Michelangelo (2000)

 

Michelangelo by Diane Stanley (2000) this is a biography well suited for the middle grade student. “ if Michelangelo had lived in some other time or some other place, he might never have become an artist. But as fate would have it, he was born in the midst of the greatest flowering of the arts in the history of Europe, an age we call the Renaissance…Michelangelo.. would one day be judged the very greatest of all the great artists Florence ever produced.“ It is a lengthy biography with illustrations apparently by the author along with photographic material printed by permission. The illustrations depict a young man at different stages of his career. My impression is that the illustrations are realistic, figurative, perhaps paintings; some seem photo shopped with images of Michelangelos art. I like the famous artist series by Aladdin books. There are a few reproductions of Michelangelos work. There is a brief biography at the end of the book bibliography.

 

I See the Moon (1997)

 

 I See the Moon by Kathy Appelt (1997) begins with Psalm 139:9 - 10.  That prepares the reader for the  multiple references to God in this very short story for little ones. The main character is a non-gendered white child who appears to be preschool age. The child is in a little sailboat on a sea with rough waves. “Does anyone know I’m alone here at sea?” The first illustration depicts the child looking up at the moon that has a smiling human face. This child watches the stars “ from the bow of my craft “ and feels the wind “ with its whispery tail.” Night turns to day and a dove appears to guide the child to shore. The child knows that God is taking care of them. “My heart is as full as the moon and the sea. God loves them too. God loves me. 

Deborah read Jenkins’s illustrations fill the pages with luscious warm shades of deep blue, gold, and green. Depictios of water and wind are swirling and vibrant. At the end of the story, the child’s face is jubilant and nearly angelic. This is a beautiful book that may be appropriate for a variety of faiths.

 

Tuesday (1991)

 

David Wiesner is my favorite children’s picture book author/illustrator. Despite a dearth of text, Wiesner communicates a visual story that is unmatched. Tuesday has frogs lifting into the air and flying from their watery home across the countryside into a small village. It’s “Tuesday evening, around eight” when lily pads rise out of the water and carry a large fleet of frogs into backyards. They even enter a house in which an old woman is asleep in front of her television. She has no idea she’s surrounded by happy amphibian guests. Items on a clothesline present a problem! So does a dog—until it’s confronted by an army of frogs. In the morning, police study lily pads strewn across the road. And then there’s next Tuesday…

The watercolor is exquisite. The frogs are expressive. Scenes with foreground, middle, and distant landscape are rendered with a luminous glow from a full moon. You feel sorry for the frogs  when they return to their secluded home in the water at the break of day.

This book won the Caldecott Medal in 1992.

 

The Story of Ruby Bridges (1995)

 

The Story of RubyBridges  by Robert Coles is a succinct and accessible story about the young girl who single-handedly integrated a Mississippi elementary school. The narrative is flavored with dialogue to help us engage with the events. Federal marshals escorted Ruby Bridges past angry protesters into an empty classroom. White families kept their children at home. Her teacher, Mrs. Henry wondered how Ruby came to school day after day, relaxed and ready to learn. The story implies that Ruby persevered through family and community support--and through prayer. She prayed for God to forgive the protesters. 

George Ford’s illustrations are mostly browns and pinks. They successfully show a determined and faithful Ruby Bridges.

Country Fair (1994)

 

Country Fair by Gail Gibbons is a third person description of a country fair. Each page shows scenes with text that captions the action. The illustrations are pleasing. They show amusement rides, contests, live music, and demonstrations. Families smile while they buy food, play games at vendor booths, and gaze at vegetables, homemade sweets, and bouquets of flowers. Fireworks light the night sky at the end of the day. This is a pleasant book that gives a birds-eye view of a day in the country. To me, it feels distant from the festivities. There’s no main character to draw us into the excitement. It could be a nice book to read in preparation for an excursion to a country fair.

Mouse Mess (1997)

 

Mouse Mess by Linnea Riley (1997) needs it's large, rectangular shape to display the vast number of crisp, colorful images that fill each two-page spread. An ambitious mouse scatters food across a kitchen counter and we see the mess up close, from the mouse’s point of view. As the cover art shows, this mouse dances with pleasure as it rummages through dry cereal, cheese, fruit, jam and peanut butter, sugar, olives, and condiments. Riley’s rhyme works, and the story is funny. When this happy go lucky mouse empties a canister of brown sugar, it builds a castle! Mouse is amazed at the mess, not comprehending its own handiwork. Mouse takes a bath in teacup, mouse goes back to bed into a sardine can.

The artwork is explained on the dust jacket. The illustrations are collage and watercolor; and I agree that each collage is “playful and exuberant”.

 

Tangerines and Tea My Grandparents and Me (2005)

 

Tangerines and TeaMy Grandparents and Me by Ona Gritz  (2005) describes the joy of spending time with grandparents. Each page is a rhyme highlighting one letter of the alphabet. Consequently, many of the rhymes include alliteration and assonance. It’s lots of fun to read aloud. There are no isolated letters of the alphabet on any of the pages, unusual for an alphabet book. Professionals who recommend learning a language first by listening will appreciate this. The narrative has advanced vocabulary. For example, the letter E corresponds to, “an enchanting display at the end of each day.” This is not a book that has ‘E is for elephant’. This alphabet book could be appropriate for ESL students willing to accept the two children in the pictures as representing a wide range of ages.

 Yumi Heo’s artist note at the beginning of the book explains her process. She begins with rough sketches, then drawings, then oil paint. She writes, “sometimes I leave my mistakes… it gives me a sense of freedom. I hope it will give children the courage to draw and I want them to think it is OK if they make a mistake”.

Meet My Cats (1989)

 

Meet My Cats by Leslie Anne Ivory (1989) has astonishingly beautiful paintings of cats. The settings are also gorgeous. Gemma, Twiglet, Spiro, and Blossom are framed by luscious foliage. Muppet, Gabrielle, Chesterton, Maltazer, Agneatha, Octopussy, Motley, and Amon Ra appear before elaborately patterned wallpaper, carpet, lace, and home interiors. The reader gazes in awe at the compositions. Ivory’s description of her pets will cause cat owners to chuckle. Of course, each cat is unique. One stole a collection of feathers and hid them behind a dish towel. Another tucks Ivory into bed each night. Two don't get along and three coordinate to lift the lid of a neighbor's garbage can.  

Now 30 years post publication, some readers will frown upon the multiple litters of kittens. Modern day readers will worry about the wildlife casualties 12 cats can cause roaming free outdoors. These issues can spark conversation.  

The Endfixer (2018)

 

The Endfixer by Noemi Vola (2018) is a showcase for Noemi Vola’s imagination. At the debbie bibo agency website, we learn that Vola “draws almost all of her illustrations with felt tip pens”. This is apparent in the pictures but doesn’t detract from the laugh-out-loud ideas she portrays. There are two-page spreads and single page pictures.  Multiple blocks fill other pages so as much silliness as possible can be crammed into one short story.

 

The first page says that an end fixer “is someone who fixes the ends of stories”. Yet this initial illustration shows tools of a carpenter: hammer, hard hat, saws, ruler, wrench, etc. Notice two types of end fixers are referenced here, the literary and the concrete. Across several pages, Vola lists her complaints with familiar literary endings. What follows is a multitude of alternatives: become invisible, turn back time, go to the moon, and other hilarious options. In the end, she surrenders to the carpenters (with even more comedic drawings).

 

I received this book from the Picture Book Club. The copyright page has the story first published in Portuguese as Fim? The book was published under license from a company in Portugal and then published in North America in 2024 by an Australian company. Neomi Vola’s Artist page says she was born in Northern Italy. Rosa Churcher Clarke translated the book, but I don't know from what language it was translated.

 

Green Eyes (1953)

 

GreenEyes by Abe Birnbaum won a Caldecott Honor in 1954. In this book, Birnbaum’s bright paintings illustrate a story about the happy life of a kitten. In the first half of the story, Green Eyes tells how life began in a big wide box. When Green Eyes escapes the box, an exciting world awaits. But not too exciting. There is no rising action, none of the requisite tension in modern narratives. Green Eyes simply revels in discovering a world outside the box. This first year is told in the past tense as Green Eyes reflects upon a year of firsts: farm animals next door, cool grass in summer, falling leaves in autumn, snowflakes in winter. Half way through the book, Green Eyes speaks in the future tense and predicts the year ahead. Much bigger now relative to the box, the four seasons of the future show a happy, albeit more mellow cat.

 My Picture Book Talk lesson for this story is here. 

This book is read aloud online by Miss Trudi's Bookshelf.

Young readers may enjoy painting their own cats with Ehlke Art.

 

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? (2003)

 

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page won a Caldecott Honor award in 2004. The cover art invites you into the beauty and creativity inside this book.

 

This large picture book is a walk through a world of wildlife. I love the format: it challenges the reader to see a part and imagine the whole. That is, a two-page spread shows only one part of five creatures, followed by a two-page spread with the big reveal.  For example, we wonder which animals own the  five noses presented in bright, beautiful collage. The page turn uncovers the answer—they belong to a platypus, hyena, elephant, alligator, and mole. And we read what these creatures do with their noses! In answering “What do you do with ears like these?” we read about the bat, jackrabbit, hippopotamus, cricket, and whale. Thirty different creatures fill this book. And there’s a bonus! Four pages of backmatter provide a paragraph of additional information about each one.

A Visit From St. Nicholas (1995)

      A Visit from Saint Nicholas (Twas the night before Christmas) (1995) is a unique little book  This particular book includes more than the story penned Clement Seymour in 1822 and later illustrated by Mary C. Ogdensburg. It begins with the letter by David de Ogden (great-great-grandson of Mary C Ogden). An introduction describes the origin of the poem and extensive annotations explain individual portions of it. For example, “The references to Santa and the chimney were particularly appropriate in a time. What many homes boosted a fireplace in every room.” Another section traces the manuscripts including a reproduction in Clement Seymour‘s own handwriting. We also learn how Thomas Nast created in the image of the jolly old elf we recognize today. This is book is a special treasure for the history buff.

This book has no ISBN and was unlisted on Goodreads. It does appear on Amazon. 

Linda Lee has Identifying Nouns in "A Visit from St. Nicholas". Chris Bartal has 'Twas the Night Before Christmas Literacy Pack. Stephen Conley has 'Twas the night before Christmas. 

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? (2003)

 What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page won a Caldecott Honor award in 2004. It’s cover art hints at the beauty and creativity inside this book. I say hints because the book isn’t just gorgeous collage, it also has content.

This large picture book is a first step into the nonfiction world of wildlife. I love the format: it challenges us to think of parts and whole. A two-page spread shows only one part of five creatures  and the next two-page spread is the big reveal.  We wonder which animals own the noses, for example. A contemplative pause on this page encourages engagement. A page turn answers the question—the noses belong to a platypus, hyena, elephant, alligator, and mole. And, we learn what these creatures do with their noses! Next we’re asked, “What do you do with ears like these?” And we learn about the bat, jackrabbit, hippopotamus, cricket, and whale. By the time we finish the book, we’ve met 30 different creatures. And there’s a bonus! Four pages of backmatter provide a paragraph of additional information about each one. 

TheAdventures of Taxi Dog (1990)

When a taxi driver picks up a stray dog, they no longer roam New York City alone in The Adventures of TAXI DOG by Debra and Sal Barracca. Pictures by Mark Buehner show children in a (mostly) happy and busy urban center. Written in rhyme from Maxi's point of view, readers accompany the taxi as it drives uptown and down. Maxi (without a gender identity) meets characters who hail the cab: a singer, a woman about to have a baby, and even clowns. Adults will need to help children with inferences in both the text and illustrations. While this story is a gentle source of background knowledge for young readers unfamiliar with city life, urban students may want to share personal experiences. 

This book is read aloud online by Fox creek Municipal Library.

The Miacademy Learning Channel introduces readers to New York City in

"Let's Take a Journey: New York City, U.S.A. - Beginning Social Studies 2 for Kids!".

My Picture Book Talk lesson for this story is here. 

Libba: the Magnificent Musical Life of ELIZABETH COTTEN (2018)

The title Libba: The Magnificent Musical Life of ELIZABETH COTTON by Laura Veirs (2018) is about a folk music legend. As a young girl, Libba played her older brother’s guitar then hustled herself a job to earn money to buy her own guitar. “All day and night she played that guitar!” By the age of 13, she’d already written Freight Train, the song for which she would be famous. 

Half way in, the story leapfrogs over decades. She’s a grandmother working in a department store when a chance meeting with Ruth Crawford Seeger leads her back to the guitar. The Seegers are famous musicians. They recognize Libba’s talent and dedication: here is a woman who — as a child— taught herself to play the guitar upside down and backwards because she was left-handed. Tatyana Fazlalizadeh’s illustrations are graphite and digital color in a limited, muted palette that creates a feeling of historical documentary.

There’s an informative four-page Author’s Note at the back of the book that describes Elizabeth Cotton’s life and why Laura Veirs authored this story. The book ends with two pages of references and a photograph of Libba playing guitar for her great grandchildren.

 You can watch elderly Elizabeth Cotton speak with elementary school children on YouTube courtesy of the Oregon Historical Society. This book is read aloud online by the International Quilt Museum.

My Picture Book Talk lesson for this story is here. 

Snook Alone (2010)

 Snook Alone by Marilyn Nelson  (2010) is about an intelligent, loyal dog stranded on an island when his owner must flee a rapidly approaching tropical storm. Nelson is an award-winning poet, and it’s obvious that she chooses each word of this story with great care. After we learn about Snook’s daily routine in the first half of the book, we watch him adapt to his new island surroundings. A canine sense of smell reveals drinking water. But his keen hearing does not perceive his human friend’s voice in the wind and waves—until near the end, when his memory of  hearing “good dog” fills him with love.

 Timothy Basil Ering’s illustrations add vitality to the text. Snook and his friend, Abba Jacob, appear as devoted comrades. His limited palette and artistic skill effectively depict the emotional extremes of joy and loneliness. The reunion is visually thrilling. 

 The text is not easy; the illustration is fine art; Snook’s longing is intense. These three attributes make this book appropriate for the older student. Nelson and Ering explain their  collaboration at the 2010 National Book Festival.

 Snook Alone is read aloud by Marissa Cilento in two parts: Part 1 and Part 2.

My Picture Book Talk for this story is here. 

Forest Has a Song (2013)

 Forest Has a Song by Amy Ludwig Vanderwater is a collection of 26 poems that describe a young girl's experience walking in a forest. The poems have only a few challenging vocabulary words. The poems often flow in an easy rhythm. Most stanzas appear in lines from one to five words long. Robbin Gourley’s bright colorful illustrations show plant, animal, and bird life in all four seasons. This book reminds us that forests can be places to connect with nature.   

 In my opinion, the title of this book combined with the cover art asks readers to explore the earth’s woodlands. The title of the first poem is “Invitation”; a forest breeze and waving trees signal, “I'm here. Come visit. Please?” We find song in the forest, song made up of natural languages that Vanderwater helps us appreciate in lyrical verse. The last lines of the book are “I am Forest. Remember I am here.”

Warning: In the poem “Wintergreen”, Child tastes a wintergreen plant. It may be important to tell readers never to eat plants without the permission of a knowledgeable adult.

This book is read aloud online by Wednesday with Wendy.

My Picture Book Talk lesson for this book is here. 

Timothy Tib (2001)

Timothy Tib by Liz Graham-Yooll is a page-by-page description of the many characteristics of the cat we see beneath the title. He’s walking toward us, tail raised in friendly greeting (Cox). On the left side of each two-page spread is story and a pencil sketch; on the right side is an oil painting of Timothy Tib. Each page of text has only two sentences.  The first sentence presents as two lines that rhyme, so students are exposed to both rhyme and lengthy sentence structure. The second sentence is italicized and summarizes the previous rhyme, usually with an adjective. For example, ”And sometimes he will stare for hours at lizards hunting in the flowers. Timothy Tib is a curious cat.” A painting puts the three lines of text in picture form. This book can function as an English lesson in disguise.

 At first glance, this may look like a book for young readers because the print is large and the text sparse. But there’s nothing childish here. This is my favorite kind of book for the older student who struggles with reading. The language is appropriate for any age and the illustrations are fine art.

This book is read aloud online for the young child by gnidraham, The older student may enjoy a documentary about domestic cats by Pets & Vets.

 My Picture Book Talk lesson for this story is here.