picture books – Page 12

Spotlight On: I Wanna Be A Great Big Dinosaur!

Posted on May 19, 2016May 14, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

This latest spotlight is an adorable story about the grass being greener on the other side. Sourcebooks Jabberwocky presents…

A little boy wants to be a Great. Big. Dinosaur! Luckily for him, a great big dinosaur is nearby, and is happy to show him the ropes: the roaring, the stomping, the eating LOTS of meat… but the boy has some pretty cool things to show the dinosaur, too! Playing video games and soccer, and eating ice cream are pretty awesome, after all.

Kids will see themselves in both little boy and dinosaur: each wants to try on the other’s life, just to see if things are as cool as they look. It taps into a child’s sense of imagination and play – who among us hasn’t wanted to be a dinosaur? A bird, a butterfly, or something other than who we already are? And when the boy sees things from a dinosaur’s point of view, he realizes that there are some pretty great things about being a little boy, too, and shares them with his dino friend. The verdict: you can be a little bit of both, and be very happy!

I love this book and can’t wait for it to enter my regular storytime rotation. My three-year old LOVES it. We stomp, roar, and chomp on imaginary pteranodon drumsticks as we read it. The art is vibrant and there’s a bigness to it, coming off the page and inviting readers to join in. Words like “STOMP!” and “ROAR!” splash across two-page spreads, contributing to the giant feeling of the story and the words and will keep younger listeners entertained and giggling.

Grab some shoe or tablet boxes, paper, and some dot art painters (really cuts down on the mess), and let the kids make their own dinosaur hats and tails! Add this book to your storytime rotation and your home and library/school collections; it’s a good one.

And now, the Sourcebooks Spotlight – keep reading for your chance to win your own copy of I Wanna Be a Great Big Dinosaur!

Title: I Wanna Be A Great Big Dinosaur!

Author: Heath McKenzie

Release Date: May 17, 2016

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Summary:

Want to find out what it takes to be a Great Big Dinosaur? This book is for you!

More than anything in the world, one little boy wants to be a great big dinosaur. And he’s in luck! A great big T. Rex shows up to teach him how to stomp and roar just like a dinosaur. But dinosaurs aren’t so great at soccer or video games… Maybe being a little boy isn’t all bad?

A story about being whoever (or whatever) you want!

Buy Links:

About the Author (photo by Angela Ginsberg):

Heath McKenzie has illustrated numerous picture books and children’s book jackets. He lives with his wife and kids in Melbourne, Australia. Visit him online at heathmck.com.

Enter a Rafflecopter giveaway for a chance at one of two finished copies of I Wanna Be A Great Big Dinosaur! (Runs May 1-May 31st; U.S. & Canada only)!

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Cuddle your kids all over the world with How Far Do You Love Me?

Posted on April 29, 2016April 29, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

How Far Do You Love Me?, by Lulu Delacre, (2013, Lee & Low Books), $11.95, 9781600608827

Recommended for ages 4-8

Based on a bedtime game the author played with her daughters, “How Far Do You Love Me” takes readers all over the world, comparing their love to the 13 breathtaking sights and locations in the modern world. “I love you… to the place where the eagle is lost gliding along the rim of the sky”, reads one spread, with a parent holding a child above her head, the Peruvian mountains of Maccu Picchu surrounding them. Each spread takes readers to a different locale and illustrates adults and children together, enjoying the natural beauty around them and each other’s company.

This is a great bedtime book, and paired with a similar “I love you” book like Sam McBratney’s Guess How Much I Love You, gives kids a loving sense of security and a wink and nudge to their competitive nature. My little guy and I have extended our game to the planets these days: he loves me to Pluto and back, and I love him three times around the sun and back. We name the planets we encounter along the way, adding a little bit of science to our I Love You game. You can bring in a similar game here, going further around the world, naming famous places (“I love you to the Empire State Building… I love you to the Grand Canyon!”), states, or countries.

The art is colorful, with a spread for each location. The colors are bright but subdued, realistic, and with shadowing that gives each landscape a breathtaking depth. A nice addition to bedtime stories and books about the world around us.

Lee & Low offers a comprehensive teacher’s guide for How Far Do You Love Me?, including discussion questions, ELL activities, and ways to expand on the story.

Lulu Delacare also authors the Raffi y Rosi easy readers series. Her author webpage contains information about author visits, her books, and links to educator guides for several of her books.

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Spotlight On: Our Love Grows, by Anna Pignataro

Posted on April 28, 2016April 2, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

I adore Our Love Grows; it’s a perfect read-aloud for growing boys and girls (who will never be too big for a loving lap, right?). Enjoy this spotlight from the publisher, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, and please wander over to my review if you want more info.

Our Love Grows, Written and Illustrated by Anna Pignataro (April 5, 2016; Hardcover, ISBN 9781492634188)

Title: Our Love Grows

Author: Anna Pignataro

Release date: April 5, 2016

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Praise for Our Love Grows

“[Pignataro] creates delicately ethereal landscapes for the pandas to traverse—forests dense with pine and bamboo, snowy hillscapes—while showcasing a playful tenderness in their explorations and interactions… Pitch perfect in its spirit of cozy reassurance.” —Publishers Weekly, STARRED Review!

“A sweet story for parents to share with their young children. The theme is straightforward and told in rhyme. The book conveys a similar message to Sam McBratney’s Guess How Much I Love You, and the engaging artwork greatly enhances and complements the story. The pen and paint illustrations have a soft tone and will give readers a warm feeling.” —School Library Journal

About the Book

Like the sky, and the trees and the child she holds… A Mother’s Love Grows.

In the deep green forest, Pip asked,

“Mama, when will I be big?”

Pip is an adorable, roly-poly little panda who sees the world changing and growing. But Pip is feeling a bit left behind. Luckily Mama is there to show playful and curious Pip that, like the trees in the forest and the stars in the sky, he’s growing and changing too. And no matter how much Pip grows, the one thing that will never change is how much Mama loves him!

Our Love Grows on Goodreads

Buy the Book:

About the Author

Anna Pignataro is the creator of the bestselling books Mama, How Long Will You Love Me? and Mama, Will You Hold My Hand? Her works have been translated into eleven different languages, and she has won numerous awards including the Crichton Award for Illustration. She lives in Australia with her family.

Connect with Anna Pignataro:

Website: http://annapignataro.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annapignatarobooks/

Enter a Rafflecopter giveaway to win your own copy of Our Love Grows!

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Early Reader, Fantasy, Fiction, Preschool Reads

Suite for Human Nature is a musical folktale made art

Posted on April 23, 2016August 24, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Suite for Human Nature, by Diane Charlotte Lampert/Illustrated by Eric Puybaret (May 2016, Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books)$17.99, ISBN: 9781416953739

Recommended for ages 4-10

A musical collaboration between legendary songwriter Diane Lampert and Jazz legend Wynton Marsalis becomes a beautifully illustrated parable on humanity in this gentle story about Mother Nature and her challenging children.

Mother Nature is busy. She’s got seasons to change, flowers to wake up and put to bed, and all of Earth’s creatures to care for. But she really longs for children of her own, so using bits and pieces of nature – sticks, stones, seeds, leaves – she ends up making five children: Fear, Envy, Hate, Greed, and Fickle. Each time, she’s taken aback when she realizes how tough it is to raise a child, and asks humans – the creatures that can’t fly, swim, roar, or gallop – to keep an eye on her unruly children once she buzzes off to tend to another season. Each time she returns, she creates another child, hoping to even things out, and each time, things get a little more complicated, especially when the children’s personalities start rubbing off on the humans. When she takes some advice from the Winds, and creates Twins, though, things change.

Suite for Human Nature is told in old folktale tradition, telling the story of human nature; its strengths and its weak spots, and the one thing that conquers all. Breathtaking acrylic and linen illustrations by Eric Puybaret make this a joy to read and gaze at. This is a better read-aloud for slightly older listeners, who can sit for a little longer and use their imaginations to fly away with this story. Ask your listeners to draw their feelings – what materials would they use? What colors would they give them? Older kids doing a unit on fairy tales and mythology could compare this story to the myth of Pandora’s Box.

Absolute must for collections. I would love to get hold of the actual music.

Diane Lampert (1924–2013) was a renowned songwriter who contributed to lyrics for artists from The Beatles to Brenda Lee and over twenty movie title tracks such as The Snow Queen, I’ll Take Sweden, Billie, and Silent Running, as well as songs for The Wild and the Innocent, and Trees Lounge, and for Bob Hope, Gary Grant, and Buster Keaton, among others. Suite for Human Nature first debuted at a concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center, with the world-famous Boys Choir of Harlem.

Eric Puybaret has illustrated many children’s books, including Suite for Human Nature; the bestselling Puff, the Magic Dragon; The Night Before Christmas; Over the Rainbow, as well as many others in his native country, France. Eric’s critically acclaimed work was praised by The New York Times as “elegantly rendered” and Publishers Weekly calls it “graceful [and] whimsical.”

Have a look at some of Eric Puybaret’s beautiful art:

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Mr. King’s Machine needs to stop!

Posted on April 19, 2016April 18, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Mr. King’s Machine, by Geneviève Côté (Apr. 2016, Kids Can Press), $16.95, ISBN: 9781771380218

Recommended for ages 3-7

Mr. King loves flowers! He notices that a caterpillar has taken a munched on a flower, he is NOT happy, and takes it upon himself to construct a Caterpillar-Catcher. But Mr. King trades one small problem for much bigger ones: his Caterpillar-Catcher is making a mess of the environment! It’s trampling flowers and grass, it’s belching awful gray smoke into the air, and most importantly, it’s stopping the caterpillar from doing his work: becoming a butterfly that will help flowers grow as they fly from plant to plan! Mr. King’s friends confront him, and he listens; then, he decides on a new invention, and takes apart his Caterpillar-Catcher to create a much more environmentally friendly machine: the Flower-Fan!

This is the third book in the Mr. King series; the first one I’ve read. You don’t need to pick up any of the other books to know what’s going on, just dive into this fun Earth Day-friendly tale for our youngest learners! Mr. King is a sweet, well-meaning lion (but he’s got no mane – maybe he’s still young?) who has a knee-jerk reaction and tries to take action. Toddlers and preschoolers will understand this, and they’ll understand how Mr. King’s friends see what he’s doing wrong. Use this as an interactive read-aloud and ask your readers what Mr. King’s doing wrong, too – it’s a great learning opportunity, especially if you’re talking about Earth Day, conservation, and pollution.

The mixed media artwork is adorable, with Mr. King standing out as a crayon-drawn character, set into what looks like collage backgrounds. It’s a great read-aloud book that toddlers and preschoolers can enjoy, and allows for a lot of interactivity: talk about what we can do as a community to make our neighborhoods nicer; how we can make our world a better place as a global community (a better discussion for school-age readers).

Mr. King’s Machine has received a starred review from Kirkus.

Geneviève Côté is a Montreal artist whose illustrations have graced the pages of publications such as the New York Times and the Boston Globe. Her books have received three nominations for the Governor General’s Award for Illustration, one of which went on to win, and she has also won the the Elisabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Award.

Early Reader, Fiction, Preschool Reads

Monster Needs to Go to School!

Posted on April 4, 2016April 2, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Monster Needs to Go to School, by Paul Czajak/Illustrated by Wendy Grieb (May 2016, Mighty Media Press), $16.95, ISBN: 978-1-938063-74-9

Recommended for ages 3-6

Our big, blue Monster and his best buddy, Boy, are back – and this time, they’re taking on going to school! Monster needs to go to school, but he’s really nervous. He didn’t really have anything to worry about, though – he has a great first day and makes lots of new friends – and even stops bullying when he sees it on the playground.

This latest entry into the Monster & Me series takes a fun look at starting school, giving little ones who may be getting ready for Pre-K or Kindergarten an idea of what to expect (and reinforcing these ideas for kids already in daycare and pre-k programs): learning the ABCs, raising your hand when you want to speak, and inviting others to play at recess. Monster also has an important lesson: when he sees bullying on the playground, he stops it right in its tracks. The fact that the would-be bullies are Monster’s friends drives home an even more important point about standing up for others, even if you have to call your friends out on their behavior. It’s not an easy lesson to teach, but Czajak and Monster do it in the best way; having Monster say, “I know we’re friends, but teasing’s wrong. It’s something I despise. No one should be ridiculed. There is no compromise.”

Wendy Grieb’s artwork is inclusive, featuring multiethnic classmates and teachers. Monster is big, blue, and lovable, with a toothy smile and a bushy tail. If this is a child’s first introduction to Monster and friends, they’ll jump right in and enjoy the bright colors, lovable monster, and the rhyming text that invites kids to sit back and enjoy a story about how exciting school is.

This is a great addition to collections, especially for little ones getting ready to move up to Pre-K and Kindergarten. My little guy is starting Pre-K in the Fall (how did that happen so fast?), so I’ll be reading this to him all summer to get him ready for the new routine he’ll discover. Schools and libraries should add this to collections to ease new students into the coming school year. I’ll be booktalking this to my parents at storytimes all summer, myself.

The Monster & Me series includes Monster Needs His Sleep, Monster Needs a Costume, Monster Needs a Christmas Tree, Monster Needs a Party, and Monster Needs Your Vote. Each book has new ideas to teach Monster and the readers who come along for the ride. The series is a 2015 Silver Moonbeam Children’s Book Award winner for Best Picture Book series. Mighty Media has a Monster & Me webpage where you can learn more about the books and download event kits loaded with resources for parents and educators!

Early Reader, Non-Fiction, Preschool Reads

Explore life On the Space Station!

Posted on March 23, 2016March 22, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

On the Space Station: A Shine-A-Light Book, by Carron Brown/Ilustrated by Bee Johnson, (Jan. 2016, Kane Miller), $12.99, ISBN: 978-1-61067-411-9

Recommended for ages 4-8

Take readers on a trip to outer space, where they can discover what astronauts do in space: how they sleep and exercise, for starters; we also get a glimpse into some of the work astronauts do on board the space station: working robotics, making repairs, even calling home!

On the Space Station is one of the books in Kane Miller’s Shine-A-Light series, where see-through pages allow readers to shine a light – a flashlight, or simply holding the page up to a light source – behind the page to reveal a new piece of information about the picture! A great next step for little ones who love the excitement of lift-the-flap books but are ready for something more, Shine-A-Light books continue working with the concept of object permanence for younger readers while adding a new dimension of interactivity to older readers. The books ask a question on one page; the child is able to discover the answer for his or herself by illuminating the page. The highlighted image has an expanded explanation on the next page.

The contrast between black and white images on the left and color images on the right will keep readers’ attention; explanations are black and white, concrete; activity and exploration is in color, provoking the imagination. The artwork is wonderful and fluid, giving kids an idea of the weightlessness of space contained within the space of a page.

My 3 year old loved this concept, and yes, this book has entered the regular rotation, too. The language is great for young audiences; direct, with fun “flicks”, “swishes”, and “wheees!” to add some zing to the nonfiction text. This could make for a fun storytime book, too – I have to figure out how to smoothly shine the light onto the page without the book flopping down as I hold it up!

As I said regarding The River, I worry about this one in circ. The paper is a good quality stock, but I have visions of pages being yanked and torn as little hands hold them up to the light. I may buy a set to keep in storytime reference, because I love this concept and think the kids will, too. Classrooms and home collections will really benefit from these.

Kane Miller is knocking my socks off with the quality of material they’re putting out for kids now! I’m becoming an unabashed Kane Miller fangirl, with good reason. Stay tuned for more!

Animal Fiction, Early Reader, Fiction, Preschool Reads

Babymouse comes to picture books!

Posted on March 14, 2016August 24, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

I’m a huge Babymouse fan. She’s smart, she’s a bit sassy, she’s a great read for kids. The Babymouse graphic novels do gangbusters, no matter what library I’m at, and my kids’ book club had a Babymouse discussion that ended up being more about laughing and talking about the crazy things Babymouse (and Squish, her graphic novel counterpart) come up with. Today, I’m super excited, because Babymouse is coming to picture books!

Little Babymouse and the Christmas Cupcakes will be out in October, but I was able to get a sneak peek at a few pages, thanks to Edelweiss, where I get a lot of my advance reader copies. The book is colorful, as opposed to Babymouse’s 2-color graphic novels, so this will get me a lot of mileage at storytime. The book is still set up like a graphic novel, with word balloons, narration boxes, and mini panels popping up here and there.

Here’s the story: Babymouse ate all of the Christmas cookies her mom made for Santa, so now she can make him something he really wants—CUPCAKES! But a dragon rears its fiery head, and Sir Babymouse has to defeat him to save Christmas – or, you know, a cupcake or two.

I love that the Holms are bringing graphic novels to different formats. Their board books, I’m Grumpy and I’m Sunny, are adorable and perfect introductions to the graphic novel medium for babies and toddlers. Get your kids started on comics early!

Little Babymouse and the Christmas Cupcakes, by Jennifer L. Holm/Illustrated by Matthew Holm, (Oct. 2016, Random House Kids), $16.99, ISBN: 9781101937433

Early Reader, Fantasy, Fiction, Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

How to Catch a Leprechaun tries… but they’re awfully sneaky!

Posted on March 12, 2016March 12, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

How to Catch a Leprechaun, by Adam Wallace/Illustrated by Andy Elkerton, (Feb. 2016, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky), $9.99, ISBN: 978-1492632917

Recommended for ages 3-7

Do you think you’re ready to catch a leprechaun? It doesn’t matter how long you’ve planned or what you think you’ve got ready for him, this is one wily leprechaun!

Told in rhyme from the leprechaun’s point of view, we see various houses all ready for him, determined to trap him and find the secret place where he keeps his gold, but we also see how easily he foils each attempt. The story’s light, fun, and quickly paced, perfect for St. Patrick’s Day storytime. There’s a great event kit from Sourcebooks, with activities and printouts, that I’ll be incorporating into my storytime on Thursday!

A fun addition to your holiday shelves!

Early Reader, Fiction, Preschool Reads

Do Not Open the Box: A Picture Book Guessing Game!

Posted on March 12, 2016August 24, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Do Not Open the Box, by Timothy Young (Dec. 2015, Schiffer Books), $16.99, ISBN: 9780764350436

Recommended for ages 3-6

A little boy named Benny sees a box with a sign taped to it that says, “DO NOT OPEN”. Well, that just sends Benny’s imagination into overdrive: what could be in the box? Could it be something cool, like the robot he’s wanted? Or could it be something scary, like a monster? Maybe his sister put something in there to scare him!

The cartoony artwork is printed against a background made to look like corrugated cardboard, making the story look like it’s been written and drawn on a cardboard box. Sentences are simple and short, written in a rounded font and in blue to stand out against the brown cardboard background. Each spread has Benny wondering what could be in the box, and a rendering of his imagination. Kids will have loads of fun with this book: especially with the end reveal.

Bring out your own box for storytime, and have kids guess what could be in it! They can draw what they think, or they can call it out, but it’ll get their minds working and they’ll learn more about how guessing can lead us to the answers, if you provide hints and information as you go along. I could hide a teddy bear in a box and tell the kids that something furry is in the box; using trial and error, they can figure it out.

I read this book with my 3 year-old, and he loved it. He had a fun time guessing what was really going to be in the box, because nothing was too outlandish for us! “Could there be an OCTOPUS in the box? How about a REAL DINOSAUR?” Have fun with a read-aloud!

Timothy Young also wrote The Angry Little Puffin, which is an adorable book that G-man (my little guy) LOVES. Now that I’m remembering that, I need to order that for my library, too; that’s a great storytime book, and so is Do Not Open the Box. Give your readers’ imaginations a workout and add this one to your collection.