All Because You Matter by Tami Charles

December 21, 2020December 10, 2020 | Tasha

*Cover image for All Because You Matter*

All Because You Matter by Tami Charles, illustrated by Bryan Collier (9781338574852)

This picture book tells Black and brown children that they matter. They were dreamed of by their ancestors. Stars sprayed the sky on the day they were born. Their first steps matter, their first words, and the first time a book opened as a mirror for them to see themselves. The book speaks to how at times you may question your place in the world, like when people laugh at your name or when you see the news about racial injustice and Black people being killed. But that does not change the power and beauty within you that comes from the sun, oceans, mountains and stars. Because not only do Black Lives Matter, but each Black and brown child does too.

This one is on lots of Best of the Year lists for 2020, and yet it somehow snuck right past me. The words by Charles are incredibly powerful, tying children of color directly to their ancestors, to the stars in the sky, to the social justice movements happening right now. Charles doesn’t dip into history, instead staying current and calling out the existing injustices and how they impact children. This book grounds children, showing they matter and that Black people matter, period.

Collier’s illustrations are phenomenal. He mixes paintings with collage to create images that are alight with hope and possibility. He weaves Black hands, Black faces together into one image after another that is arresting and visually stunning. These are powerful images to match the text, insisting on being seen.

One of the best of the year. Appropriate for ages 5-7.

Reviewed from library copy.

The Christmas Feast by Nathalie Dargent

December 18, 2020November 6, 2020 | Tasha

The Christmas Feast by Nathalie Dargent, illustrated by Magali Le Huche (9780802855374

The wolf, the fox and the weasel decide that this year they will have a Christmas feast. Fox stole a turkey from the farm, but the plan didn’t quite work out after that. Once at the fox’s house, the turkey started telling the fox how he should prepare for the Christmas feast. The first step was cleaning up a bit. Turkey then asked for dinner, but it turned out that none of the others could cook. So Turkey made them a delicious stew from ingredients they foraged. That night they played cards and had a great time, even giving Turkey the best spot to sleep. The next day, Turkey made them all breakfast and then over the next few days, they decorated for Christmas. Finally on Christmas Eve, Turkey announced it was time for them to cook her, she requested to be flambeed. The friends dodged the question, but Turkey had the perfect solution in the end, one that worked for Christmas and the seasons that followed.

This Christmas story is a great twist on trickster tales of creatures being captured to be eaten and then tricking their captors into allowing them to escape. Here, there is a true friendship that is created on the pages, with Turkey enjoying their time together just as much as the others. It works because Turkey is entirely in charge from the very time she enters their home. She may be demanding, but she also provides for them, cares for them and makes their days better.

The art is cartoony and clear. The art has a sense of merriment throughout, showcasing Turkey as she leads the group of predators, creating a happy home for them all. There are small details throughout their home that are worth exploring, especially as the home changes with Turkey’s influence.

This is a book that will work well shared aloud in a holiday story time or around the Christmas tree. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy provided by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers.

A Polar Bear in the Snow by Mac Barnett

December 17, 2020November 2, 2020 | Tasha

*Cover image for A Polar Bear in the Snow*

A Polar Bear in the Snow by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Shawn Harris (9781536203967)

A polar bear emerges from the snow, only appearing when he lifts his black nose to the air and opens his black eyes. He journeys across the snowy polar landscape. The narrator wonders where he is going. Maybe to visit the white seals also playing in the snow? No, he is not hungry. Maybe he will hide from the snowstorm in a cave? No, his fur protects him. He also won’t meet a man out on the ice, opening his mouth to growl loudly. It turns out, he is heading for the water to swim and play. After that, who knows where he is heading next.

Barnett uses so few words on the page here. His restraint and focus are masterful, keeping the word count low. His questions about what the bear is doing also invite young readers to ask questions about this book and others they read. To have plenty of curiosity and wonder about books and the world around them. The ending too allows for that curiosity to continue after the book is done.

Harris’ illustrations are subtle in their use of white and shades of white. He uses paper collage to create caves, subtle changes of angle and texture, mountains, and more. When blue is introduced as the bear reaches the sea, there is a tranquility from that color, a celebration that the bear enjoys too.

Restrained, gorgeous and full of amazing moments. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Candlewick.

You’re Invited to a Moth Ball by Loree Griffin Burns

December 17, 2020November 2, 2020 | Tasha

*Cover image for You’re Invited to a Moth Ball*

You’re Invited to a Moth Ball by Loree Griffin Burns, photographs by Ellen Harasimowicz (9781580896863)

Combining detailed instructions, plenty of encouragement and vivid photography, this book invites families and classes to create their own nighttime moth ball. The first steps are understanding moths and then putting together the supplies and tools you will need: including a sheet, rope, UV collecting light, and your own camera and flashlight. Prepare the screen and then also make sure you have a snack, one for the moths of course! Now you have two types of bait: light and nectar. Patience is part of the process, as more moths will come as the night gets later and darker. Take your time, be gentle, and marvel at these creatures that live all around us.

Burns offers such a merry invitation to readers in this book, making it feel like a true celebration of insects that we often take for granted or don’t even think about. Her encouragement to do research is appreciated, dedicating time in her set up of the moth ball to model reading books and learning about the creatures you are going to view. Her instructions are child-centered, creating a process that children can do themselves and participate in directly.

The photographs also center on the children managing the entire process themselves. When night falls, the magic in the photos happens as children carry their own lights, the moths arrive and the real party begins. The images of the moths themselves show their proboscis, furry bodies and amazing wings.

A grand project to immerse children and families into wildlife, insects and spending the night outside. Appropriate for ages 5-9.

Reviewed from library copy.

Mexique by María José Ferrada

December 16, 2020November 2, 2020 | Tasha

Mexique by María José Ferrada, illustrated by Ana Penyas (9780802855459)

In a true story, over 400 children fled the violence of the Spanish Civil War. They were put on a boat and sent to Morelia, Mexico in 1937. Their families expected only to be separated from them for a few months, like an extended summer vacation, nothing more. Told from the point of view of one of the children, this book shows their time aboard the boat to their arrival in Mexico. The war was a hand that shook their lives apart, separated them and sent them adrift. But there were other hands too, hands of the older children who took care of the little ones. Not all of the older children were kind, sometimes stealing from the little kids. They arrived in Mexico, bringing the impact of the war with them, heading unknowingly into permanent exile.

Ferrada’s text is poetic and haunting. She writes of the hope of when the children embark, the bitter choice that their parents had to make in sending them to safety. She writes of the time aboard ship, of games played and small wars fought. She writes of long lonely nights at sea until the waving crowds welcome them to Mexico. The story stops there, continued in an afterword the explains what happened to the “Children of Morelia” and what history had in store for them.

The illustrations are just as haunting as the text. Done in a limited color palette with often jagged lines of ship railings and waves, they are sharp and unsettling. Showing the somber farewells, the crowds of children, they are sorrowful and foretell the longer refugee story ahead.

Somber, beautiful and timely. Appropriate for ages 5-7.

Reviewed from copy provided by Eerdman’s Books for Young Readers.

I Am the Wind by Michael Karg

December 10, 2020November 18, 2020 | Tasha

I Am the Wind by Michael Karg, illustrated by Sophie Diao (9781624149221)

On a cold and damp autumn day, a little girl joins in the windy day. The wind can breathe frost and bring fog. It can be soft as a shadow or scale the highest peaks in the north. The wind can run like the wolves or hug and settle in with the musk ox as night. The wind joins in the beauty of the northern lights and whistles around rocks on a snow leopard ledge. The wind can create storms in the rainforests, give pestrels a lift on their long journey, and whisper in cloud forests. Then it returns to an autumn playground, listening for the call to rise up once more.

Told in poetic language, this picture book celebrates the way that the wind touches all parts our world. It speaks to the power of the wind to help birds on their migrations and to create weather patterns. That power is contrasted nicely by the quieter sorts of wind and breezes in the book, examples of the wind at its gentlest too. The writing is strong and reads aloud nicely. The different animals highlighted in the book are interesting choices, making turning pages very enjoyable.

The illustrations carry readers across the globe, showing various animals and creatures in each habitat. The wind is depicted as swirls of color, almost dreamy at times and other times whooshing appropriately across the page.

Perfect for reading on a blustery day in any season. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy provided by Page Street Kids.

Ten Ways to Hear Snow by Cathy Camper

December 9, 2020October 28, 2020 | Tasha

Ten Ways to Hear Snow by Cathy Camper, illustrated by Kenard Pak (9780399186332)

When Lina woke up in the morning, snow had fallen and the street was quiet and hushed. Despite the snow, Lina headed out to visit her grandmother. She loved helping her grandmother cook and today was grape leaf day, when they would make warak enab. As Lina walked to her grandma’s, she heard all sorts of noises. There was her neighbor scraping her shovel on the sidewalk. There was the crunch of her own boots in the snow. A blue jay knocked a soft ploompf of snow down from a branch, a quiet sound. People swept off their cars, others scritched past on skis. Mittens patted newly-built snowmen. Lina reached her Sitti’s apartment and the two worked together filling grape leaves with lamb and rice. Lina could hear the snow melting off her mittens and coat. Her grandmother showed her the tenth way to hear snow, one you had to slow down to notice.

This picture book is beautifully cozy and warm despite being mostly set in the outdoors on a snowy day. The sense of discovery as Lina hears the snow in various ways is great fun. The marriage of a weather event and the use of one specific sense adds to the fun and the curiosity as Lina walks to see her grandmother. The Lebanese family and food is front and center here too, warming the beginning and end of the book with a glow.

Pak’s art moves from the cozy home setting out into the cold and then back into a different warm home. His characters are diverse with their neighborhood filled with people of different races. The outdoor light, filled with blues and whites, contrasts with the yellows, reds and golds of the interior settings. It’s a celebration of the beauty and sounds of winter.

This book encourages us all to slow down and listen. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Kokila.

The Barnabus Project by The Fan Brothers

December 8, 2020November 24, 2020 | Tasha

The Barnabus Project by The Fan Brothers (9780735263260)

Barnabus is a tiny creature who is half elephant and half mouse. He lives in the secret lab under Perfect Pets. The lab was where they made perfect pets, but they also had a section where they housed the creatures they made who were not quite perfect. That’s where Barnabus lived, in the Failed Projects section along with all the other imperfect pets. When the Green Suits came in and marked their glass housings with “FAIL,” Barnabus and the others found out they were being recycled. Barnabus was determined to escape, though the others thought it was impossible. He longed to see the world outside the lab. When Barnabus got himself free, he freed all of the other failed creatures. Together they made their way through the ducts. When they discovered one creature at the center of the lab who was still trapped, it was time to decide whether to save themselves or risk it all.

This is the first time that all three Fan brothers have worked on a book together. If they make things this great as a team, they should keep on working with one another. This book reads like a Pixar cartoon, full of heart and adventure and one tiny hero. Readers will fall hard for Barnabus, the unlikely mix of a mouse and elephant who is marvelously defiant and brave despite his small size. The story is particularly well done. It deals with deep issues such as what perfection is and what makes someone a “fail.” The story arc is strong and interesting with plenty of action and humor.

The art is phenomenal. It is colorful and full of small details that are fascinating to pore over. The differences between Barnabus and the “Perfect Pets” who are fuzzier and more colorful versions of himself are minute and everyone would want Barnabus on their side. The various creatures in the lab are interesting, some lovable, others squirmy, and some both.

A great picture book with a small hero sure to shatter your expectations. Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.