When you make a mistake, you need to apologize. Here's how.
Thoughts: Straightforward advice with a little humor thrown in. The illustrations are soft colored and details. I especially like all the animals' expressions. I think this book would pair well with Ten Rules of the Birthday Wish by Beth Ferry.
Themes: Animals, Apologies, Mistakes, How To
(Illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka. Candlewick Press, 2021.)
Thoughts: What a fun concept! A pottery cat who comes to life and runs through Monet's paintings. The illustrations are soft colored and inviting. Chika's expressions and personality come through wonderfully in the illustrations. Cameron does a masterful job depicting Monet's paintings. I think anyone who reads this book will want to know more about Monet. Would pair well with Where Is the Frog?: A Children's Book Inspired by Claude Monet by Géraldine Elschner.
Themes: Art, Cats, Painting
(Illustrated by Becky Cameron. Random House Studio, 2020.)
An Elephant & Piggie Like Reading Book
Goat and Frog are playing a game. As it gets more involved, Frog isn't so sure he wants to keep playing. Can they still be friends?
Thoughts: Too fun! I would not recommend replicating Goat and Frog's game at home. The illustrations are colorful and I love the expressions. Speech bubbles for the win. I love books that promote tandem reading--parent with child, grandparent with child, or sibling with sibling.
Themes: Frogs, Goats, Friends, Games
(Disney, 2021.)
A day in the life of Stanley the librarian.
Thoughts: What a lovely tribute to libraries everywhere. I like that several different aspects of libraries were represented in the book--the physical library building, a mobile library, and storytime. This will be a great addition to a library themed storytime. The illustrations are colorful, realistic, and very appealing. The publisher has a series activity kit available here.
Don't miss Stanley's other adventures!
Stanley's Board Books
Themes: Libraries, Stanley
(Peachtree, 2021.)
Thoughts: Such a fun book! The text is fabulous--very rhythmic. You can also chant it. The illustrations are colorful and I love all the depictions of the cats. My favorite cats are art cat, lucky cat, cool cat, grin cay, lynx cat, tangled in your knitting cat, floppy cat, clock cat, stripe cat, and my cat. I think if I use this book in storytime, I'd read it first and then we'd go back and count the cats keeping a running total page by page.
Themes: Cats, Counting
(Random House, 2019.)
Thoughts: Such a fun book and a great addition to unicorn books. I look forward to adding this to my unicorn storytime. The illustrations are colorful and I love the expressions on all the characters' faces. Some great activity sheets are available here from the publisher. Several of them encourage children to use their imaginations as well as drawing and coloring skills.
Themes: Cats, Unicorns, Imagination
(Illustrated by LeUyen Pham. Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2021.)
A look back at the changes the COVID-19 pandemic brought to the world both outside and in.
Thoughts: Such a timely book! Outside, Inside is a great way to start a discussion with the youngest children about the pandemic. Simple text is paired with lovely illustrations. The illustrations are so detailed I found my self going back to look at them several times. I often say that when we find ourselves on the other side of this pandemic (and we're not there yet) I think we need to have some way to remember what life was like then. This book definitely fits the bill. I could see myself sharing Outside, Inside at such an event where we share stories from the time and have a favorite mask show and tell. I know parents, grandparents, and teachers will find this book to be useful.
(Roaring Brook Press, 2021.)
How would you describe the bookstore cat? Here are a few suggestions from A to Z!
Thoughts: I love the inspiration for this book. I've never heard of the game The Minister's Cat, but I have played a similar one when hosting a Kit Kittredge Party. I think my storytime kids will enjoy this book, but I'm looking forward to sharing it with older kids and playing the game with them after we read the book. I may assign each child a letter and have them write down a few adjectives that start with their letter so we can play quickly. When I visit classrooms, I usually only have thirty minutes.
Themes: Cats, Alphabet, Elementary
(Illustrated by Charles Santoso. Balzer + Bray, 2020.)
Is it tea time or tee time? Homophones cause a slight confusion during Frannie's time with Grandy.
Thoughts: Too funny! This will be a great addition to a tea storytime or a grandparents storytime. Explaining homophones to preschoolers should be fun. The illustrations are colorful and detailed. I like the golf terms defined at the end of the book. The ruined tea (hot tea, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and chocolate cake) and the tea at the clubhouse (hot tea, club sandwiches, and chocolate chip cookies) give me and possibly parents and grandparents ideas for extending the story.
Themes: Tea, Grandparents
(Illustrated by Dana Wulfekotte. G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2021.)
The chicken coop is a great place to live. Peaceful with plenty of food. Then one day some unexpected visitors arrive--the capybaras. They don't fit in with the hen crowd. Can chickens and capybaras be friends?
Thoughts: I think capybaras are the cutest and I've got to see some a zoos before. They look like gigantic guinea pigs. I like the friendship that develops between the chickens and the capybaras. The text is sparse and there are several two-page spreads that are wordless. The illustrations remind me of picture books from years ago. I like the detail Soderguit is able to convey in the animals' expressions and the limited color palette. I find it interesting you never really see the humans' faces. The ending vignette leaves the possibility for another book. Or if not, you can ask kids to write that story.
Themes: Farm, Chickens, Capybaras, South America
(Review Copy Provided by Publisher. Translated by Elisa Amado. Greystone Kids, 2021. )
Just a boy walking his dog. Wait...that's a banana, isn't it?
Thoughts: What a fun book! When I first saw the cover it immediately reminded me of Peanut by Lisa Alsenas. I think this book will make readers and listeners laugh out loud. I look forward to sharing this book with first and second graders. I think they'll understand the humor a bit more than my under five storytime kids. The illustrations are great. They remind me of illustrations from the 1970s and 1980s. The surprise ending is reminiscent of Bark, George by Jules Feiffer. Fruits and vegetables as pets or friends is an intriguing concept. I can only think of one other book and that is Sophie's Squash by Pat Zietlow Miller.
Themes: Unusual Pets, Dogs, Bananas, Fruit, Silly Books, Elementary
(Review Copy Provided by Publisher. Illustrated by Giulia Sagramola. Greystone Kids, 2021.)
A little girl visits the forest and quietly listens to what the forest has to say.
Thoughts: Lyrical text blends perfectly with soft colored illustrations. I love that this book is about a child simply enjoying nature. Children who read this book will likely be inspired to go explore nature. The story has a repetitive quality that make it almost meditative. I think I Hear You, Forest would pair well with In the Woods by David Elliott and Forest Has a Song by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater.
Themes: Forest
(Review Copy Provided by Publisher. Illustrated by Carmen Mok. Greystone Kids, 2021.)