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Dear Book Lovers, Welcome! I am delighted that you have found The Through the Looking Glass blog. For over twenty years I reviewed children's literature titles for my online journal, which came out six times a year. Every book review written for that publication can be found on the Through the Looking Glass website (the link is below). I am now moving in a different direction, though the columns that I write are still book-centric. Instead of writing reviews, I'm offering you columns on topics that have been inspired by wonderful books that I have read. I tell you about the books in question, and describe how they have have impacted me. This may sound peculiar to some of you, but the books that I tend to choose are ones that resonate with me on some level. Therefore, when I read the last page and close the covers, I am not quite the same person that I was when first I started reading the book. The shift in my perspective might be miniscule, but it is still there. The books I am looking are both about adult and children's titles. Some of the children's titles will appeal to adults, while others will not. Some of the adult titles will appeal to younger readers, particularly those who are eager to expand their horizons.

Friday, July 29, 2011

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration - Book two hundred and ten

One of the joys, and trials, of being a parent or a teacher is that your child is constantly bombarding you with questions. Every day you need to find answers to queries, and often you have no clue what the answers are. Thank goodness for encyclopedias, search engines, and Wikipedia.Without them we adults would be up a creek without a canoe or a paddle.

Today's picture book uses humor and word play to celebrate a child's curiosity and his never ending search to find out why or how, who or what. 

Calef Brown
Picture Book
For ages 4 to 8
Simon and Schuster, 2011, 978-1-4169-7877-0
   I’d like to introduce you to a boy who has lots of “questions,” “queries,” and “odd theories.” His mind is forever wandering because there are so many things to know. For example “Do onions cry?” and “Do taffy pullers ever push and make a glob of sticky mush?” and “Are crabs befuddled when plans get scuttled?”
   What is a person to do when his head is so full of unknowns, so many puzzling queries that seem to have no answer? Should such a person become “frazzled” because he is so baffled by so many things?
   In this unique and quite addictive book, Calef Brown takes a look at boy whose head is quite literally stuffed with unanswered questions. Many are downright ridiculous and they are deliciously funny. Others are thought provoking and involve a clever play on words. Using gorgeous language that rhymes in interesting ways, Calef Brown shows his readers how you can play with words to get interesting effects.
   Throughout the book, Calef Brown’s colorful and unusual paintings provide a perfect backdrop to the narrative.

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