Ready For Some Fun! Fun! Fun!?

Have you ever seen something in the distance thinking it is one thing, only to discover upon closer inspection it's something else entirely?  Have you ever bent down to pick something up and have it move quickly away just as your hand was about to touch it?  Both of these scenarios will leave you either laughing or gasping for breath.

Sometimes a change in the weather will alter the reality of your perceptions.  For those people living in Michigan, a walk in the rain along the northern beaches brings to light the collectible Petoskey stones.  Without water they appear like any other grayish rock; their honeycomb formations hidden.



In Steven Weinberg's debut picture book, Rex Finds an Egg! Egg! Egg! (Margaret K. McElderry Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, February 24, 2015) a baby Tyrannosaurus rex carries his misconception through rather tumultuous times.  His explorations reveal a wayward object next to a nearby nest.  His delight however is short-lived.

Rex finds an ...
Egg?
Egg.
EGG!

As our toothy prehistoric youngster grasps his latest treasure, a too-close-for-comfort volcano decides to erupt.  It's time to skedaddle.  Momentarily out of harm's way, stopping to catch his breath, he gazes with fondness at his egg.

His focus on his newly acquired, spotted keepsake causes him to overlook the fact he is near the edge of a cliff. Within a matter of seconds he is falling down, down, down to the deep sea.  Surprise is etched on all the faces of the watery residents and Rex.

Fortunately a kindly Sauroposeidon lifts our wayward pal to the surface.  Whew! His relief is temporary as a Pterodactyl zooms in taking him skyward.  In a series of moments which portrays Rex like a character in a comedy of errors, he finally comes to a rolling halt with his precious prize firmly held in his hands.

It seems Rex has completed a circle back to the nest and unfortunately the volcano.  As it explodes once more, the little guy loses his grip on his

EGG!

Panic stricken he watches, races and screeches to a halt.  An even smaller dinosaur announces a conclusion identical to what Rex notices.  As the two eye each other new misunderstandings abound.  A familiar noise sends them running.


The repetition of words beginning with the title is an open invitation for reader participation.  With this cadence continuing in several subsequent sentences, Steven Weinberg then switches to a series of single word action verbs adding to the adventure before bringing Rex full circle.  The final sequence lulls you into the surprising twist with ease.  Here are the two passages following the first one.

Now he must...
Run. 
Run!
RUN!

Rex loves his ...
Egg!
Egg!
Egg!


The color palette introduced on the matching dust jacket and book case is, in a word, playful.  The bright yellow, red, purple, and two shades of green are the perfect complement to our spirited baby dinosaur.  The back, to the left, is the pattern of the egg.  On the opening endpapers land prehistoric creatures are pictured in red, pale yellow and pale blue.  Each is identified by name, as are the egg and a rock.  On the closing endpapers Steven Weinberg features creatures found in the water.  The colors are reversed with red still acting as an outline and text color.  All of the verso information is contained within an egg shape except for the dedication which reads:

For
CASEY!
CASEY!
CASEY!

Rendered in watercolor and digitally, the illustrations boldly span across double, single and two split pages.  The lines and color combinations radiate a child-like exuberance, each choice made with intention.  Readers are well aware of every emotion Rex experiences, picture perspective changing with each event.

One of my favorite illustrations is the first two-page spread.  It sets the stage immediately for all the action which follows.  Careful readers may notice the discrepancy in Rex's observations but at this point they can't quite be sure.  Here Weinberg foreshadows the entrance of the additional dinosaur.  There is a lot to be noticed in this first image other than color, layout and design.


Whether shared at storytime or bedtime, Rex Finds an Egg! Egg! Egg! written and illustrated by Steven Weinberg is a surefire winner.  The vibrancy in the word choices, simple sentence structure, color and images is a child magnet.  Being able to chime in on the repetitive words is the final glowing touch.

To learn more about Steven Weinberg please follow the link attached to his name to visit his website.  The initial illustration mentioned above is shown here.  Four other interior visuals can be found at the publisher's website.   For more about Steven Weinberg and this book read Steven Weinberg On His Children's Book, Rex Finds An Egg in the Brooklyn Magazine.  Even more can be discovered about Steven Weinberg, this book and other titles plus process art by stopping at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast hosted by author and blogger, Julie Danielson.

What Will You Grow?

For many years every spring the classrooms would be filled with bouquets of daffodils.  A retired teacher, a life-long resident of the community, had huge expanses of her property planted in daffodils.  Passersby often believed they were looking at a vast yellow carpet moving in the mild breezes.  She willingly shared with others.

This kind of floral display is not accomplished overnight.  It's done one year at a time, one bulb or a cluster of bulbs at a time.  More than ten years ago, I decided to adopt her strategy.  A few bulbs are planted each fall.  Potted daffodils, tulips and hyacinths garnered from grocery shopping over the winter are planted in the spring.

This morning there they were, the first green shoots, evidence of spring, poking through dried leaves, along the back of the house warmed by the early morning sun.  The thrill of seeing new life coming from what has been planted never grows old.  If You Plant a Seed (Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, March 3, 2015) written and illustrated by Kadir Nelson speaks to a timeless adage giving it a distinct perspective, bringing to mind the fables of Aesop.

If you plant a tomato seed, 
a carrot seed,
and a cabbage seed, ...

Hopefully you will get a tomato plant, a carrot plant and a cabbage plant, if you water, weed and watch those seeds.  The companions, rabbit and mouse, can hardly wait to enjoy the fruits of their endeavors.  In time a carrot is being consumed.  A tomato is next.

Apparently the twosome is not the only ones ready to devour the garden delicacies.  Five birds, a sparrow, a cardinal, a blue jay, a mourning dove and a crow, are starring pointedly at them mid bite.  The obvious longing of the uninvited, feathered guests is met with a negative vocal response.  It is returned with an equally adverse avian chorus.

Well, this exchange of opinions does not have good results.  In short order the animals, every single one, are looking a tad bit worse for wear; as are the vegetables.  Mouse gazes at what his paws hold, thinks and makes a move, planting another seed.

This single act is met with abundant approval.  A group gathers to take care of what has been sown.  Flapping wings and dancing paws herald the joyous outcome.


In this narrative Kadir Nelson has used only three sentences.  These three sentences propose possible consequences for actions taken.  By beginning with the more easily understood concept of planting vegetable seeds, readers can take the next more abstract step.  Each sentence acts as an introduction to the illustrations which add dimension and interpretation to the story.


The luminosity in the paintings rendered by Kadir Nelson for this book is visible as soon as you look at the matching dust jacket and book case.  The souls seen in the eyes of his animals and the way they hold their bodies is truly breathtaking.  On the back, to the left, rabbit and mouse have dug a hole and are tossing in a seed as the sun rises behind them.  This is set in a circle surrounded by a deep grassy green. Heavy, textured beige opening and closing endpapers maintain the theme of sowing and reaping.  On the title page a single baby stalk is coming from a tiny mound of dirt.

A full color, vibrant palette fills the single page, double page and split page pictures.  In lighter shades in the background, Nelson provides glimpses of a pastoral setting, rolling hills, a barn and windmill.  For most of the images the perspective is close to the animals.  At times they are looking right at the reader. One stunning double page spread is nearly all sky blue, showing only a portion of the rabbit and mouse, a bedraggled tomato plant and the feet and tail feathers of several of the birds near the top of the page.

One of my favorite two pages is four illustrations of rabbit and mouse tending their planted seeds over time.  They are seen during the day patting and gazing over a small mound with a stick marker, sitting next to small plants under a starry sky reading their books, enduring a rain shower (mouse is laughing as rabbit's ear acts as an umbrella) and sleeping on their backs during a sunny day among grown plants.  Expressing the passage of time and the commitment of the two could not have been done more eloquently.


Gracefully told If You Plant a Seed, words and paintings by Kadir Nelson, is meant to be shared, read aloud one-on-one or with a group.  It will surely prompt questions and answers and discussion.  This is a book for the narrative and illustrations which should be on every book shelf.  It's gorgeous.

To learn more about Kadir Nelson and his work please follow the link attached to his name to access his website.  Enjoy the sample.

Outside And Up Close To Mother Earth

For several months now they've been arriving in my mail; tantalizing in their promise of spring.  Filled with full color photographs of fruits, vegetables, flowers, shrubs and trees, they offer a sharp contrast to bare branches and ground covered with snow.  Turning page after page in each of these catalogs marks the arrival of the awakening. The pause is nearly over.

Keepers of gardens are already looking for buds on bushes and shoots poking through ground thawing in the warmer temperatures and sunny days.  Added voices are joining the daily birdsong chorus.  Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt (Chronicle Books, March 3, 2015) written by Kate Messner with illustrations by Christopher Silas Neal, a companion to their Over and Under the Snow, explores our natural world in the realm of a garden for three seasons of the year.

Up in the garden, I stand and plan---
my hands full of seeds and my head full of dreams.

A girl and her grandmother kneel in the dirt. When Nana says they need for the underneath to become drier and warmer, her granddaughter is curious about things below the surface.  In all shapes and sizes

earthworms and insects

are scurrying around sifting and shifting through the soil.

While unseen workers go about their business, the gardeners clear away the remnants of a previous year, reusing every dried piece and adding nutrients.  Little critters stir in their residences.  Soon the dirt is ready; seeds are planted, and watered.  Beneath their carefully tended rows, a special bug waits.

As summer replaces spring tiny bits of green poke through the top, growing bigger and bigger.  Above insects fly about completing their tasks as below others keep cool and busy.  A sudden shower thanks to a mischievous Nana cools down the girl and quenches thirsty roots.

In the garden, from the garden and below the garden all find an abundance of food.  Even when most of the world sleeps, another eats.  Sometimes an unexpected visitor strikes taking a treat.

As the months pass the air and breezes cool.  Colors change in the garden.  Early sunshine illuminates the work of an artist using frost as a medium.

It's time for the gardening duo to work gathering all the goodness grown.  It's time for

earthworms and insects 

to scuttle, squirm, burrow and slumber.  It's time for thoughts to be filled with another garden in another spring.


With her marvelous command of language Kate Messner leads us from the inside of winter to the outside of spring.  She wraps us in each of the seasons with her vivid descriptions.  Through a blend of conversation between the grandmother and granddaughter, the voice of the girl and an unseen narrator we move gracefully from the work in the garden and the joy shared by two, at play and rest, to the world of animals above and beneath the dirt.  It's as if Messner has captured the rhythm of the natural world and placed it on the pages of this book.  Here are two sample selections.

Spring sun shines down to melt the sleepy snow.
Wind whistles through last year's plants, and mud
sucks at my rain boots.

Down in the dirt earthworms tunnel deep.
I'm jealous of their cook, damp, dark.


Upon opening the dust jacket you can see Christopher Silas Neal's piece of art spanning flap edge to flap edge.  The view of the top layer, up and down, on the front expands to show a raised garden box with the tops of vegetables, the roots beneath and the tiny creatures around them.  The book case is an identical image.  On the opening endpapers vegetables and herbs along with a garden trowel are outlined in a pattern.  Flowers along with a watering can and clippers are highlighted on the closing endpapers.  In both sets the images are labeled as if handwritten. The verso and title page feature a close-up of the trowel stuck in the dirt.

All of the illustrations rendered in mixed media extend across two pages with the exception of eight single pages.  Not only do they enhance the narrative but beautifully depict the changing seasons.  A realistic but softened color palette allows you to join the gardeners in their activities.  Neal may take us close to a particular portion of the garden then give us a larger encompassing view.  He has a knack for knowing exactly when to do this.  We become the rabbit, the earthworms, the robin, the granddaughter and Nana.  His attention to details in the portrayal of all the creatures is exceptional.

I really have many favorite illustrations.  The single page with the dusky background, the girl standing, scarf blowing in the wind, arms wrapped around her as milkweed seeds fly from the pods is gorgeous in its limited color selections.  Another peaceful representation is of Nana and her granddaughter reading in the garden.  Their backs are to us, the book page showing s is for sunflower.  The two are seated on the ground among the sunflowers, several tied together to make a house.  Orange pumpkins are growing in the foreground.  Leaves float on a gentle breeze.  You want to join them.


Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt written by Kate Messner with illustrations by Christopher Silas Neal is a lovely tribute to the beauty we can add to the natural world.  Two artists, one with words and the other using mixed media, have combined their talents to create a garden you can carry with you everywhere.  All you have to do is open the pages.  This book speaks to the companionship of generations, gardening, the seasons and being aware of the creatures living on and beneath the dirt.


Please visit Kate Messner's and Christopher Silas Neal's websites by following the links attached to their names.  InkyGoodness conducted an interview of Christopher Silas Neal, Interview: Chris Silas Neal. One of the illustrations from this title is pictured there.  This book is one of three featured at author Julie Danielson's blog, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.  Here is a link to a drawing based upon this book at Christopher Silas Neal's Tumblr.  Here is a post Christopher Silas Neal did for the Chronicle Books Blog, Down In The Dirt.  Kate Messner is a guest on teacher librarian Matthew C. Winner's Let's Get Busy Podcast.  



Please be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to discover other titles listed by bloggers participating in the 2015 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.

Missing

Throughout the course of our lives we will miss people, places and things.  We will feel the panic of lost car or house keys, a misplaced family heirloom, not being able to locate an item we were supposed to keep safe for someone or a file deleted by mistake on one of our devices.  We will long for the peace of walking a pathway through a particular pine forest, the solitude of sitting on a special deserted beach, or the sanctuary of a certain spot in a certain room in our childhood home.  It is hard not to want the protection of a parent's arms or to hear the sound of their familiar voice.  Moments are empty without the comfort of a beloved pet lying next to us.  There is a hollowness in places without treasured friends or family.

History lists the end of the war in Vietnam as April 30, 1975.  For those whose loved ones were/are listed as missing in action the finality of the war is not so easily accepted.  In her first book, Inside Out & Back Again, Thanhha Lai takes readers back to 1975 in Vietnam as a family seeks refuge in the United States.  In this second title, Listen, Slowly (Harper, February 17, 2015) twelve-year-old Mai is traveling to Vietnam more than thirty-five years later because of a letter her grandmother, Ba, has received.

I whip my head toward the airplane window as soon as Dad scoots into my row.  There's nothing to see except clouds and more clouds, but anything is better than looking at his fakey sorry-to-do-this-to-you face.

When Ba left Saigon two days before it fell back in 1975 she did so with her seven children, knowing then her husband had disappeared nine years earlier.  Now a detective claims to have information gained from an enemy guard who held Ong prisoner.  As the youngest of her grandchildren Mai will stay with Ba until all is known.  Mai's father leaves them to practice his medicine with people far to the north.  Facing the prosecution of a big case, her mother is staying at home in southern California.

Spending her summer vacation with people she does not know in an unfamiliar country, when she would rather be with friends at the beach, has Mai being less than accommodating. Mai longs for a break from the ever-present pursuit of being a top student consistently working on her mom's "SAT words" but she has been carefully schooled in tradition.  She is torn between her wishes and love for her grandmother.

Quickly absorbed into the customs and constants of life in Ba's village, always surrounded by a host of "maybe relatives", Mai, combating the heat, humidity and ever present mosquitoes, slowly finds herself reluctantly adjusting.  Intricate negotiations with the detective and the guard coupled with the ambiguity of the much-longed-for information heighten the tension.  Alliances are made by Mai with two other teens in the community.

Anh Minh has been studying in Texas at a boarding school through the efforts of the people in his village.  He is acting as an interpreter for Mai. (Mai intends on keeping her knowledge of spoken Vietnamese a secret as long as she can.) Ut, exhibiting a similar rebelliousness as Mai, the only girl in the village sporting a buzz cut, decides they can assist each other as friends.  Her passion for a particular frog, for frogs in general, creates an unplanned and planned escapade for Mai.

Scenes in the village, Hanoi and Saigon elevate the intensity of Mai's purpose, her education of her current surroundings and her grandmother's deep need to know.  The final chapters race toward a powerful and moving resolution.  Readers and Mai are left with a new understanding of family, tradition and the country and people of Vietnam.


When I finished reading the first time (I've read most of it again), I was so immersed in the story, I couldn't believe I was seeing snow outside my window instead of the landscape described within the pages of this book.  Thanhha Lai uses words the way an artist uses paint creating pictures so vivid we step into them easily.  Her detailed descriptions of the cities, countryside, Ba's village, food, clothing, architecture of the homes and the people give us a new lens in which to view Vietnam.

Mai's dialogue within her mind, with her parents, grandmother, her good friend at home, Montana, and her newly met-relatives are filled with truth and humor.  Whenever the conversation is spoken in Vietnamese, we read it in italics but see English.  In this way we, like Mai, are living in two worlds at the same time. At times Mai's insights are laugh-out-loud funny.  At times your heart will ache for Ba as she shares of her relationship with her husband in a series of conversations with Mai.  The wisdom of Ba paired with Mai's adolescence is stunning to read.  Here are some sample passages.

Ba lets go of my hand and turns from me.  Time to let her rest.
My body loosens and expands, remembering how it used to make room for her words to wiggle deep into the tiny crevices alongside my bones, muscles, and joints.  Becoming a part of me.  I've always been able to imagine her as a rich girl who grew up in wartime and ended up raising seven children alone.  She always says, "Co den tay, phai phai." Flag in hand, you must wave it.  It wasn't about being brave or extraordinary so much as inhaling all the way to her core and accepting her responsibilities. 

I hear whistling---the kind humans make when trying to sound like a bird.  I crawl out of the net, then jiggle to make it hard for rebellious, day-hunter mosquitoes to stab my exposed skin.  Mom packed for me, all capris, as I was too busy seething.  I can just hear her reasoning:  skirts too impractical, shorts too revealing, pants too hot, so let's do capris.  Mosquitoes all over Vietnam cheered.

"This tree has outlived every other livin' thing in the village.  We guess it could be three hundred years old." Anh Minh glows while saying that, then he actually puts his palms together and bows at the tree.  I might as well do it too.  Is bowing to trees a Vietnamese thing?
Village life is centered around the tree.  In one corner stands a faded, mossy pagoda, its door wide open in the heat.  Inside, on tile, dozens of dogs with lolling tongues lie half asleep.  Among the dogs and their spilled water bowls, a duck is waddling, sipping here and there.  Somehow, perfectly normal. 


This book, like its predecessor, is a gift to readers.  Thanhha Lai gives us in Listen, Slowly the opportunity to alter our possible impressions.  It is rich.  It is rare.  It is not to be missed.


To learn further about Thanhha Lai and her work please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  'Listen, Slowly' About Connecting To A Heritage You Don't Know is an informative interview of Thanhha Lai on NPR All Things Considered.  Enjoy the chapters below provided by the publisher. 

Lady Pancake And Sir French Toast Cover Reveal--Champions At Breakfast

When someone mentions breakfast the first thing I think of is Sundays.  Growing up, during the other six days of the week, we had cereal and fruit for the sake of brevity.  Sundays were not only designated family days in our home but they were a time for making pancakes for breakfast.  No one could make buttermilk or buckwheat pancakes like my dad.

Under his watchful eye we were allowed to help add and mix the ingredients.  The griddle had to be the right temperature.  After the batter was poured, we watched for the bubbles to form signaling the time to flip the pancakes over.  It was sheer heaven when the maple syrup was drizzled over the top before we took the first bite.  Without the maple syrup the meal would not be complete.  I shudder to think what would have happened if there was not enough maple syrup for everyone.

Debut picture book author, Josh Funk, is stopping by today with a monumental feast for our eyes regarding the release of his first picture book, Lady Pancake And Sir French Toast (Sterling, September 2015).  Bickering between his children when added to a mind relishing the thought of

funny ideas that will entertain 

and

something he would like to see illustrated

equal a rhyming race for readers.  Josh has graciously agreed to answer a few of my questions.

In your PiBoIdMo article you explain the competition between your two characters.  Could you briefly go over the main story line of the book again for readers here?

Hi, Margie!  Of course I can!  Inside a food-filled-fridge, Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast are the best of leftover friends-UNTIL they find out there's only a single drop left of maple syrup left in the bottle.  Almost instantly they begin racing through the fridge for that last drop-causing calamitous culinary chaos along the way.

I do think the blurb written by the folks at Sterling Children's does a great job of summing it up, too:  

"A thoroughly delicious picture book about the funniest "food fight!" ever! Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast have a beautiful friendship—until they discover that there's ONLY ONE DROP of maple syrup left. Off they go, racing past the Orange Juice Fountain, skiing through Sauerkraut Peak, and reeling down the linguini. But who will enjoy the sweet taste of victory? And could working together be better than tearing each other apart? The action-packed rhyme makes for an adrenaline-filled breakfast . . . even without a drop of coffee!"

How did you come to assign distinguished titles of royalty to their names?

Lady Pancake was always a Lady.  It's just the title that came out of my mouth (er...fingers on the keyboard) when drafting.  As a rhymer, a lot of it comes down to rhythm.  I'm a big stickler for rhythm in rhyming picture books and based on that it flowed well.  Sir French Toast was originally Mister, but some folks in my critique group suggested sticking with the royalty theme (in fact, I just dug out that first draft from late 2011.  It was Carole who suggested Sir-so thank you, Carole).

But the real question is why did breakfast foods get regal names?  Well, to my mouth and stomach, there is no more majestic and dignified meal than an exquisite brunch buffet.

Why did you select the particular setting for your characters over another scenario?

Maybe it's just me, but I've always been suspicious about what goes on inside the fridge when the door is closed.  I imagine it's like Toy Story, but with food.  Which foods would be friends?  Who are the leaders?  Who are the troublemakers? (I'm looking at you Brussels sprouts)  Who are the villains?  What would happen in a bean avalanche?  Come on, Margie, you must have wondered about these things?

And as you already noted, I write what I'd like to see illustrated.  And Brendan Kearney did an amazing job of depicting this setting-so much better than I thought it could ever be.

As a matter of fact, Josh, I have wondered what happens behind the closed door of the refrigerator.  My food seems to disappear.  There have been days when I've looked at Xena with a more critical eye.  

 Do you prefer pancakes or French toast?

Waffles.

Is maple syrup your favorite topping for pancakes or French toast?

I gotta say, a high quality maple syrup from Vermont or Canada is fabulous, although I don't have such an experienced palette as to distinguish between grades of Golden or Amber, etc.  The boysenberry syrup at IHOP is a personal family favorite, but I couldn't have that all the time.

Do you have anything else you would like readers to know?

I just want to thank you, Margie, for hosting my debut Cover Reveal!  I've been a huge fan of your site for a while and I'm honored to have this little book be a part of your world.

And hi, Xena!

Thank you Josh for your kind words.  Woof! Woof! Xena sends you doggy snuggles.



I was able to connect with Brendan Kearney about his illustrations for Lady Pancake And Sir French Toast to ask him a few questions.


From the time you first read the manuscript until the finished illustrations, how much time did it take?

This varies from project to project, but the illustrations for this book came together
fairly quickly.  I think Josh, Sterling and I had a similar idea for the feel of the book from the
beginning.  It took about 6 months to get from manuscript to final art and then a few weeks of tweaking and making adjustments.


Could you briefly explain your process and form of medium used to create the pictures?

I draw all the lines by hand with black colouring pencils.  I then scan the drawings and colour and texturise them digitally.

What is your favorite character Lady Pancake or Sir French Toast and why?

I love all the characters in this book, but I had some real fun coming up with all the background character, like the broccoli and the beans.  I love adding detail to my work, and it was especially fun to add faces to everything, bringing everything to life. ☺

Without further ado let's dive into this delicious treat, the cover reveal for Lady Pancake And Sir French Toast.  My appetite for this scrumptious read is growing by the minute.

Clearly we may be looking at morning meal mayhem with the royal duo on the run.  I can think of several questions I hope are answered in the story especially the presence of spilled beans.  Brendan Kearney's color palette is absolutely mouth-watering; a pleasing mix of warm hues on a soft cool background.  I'm also getting a distinct craving for maple syrup.  How about you?

I want to extend my thanks to both Josh Funk and Brendan Kearney for answering my questions.  To discover more about each of them and their work please visit their websites by following the links attached to their names.  Josh Funk's blog contains wonderful posts about this title and his thoughts on the writing process in general.  Brendan Kearney's blog on Tumblr contains bits and pieces of his artistic life.  Brendan Kearney's Facebook page is a great place to visit.
Josh Funk is on Twitter @papafunk  Brendan Kearney is on Twitter @brendandraws

I have started a Pinterest board for this title including recipes, other books about breakfast food especially pancakes.  I am thinking of including books about the ingredients found in both pancakes and French toast along with lessons in following directions and the math used to cook.  Other suggestions are welcome.

Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast Activity Kits are now available! https://t.co/PAyWUeQsjo pic.twitter.com/Z219YpnjIt

— Josh Funk (@joshfunkbooks) July 25, 2015

Finders Keepers?

After a storm you walk along a rock-strewn beach and discover a perfectly-shaped heart rock.  You pick it up to add to your collection.  Leaves are falling like rain in the woods as autumn colors surround you.  You bend to find one to press between the pages of an old book, hoping to save even some of its brilliance.  Scurrying to your car after grocery shopping in the winter cold, an out-of-place object catches your eye.  It's a twenty dollar bill.  This decision to keep or not to keep is different.

It could even be argued picking up the rock or leaf is not the right choice. Finding something offers possibilities or opportunities.  Virgil & Owen (Bloomsbury, January 27, 2015) written and illustrated by Paulette Bogan is about the discovery of many things.

"I found a polar bear, Mom," said Virgil,

"and I'm keeping him."

Virgil is a bow-tie wearing penguin.  To say his mom is a bit stunned would be an understatement.  Virgil, secure in his ownership of the found bear, issues his first directive.

He tells the bear he belongs to him.  Without asking he further informs the bear he needs to follow Virgil.  Stopping to enjoy the company of a group of terns in the water is not part of Virgil's plan.  Everyone is happy except for Virgil. 

In no mood to share the bear, Virgil wants to move to another spot.  There's nothing like a romp in the snow with a bunch of seals.  A good time is had by all except for Virgil.  Getting more frustrated by the minute, Virgil urges the bear to leave with him.  

A colony of penguins swirls around on the ice with the polar bear in tow.  Everyone is smiling with joy except for Virgil.  He is stomping mad.  When he issues his repeated commands, he is shocked at the polar bear's reply.  It seems the polar bear has a name and he is not budging.  

Well, that's the last snowflake for this perturbed penguin.  It's time for pouting alone.  Owen, the polar bear, and company have other suggestions.  There are antics in Antarctica for all and much more.

Using a blend of dialogue and narrative, Paulette Bogan presents a story simply told but the implications are more far-reaching.  Younger readers will fully understand Virgil's need for control but in comparison will know he needs to change.  Bogan engages her readers with the repetition of pivotal phrases which I suspect they will be more than willing to say out loud.  Here is a single passage.

The polar bear slipped and slid with

the seals.  Everyone had fun.

Virgil did not have fun.

"You are my polar bear," said Virgil

"Come with me."

On the matching dust jacket and book case, Paulette Bogan hints at the outcome of the story by having Owen and Virgil standing eye to eye, paw to flipper.  On the left, back, the two are walking away from the reader, footprints in the snow under a starry sky.  The opening and closing endpapers tell a tale of their own; two completely unique scenes in shades of blue and white highlighting the South Pole animals (except for Owen) in various activities.  Virgil stands alone eyes lifted upward beneath the title.  It is followed by the verso and dedication pages which offer an explanation as to Owen's appearance.

All of the illustrations, rendered with 

Sakura Micron pens (waterproof) and Winsor Newton Water Colour on Arches cold press watercolor paper, 

span, edge to edge, across two pages.  Bogan's selection of shades of blue and white definitely convey the cold of the region but the contrasting hues of orange, red, yellow and lavender match the warmth of the story's resolution.  Touches of humor are depicted on the seal's faces, in the chattiness of the other penguins and with the green bow tie Virgil wears.  Owen's gentle mouth and the bug-eyes of Virgil are full of expression; happiness, authority, disgust, anger and friendship. Bogan extends the text by picturing why Vigil is not laughing, having fun or feeling the wonderful.  

One of my favorite pictures is when the polar bear, Owen, is floating on a small ice floe splashing with the flock of terns.  One is on his head.  Others are flipping in the air, bouncing in the waves or enjoying the sight from land. Virgil, flippers on his hips, is looking very unhappy drenched in unwanted water.  It's a comic contrast.

Virgil & Owen written and illustrated by Paulette Bogan is not only about the discovery of a polar bear, it's a warmhearted story of finding your true nature and accepting the gift of friendship.  It's one of those books which listeners and readers alike will be eager to share and discuss.  Each time I've read this, I've pictured it as a reader's theater.  I think there's fun to be found within these pages too.

For more information about Paulette Bogan please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  Paulette Bogan was a visitor at teacher librarian extraordinaire John Schumacher's blog Watch. Connect. Read.  

I used to read a book while riding my bike with no hands.  Now I read lying down.  It's much safer.

I like the touch of humor in what she says here, in her books and in her illustrations.  

Now That's A Good...

They come when you least expect it.  Perhaps they are invited by an overheard bit of conversation.  Maybe an odd-shaped leaf, late afternoon shadows, the popping and cracking of trees in the bitter cold, or a smell drifting on a summer morning breeze sends them.  They seem to gleefully push aside an earlier arrival, making sure to place themselves squarely in the front.  Ideas are tricky.

After reading and reviewing The Best Book in the World written and illustrated by Rilla (Alexander), I was intrigued by the rerelease of Her Idea (Flying Eye Books, February 1, 2015 UK, April 15, 2015 US) which she both wrote and illustrated.  I sent an email to Flying Eye Books, receiving a gracious reply from Sam Arthur, Managing Director, Nobrow Ltd/Flying Eye Books.  When I asked whether there were any other differences in this publication (I noticed a change in the typography on the dust jacket.) compared to the first he said,

We worked with Rilla to edit the story a little and we changed the production to create colours and textures that Rilla had wanted originally. So the main changes were in the printing techniques, for our edition we used spot colours (or Pantone coloured ink) to achieve the bright saturated look. We also made the book bigger as we felt it would have more impact at a larger size.

Sozi had an idea.

A single idea is fascinating.  Sozi has hundreds.  If her mind is not focused, they simply keep coming numbering in the thousands.  Each new one looks more appealing than any of the previous thoughts in her head.

There never seems to be enough time to devote to any one of them.  She decides to do the only thing she can think of to do.  She sits down to start.  She begins writing.  She needs to make one of these ideas come alive.  She wants to create something memorable.

No matter how hard she tries, words, her words, can't join together to make something extraordinary, impressive or monumental.  Play sounds like a much better plan.  What happens to all those ideas?  They leave, bringing Sozi to tears.  
Fortunately a friend, a book, happens to walk by capturing one of the escaped ideas within its pages with a loud

SLAM!  

Sozi is so happy, they set off together to reclaim as many of the ideas as they can.  You would be surprised what else you can find; all kind of good things.  As she looks at what she now has, one seems better than the others. 

This time she writes fashioning a beginning and a middle. The finish of her book seems elusive though.  Does she decide to play?  Does the idea vanish?  A friend is always a friend especially in the end. 


I have read this title multiple times, knowing from interviews and videos, Rilla Alexander views Sozi as her alter-ego.  Using easily understood sentences, she takes her readers on a journey into creativity.  Lyrical prose or rhyming lines follow the narrative; ideas come in all shapes and sizes flowing freely, never the same.  Sozi is every single person who wants to write, who has ideas to share, who gets stuck, who seems to have no single coherent thought and who finally works through to the finish through practice and persistence.  Here is a sample passage.

Happy at last, her mind was now clear.
She looked through the pages of captured ideas.
There was an idea for a book.  That was the one!
She made a plan to get it done.


When opening the dust jacket and book case, the obvious common element are the holes, one in the front and one in the back, replicating the mask worn by Sozi.  Not only is she a superhero but so is everyone who reads and writes.  The book case is a plain and textured cloth in Rilla's favorite color of red.  The opening and closing endpapers feature an idea swimming in a swirl of blue/green, black and thin red swirls first, then yellow, black and red at the end.  Can you notice the subtle difference in the idea?

A limited color palette is used to create the illustrations first made in pencil and then brushed in ink.  They are colored layer by layer, page by page; one for each hue.  All of the visuals extend across two pages full of Sozi's lively spirit.  Even in those moments when she is struggling or stopped, her emotions are clearly conveyed to the reader.  It's a joy to see her swimming to claim an idea, welcoming even more in the outstretched palms of her hands, marching in the lead beginning her quest to create and pursing a vision to the end.

Rilla constantly shifts her perspective bringing us close to Sozi or having us step back to visualize the bigger picture.  She may only show us a portion of her character or several different views on one page to depict the passage of time.  Her work in graphic design is evident with every page turn.  Thick matte-finished paper supplies the final touch.

One of my favorite illustrations accompanies the sample passage above.  We only see a portion of Sozi's face across the top of the page as she looks through the book.  Her hand is pointing to the idea she is sure she needs to follow.  The idea is smiling pointing to itself.  Other ideas can be seen poking out of the pages of the book.  Yellow and white arcs provide the background.  It's a turning point for Sozi, for all who make any kind of art.


Her Idea written and illustrated by Rilla Alexander is a book to be enjoyed by people of all ages who have ever struggled to bring a dream, a thought, into reality.  It opens up a world of opportunities for discussion inside and outside of the classroom.  I am looking forward to sharing it with students.  Enjoy all the extras listed below.

To learn more about Rilla Alexander, her work and her process please follow the link attached to her name taking you to her website.  If you select About you can read a series of fascinating interviews about this title and The Best Book in the World.  This link takes you to Flying Eye Books to view exterior and interior pictures of the book.  Here is a video of Rilla Alexander speaking about the writing process and this book when it was first released.  This would be wonderful to use in the classroom to compare the changes in the two editions and to discuss why they might have been made.  Here is the link to a site dedicated to Sozi.  Please follow this link to MagpieThat for an interview and some sketches of Rilla's work.