picture book
Book Review: Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Written & Illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger Published by Roaring Brook Press on January 1, 2012 Genre/Topics: Nature, Color Ages: 2+, 36 pages Awards: Caldecott Honor Book 2013
Can a book that focuses on one color be exciting to read? Green is a beautifully illustrated book that displays the many hues of the color green. Some greens are standards such as forest green, lime green, fern green, and pea green. Other greens are more creative with a tiger hiding in green grass, a chameleon in khaki green, faded green on signs, and fireflies with a glow green. Along the book, there are die-cuts giving a sneak into the next green. You can guess the next picture. My favorite die-cuts are the pages with the green fireflies that then turn to red apples on a green tree when you turn the page. There’s a page showing all the green shades. The book also displays pages with no green, such as a red stoplight and a white snow scene. The illustrations appear very lovely like a canvas with bold brush strokes and vivid colors. The last two pages show a young boy planting a tree then shows a grown tree that is forever green.
This is a wonderful book to explore the many shades of green. It’s perfect for younger ages, because there’s only a few words on the page. The book also can be used with older ages to view the unique canvas-like illustrations to then create art. Green is a great book to explore our naturally green world that hopefully stays green.
Book Review: Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert
Eating the Alphabet: Fruits & Vegetables from A to Z
Eating the Alphabet is a simple alphabet book with no actual story, instead the reader enjoys colorful fruits and vegetables illustrations. Most letters appear either on one or two pages. Every fruit and vegetable is written twice – once in all capital letters and the other all lower case letters. It’s a great way for children to really view how letters are displayed in words. I really enjoyed this book, because most letters are represented with 3-6 fruits and vegetables. It’s not your typical ‘A is for Apple. B is for Banana.’, instead Eating the Alphabet highlights fruits and vegetables that are new to young children and perhaps even adults too. Some examples are avocado, artichoke, cauliflower, eggplant, jicama, kumquat, lime, okra, papaya, and xigua. Does the child need to know each food? Of course not, instead it introduces the colorful world of fruits and vegetables besides apples, bananas, and carrots. It goes beyond a simple food alphabet book and opens discussion about healthy foods, finding the fruits and vegetables in the store, and of course tasting the foods that are in the book. There is a food glossary at the back with brief information about each fruit and vegetable. This is also a great book to teach colors, since the illustrations are so vivid and colorful. I highly recommend this alphabet book in your child’s book collection.
Book Review: Open Very Carefully by Nick Bromley
Open Very Carefully: A Book With Bite
The book begins with the story of The Ugly Duckling, but then disaster occurs when a crocodile interrupts the story. The book challenges the reader to turn the pages very carefully, since there’s now a crocodile loose within the story. Throughout the book, the ugly duckling appears on the pages almost interacting with the crocodile. While the crocodile is in the book it eats letters and gobbles sentences. When the crocodile is asleep then a crayon is used to draw a tutu and bow, so it no longer appears scary. Finally, the crocodile eats through the pages until it leaves the book from an actual hole in the book’s back cover.
Open Very Carefully is a humorous book that connects the reader and book, since the writing continually asks if the book will still be read with a crocodile. There are also pages when the reader needs to shake the book to hopefully get the crocodile out. The end was especially fun, because there are holes where the crocodile ate pages and climbs out the back. The first time reading it could be fun to hide the back so it’s a surprise.
Book Review: Al Pha’s Bet by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
Written by Amy Krouse Rosenthal Illustrated by Delphine Durand Published May 12, 2011 by Putnam Juvenile Genre/Topics: Alphabet, Humor Ages: 4+, 32 pages
How exactly did the twenty-six letters form the alphabet that we know today? Well, it occurred long ago when a king announced that he wanted someone to arrange the twenty-six letters. A man named Al Pha made a personal bet with himself that he would indeed make the perfect arrangement for the letters. It started with A for his name then gradually everything seemed to naturally fall into place as he organized the letters. When his friend Jay came to visit HI J was formed. Near the middle Al became discouraged, but he told himself NO that he needed to finish. Finally, Al Pha presented his arrangement to the king who then sang the letters. Well of course the king asked Al if ‘this time won’t you sing with me?’ The king loved Al Pha’s letter arrangement and decided it would be known as Al Pha’s Bet.
I absolutely loved Al Pha’s Bet! The writing was fun and humorous with brilliant pictures to match the writing. The alphabet slowly forms on the pages as you read. After reading Al Pha’s Bet you’ll almost agree with how the letter arrangement formed. I’m sure children and even adults will laugh while reading this book.
Book Review: The Curious Garden by Peter Brown
Written and Illustrated by Peter Brown Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers on April 1, 2009 Genre/Topics: Environment, City Life, Gardening Ages:6+, 40 pages
Liam is a curious young boy who lives in crowded city with no gardens, which makes it quite boring and unappealing. One day while exploring his city, Liam stumbles upon old train tracks that actually have a few dying plants. Liam decides that these plants need a gardener, so he begins his task to care for the plants and watches them grow and flourish. The garden itself is curious and grows across the tracks and soon throughout the city. With time there are more gardeners and the gardens grow upon buildings and many small spaces throughout the city. It no longer is a boring and gray city.
I really enjoyed The Curious Garden. Many individuals live in industrial environments and assume that they can have no gardens and landscapes. However, gardens truly can grow upon building rooftops and nooks if we let the plants grow. There is an author’s note and he states that he was curious what would happen if an entire city decided to cooperate with nature and how would the city change. I especially like The Curious Garden, because there are a few full color pages with no words to really ‘experience’ how the city has changed from all city life to small gardens throughout. This book could be used in the classroom during a discussion about the environment, gardening, preservation, and how plants can grow within cities. I suggest this book for older ages, because there are more words on each page and to discuss the overall topic. Although, all ages can enjoy this colorful garden book.
While searching through photos I stumbled upon a potential garden similar to The Curious Garden in my own city of Tacoma, Washington. You can just barely see the train tracks running through the grass and wild flowers. I’m not sure how long this train track hasn’t been in use. It’s amazing what nature truly can do when we leave it alone.
Book Review: Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett
Extra Yarn
Written by Mac Barnett
Illustrated by Jon Klassen
Published Balzer + Bray on January 17, 2012
Genre/Topics: Magical Realism, Sharing, Humorous
Ages: 4+, 40 pages
Awards: 2013 Caldecott Honor and the 2012 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award
Perhaps, I enjoyed Extra Yarn because I love to knit and crochet. Annabelle and her dog discover a small box filled with yarn of every color. Her entire town is either white due to snow or gray from the chimneys. Well, you can just imagine what Annabelle decides do to with all this colorful yarn. She knits a simple sweater for herself and dog, however there’s still extra yarn. Annabelle knits sweaters and hats for everyone in town, but there’s still extra yarn. Soon the town is no longer in shades of white and gray, but cheerful colors created with all the extra yarn. The words are simple with a few sentences on each page.
As a knitter and crocheter I agree, there’s always something you can make with a little extra yarn left over. Perhaps I should share some of my yarn creations.
Book Review: The Wind Blew by Pat Hutchins
Written & Illustrated by Pat Hutchins Published by Macmillan Publishing Company in 1974 Genre/Topics: Humorous, Rhymes Ages 3+, 32 pages
We’ve all experienced a really windy day when we need to hold our hat tight and hope nothing gets blown away. Well, everything seems to blow away in the book The Wind Blew. It begins with an umbrella being turned inside out. (Living in a ‘rainy’ city, it always makes me laugh when I see people attempt to hold an umbrella on a rainy and windy day.) Soon the wind blew hard enough that it swept up a balloon, hat, scarf, judge’s wig, and much more. The words are simple and somewhat rhyme. It plucked a hanky from a nose and up and up and up it rose. The book is fun, because you can guess what may get blown away next. Here’s a small clue: the object is something on the previous page but you’re not exactly sure what it is. I read this book in a classroom and the students thought it was funny. I’d also like to highlight that this book was written in 1974, which proves that great books can be discovered anytime.
