Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
Initially, Bone Dog by Eric Rohmann (Roaring Brook, July 2011) left me both incredibly impressed by the gorgeous illustrations and a bit wary of the ghoulish setting for the story. I’ve mentioned before that I am not a fan of Halloween; Bone Dog is a Halloween picture book, complete with a visit to a graveyard and
I don’t often read middle grade fiction, but when I heard about The Cheshire Cheese Cat by Carmen Agra Deedy and Randall Wright (published by Peachtree Publishers, October 2011) at BEA in May, I was excited to read it. After all, the subtitle is “A Dickens of the Tale” and I knew that Charles Dickens
We loved Jan Thomas’s books a few months ago, so we have been looking for more. My four-year-old loves Rhyming Dust Bunnies. The pages are very simple and easily readable by a young kid because they contain, for the most part, rhyming words. Friends Ed, Ned, Ted, and Bob (who are dust bunnies) are quite silly,
Brownie Groundhog and the February Fox by Susan Blackaby and illustrated by Carmen Segovia (Sterling, January 2011) is partly a Groundhog Day book and partly a most unusual story about a groundhog and a fox becoming friends. When Brownie appears on February 2, she’s welcomed by a deep snow. She’s of course bothered by the residual winter,
Mudkin by Stephen Gammell (Carolrhoda, April 2011) is an clever book about an imaginary friend, in this case, one that comes from playing in the mud. A little girl discovers a mud creature called Mudkin who invites her to his castle where she will be queen. Although there is little text (Mudkin does not speak English but
Perfect Soup by Lisa Moser and illustrated by Ben Mantle (Random House, October 2010) tells the simple story of Murray the mouse that wants to make “perfect soup.” When he finds himself short a carrot, he tries to borrow one from someone else but the farmer wants him to help in order to “earn” the carrot. One thing
Willow and the Snow Day Dance by Denise Brennan-Nelson and illustrated by Cyd Moore (Sleeping Bear Press, November 2010) tells of a bright and pleasant girl who organizes community events to bring people together, including the grouchy Mr. Larch. When Willow dreams about snow, Mr. Larch tells her how to do a snow day dance. When it
In You Will Be My Friend! by Peter Brown (Little, Brown, September 2011), Lucy (a brown bear) has decided that today she will make a new friend. However, as she approaches potential friends with that demand, she finds it much harder than she anticipated. Never fear, Lucy finds friendship when she least expects it. Peter Brown’s illustrations are
I Must Have Bobo! by Ellen Rosenthal and illustrated by Marc Rosenthal (Atheneum, January 2011) tells of a child’s connection with his an imaginary friend stuffed animal! Young Willy wakes up only to find that his dear sock monkey Bobo is missing! He is found, much to Willy’s relief, as the boy cannot get through
When I first picked up Press Here by Herve Tullet (Handprint Books, March 2011), I was unimpressed. It is a book with dots on every page. What’s so creative about that? I scratched my head, wondering why this picture book got such raving reviews. Then I introduced it to my four-year-old. He loved it, and
My son (age 4) and I really enjoy the rhymes and the stories in Anna Dewney’s Llama Llama books. Llama Llama Home with Mama (Viking, August 2011) is no exception, and I particularly related to it since I was sick for much of the summer due to my early pregnancy. In this story, Llama Llama
When all the lights in Brooklyn go out one summer night in Blackout by John Rocco (Hyperion, May 2011), families are suddenly not busy, much to the delight of the young child. Without power, the family cannot work on computers, or otherwise engage in their many tasks. When their powerless home gets too hot, they
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