Jazzmatazz by Stephanie Calmenson, illustrated by Bruce Degen.

Some jazz picture books work, others are only successful when people with great rhythm read them, and some shouldn’t be used with children because of the stress they cause the reader.  This is one of the books that work, even if you aren’t gifted with your own jazz beat.   The book is about jazz, so the story doesn’t matter much.  It offers a lovely little child in jammies whose home is invaded by a mouse who heads directly to the piano to start playing.  All sorts of other pets join in the music in their own way until everyone around is drawn into the song.

The book has a rhythm that is impossible to read incorrectly and that carries the jazz forward.  The repetition of the words make the entire book work as well.  Add to that Degen’s bright, warm and simple illustrations that hearken back to Sendak in certain ways and you have a real winner of a book.

When I did toddler story times, I was always looking for books that would capture children.  This is one that will work on many levels.  I’d read it through first, being loose and having great fun with it, then I’d distribute instruments to the kids (drums, bells, whatever) and have them play along to the rhythm, making a great cacophony.  Guaranteed to have tiny toes tapping, this book is perfect for 2-4 year olds.

Thank You, World by Alice B. McGinty, illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin.

This picture book is a thank you to the entire world.  It thanks the sun, the sky, grass, breezes, trees, clouds, and much more.  The text speaks to the universal experience of us all.  Then the detailed illustrations come in and make this book about things that are at the same time universal and specific to a culture.  Each page has eight panels that highlight life in Mexico, Mali, Saudi Arabia, Bolivia, India, France, China and the U.S.  The book can be enjoyed at many levels and in many ways.  You can read it quickly, enjoying the text and the illustrations, you can pore over the illustrations following each specific country through every page, or you can take the theme of the page and enjoy the play and mix of the cultures represented. 

McGinty’s words are a wonderful dance with each line leading to the next in a sweeping joyous move.  Halperin’s illustrations echo that dance with the crayon drawings that will inspire children and adults alike to dig for unused colors in their Crayolas. 

A marvelous book for celebrating both diversity and commonality at the same time.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.