Tag Archives: kidlit

Cinnamon

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img_8521-1Book: Cinnamon by Neil Gaiman

Something that I could not quite put my finger on has drawn me to this book a few times when I have perused the children’s section of my local bookstore. I suppose it is most likely the beautiful cover, combined with an affinity for Neil Gaiman’s work in general. Despite picking it up a few times, I never actually read through the book until recently.

I always buy a book for each of the kids at our extended family’s Christmas party, and finally decided to pick this one up while shopping for them. I loved the simplicity of this book. It has the feeling of a folktale, although I am not sure if it has any basis in the actual mythology of India. Cinnamon is a princess who is blind and also does not speak. Her parents have offered many riches to anyone who is able to get her to speak, but all have failed. A tiger steps in to do the work that humans have failed to complete. In addition to an enjoyable story, I find Divya Srinivasan’s illustrations striking. The colors are bright and bold; the style is simplistic but full of detail.

Boris’s thoughts: “I could be a tiger. Majestic and all. Roar. Although I don’t know why the tiger would WANT more humans to talk. 3 paws.”

Dragon’s Merry Christmas

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img_8672Book: Dragon’s Merry Christmas by Dav Pilkey

While I have written about Dragon before, I could not let the holiday season pass without a mention of my favorite Christmas book: Dragon’s Merry Christmas. (And it’s a day early!) Dragon is up to his normal mis-adventurous antics, but with a bit of a heart-warming Christmas twist.

Dragon finds the perfect Christmas tree, decorates his house, and goes out shopping for all the things that he wants for Christmas. All, of course, with that little extra Dragon twist of silliness: it would be a shame to cut down the perfect tree, and we can all guess how things might turn out when you make Christmas decorations out of chocolate! The final story really pulls it all together as a Christmas tale, where Dragon learns a lesson about the spirit of giving.

As usual, I love the extras that Pilkey adds to the story with the illustrations. Each section of the book adds something into the illustrations, that make appearances throughout the rest of the story: the lengthy extension cord to light up Dragon’s perfect tree in the forest, the devastated chocolate candy wreath. In true Dragon fashion, he improvises when he runs out of room to write out “Christmas” in lights on the front of his house.

Boris’s thoughts: “Aww, warm fuzzies. I’m warm and fuzzy too! 4 paws. Oh, and Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!”

Gingerbread Friends

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img_8670Book: Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett

While this one is not strictly a Christmas story, there is something about Jan Brett that just feels Christmasy to me. This book is a follow up to her telling of a more traditional Gingerbread Man. In this case, it is a Gingerbread Baby. After running of on his initial adventure, the Gingerbread Baby has made his way back home. The story starts with him living contentedly in a gingerbread home with Mattie, although feeling terribly lonely when Mattie goes off to school or out to play with his friends. The Gingerbread Baby goes off on a second adventure in search of friends.

Unfortunately, he goes looking for friends in a plain, normal bakery… where none of the other cookie creatures can talk or play! He is perplexed and decides to rest while he thinks about what to do next. Of course, resting turns into sleep, which is interrupted by a hungry mouse! The Gingerbread Baby decides that this friendship search is not working out for him, and dashes back home– leading to the chase scene that we expect from Gingerbread characters. While he is discouraged from his journey, he does find a nice surprise waiting for him when he gets home, which folds out into an extra large pop-up picture for the end in the hardcover edition.

I like this story as a read aloud. It’s a nice traditional type story, and has a combination of normal storytelling, as well as some verse in the Gingerbread Baby’s speech. The pictures are great: large and with tons of details to look through with kids. One of the compliments of Jan Brett’s books I have heard is about the beautiful borders around the pages of her stories, and this is no exception. I like in this one that the borders serve a dual purpose– there is a recipe for gingerbread cookies included, while we also get to see what Mattie has been up to while the Gingerbread Baby has been away.

Boris’s thoughts: “I think the real lesson here is that I don’t ever need to leave my comfy home. Sounds good– it’s time for a nap.”

Here Comes Santa Cat

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img_8520Book: Here Comes Santa Cat by Deborah Underwood, Illustrated by Claudia Rueda

I stumbled upon this one while browsing the Christmas section in one of my favorite bookstores. (Short digression: I love The Book Loft of German Village in Columbus, OH even though I live nowhere near there. I make a point to stop in every time I have the opportunity!) Of course, with a cat and a cute cover like that, I had to read it. So happy that I found this one!

Cat is getting ready for Christmas. However, he has come to a sad realization: he’s been pretty naughty this year. What’s the best solution? To become Santa so that he can give a present to himself, of course! With a little help from the narrator, Cat realizes that this might be a little misguided. He tries to make up for his prior naughtiness with some good deeds– but ends up just causing some more trouble. In the end, Cat performs a good deed without even thinking about it, earning him some credit with the REAL Santa.

The set up and illustrations in this book were cute. It is staged as a conversation between an unseen narrator and the character, Cat. As a cat, of course, Cat cannot talk. He communicates with various signs and uses gestures to get his point across. This could be fun as a read aloud, with children old enough to talk through some interpretation of the drawings. Of course, this could be a good read aloud for younger children too, to talk through the drawings and help them make the connection between the text and the illustrations. Kids will find Cats antics enjoyable, and there’s a nice lesson to point out at the end, when Cat ends up succeeded with “being good” when he stops trying so hard!

Boris’s thoughts: “Hmm. I could be Santa. But I don’t need to be, because I’m definitely on the Nice list. Right?”

Snowmen at Christmas

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img_8529It’s December! Do you know what that means? (Of course not, I have never done this before.) It’s Children’s Christmas Book Month!!!

Let me explain: In addition to the holidays and a busy month at work, I have quite a few other things going on that are keeping me EXTRA busy. It’s impacting both my time to blog, and keep up with my reading. I did not want to put the blog on hold for the month, but I need to pause a bit. And so, I introduce to you: Children’s Christmas Book Month! For the month of December I will be sharing some fun holiday themed Children’s Books.

Book: Snowmen at Christmas by Caralyn Buehner, Illustrated by Mark Buehner

First up, there is Snowmen at Christmas by Caralyn Buehner. I actually bought this book as a pre-Christmas gift for my nephew– he is two, and while he obviously cannot read yet, he enjoys a good story and loves to turn the pages himself. This one pictured is a board book with him in mind, but this book can also be found in hardcover and paperback.

This is a cute, fun story told in verse. It begins with a boy building a snowman on Christmas Eve, and then imagining how snowmen might celebrate the holiday. Their celebration is full of all the traditional holiday events: treats, singing, and even a Snowman Kris Kringle! I love the imaginative aspect of the book, and think it can be a great jumping off point to get kids thinking creatively. Have you ever built a snowman? How do you celebrate the holidays? How do you think a snowman might celebrate?

A Turkey for Thanksgiving

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img_8588Book: A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting, Illustrated by Diane de Groat

Although it may be a bit late for the traditional Thanksgiving, I could not let November end without a nod to a seasonal children’s book. This is a fun little story from Eve Bunting, which sees several animals preparing for a Thanksgiving feast, hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Moose. Although Mrs. Moose has hosted many parties, she has never had one very traditional thing: a turkey for Thanksgiving. It is something she has always wanted, and Mr. Moose sets out to make it happen. Along his way to find a turkey, Mr. Moose encounters several of their planned dinner guests, some of whom join him in his search: Rabbit, Goat, Sheep, and Porcupine (notice a trend?). Turkey, of course, is not thrilled with the idea of anyone having him for Thanksgiving, and tries to escape the group coming to fetch him. Alas, Turkey cannot fly away, and is pushed along to join the Thanksgiving dinner. Of course, the fun twist at the end, being that this group of herbivores is looking to have a turkey AT their table, rather than ON their table.

I have heard this used as a read aloud leading up to the holiday, and the groups I have seen tend to enjoy the story. It can be a good story to talk about predictions and make kids thing about what could happen next, or using the pictures to as clues to the story. For students who are a bit older, the play on words is fun and could spark some good conversation and creative thinking.

The Hallo-Wiener

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img_8015Book: The Hallo-Wiener by Dav Pilkey

I love the creepy of Halloween, but the season would not be complete without a little bit of the goofy of Halloween. Who better to bring that element than Dav Pilkey?

Poor Oscar doesn’t quite fit in with the other dogs, being that he is a dog and a half long, but only half a dog tall. The other dogs tease him, and while his mother means well, the Halloween costume she made for him is certainly not helpful. But when the other dogs are attacked by a “monster,” Oscar isn’t going to just run away!

This is a fun book for the season, and can be a good teaching tool for kids too– the other dogs tease Oscar, but they learn that sometimes being different as its advantages when Oscar comes through to save the day. Good for a read aloud in October, and also a relatively easy read that incorporates some bigger vocabulary (such as the ornery cats!). Like in some of the other Dav Pilkey books, I like the little “extras” added into the illustrations– we can see that Oscar’s last name is Myers on his mailbox, and the title page has the book title lettered in hot dogs!

Boris’s thoughts: “Seriously? Cats as the bad guys? Boo. Hiss. 1 paw.”

The Boy of a Thousand Faces

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img_8077Book: The Boy of a Thousand Faces by Brian Selznick

At 48 pages, this is not quite a children’s picture book, but not quite a novel either. Something in between: perhaps a children’s novella? I am a big fan of Brian Selznik. I love the style of his novels and the way he combines words with illustrations to tell a story. This is a little different than his longer works, in that he uses the pictures to supplement this story rather than to continue driving the plot. However, the pictures are no less essential here than in his novels.

Being born on Halloween, it is no surprise that Alonzo has a fascination with monsters. His love is fueled by the late-night horror film show hosted by Mr. Shadow, where he discovers the greatness of Lon Cheney. Alonzo is inspired by the films, which turns into a dream to become the “boy of a thousand faces.” I love that his character has a dream that is outside of what might be considered normal. Alonzo goes beyond “I want to be a movie star” to actually working on and creating something new. His goal is not to be famous, but in the creation of something to be enjoyed by others.

The reciprocal relationship between Alonzo and Mr. Shadow is interesting as well. Alonzo is inspired by Mr. Shadow and his show, reaching out to him when he is beginning to feel disillusioned with his dream. At the same time, Mr. Shadow believed that nobody was interested when his show ended, but was inspired by Alonzo to “bring back” something that he loved in a new way.

I love this as a tribute to traditional horror films, special effects, and Lon Cheney. I think it is also a great introduction to the horror genre. It is a bit creepy, but not something that would truly scare most children. It’s perfect for kids who might have an interest in things that are a bit dark seeming, that might seem a little weird to others.

Boris’s thoughts: “Hmmm… dark and weird… I approve. 3 paws.”

First Day Jitters

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img_7982Book: First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg

Two weeks ago, I shared a book that is a favorite beginning of the year read aloud from one of my librarian friends from work (Miss Smith’s Incredible Storybook). I decided that I would ask the same of the librarian from the other school where I work, and she introduced me to this book. While it’s a little late in the school year for the first day, I think everyone can relate a bit with the First Day Jitters.

This is a fun little story about Sarah Jane Hartwell, who needs to get up for her first day at her new school. There is an ensuing argument between Mr. Hartwell, who is understanding but insistent, and Sarah Jane, who is imagining the horrors of her new school: “I don’t know anybody, and it will be hard, and… I just hate it.” It’s certainly a feeling that everyone can relate to at some point! Sarah Jane is pushed through her morning routine and taken to school, where her new principal swoops in to welcome her. This leads up to the twist at the end, where we discover, of course, that Sarah Jane Hartwell is the new teacher.

I suppose it could be argued that the plot line is a bit cliche, but we are talking about a children’s book here. I love the idea behind it, and definitely relive those first day jitters with the start of every school year. Since many younger students already have a hard time realizing that their teachers do not actually live at the school, I think it’s a fun way to share with them that they are not alone in their worries at the beginning of the school year.

My favorite thing about this one? The illustrations. They are fun, and also add to the story. Throughout the story, Mr. Hartwell and the family dog attempt to move Sarah Jane along in her preparations for the day. All the while, Sarah Jane and her faithful cat are adamant in their refusals. The dog attempts to pull the blankets off her head, while the cat bunkers down for a fight. Perfect. Brave to illustrator Judy Love.

Boris’s thoughts: “I had no idea there was a book about you. 4 paws.”

The Little Prince

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img_6395Book: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Date Read: June 10 to June 12, 2018

Rating: 5 (of 5) stars

I am a little bit ashamed to admit that it took me until 2018 to read this book. I really loved this book, but I also have some mixed feelings about this book. I’m going to admit up front that I’m not sure this is going to count as a traditional book review– more of my own semi-rambling thoughts. Although, I suppose that is at least somewhat appropriate for such a well known story.

The Little Prince is a book about what a pain adults can be, written by an adult for children, but maybe actually for the adults that are reading the book to children. Did I lose anyone there? Understandable.

I suppose what I’m getting at here, is that I cannot quite decide who the intended audience actually is for this book. Certainly it is written as a children’s book, but there is so much that I feel is intended for adults. These things, of course, are good reminders. We are kind of a pain– especially from the perspective of children. We are so often wrapped up in our own thoughts, our own things to do, our own “matters of consequence.” At the same time, I think there are plenty of themes in there for children as well– responsibility, relationships, recognizing that our actions are part of what gives the things around us value. Perhaps these are themes for children that are also areas where adults may need some reminders?

Honestly, I could probably type for days without ever feeling that I have done this book justice. It is sad, but it is sweet. If you’ve debated reading it, I would suggest that you stop putting it off. It is a fast, easy read–the only reason I did not finish it in a day is laziness and silly adult responsibilities. Even if you do not love it, it is a book that I feel undoubtedly is worth the read.

Boris’s thoughts: “I think this counts as a snuggle-time book. 4 paws.”