Tag Archives: Picture Books

New Picture Books…The Very Stuffed Turkey and A Dog Wearing Shoes

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turkey

Kenah, Katharine. The Very Stuffed Turkey. New York: Scholastic, 2015. 978-0-545-76109-3. Unpaged. $6.99. Gr. K-3.

Turkey is invited to five Thanksgiving dinners! He doesn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings so he decides to attend all five celebrations. Each family has a delicious feast (beet, corn, and worm stew at Pig’s house; birdseed, soap, and berries at Mouse’s house) that is happily turkey free, and Turkey has a wonderful time. He loves spending time with his friends and feels like a part of each family. The only problem? He is stuffed from all the feasting! He decides that the best solution is to host next year’s dinner and invite all his friends to his house so that they will all enjoy the holiday together. THOUGHTS: Adorable Turkey and friends are sure to be a hit with young readers during the Thanksgiving season.

Picture Book, Thanksgiving    Lindsey Long, Nye & Conewago Elementary Schools

Binny Talib’s illustrations are full of autumn colors and textures that create a festive air for Turkey’s many celebrations. This book is only available in paperback and won’t hold up to years of library circulation but will be a welcome addition for most schools, especially where Thanksgiving books are needed.

dogshoes

Ko, Sangmi. A Dog Wearing Shoes. New York: Schwartz & Wade Books, 2015. 978-0-385-38396-7. 40p. $16.99. Gr. K-3.

Mini and her mother save a dog wandering through traffic and Mini wants to keep the dog for a pet when they can’t find his owner. The dog is wearing bright yellow shoes and Mini’s mother insists that he must have an owner who misses him, but Mini is too happy with the well-mannered and trained dog to care. After the dog runs away in the park, Mini and her mom visit the animal shelter and find the dog wearing shoes. Mini realizes that someone else is probably missing the dog like she had, so she hangs up posters and finds the owner who is happy to have his dog back. A few days later, Mini and her mom visit the shelter again to adopt a dog of their own. THOUGHTS: Funny and adorable illustrations pair with an ageless story to create a winner.

Picture Book  Lindsey Long, Nye & Conewago Elementary Schools

Mini’s story might not be brand new, but it’s wonderful to see her visit a shelter for a dog rather than buy one at a pet store. The dog wearing shoes is spunky and hysterical, and Sangmi Ko’s black and white illustrations with pops of color (like the dog’s yellow shoes) are perfect with the story. This one is already flying off the shelf.

 

New Picture Books…The Tiny Wish; You Nest Here with Me

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TinyWish

Evert, Lori. The Tiny Wish. New York: Random House, 2015. 978-0-385-37922-9. 32p. $17.99. Gr. PK -3.

Young Anja and her cousins are playing in the mountain meadows. Then , while playing hide-and-seek, Anja wishes that she could be smaller to hide more effectively. When she looks up again, she is tiny, and a wren offers her a ride. So begins Anja’s adventures through nature, as she sees things from a new, smaller perspective.

This beautiful book with its colorful illustrations and realistic photo-shopped creations is  a wonderful jumping off point for a fantasy story starter having students create their own tiny adventure. It also might be a great discussion to answer: What might be difficult if you were only six inches tall? What might be easier? The last page challenges the reader to decide, was it a dream or was her adventure real? Such creative and fun photographs bring the beauty of the mountains and its creatures to life in this inventive tale.

Picture Book, Fantasy        Donna Fernandez, Calvary Christian Academy

younesthere

Yolen, Jane and Heidi E.Y. Stemple. You Nest Here With Me. Honesdale: Boyd Mills Press, 2015. 978-1-59078-923-0. 32p. $16.95. Gr. PreK-3.

Jane Yolen and daughter Heidi Stemple created a beautiful bedtime offering in which a mother tells her daughter about different birds and their nests, but reassures her that “you nest here with me.” For example, “Coots nest low in cattail reeds, Sparrows’ nests are full of weeds, Plus tangled grasses, feathers, seeds…But you nest here with me.” Fourteen different birds are featured, though a few other kinds make guest appearances; nature lovers may be able to spot them in Sweet’s illustrations. The rhyming text is succinct and flows nicely, making this a perfect soothing read at bedtime.

The text is also full of facts about different birds and might encourage a new generation of bird-watchers. Yolen, daughter Heidi, and husband David are bird enthusiasts. There is an Authors’ Note that describes their family’s passion for birds and each bird mentioned in the text is highlighted with a few quick facts, a silhouette, and illustrations of their eggs and feathers. Sweet’s illustrations have her usual sketchy quality, full of patterns and a bit of mixed media. They suit the story well. A great book!

Easy Fiction, Picture Book       Lindsey Long, Nye & Conewago Elementary Schools

 

 

New Picture Books – Little Red’s Riding ‘Hood; Sleeping Cinderella…; There’s No Such Thing as Little; I Will Fight Monsters for You

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Little Red's Riding 'Hood

Stein, Peter. Little Red’s Riding ‘Hood. New York: Orchard Books, 2015. 978-0-545-60969-2. 40p. $16.99. Gr. K–2.

Little Red is a scooter who loves racing around the streets in his neighborhood. After learning that Granny Putt Putt is feeling run-down, he rides over to her garage to deliver some goodies that will get her back in working order. Along the way, he encounters a huge monster truck named Tank who diverts his trip. As Little Red makes a pit stop to pick up additional items for Granny’s basket, Tank zooms ahead to Granny’s house, bursts through her garage door, and swallows her whole. Although Tank disguises himself with a frilly car cover, Little Red’s caution lights flash when he arrives at Granny’s garage. He closely examines “Granny’s” wheels, headlights, and grille before Tank throws off the disguise and attempts to have some scooter dessert. Little Red is too quick, though, and he leads Tank on a high-speed chase that culminates in Tank’s crash-landing in Jumbo Jim’s Junkyard. Granny pops out of Tank’s hood, and she thanks Little Red for being the bravest scooter in town.

Picture Book              Anne Bozievich, Friendship Elementary, Southern York Co.

This fractured fairy tale will be a great addition to most elementary collections. Car fans will enjoy watching Little Red scoot around town, and they will pick up on details like Tank’s pointy fangs and yellow wolf-like eyes. I plan to share this title with third grade teachers as they introduce fairy tale variations because this title has a lot of great parallels to the traditional Red Riding Hood story, making it great for comparing and contrasting.

 

 

cinderella

Clarkson, Stephanie. Sleeping Cinderella and Other Princess Mix-Ups. New York: Orchard Books, 2015. 978-0-545-56564-6 34p. Gr. K-3.

Did you ever wonder if a princess was dissatisfied with her life? Clarkson does, and her clever humor and rhyming text explain what happens. Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, and Sleeping Beauty are all a bit unhappy with their various surrounding and situations. One by one, the princesses trade places. Snow White moves in to Rapunzel’s tower; Rapunzel heads to Cinderella’s ball; the latter rests in Sleeping Beauty’s bed who then heads to Snow White’s cottage. Of course, none of these new options work out to be for the better, and they do eventually return to their original “stories.” However, they have each learned some lessons along the way and make improvements to their situations. (For example, Snow gets the dwarves to help with the housework!)

While the lesson of “the grass is always greener…” may be lost on younger readers, the cute text and illustrations will not. The rhyming text is lyrical, not forced, and the word choice is interesting, making it a somewhat more complex read than found in simpler rhyming texts. The prevalence of pink and princess characters will engage Disney fans, but the quirky style will also appear to older elementary grades. A great addition to a fractured fairy tale unit!

Picture Book      Lisa Weiss, Churchville Elementary School

 

 

little

Pham, LeUyen. There’s No Such Thing as Little. New York: Alfred A Knopf, 2015. 978-0-385-39151-1. 44 p. $17.99. Gr. PreK-2.

Two little children repeatedly prove that size is a state of mind, and perspective in this thoughtful little book. The pattern is simple, with a question on one page about something small which turns into a piece of something much grander with the refute on the next page. Die-cut circles draw the observer through the pages and connect the text to the picture for interpretation. For example, a little light bulb idea is part of a grand invention; likewise, a little letter becomes an important letter for literature. There will be interesting dialogue as younger readers make meaning of the story and then seek to apply it. “A little book? No, a BIG book!” THOUGHTS: This is tough to make a perfect age level fit because the characters are pre-school age, but the thoughts and skills to decipher the text may be more suited to elementary. Still, it’s a worthy purchase for read aloud use or solo book selection.

Picture Book            Dustin Brackbill, State College Area 

 

 

monsters

Balmes, Santi. I Will Fight Monsters for You. Chicago: Albert Whitman & Co., 2015. 978-0807590560. 32p. $16.99. Gr. K-2.

Martina, a little girl, and Anitram live in mirrored worlds. Both are afraid to fall asleep for fear of the other. When Martina’s father promises that he will fight the monsters for her, Martina finally drifts off to sleep. As her arm hangs off the bed and accidentally joins that of the little monster below, they suddenly overcome their fears.  THOUGHTS: Illustrations are a black ink with a soothing pastel palette of pink and blue. Perfect for one-on-one or could be used as a read aloud.

Picture Book        Robin Bartley, Davis Elementary