*If You Plant a Seed (2015)

If You Plant a Seed by Kadin Nelson (2015) is a beautiful book illustrated with lovely paintings. The cover is a close-up of a rabbit and a mouse that radiates light and color. It appears they’ve  collaborated to plant something. They gaze at a young seedling that’s emerging from rich brown soil. We can infer they’re anticipating a delicious meal. The cover hints at the plot with such subtlety as to be invisible until after reading the book.

It takes only a few pages for these friends to joyfully munch on carrots, tomatoes, and cabbage. So what’s left to tell? Now, the real story is revealed. A finch, cardinal, blue jay, crow, and dove notice the garden. They fly down to share the bounty.  In response, rabbit and mouse “plant a seed of selfishness” and the food fight that follows creates a chaotic mess. Rabbit and mouse must reconsider their situation. Their new decision to plant a seed of kindness reaps many rewards.

The text is sparse and in a large font. Nelson’s stunning illustrations tell the story. Nelson won a Caldecott Honor and the Coretta Scott King Author and Illustrator Award for this book.

I wrote a blogpost about this book here. 

The King Who Rained (1970)

 The King Who Rained by Fred Gwynne (1970) is a book of metaphors. The illustrations are hilarious. For “Daddy says there are forks in the road,” we see a picture of cars driving on roads made of huge forks lined end to end. When dad gives the house two coats of paint, we see a house with two huge coats covering the entire roof. Metaphors can be very difficult for some speakers of English to understand. This book makes light of the peculiarities of the English language. 

Leonardo's Horse (2001)

Leonardo’s Horse by Jean Fritz and Hudson Talbott (2001) is a masterpiece. Young readers will appreciate the reading level at grades 1 – 4. Middle and high schoolers can research the many references to Leonardo de Vinci, his endeavors, his contemporaries, and the setting in which he lived. This book condenses a huge amount of information into a cohesive, easily readable story. The gifted and talented child struggling in a one-size-fits-all educational system may identify with Leonardo.

We meet Leonardo as a teenager, a child who is remarkably different from his peers. Lucky for him, his parents appreciate his talent. They send him to Florence, Italy, to study art. “He could never be just one thing. He was an engineer, an architect, a musician, a philosopher, an astronomer.” Multiple interests and responsibilities combined with the limitations of his moment in history make it difficult to manifest all his dreams. His lifelong aspiration to cast a 24-foot horse never materializes. But Leonardo’s passing in 1519 is not the end of the story.

More about this book is on my Wordpress blog.

The Fortune Tellers (1992)

 The Fortune Tellers by Lloyd Alexander (1992) is a humorous story about an old fortune teller who really does predict the future, in a way. When a young adult asks if he will be rich, the old fortune teller replies “‘Rich you will surely be. . . On one condition: that you earn large sums of money.’” The old fortune teller predicts his customer will be happy “‘if you can avoid being miserable.’” The young man is ecstatic. Quite by accident, he finds himself taking the place of the old man. Wealth and good fortune follow. What happened to the old fortune teller is intended to be funny, I suppose. Trina Schart Hyman’s illustrations are richly detailed. They are the reason I picked up this book. 

Louie the Buoy (2005)

 Louie the Buoy: A Hurricane Story by Allain C. Andry, III (2005) is an insightful tool for educating readers about Hurricane Camille. They'll also learn about the role of a buoy. We learn that the United States Coast Guard made deep holes in the sand to hold Louie the Buoy firmly in the Bay of St. Louis. (Yes, go get your maps!) Louie the Buoy has a light that flashes at night. It’s on a nautical chart so boat captains know where it is. Unfortunately, Hurricane Camille pulls this proud buoy right out of the sand and tosses it aside. Louie feels he's failed at his job; he's so sorry that he's blown off his post. It turns out he stood his ground a very long time. “There is no reason for you to be ashamed. In fact, because you were the very last buoy to remain standing in this giant hurricane, Louie, you are a hero!” Tazewell S. Morton, III’s brightly colored illustrations depict a bustling seacoast, frightening dark storm, and grateful recovery. 

The Happy Day (1949)

 The Happy Day by Ruth Krauss (1949) is a book for the babe and toddler. This is a book I would read to an infant as they fell asleep. Toddler’s will enjoy memorizing the repetitive text. It matches exactly the illustrations. I predict they will pick up this book and pretend to read independently. Marc Simont’s drawings won a Caldecott Honor. Not much action in this story. Animals are hibernating under a snowy landscape for much of it. Then, one day, they all awaken and sniff something special in the air. They all run to find ... it’s too special to give away here. But their joy emanates from the page. We’re all happy. 

in Just Spring (1923, 1998)

 in Just-spring by E.E.Cummings (1923 first copyright) is illustrated by Heidi Goennel (1988) in a thin book with large print. This book is for the very young poet, or anyone who loves to play with language and how it appears on a page. The word “mudluscious” has got to be the most fun word I’ve ever read. I imagine it was a challenge for Goennel to illustrate this poem. Her pictures are minimalistic; the children have no faces. I suppose you could say they correspond to a minimalism in the poetry. I don’t know how to talk about poetry, so I’ll leave it to the more knowledgeable to enjoy this book.