Picture Book Monday with a review of The Land of Neverbelieve

The world is full of people who wish they could visit a place that is populated by weird and wonderful plants, animals, and people. Why else do so many of us like to travel to Narnia, Middle Earth, down a rabbit hole, and other places that exist on the pages of books. Today's book is a title that book travelers will find most intriguing. It is full of lovely annotated artwork that is breathlessly odd and beautiful.


The Land of Neverbelieve

Norman Messenger

Picture Book

For ages 8 and up

Candlewick Press, 2012, 978-0-7636-6021-5

One day the author is “quietly puttering about at sea in my boat,” when he sees an island that looks so amazing he cannot resist going over to investigate. From the moment he sets foot on the sandy beach the author is “spellbound,” because the island is populated by plants, animals and people the like of which the world has never seen. The people on the island explain that this island, unlike most islands that stay in one place, likes to move on a regular basis. It has legs that allow it to stand up and walk off “to a fresh location.”  Working quickly the author sets about recording what he sees and learns using words and pictures. He knows that time is short and that the island could move on at any time. Thankfully for us, before the island can set off for pastures new, the author is able to create some extraordinary annotated drawings that show us what he saw when he was on the island.

   The author begins by showing us a map of the Land of Neverbelieve. Among other things we are able to see where the mountains are, where the Hamlet is, and where the crop garden is located. Next we see the little houses that the islanders live in that are “delightfully colorful, fanciful, and quirky.” A fold out page reveals that the houses perfectly complement the islanders. They all have features that are decidedly animal-like and tend to favor clothes that are very colorful and creative.

   We next go on to look at some very odd trees, and then on to the plants and animals that are found in the “mysterious marsh” and “rushing stream.” Here you will find a frog with legs that are incredibly long and an enormous snake that has three heads.

   If you think that these creatures are odd then you should see the creatures in the “Happy Forest Clearing.” They can change their appearances in dramatic ways, transforming, and linking, and they can “stand upside down or even downside up.”

   With careful attention to detail the author takes us to all the places shown on his map, giving us a complete picture of the Land of Neverbelieve and delighting us with his lovely artwork and interesting notes.

Poetry Friday and a review of Dinothesaurus

I, like so many people, went through a dinosaur period. I read about dinosaurs for months, and dinosaur facts tripped off my tongue at every opportunity. I was not a child when this event took place and I can therefore relate to dinosaur-mad children with great ease. This book of poetry is full of wonderful dinosaurs and it is a must-read title for anyone who has an interest in these sadly extinct animals.

Dinothesaurus

Douglas Florian

Poetry Picture Book

For ages 6 to 8

Simon and Schuster, 2009, 978-1-4169-7978-4

Many children, at some point, develop a passion for dinosaurs. They want pictures of dinosaurs on their lunch boxes, on their pajamas, and on their backpacks. They want dinosaur books and plastic dinosaur figurines.  They sleep with stuffed dinosaurs, and eat off dinosaur dishes. It is easy to understand why dinosaurs are so addictive. They are interesting, and bizarre looking. Many of them were enormous, and they are no longer here, which makes them seem mysterious.

   In this splendid picture book Douglas Florian, who has created many wonderful poetry collections for young readers, celebrates dinosaurs of all kinds. He begins by talking about the “age of Dinosaurs,” where he tells us about how they “First lived outdoors / During the time Triassic.” Most of them then died out, but a few survived to enjoy the Jurassic, and to flourish in the Cretaceous. Now, alas, the poor creatures can only be found indoors where they live in “museum halls.”

   The poet then goes on to introduce us to a wide variety of dinosaur species. Some, like Iguanodon and Triceratops, will be familiar to many young readers, while others, like Minmi and Troodon, will become new friends.

   In almost every poem Douglas Florian combines humor with information to give young readers a delightful mix that beautifully complements his multimedia art. Sometimes the poems are in the third person, and sometimes they are in the first person and we feel as if the dinosaur in question is talking to us. For example, in the Plesiosaurus poem the aquatic creatures tell is that that they aren’t vicious and are “very polite,” they always “say PLEASE before we might bite.”

   There are also many places where the poet uses language in clever ways, as he does in the poem about the Triceratops, which we are told to “Beware-and-please-take-care-a-tops.”

   This collection would make a wonderful gift for a child who is a dinosaur fan.

Picture Book Monday's review of The Boat

For the most part we live in a 'more is better' world. We convince ourselves that we need to have more things to be happy or to be 'successful.' We therefore tend to think that a book with  more content is better. This is not always the case. Sometimes less is better and this book serves as an excellent example of this rule. There are no words, there are not many pages, and yet this is a story that children and adults will love.

The Boat

Monique Felix

Wordless picture Book

For ages 5 and up

Creative Editions, 2014, 978-1-56846-252-3

A little mouse has run across the blank page. It appears to be in a frightful hurry and collapses, clearly exhausted from its exertions. After it has rested, paw to brow, for a while, it starts to chew the corner of the page. It peeks through the chewed edges at the scene that lies on the other side and then it pauses to deliberate. Something it has seen on the next page is worrying the mouse.

   The mouse then makes a decision and it chews and chews until it has chewed a neat large square out of the middle of the page. As water pours out of the scene on the next page onto our page we can see why the mouse was worried. The sea is coming out of the page beyond into our page, and the water level is rising. What is the mouse going to do?

   From the moment readers start looking at this book they are going to be captivated by the story. They will feel as if they are looking down at a real mouse who is really chewing a hole in the page. The mouse is not only realistic, but it also has a very expressive face (and feet and tail), and readers will be eager to see what the mouse does next.

Poetry Friday with a review of Stardines Swim high across the sky and other poems

Some writers have a gift for creating bizarre and fascinating characters in their books. Often, in a state of awe, I ask myself "how do they come up with these ideas?" Jack Prelutsky is one of these people, and in this book you will meet a colorful collection of made up creatures that you will surely find interesting and intriguing.

Stardines Swim high across the sky and other poems

Jack Prelutsky

Illustrated by Carin Berger

Poetry Picture book

For ages 6 to 8

HarperCollins, 2012, 978-0-06-201464-1

When we look up at the stars at night we are frequently tempted to imagine what those stars look like. Children often imagine that they are golden star-shaped objects that hang in the darkness, sending their twinkling light across the universe. In this book the author gives us a very different description of stars, one that is delightfully unique and imaginative. The poet tells us about stardines, which “still twinkle” overhead when other creatures are asleep. These stellar “nocturnal fish” not only “illuminate the darkest skies,” but they also “grant the slightest wish.”

   You may have heard of cormorants, but have you ever heard of a chormorant? Prepare yourself because these birds are well worth knowing about. Unlike cormorants, who occupy their time doing normal bird things, chormorants work hard doing “senseless” chores all day long. Theirs is not a happy existence filled as it is with “endless drudgery.” Not surprisingly, the birds, who never do anything that could be considered fun, are dreadfully boring.

   Unlike the busy chormorants, plandas never really get anything done because they spend all their time planning and never doing. They plan all kinds of things, like running a marathon, learning how to juggle, and forming their own brass bands. Alas for plandas because they never do any of these wonderful things. Instead, they “just keep making plans.”

   Braindeer have something in common with plandas. These creatures are great thinkers and their brains are packed with knowledge and “lots of sense.” They think deep and meaningful thoughts, “Reflecting on the universe.” There is a problem though, for braindeers cannot share their ideas as they cannot speak or write, and thus “Their thinking is for naught.”

   Readers who have active imaginations are going to find this collection of poems intriguing. In each case something inanimate is blended with something inanimate to give us a creature that is bizarre, often amusing, and always interesting. In all there are twenty-four species, and each one is quite unique.

   Throughout the book the poems are accompanied by delightful collage artwork that combines drawn pictures with photos of objects to give readers beautiful and creative three-dimensional artwork to look at.

Picture Book Monday with a review of Oliver

As an only child I spent a lot of my time playing alone. I was content to play make believe with my dolls and stuffed animals, and to have adventures with them outdoors. I was lucky though because there were many children to play with in the village where I lived. I could walk to their houses, which I often did. In today's book you will meet a boy who is similarly self-sufficient, but who does not have any friends.

Oliver

Birgitta Sif

Picture Book

For ages 5 to 7

Candlewick Press, 2013, 978-0-7636-6247-9

Oliver felt that he was different, but he did not mind because we had his books and his toy friends to keep him company. Oliver’s active imagination, fed by things he read about in books, meant that he could ride camels across the desert, fight sharks, and travel to the other side of the world. He was content in his solitude.

   There were times though when Oliver’s toy friends were not really able to participate in what he wanted to do. They could not swim at the pool for example. Then there were those times when Oliver’s imagination was a little tired and at such times he felt particularly alone because he was. At such times his toys were just toys.

   One day Oliver went outside to play tennis against the wall of his house and his ball bounced away. He never imagined, as he ran after it, that his greatest adventure of all was just about to begin.

   There are times when being alone is just what one needs, but then there are also times when solitude loses its attraction and one longs for companionship. This book beautifully captures one little’s boy’s adventures as he realizes that something is missing in his life.

Poetry Friday with a review of Josephine: The Dazzling life of Josephine Baker

I have always been intrigued by the story of Josephine Baker, a performer who was denied many basic rights in her country, the USA, but who was treated like the star she was in France, her adopted country. In today's poetry title the story of this remarkable woman is told using blank verse, and it is a book that both children and adults will appreciate.

Josephine: The Dazzling life of Josephine Baker

Patricia Hruby Powell

Illustrated by Christian Robinson

Poetry Picture Book

For ages 8 and up

Chronicle Books, 2014, 978-1-4521-0314-3

Being born to a poor, single, African American mother, Josephine had the cards stacked against her from the moment that she came into the world. She and her mother lived in a shack in a slum in Saint Louis, Missouri, and her mother scrubbed floors when she would rather have been dancing in a vaudeville act. At least, when you were dancing, your worries left you for a while and you could “let your body LAUGH, / Or CRY.”

   Like her mama, Josephine loved to dance. She also loved to tell stories, to be the center of attention, and “to entertain.” She danced because dancing can make a person happy “when nothin’ else will.” When she got older she worked alongside her mother and grandmother and saved her earnings so that she could go to the Booker T. Washington Theatre. This was a “negro” theatre where African Americans performed.

   Josephine joined a street act, and when the group was invited to perform at the Booker T. Washington Theatre as an extra act for the Dixie Steppers she was there. She “danced like she was / ON FIRE,” and so impressed the Dixie Steppers that she was invited to join them.

   Though she was a born performer and delighted audiences, Josephine found it hard to survive as an entertainer in the United States. The color of her skin was so often held against her and when she was invited to perform in a club in Paris, France, Josephine jumped at the chance. When they arrived in France, Josephine was amazed when she and her fellow performers “were welcomed,” on the train, and when she performed Josephine said, “For the first time in my life, I felt beautiful.”

   In this remarkable book blank verse is paired with colorful artwork and quotes from Josephine Baker’s own writings, and other sources, to give readers an extraordinary poetry journey into the life of one of the world’s great women performers. The book is divided into sections, each one of which explores a different part of Josephine’s life.

   At the back of the book readers will find notes from the author and illustrator. In one we find out more about Josephine Baker, and in the other we read about what inspired the illustrator to create the artwork for this book.

Picture Book Monday with a review of The Rainbow Orchid

I have been reading graphic novels for as long as I have been reading. One of the first graphic novel series that I read were The Adventures of Tintin by Herge. I loved the stories, the characters, and Captain Haddock's colorful language! Not long ago I came across a new graphic novel series that has artwork that is reminiscent of Herge's style. I was delighted to discover that the books in this series not only look fantastic, but the stories they contain are exciting, unpredictable, and interesting.

The Rainbow Orchid: Volume one
Garen Ewing
Graphic Novel
For ages 8 and up
Egmont, 2009, 978-1-405248532
Julius Chancer works as an assistant for Sir Alfred Catesby-Grey, a man who specializes in researching ancient and historical manuscripts and artifacts. One day an unscrupulous reporter comes to interview Sir Alfred and when he sees an orchid in Sir Alfred’s house he asks Sir Alfred if he plans on participating in the Wembley Exhibition, the world famous orchid exhibition. The reporter is very annoying, and in a fit of pique Julius mentions the rainbow orchid. He claims that the rainbow orchid is finer than the black orchid that is favored to win the competition. The black orchid is owned by a wealthy American businessman called Urkaz Grope.
   Unfortunately, the reporter mentions the rainbow orchid in an article that he writes and the next morning Lord Reginald Lawrence comes to call. He usually wins the Wembley Exhibition with one of his orchids, but this year he has nothing exotic enough to beat Mr. Grope’s black orchid. Lord Reginald was playing cards (and drinking too much) with Mr. Grope a few weeks ago and made a terrible wager that he lost. Now, unless Lord Reginald wins the Wembley Exhibition with one of his orchids, he will have to give Mr. Grope a family heirloom that is tied to the family title and lands. In short, Lord Reginald will lose everything that he holds dear.
   Lord Reginald had some to see Sir Alfred to ask him to find the rainbow orchid. It is said to be the most beautiful orchid in the world and therefore it will surely win the competition. The problem is that no one really knows if the orchid is a real thing, and where it might be found. Sir Alfred is convinced that it does exist not just because it is mentioned and depicted in a manuscript and on an ancient tablet, but because he actually met a missionary in Lahore who saw the orchid with his own eyes. The missionary believed that the plant grew somewhere in the mountains in the Hindu Kush.
   Lord Alfred has no inclination to help Sir Reginald to find the orchid, but Julius does, and he and Sir Reginald’s daughter decide to go to the Hindu Kush to see if they can find the orchid. Their search is going to be a difficult one and they don’t have much time. What they don’t realize at first is that their mission is going to be even harder than they imagine because Mr. Grope is determined to prevent them from finding the rainbow orchid.
   Set in the 1920’s, this marvelous graphic novel not only tells a fascinating story, but it provides readers with a picture of what it was like to live in the 1920’s. Complete with a movie star, a ruthless businessman, a nosy newspaper man, a young hero, and an irritating publicist, the narrative and artwork will delight readers who enjoy the Tintin adventures and other graphic novels that are set in the past.

Poetry Friday with a review of In the Swim

The Earth's watery places are full of fascinating creatures. When I was a child I spent many hours lying face down in the Mediterranean Sea looking at fish and other creatures going about their business, and I remember those hours with great fondness. In today's poetry title you will meet some of the creatures who live in seas, lakes, rivers, and oceans.

In the Swim

Douglas Florian

Poetry Picture Book

For ages 5 to 7

Harcourt, 1997, 0-15-202437-9

For some people large bodies of water are fascinating places. Though we have mapped most of them, we don’t really know everything there is to know about these environments. We certainly don’t know about all the creatures that live in them, but we do know about some of them, and we are going to meet just a few of these creatures in the poems in this book.

   Douglas Florian is a poet who has a gift for injecting humor into his poems. Often this humor is quirky. For example, in the very first poem we meet a catfish whose tone sounds rather annoyed. The reason for its annoyance is that it wants to make it perfectly clear that it is a fish, not a cat. Nor, for that matter, does have any wish to be a cat.

   Next we meet a salmon and the poem is cleverly presented so that we have to read up the page, just as salmon have to swim upstream to spawn. The poem about the sawfish is also presented in a unique way. It is jagged, just like a saw, and we learn that a sawfish cannot cut “A two-by-four,” or “build a bed.” It has its “splendid” saw so that it can get its fish dinner and it eats the fish raw, which means that is doesn’t have to “do dishes.”

   The catfish is not the only aquatic creature that was given a name that really does not do it justice. The sea horse is another such animal. Seahorses have no hooves, they cannot race, and “have no legs / With which to chase.” In fact they are so unlike a real horse that their name is just plain “silly.”

   Douglas Florian has created so many wonderful poetry collections and this one is sure to entertain and delight readers, just as the others have done. Throughout the book the twenty-one poems are accompanied by wonderful paintings that have the same quirkiness that you find in the poems.

Picture Book Monday's review of Norbert: What can little me do?

I am thrilled to bring you today's picture book because I had the privilege of editing it. I can remember seeing the manuscript for the first time when it was a PDF. I fell in love with the artwork, and was delighted to work on the book. This picture book will not only charm anyone who looks at it, but it also conveys a message that is relevant to just about everyone on this planet.

Norbert: What can little me do?

Julia Freyermuth

Illustrated by Virginia K. Freyermuth

Picture Book

For ages 4 to 7

Polly Parker Press, 2013, 978-0-9848682-0-9

Norbert is a very small, fluffy, white dog and he and his person have moved to the big city. Norbert and Momma now live in an apartment way above the city streets, and on his first night Norbert lies in his little bed and wonders what he, being such a little dog, can do in the big city.

   The next day Norbert and Momma go for a walk and not surprisingly many of the children they meet want to pet Norbert. In the park Norbert sees big dogs that can bark loudly, and he meets a big horse that can pull a carriage. Norbert wishes that he too had a big voice or that he could do what a horse can do.

   The following day Norbert and Momma go back to the park. Norbert sees birds who can fly in the sky, ducks who can swim in the pond, and a squirrel, who can climb trees. Poor little Norbert cannot fly, float, or climb a tree. He cannot even climb the stairs from the subway to the street above because his legs are too short.

   It is not much fun feeling as if you can’t do anything or contribute anything. This is how Norbert, a three-pound dog, feels. He is too small to do any of the things that he thinks he would like to be able to do. What Norbert does not realize is that he, like everyone else, has something to offer, and in his case what he is looking for is right under his own sweet little nose.

   This charming, heartwarming, and inspirational book is based on the true story of Norbert, the author’s dog. Children will immediately fall in love with the pint sized dog, whose story is presented using a journal format. Wonderful artwork, a handwritten text, and a memorable story make this a book that children and their grownups will greatly enjoy reading and looking at.

  

Poetry Friday with a review of: Poetry Speaks Who I am

Though I enjoyed reading and listening to poetry when I was a child, I did not really appreciate the language, the meaning, and the form of poetry until I was a teen. Back then, in the dark ages, there were no collections of poems for teenagers, and I often read poems that did not resonate with me at all. Thankfully, this is no longer the case and today I have a review of book of poetry that will delight teenagers who enjoy reading and listening to poetry.

Poetry Speaks Who I am: Poems of discovery, inspiration,independence and everything else

Edited by Elise Paschen

Poetry with Audio CD

For ages 12 and up

Sourcebooks, 2010, 978-1-4022-1074-7

There are some wonderful collections of poetry for young children, some of which have been around for a long time, and there are excellent collections of poetry for adults. Unfortunately, the needs of teenage readers are often overlooked when it comes to poetry. In this poetry book there is a “highly unusual collection – coming-of-age-moments caught next to classics next to grieving, kitchen tables, Cinderella, dragons, and school periods.” The editors of this book asked poets from around the United States to share the poems that touched them when they were teenagers. They also asked poets to submit poems that they have written that they think will resonate with teenage readers.

   Growing up is all too often a painful process full of high moments, and an awful lot of low ones. What is interesting is that these same years are often the ones when young people are most drawn to poetry, which is why it is odd that no one has created a collection like this before. The poems in the collection beautifully capture those moments in the life of a teenager that are so bright with emotion, newness, and confusion.

   Some of the poems are modern, capturing moments and images that can only be found in the modern world and yet have a timeless feel to them. One of these poems is Mascara by Elizabeth Spires. In this poem we see two sisters who are ten years apart in age. One is applying mascara and she belongs to a world the younger sister knows so little about. They are separated by their ages and by “old injuries, forgotten but not entirely / forgiven,” and yet they are also close.

   Then there are poems that are from another time. If I can stop one heart from breaking by Emily Dickinson is just such a poem. It is short but addresses an issue that most teens think about at some point. What are they going to do with their life? Are they going to serve themselves and “live in vain,”or are they going to be the kind of person who will “stop one heart from breaking” or “ease one life the aching.”

   This book has an added dimension because there is an accompanying audio CD with forty-seven tracks. Most of the poems on the CD are read by the poets who created them,  and many are original poems that the reader can only read (and hear) in this collection.