Review: Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales

| Tasha

viva frida

Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales

Frida Kahlo is one of the most celebrated female artists in the world.  This picture book is less a biography and more a celebration of her life and art on the page.  Written in brief sentences, the book shows her unique perspective on the world.  It pays homage to the rich love she had in her life, her pet monkey, and all of the inspiration she found around her.  In a world that needs more diverse picture books, this is one worth celebrating.

The book is told entirely in short sentences from Frida Kahlo’s point of view.  Cleverly done, the sentences are done in English and Spanish, the Spanish almost a bright floral note next to the black English words.  It is the illustrations here that are exceptional.  Morales is known for her paintings but her she chooses a different medium entirely.  Kahlo is shown as a doll and the illustrations are photographs of that doll as she moves through her day.  Kahlo retains her distinctive single brow as well as her signature beauty. 

Using a doll in this way plays directly against the blonde bombshell beauty of Barbie.  With the same plastic structure, this Frida Kahlo doll with her black hair, warm brown skin and intelligent eyes shows a much richer form of beauty.  The images are cleverly photographed, showing Kahlo from different and interesting angles and moving into a dream sequence where the illustrations turn to paintings. 

A dynamite addition to any library, this is a necessary purchase that speaks to why diverse picture books are needed for all children.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Roaring Brook Press.

This Week’s Tweets, Pins & Tumbls

| Tasha

Here are the links I shared on my Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr accounts this week that I think are cool:

Apple Books for Kids

CHILDREN’S BOOKS

2014 Elementary/Middle Grade Speculative Fiction Judges | Cybils Awards http://buff.ly/1qYTZ53 – Thrilled to be part of the Cybils again!Enchanted Lion: A Visit with the Brooklyn-Based Indie Publisher http://buff.ly/1qLKkjw #kidlit

Final Skulduggery book in best-selling series is a blast http://buff.ly/1uDzGKR #kidlit

James Dawson says ‘there are too many white faces’ in kids’ books | Books http://buff.ly/1wtfbRm #kidlit

Jon Scieszka interview: On my latest tour a woman asked me to sign her baby | Children’s books http://buff.ly/1maH00g #kidlit

#we need diverse (picture) books – The Horn Book http://buff.ly/1qZDi9F #kidlit #diversity

Men and women looking through the card catalogues at the Library of Congress, 1941.

LIBRARIES

Radical Librarianship: how ninja librarians are ensuring patrons electronic privacy – Boing Boing http://buff.ly/1y6FvVL #privacy #libraries

Great round-up of new LGBTQ YA fiction for Fall/Winter 2014-15!

TEEN READS

7 Excellent YA Sci-Fi Romance Series – BOOK RIOT http://buff.ly/YPxqoZ #yalit

Meghan Cox Gurdon: Heather Has Two Genders – WSJ http://buff.ly/1snWpH6 #transgender #kidlit #yalit

Q & A with Rick Yancey http://buff.ly/ZqkSEP #yalit

Review: My Heart Is Laughing by Rose Lagercrantz

| Tasha

my heart is laughing

My Heart Is Laughing by Rose Lagercrantz, illustrated by Eva Eriksson

Dani has always been happy, but now that her best friend has moved away to another city, she is unhappy sometimes too.  But Dani tries not to think about being unhappy.  Dani didn’t know anyone in her class when she started school, but now she does.  When two girls in her class both get a crush on the same boy and ask him who likes best, they are amazed when he shows that he’s much more likely to like Dani.  Dani tried to keep being friendly with the girls, but neither of them wanted anything to do with her.  Dani sat by herself at lunch, but she didn’t mind because she just thought about all of the fun she had visiting her best friend.  But then her teacher moved her between the two girls, and Dani was cruelly pinched by them.  Dani finally had enough, and reacted by squirting them (and then the teacher accidentally) with sauce.  Now it is up to Dani to tell the truth about what happened and to figure out how to find happiness without her best friend at her side.

This is the second book featuring Dani, following My Happy Life, which tells the story of how Dani met her best friend and then how she had to move away.  In this second book, the focus is on bullying and the author does a great job with it.  As the situation escalates, Dani remains apart from the situation for awhile, then finds herself right in the middle of it.  I appreciate that Dani is not faultless in the situation in her reaction, but also that she reacts humanly and believably to the situation. 

Set in Sweden, the stories have a universal appeal but also are clearly not set in the United States.  This is a gentle introduction to the subtle cultural differences and a great way to start a discussion about how people are both the same and different in other cultures. 

Fans of the first book will love the next in Dani’s adventures.  This will also find an audience as a read-aloud for teachers wishing to discuss bullying with elementary students.  Appropriate for ages 7-9.

Reviewed from e-galley received from Gecko Press and NetGalley.

Mac Barnett: Why a good book is a secret door

| Tasha

The amazing Mac Barnett discusses how he makes a living lying to children.  For the librarians in the audience, he even uses a Venn diagram!  Funny, wonderful stuff.

Mockingjay Trailer

| Tasha

Here is the first full trailer for Mockingjay:

Review: Colors of the Wind by J. L. Powers

| Tasha

Layout 1

Colors of the Wind: The Story of Blind Artist and Champion Runner George Mendoza by J.L. Powers, illustrated by George Mendoza and Hayley Morgan-Sanders

George loved to move, so he decided to be a basketball player.  Then one day the world outside looked red to him and he started to see other colorful squiggles in the air and suffer from constant headaches.  The doctor told him that he was going blind, but George didn’t lose all of his sight, instead he continued to see bright colors and flashing lights.  He had to stop playing basketball because he could no longer see the basket.  Eventually, George took up running, mostly because it made him so tired that he could forget being blind.  He could run very fast, so fast that he went to the Olympics, twice.  But George continued to see a world of colors that no one else could see.  It wasn’t until a friend was killed that he started to ask himself why he was there, and George started to talk about being blind to groups and also to paint the world that he sees.

A truly inspirational story, Mendoza is an example of someone being incredible resilient in the face of a life-changing disability.  The fact that he began to run after losing his sight is amazing and also inspiring.  But it is his visions and his art that shine on the page, a world painted in colors that only he can see.  The process of George becoming an artist is shown in all of its slow progression which also gives the sense that there is time to find your path, time to be the person you are meant to be.

Seeing his paintings on the page is immensely powerful.  They are bold and bright, done in thick lines.  They have a voice to them that shouts on the page and they tell the story of what George sees more clearly than any words can. 

Highly recommended, this picture book biography is a powerful tale of resilience and overcoming barriers.  Appropriate for ages 7-10.

Reviewed from pdf received from J.L. Powers.

Review: Mr. Ferris and His Wheel by Kathryn Gibbs Davis

| Tasha

mr ferris and his wheel

Mr. Ferris and His Wheel by Kathryn Gibbs Davis, illustrated by Gilbert Ford

After the Eiffel Tower stunned World’s Fair visitors in 1889, it was up to Chicago to impress people at their 1893 World’s Fair.  So a nationwide contest was announced, but unfortunately many of the designs were just slightly-modified Eiffel Towers, so all of them were rejected.  George Ferris was an American engineer who had already designed big bridges, tunnels and roads across the nation.  He had an idea for a structure that would not just rival the stature of the Eiffel Tower, but would also move and be able to be ridden.  The judges of the contest reluctantly agreed to let him try, but would not offer him a penny of funding.  Ferris managed to find a few wealthy investors to help him and construction began on the huge project of creating a delicate wheel that would be strong enough to turn filled with people.  The tale of the building and invention of this now iconic ride is rich with suspense and the delight of accomplishment.

Davis has written a very successful picture book biography on George Ferris and his delight of an invention.  Occasionally in the text, there are sections in smaller font that offer more details and information.  It is all fascinating and those sections will be enjoyed as much as the main text.  Davis clearly explains differences between today and the late 1800s, such as the lack of Internet to carry ideas.  The story has plenty of dangers, lots of action and the ever-present danger of failure to carry it forward and make it enjoyable reading.

Ford’s illustrations are filled with rich, deep colors that capture different times of day.  They are a winning mix of straight, firm lines and hand-drawn characters and structures.  The play of the two on the page makes for illustrations that are eye-catching and that draw you into the story and the time period.

This is a particularly strong picture book biography that children will pick up thanks to the everlasting appeal of the Ferris Wheel.  Appropriate for ages 7-10.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Three Little Peas by Marine Rivoal

| Tasha

three little peas

Three Little Peas by Marine Rivoal

Two little peas jump down from their pea plant to get some air.  They head out on an adventure across the garden.  They visit a cat, some snails, and even try out how it feels to be a flower or a different kind of plant.  They go high and low, exploring together.  But when they reach a frightening part of the garden filled with insects and animals, they try to run away.  Then they find a safe place in the warm soil where they hide.  Only to become a large pea plant of their own the next spring, and then one little pea jumps free, making it three little peas.

The story here is simple enough for a toddler to enjoy and they will love going on an adventure along with two charming green peas.  The peas pop in their green on the page where everything else is black and white.  But oh my, what a black and white world it is!  Rivoal does her art using etching and the effect is beautifully layered, almost crystalline forms.  The illustrations show below ground as well with rocks and other objects hidden there.  Even the blades of grass are lovely in the attention to detail and their grace.

Stunningly lovely and unique illustrations elevate this simple picture book to something magnificent.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Enchanted Lion Books.

Review: Vanilla Ice Cream by Bob Graham

| Tasha

vanilla ice cream

Vanilla Ice Cream by Bob Graham

This is a story of the journey of a sparrow from a rural truck-stop in India to a metropolis in the south.  Told in simple writing, readers follow the sparrow as he tries to steal food from a customer of the truck stop.  Then he flies aboard a truck carrying bags of rice.  The rice is loaded aboard a ship and the sparrow follows the food aboard.  They head south and he is able to find food and water on the long slow journey.  When the sparrow arrives in the city, he spots Edie Irvine, a toddler walking with her grandparents.  And so the two worlds of sparrow and child mash together in a wonderfully sweet way.

Graham has created a story built upon little moments and small decisions.  Happily, the culmination of the story is not about all of those moments building to something monumental, but instead they lead to another small and lovely moment.  In that way, the chain is continued rather than ended and readers can think about what might happen next to either the characters or to themselves. 

As always, Graham has written this book with a gentle touch.  His art reflects that as well with its soft color palette set against white backgrounds blushed with colors.  Graham also uses art to allow moments to linger longer, to show their importance, and to create drama in his story. 

A book of small moments that is certainly worth spending some time of your own reading.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from library copy.