Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
Chitchat by Jude Isabella (Kids Can Press, September 2013) is a delightful exploration of language for a young adult reader. It explores so many aspects of language that I felt like I was a little bit in heaven since I appreciate and love languages and words so much. At 48 pages, it obviously only skimmed
Everyone Prays: Celebrating Faith Around the World by Alex York Lumbard and illustrated by Alireza Sadeghian (Wisdom Tales, 2014) shows people from religions around the world praying. Simple drawings are accompanied by a very basic text that describes how people from different religions pray: heads covered or not, singing and dancing or not, with water or
The Pullman Porter: An American Journey by Vanita Oelschlager and illustrated by Mike Blanc (Vanita Books, May 2014) captures the history of the former slaves who became the porters on the Pullman train cars. Rich acrylic paintings add a sense of awe to the text. The book shares the duties of a Pullman porter, as well as
Some Bugs by Andrea DiTerlizzi and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel (Beach Lane Books, 2014) is a simple rhyme for young kids about different kinds of bugs. Paired with the rhyme are collage-like illustrations created with “everything imaginable.” (See the note on the last page.) Crayon, pencils, watercolor, and collage make our backyard world in to a multi-colored
This picture book is non-fiction (or nearly that)! Sometimes the best ways to learn about something are through a fun story. This certainly fills that need. Daisylocks by Marianne Berkes and illustrated by Cathy Morrison (Sylvan Dell, 2014) is a beautifully illustrated book about a daisy seed trying to find a place to grow that is “just
Who Was Here?: Discovering Animal Tracks by Mia Posada (Millbrook Press, October 2014) has rich illustrations of animal footprints, coupled with delightful rhymes. Each of these animal track pages ends with the question: “Who Was Here?” The answer is only told on the next page, which also has a paragraph about the tracked animal. To
Jumping Penguins by Marije Tolman (Lemniscaat USA, 2011) is a nonfiction book about animals with an element of fantasy in the clever illustrations. Each page of Tolman’s book provides facts about a different animal (50 animals are discussed in all). There are no connections between pages, and some pages rather randomly name a few facts
Martin and Mahalia: His Words, Her Song by Andrea Davis Pinkney and illustrated by Brian Pinkney (Little, Brown, August 2013) is a poetic biography of the two influential civil rights individuals who together shared a message during the March on Washington in 1963. Brian Pinkney’s illustrations are sweeping and colorful, bringing the reader in to
Dolphin, Fox, Hippo, Ox by Brian Cleary (Lerner Publishing, 2012) and other books in the Words are CATegorical. These books are clever. Using fun rhymes, they teach about concepts that children are still learning about: parts of speech, mathematical concepts, or, in this case, animal groups. Dolphin et al is about mammals. I liked this book enough
Figuring Out Fossils by Sally M. Walker (Lerner Publishing, 2013) caught my eye because (1) I love Sally Walker and (2) I read a book by Ms Walker about fossils last year, a part of the Early Bird Science series. To my delight and surprise, this was the same book I read last year, repackaged with more
Now that he’s reading a mile a minute, it’s time to hear from my six-year-old again! The Falling Raindrop by Neil Johnson and Joel Chin. This is a picture book. It is fiction. It is a story about a raindrop. In the book, a raindrop got born and fell into a fire and he turned into
And the Winner Is… by Etta Kaner (Kids Can Press, 2013) is a clever look at animals by looking at some of the extreme things they are able to do, from sprinting and high jump to weight lifting and swimming. Subtitled “Amazing Animal Antics,” this book is both informative and fun. The illustrations by David
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