Category Archives: Highly Recommend

Bravo, Little Bird!

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This is a lovely picture about about relationships; the relationship between an old man and old woman, between the old man and a bird, between an old man and his grandson, and between a grieving family and a community. Music the tie that binds all these relationships together.

An old man plays the piano as his wife paints and hums. The piano music drifts down into the valley and attracts a bird. When the bird adds his song, the old man exclaims, “bravo, little bird!” The old man’s grandson and the bird’s babies join the songs. When the old man dies, the bird, the grandson, and the wife no longer feel like music. A cardinal from the valley below comes to see why the music has stopped. With the encouragement of the little bird, the cardinal brings the music from the valley up to the old woman and the boy, reigniting their music.

With its rich, descriptive text and lovely pictures, Bravo, Little Bird! is highly recommended for all collections.

A Catalog of Burnt Objects by Shana Youngdahl

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As stated in the author’s note, this book is based upon a real fire tragedy that devastated one small California town in 2018 – this book is set in a fictional town, but based upon the authors feelings having experienced that devastation.

Main character, Caprice (Capri), feels like the peacekeeper of her family. Her brother is recently home from rehabilitation for an alcohol addiction – although he’s the one trying to build back his trust with family and find new friendships – Capri is the one who often feels responsible for his happiness and wellbeing even if that means disregarding her own.

New to town, environmentally conscious, River, is Capri’s most recent love interest – but he’s also now also a friend of her brother’s, meaning they are constantly battling for time with him. Just when things are looking up for Capri and Winter’s relationship – wildfire begins to rip through their small town. Now they, along with the whole community have to make some really tough decisions about what to save, who to go back for, and when to get out.

This is a strong example of what happens when we are faced with extreme moments of life and death – we learn quickly who we can run to for safety.

The book moves quickly and has complex characters that most will be able to relate to.

Eat Like a Bear

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Written by April Pulley Sayre and illustrated Steve Jenkins

The life of a brown bear from month to month is detailed in text and illustrations in this informative picture book. In April, the bear awakens and wonders what to eat, because she is famished after a long hibernation. Each month, new foods are available from cow parsnips and dandelions to ants and trout. Finally, in November, the bear goes into her den to hibernate. Midwinter brings a surprise – two cubs. And, the seasons continue. The end of the book includes numerous facts about bears and an author’s note.

Beautiful collage illustrations pair with short, repetitive sentences to present solid information about the diet, life and habitat of a bear in fictional form. Kids will be enthralled with the variety of her diet and her determination, even when she doesn’t get the meal. You can almost feel her fur in the illustrations and hear the crunch as she munches the cones and moths. Buy this book for your nonfiction collection. The kids will love it! Highly recommended.

I’m Sorry You Got Mad

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Written by Kyle Lukoff and illustrated by Julie Kwon

Jack has to write an apology letter to Zoe, because he knocked down her block castle. Over several rewrites, Jack works through his feelings, sharing with his teacher along the way as she guides him through the process. He finally arrives at the right words to use and Zoe accepts his apology. The story ends with Jack’s new letter to Zoe, saying how much fun he had playing with her in her new castle along with hopeful plans for tomorrow.

This book is a treasure! It methodically moves along with a young character as he opens up about why he did what he did and shows a growing empathy for the girl he hurt by destroying her block castle. Told through his repeated attempts at writing an apology to his classmate, Jack becomes a better friend and his feelings are acknowledged as well. Illustrations provide additional “oomph” to Jack’s feelings as he writes and his frustration and eventual calm are shown in the use of color and expressions. Characters are diverse. In the end, it was a deeper story and a satisfying conclusion for all concerned. Highly recommended.

Let’s fly : Barrington Irving’s record-breaking flight around the world

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Written by Barrington Irving and Chana Stifle; illustrated by Shamar Knight-Justice

Barrington Irving is the first Black man and (at the time) the youngest person to complete a solo flight around the world. His life and inspirational flight are detailed in this picture book biography. Barrington, born in Jamaica and living in Florida, played football in school as a way to move past the “badgering” of his classmates. One day, his life changed when he met a Black pilot at his parents’ bookstore. The pilot, Captain Gary Robinson, asked “Have you ever thought of becoming a pilot?” This changed Barrington’s life. Captain Robinson gifted him his first lesson and after that Barrington worked hard, studied hard and practiced, earning his pilot’s license. Captain Robinson challenged him to help others like he had helped Barrington and he created an after school STEM program. He didn’t stop there, though. He wanted to inspire kids even more. So, he decided to fly solo around the world. It was hard to get the plane, plan the trip and find the funding to do it all. But, he persevered and succeeded, culminating in a record-setting flight of 26,800 miles in 97 days.

In addition to the story of his life and flight, this book shares more details such as a two page spread of the a cockpit with labels, a map of his flight path with stops, a timeline, facts, bibliography and some great quotes from Barrington. Given the extras, this book is a great fit for a variety of ages and reading levels. Illustrations are crisp and fit the text nicely.

Add this to your biography section and it will fly off the shelf! Highly recommended.

Being Home

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Written by Traci Sorell and illustrated by Michaela Goade

A young Cherokee girl, her mom and her dog pack up and leave the city to return to their ancestral home. She leaves behind the crowded streets, quick pace and lack of family to a place where there is room to roam, a different tempo, and that connection to her family now and from the past. Her travels are documented in her drawings as her mom drives toward their ancestral lands. When they arrive, they are surrounded by family who happily help unload their belongings, they visit and play. The tempo is slower and she is home.

Spare text and richly hued illustrations convey the warmth and excitement of the this change. The depth of her connection to her family and home is shown in the final pages as she happily engages with her relatives and her place. Sorell (Cherokee Nation) and Grade (Tlingit and Haida) combine their considerable talents to create a special story. Highly recommended.

From Rain Clouds to Rainbows

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Written by Marion Dane Bauer and illustrated by John Wallace

Three short nonfiction stories about rain, clouds and rainbows are together in one early reader book. Each story gives information in short, simple sentences, introducing scientific words and concepts along the way and ends with “Facts about…” that topic.

“Rain” starts with two children under a hot sun. The grass is dry and the flowers are wilting. But, then a gray cloud covers the sun and the rain comes. After it stops, the sun comes out and the puddles dry. The clouds build up again and the rain returns. This quick trip through the water cycle mentions that the small drops of rain come together to make the clouds, growing larger and finally falling. The facts at the end are interesting and noteworthy.

“Clouds” describes the three kinds of clouds, what they are made of and everything they do. They give us shade during the day, keep us warm at night by blanketing the earth and bring us rain, snow and thunderstorms. Facts at the end include this cool one – “Even a small cloud can be as heavy as ten large elephants.” Wow!

“Rainbows” starts out with rain and clouds, moving into that first peek of a rainbow. Colors are noted we learn that a rainbow is actually a circle! we don’t see the full circle from the ground because the Earth gets in the way. What!?? How cool is that?

Colorful illustrations move the spare text along and the points woven into each story are enriched even further by the added facts at the end. Kids will learn so much about rain, clouds and rainbows without even realizing that they are learning. And, the adults in the room will learn some cool facts right along with them! Pick up this book to add to your weather section. Highly recommended.

Cold

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written by Tim McCanna and illustrated by Ramona Kaulitzki

What is “cold”? It is many things – a desert at night, a bat-filled cave, a deep ocean or a meadow with snowflakes falling. it is a feeling and a promise. And, it is a place where animals and humans live and can thrive.

Told in eloquent rhyming prose and accompanied by gorgeous illustrations, the concept of “cold” is described in a way that draws in the reader, who can imagine the feeling of being cold as they turn the pages. The story is calm and the detailed illustrations convey that gentleness in a beautiful manner.

Explanations of cold and climate change are added to the end, giving some good scientific information in short, accessible paragraphs. Why we have winter and how animals are adapted to the cold weather is clearly noted. The notes on climate change are concise and factual and the empowering suggestions for helping to fight it are realistic for kids and their adults.

This book will be a great addition to your library as a sweet wintertime read aloud as well as a start to a winter weather or climate change lesson. Highly recommended.

Vulture View

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written by April Pulley Sayre and illustrated by Steve Jenkins

Take a look at the daily life of a vulture from its graceful soaring flight to its meticulously clean feathers. This species provides a great service by cleaning up after everyone by eating what no one else really wants. Carrion eaters are an important part of nature’s food web and vultures do a great job of it. End matter and author’s notes have been updated and reflect the newest information available about these often maligned scavengers. Illustrations have been color enhanced as well.

Add this award-winning book to your nonfiction section. It will become a favorite among students, who will delight in the daily life a this majestic bird. If you already have it, I suggest an update. It’s worth it! Highly recommended.

And Tango Makes Three

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written by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell and illustrated by Henry Cole

Roy and Silo are a penguin couple. They build a nest of rocks together just like the other penguin couples at New York’s Central Park Zoo. But, unlike the other penguin pairs, they cannot produce an egg – they are both males. They try to hatch a rock, which doesn’t result in a chick. Their keeper, Mr. Gramzay, solves that problem by giving them another couple’s second egg to hatch (penguins will only hatch one egg, but sometimes lay two). Little Tango hatches and is loved by her parents.

This story is based on a true occurrence at the Central Park Zoo, where Roy, Silo and Tango made their home for many years. This is a gentle reminder that there are loving, diverse families in the world and acceptance of those differences is natural. In this case, it is a family of a tiny penguin chick and her two loving fathers, who “knew just what to do” as they take care of their adopted offspring.

Accompanying illustrations are softly hued watercolors and add to the gentleness of the story. Originally published in 2005, this book is still fresh and necessary. It is a very organic approach to tolerance and the notion that diverse families exist everywhere, even in a penguin colony. New additions include educator notes and afterward by author Eliot Schrefer. Highly recommended.