Olga and the Smelly Thing from Nowhere by Elise Gravel

March 13, 2017March 8, 2017 | Tasha

Olga and the Smelly Thing from Nowhere by Elise Gravel (9780062351265)

When Olga discovers an unusual creature, she soon realizes as she researches it that she has potentially discovered a new species. She dubs the species olgamus ridiculus and names her particular specimen “Meh” because of the noise he makes. Olga knows some things about Meh, she knows he has rainbow-colored poop, that he smells bad, that he loves to sleep in buckets, and that he can hold things with his tail. Unfortunately though, Olga doesn’t know what to feed him and he has rejected almost everything she has. Luckily though, Olga has friends in her community to help, even if she personally prefers animals to humans, including a librarian, an owner of an unusual food store, and maybe even a new boy she just met. It will take all of them to figure out the answers to Meh along with some help from unlikely people as well.

Gravel embraces the science of discovering a new creature in this elementary-school novel. The book keeps a light and playful tone as it demonstrates the process of discovery, research and investigation. Olga is a character who embraces her role as a scientist, taking it very seriously that things are documented appropriately as she works through figuring out Meh and his species. Throughout the book, humor and silliness prevail, making it very readable.

The use of plenty of illustrations makes this book all the more approachable for children. The illustrations almost create a graphic novel here, creating even more of the playful tone of the text. The illustrations are colored only with pink and red and drawn in a loose cartoon style that works well.

A welcome addition of a young female scientist as a main character of an elementary graphic novel. Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Reviewed from copy received from HarperCollins.

This Week’s Tweets, Pins and Tumbls

March 10, 2017 | Tasha

Here are some cool links I shared on my Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr accounts this week:

CHILDREN’S BOOKS

2016 Children’s Book Sales in Review: A CBC Panel http://buff.ly/2mpFvPQ #yalit #kidlit

Author Paula Fox, Newbery Medal winner and grandmother of Courtney Love, dies at 93 http://buff.ly/2mx4G3Q #kidlit

An inspirational story… Dav Pilkey, A Real-Life Superhero http://buff.ly/2ml5Peg via @PhilBildner

Movie Alert: ‘Boss Baby’ http://buff.ly/2mD0akh #kidlit #movies

Nancy Willard, Prolific Children’s Book Author, Dies at 80 http://buff.ly/2n34s1R #kidlit

Newbery Magic: Adam Gidwitz in conversation with Kelly Barnhill http://buff.ly/2mUwX0N #kidlit

Top 10 Tips for Parents of Kids Who HATE to Read http://buff.ly/2lHNWXL #reading #kidlit

When Your Kid Asks a Question, Hand Them a Book—Not a Phone – https://t.co/3uXU9tzdQI

LIBRARIES

Denver Public Library offering more than just books http://buff.ly/2m6RI9t #libraries

How NYC’s First Puerto Rican Librarian Brought Spanish To The Shelves http://www.npr.org/2016/09/08/492957864/how-nycs-first-puerto-rican-librarian-brought-spanish-to-the-shelves?utm_campaign=crowdfire&utm_content=crowdfire&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter …

Libraries evolving in the digital age http://buff.ly/2nect30 #libraries

Protect Your #Library the Medieval Way, With Horrifying Book Curses @atlasobscura – https://t.co/2rvaRVy9Ya

The US-Canada Border Runs Through This Tiny Library – http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-us-canada-border-runs-through-this-tiny-library

TEEN LIT

Booklist: Read-a-Likes for Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon – The Hub http://buff.ly/2mi8Ewf #yalit

“The Hate U Give”: Angie Thomas’ sensational debut novel should be required reading for clueless white people http://buff.ly/2lSOOFj #yalit

Jeff Zentner’s On ‘Goodbye Days,’ Why He Writes For Teens, And What Comes Next http://buff.ly/2mpFwDo #yalit

Sam Sorts by Marthe Jocelyn

March 10, 2017March 2, 2017 | Tasha

Sam Sorts by Marthe Jocelyn (9781101918050)

All of Sam’s toys are in a heap on his floor. It’s time for him to clean up. He finds one unique toy, then two dinosaurs, and counts upwards. But there are other ways to sort toys into categories. Maybe by what they are made from or their shape. And then there are the toys that fall into both categories. Some of them rhyme with each other. Others have the same pattern on them. They can be every color in the rainbow or have qualities that make them similar like being fuzzy or smelly. Some float. Others fly. So many ways to sort!

Jocelyn has created a book that is all about the concept of sorting items into categories. Again and again, she shows that toys can be put into any number of categories. It’s all in how you look at them. The book also incorporates counting on some of its pages. It’s a book that is perfect for more conversations outside of the ones in the text. Questions of finding other toys that fit the new categories on the page, or even thinking of other categories that Sam hasn’t used yet. There’s plenty to be creative about here.

Jocelyn’s illustrations are done in cut paper collage. Some items have a lovely depth to them, created by shadows on the page. On another two pages, there are shadows on the wall that add to the fun. On other pages real objects appear with drawings of others. This is a vibrant visual feast where children will want to look closely at the items and talk about how they match or don’t match.

Have items on hand to sort to continue the conversations started with this creative look at sorting. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from e-galley received from NetGalley and Tundra Books.

Yours Sincerely, Giraffe by Megumi Iwasa

March 9, 2017March 4, 2017 | Tasha

Yours Sincerely, Giraffe by Megumi Iwasa, illustrated by Jun Takabatake (9781927271889)

Giraffe is bored and he’s just missing one thing: a best friend. So when he sees Pelican, who is also bored, offering a mail service, he decides to write a letter. He asks Pelican to deliver it to the first animal he sees past the horizon. Pelican sees that the horizon looks very close, so he agrees. Pelican meets a seal who also delivers mail and sends the letter on to the next animal, which happens to be a Penguin. Giraffe and Penguin become pen pals and steadily become good friends. Soon Giraffe is trying to figure out what Penguin looks like from afar, but doesn’t get it quite right.

First published in Japan, this book is a very friendly chapter book with plenty of illustrations to break the text into manageable chunks. There is a warm playfulness throughout the book, inviting readers to see the humor in boredom and the solution of taking some sort of action to break through the tedium. The characters are well drawn and interesting, each with a unique personality that plays through naturally in the book.

The illustrations by Takabatake are done in fine lined black ink. They have a cartoon feel that embraces the light tone of the book. The illustrations work well with the text, creating action on the page that is very appealing.

A light and warm look at boredom and friendship that is a great read aloud. Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Gecko Press.

What Will Grow? by Jennifer Ward

March 9, 2017February 28, 2017 | Tasha

What Will Grow? by Jennifer Ward, illustrated by Susie Ghahremani (9781681190303)

The author and illustrator pair who brought us What Will Hatch? return with another winning picture book. Here children get to guess what plant will emerge from the seeds being planted. Told in rhyme, the book invites guessing and participation. Some pages offer the answer immediately while others ask readers to fold out a page to see the answer. The book shows that seeds can turn into all kinds of different plants from carrots to sunflowers to pine trees. It also demonstrates the various shapes and colors that seeds come in.

The text has an welcoming tone that immediately asks children to participate in guessing. The rollicking rhyme and rhythm of the book adds to the pace and the fun. The text is basic enough for young toddlers to enjoy while the guessing will make the book fun for preschoolers. The book ends with information on each of the seeds, including when to plant them, how to plant them and when it will grow.

The illustrations have a wonderful natural feel to them. Seeds pepper the pages that are also filled with the greens of plant life. Animals appear as well: a fox snatches a tomato from the vine, a squirrel holds an acorn, a monarch sits atop milkweed. There’s a sense of a complete ecosystem on each page with each plant shown in its habitat. The gatefold pages add a lot of appeal, folding down to show long carrots underground and folding up for tall sunflowers and trees.

A wonderful warm new picture book to celebrate the arrival of spring and gardening. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Bloomsbury.

A Single Stone by Meg McKinlay

March 8, 2017March 4, 2017 | Tasha

A Single Stone by Meg McKinlay (9780763688370)

Released March 14, 2017.

In a society entirely closed off from the rest of the world by mountains and fallen stone, Jena leads the line, a string of girls who can find the fuel in the mountains that allows their village to survive the winter. The Mothers watch over the village, deciding who is in the line, setting the rules and helping birth the babies. Girls are considered far more valuable than boys, since men are forbidden to enter the mountain at all. Girls must be tiny and petite, yet strong enough to brave the demands of climbing through tight passages in the stone. As Jena begins to learn more of the control that the Mothers have placed on everyone and the larger decisions they are making with no one knowing, she starts to have doubts about everything she has ever known.

McKinlay has written a wonderfully claustrophobic book with walls of stone that limit and surround everything and then the dangers of the blind travel through darkness and stone. Even as Jena figures out what is truly happening to the village, there is suffocating attention that adds to the pressure keg of a novel. The book has a brisk pace, deliberately impacted at times by the slow treachery of journeys into the mountain. This adds to the mounting tension of the book.

Jena is a strong female protagonist, willing to ask questions about her village. She is cast as a leader and yet also someone who is separate because her family has died even as her father tried to flee. Jena was taken in by another family and yet remains somewhat separate allowing her to naturally see things that others may have overlooked or missed. As more people are risked and die, Jena must find even more heroism inside her to confront those in control.

Strong writing and a delicious tension make this book a stand out teen fantasy. Appropriate for ages 13-16.

Reviewed from ARC received from Candlewick Press.

2017 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers

March 8, 2017February 24, 2017 | Tasha

YALSA has announced their list of the 2017 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. This is one of my favorite lists of the year, since it always has books that will be popular with teens that aren’t found on other lists. There is also a top ten list shown below:

All American Boys Cover Daughters Unto Devils Cover

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Kiely Brendan

Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics

Exit, Pursued by a Bear Cover Feminism Cover

Exit, Pursued by a Bear by EK Johnston

Feminism: Reinventing the F-Word by Nadia Abushanab Higgins

The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love Cover If I Was Your Girl Cover

The Geek’s Guide to Unrequited Love by Sarvenaz Tash

If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo

Plutona Cover Symptoms of Being Human Cover

Plutona by Jeff Lemire

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin

Tell Me Three Things Cover This Is Where It Ends Cover

Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum

This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp

My Valley by Claude Ponti

March 7, 2017February 28, 2017 | Tasha

My Valley by Claude Ponti (9780914671626)

This imaginative picture book tells the story of the Twims, a type of creature that lives in a specific valley. One Twims narrates the book, explaining life in the valley. He lives in a House Tree up on the cliffs. He has many siblings, a mother and a father and two sets of grandparents. He plays games in the woods, watches all sorts of weather arrive, including once children falling from a house picked up by a hurricane. Twims use theater to get over feeling angry, have a cemetery with grave markers that speak to the interests of the Twims buried there, and enjoy the changes of each season.

First published in France, this book has a gorgeous otherworldly feel to it. It balances the wonder of these little creatures with the small details of their lives. It strongly reminded me of my childhood love for the Gnomes book by Wil Huygen. This new book touches those same emotions, the exploration of something small and clever, the beauty of a simple life and the magic inherent in it as well.

Ponti’s illustrations are lovely. He intersperses the image on the cover of the book throughout the book, focusing on the valley as it changes through different kinds of seasons and weather. The valley almost becomes so familiar that readers will identify with it themselves as each type of event makes it all the more spectacular. There are also the small details of the Twims’ lives, the floors of the House Tree, playing outside, and stories of events that had happened.

This unique picture book invites readers to imagine along with the author and delight in a new creature. Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from e-galley received from Edelweiss and Elsewhere Editions.

2017 Great Graphic Novels for Teens Top Ten

March 7, 2017March 2, 2017 | Tasha

YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association) has announced their list of 2017 Great Graphic Novels for Teens. Part of that list is a top ten, those titles are below:

Black Panther, Book 1 Cover Filmish Cover