picture book Archives - Page 670 of 716

Rain, Rain, Go Away (Tangled Tunes)
by Steven Anderson (Author) and Misa Saburi (Illustrator)

Booktalk: The BIG Picture

See what a family does on a rainy day and what they wish they were doing. (Book + CD)

#kidlit Writing Lesson: the small details

The song begins:

Rain, rain, go away.
Come again another day.

Daddy wants to play.
Rain, rain, go away.

The first two lines of this Tangled Tune are the same as the traditional tune:

Rain, rain, go away.
Come again another day.

The third line is the one with the new twist:

Daddy wants to play.

The last line is the same as the first:

Rain, rain, go away.

As the pages turn, readers see each member of the family. A classic tune has been updated with a new story.

Ben Says Goodbye
by Sarah Ellis (Author) and Kim La Fave (Illustrator)

Booktalk: The BIG Picture

When Ben’s best friend Peter moves away, Ben decides that he will move, too–into a “cave” under the kitchen table. Caveman Ben doesn’t need any friends except his tame (stuffed) lion. He hunts for his food (thoughtfully left on a plate by Mom and Dad) and communicates in grunts. And in the safety of his cave he can imagine a world where friends control their own destinies and distance is no obstacle.

The sales copy on the back cover sums it up nicely:

#kidlit Writing Lesson: the small details

What does Ben do after his best friend moves away?

Ben decided he would move too. Not across the world. Not across the country. Not across town. He would move under the table. He would become a caveboy.

Notice the use of threes. There are three “he would move” phrases. The first sentence has one:

(1) Ben decided he would move too.

There are two more at the end:

(2) Not across the country.
(3) Not across town.

In between the three “he would move” phrases are three “Not across” phrases:

(1) Not across the world.
(2) Not across the country.
(3) Not across town.

#kidlit Writing Lesson: This page uses threes (twice!) to show the main character’s emotional reaction to the story problem.