Picture Books

A Small Surprise

| Tasha

A Small Surprise by Louise Yates.

A very small white rabbit heads to try to get a job with a circus of animals even though the advertisement says that they don’t want small animals.  The rabbit has trouble getting his clown nose on, can’t tie the clown shoes no matter how he tries, and can’t walk the length of the tightrope without stopping.  Even eating proves to be messy but when the rabbit gets into trouble, something incredible happens that just may keep it in the circus after all.

The illustrations here tell the bulk of the story.  The quizzical animals are large but not scary at all.  They help the small rabbit get dressed and root for the little one when walking the tightrope.  When the rabbit displays its talent, the book turns riotously funny complete with spitting.  I especially enjoy the giraffe who spends the entire book with a leafy twig hanging from her loopy tongue, watching everything unfold around her.  A book of few words, this book repeats the few it has for most of the book, saying “I am too small to…” again and again.  With such great illustrations, this is the perfect amount of text, offering up support for the pictures but allowing them to tell the real story.

With one large word in the entire book and lots of repetition, this one would be good for emergent readers but it is also perfect for sharing with groups of children who will love the sudden transformation of the small rabbit into a true clown and the laughter that that brings.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

This Little Bunny Can Bake

| Tasha

This Little Bunny Can Bake by Janet Stein

A group of animals begin their lessons at Chef George’s School of Dessertology.  The chef tries to start with more advanced concepts, but is forced to start with the very basics: pot, egg, stove, spoon.  The antics of the animals will have children in stitches.  Sharp-eyed children will notice that the pink bunny (the only animal in color) is hard at work and really cooking.  This is despite all of the noise, confusion and mess that the others are making.  By the end of the class, all of the animals have some sort of creation but none rival the cake of the pink bunny.

Stein has a flair for wordless humor with animals tossing eggs, weighing themselves instead of ingredients, cooking with shoes and socks as ingredients, and using pate as finger paints.  Her art is wonderfully busy, hectic but also clear and clean.  The ink drawings have a soft charcoal quality to them.  Each character has his or her own personality and approach to baking.  It is great fun to follow them from page to page until their baking is complete.  Each ends up with something that makes perfect sense.  The consistency and good humor of this title make it enjoyable to re-read too.

Great fun whether you enjoy baking or not.  This tasty book is appropriate for hungry 3-5 year olds.

Maggie’s Monkeys

| Tasha

Maggie’s Monkeys by Linda Sanders-Wells, illustrated by Abby Carter.

A family of pink monkeys has moved into the family’s refrigerator according to Maggie.  Everyone except her older brother goes along with her imaginary creatures.  Mom made an extra bowl of banana pudding for the monkeys, Dad watched out for shutting the door on their tails, and the older sister pretended to dress them up.  The brother tries to get the others in the family to stop playing along with Maggie, but all of them give him reasons that there just might be real monkeys in the fridge.  Even when he tries to play along with Maggie eventually, he keeps on messing it up, sitting on the invisible monkeys, reading zoo stories, and making monkey noises.  All wrong in Maggie’s eyes.  When his friends come over one day and discover Maggie’s imaginary monkeys, they start teasing her.  That changes everything!

This book perfectly captures the great imagination of children, the willingness of a family to be supportive and creative, and the sullen concern of a child who just doesn’t understand what the family is doing.  The transformation of the older brother is done believably and openly.  The rest of the family is nicely portrayed, trying to support both children.  The character of the brother is nicely balanced, showing disbelief but never sinking into being unlikeable.  Carter’s illustrations are done in black colored pencil and gouache.  They are friendly, cartoony and bright colored.

The text is nice to read aloud and the pictures will work well for a group.  I’d try it with older preschoolers who may have younger children at home that they are just as mystified by.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

A Very Curious Bear

| Tasha

A Very Curious Bear by Tony Mitton, illustrated by Paul Howard.

From the moment he wakes up to when he dozes off at night, a little bear is asking questions of a big bear.  The questions and answers create a dance of a poem that is charming and graceful.  Howard’s illustrations show a similar grace and charm, filled with plush, fuzzy bears, the wonder of a woods, and the thrill of the wind.  The little bear asks about all sorts of natural interests, wind blowing, stream gurgling, daisies growing, rain falling. And to each the big bear answers with poetic responses that show no exasperation but a respect for each question.

The spirit of the verse and the illustrations is so nicely matched here.  As the poem shows a caring adult, the illustrations show a caring large bear who guides and looks after the smaller.  Filled with a sweetness and gentleness, this book is great for bedtime reads or for any toddler who spends their day asking questions about the world.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

It’s Time to Sleep, It’s Time to Dream

| Tasha

It’s Time to Sleep, It’s Time to Dream by David A. Adler, illustrated by Kay Chorao

This gentle picture book has two parallel stories. One follows the words of the book and gently rocks and sways its way to slumber.  It moves season by season until winter comes and it is truly time to sleep.  Done in beautiful paintings by Chorao, there is sweetness and happiness and bliss throughout.  A different story, more familiar to parents of tiny ones, is told in silhouette one each page.  A toddler doesn’t want to sleep as his parents rock him, trade back and forth, put him to bed, sneak out, and then have to return to get him to sleep.  These small black images keep the book from being too sweet and offer an alternative view of what it’s really like to get a child to sleep.

The text here by Adler is wonderful.  His use of repetition, rhythm and phrasing is masterful, ideal for toddlers.  It creates its own lullaby, a rocking sensation, a sway which is hard to find in bedtime books.  Chorao’s illustrations are equally successful, showing the passing seasons, each captured in loving paintings, but also taking joy in the more lifelike silhouetted story going on at the bottom of the page.  

A great gift for new babies, this book will be treasured by any family lucky enough to read it at bedtime.  It is a quiet, sweet book not intended for the romp of a story time.  Appropriate for babies to 2 year olds. 

Rita and Whatsit

| Tasha

 

Rita and Whatsit by Jean-Philippe Arrou-Vignod, illustrated by Olivier Tallec

Rita and Whatsit at the Beach by Jean-Philippe Arrou-Vignod, illustrated by Olivier Tallec

Rita is grumpy even though it’s her birthday.  She has stacks of presents but everything is wrong: too small, too big, too medium.  Then she sees a present that is wiggling.  She tries to open it and it runs away.  When she catches and opens it a dog peeks out.  Most readers expect a squeal of joy at this point.  Nope.  Instead she bellows at him, makes demands and continues her grump.  It isn’t until she runs through a list of possible horrid names for him that she begins to smile and Whatsit starts to talk to her.  The first book ends with them becoming friends.

The second book has Rita and Whatsit at the beach each with their own idea of what a perfect day at the beach is.  They end up playing a game of pretend together that involves all of their favorite things like sandcastles, floating in the water and ends with Whatsit getting all of the sweet, sticky stuff he’s been wanting. 

Both books offer a different kind of child than many other books.  Rita is demanding, difficult, and wonderful.  She threatens to change Whatsit’s name regularly, shouts loudly, but loves just as deeply.  It is a pleasure to see a child that is a mix of negative and positive shown with such obvious pleasure.

Tallec’s art is simple and small, perfect for sharing with a small group or one-on-one.  His use of simple lines and bursts of color make the book friendly and almost like a cartoon strip in style. 

Share this with any little drama queens you might live with.  Some of us grow up to be librarians after all!  ;)  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Not All Animals Are Blue

| Tasha

Not All Animals Are Blue: A Big Book of Little Differences by Beatrice Boutignon

This French picture book is a treat in its innocence and freshness.  Each double-page spread features one page with a line of small, detailed animals which faces a page with five descriptive phrases – one for each animal.  Some of the matches are easy while others can be difficult until you match other animals first.  Children will enjoy this book because of the cuteness of the animal figures and the challenge of the game. 

Boutignon’s illustrations are small, clever and make you want to look at them longer.  Some animals have pieces of clothing on them, while others are more realistically portrayed.  The mix of the two is a winning one.  There are several figures that will steal your heart.  One of my favorites is a very cuddly penguin wearing footie jammies. 

A book to read with one or two children so that everyone gets to pick the matching animals and enjoy the details of the illustrations.  Perfect reading for 2-4 year olds.

Squawking Matilda

| Tasha

Squawking Matilda by Lisa Horstman.

Unique illustrations pair with a story about responsibility in this picture book.  Mae receives a note from her Aunt Susan saying that she is sending her a chicken to live with her.  Mae loves to have new projects, so she thinks a chicken would be perfect.  When Matilda arrives, she doesn’t look like any other chicken on the farm.  First Mae needs to learn to care for a chicken: food, water, and cleaning up the coop.  And the jobs become difficult and a little dull, so Mae goes on to work on other things.  In her absence, Matilda pines away and loses almost all of her feathers.  Mae finally realizes something is wrong and sets out to do things right.  She creates a chicken-sized jacket and hat to keep Matilda warm without her feathers.  And the two of them become fast friends.  When Aunt Susan arrives to check on Matilda though, Matilda is nowhere to be found.  What could she be up to now?

Horstman created puppets for the illustrations with stainless steel innards and felt bodies with polymer clay hands and heads.  The puppets were photographed against neutral backgrounds and the details of the scenes were done with painted backdrops that were added later.  This process created intriguing illustrations that are obviously more 3D than a flat painting but still retain some of the painted feel as well.  The characters are charming, especially the cat who is always looking hungrily at Matilda and Matilda herself with her expressive head of feathers.  The story line is accessible and interesting too with wry touches of humor throughout.

This book is appropriate for ages 4-6 and would make a handsome addition to a chicken storytime with its unique feel.

Hello Baby!

| Tasha

Hello, Baby! by Mem Fox, illustrated by Steve Jenkins.

Take two amazing children’s book creators and put them together and you get a treat like this book.  The book starts with a simple question, “Hello, baby!  Who are you?”  It moves from one animal guess to the next with each animal doing an action that children will love to imitate.  Fox has created a joyous bouncing verse that romps from one animal to the next with great merriment.  Paired with the amazing paperwork art of Jenkins, the book is taken to another level. 

As I read this book, my mind immediately heard the chorus of preschoolers pretending to be yawning hippos.  I also saw groups of children rolling their eyes like geckos.  Jenkin’s art is realistic and vivid.  The colors shout from the page and children will enjoy looking closely at the art even though it will project perfectly to a group.  Fox’s words are brief and lovely, perfect for sharing with toddlers.  At the same time there is a sophistication about the art and the verse that will make it of interest to older preschoolers as well.  This is most definitely not solely a toddler title.

Highly recommended as a great pick for toddlers and preschoolers.  But expect lots of animal actions and silliness along the way.  Appropriate for 2-5 year olds.