Month: March 2010

Shapes That Roll

| Tasha

Shapes That Roll by Karen Nagel, illustrations by Steve Wilson

Follow brightly-colored Triangle, Circle and Square as they take you on a tour through the world of shapes.  Some shapes roll, some don’t.  Some stacks, some don’t.  Some open and close, some are in pieces, and other are heavy.  This book doesn’t tell readers the names of the shapes until the very end, allowing the text of the book to be more playful.  It also is built for conversation about the shapes readers are seeing, from basic shapes to cubes and spheres too.  This silly, colorful book about shapes is playful fun for young children.

Nagel’s rhymes are simple and are more about moving the reader through the world of shapes than naming the shapes themselves.  The first and last pages are filled with information while the bulk of the book is lighter fare.  Wilson’s illustrations really bring the book to life with bright colors, plenty of action, and lots of shapes to discuss and name.  I actually like the format of not naming shape after shape in the text of the book, allowing for a more interactive read with children.

A lap book rather than a group read, the friendly shapes that host this book will take readers on a shape adventure.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from library copy.

I Can Help

| Tasha

I Can Help by David Hyde Costello

Little Duck is lost in the tall grass and is helped by Monkey.  This starts a chain of helpful actions where one animal helps the next.  Monkey is caught by a giraffe when he falls from a tree, Giraffe is helped when Gorilla bends a branch low enough, Gorilla’s splinter is pulled out by a bird.  And it continues, one after the other until the chain loops back when Little Duck helps Elephant find a cool pool of water.  Unfortunately, moments later Little Duck is once again lost in the grass, but now there are lots of animals willing to help!

Very simply written in short sentences, this book clearly demonstrates how one good deed gets repaid again and again.  Costello’s art is as clear and simple as his text with illustrations filled with deep colors that are very inviting.  As the chain continues, each animal is united with a parent after they are helped.  This small touch adds to the warmth of the book.  It is also pleasant to see that each animal gives thanks for the help they receive. 

Perfection for toddler or even baby storytimes, this book exudes a bright friendliness that all children will find inviting.  Appropriate for ages 1-4.

Reviewed from library copy.

Legend of the Guardians

| Tasha

Some first photos from Legend of the Guardians, the film version of Guardians of Ga’Hoole, have been released at USA Today.  The film is based on the first three books in the lengthy series.  The film will be released on September 24th, 2010.

The images are simply amazing with beautiful lighting and gorgeous textures:

noctus

Visit USA Today to see more.

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Incarceron – The Movie

| Tasha

According to Variety, Fox 2000 has purchased the film rights to Catherine Fisher’s series.  John Palermo will produce the film.  There was a bidding war for the series with at least two other studios competing for it. 

I adored the book Incarceron and it does read very cinematically, so I can see it adapting with ease to the screen.  What do you think?

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Captain Small Pig

| Tasha

Captain Small Pig by Martin Waddell, illustrated by Susan Varley

Spend a day on the lake with Old Goat, Turkey and Small Pig.  Small Pig is the youngster who is eager about everything and wants to do things himself.  Turkey automatically responds with a no to every request while Old Goat allows Small Pig to do what he asks.  Small Pig gets his own turn to row, gets to try to fish for a whale, and declares himself to be Captain Small Pig!  Old Goat and Turkey shepherd him safely through the day and into the evening, even carrying a dozing Small Pig home to bed.  This book is gentle, reassuring and a beautiful way to spend a day on the water with friends.

The dynamics between the characters is an integral part of the success of this book.  Turkey may seem stern, but he is the one who carries the sleeping child home wrapped in a warm blanket.  Old Goat is doting and exactly what every child needs in their life.  The skill of Waddell is that the two adult characters’ relationship is never clarified.  So readers can see it as they wish.  They could be two grandfathers, two uncles, or two fathers. 

Waddell has built a world of safety and contentment in the this book.  Varley expands that feeling with her pen and ink illustrations that use soft colors and have a timeless feeling to them.   Readers will yearn to be on this outing with these characters, fishing, gliding and just spending time.

A lovely addition to library collections, this gentle story will float its way to bedtimes and quiet reading corners.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Peachtree Publishers.

Also reviewed by Becky at Young Readers.

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A Very Big Bunny

| Tasha

A Very Big Bunny by Marisabina Russo

Amelia is a very big bunny, the largest bunny in her class.  She stands out in a crowd, but wishes that she was a more normal size.  At recess, no one will play with her because she is too tall for jump rope, her feet are too big for hopscotch, and she is too heavy for the seesaw to work.  So she spends recess standing at the edge of the playground, listening to the wind and watching the clouds.  When Susannah joins their class, she is the smallest bunny.  The children won’t play with her at recess either because she is too low for jump rope, too small for hopscotch, and too light for the seesaw.  So Susannah tries to join Amelia at the fence, but Amelia rebuffs her.  Susannah though does not give up, and so Amelia slowly transforms into a big-hearted friend for a small bunny.  She also learns that it’s not that bad standing out from the crowd.

Amelia is a bunny that I can completely relate to.  I was always one of the tallest children in my class, too heavy for the seesaw.  And I too had to learn, just as all children do, that it’s OK to be different.  In fact, it’s downright essential!  Almost every child is different from the crowd in some way, Amelia’s difference is size, but she will be easily related to no matter what difference the reader may have.

Russo’s writing reads aloud wonderfully with its natural cadence.  The pacing is wonderful, especially when the friendship between the two girls is developing.  I really appreciated that it was slow and steady, making their friendship more real.  Russo’s gouache illustrations are filled with bright colors and capture with confidence and ease the differences of the bunnies without making it comical or extreme. 

Embrace your inner big bunny and stand out with this book!  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Random House.

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Here Comes the Garbage Barge!

| Tasha

Here Comes the Garbage Barge! by Jonah Winter, illustrated by Red Nose Studio

This is the true story of what happened in 1987 when the town of Islip had 3,168 tons of garbage that they had no room for.  So it was placed on a barge to be taken to North Carolina.  Captain Duffy St. Pierre used his small tugboat to pull the barge down to North Carolina, but it wasn’t that simple.  North Carolina refused to take the garbage!  Captain Duffy was then sent to New Orleans.  Nope, they didn’t want it either.  Mexico?  No.  Belize?  No.  Texas?  No.  Florida? No.  The garbage was getting older, smellier and more horrid by the day.  Finally Brooklyn agreed to take the garbage and incinerate it.  It was 162 days after the barge first set out. 

This book could have been a dry look at recycling, garbage and waste, but it definitely is not.  Instead Winter and Red Nose Studio have created a book filled with humor and character that tells the garbage story with more style than the facts could have offered.  Winter’s writing is ideal for reading aloud.  There are plenty of accents, lots of exclamations that fill the book with energy and fun.  Red Nose Studio’s art is three-dimensional, witty and filled with found objects.  His art is humorous, detailed and a delight to look at.  It is a testament to Winters’ writing that it is a great match to this art. 

A perfect book for Earth Day or any eco-friendly event, this book will get children thinking about how many pounds of garbage they create and exactly what happens to it.  Even if it’s not headed for a garbage barge.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Check out the video below of the making of the art for the book:

Reviewed from copy received from Random House.

A Small Brown Dog with a Wet Pink Nose

| Tasha

A Small Brown Dog with a Wet Pink Nose by Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen, illustrated by Linzie Hunter

Amelia wants a dog, specifically a small brown dog with a wet pink nose.  But her parents don’t think they are ready for a dog.  At first, Amelia tries begging every day.  When that doesn’t work, she begins to ask different questions.  What could the dog’s name be?  Where would he live?  If he got lost would they look for him? Could Amelia walk and feed him herself?  A few days later, Amelia imagines that she has a dog like the one she dreams of.  She makes sure he can’t escape out the door, plays with him every day, and is warmed by him at night.  That is until the morning she wakes up and he is missing.  Now her parents had assured her that if they did have a dog, they would search for him if he got lost.  So off they go.  Will they find him?

Amelia’s actions in the book could be seen as manipulative, except she shows real emotion when she is imagining her dog and when he is lost.  I read it as a strong wish turned into a pretend dog that becomes real to her.  Stuve-Bodeen’s writing is simple and offers repetitive elements that will work well for sharing aloud.  Hunter’s art is filled with details that make this a book best shared one-on-one or with a small group.  Done digitally, it exudes a warmth and friendliness throughout. 

A crash course in advertising and PR, and imagination, this book is sure to be a hit with children who think they need a dog in their house too. Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

Also reviewed by A Year of Reading and What’s Carol Reading?

Finally

| Tasha

Finally by Wendy Mass

Mass returns to Willow Falls, the setting of 11 Birthdays.  This time it is Rory’s turn to have a birthday and she is finally turning twelve.  Her entire life her parents have told her that she could do things when she turned twelve.  She can have a pet, shave her legs, go to a girl/boy party, have a cell phone, get her ears pierced, and much more. But hours before her birthday, she finds herself stuck in a drainpipe and rescued by a little old lady who has surprising strength.  That women tells her, “You won’t get what you want, Rory Swenson, until you see what you need.”  Rory though is sure that her list of promises from her parents are exactly what she both wants and needs.  As Rory works her way through the list, her efforts meet with disaster.  It is especially bad when they start filming a movie at her school and all of her disasters could force her to give up her new job as an extra.  It just may take a gold allergy, an evil murderous bunny, and loss of skin on both legs for Rory to see what she needs.

Written with a strong voice in the first person, Rory’s take on life is wry, funny and always upbeat.  She is a great character whose disasters make for laugh-out-loud moments that are perfect for the tween age group.  Her personal wants may not match those of readers, but they will easily see themselves in her.  She is utterly understandable, completely accident prone, and simply delightful to spend time with.

This book reads quickly as readers move from one of her wishes to the next with Rory, each resulting in if not surprising, then very funny events.  Rory’s family members are just as vividly written.  Her parents are busy but involved and caring if a little overprotective.  Her toddler brother offers just the right amount of distraction and silliness too. 

Take humor, a zing of some sort of magic, and an accident prone tween, and you have this winning book.  The cover is bright, friendly and will invite children to pick it up and read it quickly.  Appropriate for ages 10-13.

Reviewed from Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) received from publisher.

Also reviewed by Kate Messner on her blog.