmth and tenderness.

The matching dust jacket and book case in a trio of colors, introduce readers to Flora and her new acquaintances.  With a flourish and splendor equal to theirs, Flora bows to them in greeting.  The oval framed in yellow peacock feathers is replicated on the back.  Flora and the first peacock are admiring one another within a circle of white. The yellow of the feathers on the jacket and case provides a canvas for the opening and closing endpapers. 

Rendered in colored pencils the illustrations throughout are breathtaking in their exquisite elegance.  Heavy, matte-finished paper in a soft white provides the perfect background for the colorful characters.  Delicate tendrils of leaves, like willows, drop down across the top of the pages.  

A series of flaps discloses the express emotions of Flora and each of the peacocks.  We willingly participate in this dance of friendship dictating the pace.  Every line, every hue of the limited color palette, every delightful detail (the raised eyebrows, the eyes, the mouths and beaks, the birds' head and body feathers and all body postures) and every flap and fold are pieces performing in this rich and rare production. 

Every single page turn depicts pure noble eloquence.  One of my favorite illustrations spanning two pages is of Flora stretched across the gutter reaching toward the second peacock.  Molly Idle has placed a flap on each peacock.  We can, by opening and closing them, see how the act of friendship is growing.  At this point both birds are equally curious about Flora, her intentions and how they feel about each other.  

This third title with Flora and her bird ballet buddies is simply marvelous.  Flora and the Peacocks created by Molly Idle will wrap around you like a symphony weaving its way into your heart.  It, along with Flora and the Flamingo and Flora and the Penguin, are a trio to treasure.  True friendship will always find a balance.

If you desire to learn more about Molly Idle and her other books, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  The publishers have made an activity kit to accompany this title.  Teacher librarian and a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee, Travis Jonker, reveals the cover to this book on his blog, 100 Scope Notes.  Scholastic's Ambassador for School Libraries, John Schumacher, premieres the book trailer on his blog, Watch. Connect. Read.  In this post he includes an earlier interview with Molly Idle.  At Art of the Picture Book Molly Idle is interviewed.  Teacher librarian Matthew C. Winner chats with Molly Idle at All The Wonders, Episode 253.  Enjoy the extra video from the publishers.

Barnyard Boogie

Many Saturday nights the air in our home brimmed with excitement.  The doorbell rang announcing the arrival of the babysitter.  My parents emerged from their bedroom to answer the door, dressed for an evening of dancing.

Dad wore cowboy boots, a special white shirt with elaborate embroidery, decorative buttons down the front and on the cuffs and a bolo tie.  Mom wore a puff-sleeve blouse, a matching skirt with coordinating trim and several petticoats to make the skirt stand out and swirl as she moved.  Hours of do-si-do, allemande right, allemande left and honor your partner were about to begin.

Elizabeth Rose Stanton who introduced us to Henny, a chicken with human arms, released her second children's title early this year.  Peddles (A Paula Wiseman Book, Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers, January 5, 2016) is a pig with thoughts taking him beyond the boundaries of the farm.  Peddles dares to dream.

Peddles was just a pig.

For the most part Peddles did the everyday things pigs do.  As he did those everyday pig things, his mind wandered.  He dreamed about eating pizza instead of slop.  He imagined speaking in English instead of the usual grunting and snorting.

Peddles may have looked normal but his vision was extraordinary.  When he looked at birds, frogs and stars this pig left terra firma, if only in his mind.  Despite all this wishing everything remained the same until one night.

As his pals slept, Peddles left the group. He heard voices lifted in joy and saw people moving inside the barn.  A happy hoedown was happening.  And Peddles, being the kind of pig he was, got an idea.

Oh, he tried with all his heart to put his plan into action but nothing worked.  He looked and looked for the final items.  Then he found exactly what he needed but something was still missing.  Then they found him!


The first sentence in this book and the use of a single word suggest to us this may not be an ordinary story.  By using the word just Elizabeth Rose Stanton cracks open the door of possibility.  As she explains how normal Peddles is, she is carefully widening the entrance into the potential for difference.  As Peddles' open-mindedness is revealed we can feel our spirits lifted by the bliss he experiences.  Her fun-filled verbs and adjectives take us into Peddles' world. Here are several sample sentences.

Peddles heard whooping and hollering.
He saw twirling and whirling.


How can you not adore Peddles by looking at the front of the dust jacket?  I can already hear the sighs of readers uttered aloud.  The white canvas on the jacket, and for nearly the entire book, supplies the ideal background for the pencil and watercolor illustrations rendered by Elizabeth Rose Stanton.  To the left, on the back, we are given a hint as to what sparks Peddles' big idea and resolves his dilemma.   On the book case in the same blue as the title text, two circular visuals have been placed.  They show Peddles looking between his legs from the front and the back.  You won't be able to look at these without smiling.

The darker pink on Peddles is used as the opening and closing endpapers opposite the introductory title page and final wordless page of the book.  Stanton gives us another hint as to the items Peddles needs to reach his goal in a tiny image under the dedication.  The front dust jacket picture is repeated on the formal title page.

The delicate details in the illustrations bring readers further into the story.  We either discover a kinship with Peddles or begin to feel brave enough to implement our intentions.  With her images Stanton enlarges the story.  In her narrative his pig friends say

"Get your head out of the clouds, Peddles," and stop being so spacey."
This gave Peddles even BIGGER ideas.

Yes, there is planet Earth with Peddles the astronaut floating among the stars.  Without spoiling anything Stanton does include several other humorous touches sure to elicit bursts of laughter from readers.

One of my favorite illustrations of many is a double page image of Peddles and his porcine companions at night.  The two pages are washed in hues of light blue with white stars.  Along the bottom in a row we see the faces of pigs snuggled in sleep, except for one on their back with their legs in the air.  On the far right is Peddles, ears up and alert and one eye open.  The text reads

until one night...


Peddles written and illustrated by Elizabeth Rose Stanton invites us to dream, be open to possibilities and when an opportunity presents itself, don't give up.  I know you are going to get repeated requests to read this aloud.  I'm certainly glad I have a beloved pig puppet.  You might want to have some country western or square dance music handy too.

To learn more about Elizabeth Rose Stanton, her books and art work please visit her website and blog by following the links attached to her name.  Elizabeth Rose Stanton can be found on Twitter at @PenspaperStudio and on Facebook.  At the publisher's website are six additional illustrations for you to view.  Please take a few moments to read this interview at HENRYHERZ.COM--->KIDLIT, FANTASY & SCI-FI.  

In a moment of serendipity I happened to read this book for the first time while listening to Josh Groban's new Stages CD.  This is the song that was playing.  Sometimes life can be breathtakingly perfect.

A Bird In The Jungle Is Worth ...

As a visitor or new resident to the western part of Montana, you find yourself saying, "What is that!?"  Perhaps a flash of iridescent black mixed with blue and green catches your eye or a noise akin to a prehistoric insect pierces the otherwise quiet.  During every season of the year you will see the black-billed magpie gliding through the air and landing among your trees.  Adult males range in size from eighteen to twenty-four inches long; half the length is their tail.

As clever as other family members, their singular bird call sounds like a coded message waiting to be translated.  Lately it's very easy to imagine them giving their avian friends notice of Cockatoo, Too (little bee books, an imprint of Bonnier Publishing Group, January 5, 2016) written and illustrated by Bethanie Deeney Murguia.  Humans should be on the lookout for telltale signs in the snow of a feathered-friend hoedown inspired by this new title.

Cockatoo.
Cockatoo?

A solitary cockatoo awakens as the sun rises, hip-hopping in happiness.  To its surprise another bird flutters down, momentarily pausing his wiggling and jiggling.  Who knew there was another cockatoo?  A reached resolution is immediately interrupted.

Two more cockatoos enter the scene wearing tutus!  Suddenly feeling slightly undressed the original two ponder what to do.  The latest generous duo delivers dressy duds.  Four can finally frolic.

There's a new fuss coming from the foliage.  One, two, three and four more enter.  Feet raised, forming a line, this new crew kicks and cavorts with abandon.  It would be great if the group becomes eight.

Wait a minute!  There are nine, ten, eleven and many more.  It's a tweeting, twittering uproar.


As soon as you read the title, that phrase rolls out the red carpet for rollicking word play.  For the majority of the narrative Bethanie Deeney Murguia uses combinations of six plus one words skillfully applying rhyming and alliteration.  As the pages are turned the laughter is guaranteed to increase as the sentences and questions get a wee bit longer and a bit more mixed.

Two cockatoos, too?


It's impossible to look at the matching dust jacket and book case without grinning.  Those chunky, wide-eyed cockatoos within the colorful jungle fauna are ready for action.  On the back, to the left, a third cockatoo with an orange crest and matching tutu is resting, exhausted, against a bowed flower.  The text

Whew, it's a jungle out there.

is a clear "why" inquiry.  You can easily tell from the jacket and case how Bethanie Deeney Murguia uses white space as an important element in her images.

On the opening endpapers in blue and green, cockatoos and toucans are peacefully sleeping among large jungle leaves.  On the closing endpapers the pattern is the same but the colors and facial features reflect a delightful difference.  The initial title page begins the story with a single cockatoo resting in a tree top, a crescent moon outlined in the pale blue sky as dawn breaks.  A larger picture spans across the formal title pages with the cockatoo awake and striding through the jungle.

Rendered in

watercolor, gouache, ink, crayon, and a bit of block printing, all combined in Photoshop (Thank you Bethanie for answering my question.)

the illustrations all cover two pages with the hues of the leaves and trees an indication of the time of day.  As new characters enter the story, readers will note body positions and facial expressions which announce their arrival.  Other members of the dance company are cleverly concealed until the precise moment of their appearance.

One of my favorite illustrations is at the beginning when the lone cockatoo, on the right, notices the feet and bottom part of the body of another bird, on the left, drifting through the ferns and flowers.  The expression on its face is one of caution and curiosity.  The previous joy is frozen.  There's quite a bit of anticipation in this image.


There are fun books.  There are funny books.  Fun and funny books are the best.  Cockatoo, Too written and illustrated by Bethanie Deeney Murguia is the later.  You are going to want to read it aloud as often as you get requests to do so.  It's a word play wonder!

To discover more about Bethanie Deeney Murguia please follow the links attached to her name to access her website and blog.  At the little bee books website you will find a coloring page and a How to Draw a Cockatoo page.  Simon & Schuster has seven illustrations for you to view.  Bethanie Deeney Murguia is interviewed at BookPage and Ronnie's Awesome List.  Bethanie Deeney Murguia was a guest at Scholastic's Ambassador for School Libraries John Schumacher's blog Watch. Connect. Read. speaking about this title and premiering the book trailer below.

Put On Your Zoo Dancing Shoes

All you need is a beat; not even music to start to feel the urge to move your hands and feet.  Time after time when reading a particular story aloud, I've looked up from the page to see my listeners moving and grooving.  As we get deeper into the story, as the tempo of the text increases, many will start to stand, dancing around me and one another.  Dancing is a contagious act of joy.

There's been many a morning, after a nighttime snowfall, when it looks as if the rabbits, deer and maybe a mouse or two have had their own party on my lawn, moving to a rhythm no one knows but them.  I would like to think other creatures in other places, when humans are unaware, are cavorting to an instinctive cadence.  Penned and pictured with pure merriment by Kristi Valiant, Penguin Cha-Cha (Random House, August 27, 2013) will have you swirling and swaying in no time at all.

Julia was wild about everything at the Romping Chomping Park and Zoo, especially the shows.

What she liked to do is climb a tree, eyes feasting on whatever performance happened to be playing on the stage.  As a dance group executed a routine one Saturday, Julia watched as a flipper...yes, a flipper... reached out to capture a feather boa.  Other articles of clothing began to disappear.  Now here's a mystery which needs solving.

Without giving it a second thought, Julia follows them back to the Penguin Cove.  Looking through the entrance all she sees is a group of statuesque penguins.  There is no feather boa, no hat, no bow...nothing but penguins.

Not to be deterred Julia decides to spy on the penguins from a bird's eye view with a pair of binoculars.  Ah! Ha!  Those penguins are dressed to the nines and...they are dancing!  She is so excited she can hardly wait to tell the zookeeper; who obviously thinks she is mistaken.

Grabbing a top hat displayed for the magic show next weekend, she hurries to Penguin Cove.  Running inside she is greeted again with penguins as still as stone.  Julia can see she needs to approach them differently.

Will a disguise do the trick?  Does she need to have a dance partner?  Nearly ready to except defeat, Julia gives it one last try.  One...Two...Cha-cha-cha  One secret is safe but...

Every page is filled with playful energy in this title.  Kristi Valiant makes use of alliteration and definitive words encouraging participation.  Readers and listeners alike will be ready to do as Julia and the penguins do.  In this book trees are not climbed but shimmied up, dancers hip-hopped and boogie-bopped and Julie and Hippo tangoed and fandangoed.  My toes are already tapping again.


Eloquent, poised penguins grace their icy abode as Julia peeks around the corner on the front jacket and cover.  A probable outcome as fun-filled and polished as the Radio City Rockettes is revealed on the back.  The red dotted color in Cha-Cha is continued along the spine, other articles of clothing and whirled across the opening and closing endpapers.

Readers will wonder why Julia is showing Hippo a how-to-dance book on the first set of title pages.  The verso and second title page picture penguins swooping from their home to waddle backstage.  Two page, single page, and smaller illustrations gathered together, each and every one colorful, are heightened by the liberal use of white framing them.  Extra details, many of them humorous, enhance the joyfulness of the story; the fish-shaped enclosure for the seals, the penguin Ferris wheel, the penguin shapes spelling out cove, and the open-mouthed hippo trash can.

Readers will be surprised to learn that Kristi Valiant creates her illustrations digitally.  One of my favorite pictures is of Julia and Hippo disguised as penguins dancing as the row of penguins watch.  The fake beaks taped to wide-rimmed blue glasses and white pillows tied about their black-clad bodies are hilarious.  The way Valiant shifts perspective on these pages generates liveliness and movement.


Readers will be ready to bebop to the beat after following Julia on her quest in Penguin Cha-Cha written and illustrated by Kristi Valiant.  I think I might be prepared with a top hat, feather boa, fan, hair bow and tie for listeners to don as they dance.  Don't be surprised when you hear the inevitable chorus of read it again as soon as you finish.  You might want to practice your cha-cha steps too.

For more information on Kristi Valiant and her work please take a moment to visit her website and blog linked in her names.  Penguin Cha-Cha has its own website linked here.  The storytime kit is linked here.  To see more artwork and read a delightful interview with Kristi Valiant, head over to Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.