Author: Tasha

Review: Good Boy by Sergio Ruzzier

| Tasha

Good Boy by Sergio Ruzzier

Good Boy by Sergio Ruzzier (9781481499064)

This is a story of a boy and his dog. It starts simply enough with the boy issuing commands and the dog obeying. He sits, rolls over, jumps, fetches and… juggles! Then the dog makes them a meal and cleans the house. The two of them head outside where the commands become more like requests to have fun together and the pair head off on an adventure. It leads them to build a boat, find an island, build a rocket and then leave earth. They come to a lovely planet where they make new friends but soon miss home. Returning back, the two get ready for bed together and finally fall asleep side-by-side.

Ruzzier cleverly turns the relationship of owner and pet on its head in the book. He begins the book with the more traditional roles and then steadily makes their relationship one of equals and friends. By the end, the tone is entirely different from the beginning, something that is very impressive given that there are only one or two words on each page of the book. It is a beautifully structured book and very intelligently designed.

Ruzzier’s illustrations have his unique feel with surreal landscapes filled with sherbet-colored hills and a green ocean. The illustrations have a friendly cartoon style but also a sophistication that one expects from a book by Ruzzier.

A smart look at a boy and his dog and their adventures together. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy provided by Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Review: The Piñata That the Farm Maiden Hung by Samantha R. Vamos

| Tasha

The Piñata That the Farm Maiden Hung by Samantha R. Vamos

The Piñata That the Farm Maiden Hung by Samantha R. Vamos, illustrated by Sebastia Serra (9781580897969)

This is a companion book to the award-winning The Cazuela That the Farm Maiden Stirred. This second book is by the same author but a different illustrator. Here a girl sets off to do some errands while the rest of the farm gets ready for a celebration. The farm maiden creates a piñata by hand with the help of a boy, horse, goose, cat and sheep. The farmer carves figures from wood and everyone prepares for a party. Told in a cumulative folktale style, the book uses Spanish words and phrases to create a book that sings with festivities.

The writing by Vamos is skilled as she weaves together English and Spanish into rhymes and a repeating and cumulative structure. Children who don’t know Spanish will easily be able to decode the words in the text since Vamos replaces the English word on a previous page with the Spanish word. The book also includes a glossary of Spanish words as well as directions for making your own piñata. The illustrations by Serra are colorful and bright. They are filled with the action of making the piñata and every animal and person is happy while doing their work. There is a sense of anticipation throughout the book as the celebration nears.

A great bilingual choice for Spanish-language learners. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy provided by Charlesbridge.

2019 Mathical Award Winners

| Tasha

The Mathical Book Prize is given annually to the outstanding fiction and nonfiction for youth ages 2-18. The prize is selected by a committee of PreK-12 teachers, librarians, mathematicians, and early childhood experts. Here are the 2019 winners and honor books for each age category:

WINNER PRE-K

Crash! Boom! A Math Tale by Robie H. Harris, illustrated by Chris Chatterton

 

WINNER GRADES K-2

Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germain by Cheryl Bardoe, illustrated by Barbara McClintock

 

WINNER GRADES 3-5

The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy McAnulty

 

WINNER GRADES 6-8

To the Moon! The True Story of the American Heroes on the Apollo 8 Spaceship by Jeffrey Kluger and Ruby Shamir

 

HONOR BOOKS PRE-K

 

Press Here by Hervé Tullet

100 Bugs! A Counting Book by Kate Narita

 

HONOR BOOKS GRADES K-2

3×4 by Ivan Brunetti

Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13 by Helaine Becker

The Girl with a Mind for Math: The Story of Raye Montague by Julia Finley Mosca

When Sophie Thinks She Can’t by Molly Bang

 

HONOR BOOKS GRADES 3-5

Animals by the Numbers: A Book of Infographics by Steve Jenkins

Hidden Women: The African-American Mathematicians of NASA Who Helped America Win the Space Race by Rebecca Rissman

 

HONOR BOOK GRADES 6-8

If You Find This by Matthew Baker

 

HONOR BOOK GRADES 9-12

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Review: Shout by Laurie Halse Anderson

| Tasha

Shout by Laurie Halse Anderson

Shout by Laurie Halse Anderson (9780698195264)

On the 20th anniversary year of her ground-breaking teen novel Speak, Anderson has written a searing book of poetry that chronicles her own journey to having a voice and speaking out. Thanks to the subject matter of Speak, Anderson is trusted by many of the teens she speaks before to hear their own stories of abuse and rape. Surely over the decades, something has changed. Has it? In this nonfiction work of verse, Anderson opens up about her own childhood and parents, her own experience with sexual assault and rape, the sexual harassment of college campuses from students and professors alike, and so much more. Her book is a call to action, to rage alongside her, and to not be silent.

Anderson’s poetry slams into you like a freight train. She does have some poems that are subtle and more introspective, but the ones that rush and insist are the best here. Her anger fuels this entire book, her call to be better, to raise sons who do right, to speak and shout and yell. She is so honest on these pages, allowing the teens and others who have spoken to her to have space in the book too. In a book that could have felt like too much pain, it is instead action oriented and forceful.

Anderson’s verse is incredibly skilled. She tells poignant stories, both her own and other people’s. She shares insights, yells at those she evaded once, demands changes and shows how very vital one angry voice can be for change. This is a book that every woman should read, teens and adults. It’s one to return to for fuel to fight on when you are spent.

Brilliant, courageous and heart breaking, this book is one that belongs in every library. Appropriate for ages 14-adult.

Reviewed from ARC provided by Penguin Young Readers.

 

Review: Another by Christian Robinson

| Tasha

Another by Christian Robinson

Another by Christian Robinson (9781534421677)

In his first solo picture book, award-winning illustrator Robinson creates a wordless experience for young book lovers. A little girl is in bed with her cat sleeping at her feet, when a portal opens in the wall. Through the portal comes a cat who is just the same as her cat except that it wears a blue collar rather than a red one. The portal cat steals the girl’s cat’s red mouse toy and heads back through the portal with it. What ensues is a literal cat and mouse game through a series of portals that lead to Escher-like rooms, reversal of gravity, and much more. Finally, the girl meets another version of herself and retrieves the red mouse, returning home. The adventure is over, or is it?

Cleverly designed, this wordless picture book is a joy to experience. Readers will love figuring out that gravity is different, or that stairs don’t actually look like stairs, or that there are other worlds out there much like our own. The use of portals adds a delightful science-fiction quality to the book too. As always, Robinson’s illustrations are exceptional. His use of repeating polka dots is used on the end-pages and under the book jacket as well as throughout the story. From the girl’s hair to entire landscapes of dots, the book is a cohesive whole even as it journeys through other worlds.

An exceptional picture book made all the more impressive by being wordless. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy provided by Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Review: Snowman – Cold = Puddle: Spring Equations by Laura Purdie Salas

| Tasha

Snowman - Cold = Puddle Spring Equations by Laura Purdie Salas

Snowman – Cold = Puddle: Spring Equations by Laura Purdie Salas, illustrated by Micha Archer (9781580897983)

As winter turns to spring, changes happen all around. Refreshingly, this book looks at those changes through a mix of poetry and science. In the first pages, the differences between poetry and science are pointed out in a way that makes perfect sense. Subjects like hibernation, streams, wildlife, maple syrup, flowers, wind, bees, and clouds are all explored. The poetry is entirely in equation form like the title, swiftly capturing the essence of something rather like a haiku but in an even briefer format. Readers are encouraged to see poetry and science all around them.

Salas plays with the poetic form here, creating a mathematical poetry style that is entirely joyous to read. Because of the brevity of the form, the narrative is particularly necessary for some of the poems to make sense for readers. The narrative is also brief and focused, explaining the science behind what we see in nature.

The illustrations by Archer are done in oils and collage. They are filled with deep colors of spring sky, blooming flowers, pond water and other parts of nature. Layered and filled with textures too, the illustrations are rich and saturated.

A winning mix of poetry and science, this is a book that captures the wonder of spring. Appropriate for ages 4-8.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Charlesbridge.

Lambda Literary Awards Finalists

| Tasha

The finalists for the 31st Annual Lambda Literary Awards have been announced. The LGBTQIA+ book awards are given in 24 categories, including one focused on LGBTQ books for children and teens. Here are the finalists in that category:

LGBTQ Children’s & Young Adult

Anger Is a Gift by Mark Oshiro

The Dangerous Art of Blending In by Angelo Surmelis

Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake

Hurricane Child by Kheryn Callender

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand

This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story by Kheryn Callender

Review: Sweeping Up the Heart by Kevin Henkes

| Tasha

Sweeping Up the Heart by Kevin Henkes

Sweeping Up the Heart by Kevin Henkes (9780062852571)

Amelia is stuck at home during spring break while her best friend is off in France, probably forgetting all about Amelia. Amelia spends her time with Mrs. O’Brien, the neighbor who has helped care for her for most of her life. She also goes to the local art studio in her Madison, Wisconsin neighborhood and works on her pottery. When she is there one day, she meets Casey, a boy who is trying to rescue his parents’ marriage without much success. As Amelia and Casey start to become friends with a shared sense of humor and love of art, they notice a woman hanging around the area who looks a lot like Amelia, but Amelia’s mother died ten years ago. Is she a ghost? Has Amelia’s entire life been a lie? The two set out to discover the truth.

Henkes’ excels at both novels for children and picture books. His novels are like small gems. His writing is focused and lovely, exploring the intense emotions of childhood without mocking them at all. Instead, he endows them with a deep understanding and empathy, demonstrating how small untruths can turn larger in unexpected ways. Henkes looks closely at young artists in this book, exploring how art can convey emotions, serve as a release, and connect people to one another.

Amelia is a detailed character, a girl who is lonely in a very deep way. With a dead mother and a distant father, she is close to her babysitter, but missing her friends too. Casey is feeling a sorrow and grief for his parents’ dissolving marriage. Both children have a powerlessness to them as well that turns into action as they work together to solve who the unknown woman actually is. A warning, this is not a mystery story but instead a more quiet character study.

Henkes once again stuns with his deep connection to his characters and his skill as a writer. Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Greenwillow Books.

Review: The Amazing Idea of You by Charlotte Sullivan Wild

| Tasha

the amazing idea of you by charlotte sullivan wild

The Amazing Idea of You by Charlotte Sullivan Wild, illustrated by Mary Lundquist (9781681191836)

Inside every apple is the idea of a tree wrapped inside a tiny seed. If you plant it, that idea starts to grow and bloom. This picture book explores the ideas that are inside you! Just like the tree inside the seed or the chick inside an egg, ideas are inside of you and waiting to come out. It’s like the frog inside the tadpole, the flight inside a gosling or the butterfly inside the caterpillar. Ideas are personal and transform our world. What is inside of you?

Written with an inspirational tone, this picture book encourages children to think deeply about what they want to grow into. The message is empowering and personal, giving children the space and time to dream and think. In the story, the little girl creates an apple orchard from apple seeds which serves as a metaphor for how small things can grow large and make big changes to the world around us. The illustrations are positive and bubbly. Featuring a child of color though not a specific ethnicity, the illustrations have a warmth about them.

An appealing book with a focus on self-esteem and personal growth. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy provided by Bloomsbury.