Books to Inspire, Thrill and Engage Children
Nikki McClure has a gift for making wonderful picture books for infants, toddlers & preschoolers. How to Be a Cat is her newest book, and I highly recommend it. Like Apple, which I reviewed here, How to Be a Cat is deceptively simple. Black-and-white paper cutouts illustrate the book, with pops of color on each... Continue Reading →
The friendship between General George Washington & the Marquis de Lafayette is legendary. Author Selene Castrovilla tells the story of their first meeting in Revolutionary Friends: General George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette. She starts at the moment Lafayette is in City Tavern in Philadelphia, ready to meet his hero, George Washington. She then... Continue Reading →
Remember those joyful summer evenings spent playing by the light of the moon? Author Janice May Udry captures the fun frolicking in her book The Moon Jumpers, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (of Where the Wild Things Are fame). This picture book is truly a picture book - lots of colorful, and black & white, drawings... Continue Reading →
Fairy tales teach us consequences, moral character, or how to deal with change. The Paper Crane by Molly Bang, is a modern fairy tale that focuses on dealing with change. A man's restaurant is busy, and he is happy - until a new highway is built which drives traffic away from his business. His sorrow... Continue Reading →
Boys have always been attached to their dogs. And Great-Grandfather was attached to Three Names, so called because everyone in the family had a different name for him. Three Names by Patricia MacLachlan isn't so much about the relationship between Great-Grandfather and Three Names, as it is about Three Names being a part of Great-Grandfather's... Continue Reading →
Chris Van Allsburg, a talented artist and author, brings his unique eye to the younger crowd in his alphabet book The Z was Zapped. Each letter takes the stage, and something happens to it. The E slowly evaporates. The M begins to melt. The O is overgrown. And you can guess what happens to the... Continue Reading →
Author Arthur Geisert succeeded in writing an engaging picture book using just one word, and that one word is really a sound: oink. Oink is about a mama pig, her litter of piglets and their life on the farm. Geisert's near-black-&-white illustrations are beautifully delicate and detailed in telling the pigs' story. I can imagine... Continue Reading →
The poor exclamation point in Exclamation Point! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld cannot find where he belongs. He always stands out among the crowd, even when he tries to blend in. Then he meets the question mark, and suddenly his purpose becomes more clear. Delightful turns of phrase and puns will keep adults... Continue Reading →
Poor Rabbit! He has just discovered a strange black rabbit is following him everywhere. He tries everything to get rid of that Black Rabbit, but nothing works until Rabbit runs into the forest. Ahh! Finally, Rabbit is alone. But then, Rabbit notices two eyes shining in the darkness. Is it the Black Rabbit? Author &... Continue Reading →
Sometimes I feel the world celebrates extroverts to the detriment of introverts - those of us who recharge and refuel being by ourselves, who don't feel a need to be involved in every conversation, who are perfectly entertained with favorite toys and our imagination. People like Oliver. Oliver, the title character in Birgitta Sif's picture... Continue Reading →
Cultivating Readers 