Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Blog Tour: Pruett and Soo!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

A robot and alien make friendship and life colorful in this adorable story by Nancy Viau.

Pruett & Soo, by Nancy Viau/Illustrated by Jorge Lacera,
(March 2022, Two Lions), $17.99, ISBN: 9781542043427
Ages 4-7

Pruett is an adorable little robot with a computer monitor for a head, living on Planet Monochrome, where everything is… well, monochrome. Signs all over the place remind citizens to “Blend In. Wear Only Black, Gray, or White. Be Calm”, and encourage them to never ask questions, never play, and never use colorful crayons. That all changes when Soo, a colorful alien from Planet Prismatic, shows up in class one day! She’s a friendly extrovert who wants to share crayons and talk to her new classmates, and is stymied by the distanced reaction she gets. Pruett, who desperately wants to break out of his black, white, and grey world, sees Soo being rebuffed and becoming progressively sadder and lonelier, takes the chance: a colorful exclamation point lights up above his head, and he invites Soo to play tag. The two friends have so much fun together, that they spread a little of their joy – and their color – through the classroom. A colorful, playful story about taking the first step and affecting positive change, Pruett and Soo combines picture book narration with comic book word balloons to denote conversations between characters. The story begins in monochromatic black, white, and gray, and uses color to show the infectious fun Soo and Pruett bring to Planet Monochrome; a change reflected in the characters’ mannerisms and fonts, which become as colorful as Soo’s with time. The digital illustrations will delight young video gamers familiar with 8-bit games like Minecraft and Roblox.

Bottom line: Don’t let anyone dull your color. Change the world by adding some color! Pair this with F. Isabel Campoy, Theresa Howell, and Rafael López’s book, Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood, to illustrate how bringing color to a landscape brings positive change.

“The unlikely friendship at the heart of this allegorical picture book is touching. Viau’s writing is engaging.” ―Kirkus Reviews

“Highlighting the value of asserting one’s individuality in the face of pressures to conform, this vivid episode can stand alone or fit neatly into a storytime.” – Booklist

Nancy Viau is the author of a number of books for children including Storm Song, illustrated by Gynux; Today Is a Beach Day!, illustrated by Charlie Alder; First Snow, illustrated by Talitha Shipman; and the Samantha Hansen series. A former teacher, she currently lives in New Jersey and travels around the solar system in her imagination. Learn more at nancyviau.com.

Twitter: @NancyViau1

Instagram: @nancyviau1

Facebook: Nancy Viau

 

Jorge Lacera was born in Colombia and grew up in Florida. He attended Ringling College of Art and Design and has worked as an artist or art director at major gaming studios and entertainment companies. He is the illustrator of Zombies Don’t Eat Veggies by Megan Lacera and XO, Exoplanet by Deborah Underwood. He lives in Canada with his family. Learn more at studiolacera.com.

Twitter: jlacera

Instagram: jlacera

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Apple and Magnolia: A STEM story woven into a friendship tale

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Apple and Magnolia, by Laura Gehl/Illustrated by Patricia Metola, (Feb. 2022, Flyaway Books), $18, ISBN: 9781947888357

Ages 3-7

Apple and Magnolia are two trees with a connection, witnessed by a young girl of color named Britta. She enjoys the tree’s relationship to one another; her father and sister may not believe her, but her grandmother assures her that “unusual friendships can be the most powerful of all”. When Magnolia begins to show signs of being ill, Britta does her best to stay by her friends and support them both, using the scientific method to help facilitate the trees’ connection to the other: she connects two cups to a string so they can hear each other; wrapping a scarf between the two to feel each other’s warmth; measuring the distance between the trees to see if they are growing closer together, and journaling her findings, all with the support and love of her grandmother. Britta’s father and sister are largely for comic relief, providing the devil’s advocate side of science: the nay-sayer. Cheery illustrations that look like they could be taken from Britta’s own journal make this a wonderfully playful readaloud, including endpapers that depict Britta’s sketches of the trees and their flowers and fruit. Inspired by the science of trees and how they communicate with one another, Apple and Magnolia is a great storytime readaloud and perfection for a STEM storytime or Discovery Club-type story. Author Laura Gehl’s website has a free downloadable Educator’s Guide for Apple and Magnolia, plus resources her many of her other books.

For more information about trees and their relationships to one another, visit this NPR article on an ecologist who’s studied trees; this article from Smithsonian magazine; and this article from One Tree Planted. Andy Hirsch’s Science Comics Trees: Kings of the Forest also delves into these complex and amazing relationships.

Apple and Magnolia has starred reviews from Kirkus and Foreword Reviews.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

What is The Most Important Thing?

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Most Important Thing, by Antonella Abbatiello, (March 2022, Red Comet Press), $17.99, ISBN: 9781636550220

Ages 3-6

A group of animals has a discussion about what each considers “the most important thing”. Is it to have long ears, to hear any potential danger? Quills, to protect oneself? Maybe it’s a long neck, to keep an eye out for danger. Each animals takes a turn expounding on why a quality they possess is the most important, and the other animals envision themselves with those traits in amusing, large-size foldout spreads, and the recurring rhyming phrase, “That could be true. / Perhaps it is so. ‘ It could be [trait], / but how can we know?” helps readers with predicting what’s coming next. A wise owl weighs in with the importance of uniqueness and variety being important, bringing home the message that everyone is unique; everyone has a special quality that makes them special and important. Flaps are sturdy and fun to fold out, and the illustrations of elephants with quills; flying snakes and foxes; giraffes and alligators with gopher teeth, and more make this a home run for storytime reading.

The Most Important Thing was originally published in Italy in 1998, and it beautifully holds up today. Download the free activity kit through the Red Comet website and have copies on hand for a storytime activity.

Posted in Fiction, Fiction, Intermediate, Middle Grade, picture books

Carrimebac: The Town That Walked is great folklore

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Carrimebac: The Town That Walked, by David Barclay Moore/Illustrated by John Holyfield, (March 2022, Candlewick Press), $18.99, ISBN: 9781536213690

Ages 6-10

When old Rootilla Redgums and her young grandson, Julius Jefferson walk into the town of Walkerton, Georgia, everyone is suspicious. Dogs snargggled. Cats hisssked. But Rootilla, who was born almost 100 years before in 1776, and her 9-year-old grandson quickly win the town over with their kindness and Rootilla’s everyday magic: she teaches the townspeople to weave rugs that never wear down, and bake ceramic jugs that never empty. The whites in the area – known here as “the Fearful Folks” – are convinced the Black residents are up to no good, and show up in their bedsheets and wielding their torches, trying to scare everyone. Rootilla isn’t having it, and turns those torches to cornstalks. But time is running short, and Julius puts her last wish into action, renaming the town Carrimebac and literally moving the town away, pulled by his faithful goose, Woody. Carrimebac: The Town That Walked is a delightful tall tale; folklore told in a lively voice and brought to life with gorgeous acrylic illustrations. Set in 1876, the Ku Klux Klan are a menacing presence; readers will cheer to see them upended by the Rootilla and the townspeople, let by Rootilla’s young grandson, Julius. A wonderful addition to your collections. Visit Candlewick’s website for a free educator guide.

David Barclay Moore is a John Steptoe New Talent Award winner for his YA novel, The Stars Beneath Our Feet. Visit his website to learn more about his books and his films. Visit illustrator John Holyfield’s website to see more of his artwork.

Posted in Intermediate, Middle Grade, Non-fiction, Non-Fiction

Celebrate Poetry Month with Imagine!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Imagine! Rhymes of Hope to Shout Together, by Bruno Tognolini/Illustrated by Giulia Orecchia, Translated by Denise Muir, (March 2022, Red Comet Press), $18.99, ISBN: 9781636550145

Ages 5-8

One of Italy’s most beloved children’s poets, Bruno Tognolini, brings a collection of “rhymes of hope to shout together” to U.S. shores. Originally published in Italy in 2021, Imagine! can be read as a series of short poems or as one continuous story. The rhythmic verse covers a wide range of imagination and wish, from wishing that one could share a meal with fictional characters to heartbreaking thoughts about war and the hope for peace and compassion, to the desire to draw a parent out of a depression caused by unemployment. The collage artwork instantly evokes Eric Carle’s colorful illustration play, and each brief poems ends in a colorful cry, “Imagine!”, which you can encourage your readers to join in and invoke with each reading. It’s poetry with a desire for social change and a cry for understanding and empathy.

You can stream the song and the instrumental for Imagine! on Red Comet Press’s SoundCloud site. Red Comet’s website also offers a downloadable educator’s and discussion guide to use when working with kids and reading the book.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Passover, Here I Come! collects fun holiday poems for kids

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Passover, Here I Come!, by D.J. Steinberg/Illustrated by Emanuel Wiemans, (Feb. 2022, Grosset & Dunlap), $5.99, ISBN: 9780593224038

Ages 4-6

Clean the house, set the Seder plate, and get the matzoh, because Passover’s coming! Author D.J. Steinberg’s newest “Here I Come!” book collects poems celebrating all things Passover, including a kid-friendly Haggadah: “A Hebrew hero, Moses / told him, ‘Let my people go!’ / But guess what mean old Pharaoh answered / ‘No, no, no!'” There’s a sweet farewell to bread (“It’s been fun, but bye-bye, Bread- / We’re eating matzoh now instead!”) and a hilarious ode to gefilte fish (“There’s no fish in any ocean / that looks anything like that!”). Illustrations are so much fun, with marching slices of bread, a bustling household getting ready for Passover, and coming together to celebrate; characters are diverse. The rhymes are fun to read out loud, so consider adding to your celebrations. Like other Here I Come! books, this one has stickers; great for gifts, not great for circulating copies. Make sure to slice out the stickers and hand them out instead.

See all of D.J. Steinberg’s Here I Come! books here. Visit author D.J. Steinberg’s author page here to find more of his books and learn about author appearances.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

The Hiking Viking teaches his family valuable lessons

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Hiking Viking, by Laura Gehl/Illustrated by Timothy Banks, (Feb. 2022, Capstone Editions), $17.99, ISBN: 9781684464272

Ages 4-8

A young Viking enjoys more quiet pursuits while everyone around him brawls and battles, hollers and howls. But the Viking Games are coming, and Leif has to take part! Losing the games would make others think Leif’s family is weak, and leave them vulnerable. Can Leif figure out a way to show everyone that real treasure can’t always be measured in silver or gold? Laura Gehl tells a sweet story that values more thoughtful pursuits and a love of nature. Leif is able to get through to his clan when he shows them the beauty of the natural landscape surrounding them – the beautiful and famed fjords of Norway – rendered in gorgeous, colorful artwork. The story and illustration are reminiscent of animated favorites like How to Train Your Dragon, and the message is similar: be true to yourself, and others will value you for it. Laura Gehl writes with a deep appreciation for nature, translated masterfully by Timothy Banks. A fun and thoughtful book for readers. Visit publisher Capstone’s website for a free, downloadable Educator’s Guide.

For kid-friendly information on the fjords of Norway, visit Kiddle. Visit Norway has a family fun page that mentions another famous story set in Norway: Frozen! Michelle’s Treasures on TeachersPayTeachers has a free Norway coloring page that makes for a fun storytime handout.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Brave Enough confronts monsters… and humans!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Brave Enough, by Rob Justus, (Feb. 2022, Page Street Kids), $17.99, ISBN: 9781645673491

Ages 4-8

Little Brother sees monsters everywhere, and would rather stay inside and read about them – hey, forewarned is forearmed! – but Big Sister thinks monsters are just “a bunch of phoney-baloney fantasy make-believe”! She’s determined to teach Little Brother how to be brave enough… until that moment when they discover an honest-to-goodness MONSTER! Luckily for Big Sister, Little Brother has done his reading and knows how to handle monsters (that are just as scared of humans). With some stomping and stamping, and some clapping and snapping, everything is going to be just fine. Lively and bright illustrations pair with upbeat, everyday conversational text to make this a fun readaloud. Illustrations bring the lighter side of the story to light as Big Sister tries to get a rise out of her brother, putting him in a bright yellow cape (to match her flashy yellow boots!) and infuse him with confidence; the book titles also clue readers in to the Monster’s own fear of humans, with titles like “Humans and Loud Noises”, “What’s with Pants?”, and “Bumps in the Day”; mirroring Little Brother’s monster-related reading. The characters have exaggerated facial expressions so there’s no question as to how to read this story: with as much fun as you can muster! The moral of the story: understanding crosses barriers: even between monsters and humans (but maybe not vampires). Pair this one with Ed and Rebecca Emberley’s If You’re a Monster and You Know It for musical fun.

Visit author Rob Justus’s webpage for more of his illustration work.

Posted in Middle School, Non-Fiction, Teen, Tween Reads, Young Adult/New Adult

The Epic Mentor Guide: Smart advice for young women, from women who’ve been there

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Epic Mentor Guide: Insider Advice for Girls Eyeing the Workforce from 180 Boss Women Who Know, by Illana Raia, (March 2022, Forefront Books), $19.99, ISBN: 9781637630495

10-18

Imagine being a high school or college student and having access to a think tank of successful women. What would you want them to tell you? Illana Raia, founder of the mentorship platform Être, has taken note of questions that young women have asked and gotten answers, all collected here. Whether it’s asking about successful traits or resilience when someone refuses to get your name right; how engineering can get you a job at LEGO, or being the first attorney at Etsy, tweens and teens will find answers here. The women are a diverse group, chosen from all areas: sports, technology, medicine, finance, entertainment, and more. Celebrities like Tyra Banks and Hoda Kotb are in here, as are brand executives from Nike, Spotify, and Disney. The questions run from getting noticed by college admissions and what makes a standout LinkedIn profile to diversity and inclusion, how to break into an industry, and when to be patient versus when to push forward.  The design is eye-catching, with bright orange pages breaking up the white spaces; answers are thoughtful and run from sound-bite briefs to longer, thought-out responses. Most respondents include social media information, for readers to follow. A good choice for career collections and guidance collections.

 

Check out this interview with author Illana Raia, courtesy of BooksForward!

  • Who were your mentors? 

I’ve been so fortunate to have tremendous mentors throughout my career! My grandmother graduated from law school in 1936, and watching her in court when I was young made me sure I wanted law school. Professors I had at Smith College and The University of Chicago Law School lit the way forward, and my first mentor when I practiced mergers & acquisitions was the youngest partner my law firm had ever made. But the women I have met since founding Être, leaders in their fields and founders in every sense of the word, have mentored me in ways I can never repay.

  • What inspired you to start Être, and how did this book come about?

When I was practicing law and my daughter was in middle school, I realized she did not know what I did every day. More than that, she did not know what my group of ridiculously accomplished friends did every day! I started Être (which, in French, means to be), to bring young girls face to face with inspiring role models. This book came about after we started being invited into companies to meet female leaders. I was blown away by the questions the girls were asking! Moreover, the women we met answered every question with such candor, wit and wisdom that all I could think was Every girl should be doing this. So I kept a list of questions asked at company visits, and then added a survey and an email Q&A, asking girls across the globe what they wanted to know about the work world. What happened next was astounding. As fast as the questions came in I started reaching out to women in the relevant companies or industries – and their answers did not disappoint! Over the course of the next year, a virtual conversation ensued between girls eyeing the workforce and the women already there.

  • What types of questions did you get from today’s girls?

The questions we received were substantive and specific in nature: How can I become an animator at Pixar? Can TikTok be used for networking? How did you land an interview with SpaceX? Do cover letters even matter? Am I allowed to ask about inclusion in an interview? What’s one thing no one knows about working at Google?  I think the authenticity of the questions was a huge reason these women answered; they remembered what it felt like on their first day at work, and told us repeatedly I wish I’d had this when I was starting out!

  • What are some of your favorite pieces of advice in the book?

I love how TheSkimm founders, Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg talked about avoiding the trap of expectations, and hearing about what astronauts like Anna Fisher (the first mom in space), Cady Coleman and Jennifer Scott Williams want today’s girls in STEM to remember. I loved reading that celebrity make-up artist Steph Aiello was encouraged by Tyra Banks to pursue her dream despite a physical disability, in part because Tyra Banks is also in the book (talking about why we should over-prepare for meetings)! The idea that even the mentors have mentors thrilled me. I was moved by what icons like Lilly Ledbetter said about salary negotiations, what Sudi Green said about getting a sketch on SNL and what Dawn Porter said about leaving the law to make movies with Oprah. Every time I flip the book open, I find a new favorite!

  • How does “The Epic Mentor Guide” build a pipeline for girls into the workforce?

The book is building a pipeline by following the same model I used to build Être – we go where the girls ask to go, so they can find answers to their questions. The companies in this book represent brands the girls already love, platforms they use constantly, and organizations where they see themselves working someday. Add to that the fact that every woman in the book offered her preferred social media handle so girls can follow her in real time and in real life. When an exec at LinkedIn said connect with me, or a pop musician wrote DM me or a federal judge gave girls her email, I knew that we were creating more than a static collection of mentor advice. This is a pipeline that will grow with today’s girls.

Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

Spotlight on Women’s History: Alma Thomas, Artist

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

Ablaze with Color: A Story of Painter Alma Thomas, by Jeanne Walker Harvey/Illustrated by Loveis Wise. (Feb. 2022, HarperCollins), $18.99, ISBN: 9780063021891

Ages 4-8

Growing up in the Jim Crow-era Southern U.S., young Alma Thomas and her siblings weren’t allowed to go to the “white school” nearby; they couldn’t visit the museums or library, but they surrounded themselves with joy, art, and culture. Alma Thomas’s mother designed dresses; her aunts painted; Alma used the red clay near a stream to create bowls and cups. Her parents created a salon in their home, inviting teachers to talk about “people and places around the world, famous stories, and ways of thinking”. And when Alma and her family joined The Great Migration and left Georgia for Washington, DC, Alma was finally able to attend school, graduating from college where she studied art. While DC was still segregated, Alma was determined to bring art to the people in her neighborhood; she taught art at her local school; taught children to make marionettes and perform their own plays at her home; set up an art gallery: the city’s first gallery in a school. When she retired, she went on to create her own art, becoming the first solo show by a Black woman on display at The Whitney Museum in New York City and, posthumously, the first Black woman to have artwork on display in the White House. Ablaze with Color is a gorgeous, vibrant picture book biography of a teacher, an artist, an activist that worked to bring art to everyone. Loveis Wise’s illustrations are stunning, alive with color and movement, inspired by Alma Thomas’s bright palette. Jeanne Walker Harvey brings Alma Thomas’s story to life, describing the natural world that influenced Thomas’s work and using straightforward storytelling to educate her readers. Back matter includes a timeline of Alma Thomas’s life, sources, notes, and references.

There are a wealth of online resources for those who want to learn more about Alma Thomas. Visit The Smithsonian American Art Museum’s page on the artist; The Phillips Collection’s page on their Alma Thomas exhibit, Everything is Beautiful; and ArtNews’s article on Alma Thomas’s importance in art. TeachersPayTeachers has several good activities on the artist, including a coloring sheet from Artful Ideas; a presentation from The Creative Crayon, and an abstract mosaic activity from LessonZest. Finally, don’t forget to visit Jeanne Walker Harvey’s website for more resources!

Ablaze with Color has starred reviews from Booklist, School Library Journal, and The Horn Book.

 

Jeanne Walker Harvey has had many jobs, ranging from working as a roller coaster ride operator to an attorney for high-tech companies to a writer of magazine articles to a teacher of Language Arts and writing workshops at a public middle school. She has also been a longtime docent at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Just like Alma Thomas, Jeanne believes that art brings us joy. Her other picture books include Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines and My Hands Sing the Blues: Romare Bearden’s Childhood Journey. Jeanne studied literature and psychology at Stanford University. She lives in Northern California. Visit her online at www.jeanneharvey.com.

Twitter: @JeanneWHarvey

Pinterest: @JeanneWalkerHarvey

 

Loveis Wise is a nonbinary illustrator and designer from Washington, DC, now based in Los Angeles. They have collaborated and imagined with clients such as the New Yorker, the New York Times, HarperCollins, Google, Disney Hyperion, and Adobe, to name a few. Their work often speaks to themes of joy, mindfulness, and liberation. For more information visit: loveiswise.com.

Instagram: @loveiswiseillu