Winnie: The True Story of the Bear Who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh by Sally M. Walker

Winnie: The True Story of the Bear Who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh by Sally M. Walker, illustrated by Jonathan D. Voss
Henry Holt & Company

Rating: 4 stars

Several months ago I came across a middle grade nonfiction book on a publisher's website that I just had to read. Soldier Bear by Bibi Dumon Tak is the story of a bear adopted by the 2nd Polish Corps during World War II. I was fascinated to learn how a group of soldiers fell in love with a bear, and it became a contributing, participating part of their unit. (Read my Goodreads review here.)

And still, I didn't know that Winnie-the-Pooh was inspired by the same type of unit, this time a British, not Polish unit, during World War I. This time a company that included Harry Colebourn who was stationed in Canada at the time. Harry was part of the veterinary corps and saw a little bear on a platform at a train stop. He rushed out to see her, ended up buying her from the hunter who killed the bear's mother before he saw her baby. When Harry rushed back onto the train with a bear cub in his hands, his friends and captain were dumbstruck.

Winnie's favorite game was hide-and-go-seek...

"I had to save her!" Harry protested. And he named her Winnipeg, after their company's hometown. Her name was shortened to Winnie by the time the company reached their destination.

As you'd probably expect, Winnie was a funny little member of their tribe. She played games with the men and diverted their attention from the reality of war they faced. She also got into a lot of trouble by...well, just being a bear. But all the men loved their new mascot.

Winnie traveled with Harry's company when they moved from Canada back to England. But when he received orders to care for horses injured from battle in France, Harry knew that Winnie shouldn't go along. He contacted the London Zoo, which had a brand-new place called the Mappin Terraces built exclusively for bears.

The real Harry with the real Winnie.

After a tearful good-bye, Winnie began her second life at the zoo. "We've never had a friendlier bear as Winnie," the zookeepers said. They even allowed children to ride on the bear!

One day, a man with a young boy visited Winnie at the London Zoo. The boy hugged Winnie and gave him milk. The boy's name was Christopher Robin; his father was A.A. Milne, a well-known author. That evening at bedtime, Christopher Robin wanted to hear stories about his stuffed animal bear, whose name he changed to Winnie-the-Pooh.

And the bear at the London Zoo became a little more famous.

This is one of two picture book biographies of Winnie-the-Pooh published this year--the duplication is no doubt caused by the fact that last year was the 100th anniversary of the birthday of the real bear that inspired Winnie-the-Pooh. I grabbed it off the new book shelf because I realized the bear's history when I saw a soldier hugging the little cub on the cover. And look, we all ended up learning a little more about one very famous little bear.

The Adventures of Beekle The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat

The Adventures of Beekle The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat
Little, Brown, and Company

Rating: 5 stars

The Caldecott (and Newbery) awards were announced when we were on vacation back in early February. I checked my phone like crazy to see which books (and their authors and illustrators) won... I'm not the only one who does this, right?!

In case you are more laid-back in your approach to children's literature, I'll fill you in: Here's the winner. Right here. Beekle. And it was a shocker! No one saw it coming. The experts thought Draw! or The Farmer and the Clown or Bad Bye, Good Bye or Three Bears in a Boat. But Beekle? It was a surprise win.

But it's worthy for sure. It took me some months to get my hands on it, because I often think that Caldecott winners have gorgeous art, but their appeal to kids is limited, or the story is just so-so. This year, that's not the case.

Here, they lived and played,
eagerly waiting to be imagined by a real child.

Beekle is an imaginary friend (if you see the title, he and his human believe he's unimaginary, or real) who lives in the imaginary world where imaginary friends live before their humans imagine them and unite with them. While all the other monsters and funny-looking whatevers get beamed up and zipped over to the real world, Beekle remains.

Until he decides to do something about all the waiting and waiting. He "did the unimaginable" and sailed to the real world. (You'll love how dull and drab the real world is compared to the amazingly colorful and exciting unimaginary world. I love, and my kids love, how Beekle is confused why "no kids were eating cake"--just grown-ups. Ha!)

Beekle looks and looks for his friend and climbs up a beautiful big tree to get a better view, but...still can't find the friend. Suddenly, below, a girl starts waving at him. They found each other!

The girl and imaginary friend are two peas in a pod. They laugh at the same jokes no one else gets, they made each other feel confident and comfortable. The book ends with: "Together, they did the unimaginable."

He climbed to the top of the tree and looked out,
wishing and hoping his friend would come.

Isn't the unimaginable possible with the support of one really great friend? I think so.

At the very least, add "Must check out Beekle immediately" to your long end-of-the-year to do list. Or just buy it for your kids or for the next birthday your kid attends. You might end up tucking it away because you just can't part the sweet, bold Beekle.



P.S. This book is SO similar to another recently released book, Marilyn's Monster, that I can't get over it. (Marilyn and her monster also find each other in a tree!) This is such a fun example of how two people could have the same idea, pursue it, and get it published around the same time--it has happened more than once. But if you've read both please comment so I don't feel like I'm the only one on earth chuckling at the coincidence!

Last Stop on Market Street by Matt De La Peña

Last Stop on Market Street by Matt De La Peña, illustrated by Christian Robinson
G.P. Putnam's Sons

Rating: 5 stars

Just a few minutes ago I was driving along and had to stop because two big ol' white geese were crossing the road. I stopped and watched them waddle past slowly, not caring how long it took them to get to the other side of the road. These two geese serve as some sort of proof that my kids don't know what it's like to grow up in a city, have a bus be their main (and perhaps only) form of transportation, or experience walking through a constant flow of humanity. The city life is just not my kids' experience.

But I want them to know that there are other experiences out there. I want them to step in other kids' shoes and see what other types of lives are like.

Thanks to Matt De La Peña's latest (and perhaps greatest) book Last Stop on Market Street, my kids can do just that. They can see what city life is like, and what a thoughtful, others-before-me day is like--all in one book.

A young boy named C.J. walks out onto the street, free from an hour of church, yet not yet totally free--this boy is not done with his Sunday routine. C.J. and his grandmother board a bus--Mr. Dennis' bus.  We're not sure where they're going just yet, but the ride gets off to a good start when Mr. Dennis pulls a coin from behind C.J.'s ear.

A scene you don't see often in picture books...

As all kids do, C.J. complains a bit about having to go on this errand when his friends are off playing. But, his grandmother reminds him, his friends "won't know the people he knows. And I'm sorry about that." As he looks around the bus, he sees a great sampling of our great, diverse nation. C.J. sees a tattooed man (he gets no mention, but I like that he exists, in this picture book, with all his tattoos). He talks with a blind man, who says you don't have to have eyes to see.

When C.J. envies two teenagers' iPod, his grandmother points out he's got the real, live version in a guitar-holding passenger across the aisle. She suggests he request a song, and the musician strikes up a diddy just for C.J. The performance earns the coin Mr. Dennis pulled from his ear.

Finally, they arrive to the last stop on Market Street: a soup kitchen.

"Why's it always so dirty here?" C.J. asks.

"Sometimes, when you're surrounded by dirt, C.J., you're a better witness for what is beautiful," his grandmother wisely and patiently replies.

The two greet the men and women at the soup kitchen and take their places to serve them.

I'd like my kids to walk in C.J.'s shoes in more ways than one. As a former volunteer with the Missionaries of Charity and the Peace Corps, I look forward to the days when my kids will take their places to serve others.

You Can Do It, Bert! by Ole Könnecke

You Can Do It, Bert! by Ole Könnecke
Gecko Press

Rating: 5 stars

"They" (those already-published, know-everything children's literature gurus) tell us yet-to-be-published writer wanna-bes to write books that have a definite beginning, middle, and satisfying ending. One that should surprise the reader. With as few words as possible (preferably no more than 500 words). Possibly with a lesson, but not a heavily delivered one. Oh--and make it funny, too.

Sigh. A tall order, for sure.

Yet Ole Könnecke delivers such a perfect, simple little story with such simple, delightful illustrations that I'm left in awe. I'm tempted to just throw in the towel right now! Or be inspired. (I choose the latter.)

Bert is a little bird whose big day is arrived. We see him at the end of a twig. He's trying to muster the courage to jump. He's well prepared, "mentally and physically." (I love that.)

Bert is well prepared, mentally and physically.

We're with him! Trying to help urge him along as he runs then screeches to a stop. He must eat a banana first. Then he'll be ready.

And he is. So he does.

We see him in mid-air. No wings flapping. Looking distressed. Saying "help" in what I'm sure is a pip-squeak of a voice.

Uh-oh!

And then... Splash! He's actually jumping in water! With three other feathered friends!

You tricked us, Ole Könnecke, in the most delightful way. Bravo!

Marilyn's Monster by Michelle Knudsen

Marilyn's Monster by Michelle Knudsen, illustrated by Matt Phelan
 
Candlewick Press

Rating: 5 stars

There's always a New Thing in kids' lives (and in the social parts of parenting, too, don't you think?). What's it in your child's world: An iPad? A specific brand of shoes? Certain socks? I'm willing to go out on a limb to say there is something that everyone wants, but only some people have in most schools in this country.

In Marilyn's school, that thing is monsters.

Everyone's got one. Whether it's big and scary, tiny and cuddly, toothy and happy, or stylish and snappy. Everyone's got one, that is, except Marilyn. And the thing is, you can't just go buy your monster at a store or find it in the forest. It finds you. So Marilyn's got to be patient while her monster finds her. Or so everyone tells her.

Timmy's monster chose him right in the middle of a history test.

But it's hard to be patient when Franklin's monster surprises him in the library! And Lenny's monster creeps out to scare away the bullies chasing him. Or Rebecca's monster comes along on his own bike while she rides her!

Everyone's got one or is getting one. Except Marilyn. She feels stung by what she doesn't have. Every breath has a tinge of jealousy. Everyone tells her, "Be patient!" and "It'll happen when it's supposed to!" and "Just sit tight and wait."

She does all that. And then gets tired of waiting nicely like she's supposed to. She pulls on her hiking boots, packs two sandwiches, and goes out to search for her monster. Hours into the hike, her patience gone and her anger mounting, she shouts, "WHERE ARE YOU???!"

And she hears a tiny voice: "Here."

And then, very softly, she heard a voice say, "Here."
(Enlarge the picture. Look up in the tree, on the right.)

Her monster is up high, stuck in a tree. Her monster's long, lovely wings got tangled up in the branches. She climbs up, goes out on a limb, and rescues it. They share sandwiches in the tree, then her monster flies her back home, where she reports to her family that she and her monster "found each other."

Her big brother is annoyed--it's "not supposed to work that way." She looks at him, her face softens, and she thinks "there were a lot of different ways that things could work."

I love this book. I love the realistic sting of envy in the beginning, the process of waiting she goes through, and the go-get-'em pluck that Marilyn displays by the end when she's too impatient to wait any longer. I just love it all. Michelle Knudsen has written many books over the years, but this is my favorite. By far.

Naked! by Michael Ian Black

Naked! by Michael Ian Black, illustrated by Debbie Ridpath Ohi

Simon & Schuster

Rating: 4 stars

There's really nothing better than running through the house naked. For my kids--KIDS...not the whole family! Truly, streaking is not part of my husband's and my nightly constitution. Promise. But if you want to put a little frosting on that cake of a naked activity, it's yelling out like a crazy person "Naked!" Which you will most certainly do after reading this wonderfully silly book.

The narrator in this book is delighted to run through his house naked. And we readers were delighted to see how illustrator Debbie Ridpath Ohi cleverly disguised the boy bits we'd prefer not see. Like my boys, the boy in the book loves to run through the house after his bath sans clothes. Through the hall, in his room, down the stairs, with his mom running after him with a towel and the dad protecting the baby from her brother's nakedness.

Look at me, everybody! I'm caped!

Then, the boy does more things and dreams of doing more things:
Eating a cookie totally and complete NAKED!
I could go to school NAKED!
Play on the playground NAKED!
Do the hokey pokey NAKED!

Then our silly hero puts on a cape, and the illustrations get even better.

But then he gets cold. And then he becomes exhausted. And then he is...asleep.

He does put pajamas on during the post-cape, pre-sleeping moments!

Fun, fun book that is guaranteed to make your post-bathtime a little rowdier and a little gigglier.

Extraordinary Warren: A Super Chicken (PIX series) by Sarah Dillard

Extraordinary Warren: A Super Chicken (PIX series) by Sarah Dillard
Aladdin

Rating: 4 stars

Picture book + easy reader + graphic novel + chapter book = Extraordinary Warren 

Did that make any sense to you? Let me add a little text: This book is a fun blend of four different genres. There are big pictures from traditional picture books, long yet easy-ish text from easy readers, comic book-style graphics from graphic novels, and multiple chapters from beginner chapter books.

This is a new-ish format that publishers say is perfect for struggling readers who need easier material but want to have a chapter book in their hands like their reading-on-level classmates. While I believe that to be true, it's also really good for those of us with kids at home who read on different levels. Kiefer, who turns four in less than two weeks, checks out chapter books like his big brother and sister. I don't discourage it--any book in his lap is a good one, and I like how he makes his own choices--but this is one book from one series that has so many pictures that he can figure out what's going on without reading a whole lot. And once he does start reading, it'll be even better.

The PIX series--perfect for third kids everywhere! Okay, and some kids for whom reading isn't at the top of their list of things to do.

But enough about the genre of the book. Let me get to the actual book itself:

Meet Warren. Warren is a chick tired of pecking and peeping all the time. He's meant for bigger things! He desires more in life! He wants to stand out from all the ordinary chicks!

Enter Millard. Millard is a rat tired of eating junk. He's meant for bigger feasts! He desires more scrumptious morsels! He wants to dine on the fanciest of things!

The story, as you might have predicted, revolves around the funny dance between Warren, who wants to be special, and Millard, who wants him to think he's special--his special dinner. There are plenty of puns and opportunities to giggle during the six short chapters. Of course the good guy wins, and Warren ends up realizing his own superhero-ness when he saves all of his ordinary friends from the rat who wants to eat them all.

It's a fine book sure to entertain both boys and girls. More important, it is sure to inspire a little more confidence in those kids who want to read so badly--including third kids like Kiefer. And if you like Extraordinary Warren, there are more in the PIX series--Extraordinary Warren Saves the Day is already out, and I've heard there's a book about a big-toothed beaver coming next year...

P.S. Author Sara Dillard has a fantastic story hour (or rainy day) kit to download HERE.

Me First by Max Kornell

Me First by Max Kornell
Nancy Paulsen Books

Rating: 5 stars

There is something pretty great about this book. Max Kornell manages to write and illustrate this story right at the intersection of Funny and Insightful. And he manages to right my perspective on my kids' bickering--which I appreciate because it's been off lately due to the normal mix of stomach bug grossness, shared space closeness, too much sleepiness, too much in-car-ness, too little outdoorness.

In this great new book by a great, new-ish author, two siblings argue about who is first--who is going first in a game, who got there first, who should do something first. Sound familiar? Right. The afternoon hike and picnic is full of "Me first!" and "Me first!" and still more "Me first!" Their parents are pretty calm about the whole thing--one day I'll be that calm--and when the two kids want to go home a different way, the parents allow them, as long as they go together.

On the new way home, they go through a few rounds of "Me first!s" that backfire--Martha tries a new berry first and has to spit it out because it's gross. Hal wants to go through an old fallen log but comes back out quickly after realizing it's filled with millions of cobwebs.

Hmm. Maybe this "Me first!" thing has its downsides.

But they don't learn this. Not yet, anyway, until Martha wants to cross a stream on a fallen log--"Me first!" she insists. The log breaks, she falls down in the water and is shaken up. Hal sweetly helps her up, and they walk back home together, arm in arm.

Sobered by the fall, a wave of politeness washes over them: Hal to Martha when they got to the front door: "You had quite a tumble back there. You go ahead." Martha to Hal when it was time to wash up before dinner: "You wash up first. You're the one that got covered in cobwebs."

These sweet manners continue through dinner. And after dinner Dad comments on how polite they are being towards each other. Mom quips, "Yes, but I noticed it first."

Chuckle, chuckle...!

Uni the Unicorn by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Uni the Unicorn by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, illustrated by Brigette Barrager
Random House Kids

Rating: 4 stars

Uni the Unicorn looks exactly like little girls want unicorns to look like: silky white with sparkles in her coat, impossibly pink mane and tail, dainty golden hooves, dazzling gems for eyes, swirly white horn that can mend any hurt. Uni the Unicorn also acts like little girls want unicorns to act: noble, regal, happy, and steadfast in her belief in the impossible.

This time, the impossible is a clever twist on little girls believing in unicorns: unlike all the other unicorns in the field, Uni the Unicorn believes in little girls. Her parents shake their horny heads at her, and encourage her to rethink her beliefs and spend her time more wisely. But Uni believes that somewhere there is a strong, smart, wonderful girl waiting to play with her.

Uni imagines all the wonderful things she’ll do with this little girl once she finds her: run fast through the meadow, spin and twirl in the sunlight, explore their world, and help forest creatures in need, and sometimes they’d sit quietly and talk about important things. And of course they would slide down rainbows together (of course!).

Uni believes. In a way only little kids really can.

What Uni doesn’t know—but readers soon do know—is that she is right. There is a little girl who is also teased by her friends for believing in something magical. This little girl believes in unicorns. She believes there is a strong, smart, wonderful unicorn waiting to play with her.

Each is waiting and hoping for the other, waiting for the chance to be friends.

Should your child get swept away by the magic in this tale, there are activities about Uni. These items and more are available at http://www.randomhousekids.com/brand/uni-unicorn/. And even a song:

Anything by Amy Krouse Rosenthal is clever and funny, sweet and smart—she writes the types of books that you want in your child’s lap. The humor in them is so very intelligent: her clever lines make the reader think just a bit more, work just a bit more to understand and smile at the humor. We are fans of her in our house. There’s not a lot of Rosenthal’s wittiness in this book (besides the obvious and clever twist of unicorns believing in little girls), but there is a wonderful lesson in believing in that which you believe in, and maybe just maybe you’ll meet someone who holds the same belief as you. And maybe just maybe you’ll get to call that person Friend. Fingers crossed!

This review originally appeared in the Washington Family Magazine (right about HERE).

Nana in the City by Lauren Castillo

Nana in the City by Lauren Castillo
Clarion Books

Rating: 5 stars


I'm always curious who wins the Caldecott and I like to get in on the prediction excitement with my kids. But while I love good illustrations and am glad there's an award for it, sometimes the story in a Caldecott winner falls short.

But that's not the case with this recent Caldecott honor book. Nana in the City has both: great story and incredible illustrations.

A young boy goes to visit his nana who--you've probably guessed--lives in the city. Specifically, New York City. The boy seems to have the expectation many of us do about grandmothers: they should be in a quiet place, taking care of kids, looking after the grandfather in the picture. Even I agree this stereotype is comforting (though flawed)...

But this boy's Nana is different.

"For you to wear on our walk today," she said.
"You'll see that the city is not scary at all."

When her grandson expresses his concern that "a city isn't a place for a nana," she smiles. She agrees that the city is loud and busy--but thinks it is more extraordinary than dangerous. She doesn't discredit his opinion, but she invites him to go along with her the following day to see the city through her eyes. During a night full of new sounds and not much sleep for her grandson, Nana sits and knits (that's grandmotherly, right?) and watches over him.

Before they set out on their adventure, Nana gives the boy what she's been knitting: a red cape. It makes him feel brave!

With few words and gorgeous illustrations, Castillo shows the boy and the reader the good sides of being loud (a funky breakdancer performing in the street), being busy (a bustling picnic area in the park), and being extraordinary (downtown Broadway area, with bright lights all around).

When it's time for the boy to leave, he agrees: A city is the perfect place for his Nana. And for him to visit. He gives the cape to Nana, so she'll be brave after he leaves.

I can't begin to tell you how talented Lauren Castillo is, but click HERE for a little glimpse of Amazing--there are some of the sketches for Nana in the City, how she uses salt to add depth to a picture, and a five-second video of her flipping through her sketchbook. In my next life, I'd like cool and quirky, warm and sweet characters to come from my fingertips, too...

If this book doesn't leave you with a warm and fuzzy feeling, I'm not sure what will!

Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla by Katherine Applegate

Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla by Katherine Applegate
Clarion Books

Rating: 5 stars

In case you haven't heard, there's this book that has been on the New York Times Bestseller list for 108 weeks called The One and Only Ivan. Ivan is a gorilla who spends his time drumming his fingers and watching passers by at a shopping mall, where he's been sitting in a very small cage for a very long time. The story is fiction but it's based on a true story. There was a real gorilla Ivan who was purchased and plucked from a jungle and placed in...a shopping mall in Washington State.

This picture book, Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla, is the nonfiction account of Ivan's life.

Brace yourself, because it's not always a fun life to read about. But Applegate, who also wrote The One and Only Ivan, does a great job of unfolding his sad story in digestible bits, and the entire story illustrates one of my favorite maxims: "It all turns out okay. If it's not okay, it's not the end." And Ivan's life does turn out okay in the end. (It's a picture book--it's got to have a happy ending. What a relief!)

He'd grown into a silverback gorilla.
In the jungle, he would have been ready to protect his family.
But he had no family to protect.

Ivan starts his life in the jungle, born to a band of gorillas. He plays with, listens to, and closely observes other gorillas...he learns everything from them. And then one day, he is caught by poachers. He and another little gorilla baby are thrown into a dark crate and shipped to Tacoma, Washington.

Once there, they are treated as exotic baby-pets--everyone thinks these small animals are cute and interesting. But one gorilla baby dies and only Ivan is left. When Ivan grows out of the cute, small phase, his new owner doesn't know what to do with him. Soon, he is placed in a cage in the mall with a TV and an old tire and little else.

He spends twenty-seven years away from other gorillas, in that small cage. (Heart-breaking!)

Finally, after protests and petitions, Ivan is sent to Zoo Atlanta. After helping him adjust to his new environments, Ivan is released into a new band of gorillas. He lives there, happily it seems, until he finally dies at age 50 in 2012--and one year later, The One and Only Ivan won the Newbery.

So why read this book to your child? Is the lesson here simply "animals should stay in the wild" or "poachers should be stopped?" Sure, those lessons are great ones for kids to learn; the jobs in that field are certainly noble ones.

But I think there's a deeper message here about reinventing yourself, or starting a new chapter in life--it's so obvious that Ivan's life was sad and small, but then it changes. He starts a new chapter, and his life becomes big and full. Because a bunch of people cared, took the time, made the effort to help him get to a better place. Maybe some kids (and the grown-ups reading this book to them) can relate. Maybe some kids (and those grown-ups) have felt small or been in dark places, but because they took the time to care about themselves or others made the effort to help, maybe they're in a better place now. Maybe they're in the process of starting a brand new chapter in their lives. Maybe Ivan's story strikes a chord in them and gives them hope.

The One and Only Ivan is "on deck" as Lorelei says for us to read together next--I'll let you know how it goes. (We're reading Wonder now.) She was open to reading it last year, but after reading this picture book, she's very curious and eager to start. That makes two of us.

This is Sadie by Sara O'Leary

This is Sadie by Sara O'Leary, illustrated by Julie Morstead
Tundra Books

Rating: 4 stars


Meet Sadie.

Sadie isn’t your typical little girl. She isn’t even your typical little-girl-with-a-big-imagination. In fact, the reader has a hard time figuring out who Sadie is, exactly, because she is so many things. She’s into so many things. She does so many things.

When we first meet Sadie, we see the literal Sadie: a girl with wispy-straight hair inside a simple, old cardboard box. But “no,” Sadie tells us. “I’m on an enormous boat, crossing a wide, wide sea.”

And so we readers of This is Sadie (released in May 2015) begin to get a glimpse of the first side of this unique character Sadie, the one whose head is filled with an imagination almost as vivid and brilliant as illustrator Julie Morstad can create. She imagines she is sailing at sea, lives under the water as a mermaid, has wings that help her fly over her neighborhood. Sadie’s not one to be pinned down by any one description—we need many of these amazing snapshots of her to understand who she is

What I love most about her is that she creates imaginary worlds for herself as either a boy or a girl—no need to follow any gender rules here. I love that Sadie provides for little girl readers the chance to also be the hero in a fairy tale world and a boy raised by wolves.

The book has no plot; its main goal, it seems to me, is to invite young readers (especially girls) to step outside their normal real-life and imagine themselves as something different. Maybe something bigger, maybe something smaller. Maybe someone more playful or more adventurous than they really are. And by trying on these different roles or personalities, maybe your little girl will discover that’s there is more than meets the eye to herself. 

The book ends as it begins—with that big cardboard box. This time Sadie is in a homemade tent, with crafts all around her and books stacked up to read—no iPad or TV or parental direction needed for this girl!  And the big box symbolizes all the possibilities. On the first page that big box was a boat. On the last, it is a snail shell, and Sadie is snoozing away under it, perhaps dreaming of her next adventure.

This is a gorgeous book—Julie Morstad is an extraordinary artist. I’m not sure if young readers will appreciate the details that make each page worthy of serious pause and attention, but they’ll grasp the feel of the picture immediately. The words are fine (a teensy bit random, I think—without a plot I feel a little lost), but the pictures will pull in readers and help them feel a part of something much bigger than their little world.

And maybe, just maybe, the switch on their imagination will be clicked on and their afternoons will be spent as a mermaid, as a flying girl, as a sailor at see, as a knight in shining armor. 

It's Only Stanley by Jon Agee

It's Only Stanley by Jon Agee
Dial Books for Young Readers

Rating: 5 stars

I subscribe to a handful of book-filled, kidlit newsletters; many of them include a "books coming out soon" section. It's Only Stanley has been on many of those lists for many weeks. So when it popped up on the holds shelf in the library yesterday, I was curious if it was going to be as good as the hype surrounding it.

Yup, it is.

Jon Agee has this absurd, dry humor that manages to stick with his characters and translate to a picture book in such impressive ways... He makes the totally crazy seem totally normal. And even if you don't deconstruct the book like I did after reading it, you will chuckle at it and your child will likely laugh out loud at it, just like Kiefer did. Each time he had this read to him last night. Which was twice. In a row. That's always a good sign of a good book...

Here's the story:

The Wimbleton family sleeps, and one by one a strange sound wakes them up. Each time, the extraordinary family dog, Stanley, is making the noise. And Stanley is one nocturnal, productive pup. Judging by the father's shrugs and nonchalant reaction, the family is clearly used to such noisy awakenings.

First, Wilma is awoken by a strange tune...but it's just Stanley, howling at the moon. Daughter Wendy then hears one loud CLANK...but it's just Stanley, fixing the oil tank.

"It's only Stanley," Walter said.
"He cleared the bathtub drain."

This goes on all night long, and each sound wakes another member of the family, who travels into the parents' room and into their bed, until the bed is funnily overcrowded with more and more sleepy Wimbleton family members.

Finally, he wakes up the youngest member of the family with some serious vibrations and sounds. Turns out that Stanley managed to transform the entire house into a rocket, and now the house--with the whole family--still in pajamas--is landing on the moon.

Told in a great little rhyme that makes the book even more fun to read aloud (and also allows Kiefer and other kids to guess what Stanley is up to), this book is spot-on fantastic. Such a funny story with non-fussy sketches that pair nicely with bedtime--how can you not have sweet dreams when you chuckle yourself to sleep?

100 Things That Make Me Happy by Amy Schwartz

100 Things That Make Me Happy by Amy Schwartz
Abrams Appleseed

Rating: 5 stars

And now, in the category of I Wish I Had Thought of That! (but could I have done it as well as she did? I'm not sure--I really like this book!), comes a bright new picture book full of little things that make little and big people really happy.

Where could a book like this go wrong?

I need not waste any of my early-morning thoughts on worrying, because this book does not go wrong.

Award-winning Amy Schwartz has written a poem of things that make most kids happy, and illustrated sweet vignettes and images to go with her words:

Bucket trucks, yellow ducks
Grocery carts, frosted hearts
Grandma's lap, a gingersnap
White snow, cookie dough
Apple pies, Butterflies

Mud puddles, soap bubbles, Grandpa's tools, swimming pools
Brother and sis, Good-night kiss

This book is a long list of things that remind me and hopefully other adult readers how easy-to-please kids are. And it makes me count my blessings to hang around kids most of the hours of my day because their easy-to-please-ness rubs off on me. (Or maybe my own easy-to-please childhood hasn't entirely vanished as I've matured into an adult?)  

I love that the kids in this book pause to celebrate the fact that they're riding big-kid bikes, watching a parade, get to sleep in an extra cozy bed, eating chocolate cake.

This is a book full of inspiration--I love the idea of my kids making books of their own like these. What makes your kid happy today? A list of ten or fifteen things, with drawings just as cute as those by Amy Schwartz's able hand, bound together with staples or string is a keepsake for sure, or a gift for an upcoming Mothers or Fathers Day...

I think on the next rainy day I'm going to get out the butcher paper and lay down flat on my belly alongside my kids to create a big ol' mural of things that make us happy...

Digby O'Day in the Fast Lane by Shirley Hughes

Digby O'Day in the Fast Lane by Shirley Hughes, illustrated by Clara Vulliamy
Candlewick Press

Rating: 4 stars

I was at a Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) conference over the weekend and learned something new. I actually learned a lot of new somethings, but this is the one pertaining to Digby O'Day in the Fast Lane: Squeezed between I Can Read early readers and middle grade is the "chapter book" genre for, generally speaking, 5 to 8 year olds. Within that there are a bunch of books cropping up that have a whole lot of pictures, some easier text, and are divided into chapters. These are called "early chapter books."

Digby O'Day is an early chapter book. It's the sort of book for kids who are wanting to read chapter books like their peers but aren't ready for them. Now, they can put this in their hands and feel comfortable knowing they're part of the reading chapter books crowd. If you click at the bottom of this blogpost on early chapter books, you'll see a few of the ones I've read and reviewed.

For some reason, Ben timed me when I read this. When I remarked on how quickly he read it, he handed it to me while we were sitting in the carpool lane, waiting to pick up Kiefer from preschool last week. "It took you eight minutes, Mom!" he reported. Ben's quirky competitiveness now gives you an idea of how long it took me to read it, and you can double that time for a kindergartener reading on-level and add more time for a child struggling to read.

Digby drove, and Percy admired the view.

Getting to the book, written by one of my favorite childhood authors Shirley Hughes (and illustrated by her daughter--how fun!):

This is a cute, please-everyone story of a dog named Digby, his pal Percy, and how they race against their sworn (okay, really there's not any swearing in this book) enemy Lou Ella. Lou Ella is a fancy-schmancy woman with a fancy-schmancy car that she upgrades at least once a year. She can always afford the nicest car but doesn't know a thing about fixing them up; Digby O'Day and his pal Percy are always stuck with their cute clunker but they make it run as smoothly as possible with their own two paws. Or four paws?

These three characters enter a race and, in tortoise-and-hare style, Lou Ella is so far in front that she decides to stop and have lunch. This plan backfires when lunch takes too long and Digby and Percy putt-putt by her and win the race. These three are likable characters...and they'll be back! This is the first in the series; two more are slated for publication within a year or two.

As always, happy reading!

Dory Fantasmagory by Abby Hanlon

Dory Fantasmagory by Abby Hanlon
Dial Books for Young Readers

Rating: 5 stars

Lorelei just saw that I was reviewing this book. I had the book next to me. She said, "Oh I love when Dory becomes a dog named Chickenbone! Wait, I have to read it again." She grabbed the book from me and started the book. For the eighth time! "I LOVE this book!" she declared.

I loved it too (though I only read it once).

There is so much to love! This is a super cute easy reader with an irrepressible, imaginative, funny, and likable youngest child as the main character and narrator. Six year old Dory is frustrated to be shunned by her two older siblings--she desperately wants to play with them! But they think she's annoying and babyish. 

To get their attention and for some imaginary fun, Dory invents playmates, plays along with their jokes and even pretends to be a dog. (Named Chickenbone, as Lorelei loves.) She even goes to the doctor as Chickenbone...I chuckled when she said "Woof!" each time the doctor asked which letter she was pointing at on the eye chart. Her mother was irate, just as I would be. I was happy to be reading about it--that seemed so funny in a book, but not so funny in real life.

Look at these fun sketches and how they cover the pages!
(And the siblings play happily ever after...on the next page.)

Anyway, in the end the two older siblings accept her and play like crazy together--a happy trio of siblings.

This is a fantastic choice for kids between five and nine years old who are just starting to read on their own. Big, cute, silly sketches are on every single page, making the text on each page more like an accompaniment to the pictures, making Dory Fantasmagory an inviting rather than a daunting book. (A sequel will be released in July 2015.)

This was a fun, short escape from my reality this morning when I couldn't go back to sleep after the stomach bug that hit Lorelei yesterday hit Ben around 3:30 AM. Please cross--no, double cross-- your fingers that it won't hit me!

Kate the Great Except When She's Not by Suzy Becker

Kate the Great Except When She's Not by Suzy Becker
Random House Kids

Rating: 3.5 stars

Meet Kate. Kate is a fifth-grader, a middle child, a girl who keeps a diary. In this whimsical coming-of-age story, Kate in Kate the Great Except When She’s Not (Random House, 2014) confronts the normal concerns of fitting in, friending the right kids, and doing the right thing. 

Kate is thrown for a loop when her parents ask her to be particularly kind to Nora, a girl she’s labeled as her “frenemy,” because Nora’s father is on an extended business trip and whose mother works a lot. But when an obligatory project ends up in an actual, authentic, albeit fragile friendship, Kate is forced to rethink her own assumptions about Nora and her own values. Kate reminds the reader that admitting you’re wrong about a person or yourself takes courage and humility. 

There is plenty to like about Kate, and plenty of other sub-plots in this middle grade novel to appreciate. She’s a fine flutist who plays in the school band, a budding artist who has trouble drawing noses, a Girl-Scout-esque member who doesn’t love the new troupe leader, and an imperfect, sometimes-swiping sister. Her family is a creative bunch; her overworking lawyer mom and always fun novelist father get along swimmingly and lead their trio of girls in conversations about little and big things (with the help of questions and quotations in “Bob,” the Big Old Bowl in the middle of the table). Kate learns plenty of good little life lessons throughout the book both in school and at home; therefore the reader picks up plenty of good little life lessons as well.

Kate the Great Except When She’s Not falls into the new-ish genre of “humorously illustrated diary novel.” This genre is not to be confused with a graphic novel, which is a book written and drawn entirely in comic strip format. Think Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries. There is something light-hearted, fun, and different about having drawings all over the page that definitely earns two thumb’s up from most kids.

The drawings alongside (or after, or under, or over, or…completely covering the page) the text usually illustrate the author’s thoughts or actions. In my experience, most of the books in this genre have drawings and text that are related, and the pictures help draw out or augment a particular scene or idea. 

Yet in Kate the Great Except When She’s Not, the doodles are sometimes fairly random, and I was left scratching my head for the connection between story and drawings. Or maybe adult readers don’t see the connections, and young readers—the audience of this particular genre—don’t need the connections. Maybe they find these random scratchings “hi-lar-ious!” in my daughter’s parlance without needing a reason for their existence. The book’s target audience is, after all, kids age 8 to 12, not adults in their mid- to late-thirties.

This is a fine book to give to a child in your life. It’s not one that you’ll keep on your shelf for generations because the themes and writing are so universal and phenomenal you can’t bear to part with it. It’s one your child will read in a long, lazy afternoon, chuckle at, appreciate, and then pass along to the next reading pal in their circle. 

And that’s not a bad thing at all.

You Are (Not) Small by Anna King

You Are (Not) Small by Anna King, illustrated by Christopher Weyant
Published by Two Lions

Rating: 5 stars

In February a bunch of children's books won a bunch of awards. You Are (Not) Small, a simple yet clever picture book, won the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for the most distinguished beginning reader book.

The book tells of an argument between a few groups of bears--they are certain of the other's size and, rather than open their eyes to comparison, they simply want to label the other group. If you have more than one child, you've probably had a similar discussion in your house.

Littlest: "I am not small. You are big."
Bigger: "I am not big. You are small."

So infuriating, but also fairly hilarious--they are BOTH right. And they are both wrong. All of a sudden, these barrel-bellied bears are having a philosophical debate on their relative size. They never stop to consider that they each look the same--same big belly, same oval nose, same everything except color and scale. It's Theory of Relativity for toddlers, who are easily guilty of defining themselves without considering much else besides...what they want to consider.

The debate gets louder but no more sophisticated (sound familiar? ever have an argument between your kids like this, or is it just me?) but abruptly ends when two humongous hairy feet descend from above -- BOOM! -- and a few teensy tiny bears float down in parachutes. Suddenly, there's a big-GER and small-ER group to add to the debate. And both the previously "not small" and previously "not big" groups have their own stubborn opinions supported by the addition of a smaller and larger scale of animal.

But they realize, like most kids do at some point, that both groups--that ALL groups--are, at the very same time, big and small. It just depends against whom they comparing.

The end is also true to life: when the big argument they cared so much about is over, they realize they're hungry and go off and eat.

I liked it a lot, but my kids LOVED it. Especially Ben, who is smack in the middle of this debate as he's bigger than Kiefer but smaller than Lorelei. Does that have something to do with his affection for the story?! Ben brought it in to his class when asked to bring in his favorite picture book (two actually--the other was Too Much Glue). 

If you like You Are (Not) Small, I think you'll also like Mo Willems' recent Elephant and Piggie book, which was a runner-up for the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award: Waiting is Not Easy!

Number One Sam by Greg Pizzoli

Number One Sam by Greg Pizzoli
Disney Hyperion Books

Rating: 4 stars

I have a few places that really make me extra-happy. One of those is a library--or bookstore, or book fair, or anywhere with lots of books. Another happy place for me is Crossfit. I can let go of my kind and polite side and be uber-competitive with guys and gals who are used to me trash-talking my way into a workout, then walking the walk and finishing first.

So a picture book about a competitive hound who is only content with the top spot...well, that's a book found at the crossroads between my two happy places!

Like me, Sam likes to be--and actually is--number one at lots of things. He's the best at turns, speed, and grabbing the top of the podium. And he loves it. Being number one is who he is.

Until he's not. Until he isn't. Until he loses. To his best friend, Maggie.

We watch as Sam slides into existential despair (maybe I'm exaggerating a bit)... Who IS Sam if he's not THE BEST?! When it is time to roll up to the starting line a few days later, Sam tries to be determined and confident, but really he's nervous and afraid to lose.

Within a few moments of starting, Sam is ahead! He's winning! He's thrilled.

But then...a gaggle of chicks crossing the road catches his eye. He could steer around and miss them, but the other cars behind him wouldn't see them in time. He hesitates for a moment, but stops and puts them in his race car to protect them. Sam's shoulders droop as his friends zoom past him.

As he putt-putts towards the finish line with the grateful chicks, he hears cheering. As he gets closer, he realizes his friends are cheering for him--because he was so kind and selfless and gave up the winning spot for these chicks.

Hooray for Sam!

(But: there better not be a gaggle of chicks at my workout. I don't know if I'm as benevolent as Sam.)

Back to picture books: I love author/illustrator Greg Pizzoli's advice to those interested in illustration: "Avoid the internet and draw!" Do check out his other book The Watermelon Seed!

Leroy Ninker Saddles Up by Kate DiCamillo

Leroy Ninker Saddles Up (Tales from Deckawoo Drive #1) by Kate DiCamillo
Candlewick Press

Rating: 4 stars

Yippie-i-oh! We've lassoed an early reader for you!

(Define "early reader?" A book that has more pages than an easy reader, five to ten short chapters, illustrations to keep kids interested and give them clues about the text, appropriate language and content for young readers, and serves as a bridge between easy readers and middle grade novels. Generally, the age range is 5 to 8.)

Leroy Ninker is a little man with big dreams of being a cowboy. He has a lasso and boots and cowboy hat, but he lacks a horse. Which is kind of important. So he goes and finds a horse, and that horse is Maybelline. She is not the gallant steed named "Tornado" he imagined; rather, she's a big ol' nag with only four teeth. But it is love at first sight for Leroy Ninker.

Maybelline is funny in different ways than Leroy is funny--she requires certain care that made Ben laugh out loud. For example, to get Maybelline to run, Leroy must compliment her. He must whisper sweet nothings into her ear. "You are the sweetest, most beautiful horse I have ever had the fortune to lay eyes on," he says to her. And off she goes!

Despite Leroy Ninker's goal of becoming a cowboy, and despite the procurement of one fine steed, he doesn't know how to take care of a horse. But he's got such a big heart and doesn't let his cluelessness get in the way. He tries his very best! I love the image of little Leroy trying to get oversized Maybelline into his apartment, and the fact that he cooks her spaghetti for dinner. 

The climax of the book comes when Leroy Ninker doesn't follow the instructions he was given for Maybelline, and she runs away because of an oversight (of his). He goes to "make it right" and is determined to find her. Which he does--I love how in these early readers and middle grade, too, that you can depend on a happy ending. In fact, the happy ending in this book involves Mercy Watson, the pig in Kate DiCamillo's other series, and I realize that Leroy Ninker is another resident on Deckawoo Drive and this book is a spin-off from the successful and great, you-should-read-it-too Mercy Watson series.

This book is proof that Kate Dicamillo still has her finger firmly on the pulse of what kids think is funny. And she has a knack for producing wonderful tales. Leroy Ninker, a story of a simple man fulfilling his dream, is another one of her great stories. I can't forget to mention that the fantastic Chris Van Dusen illustrates this book. (He writes and illustrates picture books--they are THE BEST!) He fills most of the pages with the bright-eyed, needle-nosed cowboy and a goofy but sweet-looking horse. They are quite the pair. They're in love, but I'm pretty sure most readers will fall in love with them.

There you go. An early reader book to give your early reader kid as they ride off into the sunset.

Yippie-i-oh!