Year: 2011

Hunger Games–Who Will Be Katniss?

| Tasha

Variety has the news that the lead in Hunger Games may be a previous Academy Award nominee.  But that doesn’t narrow down the choices, really.

The three actresses under consideration at this time are:

  

Jennifer Lawrence – star of Winter’s Bone

Hailee Steinfeld from True Grit

Abigail Breslin from Little Miss Sunshine

Three very different types of actress but all brilliant at their craft.  The film is due out March 2012.

So should it be one of the three above?  Do you have a better pick?  Or should it be an unknown?

The Sea of Monsters–The Movie

| Tasha

It looks like Fox 2000 will be developing a sequel to the first Percy Jackson movie. 

According to the LA Times, Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski (writers of Ed Wood and Agent Cody Banks) will be writing the script.

No director has been linked to the film yet, but it is not expected to be Chris Columbus who directed the first film.

It will be interesting to see what happens with this franchise, since the first film was not a blockbuster of a movie.

The Junkyard Wonders: Timely and Timeless

| Tasha

junkyard

The Junkyard Wonders by Patricia Polacco

Polacco tells another very personal story of an amazing teacher in this book.  Trisha thinks she has a fresh start when she moves to live with her grandparents and father.  She expects that she will no longer be in a special needs class anymore, but in her new school she is once again in a special class.  At this school, the class is known as The Junkyard.  Happily though, it has an incredible teacher in Mrs. Peterson.  Mrs. Peterson begins the school year talking about what genius is, and continues to lead the class forward by inspiring them every day.  She allows them to create their dreams, to realize that a junkyard is place of opportunity, and to achieve and grow.  When tragedy strikes the class, they persevere on with their efforts as a tribute. 

Polacco’s books are always heartfelt and vibrantly real.  Here readers see that differences are not disadvantages and friends are not always the most likely but can be the longest lasting.  The arc of the story takes readers through a wide range of emotions, from the dismay and shame of the special class to the achievements they realize to the loss they experience together.  Her tributes to teachers and the difference the great ones make in children’s lives could not be more timely and more timeless.

As always, Polacco’s illustrations are bright and evocative.  Obviously based on real people, the characters in the book are consistently portrayed and entirely unique from one another. 

Highly recommended for all children, whether in special classes or not.  I guarantee they will all long to be part of a Junkyard class by the end of the book.  This would make a great book for elementary classrooms discussing diversity and differences.   Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from copy received from Philomel Books.

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My Wild Sister and Me

| Tasha

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My Wild Sister and Me by Iris Wewer

Told from the point of view of a younger brother, this book is about the thrill of having a big sister who not only plays with you, but pretends to be different animals!  She is sometimes a giraffe, aloof and ignoring him.  So he is forced to be a skunk and sulk about it.  Other times, she is a bear and he can be a bear along with her.  Still other times, they are the happiest animals of all, bunnies!  They play Catch-the-Bunny, much to their mutual delight.  But when his sister’s friend comes and asks her to play with her, she leaves without a second thought.  Leaving one very sad bunny behind.  But this bunny is also clever and knows just how to tease his sister into another round of Catch-the-Bunny when she returns.

Wewer captures the sibling dynamic so well here.  From the pull of other friends for the older sibling, to the sense of abandonment for the younger, and finally the joy of playing together.  She has also nicely captured the naughtiness of children, their energy and their vivid imaginations.  It is a book that really feels just as wild and loose as its title implies.

Wewer’s art adds to the dynamic feel of the title.  My particular favorite page features the children dashing around the entire margin of the page dressed as bunnies.  The illustrations of the children plainly show their emotions, from the anger when his sister returns to the blank innocence in case he gets caught taking her toothbrush.  Priceless!

If you have children who are wild, silly and occasionally turn into animals on you, this is the book for them!  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from NorthSouth.

Shout! Shout It Out!

| Tasha

Shout-Shout-It-Out

Shout! Shout It Out! by Denise Fleming

Released March 29, 2011.

If you are looking for a book that will help with the wiggles and energy of a toddler or preschool class, this is the book for you!

Fleming takes a fast-paced rhythm that chants for children to shout out the answers if they know them.  Then she runs through numbers, the alphabet, colors, animals and vehicles.  A little mouse makes aside comments throughout the book as well.  The illustrations are classic Fleming with  bright colors, large format, and a very active feel.

Fleming does her art in pulp painting, which gives the colors an unusual depth and a great texture.  The entire book is just as inviting and invigorating as the cover.  While the text is primarily calling for children to shout out the answers they know and then the different names of things, it shows a great restraint that really makes the book work well.

This is sure to be a hit in libraries and preschools.  I’d have it on hand for any rowdy toddler story time.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Henry Holt.

I Must Have Bobo!: Silliness to Share

| Tasha

imusthavebobo

I Must Have Bobo! by Eileen Rosenthal, illustrated by Marc Rosenthal

When Willy wakes up, he can’t find his beloved sock monkey, Bobo.  Willy needs Bobo to get through his day.  But Earl the cat likes Bobo too.  Willy takes Bobo away from Earl and heads off to breakfast.  But whenever Willy is distracted or busy, Earl sneaks in and grabs Bobo, carrying him off.  Willy searches high and low for Bobo, finally realizing that it must be either pirates or Earl who has taken the toy.  The book ends with a cuddle between the three of them, curled up and happy together.  Or are they?

This book is silly and great fun. The ending has a gentle twist to it, that will delight young listeners.  It will work well with a group, since it has plenty of emotion to portray, lots of laughs, and a sharing theme that children can relate to easily.  The illustrations work well with the simple text.  They have a great warmth to them, thanks to the creamy background and the rough edges.  Additionally, the book has a timeless appeal, but remains modern as well.

Recommended for cat or toy story times, this book is a pleasure to read and share.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

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Blue Chameleon: Colorful Companionship

| Tasha

bluechameleon

Blue Chameleon by Emily Gravett

Gravett’s latest is a charmingly simple picture book that showcases her illustrations.  The featured character in the book is a chameleon who is feeling blue because he is lonely.  So he sets off to find a friend.  As he meets different objects and animals, his color changes to mimic theirs.  He turns yellow like the banana.  He turns pink like the cockatoo.  He even turns spotty like a ball and striped like a sock.  But he just can’t find a friend.  As he mopes gray on a rock and then disappears white against the page, he finally finds a friend who is just as colorful as he is.

Gravett has created a book about colors where the colors are a vital part of the story being told, making it very different than some picture books about colors that don’t read nearly as naturally.  Adding to the appeal is the emotive chameleon himself and his attempts at making friends.  Children will get the humor of the situation, love the moment he begins to show patterns, and also will relate to making friends.

Gravett’s illustrations and text work well together.  The bulk of the text is just the color and the object the chameleon is interacting with.  The chameleon also makes friendly comments to the potential friends, adding a welcome touch of more humor to the title.  The illustrations are bright, large and will work equally well with groups or reading to one child.

Highly recommended for any library’s colorful shelves, this book will be enjoyed by any preschooler or toddler.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Simon & Schuster.

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Chime: Breathtakingly Beautiful

| Tasha

chime

Chime by Franny Billingsley

Released on March 17, 2011.

Briony believes that she is the source of her family’s troubles.  She blames herself for her stepmother’s death and for her twin sister’s brain damage.  Her only solace is the swamp, where she can see and speak with the Old Ones.  But she can tell no one about her gift because it means that she is a witch, and witches in her village are hanged.  Everything changes when funny, gallant Eldric comes to live with them.  He is golden, lion-like and best of all, he appreciates Briony for just being herself.  However, Briony is filled with guilt and secrets that may be the death of her.  Unknown to her though, there are further secrets that need to be revealed, to everyone.

The writing here is so lush, so inventive, so layered that its language creates a unique world all on its own.  Billingsley uses unique metaphors that are arrestingly descriptive.  In fact, the writing is so lovely that my book is marked with many small bookmarks for amazing passages.  Wonderfully, the character of Briony also plays with language and words, using them as a game, a tool and a weapon.  It is this layering of imagery and wordplay that makes the reading of the book such a special one.

Right from the beginning, readers will know that something is amiss with Briony’s version of the events.  One wonders if the Old Ones are actually real, emerges confused by the relationship of the stepmother with her stepdaughters, examines the events of the library fire, and tries to follow the breadcrumb trail of details to figure out this puzzle of a book.  Briony is a great example of an unreliable narrator, leading readers through past events and present events with her own personal lens.  Delightfully, readers will struggle to remove the vividness of Briony’s perspective and view the world without it. 

Highly recommended, this is a book that mature teen readers will enjoy thanks to its blend of fantasy, romance and mystery.  My hope is that we see it winning some awards when award season rolls around.  It is definitely a winner of a read for me.  Appropriate for ages 15-18.

Reviewed from copy received from Dial Books.

Except If: A Puzzle of a Book

| Tasha

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Except If by Jim Averbeck

Follow this twisting, turning puzzle of a book that has you thinking one thing and then transforming it into another.  It all starts with an egg that is cracking open.  It will become a bird “except if” it becomes a baby snake.  That snake will slither on the floor “except if” it is actually a lizard.  The lizard is actually a dinosaur, which is actually a fossil, which shelters a nest, where a familiar blue egg is resting.  What will be in the egg this time?

This book is pure fun.  The reader puts themselves into the author’s hands, unable to predict where this book will take them.  The fossil piece was one that I was happily surprised by, not expecting the book to head in that direction.  Averbeck’s use of spare language to great effect makes this a book that will read aloud well.  Its straightforward text is the perfect foil to the twists of the story line.

Averbeck’s illustrations are bright and bold.  The thick black lines and flat color evoke children’s coloring books, giving it immense child appeal.

Add this to any story time on dinosaurs or as the ideal ending book for any general story time.  It’s sure to be requested again and again.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

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