Tag Archives: picture book

I am Not Happy!

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Written by Caroline L. Perry & illustrated by Sydney Hanson

You may think you see a seemingly cheerful, smiling rodent. But, you would be wrong! The quokka, an Australian marsupial, is much more complex than that. And, the main character of the this delightful picture book does his best to show a (seemingly) grumpy frog that truth through a variety of examples. Dropped his ice cream? He may look happy. But, nope, definitely not. Someone stepped on his tail? Nope, he’s not happy even though he’s smiling. And, people don’t seem to understand that they shouldn’t wake him up for selfies. He’s nocturnal, for goodness sake! Fortunately, he finds a newspaper with an article stating that quokkas are not, in fact, the happiest animals. Now, he’s happy! But, the grumpy from? That frown is just the way he looks and it doesn’t mean he feels that way. Wait, didn’t we just read a story like that?

This wonderfully hilarious picture book introduces a rather misunderstood Australian animal in a way that makes learning fun. Accompanying illustrations are somewhat cartoon like and so good! The text is very accessible, with a sentence or two per page and there is a very informative author’s note at the end that describes the quokka in more detail, including its vulnerable status as a species and what we can do to help it, including leaving it alone and not bothering it for a selfie like in the story! This would be a great book to share when teaching about conservation and boundaries with human-animal interactions. Highly recommended.

What Medicine Can Do

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Written by Gabrielle Balkan and illustrated by Alberto Lot

Raccoon feels ITCHY! Luckily, his great-grand raccoon knows what to do. He asks Raccoon to describe his symptoms and tells him he has rash. Raccoon panics a bit and wonders if he’ll need to get a new leg, move to Alaska or wear armor. Luckily, his great-grand raccoon has some medicated lotion and fixes him right up. Whew! Then, Raccoon’s friend, Fox, feels icky and we check the symptoms. Fox panics – does he have an enemy making him feel bad? Who can he blame? This is a little tougher and requires a visit to the doctor, who can give him antibiotics for strep throat and he feels better. Lastly, Fox’s baby sister visits the doctor for a well baby check and gets a vaccine, medicine to prevent illness.

All three scenarios are beautifully presented and explained through simple text and bright, energetic illustrations. Unfamiliar words are bolded with an accompanying glossary in the back of the book. In addition to the medicines described, there are additional health tips to alleviate symptoms. For example, Raccoon can take a baking soda bath or use a cool washcloth to alleviate the itching.

This book does a fantastic job of demystifying medicine and when and why we use it. Readers will recognize their own emotions and fears in the animal characters as they navigate through their medical issues with the help of the caring adults around them. So many questions are answered clearly and succinctly, with a bit of humor along the way.

Highly recommended for library collections. And, show this to your school nurse – she’ll want her own copy!

The Museum of Willa and Wade

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written by Judith Henderson and illustrated by Sara Sarhangpour

Willa the ostrich and Wade the penguin discover a shiny golden button on the ground and proceed to gather more treasures (a rock, toy dinosaur, artwork by Wade) for a museum (a box). They are so excited about their collection that they invite the other animals to their museum (Museum of Willa and Wade – MOWW). The Grand Opening of MOWW was a success, especially the snacks. And, would it be possible to borrow a rocket ship for the MOWW? Hmmmm..

This simple story of enthusiastic friends, imagination and a few treasures is wonderful. Add in the bright and bold illustrations and you have a winning combination. Readers will enjoy this book and look forward to Book #3 in the Willa and Wade series. Hopefully, we won’t have to wait too long! Recommended.

Elvis & Romeo Go to Dog School

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by David Soman and Jacky Davis

Doggie pals Elvis and Romeo head to dog school to learn some new tricks. While Elvis is open to the idea, Romeo experiences some anxiety when the lesson is about catching a ball. Elvis does a great job of working through it with Romeo and gives him concrete steps to follow. Ultimately, Romeo is successful and enjoys dog school with his good friend.

Simple text accompanies digitally rendered illustrations that are sweet and expressive. Young readers will cheer for these newfound canine friends and eagerly await the next adventure. Recommended.

I’m Longer Than You! An Epic Contest of Measurement

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by Caroline Fisher

Who would have thought that a picture book about measurement could be so fun? Blue Whale and Supersaurus are arguing over which of them is longer. Inchworm comes in and offers to help with the winner buying lunch. It takes inchworm (who is an inch long) 12 hours to measure Blue Whale, who is 1,300 inches long. Inchworm can’t measure Supersaurus, because he has to go into his cocoon. So, in comes centipede (who is a centimeter long) and he measures Supersaurus. It also take 12 hours and Supersaurus is exactly 3302 centimeters long. Wait! What does that mean? Dragonfly saves the day by doing the math and determines that the two behemoths are the same length!

This wonderful melding of math and science into a picture book is hilarious and educational. Readers learn the difference between the customary and metric systems as well as some cool science and end with some little known math terms (check out “zeptosecond”). Accompanying illustrations are cartoon-like and fun. Buy this book and start measuring. Your students will love it! Highly recommended.

Catnip Mouse

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by A.J. Smith

Vera, (the cat) is playing contentedly alone with her catnip mouse and Gipp (the dog) is sneakily watching her. She notices and calls him out. He asks her to play and she makes it clear that she was playing alone. He doesn’t take no for an answer and waves around his wand (stick) which he swings around and accidentally breaks Vera’s catnip mouse. While trying to make things better, he comes up with some hilarious alliterations while trying to say ‘catnip mouse’. All of this is not hilarious to Vera, who walks away and Gipp sits dejectedly by a tree. Fortunately, Vera can’t stay angry at her friend for long and they apologize to each other. They get another magic wand (stick) and create even more silly word combos together – friendship fixed.

The boldly drawn characters are comic-like with word bubbles telling the story as a dialogue and their facial expressions helping to show their feelings. Their silly word play is illustrated along the way – envision a cattle blouse or massive louse! Endpapers hint at the storyline, with Vera playing alone with her catnip mouse (Gipp hiding in the background) at the front and both playing together happily at the end.

This is a very sweet and silly story about aspects of friendship. Sometimes, a friend just wants some alone time and it’s ok. Communication and empathy are part of being a good friend. Great for SEL discussions. Recommended.

Chicka Chicka Tricka Treat

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by Julien Chung

A, B, C and all the rest are together again in a Halloween story based on the original “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault. The alphabet is climbing a creaky tree and ready for Halloween with costumes, spider webs and pumpkins. They fall to the ground when a ghost shouts “Boo”, who then encourages them to come back up. They climb again and the story ends with “Chicka chicka tricks treat. Everybody – time to eat!”.

Colorful illustrations and catchy phrases will entice young readers to delve further into this amusing story. They will enjoy the extra fun of looking for the Halloween elements throughout the book. Each letter is ‘costumed’ in some way and there are spiderwebs, pumpkins and ghosts along the way. Recommended.

A Place For Us

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by James E. Ransome

A wordless picture book about a mother and son, who live with the reality of homelessness. The story begins with a mother waiting for her son outside his school, one of the many parents standing near the school. They walk to a fast food restaurant for dinner and then to the library, where the boy completes his homework as his mother reads a book. They leave as the librarian closes up and end at a bench to settle in for the night. The boy lays his head on his mother’s lap and sleeps while she watches over him protectively. The morning comes, he changes his shirt and brushes his teeth at a park fountain and they head to school for another day.

This beautifully illustrated book uses the power of pictures to tell a painful story. A loving mother that will maintain some sense of normalcy for her child in the harsh reality of homelessness that strikes a vast number (any number is too many) of people in the United States. An even larger group is the rather cliched “one paycheck away” from the same fate. A note from the author at the beginning of the story relates the intent of this book – to encourage thought and discussion about our responsibility to those that don’t have even the basic necessities. This book will certainly do just that. And, the youngest of readers will be able to reflect as a result.

An Abundance of Light: A Story of Matisse in Morocco

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by Lauren Stringer

Matisse is weighed down by the drab dreariness of a grey, wet French day. He can’t see the light and, therefore, can’t paint. A friend suggests a trip to Morocco, where the light is beautiful and bright. Unfortunately, he arrives to more drab, dreary weather and feels trapped by it all. He awakens one morning to the bright light and colors he needed. He sketched and painted and the colors were glorious. Interestingly, he realized that so many of the colors around him in Morocco reminded him of home. He packed up his completed paintings and sketches an returned to France, where he continued to create and remember the vivid colors of Morocco even when it was drab and dreary outside.

This story of Matisse is well told in accessible language and beautiful accompanying illustrations that lead the reader to feel the a hint of the weight of darkness and grey and the burst of light and color that Matisse must have felt. In these illustrations, he is as grey and drab as his surroundings and becomes as colorful as his new environment in Morocco. Upon his return to France, he remains colorful amid the the grayness, still painting his beautifully colorful pieces. The illustrations tell the story alongside the written words.

More information is given about the artist at the end. The endpapers at the back of the book define unfamiliar words for the reader and are accompanied by colorful drawings.

This book is a wonderful addition to your biography section, especially if you are in need of books about the Arts. It won’t disappoint!

Alpacas Here, Alapacas There

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Written by Carrie Tillotson and illustrated by Elisa Chavarri

Everything a young reader would want to know is packed into this picture book! Simple, rhyming text winds through the pages of alpacas in both Peru and North America. Denser informative text blocks run along the bottom of the right page (recto) of each two page spread. The end of the book includes a glossary, author and artist notes, select sources and more about the alpacas (including their origin as domesticated animals in both areas).

This highly informative book takes a different approach than the typical nonfiction book for younger readers. It can be read as a simple story or a reader can delve much more deeply into the facts about this prized camelid. The accompanying illustrations are vibrant and bold and culturally appropriate.

There is much to learn about alpacas and this book takes on the topic in a unique and playful way. Readers won’t even realize how much they are learning until they reach the end of the book! Recommended.