Spaces In Our World, Places In Our Hearts

Each morning a stroll through the gardens reveals the presence of night visitors.  Their tracks are embedded in the dirt.  Stalks and branches from flowers and shrubs lay on the ground, nibbled and left.  Other plants have been eaten to their roots.  There is an abundance of white-tailed deer in our neighborhood.

Truthfully, watching them wander through the apple trees across the street or seeing them stop and stare at us as we walk in the morning never stops being magical. Sharing this space with them is a gift.  Masterful, award-winning author illustrator Yuyi Morales made a new book, Bright Star (Neal Porter Books, Holiday House, September 7, 2021), for us.  In this title we, using a blend of Spanish and English, are presented with beauty, borders, barriers, and the value of all individuals.

Child,

you are

awake!

Breathe in,

then breathe out,

hermosa creatura.

You are beloved.  We hold your light in our hearts.  The world has many things to notice, some easily seen and others more of a challenge.

Exploring together we will find flora and fauna, rich and rare.  Wait!  Pay attention, something is amiss.  For now, stay hidden.  Stay safe.

If we get separated, we still hold your light in our hearts.  If you are fearful or restless, let those around you know of your fright and frustration.  You will be heard.  Then, be still.  Use your senses to make discoveries.

If those discoveries pave a new path, follow it.  Using your mind, fashion a different tale, your tale.  It will be a tale told by those who always hold your light in their hearts.

With each page turn, one to four sentences, simple but thoughtful and intentional, written by Yuyi Morales warmly welcome us into the narrative.  The Spanish and English words are perfect partners in this lyrical dance.  The use of punctuation provides an added liveliness.  We willingly participate in listening to the words and reading them aloud.  Here is the passage we read after a page turn.

So you search!

You are ready,

cosita pequena.

Let's go!

Vamonos!

Looking at the background on the open and matching (reversed images) dust jacket and book case is like being enveloped by an autumn sunset sky.  On the dust jacket, it and the entire image, extend flap edge to flap edge.  The white-tailed deer, a fawn, peering between the cactus on the Sonoran Desert is still, observant.  What does it see?  The rays around the raised title text are embossed in gold foil.  The author illustrator name is raised on the textured fabric.  

The cactus crosses the spine and another one frames the face of a little girl.  She is looking directly at readers.  It is as if she is asking us a question.  On the book case, the image on the back of the jacket is on the front and the front image moves to the back of the book case.  The fawn and the child are one and the same.

The fabric shown on the front of the jacket covers the opening and closing endpapers.  Yuyi Morales has woven threads in golden yellow and forest green along the top and bottom of the pages.  She has embroidered five large stars, made by crossing perpendicular lines.  They are in earth colors.  On the far-left edge on the opening endpapers and on the far-right edge on the closing endpapers is a mass of pink sewn dots, mirroring the color of the cactus flowers.

On the title page, a double-page picture features cactus on either side and a hummingbird on the right.  

The artwork for this book was created using acrylic paint on paper,

photographed textures, digital painting, as well as weaving and embroidery.

Each two-page image in this book asks us to stop.  They are a complete sensory experience.  The representations of flora and fauna are breathtaking.  The backgrounds in the illustrations indicate the narrative mood as well as the time of day.  What do we see in these visuals?

As she did with her words, each element in these images is arranged with intention and considerable thought.  The scene of the destruction around the building of the border wall and the animals wondering how to continue with their instinctive journeys is particularly poignant.  The placement of a wordless picture is perfection.  For the final two page turns, the fawn becomes the girl child.  Deer are embroidered on the front and back of her shirt.  In the last visual, several of the children have featured animals on their shirts.

One of my many favorite illustrations is for the text above cited.  The sky and desert floor are nearly identical in color, as so often happens on a clear, calm morning.  Cactus and small shrubs are peppered on the sand.  A roadrunner, a jack rabbit, a ground squirrel, and a lizard join the fawn and its mother.  Several insects and birds are present.  One of the birds is the hummingbird.  On the left the fawn stands eager to move.  It jumps three times with a blur of movement; until it joins its mother on the right.

At the close of this book, Bright Star written and illustrated by Yuyi Morales, in an author's note are eleven supportive statements and paragraphs beginning with

I made this book because . . .

In reading this book, you realize Yuyi Morales has accomplished her reasons and more.  This book is deeply moving and timely.  You can't read it once.  You will want to share it often and widely.  Be sure to have a copy on your personal and professional bookshelves.  At the close of the book in an acknowledgment is a list of videos and films, books, online sources, organizations, and people that assisted in the creation of this title.

To discover more about Yuyi Morales and her other work, please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  Yuyi Morales has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.  The cover reveal and conversational thoughts by Yuyi Morales and Neal Porter was hosted by John Schumacher, librarian, lecturer at Rutgers University, and writer, on his Watch. Connect. Read. site.  Yuyi Morales is showcased at Publisher's Weekly where she shares the process for making this book.  At the publisher's website are additional bonus materials.  At Penguin Random House you can view the endpapers.  Here is a link to Yuyi Morales reading her book aloud on video at KidLit TV.  If you are interested here is a link to an event with Yuyi Morales speaking about this book.

Cow-tastic Creations

They are the original dairy queens.  More than eight thousand years ago, humans believed it was in their best interest to have them become a part of their world.  To this day, they continue to provide valuable food ingredients, especially for many people's favorite dessert or comfort food, ice cream.

Cows are beloved for their nature.  In a variety of fabricated forms, they are often children's (or collector's) favorite animal finding places on shelves or as stuffed toys to cuddle for comfort or rest.  Perhaps as characters for storytellers, they are able to linger longer in our hearts.  Two recent publications feature cows in all their bovine glory.  Mootilda's Bad Mood (Little Bee Books, September 1, 2020) written by Corey Rosen Schwartz and Kirsti Call with illustrations by Claudia Ranucci takes readers on an emotional adventure as one cow youngster wakes up cranky and gets crankier by the incident.

Mootilda woke up in a huff

with hay stuck in her hair.

"What's going on? My pillow's gone.

My doll's way over there!"

Her mother tried to calm her with a treat, but her bad luck and mood escalated.  Mootilda exploded in distress.  Her moomaw thought it would be best if she went outside to join the other cows at play.  Her lack of skill caused even more dismay.

Her friends, like her mother, suggested another remedy for her irritable attitude.  Unfortunately, her dive in the pond was more thwack than swan.  The sheep and pigs offered encouragement along with advice, but nothing worked on this cow's crabby demeanor.  

Believing she is cursed, Mootilda ranted until the chickens took up a chant.  Their day was worse.  Now Mootilda and the chickens were fretting together to the max, until Mootilda decided to use her moomaw's remedy to relax.

They were all enjoying ice cream in cones when another feathered friend made an error in judgment.  Mootilda was shocked, but then she surprised everyone, including herself.  Moody Mootilda discovered what was always there.

One thing is absolutely certain, authors Corey Rosen Schwartz and Kirsti Call must have laughed themselves silly writing this text.  It's bursting with rhyming and word play.  If a word can be shifted just a bit to include something relating to cows (or another one of the farm crew), it finds a place in their story.

Readers will appreciate the upbeat outlook of the other farm animals with the exception of the chickens.  This supplies the opportunity for contrast with Mootilda's bad mood.  Here is a passage.

"I'm in a bad MOOOD!"

"Hay hay there now, don't have a cow!

We'll get this mess remoooved.

A sooothing swim will cool you down.

Your moood will soon improoove!"

When you look at the matching and open dust jacket and book case, beginning with the front, right, you can't help but laugh.  One glance at the thunderous look on Mootilda's face and you know this cow is having a really bad day.  The swirl of darkness above her head is perfection and a great design choice for the text.  The title text is raised on the jacket.

To the left, on the back, is a similar illustration to one found in the interior of the book.  Mootilda is mooing her discontent along with the clucking cantankerous chickens.  They stand in the sandy barnyard with rolling hills, a fence, and other farm buildings in the distance.  The text reads:

"We're in a bad MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!"

On the opening and closing endpapers are six moods of Mootilda on a white background.  Each is washed in a rainbow color with connecting rainbow dotted lines.  The moods are not happy.  On the title page Mootilda is upright stomping her back hooves in frustration as she waves her arms overhead.

Each image by Claudia Ranucci accentuates the narrative alternating in size and perspective.  We might find ourselves looking at a full-page picture, several smaller visuals on a single page, or dramatic double-page illustrations.  Sometimes we are seeing a panoramic pastoral view.  Other times we are very close to the characters, especially Mootilda.  Readers will find themselves giggling or laughing out loud with every page turn when they see the expressions on the animals' faces.  Careful viewers will understand why the chickens are having a less than stellar day.

One of my many favorite illustrations is the first double-page picture.  Mootilda is declaring her state of emotion to her moomaw in the kitchen in the morning.  The force of her exclamation blows utensils and a canister off the counter.  The cookie jar is overturned, and cookies go flying.  Family portraits on the wall are now crooked.  The refrigerator and cupboards are pink.  Cow drawings hang on the fridge.  Mootilda's stuffed toy cow is on the floor, forgotten for the moment.

It's perfectly normal to be grumpy from time to time.  In Mootilda's Bad Mood written by Corey Rosen Schwartz and Kirsti Call with illustrations by Claudia Ranucci, we see how incidents sometimes happen not as desired, but our perspective can make all the difference.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional collections.  

To learn more about Corey Rosen Schwartz, Kirsti Call, and Claudia Ranucci, and their other work, please follow the link attached to their name to access their website or their agency's website.  It appears that Claudia Ranucci has a website in Spanish, linked here.  Corey Rosen Schwartz has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Kirsti Call has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Claudia Ranucci has an account on Instagram.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images.  There are also interior images to see at Simon & Schuster.  This book and its creators are featured on Picture Book Look.  Author Kirsti Call is highlighted at Book Q &As with Deborah Kalb, at author Vivian Kirkfield's site, and at GROG.

When cherished collaborators return, we cheer.  In a companion title to Holy Cow, I Sure Do Love You! author illustrator Tom Lichtenheld and the late Amy Krouse Rosenthal return with an ode to the affection between a parent and child.  Moo-Moo, I Love You! (Abrams Books for Young Readers, September 22, 2020) is moo-velous in every respect.  

Moo-moo, I love you.

I love you no matter your moo-d.

In all six named moods from good to bad, and sad to silly and two in-between, this child knows they are loved.  This mom loves to share things with her child, food, funny jokes, and dancing to their special music.  Best of all, this mom thinks their refrigerator door, and sides, is a 

moo-seum.

Like moms everywhere, this mom loves to see her child enjoying the company of friends as they wait for the school bus.  She notices how her child has the gift of gab, and that of being a good listener.  She continues with a statement regarding the size of her love for her child.

She compares it to being as big as a moose!  The child is astonished.  That's a lot of love.  (The moose needs to be encouraged to move.)

Mom and cow child begin a long journey because there isn't anything this mom won't do to show her love.  They might, if it is a long trip, get assistance from a farmer's hay truck.  At day's end, this mom closes with a universal sign of affection, a promise to recreate a nursery rhyme, and the best phrase in the whole, wide world.

The words in this lovable volume penned by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld place a heavy, hilarious emphasis on the word moo.  It's popcorn at the 

moo-vies.

It's 

sch-moo-zing 

with friends.

With each page turn, we anticipate another round of word play, and we are not disappointed.  The child gets in the last word as they are being carried to bed.

When you open the dust jacket you are immediately drawn to the red on the front, right.  These are the colors you see throughout the book, black and white, and splashes of red with spot color in other hues.  (The illustrations within the book are placed on heavy, matte-finished brown paper.)  The title text on the jacket is textured and varnished.  The mother and child are varnished as is the pink heart on top of their heads.

To the left, on the back, four moods of the child are shown, two on the top and two on the bottom beneath the words:

A book for those you love, no matter their moo-d.

The book case is black and white, like a close-up of the cows' bodies.  The opening and closing endpapers on brown are patterned with a splattering of tiny red hearts.  These surround the mother and child doing a variety of dance moo-ves.

Prior to the double-page picture for the title page is a full page where the book owner can place their name under

This book belongs to-moo:

The title spans both pages.  On the left, the mother's upper body and head are under the o and v in love.  The child, on the right, is placed under the y and o in you.

For every page turn, Tom Lichtenheld has a heavier black frame around two pages, as if drawn in crayon.  The illustrations within these frames were rendered

with Pentel brush pen on watercolor paper, with Photoshop color.  Digital tweakage by Kristen Cella.  

Heavy expressive lines convey every moment found in the narrative.  The facial expressions on the child in its moods are hilarious.  Tiny details add to the comedy such as the youngster holding a tiny teddy bear when their moo-d is worried.

Tom Lichtenheld adds wonderful elements to each image.  The cookie jar on top of the refrigerator is patterned like a cow's black and white body.  Every time there is a double o, they are solid black.  Careful readers will wonder about the full title of the book the mother is holding at bedtime.  

One of my many favorite illustrations is when the mother and child are dancing.  On the left side with the text is a turntable on a record stand with speakers on either side on the floor.  Sound bursts from the speakers.  On the right, the two cows, with eyes closed in contentment, have one foot up in mid-dance move with swaying arms.  The younger one is singing to the music with notes moving up and left to the top center of the left side.

Uplifting and joyful, Moo-Moo, I Love You! written by Tom Lichtenheld and the late Amy Krouse Rosenthal with art by Tom Lichtenheld is a book to read each and every day.  It is to be shared.  It is to be gifted.  No collection would be complete without the happiness of this title.

To learn more about Amy Krouse Rosenthal the link attached to her name is her original website.  For further information about her please visit The Amy Krouse Rosenthal Foundation website.  The link attached to Tom Lichtenheld's name will acquaint you with his work.  He also maintains accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  You can view interior images at the publisher's website.

In Search Of The Ideal

Completion of a mental check list is essential.  The contentment found in a long walk by a canine companion is met.  A favorite beverage is close at hand.  Received as a gift, a cozy blanket is ready to offer comfort.  Now the last but the most important item must be found.

It's the foundation upon which joy is discovered; a joy enveloping readers and listeners alike.  The Perfect Seat (Disney Hyperion, November 12, 2019) written by Minh Le with illustrations by Gus Gordon seeks to ensure the final objective is achieved.  It's no easy task for this parent and child but together they find the absolute best place.

Can you read to me?

Those five words in that order, no matter the age of the person requesting or the person hearing the request, are five of the most cherished words in any language.  They are asking for an affectionate connection through story.  This child and father are leaving a book shop with a new book.  They are looking for the perfect seat.

Inside a nearby coffee shop the sofa is entirely too large and a fire hydrant outside is much too little.  A space between two buildings has seen better days and a chair in a store window looks ill-designed for its purpose.  As they travel around the neighborhood opposite extremes seem more prevalent than the excellence they desire.

The seated duo is either too close or too far apart as they journey to the park.  There possibilities, natural and fashioned by human hands, present no welcome outcome.  When it looks as if the father and child have found an agreeable space, a tumble suggests otherwise.

The dejected and water-soaked dad plops down against a tree trunk certain they can't find the perfect seat.  With the infinite wisdom children spring on adults when we need it the most, a leap supplies a solution.  Sometimes with the right perspective, the answer has been there from the beginning.


As a story time aficionado, Minh Le writes with a beautiful blend of short two word statements and a little bit of dialogue.  The comparisons are a welcome invitation into the father and child's dilemma.  These gently lead us to the conclusion we are all hoping they recognize.  What do you think this comparison refers to?  Where do you think they are?

Too Funky.
Too Fancy.


It's only when the dust jacket is open you can determine what the generous sweep of white represents.  (Although it may vary with each viewer.)  The scene continues to the left (back) flap but stops on the right (front) flap to allow space for the introduction.  Careful readers will get their first hint on the jacket of the mediums employed by Gus Gordon for this book.  Can you see the print in the father's antlers and in the clouds?  The title text, father, his child and two insects flying on the back are varnished.

On the book case the sky blue presents the largest area of color.  Along the bottom are white puffy clouds and other thinner clouds above them.  A dotted line begins near the upper left-hand corner of the back and waves over the spine to the center of the front.  The line is made by the red-covered book, case and spine on top, with the pages open and flying like a bird.

On the opening and closing endpapers in a limited color palette, shades of gray with a hint of blue, greens, black and yellow is a map of places the father and child visit looking for the perfect seat.  It's here we get to see some indication of the humor Gus Gordon uses in his images in this book.  The streets are named

street to nowhere interesting and
over here street.

Prior to the title page the pictorial interpretation and narrative begins as the twosome stands in front of

CLAIRE'S BOOKS.

With a page turn the conversation continues and becomes the title as they walk down the street.  The illustrations throughout are rendered

using watercolors, pencils, crayon, and collage.

For each picture, portions are chosen to be bolder and brighter in color with other elements done as drawings with collaged items completing the scene.  Most of the illustrations are on single pages employing large areas of white space for splendid effect.  For emphasis and pacing three visuals are shown on two pages.  The details in the lines and facial expressions are fascinating and at times hilarious.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is a full-page picture.  It is for the words

Too short.

All we can see of the father is from his chest down on the left standing with his hands (hooves) by his side.  His child, holding the red book in both hands (hooves) is smiling.  He is looking at a tablecloth covered table on the grass.  On top of the table is a teapot and two cups and saucers.  One mouse is seated at the table.  The other mouse is standing up and offering its chair to the moose parent and child.


You can't help smiling when you read The Perfect Seat written by Minh Le with illustrations by Gus Gordon.  Everything about it, the words and artwork, is charming and brimming with truth.  It's ideal like the seat finally found.  It's a story time, bedtime and any time treasure.  I can already imagine the conversations about readers' and listeners' favorite places to read aloud.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Minh Le and Gus Gordon and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their respective websites.  Minh Le has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  Gus Gordon has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.

A Parental Pause

As an educator in an elementary school you are privy to all sorts of student announcements.  As soon as they enter your classroom, if they have news, it will eagerly burst forth from their lips.  One of their favorite declarations is the birth of a new member in their family.

Most of them wear the cloak of mentorship with pride. They are happy to be the newly christened older sister or brother.  They acknowledge the changes already happening in their home.  Babymoon (Candlewick Press, April 2, 2019) written by Hayley Barrett with illustrations by Juana Martinez-Neal (Alma and How She Got Her Name) is dedicated to the precious time when parents and their new child are becoming acquainted and building a relationship.

The house is hushed.  The lights are low.
We're basking in a newborn glow.

The note we post says SEE YOU SOON.

Baby, mother and father are on their babymoon.  They ease into the morning, snoozing when they can.  Time is taken to read stories and play games.  Every little baby moment and movement is a cherished delight.

Before a snuggling noon nap, the trio share a special sweet treat.  Upon waking, it's warm water, soap and suds, it's bath time for baby.  Putting on the diaper is tricky for unpracticed parental hands.

Every gesture by mother and father is cozy and comforting, done with care.  The trio is pleasantly surprised at all the newness.  Hours pass until the day is coming to a close.  Night nestles around the home.  A lullaby is softly sung.

When the next day dawns, the joy begins anew.  There will be stories, naps, games, naps, baths, naps, diaper changes and lullabies to greet another night.  For mother, father and baby it's the bliss of their babymoon.


The gentle, soothing words penned by Hayley Barrett envelope readers with the first alliterative sentence.  This sense of serenity is continued with each rhyming embrace.  Every two lines, on each page turn, creates a calming cadence.  To complete this feeling of freshly acquired harmony Hayley Barrett closes using the same two rhyming words as she did in the beginning; we are part of a loving circle.  Here are two more sentences.

Our long-awaited dream---is you.
Amazed at all we thought we knew.


The words of this beautiful ode are elevated on the front of the dust jacket.  It's circles within circles; the mother cradling the child and the father wrapping his arms around them both.  Small circles, moons, are carefully placed around the trio.  The color palette, medium choices, line work and brush strokes combine to supply us with tranquility.  To the left, on the back, the family dog is curled around the family cat as the duo peacefully sleep.

On a lighter canvas large circles in varying shades of soft yellow pattern the back and front of the book case.  In the center of the front, tucked in a tiny yellow and white-striped blanket is the baby.  Eyes closed and hands clasped the baby sleeps among the moons.

A light hue of golden yellow covers the opening and closing endpapers.  Rendered in acrylic, colored pencil, and graphite on handmade textured paper the illustrations by Juana Martinez-Neal are a delicate portrait encompassing affection.  In the first of her double-page images we see the family's home.  A clothesline stretches from the house to a tree.  Hanging from the tree is a tire swing.  The sign reading SEE YOU SOON is three boards attached together by string.  A bird's nest is on the porch roof.  Vines grow around the doorway.  Everything about this picture says this is a happy homes full of hospitality.

Throughout the book, the double-page pictures on heavier, matte-finished paper are filled with exquisite details (and hints of Juana Martinez-Neal's birth country).  The facial features as each person gazes at the other are brimming with love.  Each visual has curves of compassion in them.  The line of the cat's tail follows the shape of the father's head.  The curve of the dog's body follows the curve of the rug and curve of the father's arms around the baby.  The presence of the cat and dog in the home and their place around the baby indicate the thoughtful and tender nature of the parents.

One of my many, many favorite pictures takes place in the kitchen in front of a big window and a row of lower cupboards.  In the corner of the window on the sill is a short, round vase full of flowers.  On the counter are two cups of tea.  Perched on the corner is the cat, watching. The mother has the sleeping baby cupped in her arms.  The father is holding a piece of birth day cake on a plate in one hand and feeding the mother a piece with the other hand.  The dog is intently staring hoping a crumb will drop.


Everything about this book, Babymoon written by Hayley Barrett with illustrations by Juana Martinez-Neal, makes it one to cherish.  It welcomes with infinite kindness and wonder the arrival of a baby.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional book shelves.  This title is certain to become a family treasure.

To learn more Hayley Barrett and Juana Martinez-Neal and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Hayley Barrett has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  Juana Martinez-Neal has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  At the publisher's website you can view an interior image.  At Penguin Random House you are given a peek of the first few page turns.  Hayley Barrett and Juana Martinez-Neal are guests on The Children's Book Podcast with Matthew Winner.  Hayley Barrett is interviewed about her work and this book at Picture Book Builders.  Author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson features the book at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.

UPDATE:  Juana Martinez-Neal is featured at author and school librarian Carter Higgins' site, Design Of The Picture Book, on May 7, 2019.

Always

Does it have a beginning?  Does it have an ending?  There is indeed a history attached to its measurement.  There are established methods of calculation.  How is it, then, the shortest amount can seem to last longer than the larger amount?  In other words, why can five minutes feel like five hours and why does eight hours seem to whoosh past in mere minutes?  Time is a constant, tick-tocking along, but it appears we can't capture it to fit our wants and needs.

Each situation, each moment, in which we experience life determines the value of time.  Age figures in the appreciation given to time but children are known to have great insight into its preciousness.  Forever or a Day (Chronicle Books, March 27, 2018) written and illustrated by Sarah Jacoby is the detailed descriptions, careful musings and earnest explorations of the concept of time by a child.

If you look closely you can see it.

As a child looks out an apartment window a truck with TIMES on its side putters by on the empty street as the early morning sun's rays color the buildings.  He continues to assess time by realizing sometimes we take our time and in other situations it's gone before we have a chance to grasp it.  There are people who allow it to dictate everything they do.  Others go with the flow.

As a train curves away from the city, the boy thinks becoming old is nearly unimaginable.  For musicians time is a cadence used to fashion the flow of a melody.  Have you ever waited and waited and waited for what you know is going to be wonderful?  Have you ever thought this is taking forever?

Suddenly forever vanishes.  You are greeted by those who feel the same anticipation. The entire day is shared from sunrise to sunset.  You wish, you hope with all your heart, time would stop.

The group gathers around a fire stretching the moments into longer rather than less.  A breathtaking starry vista spans above you until goodbyes are said.  It's a return, pajamas and bed but one final phrase is the true test of time well spent.


Every thoughtful sentence written by Sarah Jacoby in this title rings with realism.  These phrases are not long but a back and forth rhythm is supplied by the comparisons.  This child's assessment of time allows readers to bring into focus its many definitions. Here are two separate sentences.

It can be precise, like pouring the first cup of tea, or picking the perfect shoe.

Perhaps it is a ghost---
it can come and go
and you never even notice it was there.


The gorgeous dust jacket contains an image which goes from flap edge to flap edge, left to right.  On the left the golden sky with streaks of red hangs above a line of evergreen trees.  As this moves to the right the city appears between a basin formed before another row of trees begins.  In front of the trees and city you realize the large area is water.  The two children hands nearly clasping swing their toes and make circles in the water as they sit on the dock.

The book case is covered in a soft black with speckles of stars, one shooting across the sky.  A moon is rising on the horizon.  The children are in the same spot nearly hidden by the darkness.  The opening and closing endpapers are the same soft black with shades of purple and a bit of blue on the background.  Four rows show different phases of the moon.

A page turn portrays the TIMES truck moving along the street.  A rolled-up newspaper is tossed out.  Another page turn has the verso and title pages hosting a continuation of the city street as dawn slides into the city.  Someone walks a dog as street lights glow.

Rendered in watercolor, NuPastel, and mixed media these illustrations bring to mind a single word, hushed.  The use of the medium noted provides a soft texture.  Light and shadow are used masterfully.  Tiny delicate elements ask readers to pause.  Size of pictures and point of view varies giving us smooth pacing.  A wordless picture will have you gasping.


One of my many favorite illustrations covers two pages. On the left a glow is surrounded by a grove of trees.  Two bears are climbing among the trees.  On the right another glow, this from a bright crackling fire, lightens more trees.  Another bear, a group of deer and a fox move toward the people and music from a guitar.


No matter how often you read this book, Forever or a Day written and illustrated by Sarah Jacoby, you will feel the same.  As you read this a sense of deep calm builds within you.  The statements on time are like a lullaby.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Sarah Jacoby and her other work, please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  (If Mulan could see the illustration on the first page of her site, she would be howling with joy.)  You'll want to stop by author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson's Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast to view an interior image and to read her review at Kirkus.  Sarah's publisher Chronicle has a post titled 13 Questions with Debut Children's Book Author, Sarah Jacoby.  Sarah is featured at Professional Book Nerds podcast.  Sarah Jacoby has an account on Twitter and Instagram.


(And now I think I'll listen again to Jim Croce's Time in a Bottle.)

A Terrifying Tale

There are not many things better than gathering around a campfire on a summer's night.  The only sounds, if you listen, are crickets chirping out calls, coyotes yipping in the distance or the occasional owl hoot.  You have either snagged one of the few chairs or you're one of several seated on a stump or a long log.  This is a first-class setting for a session of storytelling.  This is a night for scary stories; the scarier the better.

If the bugs are bothering you or a sudden rainstorm moves into the area, a tent with a lantern at its center is a cozy substitute.  You snuggle in your sleeping bag ready for a case of the shivers.  Big Bunny (Chronicle Books, March 20, 2018) written and illustrated by Rowboat Watkins is a witty salute to humankind's grand oral tradition.

Once upon a time,
there was a BIG BUNNY.

A ginormously SCARY bunny?

In reply to this question the bunny is not ginormously scary but simply big.  He does not live on an oversized floating carrot as the listener suggests but on a regular planet like our Earth.  And the carrots growing on this celestial sphere are completely typical carrots.  None of them will be winning any carrot competitions for size.

The listener is getting discouraged at the ho-hum quality of the plot.  Are there going to be any scary parts?  No matter what the teller says, it's not even close to being scary.  Even the introduction of trucks, bridges and trucker penguins does not heighten the listener's interest until the teller gives up.  Now the roles are reversed.

The action kicks into high gear.  That Big Bunny consumes all the bridges and all the trucks and he is still hungry.  (He does not eat the penguins because giraffes driving buses help them escape to Florida.) He inhales all the buildings and he is still hungry.  At this point the first teller asks for a pause, saying all this hunger and eating is worrisome.  What the second teller says next will either have you laughing out loud or shaking in your proverbial boots.


We all know there will be times when what the teller tells and what the listener perceives are two entirely different things.  The intentions of the teller are necessary for consideration also.  Rowboat Watkins delivers a masterful example of these discrepancies in this title. The conversational exchange between the first voice and the second voice are absolutely spot-on and downright hilarious.  When the second voice takes over the narrative, you can feel the tension building toward something.  You're not sure what it is but this makes the twist even more delicious.  Here is a passage.

BIG BUNNY ATE TEN 
CARROTS in ONE! BITE!
Not scary.
Without CHEWING!
Still not scary.
TWENTY carrots?
Nope.
TWO HUNDRED carrots?
Sorry.   


Looking at the unfolded dust jacket the reader can come to only one conclusion (well, maybe two).  This bunny is huge or the illustrator is playing with perception.  Look at that open mouth!  Look at those teeth!  There is nothing cute about that enormous nose.  To the left, on the back, our eyes are shocked by a fluffy tail taking up most of the space. 

The black background on the book case highlights the gazillion tiny carrots displayed.  The opening and closing endpapers are a visual contrast in point of view.  On the first against a blue sky peppered with white clouds are two large, very large, bunny ears, one on each side of the gutter.  Much smaller ears appear at the end against a nighttime sky.  On the title page the top of a large bunny head with ears, viewed from its back, frames the text.

Most of the images, pieced together with this & that, span two pages.  In this way, with shifts in perspective, Rowboat Watkins is able to depict the various storytelling techniques of the narrators.  Each picture welcomes study.  You need to look at all the details realizing their purpose.

One of my many favorite illustrations is across two pages.  The Big Bunny is lying on his side, his larger than large belly bloated from eating more carrots than you can imagine. His ears nearly touch the left side and his body with his feet extends over two-thirds of the right side.  His eyes are crossed in discomfort.  The trucks carrying all the carrots with a large carrot logo on their side are scattered about him like empty candy wrappers.  He has a truck in each paw and one rests on his stomach.  Peculiar noises are coming from his body.


If you want fun and funny all rolled into one singular story, Big Bunny written and illustrated by Rowboat Watkins is exactly what readers will want.  The pacing and humor are excellent.  This is certain to be a story time favorite.  I highly recommend this for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Rowboat Watkins and his other work, please visit his website by following the link attached to his name.  Rowboat maintains a Facebook page.  Rowboat is a guest at author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson's Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.  He has loads of process art for this title.  He was previously a guest at Elizabeth Dulemba's website.

Creative Destinations

Even thinking about it makes individuals smile.  It can be a day or a month.  It's welcome any time of the year.  It's a shift in the established routine.  It's a vacation!

Sometimes a shift in the established routine does not signal a vacation.  Sometimes grownups need to leave for a few days without their children.  Mama's Business Trip Bunny's Staycation (Scholastic Press, January 30, 2018) written and illustrated by Lori Richmond is about a little guy and his very inventive papa.

Mama is going away
on a business trip . . .
and Bunny doesn't like it one bit.

He knows daily rituals simply won't be the same without her.  Looking at her packed suitcase, Bunny has an idea.  Without the suitcase Mama can't go.  Although his six possible plans to make the suitcase disappear might work, a more brilliant thought comes to mind.  What if he goes with Mama?

With his very own suitcase packed he is ready but disappointment quickly follows. Mama can't bring Bunny.  She assures him she will return in five days.  Unable to stop crying during story time at bedtime, his papa tells him they are going to go someplace little bunnies can go.  They'll leave first thing tomorrow.

In the morning Bunny and Papa get to work.  With a large box, paper, scissors, tape, crayons, cardboard tubes, and ribbon they design a means for seeking and having one adventure after another. For the following three days the duo enjoy fun in a variety of specific spaces found around the world until on the last day, Bunny can't handle his missing mama.

Papa makes a suggestion but Bunny has another brilliant thought.  Father and son create through the rest of the day and into the night.  It's finally Friday!  Mama is happily surprised when she walks into the house.  Life really is one adventure after another.


From beginning to end readers of all ages can identify with the characters in this story.  Through Bunny's thoughts and voice (plus Mama and Papa), Lori Richmond speaks to the loss children feel when their parents have to leave and also to the mixed emotions of those parents leaving home and those parents staying behind with their children.  There is a simple truth in Bunny's words and brilliant thoughts which make us want to reach out and give him a hug.  When Lori Richmond introduces the calendar given to Bunny by his mama and when Papa hatches the plan for their trips, you know this is a loving family.  Here is a passage from the book.

That night, Bunny sniffles all the way through bedtime stories.
"Papa, I wish we could go somewhere little bunnies can go, too."

"Let's do it," said Papa.  "We'll leave in the morning."


That happy-go-lucky grin on Bunny's face on the front of the matching dust jacket and book case is sure to get reader's attention.  You have to wonder what has his attention.  Is it the jumping goldfish?  Is it the picture of Mama hanging above the tub?  Is it his handiwork using the red crayon?  The splash of red for the book title matches Bunny's clothing but also a significant element in many of the images throughout the title.

To the left, on the back, the trio, Bunny, Mama and Papa, are standing together within a lighter circle placed over the washed turquoise background.  Mama's suitcase sits next to her.  On the dust jacket certain portions of the illustrations are varnished.

The opening and closing endpapers in shades of purple are different.  In the first Bunny's drawings are taped to the canvas.  They feature all of his favorite things.  The closing endpapers are a mixture of photographs and parts of the adventures.  Both sets are sure to make readers grin.

Rendered in ink and watercolor and composited digitally Lori Richmond begins her visual interpretation of the story on the title page.  Bunny is happily making the creations featured on his bedroom wall.  The verso and first page show Papa working on his computer as Mama packs for her trip.  Bunny is looking gloomy.

The sizes of the images shift to enhance the flow of the narrative.  Two-page pictures change to single page illustrations or a series of smaller pictures are grouped on two pages.  Lori Richmond tends to make her characters bolder in the pictures, fading other items somewhat.  The most important details reach out to the reader initially.

You will find yourself pausing to look at the little extra touches in the visuals.  Bunny is always wearing a yellow cape and the homemade purple crown.  On the backs of all the electronic devices is a carrot with its leafy top.  A Bun Voyage sticker is on Mama's suitcase.  Bunny has bunny slippers on the floor in his bedroom.  Humor comes in the imaginary attempts of Bunny to make Mama's suitcase vanish or when the family goldfish is leaping into the toilet.

A favorite of many pictures spans two pages.  It's a close up of Bunny and Papa ready for their first adventure.  The cardboard car fills nearly all the right side, crosses the gutter and into the left side.  Papa is pushing the back of the car on the left. This vehicle is brimming with all types of materials needed to fashion their fantastical spaces, their staycations.  Bunny, as is Papa, is smiling.  He holds the calendar given to him by his mama.  These two are ready for action.


You will find yourself smiling as you close the cover of Mama's Business Trip Bunny's Staycation written and illustrated by Lori Richmond.  Each of these characters is genuine in their love for each other and in their willingness to make the best of a less than ideal situation.  And I guarantee after reading this book, you have to have, at the very least, materials ready for creative hands.  A box large enough to hold a passenger would be perfect.  Get ready for requests of repeat reading of this title you will want to have in your professional and personal collections.

If you desire to know more about Lori Richmond and her other work, please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  At this website on the page for this book, Lori has another link you will want to follow. Lori maintains an account at Instagram.  Lori is highlighted at Your Creative Push.  On Our Minds, Scholastic's blog about books and the joy of reading, has a post about this title and other ideas for parents needing to be away from home.  Enjoy the videos.

Driving Through Gray

It's been raining off and on for days over the past two weeks but yesterday and today it's been raining for almost twenty hours.  Our thirsty ground is sighing with pure happiness.  Vibrant green lawns now carpet the neighborhood.  The soothing, steady sound of the rain on the roof and windows is a reminder of the power of weather.

For those traveling under the gray skies, rain and evening fog, caution is taken on the highways, roads and streets.  Home in the Rain (Candlewick Press, June 13, 2017) written and illustrated by Australian Bob Graham is about a journey on such a night.  The ordinary is transformed into memorable moments.

"Goodbye, Grandma."
"Goodbye, Francie," said Grandma.  "You both take care.
It's wet out there and such a long way home."

Francie and her mom are driving through rain so heavy traffic slows.  Their windshield wipers are unable to keep up with the flow.  A huge truck and trailer sends up a blast of water as it passes moving them into a picnic area.

Animals in the field are finding shelter from the rain.  A bird of prey can't seem to find the meal it is seeking.  Fishermen are drenched but ducks happily swim in the canal.

Home is far away for Francie, her Mom and Baby Sister.  (Her Mom is pregnant.)  As their car's glass fogs, Francie writes three names on the windows.  Daddy, out working at sea, covers the entire front windshield.

As mother and daughter take a much needed rest and eat a lunch packed by Francie's grandmother, they chat about a possible name for the baby.  They wonder about her arrival and when Francie's dad will come home.  Miles and miles closer to home, Francie and her mom stop with other travelers.  No one else notices what happens there but Francie will carry it in her heart and mind always.


When Bob Graham frames this story, he does so within the larger setting in which it takes place.  By doing this we can understand and appreciate how life-changing events can take place surrounded by normalcy.  He explains the exact activities of wildlife, the fishermen at the canal and those people stopped at the service station. He gives us their names to bring us into the same scene as Francie and her mom.  These observations are maintained as the journey continues to indicate the passage of time. Here is a sample passage.

Young Marcus, water
running down his neck,
his fingers smelling of bait,
wished he were somewhere else . . .

while the water ran off the
backs of ducks.


Although the images featured on the front and the back of the matching, opened dust jacket and book case take place at different times, Bob Graham creates them as a single illustration.  He does this by extending the background of the countryside and the berry brambles, wildflowers and field animals in the front over the spine to the back.  The truck we see on the front is driving in from the left on the back.  Francie and her mom are in the little red car on the right of the jacket and case but they are also standing at a critical instance on the left, much closer to readers, as if we are being given a peek at the future within the current context of the rainy highway.

Rendered in watercolor and ink the pictures give readers a panoramic, birds-eye-view of some scenes across two pages, more intimate visuals grouped together on a single page, and single page pictures.  Some of the two-page images are close to a particular moment as when the large truck and trailer whooshes by Francie and her mom.  We are well aware of the constant rain and overcast sky but Bob Graham also includes spots of color in clothing and vehicles.

It is in the details we are further captivated by this story.  On the wall of Grandma's home hangs a painting of a kestrel, a bird mentioned within the narrative.  Each time we see the canal with the fishermen and little Marcus, the ducks have moved farther down the waterway.  On the overhead highway signage one of the signs reads:

A1 Francie's
House.

A tiny snail clings to a blade of grass overlooking the highway scene below the hill.  As Francie and her mom walk back to their car from inside the station we are given an overview of the area.  On one wall someone has written in large letters HOP.  A small e is tucked in the right-hard corner.

One of my many favorite illustrations is when Francie and her mom stop at the picnic area.  The perspective is of them sitting inside the car.  Francie has moved up front with her mom.  They both have their shoes off and their lunch is finished.  Francie is lying down with her head on her mom's stomach, feeling her tiny sister moving inside.  On the back right window we can see where Francie has written her name.  This is a very personal moment; a snapshot of love.


In a word Home in the Rain written and illustrated by Bob Graham is beautiful.  In this story he reminds readers how in the most everyday circumstances brief minutes of sheer wonder exist.  I am looking forward to reading this aloud with students.  I highly recommend it for your professional shelves and personal collections.  The Children's Book Council of Australia gave it The Picture Book Of The Year award.

To take a peek at interior images visit the publisher's website (Penguin Random House) here and (Candlewick Press) here.  At Walker Books are printable Classroom Ideas pages. Enjoy this video by Candlewick Press of Bob Graham talking about picture books.


Author and illustrator Bob Graham discusses picture books from Candlewick Press on Vimeo.

Hanging On To The Day

There are some days, make that most days, when you stretch every minute.  You are not ready to go to sleep.  Everything, big and small, feels important, sometimes downright magical.  If you are one of those glass-half-full people, a bunch of little things can add up to one huge spectacular day.

The grass overnight is frosted lacy white, a robin (Why has this bird not flown south?) sends out a morning chirp, book mail arrives, you take a nap on a pile of bedding with your sweet puppy, a cup of hot Good Hope Vanilla tea warms you from head to toe, a stack of picture books you read has you marveling at the gifts of authors and illustrators and the sun shines all day long before a sliver of moon glows brightly are reasons for putting off bedtime as long as possible.  It Is Not Time For Sleeping: (A Bedtime Story) (Clarion Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, November 1, 2016) written by Lisa Graff with illustrations by Lauren Castillo highlights a little guy who continues to welcome one more thing in his day's string of events regardless of how ordinary they are.  His outlook on the day's end will have you longing to join him.

When I've munched and crunched my last three carrots (except for one I fed to Jasper), Mom takes my plate.  
"It's been a good day," she says.
"It is a good day," I tell her.

In the boy's mind there is still plenty left in this day.  Sleeps need to wait its turn.  His dad remarks on the darkness of the sky as they wash dishes together but is it really bedtime dark yet?  Bath time and splashing with Jasper last until water wrinkles skin.

Clad in his favorite footie pajamas, covered in bears, the boy puts on his best bear act for his puppy pal.  It can't be time for sleeping.  It's not even close yet.  A playful teeth-brushing routine leaves him still convinced but wait...is that a yawn?

Jasper and the boy exchange beloved signs of affection as Mom does what Mom's do best at bedtime.  Dad becomes a teller of tales. It seems as though it is time for sleeping now but the boy is not quite ready.  There is one more essential thing never to be forgotten.  May the sweetest of dreams be granted to one and all.


With each interlude of the evening Lisa Graff supplies a rhythm of parental observations and the boy's replies.  As each activity is enjoyed the previous ones are added to the narrative reminiscent of a nursery rhyme.  By having the boy give the same answer each time, Graff opens the door, welcoming another stop on the trip toward sleep.  The blend of conversation between parents and child and the boy's point of view, provides a soothing atmosphere and allows readers to see the shared love.  Here is a passage.

When dinner is over and the dishes are scrubbed and
I'm squeaky-squeak clean and zipped up to my chin,
Dad holds me by my ankles while I brush my teeth,
top ones on bottom and bottom on top.
"Getting tired, silly goose?" Dad asks my feet.
I yawn an upside-down yawn.  "Nope," I tell him.

It is not time for sleeping. 


When you first look at the front of the dust jacket I know every single one of you will sigh.  The boy reaching for his dog Jasper and Jasper looking into his eyes is wonderfully charming whether you are a dog lover or not.  The spotlight effect draws our eyes exactly where they need to be; focused on this boy and his dog.  I don't know about you but I would love to wallpaper a bedroom in the star and moon wallpaper featured here.  To the left, on the back, five stars bookend a crescent moon.

The book case is a light sea green shade with a wide yellow spine.  The only element is on the front.  It's a silhouette of the boy and his dog, Jasper, looking at the reader beneath the title text.  The opening and closing endpapers are a dark midnight blue with the tiny stars' and moons' wallpaper.  On the title page the silhouette shown on the case is in full color under the text.  On the verso the dog and child are leaping and reaching toward the wording.

Lauren Castillo's signature heavier black lines edge all the elements in her illustrations rendered in

ink and watercolor on Arches Hot Press paper.

All of the pictures span two pages with the exception of four and the final page, a visual within a circle.  The heavier matte-finished paper is ideal for the textured effect created by Lauren.  It's as if you can feel the fabric on the clothing, the flooring, the fur on the dog, the towels, the flannel pajamas and the boy's bedspread patterned in clouds and red airplanes.

I adore every single picture in this book!  One of my favorite scenes is of the dad sitting in a rocking chair reading a story to his son.  Jasper is curled and sleeping at his feet.  Just enough light shines in back of the dad.  On the left-hand side the boy is snugged in bed with the covers up to his nose.  He is intently listening but starting to relax toward slumber.


It Is Not Time For Sleeping: (A Bedtime Story) a debut picture book for author Lisa Graff with illustrations by Caldecott Honor winner Lauren Castillo is a bedtime treasure.  I know readers will request repeated readings if they are not already asleep.  It's a lullaby of love.

To discover more about Lisa Graff and Lauren Castillo and their other works, please visit their websites by following the links attached to their names.  Lisa Graff and Lauren Castillo chat with each other at Watch. Connect. Read., the blog of Scholastic's Ambassador of School Libraries, John Schumacher.  Stop by Publishers Weekly to read Friends and Now Collaborators:  Lisa Graff and Lauren Castillo Interview Each Other.  You can get a peek at two interior images by going to the HMH Young Readers Blog.  Enjoy the tweets.

#Bookaday It Is Not Time for Sleeping is a PERFECT & BEAUTIFULLY DESIGNED bedtime story. Congrats, @studiocastillo! https://t.co/RY5gXZi0X5

— John Schu (@MrSchuReads) March 5, 2016

Love the wallpaper in It Is Not Time for Sleeping: https://t.co/WJA3STnbCu

— John Schu (@MrSchuReads) March 5, 2016

The cover of IT IS NOT TIME FOR SLEEPING is so shiny!! ✨✨✨⭐️🌙⭐️✨✨✨ @lisagraff @HMHKids https://t.co/fcxS9t6BE0

— Lauren Castillo (@studiocastillo) April 8, 2016

Some behind the scenes of #itisnottimeforsleeping on Amazon. Only 3 months till pub day! :) https://t.co/3Gx8Pkf32R pic.twitter.com/CEO6h8n5sP

— Lauren Castillo (@studiocastillo) August 1, 2016

I LOVE It Is Not Time for Sleeping's case. https://t.co/5CPjQjMQ30 @studiocastillo #taslcon2016

— John Schu (@MrSchuReads) November 3, 2016

The Balloons Have It!

Certainly time is not passing more quickly but lately stopping the clock every so often is becoming more appealing.  Each year the amount of truly wonderful children's books being published is astounding.  Stacks of books in my home reveal titles from previous years yet to be read.

Two publications from 2015 speak directly to children.  The first, The Wonderful Things You Will Be (Random House, August 25, 2015) written and illustrated by Emily Winfield Martin is the joyful voice of a parent wondering about their child.  It's Tough To Lose Your Balloon (Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children's Books, September 8, 2015), the second title, written and illustrated by Jarrett J. Krosoczka asks readers to look for the silver lining in possible situations.  If you are asking yourself why these two books are paired together here, the answer is simple.  They both have balloons on the cover and within the book.  Like balloons these books will lift you up and up, higher and higher.

When I look at you
And you look at me,
I wonder what wonderful
Things you will be.  

From birth a parent reassures a child of their worth.  Even at this early age this parent is sure this little being is going to be someone special to know.  No one else in the world is the same as this unique individual.

A beginning, especially a new life, offers many possibilities.  Will this child be strong to right a wrong?  Will this child sing a new song?  There might be new tales told.  There might be seeds planted to make a garden grow.

Perhaps new heights will be reached to get a better perspective.  Maybe tiny creatures will flourish under this child's tender care.  Without a doubt certain characteristics will help this child to be the best they can be.

Even in the face of adversity this child, this splendid child, will prevail.  This child, whatever they decide to become, will be loved.  And this child will know it.


Of the four lines written the second and fourth end with rhyming words flowing from verse to verse like a melody.  Emily Winfield Martin's gentle poetic narrative is soothing and supportive.  It looks forward hopefully.  Here is another sample passage.

For all of your tininess
Couldn't disguise
A heart so enormous...
And wild...
and wise. 

The theme of a child gently rising with a handful of balloons is carried through to the back, on the left, of the dust jacket.  Some of the text from the interior is placed there between two children each holding a balloon as they float among the clouds.  A canvas of white affords a cheerful display of colorful balloons drifting upward on the book case.  A single squirrel clothed in orange trousers is holding a red balloon rising with the rest.  On the opening and closing endpapers Emily Winfield Martin, on a background of white, in three rows with a repeating pattern, features eleven different toddlers with varying ethnicity.

Most of the illustrations span two pages.  The others are a delightful blend of single page images or smaller pictures grouped together.  Martin varies her background shades but favors white to draw our attention to the children.

Tiny details are sure to give readers pause; Humpty Dumpty sitting at the table for a tea party, mice are playing their own instruments beneath the car as a child band warms up in a garage, and a boy is reading Emily Winfield Martin's first book, Dream Animals, to some children.  Near the end a stunning four-page fold-out acts first as a curtain on a stage.  Opened it reveals a line of fifteen children all in costume playing out their signature roles.

One of my favorite illustrations is three children working together having created a community garden in the city.  Raised beds are home to fruits, vegetable and flowers.  Squirrels and pigeons are keeping them company.  Two boys are on the left planting seeds as a girl walks toward them from the right carrying a watering can and an arm full of flowers.  In this picture, in all the pictures, the clothing the children are wearing is realistic but adorable in patterns of strips or polka-dots or soft plain hues.  One is wearing a bear costume.




It's tough to 
lose your balloon...
...but it'll make
Grandma smile
from the sky.

Imagine yourself spending a day at the beach.  After romping in the sand, water and sun you have worked up a powerful hunger.  Then, to your dismay, you drop your sandwich...in the sand.  How can you turn this around to make it positive?

Things can get broken.  An accidental tromp in a puddle will leave you with wet shoes.  What if you don't eat your ice cream cone fast enough on a hot summer's day?  There are inventive, easy-as-pie answers for each one of these mishaps.

Personal experience teaches adults that the slightest boo-boo calls for the best bandage in one of many boxes on hand.  New people can be frightening but turn out to be truly fun, if given a chance.  All we need to remember is without the rain there can be no rainbows.


Each incident proposed by Jarrett J. Krosoczka is as normal as sunrise and sunset.  Children all around the world have these things happen to them.  That's what makes his single sentences broken apart by a page turn, endearing in their ordinariness.  Those moments between disaster and joy give us a chance to choose.  Here's one more passage.

It's the worst to
have wet shoes...
...but it's the best
to go barefoot.  


From the front of the matching dust jacket and book case, it's plain to see this little guy is dismayed.  One minute he is happy.  In the next minute the item giving him this joy is gone.  To the left on the back, Jarrett J. Krosoczka has taken the red from the balloon using it as a background for words of wisdom in white.

When life
gets you down,
look
up,

up, 

up!

The opening and closing endpapers provide the beginning and conclusion of the story.  On the first, outside a park entrance, a boy is receiving a balloon from a vendor as his father watches.  For the verso and title page we zoom in on his smiling face, walking proudly and carrying his balloon, which holds the title text and the author/illustrator name.  

Strong black lines drawn freely outline the elements in all the illustrations.  Bright colors on the left are the background for the beginning of the sentence and the single page image on the right depicts the oops-why-did-this-happen event.  These are partially colored.  Two pages follow filled with bright hues.  

Krosoczka's children are fully animated especially when they discover the goodness which can follow the right outlook.  Our concentration turns to the smiling faces due to his layout and design.  Careful readers will detect other examples of small kindnesses within his illustrations.

One of my favorite pictures is of the girl going barefoot.  It recalls the pure bliss of walking on grass, shoes and socks scattered.  She is laughing out loud and grinning away with a front tooth missing as she swings as high as she can on the swing set.  Our perspective is of the feet coming toward us.  

Both The Wonderful Things You Can Be written and illustrated by Emily Winfield Martin and It's Tough To Lose Your Balloon written and illustrated by Jarrett J. Krosoczka are titles asking to be shared...repeatedly.  As you read each one you can feel a lightness filling you up.  You might even start to reach for a balloon to act as your guide.  They will both prompt discussions on the choices we make at any age.  At the close of his title, Krosoczka speaks about the spark leading to his book.  

To learn more about these talented authors/illustrators please follow the links attached to their names to access either their websites or in the case of Emily her blog.  At the publisher's website you can view interior pictures from It's Tough To Lose Your Balloon.  Scholastic's Ambassador for School Libraries, John Schumacher, premiered the book trailer on his blog, Watch. Connect. Read.  Jarrett J. Krosoczka wrote a message for readers there.  Enjoy the book trailer.

They're Here...They're There...They're A Passel Of Penguins

Given their coloration and mannerisms penguins attract a good number of fans.  It's highly unlikely any of my students will ever see them in the wild, considering they reside beneath the equator in the Southern Hemisphere. This does not deter their enthusiasm one little bit.  When Happy Feet was released more than seven years ago, penguins' popularity increased tenfold.

Their body shape, tuxedo-like feather placement coupled with their movement on land make penguins the perfect characters in stories about babies, mothers and family dynamics.  In her debut picture book, Baby Penguins Everywhere (Philomel Books, 2012)  Melissa Guion acquainted readers with a penguin who enjoyed her solitude but did have days when she felt lonely.  Imagine her surprise when she discovered a top hat floating in the water near her ice floe one day.

When first one, then another and yet one more baby penguin popped out of the hat, her astonishment grew.  In short order there were oodles of baby penguins.  Alone and lonely had been replaced with busy, happy and a whole lot of play.

Hold on to your top hats!  Melissa Guion has written and illustrated another title filled with this wonderful Mama and her babies.  Baby Penguins Love Their Mama! (Philomel Books) follows these lively birds during their learning of penguin-ish antics.

Once there was a family of penguins.  A mama penguin...
and lots and lots of baby penguins.


Each day was filled to the brim with activities.  Swimming, sliding and waddling took their proper position at the beginning of the week.  While preening has its place, it wasn't exactly a crowd favorite.

When Friday rolled around it was plain to see the joy on all those penguin faces (and surely their stuffed stomachs were mighty pleased too).  Lessons on fishing were positively popular.  Closing out the week's learning was the best thing of all, squawking.

Taking a much-needed nap after six days of teaching her babies, Mama is filled with pride for each and every one.  After offered words of encouragement, Mama questioned one of the baby penguin's replies.  Little did she know what they had been planning for her?  No one could have asked for a better answer.


The sheer charm of this title is in the simplicity of the text.  Melissa Guion has a gift in stating the known so even the youngest readers can follow the narrative.  Her commentary sentences after the daily statements make readers feel like wanted members of the penguin population.  Every time this title is read it's easy to hear the various voices and sense the range of emotion behind the words.  Here is a single example.

And waddling on Wednesday.
Waddling was harder than it looked.


The first thing you notice when looking at the matching dust jacket and book case is the return of the colorful balls and ribbon seen in the first book.  (They magically appeared from the top hat along with the penguins.)  The illustrations on the front and the back are similar to ones appearing in the body of the title.  Having one of the penguin babies looking at the ISBN is a nice touch.

The shading of the turquoise blue along with the liberal use of white space in the portrayed scenes easily transports readers to the colder region where this penguin family resides.  Details in body movement and facial expression attained with the minimum of lines sets the watercolor and pencil artwork of Melissa Guion apart from others.  Her penguins have pizzazz.

How can you not fall in love with a penguin swimming on his back blowing out a stream of water, penguins building ice castles, a conga line of penguins grasping the colored ribbon, the seal friend who learns along with them, and Mama covering her ears during squawking practice?  Careful readers will notice in several of the illustrations the penguins carefully preparing something special for Mama.  Bringing back the enchanted top hat as an element in many of the pictures adds to the continuity.

I think my favorite two-page illustration is of the squawking on Saturday.  Every single pictured penguin is in a different position and their enthusiasm is evident; so is Mama's tolerance for the noise.  With little effort you can envision the joyful hullabaloo.


Baby Penguins Love Their Mama! written and illustrated by Melissa Guion is a title meant to be shared with others...repeatedly.  It's one of those books which creates a sense of warmth, belonging and security between the reader and listener whether it's one-on-one or with a group.  You can pair it with the titles by Salina Yoon, Penguin and Pinecone, Penguin on Vacation  and Penguin in Love, Kristi Valiant's Penguin Cha-Cha and Toni Buzzeo's and David Small's One Cool Friend.

To learn more about Melissa Guion and her work visit her website by following the link embedded in her name.  Be sure to check out her links.  This title was recently reviewed by author Julie Falatko (Snappsy the Alligator (Did Not Ask to Be in This Book)) on Katie Davis Brain Burps About Books.