Cute book I love the rhyming.  This is a great read-to book. Might be too hard for most early readers.  The illustrations are wonderful.  I like the ending when Albert helps Francois.

This is a great little story that teaches children that they have choices about what they will become.

The pictures are fun.  The story gives the animals interesting characteristics.  There is a lot of repetition, so it is great for younger readers.  The font is blue or white, which I found easy to read.  Nice little story.

This book is full of short versions of classic children’s stories. Many of them have morals.   It’s a great book if you want a quick story.

The pictures are cute and colorful.  The font is large, clear and easy to read.

I found the version of the Three Little Pigs rather shocking, but I had fun reading through stories that have been around for many years.

Mama cat and her three kittens were homeless.  As mama cat went out searching for food for her babies, a dog wandered by and seeing them, thought ‘Food!’  But taking pity on them, he curled up next to them and they kept each other warm.  Mama cat comes back and both she and the dog are surprised.  Mama cat tells them of her adventure of being trapped in the fish seller’s van and going to sea.  They want to see for themselves, so she takes them to where the van was parked.  The fish seller decides to give them all a home in his net shed by the harbor.  This is a gentle story about opposites learning to get along and the kindness of others.

Habo is the cause of all of his family’s troubles.  He has known this his entire life.  Habo was born albino – a condition terrifying to his rural Tanzanian community.  When his mother and siblings find themselves no longer capable of survival in their village, they begin a cross-country journey which will put Habo in harm’s way over and over again.  This riveting tale is based on fact.  Although Habo and the specifics of his story are fictional, albinism is a source of fear and danger in Tanzania.  Some believe that certain parts of an albino body can bring good luck – leading to albino people being literally hunted in the streets of some areas.  Sullivan takes those facts and spins a spellbinding adventure story of a boy discovering both the world and his unique place in that world.  Highly recommended for all libraries serving teens.

This non-fiction books joins two popular subjects for elementary and middle-school age students:  pets and crafts.  Directions are clear and easy to follow; the list of supplies are simple and easy to find or inexpensive; and the results are pretty cute.  My favorites are the bird swing, the critter crawlspace (cats will love it!), the pet treats tin, and the pet treats recipes (which I’ll definitely make).  I would have liked to see some ideas how to make some easy doggy chew toys, but I guess I can figure that out.  A couple of crafts had me concerned; for example, the dry shampoo with glitter for both dogs and cats.  Both of these animals lick themselves and consuming glitter can’t be good for them.  I understand that it’s fine glitter, but still.  Really?  Another concern is that my dog really likes to chew things and I would be afraid that she would chew and choke on some of the items used as decoration such as jewels, pom poms, etc.   I don’t think I want to chance it.   Most of the crafts are easy, cute, and harmless, but you still need to choose carefully, keeping your pet’s nature in mind.

In this non-fiction picture book, Sutcliffe explains the art world in which five hundred years ago, Michelangelo came to sculpt the famous statue known as David.  This statue resides in Florence, Italy in the Galleria dell’ Accademia (an art gallery/museum).  Most young children know Michelangelo as a Teen-age Mutant Ninja Turtle.  But the original Michelangelo of the art world is about as famous as an artist can get.  All of Italy is full of fantastic, unbelievable art, plus the history or story behind the artists is equally fantastic.  I recently spent some time in Florence and got to see the original in the Accademia as well as the copy in front of city hall.  But the story I heard from two different art historians is a little different from Sutcliffe’s.  Her story is a partial truth, significant facts omitted perhaps for the purpose of a young audience.  But the whole truth is very interesting and adds an element that kids will remember.  The story I was told was that the statue David was commissioned by the cathedral in Florence.  Upon it’s completion, the church was horrified at the frontal nudity and refused to have it in the church.  Because of this, it remained outside, in front of what is now city hall (but what I believe then was a palace) and became weathered.  It was decided to move the statue into the newly built Accademia to protect it, and a copy of the statue was put in it’s former location outside.  When you see such flawless beauty, you can only wonder at how Michelangelo was able to create such an exact likeness to man.  The statue isn’t perfect–you can see his arms are longer than should be in order to be proportionate.  But it works.  So how did Michelangelo do it?  Yes, a sculptor needs to see his subject in the stone, however, mathematics play an important role in being able to create such a masterpiece.  Michelangelo built a small model of David and put it into a box, similar to a coffin but without the lid.  He then filled the box with water covering the model.  He slowly released the water and sculpted what was revealed, using mathematical theories devised by Archimedes, and using mathematical proportions to create the giant statue.  As an educator I believe that children, even young children, need to hear the whole story.  This book would be terrific to use to tie together art and math.  Add a science experiment and try the model, box, and water project to see how it works.  The artists in the Renaissance were true geniuses–and we should remember how they did what they did, as well as appreciate the results.  P.S.  As an elementary school librarian, I can already see the bruhaha the nude picture of David will create among students.

I can honestly say that I have never read a book like this one–it is truly unique and one-of-a-kind!  Aviary Wonders, Inc. is a beautifully crafted picture book which reads like a catalog of the future.  In the future, Samworth’s takes the stand that natural habitats have disappeared, along with all of God’s creatures which inhabited them.  This ‘catalog’, allows the purchaser to buy and build various birds that once existed or create a totally new bird.  Each pair of pages displays fantastically and elaborately drawn ‘bird parts’–choose the wings you want, the beak, the feathers, the feet, and so on.   It also gives tips as to how to properly choose parts so that your bird will look proportionate.  Also included in the instruction manual part, are ways in which to teach your bird to fly and how to sing, and also includes a helpful troubleshooting tips just in case your bird isn’t behaving.  An order form completes the book.  This book is truly eye candy and the idea is totally fascinating.  This is Samworth’s first book.  She is quite the accomplished artist who has expanded her talents into a new form of art and creativity.  I can’t wait to see what else she will deliver.  This book is a must purchase for all libraries.

Who are “The Hueys?” …little, minimalist oval shapes, with stick legs and arms.  They dialogue throughout the book starting with the question “Is none a number?”  A Blue Huey confirms that it is indeed a number because it is one less than one.  Then he points out items that illustrate each number up to ten.  Putting all items on one page together towards the end of the book, makes for a fun “I Spy” opportunity.  And finally…when you take them all away…you get NONE.  However, the confused Huey ends the book with a repeat of the puzzling question…”Is none a number?”  When a concept is a little too hard to wrap your mind around, you’ve just got to ask the question more than once!  I love The Hueys…and so will the kids!

“Some kids collect baseball cards.  Some collect action figures.  Me?  I collect fractions.”  In this math adventure, our narrator, whose name is never revealed, uses a Reducer (1/2 ray gun and 1/2 calculator) to reduce fractions to their lowest terms, which is needed to help solve the mystery of a stolen, disguised fraction…that he wants for his personal collection.   The Reducer, for example, exposes the fraction 12/20 and discovers that it is still 3/5.  Colorful and comical, animated illustrations add to the zany romp of a story…sure to interest students in any lesson on simplifying fractions.  I would not call this an introduction to simplifying fractions, as a novice may lose the math thread without some prior knowledge about the process, before reading the story.  However, it would make a great formative assessment for kids who have already practiced the simplifying process.  The Back Matter includes one page of explanation on the reduction of fractions.

A gentle and calm journey through the seasons, debut author, Sid Farrar’s little haiku vignettes describe the changes in our natural world across the months of the year.  Starting in winter with…

“Each window pane’s a

masterpiece, personally

signed:  Your Friend, Jack Frost”

and coming full circle to end with winter.  Snowmen, robins, dandelions, tadpoles, fireflies, corn, apples, pumpkins, brown bear and skunk all play a part in the twelve month cycle of poems.  Young and old can appreciate the literary images presented.  Each two page spread highlights one haiku beautifully illustrated with soft colored pencil and watercolor by Ilse Plume (Caldecott Honor 1981 – The Bremen TownMusicians).  Included in the back matter is an explanation of what a haiku is.  Also the The Cycle of Life is explained, as well as a commentary on each season.  What a lovely addition to your poetry collection.

“This story is one of the most ancient and commonly told in Inuit history. In Alaska, Canada, Greenland, or Russia– wherever there are Inuit– this story is told.” (p. 2)

Author- illustrator, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril’s  artwork is amazing in its shading from light to dark, greys to blacks, and ever deepening blues help set the stage for this story from the far, far north where darkness reigns for months at a time.

A mother’s grief over the loss of her husband turns dark and cruel as she blinds her son. In the spring, at lake’s edge, the loon helps the blinded boy regain his sight by diving deeply in the lake with him three times. Come summer with the boy having such fun harpooning beluga whale his mother wants to join the fun. In revenge, the boy ties the harpooning rope around his mother in such a way she goes into the water after the whale. There in the water’s depths the mother’s hair braid eventually becomes the horn of the narwhal she becomes.  “Today, the narwhal will forever be a reminder that every act of revenge is a link in a chain that can only be broken by forgiveness.” (p. 40)

One hundred animals parade across the front to the back cover of this book! So the parade has begun even before the reader opens the book. What a parade it is! Inside the book the parade continues with 100 whimsical bears, followed by 100 pigs, followed by 100 carpenter beetles, 100 rabbits, and 100 birds snaking their way over and around the pages. [Yes, there are 100 of each, I counted them all.] The first animal on each left hand page after the page-turn says what number he is in the parade. There are often conversation bubbles telling the reader (or counter) the number in line of that particular animal. The number always ends in a zero, but not all numbers ending in zero have a conversation bubble. Some of the parade  members ask questions along the way, too,  like, “Can you see a carrot?” (p. 5)  So a “Where’s Waldo?” aspect is added to the story.  At the end of the parade the animals are jostled together at the “Animal Festival!”

The very last page states,” There’s a snail, a ladybug and an ant in every scene. Find them all!”

Fifteen different football poses can be created by you, the reader, by following the visual steps in this book. First the reader should gather the 6 supplies listed on the opening page: blank unlined paper, pencils, erasers and pencil sharpener for sure, followed by black ink pen and colored pencils or markers, if you like.

Each of the fifteen poses is accompanied by an exciting sports commentary scenario in the left sidebar. “MAKING the PASS You drop back to pass and see an open receiver downfield. You’ll have to fire off the pass before you get sacked!” ( p. 4) Now a 5 step process of drawing the described scene starting with a simple stick figure begins. Each of the following steps is layered in black lines over the previous steps gray lines. There are NO written descriptions of the sequential drawing steps, but a good eraser ( from the list of supplies on p. 3) is used between steps. Following these drawing steps is similar to doing one of those picture puzzles where you must find what has been changed from one picture to the other. The completed full page black and white drawing of a detailed football pose from Step 5 is superimposed over an NFL full color backdrop photo. [ Some of the NFL teams in the background include: the Falcons, Colts, Saints, and Chargers.] Each pose has 4 complete pages devoted to it from start to finish.

Step1 -stick figure

Step 2- muscular body around the stick figure

Step 3- helmet, padding, shoes, knee joints

Step 4- more detail added

Step 5 – final uniform detail, perhaps facial details