Picture Books

Review: Picture Day Perfection by Deborah Diesen

| Tasha

picture day perfection

Picture Day Perfection by Deborah Diesen, illustrated by Dan Santat

Picture Day is a day when you want to take the perfect picture.  That doesn’t come easily!  In fact, the boy in this book has been planning his Picture Day for months.  But nothing seems to be going well at all.  First is the bedhead hair that makes his brother laugh, then his favorite shirt is stained and smelly, and that all leads into the incident with the syrup at breakfast.  The day continues this way and when he gets to school he starts to get into trouble with how he is acting.  He won’t practice his smile, choosing instead to stick out his tongue.  He sends paint flying during art.  He doesn’t get a comb to fix his hair.  In the end though, it all comes off just like he planned, or does it?

Diesen has a wonderful kid-like sense of humor that is very evident throughout this book.  Her timing is great, the story will have everyone laughing.  Readers will figure out what is really happening in this book just as the author decides to reveal it.  Then the entire book still makes sense, but in a different way.  It makes for a great read.

Add in Santat’s vibrant and equally funny art and you have a real winner.  Santat captures the funniest moments in the text with great style.  The image of the syrup incident is my favorite but I also love the picture taken at the end of the book. 

Funny, pure silliness and just right for the start of a new school year.  Try this one out with older elementary students since they will love the humor too.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Abrams Books for Young Readers.

Review: Once Upon a Northern Night by Jean E. Pendziwol

| Tasha

once upon a northern night

Once Upon a Northern Night by Jean E. Pendziwol, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault

This glimmering book takes a lingering and loving look at a Canadian winter night.  It starts just before the snow begins to fall, one flake then more.  Then the ground is covered with a snowy blanket, a blanket just like the one you are sleeping under.  The book goes on to talk about the beauty of the winter forest, snow that will dust your head and nose as you pass under the trees.  Animals appear; the deer munch on the frozen apples, a great gray owl silently drifts by, rabbits scamper only going still when the fox walks past.  The book continues to talk about the beauty of the snow once the sky clears, the patterns of frost on window panes.  It ends with the dazzle of the snowy morning.

As a native of Wisconsin, this Canadian import speaks directly to my love of winter evenings, nights and days.  This lullaby of a book opens each poetic stanza with “Once upon a northern night…” and then leads into another beautiful wonder that is present there.  Northern readers will see their own love reflected here, others will start to understand the beauty and exquisite nature of winter.  Pendziwol plays with imagery and truly finds the wonder in each moment she captures.  It is pure beauty, glittery as snow but oh so much warmer.

Arsenault’s illustrations are done in nighttime sepia tones, the color drained away except for pops of frozen apples, owl eyes, fox orange and deep night sky blues.  The snow itself makes up much of the images, dancing in the air, covering branches, capturing footprints.  One can almost feel the coldness seep from the page.  Then there is the final page with morning arriving that is suddenly color and ends the book just perfectly with its icy shimmer.

This picture book is perfect for a bedtime story curled up near the fire or under toasty warm blankets as the snow falls.  It is a quiet and lovely book, one to treasure and share.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Jasper’s Story by Jill Robinson

| Tasha

jaspers story

Jasper’s Story: Saving Moon Bears by Jill Robinson and Marc Bekoff, illustrated by Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen

Held captive for years by bear “farmers” who kept him in a too-small cage and harvested bile from his body, Jasper’s story is representative of many captive moon bears.   Now Jasper has been rescued by Animals Asia, an animal welfare organization.  He is taken to their Moon Bear Rescue Center where his medical needs are attended to and he is put into the sanctuary.  There, Jasper walks on grass for the first time in his life.  Caregivers work to teach Jasper how to find food on his own, hiding food in toys and places to dig.  In time, Jasper’s life starts to change.  He begins to play more, get stronger, and make friends.  Jasper is one success story among many, a testament to what rescue can do to save animals that might have been considered too damaged to rescue.

Robinson and Bekoff write in a very engaging way in this nonfiction picture book.  They invest time in telling the story of the abuse as well as painting a beautiful picture of moon bears in the wild: “Far away in the mist-covered mountains of China, the moon sends yellow arcs of light across the hills, softly painting the forests with a luminous glow.”  They describe the way that wild animals sleep with a sense of freedom.  The prose is beautiful, clearly painting the value of these animals and the importance of their rescue and rehabilitation.

The illustrations are equally evocative.  The paintings have a wonderful sense of place, showing the workers at the sanctuary and the horror of the small cages with equal attention.  I particularly like the way that the opening image relates to that at the end, showing that Jasper is once again more like the wild moon bears than the abused ones. 

A great book on the importance of animal rehabilitation and rescue, this book will speak volumes to every child who picks it up and meets Jasper.  Appropriate for ages 7-9.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: My Neighbor Is a Dog by Isabel Minhos Martins

| Tasha

my neighbor is a dog

My Neighbor Is a Dog by Isabel Minhos Martins, illustrated by Madalena Matoso

Originally published in Portugal, this book is a charming import.  It is the story of a young girl who gets a new neighbor who just happens to be a dog.  The dog is very friendly and kind, but the girl’s parents are not impressed, thinking that he would quickly start acting like the dog he was.  Soon after that, more new neighbors arrived, this time a pair of elephants.  The girl’s parents complained about them too, but the girl thought they were very nice.  Finally, a crocodile moved in.  That proved to be too much for her parents and they moved away.  But before they did, the little girl finds out that her parents are considered the odd ones in the neighborhood.  The final clever twist at the end shows exactly why.

Martins writing is just as vibrant as the bold illustrations.  She tells the story with wonderful little touches like the elephants helping with washing cars and the crocodile giving purses and shoes as Christmas gifts.  All of these details add to the world that she cleverly building and that wonderful surprise twist at the end.  Done in vibrant colors, the illustrations are created in hot pinks, deep blues and bright reds.  It is a modern world, with the pop colors adding to that feel. 

A look at acceptance and diversity through the eyes of a child, this book will speak to all children about preconceptions and tolerance.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Journey by Aaron Becker

| Tasha

journey

Journey by Aaron Becker

This stunning wordless picture book tells the story of a young girl who is very lonely.  Her parents are busy doing things and she has no one to play with.  Then she discovers a red crayon on her bedroom floor and draws a door on her wall that she can open.  She finds herself in a forest light with strings of lights, a river running by.  Her red crayon is in her hand, so she draws a boat that she can use to travel down the river.  Her incredible journey is just beginning and you will want to be along.

Done first in sepia tones with bursts of red, the book quickly changes to full color once the girl opens the magic door into another world.  Happily, this is not a world that readers will have visited before.  It is a dynamic mix of steampunk, fancy castles, and wondrous creatures.

Becker’s art is incredible intricate, inviting closer inspection.  Just the castle alone had me gazing for some time to see it all.  HIs art is also very beautiful.  The depth of color is lovely, particularly the colors of the sky and the landscape.

Beautifully done, this book is a gorgeous testament to the power of creativity and the amazing places that great art can take us.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

You can see some of this incredible journey on the book trailer:

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Oliver and His Alligator by Paul Schmid

| Tasha

oliver and his alligator

Oliver and His Alligator by Paul Schmid

Oliver sometimes isn’t as brave as he’d like to be, and that is especially true on the first day of school.  So he headed to the swamp and picked up an alligator, “just in case things got rough.”  When Oliver got to school a woman who was not his mother greeted him and asked his name.  In his panic, Oliver couldn’t remember his name, but he could say “munch, munch!” and the alligator ate the lady.  A similar thing happened when a little girl in the class asked Oliver what he loved.  Oliver wanted to answer and even had a great reply, but he found that he could only say “munch, munch!” and the alligator ate the girl.  As Oliver steadily had his alligator munch his classmates, the classroom got much quieter and lonelier.  But what is a boy to do when everyone has been eaten?

Schmid tells this story with a wonderful matter-of-fact tone that leaves readers shocked at first but then delighting in this clever answer to the worries of the first day of school.  I guarantee a wonderful stunned moment if you share this book aloud, and then a rush of nervous but genuine glee at it all. 

The book is cleanly designed with very simple lines that allow the humor of the situation to really shine.  The simplicity is beautiful and entirely modern thanks to Oliver’s oversized sweater and mop of hair. 

Beautiful, clever and a joy to share aloud, this book is riotously funny and oh so true.  A great addition to starting-school shelves.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Review: Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds

| Tasha

carnivores

Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Dan Santat

It’s hard to be a carnivore when all of the prey whispers behind your back, nobody understands the way you eat, and you are accused of sneaking around.  So a lion, a great white shark and a wolf get together to form a support group.  Their first plan is to become vegetarians, but that doesn’t go well at all.  In fact, the wolf can’t seem to find a berry bush that doesn’t have a bunny in it.  The next plan is using disguises to blend in, but one smell of the lion’s zebra breath turns the antelope against him.  Finally, the lion asked the great horned owl to speak with them.  The owl talked about accepting themselves as carnivores.  The others realize that he is right and follow his advice perfectly.

Reynolds has written a book that is screamingly funny.  Each page has laughter on it with the perfect timing of his jokes.  It begs to be shared aloud with punch lines that just have to be delivered.  Happily, the humor is edgy and truly funny, not just for small children.  With clever twists throughout the story and situations that make for very funny results, children will be delighted with this look at self-acceptance and meat eating.

Santat’s illustrations are perfection here.  Bright colored and bold, just like the humor, they add just the right touch to the book.  He manages to capture the comedy perfectly, but not allow his art to blow the punch lines prematurely.  The large format will work well with a group, but there are also details that will have to be shared too.

Clever, funny and wonderfully inappropriate, this book asks us all to accept our inner or outer carnivores.  Appropriate for ages 4-6, this would also work well as a read-aloud for older elementary kids who will love the humor and the naughtiness of the jokes.

Reviewed from copy received from Chronicle Books.

Review: The Hole by Oyvind Torseter

| Tasha

hole

The Hole by Oyvind Torseter

Released August 27, 2013.

This Norwegian import is an almost-wordless picture book that will surprise and delight.  It is the story of a rounded-nosed creature/person who discovers a hole in his wall in the apartment he just moved into.  But when he tries to see where the hole is coming from, he discovers that it is only on one side of his wall.  The hole moves to the floor and trips him, so he calls for expert help.  He manages to catch the hole in a box and takes it to a laboratory for scrutiny.  Finally, the hole is gone from his apartment.  Or is it?

With a hole punched right through the book, you know it is a stationary thing.  But the art makes it shift and move around the illustrated space to great effect.  Torseter has a great sense of pacing here with tension building as the reader knows of the hole before the main character sees it.  They are also very aware of the fact that the hole never really went away too.  As the hole is taken to the lab, Torseter shows us the scenes he passes through, each with a hole but a different one. 

Entirely playful and a truly wondrous look at the world, this book will have you reading it again right away.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Enchanted Lion Books.

Review: The Man with the Violin by Kathy Stinson

| Tasha

man with the violin

The Man with the Violin by Kathy Stinson, illustrated by Dusan Petricic

Based on a true event, this book shows the innate connection of children and music.  When Dylan and his mother leave the house, Dylan is always noticing things.  His mother is not.  It was an ordinary day until he heard the music in the subway station.  The man with the violin played and the notes swept through the crowded area.  Dylan wants to stop and begs his mother to pause, but she won’t.  Dylan though is left with the music in his head and finally convinces his mother that evening to stop and hear the music too.

This book is based on the true story of when the renowned violinist Joshua Bell played in the Washington DC subway.  His story is captured in the notes at the end of the book, explaining that only seven people stopped to listen to him play and that many children paused but the adults with them hurried on.  Stinson writes with a playfulness that makes the book dance along.  She uses lots of rhythms and noises throughout, really bringing the world of the city and subway to life. 

Petricic’s art captures the wonder and brightness of music, the zigging noise of shouting and screeching subway.  Dylan is a bright spot of color, the music in the air sweeps and swirls with bright colors, and the violinist is also a bright spot, as you can see in the cover image.  The music is powerful enough to lift Dylan off his feet, swirl his hair like a breeze, and entirely transform is day.

Bravo for capturing this eloquent story about the power of music and its connection to children in particular.  Standing ovation!  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from digital galley received from Annick Press and NetGalley.