Lion vs. Rabbit by Alex Latimer

Lion vs. Rabbit by Alex Latimer

Rating: 5 stars

I like this book.

My kids looooooove this book.

I've read it to them a dozen times already this week.  They are hooked from the very first page--on which sit Lion and Rabbit's "cards" (think baseball cards, with stats and figures, showing their speed, weight, height, and how mean and smart they are).

They just LOVE that Rabbit outsmarts Lion.  The big, mean, bully of a Lion.  Who doesn't love little-guy-outwits-the-big-guy stories? (Well, big guys probably don't.  But my house is full of little guys so…)

Lion is a mean bully.  Do you know what he does?  In a single afternoon, he gives Buffalo a wedgie, sticks a silly note on Zebra's back ("I am a horse"), and he steals Hyena's lunch monkey. (Much to my kids' delight, I say "money" Every. Single. Time.)

Finally, the animals get tired of all the bullying.  But none are brave enough to stand up to Lion.  So they advertise for the position in the Help-Wanted section.  The reward is 100 bucks.  Mostly gazelle.

The animals have some funny excuses...

(C'mon…these puns!  Such wit!  You're chuckling, right?!)

Three animals come to face off with Lion.  Three animals go back where they come from, without the reward.  The bullied animals are disappointed.  Will anyone be able to help?

Enter Rabbit.  Lion scoffs at his size, so he lets Rabbit choose the contest. In four separate contests, Rabbit comes up on top.  Lion comes up with excuses.  So Rabbit lets Lion choose the last contest--racing to the top of the mountain.  Lion cheats a little, giving himself a head start, but…it doesn't matter.  Rabbit seems to be ahead of Lion at every turn, even when Lion feels like he just passes Rabbit.

And then, Rabbit makes it to the top!  Yards before Lion!  Ta-da!  When Lion finally reaches the top, huffing and puffing, fully exhausted from the climb, he admits defeat.  "You win. I'll stop bullying the animals."

And Lion was nice after that.

As the animals help Rabbit board the ship on which he arrived, sending the 100 bucks with him, they see a bunch of ears pop up.  That's when they realize that Rabbit had a little help.

And that's why my kids love it so--we read it again and again, looking for more than one set of rabbit ears on each page, seeking to see the help that Lion did not see.

Once again, a truism of picture books: Kids love to see what one (or more!) characters in the book cannot see.  Alex Latimer knew this.  He produced one awesome book that I will surely and happily read a dozen more times before we return it to the library.

Little Mouse by Alison Murray

Little Mouse by Alison Murray

Rating: 5 stars

I usually write before the sun comes up.  I write before my kids wake up.  Therefore, I am often sipping coffee and paging through a children's book all by myself at 5:15 AM before reviewing it.  That's exactly what I'm doing right now--with a snoring dog curled up beside me on the couch, laptop on my lap, Little Mouse over the keyboard, coffee just an arm's length away, balanced on another book on the arm of the couch.

As I page through this beautifully written and illustrated book, I think what a quiet masterpiece it is.

On the first page, a little girl sits nice and close to her mother, reading a book with her.  The words: "Sometimes, when I'm being quiet and cuddly, my mommy calls me her little mouse."

I don't really sound like a little mouse...
Trumpety, trump, trump! Too-wit, too-wit, too-woooot!
Yowly, howly, howl!

But the little girl doesn't feel like a little mouse...  She is TALL! (And we see a giraffe sweetly nibbling at the little girl, who is tall on the top of a staircase.  She is STRONG! (We see her straining to pull a small wagon, in the shadow and in the same pose of a mighty bull.)  She chomps her food like a hungry horse, roars bravely like a lion, makes all sorts of interesting sounds like an elephant, owl, and fox. She stomps like a grumpy bear, makes waves like a whale.

But at bedtime, she's happy to be "quiet and cozy, cuddly and dozy"...  just Mommy's little mouse.

I love how one little girl, in a single day, can be so many different animals in her imagination and through her moods and actions.  Kids are so multifaceted and colorful and creative and BIG in such great ways!  I hope with all my heart that your kids and my kids don't get their colorful-ness and BIG-ness diluted as they figure out the tween and teenage years...I hope they realize they can still be brave like a lion and still want to be quiet and cozy like a little mouse (preferably with their mother).

As I sit in this quiet, the last image definitely pulls at my heart.  My two boys are young and still usually need that last tuck-in to be from their mother.  But Lorelei is old enough that she's more like the other animals, and doesn't need a daily dose of her mother, doesn't need to be curled up in my lap.  She still does fit in my lap, though, and I'm grateful for that and for her wanting to be there a few times each week.  I know I'm supposed to be preparing her (and her brothers) to soar on their own like a bird and march to their own beat proudly like an elephant but...I'll miss the cuddly, mousey days a whole lot.  So I'll savor the mousey moments like crazy now.

The Little Little Girl with the Big Big Voice by Kristen Balouch

The Little Little Girl with the Big Big Voice by Kristen Balouch

Rating: 4 very vibrant stars

When I wasn't blogging, there were a few books that made me miss it more than others.  This was one of them.  We checked it out a few months ago, grabbing it from the New Book Section in our library.  The illustrations grabbed me, so I had to grab it.  I couldn't resist!

The story: The big-voiced little girl needs someone to play with; she comes upon animal after animal and is excited to play with them, but her big voice scares them away.  Finally she meets a lion, who roars a big giant roar after she uses her big giant voice.  They look at each other, blink, and then laugh, knowing they've found a new friend in each other.

"She came upon a snake swinging in the tree."

The pictures are ah-maaaaaa-zing.  Vibrant.  Bright.  Happy.  Big.  I'm not sure I have enough words to describe how much I love Balouch's illustrations.  Her story was good, her pictures were great.  More, please!

Dandelion by Don Freeman

Dandelion by Don Freeman

Rating: 5 stars

Recently, this book was available only for $500 or $700. While I have fond memories of this book, I would not pay that much for it...at least I don't think I would... Instead, my kids and I borrow it from the library a few times a year and I remember happily how much I loved it as a kid. I also just saw that this book is reissued and available through a bunch of retailers, including Target, for a much better price: $6.99. I'm glad that Dandelion will be a favorite lion for kids of today's generation, too!

I'm not sure why Corduroy is considered Don Freeman's best work.  Sure, Corduroy is a cute little bear that takes a nice imaginary hike through the department store and finds his way to a little girl's heart.  But what's the point?  Dandelion has such a wonderful point: Be yourself!  Wouldn't the world be such a different place if kids learned that at age 3, rather than age 30, or 40, or 50?

In case you're not familiar with the book or in case you've not read it in a few decades, Dandelion is a dapper little lion who gets a classy invitation to a "taffy and tea" party from his pal, Jennifer Giraffe.  He's so excited about the party that he gets his hair done in a spiffy new style (super curly, check out the picture) and buys a dapper new outfit to match.  He looks so unlike himself that Jennifer Giraffe doesn't recognize him and shuts the door in his face upon his arrival.  After a short and tumultuous rain storm that unfurls his curls, soaks his sweater, and wilts his first bouquet of dandelions, he tries again.  He finds a new bouquet of dandelions, knocks on the door, and laughs heartily at himself (another great lesson within the book) when Jennifer tells him of the "silly looking lion" that knocked on his door earlier.

Lorelei loves this book, which makes me happy because I loved this book as a child.  It is such a simple story, but has a sweet message and great illustrations, too.  A winner of a book!