Author: Tasha

Animal Soup

| Tasha

Animal Soup by Todd H. Doodler

This book is pure silliness.  Pure.  There is not an educational item here, just lots of giggles and guesses.  Take one animal, add another and the result is a mixture of the two.  The book begins with “What would I be if I had wings to fly…” with a picture of a bird.  “…but walked very slowly instead?” with a picture of a turtle.  Then one lifts the flap to see the answer which is: Bird + Turtle = Birdle along with the image of the bird wearing a turtle’s shell.  Turn the page and it begins again and it is impossible to stop opening the flaps to see the silly combinations. 

Doodler has hit upon a winning combination here of humor and surprise.  His pairing of unlikely animals (who could resist finding out what a squirrel and a whale combine to become) along with the humorous names he calls them will have children laughing out loud.  His simple colorful art adds to the humor.  The animals are all googly eyed and the combination images are delightful. 

Hand this to a reluctant young reader and they will read it again and again.  It is an ideal choice for libraries with flaps that will stand up to most use and for storytimes where children are restless.  This will have them laughing and entranced in no time.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from copy received from Golden Books.

Life, After

| Tasha

Life, After by Sarah Darer Littman

Released July 2010.

Dani’s life is changed forever when a terrorist attack in her country of Argentina kills her aunt and the baby she is carrying.  Adding to the misery, the country of Argentina is in the middle of economic collapse.  Her father has lost his job and his sister and is now unable to cope.  Dani and her mother keep the family going with Dani fixing meals and caring for her younger sister.  Many people are fleeing Argentina, heading to Israel and the United States.  When Dani’s uncle makes an offer to get them visas, there is little choice but to move to the United States.  Dani must now cope with going to a large American high school, speaking and learning in English, and her father’s continued anger and depression.  In a world changed by the effects of terrorism, Dani finds understanding in the most unlikely of people and realizes that there is life afterwards.

This novel is one of many branches that twine throughout.  There are many things happening here, many things for the main character to deal with.  It is down to the skill of Littman that the book remains so cohesive and powerful.  These many branches are what make this book special and interesting.  They help tell the tale of immigration but also terrorism and economic collapse.  It is a timely story for American teens to read, one that will resound in their lives.

Dani is a great protagonist to see this experience through.  She is bright, helpful, giving, and yet can be angry, sad and confused as well.  The novel spends time in Argentina in the beginning, setting the stage to show just how much the family gave up in their move to America.  Often immigration stories start with the family already in the United States.  This time spent in Argentina really makes Dani and her family understandable and relatable.

Highly recommended, this book will reach its braches towards you and hold you tight.  Appropriate for ages 13-17.

Reviewed from Advanced Reader Copy received from Scholastic.

Also reviewed by The Reading Zone and nomadreader.

Books in the Home Make a Difference

| Tasha

I know that all of us who work in education and libraries know that access to books for children make a very big difference.  A new study from Nevada University supports what we already know.

It turns out that having as few as 20 books in the home for children can have a significant impact on their education.  The researchers studied more than 70,000 people from 27 countries to get their results.  The results affect all families irrespective of parental occupation or social class.  Here are some quotes from the article in the Telegraph:

It found that being raised in a household with a 500-book library would result in a child remaining in education for an average of three years longer than those with little access to literature.

The advantage to a child was just as great as being raised by university educated parents, as opposed to those with relatively poor schooling, the study found.

The study suggested that the impact was down to the “scholarly culture” of individual households.

Now, let’s see what type of impact access to a great school and public library will have on children!

Two Little Pirates

| Tasha

Two Little Pirates by Ruth Paul

I must preface this review by saying that this is a book from New Zealand, so it’s not available in the US.  I received it from the author and publisher, Scholastic New Zealand.  Ruth Paul’s books are available in Canada as well as Australia and New Zealand.

In rhyming couplets, this book follows two little pirates who attack the King and the Queen.  They are actually two little boys who pounce on their sleeping parents dressed as pirates.  After a brief battle, the parents prevail and the two pirates are hung over the edge of the ship to become shark bait.  When they beg to be released, the King and Queen agree on one condition: that they tidy up the mess they made.  When that is accomplished, they have a nice snack in bed and then everyone cuddles up and dozes as the bed sails off.

Paul keeps a wonderful balance between imaginary play and reality in this title.  At all times, the ship which is the bed is surrounded by water, until the children have finally given up their pirate roles and become children again.  Additionally, the parents respond with great delight to their young pirates and the attack.  The battle is merrily fought, the capture and punishment is doled out in character, and the snack and cuddles conclude.  What a great way to spend a lazy morning together!

Paul’s art is bright and friendly.  She revels in the play along with the family, enjoying the different angles that the bed can be viewed in throughout.  Done in watercolor and colored pencil, the art has a great clarity of line and depth of color.

This is one pirate bed that is definitely worth sailing on.  Children will revel in the story though parents should be braced for a morning invasion after reading it.  Parents should also be open to snacks in bed, crumbs and all.  But who could resist if it ends with cuddles and a snooze?  Appropriate for ages 2-5.

Reviewed from copy received from publisher.

A Blue So Dark

| Tasha

A Blue So Dark by Holly Schindler

Aura has a secret that is getting harder and harder to keep.  Her mother is suffering from schizophrenia and has become Aura’s sole responsibility now that her father has remarried and started a new family.  Aura must make sure her mother goes to job as an art teacher and tries to monitor her through the window.  But her mother is slipping further and further away, into her own world of delusions, fear and suspicion.  As if that isn’t complicated enough, Aura has other personal issues.  Her best friend just had a baby and can’t be as supportive as she once was.  She has fallen for a skateboarding boy but can’t seem to put two words together around him.  To top it all off, she has started to work for her grandmother, who doesn’t know who Aura is.  As Aura tries to save and protect everyone around her, who is saving her?

This book is an honest and brutal portrayal of mental illness and the toll it takes upon the caregiver, in this case a teen who just wants to be normal.  A large piece of the tension here is the relationship between mother and daughter, which teeters, tips and overturns.  There is such a sense of betrayal and loss in their relationship, powerfully combined with dread and fear.  Aura sees herself in her mother’s illness, certain that she too will eventually succumb to schizophrenia.  She believes it is tied to the artistic talent that both she and her mother have, so she tries to turn her back on art.

Aura is a well-drawn protagonist trying to cope with an impossible situation and fighting to keep up the pretense that nothing is wrong.  She is by turns in denial about the situation and drowning in it.  She is a strong, amazing character who is resilient and refuses to stop fighting for her mother and herself. 

Highly recommended, this book is dark, deep and haunting.  It speaks from the heart about matters that are too often hidden or whispered about.  Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from copy received from Flux.

Holly Schindler has done several blog interviews: Cynsations, Bildungsroman and Bart’s Bookshelf.

Cosmic Blasts Off to the Movies!

| Tasha

Frank Cottrell Boyce’s teen book Cosmic will be turned into a film by Walden Media.  In great news, Cottrell Boyce will be adapting the book into a screenplay himself.  As well as being a successful author for youth, he is a veteran screenwriter.

Here’s to a great book being made into a great film!

Thanks to Cinematical for the news.

Born Yesterday

| Tasha

  

Born Yesterday: The Diary of a Young Journalist by James Solheim, illustrated by Simon James

This funny book is told from the perspective of a brand new baby who just happens to be a journalist. He frets about being born naked, is amazed by everything his older sister can do, and tries to reach his mobile.  He looks forward to being talented enough to go to Kindergarten like his sister, enjoys his first lick of popsicle, throws food, bites his foot.  He spends his days like most babies, but he documents it all.  That’s why he is worried when his sister reads his diary and alarmed when she laughs at it.  Perhaps he needs to find a different family to live with?

The tone of this book is what sets it apart from many other baby books.  The diary format is cleverly done and combined with the baby’s voice, it is pure fun to read.  His voice is clever, rather adult, and often concerned with the impression he is making as a baby.  The juxtaposition of this tone with a baby’s life and activities works very well and adds to the humor of the book.

James’ art is right at home here as he does full page images along with smaller pictures in the midst of the text.  His art has a friendliness and gentle humor of its own and matches the text well.  The baby is nearly irresistible as he tries new things, even as he throws food or howls about biting his own foot.

A clever perspective on babies that many different readers will enjoy.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from copy received from Penguin.

Check out this video about the book with author James Solheim.  It gives a great sense of the humor of the book:

Please Take Me for a Walk

| Tasha

Please Take Me for a Walk by Susan Gal

One look into the begging eyes of this white and black puppy, and you will eagerly agree to take him for a walk.  The puppy explains throughout the book why he needs to go for a walk.  There are cats to chase, birds to bark at, squirrels to keep in the trees.  There are people to greet, games to watch, and games to play.  Best of all, there are other dogs to meet too!

This is a simple book with a simple premise, which is a large part of its appeal.  Gal uses only a handful of words per page, stretching sentences over the course of several pages to show just what the dog has in mind for his walk.  This means lots of pictures for the number of words, making it very toddler friendly. 

It is Gal’s art that really elevates the title.  As you can see from the cover art, the dog is a winning character with shining eyes, plenty of energy, and lots of friends.  Done in charcoal on paper and digital collage, Gal’s art ranges from simple close-ups of the dog on a plain background to busy city streets with dogs and people coming and going. 

Get ready to go on a merry walk with this dog tale, which will fit easily into a toddler storytime about pets or dogs.  Appropriate for ages 2-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Random House.

Also reviewed by Young Readers.

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The Inside Tree

| Tasha

The Inside Tree by Linda Smith, illustrated by David Parkins

Mr. Potter’s life was just right.  His house was just the right size for him and his teapot.  His yard had a single tree where birds swooped and under which his dog slept.  But then he looked out his window and noticed that the dog would be more comfortable inside by the fire.  So he brought the dog in.  However, now the tree was alone outside in the dark.  There was only one thing to do: bring the tree inside!  So Mr. Potter dug up the tree, wrestled it inside, and dug a hole through his floorboards for the tree roots.  All was fine until the tree needed more room.  Mr. Potter cut a hole in the ceiling and in came birds and the rain.  His home was very little cozy inside and mostly outside.  So Mr. Potter moved to the barn with his teapot, fireplace and dog.  That is, until he saw a lonely cow outside in the dark…

For all of us who fill our homes with plants, this book takes it to the extreme.  Smith’s writing offers the lilt of a storyteller, filled with just the right amount of rhythm.  She enjoys breaking sentences over a page turn, increasing the tension just that tiny bit.  It works very well in this humorous tale.  Parkins’ art is filled with great contrasts.  We have the perfect image of the small house in an idyllic setting.  Then there is the yellow and orange warmth of Mr. Potter’s clothing next to the fireside contrasted against the cool evening colors of the lonely dog and tree outside the window.  His use of small details adds to the warm feel of the home. This is used again in the barn where Mr. Potter eventually moves.

A unique book about trees and people, this is ideal for Arbor Day and Earth Day and will lend a hearty laugh to any collection of tree stories.  This is one to bark about, make sure not to leaf it too long.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from library copy.