Ocean Wide, Ocean Deep by Susan Lendroth, illustrated by Raul Allen.

Set in nineteenth-century Cape Cod, this story is about a parent leaving for a very long time, a year, on a voyage overseas.  Through gently rhyming verse, a young girl tells the story of her father traveling away from home while her infant brother develops and grows.  Seasons change, the baby grows, but she and her mother continue to think of her father.  Modern readers will enjoy this timeless tale whose feelings and emotions perfectly speak for any child who is missing a parent or loved one.

Lendroth is very skilled, creating poetry that while rhyming does not become sing-song or maudlin.  Rather the poetry lends a gentle gait to the book and captures the emotions well.  The crowning glory of the book are the illustrations which are luminous, large and speak volumes all on their own.  Allen’s art recalls nineteenth century children’s books often, but also moves beyond that to beckon us in.  A lovely tribute to books of the time while still maintaining an individual feel.

Recommended for reading quietly with children and having a discussion about feelings, this is not the book for a rowdy preschool story time or unit.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Peter and the Wolf by Sergey Prokofiev, retold by Chris Raschka.

Raschka has taken Prokofiev’s orchestral masterpiece and reworked it into a picture book that both pays homage to the music and also takes it to a different place.  The book introduces each character in turn, gives them a voice and a sound and has them appear on the stage.  First comes Peter, who is a spinning, twirling, whirling force.  Then comes the bird, who is a delight to read aloud with his stutter and rhythm.  My favorite then enters, the duck, who virtually yodels, calling his presence to everyone.  Other characters enter, each with their own unique sound and style that is shown by their language and the words but also by their appearance.

This book is such a joy to read aloud, but even more it demands to be made into some sort of production with children acting out the various parts.  If I had a small class, I could see taking turns doing each part so that everyone has the thrill of reading the wolf.  It will work best with older elementary students around age 9 or 10 who will enjoy the humor and not be caught by the words and rhythms. 

If you don’t have a class to do this, please share it with any preschool group.  Listen to the orchestral version first and children will be delighted to recognize each instrument and character and voice.  Raschka has taken a nearly impossible retelling and done it with a magical ease and style.

Highly recommended for preschoolers and older: ages 4+.

The Wheat Doll by Alison L. Randall, illustrated by Bill Farnsworth.

This picture book based on a true story is a lovely glimpse into the world of the frontier.  Mary Ann is hard at work in the garden harvesting carrots.  For company, she has her doll Betty, who is filled with wheat.  Betty watches Mary Ann work and listens to everything she says intently.  When Mary Ann carries the carrots to the root cellar, she leaves Betty in the garden.  Behind her, a storm comes filling the sky with black clouds and roaring with high winds.  Mary Ann’s mother insists she come inside and leave Betty behind.  When the storm has passed, Mary Ann races out to find Betty but she is gone.  Mary Ann works through the winter, thinking of Betty often.  When spring arrives, Mary Ann discovers that Betty isn’t gone after all.

This book has a lot about faith in it, but without any overt religious messages.  It is well-written and nicely paced with illustrations that are richly colored and often alight with a lovely glow.  The fact that it is a true story makes it that much more special.  It is a gentle but still exciting story of life on the frontier that doesn’t attempt to hide the harshness of the life and the hard toil that it took to survive.

Recommended for ages 4-7.

The Rain Stomper by Addie K. Boswell, illustrated by Eric Velasquez

See that cover image, it beautifully captures the spirit and energy of this book.  Jazmin wakes up on the first day of spring and prepares to be in the parade.  She puts on her red suit, picks up her baton and dreams of the cheering crowds.  But then she hears thunder and rain begins to pour down.  Jazmin is stunned.  Rain ruins parades.  But then she gets angry and takes action:  she heads into the rain, stomping, pounding, kicking and racing.  A crowd begins to gather around Jazmin as she splashes, spins and jumps.  Jazmin has her parade after all, just a different one than she planned.

There are several things that make this book work so very well.  First is the writing that is energized with verbs that move and beat and swirl.  One can’t read the text without rhythm and movement.  Second are the vivid and motion-filled illustrations that also inspire movement.  And the final important component is frustration being turned into action, demonstrating a healthy way to release emotions, until by the end the emotion has changed into triumph.  All of this accomplished with no lecturing or finger pointing, just great book creation.

This will work well as a read aloud for preschoolers who are itching to move.  I’d get them wiggling along with Jazmin and be prepared for an impromptu parade forming.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.

A child’s day: an alphabet of play by Ida Pearle

Opening with a very appropriate poem from Robert Louis Stevenson "To Any Reader," this picture book pairs the alphabet effortlessly with children’s play.  It has only one word on each page, but each word works well.  It won’t be ideal for reading aloud, because children will love to chat about the pictures and words that are part of their own lives.

Pearle has create a picture book that celebrates our diversity and our similarities at the same time on each and every page.  The children portrayed come in all different colors, some obviously one sex or the other but others are androgynous.  Every child will see themselves on this page, though the person doing their favorite activity may look nothing like them.  This is a book for building those invisible bridges of understanding.  Pearle’s illustrations are done in cut-paper collages with bright colors and bold graphic statements.  Modern and yet somehow evocative of the picture books of my own childhood, both parents and children will be drawn to the art.

This is a book meant to share.  It’s a great conversation starter for toddlers and preschoolers.  Appropriate for ages 1-3.

I Get So Hungry by Bebe Moore Campbell; illustrated by Amy Bates.

Nikki is a girl who eats to feel better.  She even sneaks potato chips during class when she is teased.  Her new teacher, Mrs. Patterson is also heavy and Nikki sees her sneaking a cookie from her purse during the day too.  When Nikki goes to the doctor later, she is told to not eat any more junk food.  Her mother agrees, but on the way home buys them some doughnuts.  When they return from Christmas break, Mrs. Patterson has changed.  She isn’t sneaking food, she’s drinking water and she spends her early mornings walking.  Nikki joins Mrs. Patterson on her walks in the mornings and starts to watch what she is eating too. 

This picture book perfectly captures the issues of family and youth obesity.  I appreciated that Nikki has good friends.  She is not a loner, not disliked, but she is teased by one boy in her class.  The depiction of using food as a mood stabilizer is also well done.  There is no miraculous weight loss here, which is also a good thing.  Rather there is a change in attitude and lifestyle.  Bates’ illustrations are filled with doughnuts and potato chips at first and then transition to vegetables and the green of the outdoors. 

This book is ideal for classroom use when speaking about good nutrition.  Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Lincoln and Douglass: An American Friendship by Nikki Giovanni, illustrated by Bryan Collier.

At a reception celebrating his second inauguration, President Abraham Lincoln scans the crowds for his friend Frederick Douglass.  Though one man was black and the other white, one a slave and the other free, their lives parallel one another in remarkable ways.  Both men found themselves at the heart of the abolitionist movement in America.  The book documents the youth of both men in alternating pages, emphasizing their commonalities.  It also provides information on other figures in the abolitionist movement, including John Brown and Mammy Pleasant. 

Reprising their partnership in Rosa, Giovanni and Collier once again shed light upon American history through a picture book.  Giovanni’s writing is easily digested and using a remarkably small amount of text sheds light on complicated historical events.  Collier’s cut-paper collage illustrations are remarkable.  The double-spread of Lincoln in the grove of trees is moving and gut-wrenching.  The bark of the trees is formed from African-American faces, evoking lynching, containment, and yet growth and freedom too.  All of which are dynamics at work in the history and the book as a whole.

Highly recommended as an accessible entry to these difficult subjects.  Appropriate for ages 8-10.

The Mystery by Maxwell Eaton III.

Max and Pinky return in another adventure, this time filled with mystery and intrigue.  Max and Pinky set out to paint the barn red.  They just manage to finish the entire structure before dark.  But when they awake, the barn is PINK!  They repaint.  They guard it all night, but fall asleep.  And now it’s plaid!  Finally, they decide they must investigate.  They look for clues, conduct interviews, and set a trap.  Who is the mystery painter?  You’ll have to read it to find out!

This book in the series continues the charm and wit of the earlier books.  The illustrations are bright colored and great fun.  The asides of many of the other animals in the picture add to the fun, though they could be skipped when reading the story to a group.  Eaton excels at writing books with few words and lots of laughs.  His characters say so much with a simple facial expression.  This is simplicity at its best.

Highly recommended.  This book will project well to a group, and children will adore the changing colors of the barn.  Guaranteed to get them giggling.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

When I Was King by Linda Ashman, illustrated by David McPhail

A gentle and humorous book on sibling rivalry and how the older sibling once ruled the castle and now no longer does.  A little boy struggles with being replaced as the center of attention, noticing that if he burps or drools he is told it is bad manners but the baby is praised for doing just that.  There are pages of the boy telling his baby brother that all of this was once MINE, which capture the desperation and neediness of a new older sibling perfectly.  Through gentle parenting and insight, the boy slowly grows to understand his new role in the family as big brother.

Ashman’s poetry is a joy to read aloud, offering easy cadences as well as rhyme.  It pairs effortlessly with McPhail’s illustrations which show a modern family but evoke a timeless coziness as well.  The tone set in the book is balanced, even when the boy finally has a temper tantrum about all the things his little brother is ruining.  Both older and younger siblings will see themselves here.

Recommended for story times and units on siblings.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.