Author: Tasha

Side by Side/Lado a lado

| Tasha

Side by Side/Lado a lado : the story of Delores Huerta and Cesar Chavez by Monica Brown, illustrated by Joe Cepeda

Released September 1, 2010

Bright and vibrant, this book tells the true story of Delores Huerta and Cesar Chavez and their fight for the rights of migrant farm workers.  The book begins with both of them as children and their early connections to the needs of farm workers.  The real change started when the two of them met and began working together on the cause.  They traveled from town to town talking from the beds of trucks in fields.  They successfully fought to get the poisons used on California grapes stopped.  They marched for 340 miles to demand that workers get living wages.  Cesar went on a hunger strike to get people to listen.  The two worked together for 30 years and were two of the most important voices for labor change in the United States.

A bilingual book, this is a heartfelt homage to two heroes of our time.  The writing is simple and honest, reflecting the subject matter with a great respect.  For young readers, the book is fairly free of dates, leaving the heart of the story uncluttered.  In the author note, readers can learn more about the dates  and associations that were created.  The focus of the book is on advocacy, action and passion.  Things we all hope children will learn.  Cepeda’s illustrations are strong and bright.  Filled with rich colors, the illustrations underscore the normalcy of both Huerta and Chavez while capturing their energy and dedication as well.

An empowering and inspiring read, this book is appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from ARC received from HarperCollins.

Vampire Academy – The Movie?

| Tasha

 

Richelle Mead, author of the Vampire Academy series, has sold the film options for the series.  She met with producer Michael Preger of Preger Entertainment to develop the series for the big screen.  They are hoping to create a series of films.  Sounds like a Twilight idea to me!

Mead, who met with Preger and Murphy during the recent Comic-Con event in San Diego, says she’s not presuming anything yet.

"I’m hopeful. I’ve met the guys. They’re great. They love the books. But for me, it’s very easy to put this on the back burner. The options are sold, but it’s not something I’m thinking about most of the time. My focus is the books, because that’s what I do."

Read more at the Kansas City Star, including an interview with Mead.  It gives fans something to do before the final book in the series is released in December!

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Pigs to the Rescue

| Tasha

Pigs to the Rescue by John Himmelman

I loved Chickens to the Rescue which was released in 2006 and this next book is just as winning and funny as the first!  Each day of the week Farmer Greenstalk and his family need help.  The tractor breaks down, the garden needs watering, a shoelace breaks and a kite gets stuck in the tree.  In each case, the pigs launch in to help out, always leaving the situation a bit worse than when they “helped.”  This zany book is sure to have guffaws galore as the illustrations are there to tell the rest of the story, especially the results of the pigs’ frenzied help.  The book ends with a wonderful twist that will have readers laughing all over again.

Himmelman allows his illustrations to really tell the story here.  The text is matter-of-fact, playing the straight man against the wild humor of the illustrations.  The cartoon feel of the pictures works perfectly here with the larger-than-life humor that is mostly physical.  Reluctant readers will enjoy the juxtaposition of the simple text against the vibrant background.

Sure to be a hit, this book will work best one-on-one because the illustrations should be enjoyed close up.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Henry Holt.

How I Made It to Eighteen

| Tasha

How I Made It to Eighteen: a mostly true story by Tracy White

Based on the author’s experiences, this book takes a straight-on look at depression and self-destruction.  Seventeen-year-old Stacy Black checked herself into a mental hospital to help deal with her anger and depression.  She had just put her fist through a glass window.  Stacy hated the hospital but knew that she had to be there to survive, so she stayed.  As she spent time there, she developed new friends who helped her in her recovery and in being honest with herself.  Told in graphic novel format that is more like a journal than manga, this book is honest, blunt and intelligent.  Teen readers will easily see themselves in Stacy whether they are struggling with similar issues or not.

This book appears to be a regular novel until you open it and see all of the illustrations.  Done in line drawings, the illustrations are quirky and have the unedited feel of a real journal.  Readers get to know Stacy as well as her friends both in the hospital and from outside.  This perspective shift, done at the end of each chapter is a welcome view of how outsiders view a teen who enters a hospital.  While they express confusion and concern, all of them realize that it was a necessary step.  It is a brilliant and subtle way to tell teens that they will not be vilified if they get the help they need.

Though heavily illustrated, White’s writing is also a large part of the story.  Stacy is a sarcastic and caustic character.  Readers will realize immediately that she is putting on a front, but it takes time for readers and Stacy to acknowledge what exactly has brought her to the hospital and to this place in her life.  The slow unveiling of the basis of her problems mirrors the steps in her counseling.  This makes the entire book feel organic and honest.

A book that teens will enjoy and relate to, this graphic novel will appeal to a much broader audience than graphic novel readers.  Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from copy received from Roaring Brook Press.

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Pantaloon

| Tasha

Pantaloon by Kathryn Jackson, illustrated by Steven Salerno

A re-illustrated classic Golden Book that was first published in 1951, this book gets a charming new look.  Pantaloon is a dog that loves to eat baked goods.  So when a job opens at his local bakery, Pantaloon thinks he will be perfect for it.  But the baker doesn’t.  He thinks that Pantaloon will eat more than he bakes.  Pantaloon even tries a disguise to get the job, but he’s discovered.  While Pantaloon is in the barber shop getting his hair cut and trying to come up with his next plan, the baker heads out for more sugar.  Unfortunately, he trips over Pantaloon’s bicycle on the way and ends up in bed.  Pantaloon eagerly steps in and ices the cakes and delivers all of the goodies to customers.  What will the baker say when he returns?

Jackson’s text has an old-fashioned feel to it.  It has very nice repeating lines that really tie the piece together.  Pantaloon yearns for baked goods in a series of lines and the goodies at the bakery are listed in a winning way each time they are featured.  Salerno’s illustrations have a retro feel to them, nicely complementing the feel of the text.  His use of bright colors makes the book feel fresh and vibrant.

A very nice read aloud for food or dog story times, this is a retro sugar-rush of a book.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from library copy.

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Also check out the images on Steven Salerno’s blog of the old and new versions.

Funny Lunch

| Tasha

Funny Lunch by David Catrow

This second Max Spaniel book offers mayhem and fun with a pizza theme.  Max is not a dog, he is a chef!  He and his cat friend have a restaurant where they serve pizzas.  When one customer refuses the special and orders chili instead, he is given a scarf, hat and mittens.  When another orders a hot dog, a panting dog with a fan is served.  Trouble arrives by bus with an order of 100 pizzas with everything!  Max cannot make pizzas that fast and ends up with a mess instead.  Luckily great pizza is only a phone call away.  Even better, Max got to enjoy the pizza too.

Catrow successfully mixes very simple beginner reader words with pictured filled with funny details and merriment.  The jokes are classic and there are some that only those looking at the pictures will find.  Catrow’s watercolor illustrations ooze giggles and laughs as well as pizza sauce and cheese.  They add another dimension of fun to the book.  The relationship between Max and his cat friend is a good one that plays out primarily in the illustrations. 

A frolic of an easy reader, this book will be enjoyed by young pizza and dog lovers.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Scholastic.

The Sandwich Swap

| Tasha

The Sandwich Swap by Queen Raina of Jordan and Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Tricia Tusa

Lily and Salma are best friends.  They do a lot of things together very happily.  But one thing they did’t agree on was the sandwiches they had for lunch.  Lily brought peanut butter and jelly on white bread every day.  Salma brought hummus on pita bread every day.  Each girl thought that the other girl must be suffering eating that icky looking sandwich every day.  One day, Lily blurted out what she thought of Salma’s sandwich and then, feeling very angry, Salma told Lily that her sandwich looked gross and smelled bad.  The two girls didn’t play together that day.  Their argument started a larger one in their school and then a food fight!  The next day, they sat together and each offered the other a taste of their sandwich which once again led to the whole school getting involved.

The writing in the book has a delightful rhythm to it, using nicely subtle repetition to underline how similar the girls are even in their differences.  The glimpses of their home life as each girl thinks about how their sandwich is made by loving hands adds a lot to the story as well.  Tusa’s illustrations are done in her signature style with plenty of emotion.  They also have a lovely interplay of white space and color washes that make them eye catching and work well when placed with little text or a page filled with text. 

Highly recommended, this book is ideal to start a discussion of differences in a classroom, especially cultural ones.  I love that the book uses food to bring children together, because it can be such an ambassador for different cultures and even different families in the same culture.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

Check out the book trailer below:

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Bruiser

| Tasha

Bruiser by Neal Shusterman

Bruiser was voted “Most Likely to Get the Death Penalty” by the kids at school.  So when Tennyson’s twin sister Bronte starts dating Bruiser, he is very concerned.  Bruiser is a real loner, involved in almost nothing at school, just heading home directly after classes end.  When Tennyson follows him home, he discovers that Bruiser lives with his abusive uncle and his half-brother.  Tennyson never backs away from confrontations with others, so he is surprised to find himself shaking Bruiser’s hand in friendship and even helping to dispose of a dead bull carcass.  As the relationship between Bruiser and Bronte deepens, Tennyson becomes closer to Bruiser too.  That’s when strange things begin to happen that show them just why Bruiser is a loner and why his uncle is desperate to keep him home.  Written from the perspectives of Tennyson, Bronte, Bruiser, and Bruiser’s brother, this book transports the reader to a powerful place where love and friendship carry a unique pain.

I have been a fan of Shusterman ever since reading The Eyes of Kid Midas back in the 1990s.  I love that he writes of magic in the real world, yet never shies away from what the magic brings to life.  No one wakes up from a dream in these books or loses their powers.  Instead they have to learn to live with what they have.  Shusterman’s novels are also allegories for real life without magic.  Here readers will find a physical manifestation of the pain and power of love and friendship.  Bruiser and his flesh are tangible examples of the torment of life.

Shusterman’s writing here is well done.  His characters are multi-dimensional and interesting.  The twins are more than simply two sides of a coin, showing great depth of character.  When Bruiser takes his first turn as narrator, Shusterman’s writing soars.  Bruiser’s sections are in verse, unlike the others.  His pain and torment is right there, shouting to the reader about the frustration and loneliness of his life.  It is gorgeous and extraordinary.

Highly recommended, this book takes readers on a journey that will be difficult to forget.  If you enjoy this book, make sure to check out others by Shusterman.  Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from library copy.

One Drowsy Dragon

| Tasha

One Drowsy Dragon by Ethan Long

One sleepy dragon wants to get some sleep, but his little dragons are making too much noise.  In this rhyming counting book, readers will find one dragon after another making all sorts of noises.  There is marching, dancing, screaming, jamming in a band, and much more.  Throughout, the adult dragon becomes more and more frazzled and exhausted until the end of the book when the ten little dragons are tired too and ready for bed.  But then the adult dragon is making so much noise snoring that they can’t get to sleep!

Filled with great sounds to make when reading aloud, this book is ideal for a pajama party.  It has a jaunty rhyme with plenty of shouting from the frustrated dragon adding to the frenzy.  The illustrations add even more appeal to the book with their bright colors and humor.  Just the look on the adult dragon’s face will having readers giggling as well as how oblivious the young dragons are to the situation. 

Bright and funny, this is a great counting book combined with dragon appeal and a bedtime theme.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Scholastic.