From Flora

As winds howl sending snow swirling into drifts, reading transports us to other places in other times.  While most of nature is at rest, within the pages of books, we look to the seasons which follow.  That which is asleep will awaken.  Where there is no life, new creations will emerge and flourish, coming back full circle to winter.

The beauty displayed by the flora during most seasons in our world can and is preserved for study and art. Drawn from Nature (Big Picture Press, an imprint of Candlewick Press, March 13, 2018) written and illustrated by Helen Ahpornsiri is an informative and breathtaking display of animals and plants in spring, summer, autumn and winter.  For each season our attention is focused on six to eight special elements, all meticulously formed from petals and leaves.

Introduction
Life in the wild doesn't stay still for long.
Year after year, plants bloom in spring and fade
in autumn in a cycle as old as time.  Animals follow the pattern of the seasons, too---searching for food and rearing their young---sometimes roaming many miles between one chapter of their lives and the next. 

In the spring birdsong announcing the coming of dawn is a call for a mate; the louder the song, the greater the attraction.  Female hares, larger than rabbits, stand on their hind legs to push back undesirable males.  It's called "boxing".  There is a reason new ducks follow their mothers closely.  They need the oil from her feathers to protect their own, helping them to stay on top of the water, swimming.

There are creatures of the field, in the summer, who can hang from stalks of grasses and wheat.  Harvest mice have prehensile tails.  Did you know dragonfly larvae can stay in the water for up to two years?  The leaves on the variety of trees are green for a reason . . . breathe in, breathe out.  At night owls are skillful hunters using the shape of their faces to capture sounds.

When autumn falls the noise of rutting deer is heard a mile away.  Dropped colorful leaves carpet forest floors protecting wildlife and seeds.  Nuts buried by busy squirrels, if forgotten, grow into new trees.  Rains bring out vivid displays of mushrooms; lovely to look at but many times deadly to consume.

Winter arrives.  Snoozing hedgehogs slow their heartbeats 

from 130 beats per minute to 20.

Birds not leaving for warmer residences fluff and puff to block the cold and preserve heat.  On days when moist air lingers, and temperatures drop, the morning reveals an ice-coated world.


As delicate as her pictures, the words written by Helen Ahpornsiri resonate with a respect and passion for our natural world. Facts are embedded in lyrical descriptions.  She points out details and transitions from season to season she wants us to remember.  It's as if she is taking us on our own personal walk through the meadows and woodlands, and past nearby ponds.  Here is a passage.

Butterflies & Blossoms
A spring breeze blows, carrying with it a flurry of pink-white
petals.  They land, like snow, beneath the trees, where butterflies
flit between banks of bright flowers.
The warm days of late spring tempt more and more butterflies to appear.  
Some have made long journeys on their migrations while others are
just coming out of hibernation.  The spring flowers provide
a rich source of nectar for the butterflies---just what
they need after the winter.  You'll see them most on 
calm sunny days, when neither wind nor rain can
threaten their delicate wings.


The open and matching dust jacket and book case are a first stunning glimpse at the splendor to be found within the pages of this book.  The graceful lines and intricate parts achieved with the collage artistry of Helen Ahpornsiri are masterful.  Numerous points on the heron, featured on the front of the jacket, contain gold foil.

To the left, on the back, on a continuation of the white canvas are a row of exquisite flowers arching upward on the right.  Across the top a branch of pale purple blossoms reaches from the left.  Four butterflies move among the blooms.

On the opening and closing endpapers an array dense with ferns fashion scroll work.  In pockets of white bees, butterflies, moths and a dragonfly rest and glide.  This design is carried forward to the first page and the last page.  Tiny bits of nature dot the title and verso pages, the contents and introduction.  

For each season Helen Ahpornsiri places a full-page picture on the left showcasing items from that season.  Some of those are used in the animal she places above the heading.  For most of the sections in a season the background is white, but three times she uses black.  (You will gasp at the beauty.)  Some of the illustrations cross the gutter to extend a theme.  These may be full-page images or striking double-page visions.

One of my many, many favorite pictures is of the hare.  The grass is placed along the bottom of two pages, extending to nearly the center.  On the right she is frozen with her head turned toward the reader; her one dark eye unblinking.  The position of every leaf defines her fur and muscles.  It is eloquent. 


Readers will be captivated by Drawn from Nature written and illustrated by Helen Ahpornsiri.  They will pause to study each image.  They will relish the information and be excited to learn more and take their own walk among nature.  There is a short glossary at the end.  You might want to have a flower press handy to show your readers.  I am including a video at the end on how to make your own.

To learn more about Helen Ahpornsiri and her other work, please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  You can view an interior image at the publisher's website.  There are more illustrations at Penguin Random House. Helen Ahpornsiri has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  She is featured by author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.  Please take a few moments to enjoy these videos.









Remember to stop at Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to view the titles selected this week by others participating in the 2019 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.

A Hero's Hero

For children (and adults) of the fifties and sixties some heroes of the television screen performed with supreme intelligence.  They never spoke a single word but there was never any doubt as to their capabilities to tell a memorable story.  From week to week and year after year, their audiences grew.

For five years (1954-1959) The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin and for nineteen seasons (1954-1973) Lassie highlighted the exploits of dedicated and fearless canine actors.  Perhaps these two spirited dog characters were following in the paw-steps of a previous popular star.  Strongheart: Wonder Dog Of The Silver Screen (Schwartz & Wade, February 6, 2018) written by Candace Fleming with illustrations by Caldecott Medalist Eric Rohmann recounts the very real rise to fame of a singular German shepherd.

THE PUPPY
On a farm between the Bavarian Alps and the city of Berlin, a carefree puppy named Etzel played in a sun-washed barnyard.
He chased the chickens, barking in delight at their squawks and flaps.
He tipped over his water bowl, splashing and sliding in sloppy-fun mud.
And he gulped down the last of his kibble, licking the bowl to shiny emptiness.

One day, suddenly without warning, Etzel is removed from the wonderful life he knows, placed in a dark bag and shuttled to a new life.  He is treated with cruelty, cruelty designed to shape him into a police dog.  He works on command governed by a fierce fear.

Unbeknownst to him on the other side of the ocean, a film director, Larry Trimble, and his screenwriter, Jane Murfin, have a plan.  They are going to search for a new star, a dog star.  Throughout the United States no dog appeals to Larry, neither did any in England, France, Italy but when he goes to Berlin, the police station in Berlin, everything changes.  The crash of broken glass, a lunge by muscle and fur and moments when time stands still reveal the beginning of a new friendship.

The journey home to the United States is one of constant patience by a human and unwavering wariness by his canine companion.  Through a conversation one day between Larry and Jane, Etzel receives his new name and his first lesson in learning to play, again.  A red rubber ball is his constant toy.  What Larry and Jane come to realize is Strongheart seems to understand everything they say.

Every single soul on the set of his first film is stunned by his abilities.  The Silent Call is an enormous success.  (This is in 1921 and movies are in black and white and silent.)  There are endorsements, especially for a dog food renamed Strongheart, publicity tours and more films.  Strongheart distinguishes himself unexpectedly on several occasions when his police dog training moves him to act justly.  Even when it seems as if the tide has turned against this amazing creature, the truth sets him free in a dramatic conclusion.


Using thirty-one chapters in 233 pages author Candace Fleming weaves facts from her research into this marvelous middle-grade novel.  The chapters, captivating in their detailed descriptions and realistic conversations, propel readers forward flawlessly.  The length and placement of the chapters add to the ever-growing tension, adventure and romance (canine and human).  Here are several passages.

The place did not look hopeful.  It squatted on a street corner, gray and tomblike.  Iron bars covered the windows.  Barbed wire coiled across the top of brick walls.  Surely he wouldn't find his star here.  He turned away.
From inside the grim fortress came the muffled sound of barking.
Larry turned back.  He shrugged.  "Aw, what the heck?  I'm here, aren't I?"
He pushed open the gate.
"Get out of the yard!" yelled a voice.
There came a bark like a clap of thunder, a crash and a splinter of glass.
GRRRRRR!
Etzel leaped through the broken window and tore across the yard.  Fur on end, teeth flashing, the dog sprang for Larry's throat.
"Stop!" Larry's voice sounded more pleading that commanding.
Etzel pulled back mid-lunge.  Alert and suspicious, his muscles still tense, he stood unmoving.
So did Larry.
Dog and man stared at each other.


Strongheart let the duck drop from his mouth.  
He took a stumbling step forward.  Stopped.  He took another step forward.  Stopped.
"There's no way to save them," Larry went on.  "You've lost everything that matters to you . . .everything in the world."
Strongheart turned his head and gazed into the distance.  He seemed to be looking into the years ahead without his family.
Thik-thik-thik-thik
"That's it," said Larry.  "That's terrific, boy.  Hold it  . . ."
A memory came to Strongheart:  Rough hands were ripping him from his family.  Stuffing him into a bag.
Strongheart fell to the ground.  Howling, he covered his face with his paw.
"That's impossible!" cried Ed Brady.
"Dogs can't do that!" exclaimed Pete.
"Holy mackerel!" Jane gasped.  "He looks like he's crying."
For several long moments, the dog lay there, sides heaving.  Finally, he lifted his head and looked deep into the camera with an anguished expression.  Then, he dropped his head back to his forepaws.  Life, his actions seemed to say, had no meaning for him anymore.
Silence---broken only by the camera's grinding and the crew's sniffling---fell over the set.
Thik-thik-thik-thik


Even without the text on the front of the dust jacket, the portrait of Strongheart depicts strength and compassion.  This dog is poised for whatever is about to happen.  Within seconds he could turn and stare into your eyes or leap forward to chase or play.  To the left, on the back of the jacket, a faded scene from one of the films is the canvas for explanatory text and a portion of a starred review from a professional journal.  On the book case everything is removed except for Strongheart and the mountainous landscape.  The endpapers are covered in black.

Rendered in oil paint by Eric Rohmann the illustrations throughout this title, in black and white, are highly animated presenting a range of emotions.  There is heartbreak, injustice, humor, play, courage and genius (the dog's).  On numerous occasions the illustrations are without words.  They vary in size depending on the narrative.

The point of view in the pictures also supplies readers with a more participatory sense.  We are not only observers but also with Strongheart.  It's been almost ninety years since this beautiful animal died, but through the artwork of Eric Rohmann he comes back to life.

One of my many, many favorite paintings is on a single page.  It is opposite the portion of final text quoted.  Half of the page is the gray background.  On the right half of the page we zoom close to Strongheart, only seeing a portion of his alert right ear, wide, soulful right eye and the surrounding fur.  This is one powerful picture.


This title, Strongheart: Wonder Dog Of The Silver Screen written by Candace Fleming with illustrations by Eric Rohmann, was released nearly one year ago, but its value is lasting.  It is one of those books whose appeal will endure for generations because of the masterful storytelling in words and artwork.  It is a marvelous example of historical fiction that should find a place on the bookshelves of your personal and professional collections.  A lengthy The Truth Behind This Tale, actual photographs, a bibliography and notes conclude this book.  You could pair this title with Emily Arnold McCully's picture book, Strongheart: The World's First Movie Star Dog.

To learn more about Candace Fleming and Eric Rohmann and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  At the publisher's website you can read an excerpt and look inside the book.  Both Candace Fleming and Eric Rohmann have video interviews at Reading Rockets.  Candace Fleming maintains accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  This is a A New York Public Library Best Book of 2018 and A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2018.

Flight Of The Bluebird Blog Tour-Chatting With Author Kara LaReau

It’s a pleasure to have you back at Librarian’s Quest, Kara, on the first Monday in 2019.  It’s hard to believe that nearly an entire year has come and gone since your last visit showcasing The Uncanny Express, the second title in The Unintentional Adventures Of The Bland Sisters.  Once again the landscape outside my window is cloaked in more than eight inches of snow.  And it’s still snowing, but the absolute beauty and fun of the books in this series is they reach out, wrap around us and pull us into the current adventure.  We’ve been on a ship brimming with rowdy pirates (The Jolly Regina) and a train full of mysterious travelers.  Now we find ourselves airborne with the twins, Jaundice and Kale, in an effort to save their lives.

When reading the Flight Of The Bluebird (Amulet Books, an imprint of ABRAMS, January 8, 2018) the first thing readers might be curious about is why are the sisters traveling by plane this time and why is the name of the plane, Bluebird?

Well, I already had them on a ship in The Jolly Regina and a train in The Uncanny Express, so putting them on a plane seemed like the next natural step! The plane is called the Bluebird for two reasons: 1. Amelia Earhart named one of her planes “The Canary,” and since she is one of the inspirations for the character Beatrix Airedale, it seemed fitting to name the plane in my story something similar, and 2. It’s a bit of an insider joke with myself! I have a freelance editing business called Bluebird Works, which I started almost ten years ago and named after the bluebird of happiness. It took a lot to get that business off the ground, much like the airplane in the book!

You have continued with two wonderful elements in this book, employed in the first two titles.  At the beginning on two pages you have The Unintentional Cast of Characters.  The two villains are called Victor and Uggo.  Is this in reference to Victor Hugo, the French writer?  If so, why do you focus on him?

Victor Gazebo doesn’t have anything to do with Victor Hugo; I chose the name “Gazebo” because I liked the way it sounded, and the combination of “Victor” and “Gazebo” worked (to my ear) as a good villain’s name. Uggo is a play on Ugarte, Peter Lorre’s character from Casablanca, on which the character in my story is based. So there is a method to my naming madness!

I won’t ask about the other character names because I prefer to have readers discover the answers for themselves.

Secondly, you have each chapter heading highlighting insights and suggestions from a book the Bland Sisters are currently reading or happen to be carrying with them.  In Flight Of The Bluebird, the book referenced is Taking Off! With Trip Winger  (Your character/fictional names are fantastic, Kara.  You most definitely have a gift with word play.) As in the past, do each of the recommendations have to do with something happening in each chapter?

Yes, I made sure that each bit of aeronautical advice is somehow relevant to the action in the story. And I don’t want to give too much away, but the culmination of all this knowledge proves vital at the end of the story!

Is there a reason you decide to have one of the Bland Sisters participate in the method of travel this time?

I thought it was important to show that even though Jaundice and Kale retain much of their Blandness throughout the series, there is still character development and a clear arc to that development through the stories. I don’t want to give too much away, but that moment where one of the girls takes control (and one of them doesn’t) felt necessary on their journey together and as distinct personalities.

Do you ever plan on getting a pilot’s license Kara?  The reason I’m asking is my girlfriend had her pilot’s license when she was sixteen.  We used to go to a small airfield after school and on weekends and she would fly us in a two-seater airplane.  We had to spin the propeller sometimes to get the engine fired-up and going.

I don’t have any plans right now to get my pilot’s license; I can barely tolerate it when someone else is flying the plane!

This leads me to another question.  You mention in your author’s note that Beatrix Airedale is a blend of women like Bessie Coleman, Amelia Earhart and Nellie Bly.  Is there a favorite book you’ve read about any or all of them you would like to share with us? Candace Fleming’s book, Amelia Lost: the Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart, was an utterly gripping account.  I could not put it down.

In the interest of time, I did some reading and watched some great documentaries during my research. Candace Fleming’s book is great, and I also learned a lot from reading Ten Days a Madwoman: The Daring Life and Turbulent Times of the Original “Girl” Reporter, Nellie Bly by Deborah Noyes. I happened to watch a biography of Bessie Coleman which was streaming on her birthday last year (January 26th!) and really inspired me; though I can’t seem to locate the name of it, I see there’s a new documentary about her life called The Legend which is streaming on Amazon Prime right now, and I can’t wait to check it out!

In the portion of the book where the plane lands for refueling (the plane and food for the characters) you make several references to the film Casablanca.  I burst out laughing at one of them.  Why Casablanca?

Casablanca takes place at about the same time as Raiders of the Lost Ark (which is also when Flight of the Bluebird is set), so it seemed like a fun choice and definitely ripe for parody!

I think readers are going to be fascinated with the setting of this title.  Did you know this is where the third adventure would unfold when you were writing the first two titles?

I didn’t know what the second or the third book would be when I wrote the first book, but when I sold it to Abrams, I roughly fleshed out the rest of the trilogy. I wanted to “go big” with the final story, so an action-packed adventure in Egypt filled with lots of villains and mysteries and dreams and revelations (and a curse!) felt right!

The cryptic postcards the children receive from their parents add to the mystery and adventure.  Also what prompted you to use their mother’s journal to be a part of explanatory flashbacks?

I got the idea of the journal from Indiana Jones’ father’s Grail diary in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. I thought it would be a great way to introduce some of the Bland Sisters’ parents backstory, and also a few clues that help along the way with Jaundice and Kale’s adventures.

There are other items I would like to chat with you about but I don’t want to spoil anything for readers.  I will leave them with several of my many favorite lines from the book.

Beatrix tells the twins---

Life’s not worth living unless we’re taking risks and challenging ourselves.

I find both of these sections hilarious and typical of the Bland sisters.

Reading something so dry and practical was always a comfort.

“What now?”  asked Kale.

“I don’t know,” said Jaundice.  “I’ve never been trapped in a rug on a moving truck, surrounded by assassins.”

LOL. I’m so glad you enjoyed these lines, and the book in general — I had so much fun writing Flight of the Bluebird and all of the Unintentional Adventures. Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to talk about these stories!

Kara LaReau was born and raised in Connecticut. She received her Masters in Fine Arts in Writing, Literature, and Publishing from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts and later worked as an editor at Candlewick Press and at Scholastic Press. She is the author of such picture books as UGLY FISH, illustrated by Scott Magoon, and Good Night Little Monsters, illustrated by Brian Won; an award-winning chapter book series called The Infamous Ratsos, illustrated by Matt Myers; and a middle-grade trilogy called The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters, illustrated by Jen Hill. Kara lives in Providence, Rhode Island with her husband and son and their cat.

SCHEDULED STOPS ON THE

FLIGHT OF THE BLUEBIRD

BLOG TOUR

1/7 Librarian's Quest

1/8 Storymamas

1/9 YAYOMG!

1/10 Mrs. Knott's Book Nook

1/11 MG Book Village

They Aimed High

It's important to stop and realize the choices afforded us every day have not always been available.  Many of the opportunities are here now because of a path built by others.  These people dared to be different.  These people followed a vision they had for themselves not one dictated by acceptable social norms.

Three courageous women decided to pursue their passion for flying.  Skyward: The Story Of Female Pilots In WWII (Flying Eye Books, September 4, 2018) written and illustrated by Sally Deng is based on their remarkable actions.  They and their accomplishments are worth remembering. 

First Flight

Three girls looked to the sky and wondered what it must feel like to be up so high.  What would it be like to cut through clouds so swiftly that the wind struggled to keep up?

We begin in the year 1927 in San Francisco, California.  Hazel is at the air field with her father on a Saturday for their weekly outing.  A Curtiss Jenny lands and its pilot invites her for a closer look.  She knows she will be a pilot.  On the other side of the pond in England, Marlene's brother lands a plane in their field.  He invites her to take a ride.  She knows she will be a pilot.  In Russia a pilot has to make an emergency landing in a tiny town.  One of the many children gathered around the smoking plane is Lilya.  She can't stop making drawings of flight and that plane.  She knows she will be a pilot.  Three separate incidents shape three lives.

One of them with the help of her sibling, learns to fly.  Another has to work to pay for lessons and read about flying when she can't afford them.  The third must learn in secret, until before her eighteenth birthday, at a flying club.  She finally announces the club has asked her to be an instructor.  In 1939 war changes the world and challenges these three young women.

Each one of them assists other women in the war effort.  It is especially tense for Marlene and Lilya.  All three would rather be flying but their inquiries are quashed until the military becomes desperate for pilots.  Hazel begins training with the Women Airforce Service Pilots. (Hazel's friend, Elizabeth, also a pilot, is not allowed to fly.  She is an African American.) Marlene applies and passes a physical for the Air Transport Auxiliary.  Lilya writes a letter to Colonel Marina Raskova

the most famous aviatrix in the Soviet Union.

For the first time in her life she leaves her community to journey by train to Moscow.  She is accepted by Colonel Marina Raskova herself.  All three suffer ridicule, taunts, ill-fitting clothing and even staying in a cowshed for lack of proper housing  They endure and embrace training and begin to fly.

Hazel performs flight tests when no man will.  There are times when ferrying planes, she has to guard the plane with pistol in hand.  Marlene ferries planes too.  She flies in the fog when others stay on the ground.  Maintaining radio silence in the heavy fog causes her to crash one time.  Lilya and her navigator fly at night, dropping bombs along enemy lines.  They are called Night Witches.  At the end of the war, the numbers assigned to the deeds of these three woman are impressive.  They built a path for others.

Opposite the title page author Sally Deng tells us this book is a 

work of creative fiction.

It contains real events experienced by real people. It's important when she begins with three different occasions in 1927.  This allows readers to be a part of following how the three girls' initial dreams come true.

With the passing of the years, Sally Deng weaves the girls' lives together flawlessly including specific examples to support their experiences.  One of them can hardly stand the frustration felt when male doctors don't seem to know a thing about women.  Another receives a necklace for good luck from her mother on the eve of her departure.  The conversations within the narrative serve to illuminate the girls' personalities and captivate readers.  Here are two paragraphs.

When the sun set, the dangerous part of their mission would

begin.  Pilots and their navigator climbed into their PO-2s.  Lilya sat

in front, Tatyana in her own seat behind her.  Each team followed the 

same plan.  They would fly out to the enemy line and get as close to

the German camps as possible.  Before they got into hearing range,

Lilya would shut off the engine and glide her plane down towards

the target. wsssssssssssssssssshhhhhhh

The thunderous wind in her ears was a whisper to those on the

ground.  When they were close enough, she pulled a lever that would

drop bombs down below.  If the lever became stuck, Tatyana would

stand up and push the bombs out by hand.

When you hold this book in your hands, the front image, a compilation of the three women, what they endured, and their achievements, beckons to readers.  The texture of the book case, the cloth spine and varnished elements supply a pleasing tactile sensation.  To the left, on the back, between text normally found on the front flap of a jacket, four women wrestle with a barrage balloon.

Across the opening and closing endpapers shades of the title text color on the front of the book case is used to create a pattern of rows of planes and military symbols.  On the title page the three featured women are positioned on the wings and body of an airplane.  Opposite the Contents a child, her back to us, wearing a pilot's helmet, jacket and too-large boots is watching the shadows of planes fly overhead.

On the page with the first five sentences Sally Deng introduces us to the Hazel, Marlene and Lilya as girls looking skyward.  Readers can't help but be enthralled with the exquisite details in every illustration.  The research used to replicate settings, architecture, clothing and the airplanes is evident.

We are shown large landscape views and stunning close-ups.  Many times we are looking like a bird or a pilot at a scene below us.  To show the passage of time or to emphasize a portion of text, Sally Deng groups very small illustrations together.  For several of the chapter beginnings the three women, even though they are in separate locations, are placed together.  The heavier, matte-finished paper is a wonderful selection to highlight her fabulous illustrations.

One of my many, many favorite pictures spans two pages.  It is when Marlene is flying for the first time as a passenger in her brother's plane.  Across both pages as a background streaks of pale blue, blush, cream and white replicate the sky.  On the left is a close up of Marlene's face, her hair blowing in the wind and crossing the gutter.  Her eyes are covered by goggles, but her mouth is shaped in a circle of wonder. 

Even having read this book, Skyward: The Story Of Female Pilots In WWII written and illustrated by Sally Deng, three times you still feel what these three women felt; their passion, fear, tension, frustration, pride, determination and pure love of flying.  This story, their stories, are sure to inspire others to step outside what is expected.  Readers will want to know more, and an author's note and bibliography offers them that option.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal book collections.

To learn more about Sally Deng, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Sally maintains an account on Instagram. You can read more about her at the publisher's website along with viewing multiple interior images.  You can view additional pictures at Penguin Random House.  Sally Deng is interviewed at AI-AP|DART and the Foundation for Asian American Independent Media.

In Search Of A Definition

There will be times in the course of our everyday lives, or perhaps in the middle of an out-of-the-ordinary experience, when we make a discovery.  We find ourselves in uncharted territory.  We see, hear, smell, taste or touch something entirely new.  It peaks our curiosity.  It challenges us to seek answers.

We are never sure where this search will take us.  We are never sure if the information we find will be favorable.  Love, Z (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, December 18, 2018) written and illustrated by Jessie Sima is about such a discovery, quest and revelation that will leave a print on your heart.

On a bright, chilly day, Z went out looking
for adventure and stumbled upon a piece
of half-buried treasure.

On a piece of paper, the little robot found, the only legible words were at the bottom.  They said:

Love, Beatrice.

Love was a new word.  The little robot had no idea what it meant.  And who was Beatrice?  At home in the evening he got ready to power down.  A series of rituals helped him to get ready.  When he asked the question weighing heavily on his mind, none of his caretakers, the old, rusty robots, had an answer.

After spending a sleepless night, Z left to look for Beatrice.  Surely, she would know about the word love.  Z met the captain, a cat, of the S. S. Catnip.  Together they sailed down the river in search of Beatrice and the definition of love.  Along the way they met three other beings but none of them were Beatrice.

One did say what love meant.  This caused the travelers to alter their direction.  At a bakery another said love was being patient and teaching new things to someone.  Another path was taken by Z and the cat captain.  They were now at a school.  A whole chorus of voices told them what love was.  Unfortunately, none of these computed for Z.

In a moment of despair Z wanted to go home but a place to spend the night suddenly appeared. Here they found someone and something very important.  Z made a new discovery.  Sometimes that which you desire is closer than you think.


When a story begins with an encounter of something extraordinary, readers find themselves immediately engaged.  Jessie Sima continues to build this relationship with a blend of narrative and conversations.  She employs the use of "storytelling three" in Z's bedtime rituals, who he questions on the river and the places he visits to acquire replies.  This gently leads us to not one but two surprises.  Here is a passage.

"I don't know any Beatrice,"
said the crow.  "But to me . . ."

"Love is sharing your food,
even when it's delicious."

That did not compute.  But Z thanked the crow anyway
and changed course toward a place with delicious food.


A warm, reddish peach provides the canvas for the open dust jacket.  If love were a color, would it be this?  To the left, on the back, within a circle of blue and green, a green, corked bottle floats.  We see a rolled-up piece of paper and the word Love.  On the front, to the right, Z is thinking the title, but this also appears again at an important point in the story.  The rusty, old robots and the cat captain, his companions, are smiling and wrapping around him in a circle.  Careful readers will notice the letters on the robots.  If you move them around, what do they spell?  The title and Z are varnished.

The book case, front and back, appears to be knitted in shades of the warm, reddish peach.  The stitches are very clear.  In the middle of the front in hues of blue is the letter Z.  This is a huge hint of what is to come.

On the opening and closing endpapers in blue and purple a series of robot heads, outlined, supply a pattern.  Across the verso and title pages, Z is standing in and on an abandoned footed bath tub, wearing his paper sailor cap and holding a telescope.  Each illustration rendered in Adobe Photoshop by Jessie Sima spans double pages, single pages, or are grouped in a cluster on a single page.

When the individuals are replying to Z about what love is to them, these are encased in a speech bubble.  They reflect an experience from the past.  To enhance an emotion Jessie Sima will shift her perspective.  This is apparent when Z can't sleep, when he is setting out on his quest, when he is discouraged or when he experiences his first of two surprises.  She also uses eyes to great effect when conveying mood.  Readers will want to pause at each image to notice the details Jessie includes.

One of my many favorite illustrations covers two pages.  It's snowing and the river has widened.  It looks like a vast expanse of water.  On the right is an island with a dock reaching into the water.  A mailbox is placed on the shore.  Nestled among evergreens covering the island is a small cottage with smoke billowing from the chimney.  Lights glow in the two windows on the first floor.  The S. S. Catnip is tied to the dock.  Z and the cat captain have just left the boat.


If you want to set the tone for a day or night, read Love, Z written and illustrated by Jessie Sima.  It is a labor of love about love.  It will wrap around readers like a hug.  It will certainly promote discussions about what love is.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal collections.

To discover more about Jessie Sima and her other work, please follow the links attached to her name to access her website and blog.  Jessie has accounts on Twitter and Instagram. At the publisher's website you can view interior images.

UPDATE:  Jessie Sima is highlighted at Let's Talk Picture Books on January 22, 2019.

Listen To The Music Of Her Words

We read their words.  We listen to their words.  We study their words.  Their words sing to our souls and enter our beating hearts.

Like composers of musical masterpieces, poets supply us with the ability to create our own melodies from their words.  Surely some of those melodies we make are the same, but others will resonate in differing harmonies.  In her eighty-three years one wonderful woman left her poetic mark on the world.  A Song for Gwendolyn Brooks (Sterling Books for Children, January 1, 2019) written by Alice Faye Duncan (Memphis, Martin, And The Mountaintop: The Sanitation Strike of 1968)  with illustrations by Xia Gordon is a lovely and loving lyrical and stunning pictorial tribute.

I
SING a song for Gwendolyn Brooks
Sing it loud---a Chicago blues.

Skip to the beat of elevated trains.
They grumble, rumble, and roll real fast.

In 1925 Gwendolyn Brooks was eight years old, unsure of what was possible.  Even then she wrote daily in her journals while other girls and boys were at play.  Writing was a solitary experience for this gifted child.

Her father worked as a janitor to support his family.  Her mother stayed at home.  A younger brother was Gwendolyn's best friend.  Gwendolyn watches the world of her Chicago home and it watches her.  Others are not always kind.

Her parents see her gift and support it completely.  When accused of plagiarism by a school teacher, Mrs. Brooks marches with her daughter back to school and settles the matter immediately.  Gwendolyn pens an original poem on the spot.  Now this beautiful child understands what her parents have always known.

She is allowed to write instead of working inside or outside of their home.  Before graduating high school, her poetry is published in the Chicago Defender.  Her mother declares how high her fame will go.

Gwendolyn studies with other poets, she wins a contest, she graduates from college, marries and a son is born to her and her husband.  She writes and writes, and her fame grows.  In 1950 Gwendolyn Brooks wins a Pulitzer Prize; the first Black American to win this award.  Her mother was right.


Within seconds you find the fibers in your being, your breathing, syncing to the rise and fall of the stanzas written by Alice Faye Duncan.  Each of the nine portions of her narrative about poet Gwendolyn Brooks begins with

SING a song for Gwendolyn Brooks.

This joyful declaration is followed by individual incidents, descriptions of her days and family life and being a part of the community on the South Side of Chicago.  Alice Faye Duncan includes several of Gwendolyn Brooks' poems to emphasize her biographical portrait.  Here is a passage,

VI
SING a song for Gwendolyn Brooks.
Chicago teems with Black sharecroppers from Dixie towns.

While jobs are scarce in the Great Depression,
Migrants slog and scrounge for decent work.

Gwen is Sweet Sixteen in '33.
She is feathery voice and flickering flame.
She gushes and giggles over Shakespeare sonnets.

Her parents are wise and see her light.
They do not yell, "Go mop the floor!"
And when high school chums must look for work,
Gwendolyn is free to sit and think.


The front of the dust jacket (I am working with a digital copy of the book.) is completely breathtaking.  The color palette radiates warmth and light and the pure truth of knowing you have chosen the right path for your life.  This is the face of a woman you want to know.  This is the face of an astonishing human being.

The opening and closing endpapers appear to be a dark gray with pale yellow scroll work of leaves and flowers in diagonal rows.  This is in direct reference to opening and closing selections of Alice Faye Duncan's narrative.  On the title page the lively smiling face of Gwendolyn Brooks looks to the left of readers.

Each of the distinctive illustrations by Xia Gordon appear to be a double-page picture even if a section seems to be a separate full page.  The hues used blend seamlessly from left to right.  For most of the images a pale yellow, almost cream, figures prominently connecting one page to the next.  Her people and other significant elements are created with smooth flowing lines and a noticeable use of highlights and shadows.

One of my many favorite illustrations spans two pages.  The text references the neighborhood where Gwendolyn lives with her husband and son.  This community fuels her writing.  Xia Gordon chooses to focus on a church and its steeple going through the clouds.  Shades of orange, yellow, red and purple color the buildings.  Clouds gather and swirl in tan, cream and white.


This biographical accolade to this remarkable poet, A Song for Gwendolyn Brooks written by Alice Faye Duncan with illustrations by Xia Gordon, is marvelous, uplifting and inspirational.  It would be an excellent choice for an introduction to writing, a study of American poets, a unit on biographies or the art of writing poetry.  At the close of the book there is an author's note, Gwendolyn Brooks timeline, suggested reading by Gwendolyn Brooks and a bibliography.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Alice Faye Duncan and Xia Gordon and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Both Alice Faye Duncan and Xia Gordon have accounts on Twitter.  Alice Faye Duncan and Xia Gordon are also on Instagram.  The cover reveal and an interview can be found at A Fuse # 8 Production hosted by Elizabeth Bird.  Alice Faye Duncan is interviewed by author Deborah Kalb.


Educator Alyson Beecher is hosting the 2019 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge at Kid Lit Frenzy.  I am very grateful for this opportunity to participate and to find other nonfiction books.

Happy New Year 2019---One Little Word

Three hundred sixty-five days have come and gone in what seemed like a heartbeat.  Where did 2018 go?  Did someone speed up the clock?  The sense of not being able to catch up seemed stronger this past year.

Many people have been selecting one little word at the beginning of each calendar year for more than a decade.  The One Little Word project was started in 2006 by Ali Edwards.  For this first post of 2019, still having 2018 books to highlight, I decided to generate a list and assign a single word to each title.  I will include links to the author, illustrator and publisher when able to do so.  I will provide a passage from the book.  May everything that is right and good flourish in this coming year for each of you.

CONFIDENCE

Neck & Neck (Little, Brown and Company, June 5, 2018) written and illustrated by Elise Parsley

"I just

love 

this guy!"

At that, 

Leopold sighed and turned . . .

. . . and gasped

at the

gleaming smile

bobbing beside him.

Book Chat with the Illustrator: Elise Parsley Returns from LB School on Vimeo.



NEIGHBORHOOD

Hey, Wall: A Story Of Art And Community (A Paula Wiseman Book, Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers, September 4, 2018) written by Susan Verde with illustrations by John Parra

Hey, Wall!

Guess what?

I'm ready to change all that.







Book trailer premiere with chat at Watch. Connect. Read. with John Schumacher



COMPASSION

I Am Human: A Book of Empathy (Abrams Books for Young Readers, October 2, 2018) written by Susan Verde with illustrations by Peter H. Reynolds  

I have a feeling of wonder.

I am amazed by nature.

I have a playful side.

I find joy in friendships.

I am Human.



PERSPECTIVE

The Wall In The Middle Of The Book (Dial Books for Young Readers, October 2, 2018) written and illustrated by Jon Agee  

Wait a second.  What's going on?!

This is not supposed to happen
on this side of the wall!




Book trailer premiere at 100 Scope Notes with Travis Jonker



CHOICE

Little Brown (Beach Lane Books, October 2, 2018) written and illustrated by Marla Frazee

He knew he could be a dog who would---if given
half a chance---chase balls, run in circles, nap in
the shade, or get muddy.

But Little Brown just watched the others . . .
and got crankier and crankier.  






UNITY

We've Got the Whole World in Our Hands (Orchard Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., October 9, 2018) written and illustrated by Rafael Lopez

We've got the rivers and the mountains
in our hands.
We've got the oceans and the seas
in our hands.
We've got you and you've got me
in our hands.
We've got the whole world
in our hands.






EXPLORE

My Heart Is a Compass (Little, Brown and Company, November 6, 2018) written and illustrated by Deborah Marcero

It could have been anything.
Something exotic?
Something magical?
Did it even exist?
Where could she find such a thing?

For that, she needed a map.  Not an atlas or a globe.
To find the secret coordinates, she would
have to draw her own map.  

Watch the delightful book trailer premiere
at A Fuse #8 Production with Betsy Bird



STORY

No Boring Stories! (Viking, Penguin Young Readers, November 6, 2018) written by Julie Falatko with pictures by Charles Santoso

Those are boring stories!
I like books where strange stuff
happens.  But everyone says my
stories are too weird.

I think weird
stories are cool.

Remember the one you
wrote where the main
character was a discarded
shoe who loved to sing?

That sounds hilarious!

GIVE

Found. (Simon & Schuster Book for Young Readers, November 20, 2018) written by Jeff Newman with illustrations by Larry Day

This story is wordless.  It is a powerful statement on loss.  It speaks to giving when it's the hardest possible choice.  It's also about finding pure sweet love.