Seven Days of Picture Books - Day Four

I have always been fascinated by insects, so when I took this book out of its box not long ago I knew that it was going be a book that I was going to like. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the book is not only about insects and bug love, but is also about books. What a perfect combination. 

The Gentleman Bug

Julian Hector

Picture Book

Ages 4 to 6

Simon and Schuster, 2010, 978-1-4169-9467-1

   Gentleman Bug lives in the bug town in the Garden. He loves to read almost more than anything, and he is a teacher. Some of the bugs like to tease Gentleman Bug about his reading habits, but he doesn’t really mind too much. Then one day the charming and quite lovely Lady Bug arrives in the Garden. Gentleman Bug likes her the minute he sees her, but she doesn’t “even notice him.”
   The Gentleman Bug decides that he needs to clean up his appearance, and with the help of his students, he turns himself into a very dapper looking fellow.  That evening Gentleman Bug goes to Pollen Hill, the popular nightspot, and everyone is impressed by his new look – except Lady Bug.

   In this delightful picture book, Julian Hector has created a whimsical bug-centric world that children are sure to like. His charmingly simple story will delight young insect lovers, and its bibliophilic ending is perfect.

Seven Days of Picture Books - Day Three

Adults often look back on their childhood with nostalgia, remembering care-free days and uncomplicated days. Not surprisingly we tend to forget that children have their problems too. They have to find ways to fit in, ways to get along with others, and they have to find that elusive "happy with who I am and what I am" place. The picture book I have reviewed today takes a look at how one little girl comes to terms with the fact that being "la-di-da" might not be as wonderful as she thinks it is.

Louise the big Cheese and the La-di-da shoes

Elise Primavera

Illustrated by Diane Goode

Picture Book

Ages 6 to 8

Simon and Schuster, 2010, 978-1-4169-7181-8

   Louise Cheese lives in an ordinary sort of town, and she has ordinary parents who are quite happy being themselves and looking like themselves. Louise, on the other hand, wants to be and look like a “big cheese.” Unfortunately, instead of having glamorous clothes to wear, Louise is stuck with a skirt that has a “stretched-out elastic waist,” and brown lace-up shoes that squeak when she walks. Louise asks to borrow her big sister’s “black patent leather pumps with sparkles on the toes,” but she is told that they are for “la-di-da occasions.” Louise would love to have la-di-da occasions in her life

   Then at last, Louise’s mother announces that she is going to take Louise shoe shopping. If Louise can only get some la-di-da shoes, then the kids at school will think that she is a real “big cheese!” When Louise’s mother chooses a pair of brown lace up shoes with rubber soles Louise is devastated. She is even more upset when she goes to school and sees that her friend Fern is wearing a pair of patent leather pumps with sparkles on the toes. How can this be happening?

   Most girls at some point wish that they could be famous, glamorous, or popular. They want to be something other than what they are, just like Louise. As they read this book, readers will come to realize that being who you are isn’t that bad, and sometimes having what you think you want isn’t as much fun as you thought it would be.

   With lots of humor and wonderfully amusing illustrations throughout, this picture book addresses an important issue in a unique way. 

The Children's Choice Book Award winners have been announced

"The Children's Book Council (CBC) in association with Every Child a Reader, Inc. (the CBC Foundation), announced the winners of the third annual Children's Choice Book Awards at a gala in New York City last evening. Children across the country voted for their favorite books, author, and illustrator at bookstores, school libraries, and at www.BookWeekOnline.com, casting over 115,000 votes.


The Children's Choice Book Awards program, launched in 2008 by The Children's Book Council (CBC) in association with Every Child a Reader, Inc. (the CBC Foundation), was created to provide young readers with an opportunity to voice their opinions about the books being written for them and to help develop a reading list that will motivate children to read more and cultivate a love of reading." 

The winners are:

Kindergarten to 2nd Grade book of the year: Lulu the Big Little Chick
3rd Grade to 4th Grade book of the year: Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute
5th Grade to 6th Grade book of the year: Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life
Teen choice book of the year: Catching Fire
Author of the year: James Patterson for Max
Illustrator of the year: Peter Brown for The Curious Garden

Seven Days of Picture Books - Day Two

During Children's Book Week and Reading is Fun week, I will be reviewing a picture book every day. Here is the second picture book review for the Through the Looking Glass Nine Days of Picture Books event. I chose this book because the artwork is so delightful, and because the story has a magical element that is quite unique. 

A most Vivid Day

Justin Young

Picture Book

Ages 4 to 8

Golden Tree Press, 2010, 978-0-9785418-1-1
   One night a bat called Tommy goes with the other bats to find his daily meal. Tommy finds an apple tree, and he is just about to take a big bite out of one of the apples when a caterpillar tells him that the apple is not ripe. “You should pick a ripe apple that is a delicious red color,” says the caterpillar. The problem is that Tommy has no idea what red is. Being an animal of the night, he has never seen colors before, and he is not convinced that the caterpillar is telling the truth.

   Tommy decides to stay up to see what color is, and when the sun rises, he sees, for the first time, what blue, green, red, and orange looks like. Everything the sun paints with his paintbrush gets a color that delights the eye. The sun not only paints the sky, the flowers, and the grass, but he also paints all the animals, and Tommy decides that he too would like to have a color; he would like to be red!

   Children are sure to enjoy this story, which explores the idea that beauty truly is all around us. In addition, the author looks at the ways in which problems can be solved amicably if people will just be civil and generous towards each other.

   Full of gorgeous watercolor paintings that are bright and full of life, this book is sure to become a bedtime reading favorite. 

A picture book a day for Children's Book Week and Reading is Fun Week

The next seven days days are special in the children's book world because Children's Book Week is from May 10th to May 16th and Reading is Fun Week is from May 9th through 16th. In celebration of these days, I am going to post a review of a picture book every day. I chose picture books because it gives me the opportunity to enjoy reading and reviewing some of the treasures that I have sitting on my shelves. I hope you will join me every day for this Seven Days of Picture Books event.

Here is today's picture book review:

The Red Chalk

Iris van der Heide

Illustrated by Marije Tolman

Picture Book

Ages 5 to 7

Boyds Mills Press, 2006, 978-1-932425-79-6

   Sara has a stick of red chalk and she tries to draw on the sidewalk with it, but the sidewalk is so bumpy that “none of her pictures turned out right.” Luckily for Sara, Tim is willing to trade his marbles for her “magic” chalk. Sara tells Tim that everything that he draws with the chalk “will come to life.” Not surprisingly, Tim is more than happy to make the trade.

   After playing with the marbles for just a short while, Sara decides that the marbles are “no fun at all.”  Down on the beach she sees Sam. Sam has a delicious looking red lollipop, and Sara soon comes up with a way to get Sam to trade her sweet treat for Sara’s marbles; Sara tells Sam that the marbles are “real pearls from the ocean,” and Sam is happy to trade her lollipop for the marbles. The problem is that Sam soon discovers that this trade isn’t going to work for her either.

   In this lovely picture book, the author tells a story that some children, and a few adults, will find familiar. Like Sara, many of us are always eager to have what someone else has. We don’t use our imaginations to see that we have right now has great potential. Marije Tolman compliments the text with deliciously emotive illustrations that are touched with humor, and that add a special magical dimension to the story. 

You can download a charming Children's Book Week bookmark here.When you open the page, right-click on the image and save it to your computer. Print the bookmark on heavy paper, then cut out around the dotted line. Then you can draw in your own favorite character and keep a list of your favorite books! Enjoy!