Silent Watchers Of The Water

With the understanding there is no other state in the United States with as much freshwater shoreline as Michigan; it's no surprise there are at least one hundred twenty-four lighthouses positioned along the upper and lower peninsulas.   They are designed and constructed in a variety of shapes and sizes with different materials.  Some are tall, towering and highly visible.  Others are shorter and sturdier.  Still others appear as actual houses with a type of tower incorporated into the structure.

The oldest operating lighthouse in Michigan was built in 1825, rebuilt in 1829 and again in 1861.  It guards the entrance to the St. Clair River on Lake Huron.  Can you imagine the stories to be heard if the walls at the Fort Gratiot Lighthouse could speak?  Our lighthouses represent our best efforts to keep travelers and sailors safe regardless of the circumstances.  Hello Lighthouse (Little, Brown and Company, April 10, 2018) written and illustrated by Caldecott Medalist (Finding Winnie:  The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear Little, Brown and Company, October 20, 2015) Sophie Blackall chronicles the life of a lighthouse keeper in a lighthouse standing strong against time.

On the highest rock of a tiny island
at the edge of the world stands a lighthouse.

At the top of the lighthouse a beacon casts its light without ceasing hour after hour.  This story starts with the arrival of a new keeper.  It's his job to polish the lens, refill the oil and trim the wick.  He needs to make sure the clockwork is always wound so the light will keep moving.  Within the pages of a logbook he records his daily activities.

When not tending the light, he paints the walls of the lighthouse rooms, drinks tea, fishes and wishes for company.  He writes letters and waits.  When the next tender comes with food and oil, it also carries a longed-for companion.  Our keeper now has his wife.

Wild winds, crashing storms, thick fog and ice as far as the eye can see, do not deter the keeper.  He rescues sailors whose boat crashes on the rocks.  When he becomes ill, it's his wife who becomes caretaker and keeper.  Everything is noted in the logbook, most importantly the birth of their child.

Years later when the tender comes, it delivers food and oil and a letter.  The life of the keeper, his wife and child are about to change.  The coast guard brings a new lamp.  This new lamp does not need someone to polish the lens, refill the oil and trim a wick.  A machine keeps it moving.  When the ship leaves, so do the keeper, his wife and their child.

The rooms in the lighthouse are now empty.  The beacon casts a light continuously.  An answer shines back.


Like a song of the sea, the words of Sophie Blackall invite and lull readers into the rhythm of the seasons, weather and life of the lighthouse keeper.  Each plainly written sentence contributes to poetic paragraphs which bring us back to the lighthouse keeper writing in his logbook. The logbook is the constant refrain.  In between these paragraphs Sophie talks about what is going on outside the walls of the lighthouse describing the time of day, the weather and the season.  Each of these ends with

Hello!
  . . . Hello!
         . . . Hello!

Here is a passage.

The keeper looks through his telescope.
The tender arrives, bringing oil and flour
and pork and beans . . .
. . . and his wife.

He shows her around
the round rooms
of their house.
He tends the light
and writes in the logbook
and sets the table for two.


When you hold this book in your hands, the trim size, taller and less wide than most picture books, replicates the essence of a lighthouse.  Upon opening the dust jacket (I am working with an F & G generously supplied by the publisher.), the sea scene of water extending to the horizon is mirrored on either side of the spine.  The waves roll and wrap around the rocky base of the lighthouse on each side.  On the front the keeper stands stalwart as the light extends from either side.

To the left, on the back, we are brought a bit closer to the lighthouse.  A cut-away view shows us the storage tanks beneath the first floor, the entrance with the beginning of the spiral staircase, the storage room, the kitchen, the bedroom, a small study and the light at the top.  These seven views give us a greater perspective on how the keeper and his family lived.

The opening and closing endpapers resemble a logbook.  On the first is a photograph of the lighthouse keeper and his bride, a sketch of a ship, a whale tail stitched on fabric, a portion of a letter written to his wife, a spoil of thread and a fountain pen.  The closing endpapers feature a discussion by Sophie Blackall about lighthouses and this book.

Spanning two pages, the verso and title pages feature a view of the lighthouse from the point of view of a bird.  It sits in the upper, right-hand corner with the ship circling around it.  All the water appears to swirl around the lighthouse in a delicate pattern of water and waves.

Rendered in Chinese ink and watercolor on hot press paper each page turn reveals another breathtaking larger image or a combination of a single illustration with smaller pictures opposite it.  The smaller visuals are framed in lines (ropes) used on water vessels.  Sometimes these smaller pictures will be placed within a larger image.

When Sophie's narrative speaks of the lighthouse keeper smaller images within those circles are used.  When she talks about the exterior of the lighthouse and its surroundings, the picture extends page edge to page edge over two pages.  There are two worthy exceptions to this pictorial rhythm.  They are of the wife pacing in the lighthouse ready to give birth and a close-up of the wife, and husband holding his newborn child.  Both of these are double-page illustrations.

With that being said at the close of the title, Sophie gives readers another stunning gift in the form of a gatefold.  This leads us to her final image.  It is the quintessential close to an utterly breathtaking book.

The exquisite fine lines drawn and painted bring a delicate mastery to every single one of the illustrations.  Readers will pause and study the individual elements.  They will notice the handwritten letters rolled into bottles and tossed into the sea, the lighthouse calendar hanging on the wall, the patterns in the wife's dresses, the rug on the floor, and the quilt on the bed.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations spans two pages.  It is the picture of the wife and her husband, the keeper, after the birth of their child.  Along the top half of the image the wife is lying beneath a quilt patterned in circles pieced together with twelve triangles of fabric.  Her head, resting on a pillow, is turned toward her husband seated next to the bed.  He holds their child in the crook of his left arm.  With his right hand he is noting the birth of their child in the logbook resting on his legs.  His feet are stretched out on the circular rug.  An oil lamp glows on the small table next to him.  The point of view is as if we are looking down on them.


No matter how many times you read this title, you will find the beauty of the words and illustrations lingering long after the book is closed.  Hello Lighthouse written and illustrated by Sophie Blackall is a wondrous work, a true masterpiece.  I highly recommend this title for both you professional and personal collections.  You might want to visit the United States Lighthouse Society Lighthouse Facts site.

To learn more about Sophie Blackall and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Sophie is interviewed at Kirkus about the writing and illustrating of this title.  I know you will enjoy this video chat and the array of interior images shown.
Book Chat with Illustrator: Sophie Blackall from LB School on Vimeo.

UPDATE:  Sophie visits author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson's Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast on April 17, 2018 to talk about her illustrative process and decisions in creating this marvelous title. 

UPDATE: Sophie is interviewed by Jennifer Black Reinhardt at PictureBookBuilders on June 12 2018.  It's wonderful and insightful.  

Como se llama? What is your name?

For every name given to a child, there is a story behind the giving of that name.  It is the story attached to each name which children find most fascinating.  Once they understand the reasoning behind their name, they desire to know the name's meaning and origin.  Many names originate from a country other than the country in which the child lives.  In the native country of the word, it can have a completely different definition.

It's uncanny how aptly named most of us are.  We are constantly a reflection of our names.  Alma and How She Got Her Name (Candlewick Press, April 10, 2018) debut as both author and illustrator for Pura Belpre 2018 Illustrator Award Winner (La Princesa and the Pea G. P. Putnam's Sons, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, September 5, 2017) Juana Martinez-Neal follows a conversation with a child and her father.

Alma Sofia Esperanza Jose Pura Candela had a long name---too long, if you asked her.

She approaches her daddy one day wondering why her name is so long.  He suggests she listens to the story of her name.  Then she can decide if it is too long.

Sofia is the name of her daddy's mother.  There were several things this woman loved but books and reading were a part of her life.  They're a part of Alma's life too.

Next is the name of a great-grandmother who longed to travel but never ventured from home, but her son did.  Each name represents a member of Alma's extended family, her father's father, a great-aunt and her other grandmother.  These family members are remembered for special qualities; qualities which Alma already sees as important in her life.

When the story of her name is nearly finished, the daughter requests of her father the reason for her first name, Alma.  His reply is what everyone needs to hear.  His reply is a gift born of love.


For a child their name can be a puzzle, especially if the name is unique or longer than the names of other children.  The gentle beauty of this story is in the rhythm Juana Martinez-Neal supplies through the conversation between Daddy and Alma.  For each of the names he explains the heart's desire of those relatives.  When he finishes Alma responds by comparing her similar accomplishments.  After Daddy speaks about his father, Jose, an artist, Alma's reply further confirms the love shared by father and daughter.

"I wake up early every day, and I draw a lot, too!
This morning, I drew a kitty cat for you, Daddy!"


The limited color palette shown to readers on the front of the dust jacket is used throughout the remainder of the book.  The subtle, soft texture is evident in every line Juana Martinez-Neal makes.  To the left, on the back, Alma is cozily seated next to her daddy in a large comfy chair.  They are looking at a picture of Sofia.  Next to the chair is a potted tree which grows up and over the duo like a delicate frame of tiny leaves and flowers.  It is in this picture we are introduced to one further color, a bit of blue.

It is this special shade of blue which provides the canvas on the book case.  In the center of the front, within a frame like a photograph is Alma.  She is hugging a book with her name on it and holding a pencil.  Her eyes are shifted up to look at the tiny bird perched on her head.  Readers are going to love looking for the bird in each illustration.

On the opening and closing endpapers is a cream and pale red striped pattern like the clothing worn by Alma.  Rendered in graphite, colored pencils, and print transfers on handmade textured paper each image is worthy of framing.  Many of them span a single page except when Alma is talking in response to her father's story.  Then we are treated to double-page pictures.

What will have readers pausing at every page turn are the details. These elements are a mirror of a culture and a family.  The potted plant in Sofia's picture is still alive and next to Alma and her daddy.  In several of the illustrations Alma is interacting with the relatives.  It's as if she is stepping back into the past to meet them.

One of my many favorite illustrations is the wall in Alma's bedroom.  In the background is a gathering of her favorite animals covering two pages.  Each has the Spanish name on or near it.  On the far right is a drawing of Alma holding a balloon.  A line is strung across her room with pictures hanging from it, held in place by clothes pins.  On the left Alma is busy working.  A ladder leans against the wall next to her.  A bucket of her artist's brushes hangs from it.  The picture of the kitty she made for her daddy is clipped to a rung.  Alma's back is to us as she reaches with a paint brush to complete another element of her mural.


Surely Alma and How She Got Her Name written and illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal is one of the most delightful titles available addressing the story of names.  It reinforces the value of family history and tradition.  Once we know from where we come, it is easier to move forward making our own story. At the close of the book Juana Martinez-Neal writes a note to readers about her name and invites them to learn about their names.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Juana Martinez-Neal and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Juana also maintains a blog.  At the publisher's website you can view an interior illustration.  At Penguin Random House you can view other images.  The cover was revealed at All The Wonders along with a short interview.

Odd Couple Kalinka and Grakkle Blog Tour

Living beings act in surprising ways.  Time and again there will be stories of animals, sometimes enemies, who pair for survival.  People, total opposites, will spend lifetimes together.  Somehow they are able to overlook their differences and find small windows of togetherness. 

Sometimes those small windows of togetherness open when the two are experiencing their worst moments. Kalinka and Grakkle (Peachtree, April 1, 2018) written and illustrated by Julie Paschkis (Flutter & Hum: Animal Poems, Aleteo y Zumbido: Poemas de Animales Henry Holt and Company, August 18, 2015) is about a decidedly odd couple.  They give new meaning to the word opposites.

Kalinka was a little yellow bird with a neat cap of red feathers.  
"I'm such a good bird", she said to herself.
"Good as gold, with a cherry on top."

Her neighbor, Grakkle, was big, green, hairy, cranky and an all-around messy kind of monster.  Kalinka took it upon herself, after flying in Grakkle's open window, to begin to put the chaos in his home in order.  All Grakkle said over and over was:

"Grakk!" 

Grakkle wanted no help at all.  He did want his Auntie Grumble's homemade ginger cookies.  He did want to rest his feet in a bucket of pickle juice.  He did want to snooze in his best chair, his only chair.
The problem was Kalinka.

Eating every single one of Grakkle's cookies except for crumbs was not a good idea.  She picked up his stuff but was clueless as to where it should go.  Putting pencils in a box of spaghetti and mail in a toaster was not wise at all.  You had better believe there was a whole bunch of

"Grakk!" 

being said by a very frustrated monster.

Finally Kalinka did the one thing which sent this monster into a frenzy.  He had a fit.  She ended up in a dire situation.  Her tidiness wouldn't save her now.

"Grakk!"


On the first page Julie Paschkis clearly defines the two characters in appearance and demeanor.  Before you even turn to the next page, you know there will be tension.  What you do not know is Kalinka will misunderstand every single one of Grakkle's Grakk! exclamations.  She thinks he's perfectly happy with everything she does. 

The narrative blends well with Kalinka's happy chatter and Grakkle's angry mumbles.  This supplies humor and leads us wonderfully to a startling twist.  Here is a passage.

Grakkle swatted at the bag.  He belched and scratched his head in confusion.  His hair stood out every which way.
"This beast's appearance is appalling," said Kalinka.
"Luckily for him, I do have a way with hair."
She perched on his head and got to work.
"Gr-r-r-r-rakk," grumbled Grakkle.
"You're welcome," said Kalinka, tying a bow in his matted hair.


It will be interesting to see what readers believe they are seeing on the opened, matching dust jacket and book case.  What is all that curly green?  Are those the outlines of hands on the right and the left on the spine?  Kalinka is already busy speaking.  To the left, on the back, within a white background (on the green) and gracefully framed in signature Julie Paschkis lines and flowers are words spoken right before Grakkle's temper explodes.

The opening and closing endpapers are a soft white with larger yellow dots. (Grakkle's wallpaper)  On the initial title page Julie includes a dedication and features Kalinka and the hands of Grakkle.  She continues with this design but uses Grakkle's tail as a perch for Kalinka on the formal title page.

Rendered in ink and gouache the illustrations, most of them on two pages, employ delicate lines but also manage to convey Grakkle in all his monster glory.  He is indeed a monster and his home is a mess. His expressions as Kalinka goes about her merry way are a huge signal of events to come.  Julie Paschkis uses lines and dots, flowers and leaves to separate text and wonderful patterns on items in Grakkle's house, even if they are patched.  The inclusion of the black pot-bellied stove with a tea kettle simmering adds a bit of old-world charm.

One of my many favorite illustrations is on a single page.  It shows the kitchen table covered in a beautiful patterned cloth.  Chairs are placed to the left and right.  In the upper right-hand corner a bit of curtain billows out.  Kalinka is perched in the center of the table.  She has nearly finished consuming all of the ginger cookies.  Grakkle wearing his vest and belt and with arms upraised is about to go crazy.  He's horrified and angry at the blissful unawareness of Kalinka.


Kalinka and Grakkle written and illustrated by Julie Paschkis will promote all kinds of discussions about what binds friends together.  Readers will see that sometimes the wrong kind of help can make matters worse.  They will also see that even the grumpiest grump has a soft spot.  This title would be an excellent addition with other odd couple books at story time and of course, books about friendship.  Julie's artwork will endear readers to the characters.

To learn more about Julie Paschkis and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  On the Peachtree blog, here and here, Julie talks about this book. Julie chats about the evolution of this title on the Books Around The Table site.

Mind Magic

Our minds are pulsing with power.  A multitude of ideas, potential in every single one, are waiting to be released.  Every minute of our lives our sensory perceptions are connecting to those possibilities.  From those links beauty emerges.

As soon as we take our first breath, our lives as makers begin.  If we choose to give our minds the freedom they need, our making of miracles will continue until our final breath.  What If . . . (Little, Brown and Company, April 10, 2018) written by Samantha Berger with illustrations by Mike Curato raises up and reveals the power found in the mind of a child.  The beauty will leave you breathless.

With pencil and paper, I write and draw art to create many stories that come from my heart.

If that pencil vanishes, does the making of stories stop?  Indeed it does not.  Tales are waiting to be told from the shapes formed from the paper.  What if the paper is no longer there?  Eyes and a heart full of art know what to do with a chair.

As each item is removed from this inventive girl's presence, she looks outward.  She observes her surroundings noting what can be used to begin or continue her creations.  With walls and floors gone, the land provides opportunities.  What can be made of leaves, snow or sand?  What can grow from the earth?

In the absence of land, there is light.  Like a true creator she knows what can be shaped in shadows.  Finally she, alone, without benefit of other elements becomes a vehicle for her stories.  She lifts her voice and moves her body. 

She knows she will continue to go.  She knows she will continue to grow.  She knows.


The enthusiasm exhibited by her protagonist, a whirlwind of discover, design, wonder making and shaping, bursts forth in the words penned by Samantha Berger.  The repetition of the two title words, what if, initially supplies a rhythm which is sustained through the use of similar phrases.  Readers will feel a joyous tension building until the final two proclamations which are like fireworks shooting forth from the child's soul and straight into your creative heart.  Here is a passage.

If there was no light,
I would still use my voice
to sing out my stories---
to chant and rejoice!


When you first glance at the opened dust jacket (I'm reading an F & G generously given by the publisher.) you feel something ignite inside you.  It's like the sound of a matching striking and new flame sending out light.  The girl's face, a warm soft brown with her purple hair like a halo, crosses over the spine with a marvelous symmetry.  The elements in the purple are later found within the pages of the book.  This dust jacket is also a hint of a breathtaking illustrative event inside the book.

On the opening and closing endpapers illustrator Mike Curato shows a row of windows with arches set in a brick wall.  In the first set it's daylight.  In the fourth of five windows the child is seated at the table working.  In the arch of her window a crescent moon is placed.  Nighttime has fallen in the second set.  Our view of the windows has shifted.  We see four and one half windows, all darkened.  In the second window, the child's window, story dust glows and sparkles from the place where she was sitting.  On the right side the publication information is included.

For the dedication and title pages we see the child working on her creation (on the left) as if we are watching above her.  Yellow lined paper contains the title text written in a variety of colored crayons.  What follows is an extravaganza of double-page illustrations done in

pencil, paper, collage, ink, acrylic, colored pencil, linocut, and digital techniques.

With each page turn we are privy to the playful, inspired talent of Mike Curato as he interprets the imaginative creations of the girl.  To name a few, there is origami, a paper airplane made of wood, a sunburst where there was wallpaper and a dragon made of colored leaves.  Some of the illustrations are reminiscent of colorful scratchboard art. These all lead us toward a stunning gatefold certain to leave all readers gasping and smiling.

One of my many favorite illustrations uses a black canvas.  On the left in thick purple outline is the side of the face of the girl, eyes closed and mouth open.  Lines indicating song in teal and then shifting to purple as they cross the gutter spread from her mouth.  These lines end in an opened birdcage set among the brilliant-hued image of a bird in flight which spans off the edges of the right side.  The mouth of the bird is open, too, in song.  Set among the wing span and body of the bird are elements of story in black.  There are other birds, musical notes, a piano keyboard, a sea shell, Saturn, a cloud with rain drops, a glowing light bulb and much more.  This makes you want to sing your own story.


We all have the ability to create; some of us being more compelled than others.  In What If . . . written by Samantha Berger with illustrations by Mike Curato the imagination of a child leading her to create her own kind of stories is celebrated with supreme eloquence.  You need to have multiple copies of this title available in your professional and personal collections.  At the close of the book Samantha and Mike talk about the process for bringing this book to readers.  I can't wait to hold a finished copy in my hands.  I can't wait to read this aloud to a group of children.  I know they will want to touch all the pages.

To learn more about Samantha Berger and Mike Curato and their other work, please visit their websites by following the link attached to their names.  Mike highlights interior images from the book.  Mike has a blog here with updates about this book.  Mike is featured at Andrea Skyberg's site and Samantha is featured at Inkygirl, the site of author illustrator Debbie Ridpath Ohi.  To showcase the publication of this title a book tour was held last week.  Be sure to visit the Nerdy Book Club, What If. . .We Told You The Story Behind The Story?, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast, the blog of author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson to read What If. . .Mike Curato Used Mixed-Media to Make a Book?, What If. . .We Used Our Creativity To Overcome Obstacles? hosted at Mia Wenjen's Pragmatic Mom, Kid Lit Frenzy, the blog of educator Alyson Beecher to read What If. . .Two Best Friends Made a Book and for the book trailer premiere followed by his classic sentence starters visit Scholastic's Ambassador of School Libraries John Schumacher's blog, Watch. Connect. Read.  On March 30, 2018 teacher librarian Matthew Winner chatted with Samantha Berger and Mike Curato on The Children's Book Podcast #431.

On A Farm

Life on a farm is not easy.  Regardless of the type of farm, there is an endless list of chores.  There is also a knack to performing each and every task.  These skills are perfected with practice and time . . . lots of time.  Each day begins and ends with a familiar rhythmic routine.

The land, buildings and home tend to pass from one generation to the next with the word retirement rarely spoken.  Farmers may not do as much as they get older but it's nearly impossible to take farming away from a farmer.  Of course, with that being said, there are exceptions.  George the Hero Hound (Two Lions, March 20, 2018) written and illustrated by Jeffrey Ebbeler follows a canine capable of unquestionable loyalty to a particular farm and all who reside there.

George was a good old hound dog.

At the crack of dawn, and sometimes earlier, George followed Farmer Fritz helping keep the nearly dead tractor running and making sure the sneakier-than-sneaky cows did not escape into the corn field.  George loved all the work on the farm as long as he could take a much-deserved midday nap.  Life was good until Farmer Fritz decided to retire.  Dogs were not allowed where Farmer Fritz was to spend his days.  George was destined to stay on the farm.

Now, just in case, you may be wondering how George would survive alone, a new family, the Gladstones, arrived from the city.  George was readily accepted as a welcome part of the farm but they had no clue as to his name.  First on George's list of things to do was to help Mr. Gladstone fix the beat-up old tractor.  Unfortunately, Mr. Gladstone fixed it incorrectly.  There went the tractor!

Cows happily scattered with the tractor on the rampage.  Ever vigilant George kept them out of the corn field but tracked in a whole bunch of dust when he went to get a drink in the house.  Plumb pooped out George meandered toward his special space outside but something blue caught his attention.

Owen, the Gladstone son, had not been paying attention to Olive, the Gladstone younger daughter. It was up to George using the scent from her ribbon to find the little girl.  George was certain he could finally take his nap but an epic accident stopped all thoughts of rest.  Life on the farm was never going to be the same.


Like the first line in your favorite country western song, Jeffrey Ebbeler has penned a first sentence destined to having you humming a tune as you read the story.  The next thing you'll do, even if you are alone, is read it aloud.  The choice of words Jeffrey uses calls to mind life on a farm with extra attention to the humor in the variety of situations.  There are also speech bubbles with dialogue enhancing the narrative. These contain another bit of comedy as everyone seems to have a name for George except for the correct one.  Here is a passage.

Then Owen came running over.

I was supposed to be watching my baby sister, Olive.  Can you help me find her, boy?

George took a good sniff of Olive's ribbon---he was a hound dog, after all---and off they went.


When you read the title on the opened, matching dust jacket and book case, it's easy to see by his stance George looks the part of hero. (The title text is varnished.)  What you have to do is take a good second look at that image.  Notice Mrs. Gladstone and Owen, each looking in opposite directions.  Olive is chasing that poor chicken which she will not leave alone.  Mr. Gladstone is racing after the tractor with a mind of its own.  And take a look at those cows.  It looks like they've hatched another escape plan.

To the left, on the back, within a circle of white on a teal background the hero of the farm is standing with his new farmer friend.  This is one of the more hilarious nods to the American Gothic.  The opening and closing endpapers take the darker shade of teal from the front of the jacket and case as their canvas.

Rendered in acrylic, ink, and pencil on Fabriano hot press watercolor paper the pictures further generate laugh-out-loud moments on the title page with the clever cows climbing out from the loft window on the roof of the barn as George runs after Olive who is running after the frantic chicken.  The verso and first pages create another scene sure to bring on giggles as George and Farmer Fritz carry buckets to begin the daily chores.  (You won't believe what the cows are doing.)

Jeffrey Ebbeler shifts his image sizes to emphasize his story pacing.  Double pages change to single pages and then there might be two illustrations on one page.  You will find yourself stopping to notice all the details in every single visual.  There is usually more than one thing happening.  These details and the facial expressions on the characters increase the laughter.

One of my many favorite illustrations is one of two on a single page.  The story has Owen and George searching high and low for Olive.  In the second picture George is holding his nose high in the air as they cross a tiny stream on protruding rocks.  Owen is bent over on one of the rocks looking into the water.  Behind them in the woods a tent has been set up for camping.  Over a crackling fire two cows are toasting marshmallows.


Without a doubt George the Hero Hound written and illustrated by Jeffrey Ebbeler is certain to be a story time winner.  As all readers know shared laughter is better laughter and this story with its words and illustrations is jam-packed with humor.  You could use it for a theme on farm life, dogs or different kinds of heroes.  Be sure to place a copy of this title in your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Jeffrey Ebbeler and his other work, please follow the link attached to his name.  More information can be found in this post at Writing and Illustrating, Kathleen Temean and at MBartists.  Enjoy the book trailer.

George The Hero Hound from Jeffrey Ebbeler on Vimeo.

Back To The Place Called Home

Now, after two weeks, when pressing my face into her fur it triggers new sensations.  There are odors of sunshine, evergreens, lake breezes and wild.  Her soul is new too, her spirit soaring as we traverse paths and roadways through northern Michigan woods.  Startled deer leap in front of us.  At any given moment my canine companion will freeze, listening and sniffing the air.

Today in the very early hours of the morning after finishing, for the second time, The Wild Robot Escapes (Little, Brown and Company, March 13 2018) written and illustrated by Peter Brown, later, during our first walk, my mind wandered in different directions.  It was wonderful to compare the second title with the first, The Wild Robot (Little, Brown and Company, April 5, 2016).  Using my senses to take in these pristine surroundings and all they offer, it was easy to think of ROZZUM unit 7134 affectionately known as Roz.  It was easy to imagine her walking along beside us or appearing in the woods when she believed we meant her and her friends no harm.

Without divulging too much, at the end of the first title, Roz is forced to leave those and that which she loves most.  I know what you are thinking.  How can a robot love? Roz is an extraordinary being.

Chapter 1
THE CITY
Our story begins in a city, with buildings and streets and bridges and parks.  Humans were strolling, automobiles were driving, airships were flying, robots were hard at work.
Weaving through the city streets was a delivery truck.

Picking up speed this truck zooms away from the city and past vast stretches of country landscape until it reaches one specific farm, Hilltop Farm.  It stops and drops out a crate.  Inside is a ROZZUM unit.  It is number 7134.  Roz.

What the farmer, Mr. Shareef, his dog Curly, and his children a daughter, Jaya, and a son, Jad, do not know and cannot know, is Roz will exceed the required work needed to be done on the dairy farm.  (After the death of his wife and an injury, Mr. Shareef, is desperate to save this family land.)  That first night, the cows in the barn, like the animals on the island, discover Roz's mind does not function as the technology in other robots does.  She speaks their language.

Day after day a routine forms as Roz repairs the other automated equipment and maintains every aspect of this farm.  She is as content as one can be when living two lives and longing for home. As the seasons shift, flocks of geese stop at the pond on the property. Conversing with them, she gets a promise.  She starts to plan . . . her escape.

It does not miss the attention of the children that their robot has special qualities.  Storytelling sessions begin.  There are stories of a wild robot on an island and her son, a goose named Brightbill.  Jaya and Jad are completely captivated.

A pack of wolves, a wild tornado, a summer night around a campfire, the existence of an old barn, the arrival of a special flock of geese and a startling revelation alter relationships.  More secrets are kept and an expanded plan is put into action.  Spring brings renewed hope as well as increased fears.

Readers' hearts will race as surely as the heart of Brightbill and the survival mode wired into Roz as they attempt to reach a goal.  Danger is a constant companion.  At any moment they realize they might never see each other again.  At any moment they realize one of them could die.  Expect the unexpected as this breathtaking companion title thrills us until the final word is read.  That word will sound in every soul.


When a book starts with

Our story begins

readers are immediately drawn into the plot.  We step into this narrative as if it's our own.  From time to time throughout the story, this unseen narrator will carry on casual conversations with us.  This technique is brilliantly employed by Peter Brown and it is as successful here as it was in the first title.

Short chapters with short definitive titles propel us forward as quickly as we can turn the pages.  The end of each one connects flawlessly with the following chapter.  A blend of conversations and narrative text give us insight into the characters thoughts, moods and motives.  Vivid descriptions of setting further envelope us as we move from one landscape to another.  Here are some passages.

Nobody knew quite what to think of the strange creature in their midst. And soon all the cows were voicing their thoughts.
"I think the monster is harmless."
"I think the monster is unnatural."
"I think the monster is moving!" 
The herd fell silent as the monster marched out from the shadows and into the middle of the barn.  And then she did the impossible.  She did the unthinkable.  She spoke to the cows in the language of the animals.
"I am not a monster, I am a robot.  My name is Roz."

The cows and the humans spent hot days indoors.
Only when the sun finally set and the air began to cool would they venture outside.  The herd strolled out to graze under the stars, the children ran out to chase fireflies, sometimes even Mr. Shareef stepped out to stretch his stiff legs.
Leaves rustled in the evening breeze.
Heat lightning flickered on the horizon.
Cicadas sang from tree branches.

"Running away might be easy for you, but not for me," said Roz.  "Your father can track my movements.  If he sees me trying to escape he will think I am defective, and he will send me away to be destroyed."
An uncomfortable question popped into Jaya's mind.  
"Roz, don't take this the wrong way," she began, "but is it possible that you are defective?"
"Don't say that, Jaya!" cried her brother.
"No, it is okay," said the robot.  "I have asked myself that same question.  I do not feel defective.  I feel . . . different.  Is being different the same as being defective?"
"I hope not," said Jaya.  "Otherwise we're all a little defective."

Even way out there in the wilderness, she wanted to go unseen.  What Roz didn't realize was that she was already being watched.


Having read an ARC generously supplied by the publisher, I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of a completed book to see the illustrations Peter Brown provides.  The cover (The cover reveal is at School Library Journal, A Fuse #8 Production, by Elizabeth Bird.) gives readers a huge hint.  Where is Roz and why is she there?  Let me simply say prepare to be on a roller coaster ride of emotions.


This title, The Wild Robot Escapes, written and illustrated by Peter Brown is, like the first title, a classic.  It addresses the issues of our interconnectedness with all animals, domestic and wild. It asks us to seek peaceful solutions to every question.  It promotes discussions on the part technology plays in our lives.  Think about the fact that with all the advancements available to those children, the storytelling with Roz was their favorite thing.  I can't imagine a professional or personal collection without several copies of this title.  It's spectacular!

To learn more about Peter Brown and his other work, please follow the link attached to his name to access his website.  I know you will enjoy this post by Peter dedicated to the work in creating this book.  At Little, Brown and Company, you can listen to a podcast where Peter talks about The Wild Robot Escapes.  Here is a link to a Book Club Guide for the first title.  Author, reviewer, and blogger at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast Julie Danielson writes about this book at Chapter 16.  Peter Brown is interviewed by songwriter and singer Emily Arrow at Musing, a laid-back lit journal.  Enjoy the audio book excerpt.

Ingenious Animal Architects

It can happen in any season but more often than not, it escalates in the spring.  There is a flurry of activity in the animal kingdom.  Designs honed after decades of trial and error, most the key to their survival, are seen in all kinds of habitats.  Each of them serves a specific purpose.

The structures constructed by one or many individuals reveal the marvels of their skills.  In A Place To Start A Family: Poems About Creatures That Build (Charlesbridge, January 16, 2018) written by David L. Harrison with illustrations by Giles Laroche tribute is given to those abilities. These accomplishments are astounding.

Creatures That Build
For thousands of years people have built shelters to live in and protect their families. We use wood, cloth, brick, concrete, steel, glass, and more to create safe and unique homes.  Many animals are builders, too.

Twelve poems grouped by location begin with those that shape homes underground.  Several feet below the surface black-tailed prairie dogs tunnel entire towns.  A special chamber is dedicated to the nursery.  Another critter known for tunnels uses its nose to find the perfect dry spot for its children although it prefers a more moist setting for other activities.  A wily spider hides beneath a cleverly conceived door which springs open to snare prey.

One of the deadliest reptiles is the only one to make a nest, without benefit of arms or legs, for its eggs.  For a queen who can lay eggs by the thousands per day, workers build a tower for protection.  Even the smallest when working with others can erect a castle fit for royalty.  Another arachnid weaves a web, a snare for unlucky others, in order to eat.

A hopeful male under the ocean fashions a tunnel from plant life to attract a female to lay her eggs within its walls.  Another does the same in creating a large artistic motif on the sandy floor.  One of these males wins the dad of the year award and the other abandons the young as soon as the eggs hatch.  Another of the builders in water cuts trees and constructs dams.  Mounded sticks provide safe homes for the young inside.

Winged wonders of the air work tirelessly to form homes round and rare.  Babies are tucked tight inside and out of sight.  Did you know the nests of white storks are sometimes used for generations?  Paper hides a busy queen and her buzzing family. A surprise awaits those who turn the final page. 


Each carefully worded poem by David L. Harrison employs a different poetic style.  Of four lines, the final three may end with rhyming words, or perhaps every other line will rhyme.  Sometimes three rhyming lines are framed above and below by other rhyming words.  Each one supplies a rhythm in keeping with the creature.  A concrete verse creates a slithering body.  Repeated phrases will have readers and listeners tapping their toes and snapping their fingers.  Here are the first five lines from Yellow Garden Spider.

You throw a line of silken thread
   and let it flutter where it will,
   to catch on limb or windowsill,
   then use your ancient weaver's skill
to make it hold you when you tread.


A marvelous image spanning flap edge to flap edge covers the matching dust jacket and book case.  Artist Giles Laroche extends the sky, homes and wall.  On the back, to the left, a stork is flying with twigs toward another standing on a nest.  Two other nests are perched on chimneys.  There is an animated symmetry to this first illustration.  It asks us to open the book.  The title letters in red are varnished and raised.

A golden orange-yellow covers the opening and closing endpapers.  A European paper wasp nest is placed on a sky blue canvas.  The insects work around the letters of the text on the title page.  The verso and introduction pages show two red ovenbirds constructing their nest on a leafy branch.

For each poem Giles Laroche designs and builds a two-page picture.  His cut-paper relief illustrations on a variety of hand-painted papers are realistically detailed.  There is texture and three-dimensionality to this type of artwork which will have readers reaching to touch the pages.  On several of the visuals we are given cross-section views of the homes. Some of the pictures are a more panoramic view and others bring us close to the animals.

One of my many favorite pictures is for the white-spotted pufferfish.  The male fish forms a unique pattern in the sand which can be forty times his size, sometimes using shells. In this picture several shades of sand in concentric circles spread out from the gutter as a center.  They reach to the left and right edges and to the bottom of the two pages.  A male and female pufferfish glide over the pattern, waiting.


Wonderful as a read aloud to a group or for sharing one-on-one, A Place To Start A Family: Poems About Creatures That Build written by David L. Harrison with illustrations by Giles Laroche is an excellent choice.  Each poem is a study in writing style as well as providing information.  Readers will be captivated by the painstaking, piece-by-piece images.  You will want to add this gem to your professional and personal collections.  At the close of the book, before the surprise, more facts about each creature are given in separate paragraphs with additional reading suggestions.

To learn more about David L. Harrison and Giles Laroche and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  David L. Harrison has a blog.  At this publisher's website (Penguin Random House) you can view an excerpt.


Be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to view the other choices selected by those participating in the 2018 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.