@roberta3

February 11, 2019

Haiku #kidlit Rain

Want to share a children’s picture book for National Haiku Writing Month? Rain by Anders Holmer is a lovely choice.

The picture book is a collection of haiku, each celebrated by a two-page spread of sometimes dark, sometimes humorous, and sometimes hopeful illustrations.

The topics of the haiku are not simple ones. For example, regarding a forest fire:

Beneath the ashes are
seeds for a new forest that
might burn someday too

Adults might shy away from the dark illustrations and/or the darker topics for children, but it is actually offers much to explore and consider.

Rain will appeal to both nature lovers and budding poets. Pull it out for haiku month or for any rainy day.

Review at Wrapped In Foil blog.

February 4, 2019February 3, 2019

Young, Gifted and Black: Meet 52 Black Heroes from Past by Jamia Wilson and illustrated by Andrea Pippinsis is a middle grade title that celebrates the lives of visionaries who also happen to be people of color.

Author Jamia Wilson has gathered the stories of 52 amazing people and condensed them into must-read single page summaries. Readers will learn about astronauts, athletes, entertainers, mathematicians, poets, and a president.

Although Wilson celebrates each person’s triumphs, she also doesn’t shy away from each person’s struggles. For example, both Stevie Wonder and Sidney Poitier were born prematurely, which caused Stevie Wonder to lose his sight. Madame C. J. Walker lost her parents when she was seven. When children read how others overcame challenges to become successful, hopefully they will be inspired to keep trying and dream big for themselves, too.

Andrea Pippinsis’s illustrations are so vibrant. They capture the energy and vitality of these strong personalities with bold lines and shapes that suggest movement.

Young, Gifted and Black is a perfect choice for both Black and Women’s History Months. Pick up a copy and inspire a child today.

You can find more details at Wrapped in Foil Blog.

January 28, 2019February 3, 2019

Snails Are Just My Speed!

I’m running a bit behind this morning, so Snails Are Just My Speed! by Kevin McCloskey is a perfect choice to read.

Part of the Giggle and Learn series, this title combines fun illustrations with serious information about snails.

The first thing I love is that Keven McCloskey put the eyes where they should be, on the eye stalks or tentacles. Yes!

The second thing I love is that he puts in a lot of mucus for the “ick, gross” factor, but also adds useful information, like humans make mucus too, but it is mostly on the inside.

The thing I love most? The awesome lesson on how to draw a snail in the back! (Turn the page for useful tips for parents and teachers about “How To Read Comics With Kids.”)

The books in this series are marketed as beginning readers, which may discourage some older children from picking them up. That would be too bad because they have potential to appeal to a larger range of ages.

Snails Are Just My Speed! should fly off the shelves. Check out a copy today!

If you want a bit of snail silliness, visit my post at Growing With Science blog.

January 21, 2019February 3, 2019

The Things That I LOVE about TREES

The Things That I LOVE about TREES by Chris Butterworth and illustrated by Charlotte Voake is a wonderful picture book for winter and for all seasons.

Combining facts about how useful trees are with a narrative tour of how trees change from season to season, Chris Butterworth’s gentle prose is relaxing and enlightening.

Summer trees are shady
and so full of leaves that
when the wind blows.
they swish like the sea.

Voake has an obvious affinity for trees and her watercolor and ink illustrations are mesmerizing. With a few strokes she can create the feel of an ancient forest or a swaying sapling.

The Things That I LOVE about TREES is a delightful book. It might not be for everyone, but for youngsters who love nature and want a comfortable, quiet book, this is a good choice. Curl up with a copy today.

The complete review is at Wrapped in Foil today.

January 7, 2019February 3, 2019

Picture Books: Nonfiction, Fiction or Both?

For a little different approach to Nonfiction Monday, let’s take a look at some recent picture books that push the boundaries of traditional nonfiction.

As you may already know, I recently was a round I judge for 2018 Cybils Elementary/Middle Grade Nonfiction. It turned out a few of the nominated books were hard to categorize. Were they fiction or nonfiction?

For example, one of the nominees was Janet Halfmann’s Midnight Teacher (reviewed last year at Wrapped in Foil).

Midnight Teacher looks and reads like a typical nonfiction biography. The publisher’s website says it is “based on a true story,” but calls it historical fiction in some of the press materials. In this case, it is probable that there was too little information about Lilly Ann Granderson for a strictly nonfiction biography.

Another example is Walking the City with Jane: A Story of Jane Jacobs by Susan Hughes.

Again, it has all the appearances of a picture book biography. My library had it shelved in nonfiction. Yet, if you read the author’s note in the back matter, you find out that this is a “fictionalized” account (no details given.) This is more problematic for me, because what is fact and what is fiction is unclear.

Recently, Carol Hinz had an excellent discussion of four picture books that blend fiction and nonfiction at Lerner Blog.

In these, the fictional elements are easier to spot. For example, in Flower Talk by Sara Levine a cactus narrates the book.

A talking cactus is pretty obviously fictional.

In Love, Agnes by Irene Latham, which was categorized in Cybils as Fiction, a octopus sends postcards to her neighbors (reviewed today at Wrapped in Foil).

Again, the fictional aspects are clear. There’s also, however, a wonderful factual underpinning and the back matter is all hardcore nonfiction. Rather than in some gray area between fiction or nonfiction, this book shouts that it is clearly and loudly BOTH.

What do you think of picture books that explore the limits of nonfiction? Do they belong here at Nonfiction Monday or do we need a new category — other than creative nonfiction — that celebrates books like these?

December 31, 2018December 28, 2018

Dream Big with Dave McGillivray

Let’s start the New Year with a picture book that has a stirring message, Dream Big: A True Story of Courage and Determination by Dave McGillivray and Nancy Feehrer, and illustrated by Ron Himler.

When I was little, I was little.
Really little.
But my dreams? They were BIG.

So starts Dave McGillivray’s autobiographical picture book.

Dave really wanted to be an athlete, but his small size kept him out of many sports. But he didn’t let that stop him. On his twelfth birthday he started running. By the time he was 17, he decided to give the nearby Boston Marathon a try. The first year wasn’t the success he had hoped, but he has managed to run every Boston Marathon for the last 45 years. The best part is that not only is he a world-renowned athlete, but also he’s the race director.

Dave’s Dream Big attitude is infectious. Check out a copy and get inspired today!

See Wrapped In Foil blog for related activity suggestions.

Let’s resolve to read more (nonfiction) in 2019!

December 17, 2018

Curiosity: The Story of a Mars Rover

Today we’re exploring Curiosity: The Story of a Mars Rover by Markus Motum, a picture book nominated for a 2018 Cybils award.

Told in the first person by the rover herself, the text explains the project in detail. Readers discover the initial concept, how the rover was constructed, about the trip to Mars, how the rover was deployed, and the tools she uses on the planet to look for evidence of life.

Markus Motum is an artist by training and his unusual mixed-media illustrations are what capture the reader’s attention about the book, starting with the big red planet Mars set against the blackness of space on the title page. He uses geometric shapes like triangles, rectangles, and pyramids in his landscapes. The shapes create a feeling of other worldliness that carries throughout.

Curiosity: The Story of a Mars Rover will be a good choice for kids fascinated by our solar system and the rovers that help us explore it. It would also be a useful resource for research projects and classroom use because it is packed with information. Check out a copy today.

For the full review and activity suggestions, be sure to visit Wrapped in Foil blog.

December 10, 2018December 8, 2018

Counting Birds: The Idea That Helped Save Our Feathered Friends

The 119th Christmas Bird Count starts on Friday December 14, 2018. At Growing With Science we’re sharing Counting Birds: The Idea That Helped Save Our Feathered Friends by Heidi E.Y. Stemple and illustrated by Clover Robin, a picture book that describes the origins of the event.

We should say right up front that this is not a counting book, although there are plenty of birds to see and identify if the reader should want.

Instead, it is a combination of biography and explanation of the event. After giving a brief overview of ornithologist Frank Chapman’s life and how he came up with Christmas Count idea, author Stemple describes how the it works. She explains that all birds are counted:

Creepers, thrashers, bufflehead, brant, and bobwhites.
All birds are welcome.

And anyone can count, even those who are housebound:

Not all birdwatchers are in the field. Some count the birds that visit their backyard feeders.

All birders are welcome.

She also reveals the importance of the data that is collected in helping researchers understand and protect all kinds of birds around the world.

Counting Birds is a wonderful way to introduce young readers to bird watching and bird counts. Share a copy today.

For more information and activity suggestions, visit Growing with Science blog.

December 3, 2018December 3, 2018

Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor

With a title like Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor: The Woman Who Loved Reptiles (by Patricia Valdez and illustrated by Felicita Sala) what child can resist this picture book biography?

Fascinated by reptiles from an early age, Joan Procter found a mentor in Dr. George Boulenger who was the curator of reptiles and fish at the Natural History Museum. She became his assistant at a young age and took over his position when he retired. She mixed art and science, doing scientific research and creating exhibits at the Museum at the same time. Later, after designing a reptile house at the London Zoo, she formed a special bond with the most unlikely animal, a huge Komodo dragon.

Joan Procter was a person ahead of her time and she probably don’t get the recognition she deserved because of it. Patricia Valdez has done her part to shine the light on this amazing woman whose passion for reptiles helped her forge new paths for women as scientists. Valdez has chosen anecdotes from Procter’s life, like taking a small crocodile to math class, that are sure to engage and thrill young readers.

Like a chameleon, Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor will fit many lessons. Pull out a copy not only for Women’s History Month, but also for a STEM lesson on reptiles or the lives of scientists. It is perfect for history buffs and budding scientists alike.

Slither on over to Wrapped in Foil blog for activity suggestions to accompany the book.

November 26, 2018November 25, 2018

Aim for the Skies

Our featured book, Aim for the Skies: Jerrie Mock and Joan Merriam Smith’s Race to Complete Amelia Earhart’s Quest by Aimee Bissonette and illustrated by Doris Ettlinger, takes us beyond a famous person who has been the subject of dozens of biographies (Amelia Earhart) and introduces us to two equally fascinating women who aren’t household names.

Separately, female pilots Jerrie Mock and Joan Merriam Smith both dreamed of flying around the world all by themselves. By sheer coincidence, they both decided to take off within a few days of each other. Soon people turned their journeys into a competition, which is something neither of the women had intended.

Given what happened with Amelia Earhart, there is plenty of tension in this book as the women encounter problem after problem. Will they survive to finish their flights? Which one will “win”? Readers will be on the edges of their seats until they find out for sure.

Aim for the Skies is a must have for aspiring pilots and general readers alike. Be prepared to take off on your own journey of discovery.

Visit Wrapped in Foil blog for more details and an activity suggestion.