imagination

Travel Game

| Tasha

The Travel Game by John Grandits, illustrated by R. W. Alley

A little boy lives in Buffalo, New York over the tailor shop his family owns.  He is still expected to take a nap in the afternoon, which angers him.  Seeing his frustration, his Aunt Hattie offers to play the Travel Game with him.  It’s a wonderful game, but the problem is that every time they play, he falls fast asleep right at the end.  This time he is determined it will be different.  To play the travel game you need two things:  a globe and a copy of 1001 Pictures from Around the World by George P. Smithers.  Aunt Hattie spins the globe and he puts his finger down.  First, they land in the Atlantic Ocean, but he gets to try again.  This time it lands on Hong Kong.  The book has four pictures and the two of them pretend that they are right there experiencing what it shows in the pictures.  But on the way to the pagoda in a boat taxi, Aunt Hattie falls asleep!  Now he can head back to the shop and help out instead of napping himself.

This book depicts a warm extended family who work and live together.  Small details make the book especially enticing, from the minutiae of their lunch meal to the functioning of the shop.  Grandits has created a world that is friendly, safe and filled with imagination.  I especially appreciate a story that brings the power of books to transport you to another part of the world so vividly to life.  Alley’s art is equally delightful.  His art is all about the small details, from a crowded street outside the shop to the small touches in the boy’s bedroom.  These are illustrations you will want to linger over.

This book may inspire a travel game of your own, perhaps with photographs from the Internet to fuel your imagination.  A great concept, well executed and delightfully done.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from library copy.

When Stella Was Very, Very Small

| Tasha

When Stella Was Very, Very Small by Marie-Louise Gay.

After several Stella books and some Sam books too, readers will get the treat of seeing a much younger Stella in this new picture book.  A tiny version of the imaginative Stella moves quickly from one imaginative idea to the next.  Stella races her rubber ducks in the bathtub, listens to the stories the trees tell in the wind, and explores the jungle of tall grass in her backyard.  By the end of the book, Stella is bigger and Sam has appeared so she has someone to share her stories and imagination with.

Gay portrays an imaginative child who happily plays in her own creative world alone but just as merrily includes a younger sibling.  Gay uses poetic words to describe Stella and her surroundings.  One of my favorites has the trees outside Stella’s windows talking in the evening.  It gives readers an even clearer sense of Stella’s internal world.  Beautifully and tangibly written and captured.  Gay’s illustrations are just as successful.  Her watercolors offer a vivid glimpse into Stella’s imagination.  Yet the illustrations are more about her reality than her imagination.  Done with just the right touch and tone, this book is a pleasure.

Readers who already love Stella and Sam will be the first in line for this book, but those who are just discovering them will find themselves welcomed into a wondrous new world.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

To the Beach

| Tasha

To the Beach by Thomas Docherty

The great spirit of this book captures the fresh feeling of a boy making his own world out of a rainy day.  Some might think that a rainy day would not let you go to the beach, but that doesn’t slow him down at all.  In fact, the day is even more fun-filled than it may have been without the rain.  He has his swimsuit, goggles, snorkel, bucket, shovel, flippers, and inner tube.  So he takes an airplane, sailboat, truck and camel to reach the sand and the sea.  He plays at the beach and then heads back home.  Taking a tanker, helicopter, bike and tractor.  His next trip?  Perhaps something out of this world?

Each illustrations captures the exuberance of this child’s imagination.  Every new discovery is a joy, each mode of transportation an adventure.  It is impossible to read this book without a grin and chuckle.  The book will work well with small children, because of the ratio of illustration to words.  Sometimes a page has just a few words on it.  And children who enjoy trucks, tractors and other big kinds of transport will find a lot to love here.

A great start to a day of imagination or the end of one, this book is just right for playful 2-4 year olds.

Reviewed from library copy.

Let’s Do Nothing!

| Tasha

Let’s Do Nothing! by Tony Fucile

Frankie and Sal have done it all: played every sport, painted pictures, baked cookies, played board games, and read every comic book.  So they decide to do something they have never done before!  Nothing!  They try again and again to do nothing at all, but it doesn’t work.  When they pretend to be statues, Sal has to swat away the pigeons.  When they think of themselves as trees, Sal imagines that Frankie’s dog pees on him.  When they are tall buildings, Sal is scaled by King Kong.  In the end, they decide that they have to start doing something after all because it is impossible to do nothing.

The common problem of boredom is paired here with a sense of humor.  The two boys imagine themselves as different things, but Sal always has his glasses even as a tree or building.  The King Kong sequence is especially funny as sharp-eyed readers will spot the hand of Kong even as Sal reassures Frankie that he is doing great.  The relationship between the two boys is also very well done.  The boys are different as can be but their friendship is never in jeopardy in the book.   It is a great and subtly delivered message behind the action.

A rousing read aloud for any bored child, this book will refresh long summer days filled with free time.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from library copy.

Also reviewed by Lori Calabrese Writes.

Magic Box

| Tasha

Magic Box by Katie Cleminson

On her birthday, Eva got a box!  A special box that she jumped into and became a magician.  Her first trick was to create a pet called Monty, who turns out to be an enormous polar bear.  Then she pulled rabbits out of hats.  Lots of rabbits.  She went on to make food, bring in musicians, and have a big party.  And in the end, she clicked her fingers and made everything disappear.  Almost everything.

First, let me say that I love seeing a girl magician who is not a witch.  That alone makes this book worth reading and having on library shelves.  Readers will also appreciate the beauty of imagination here on the page.  The illustrations use thick black lines which are then mixed with splashes and blots of color – imagination at work and visible.  The story is brief and powerful.  It is short enough to read aloud to young audiences but deep enough to spark discussion.

A lovely look at creativity with a large splash of magic, this book is certain to float right into readers hands.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from library copy.

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.

Sir Ryan’s Quest

| Tasha

Sir Ryan’s Quest by Jason Deeble

Inspired by his toy knights and castle, Ryan creates armor out of a pot and heads out on his quest which leads him up the mountain, through a jungle, into the castle and down to a deep, dark cave.  On his way, he finds different creatures who give him items to help him.  All of this takes place in Ryan’s imagination as he moves through his house.  Young readers will immediately understand that he is playing pretend and will eagerly wait to see what he pretends about next.

I love books where children are using their imagination and this one is straight-forward in its approach but allows children to see what is happening in a young boy’s mind.  It made me want to pull on a cloak and find a sword to swing, and I am sure young listeners will feel the same.  Deeble’s text is filled with wonderful medieval phrases and yet remains child-friendly.  His illustrations are much the same way with their simple style that offers hints as to the imaginary world that lives within them.

This book will work well as a read aloud, but I would have plans for playing pretend afterwards and be ready with a shield to deflect sword swings.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.