Books of Hope - Tarra and Bella: The elephant and dog who became best friends

One of the things I love about books is the way in which stories can uplift us. A happy ending makes us feel that good things can happen in this world, especially if the story we are reading is true. Today's Book of Hope contains just such a story. It is about an unlikely friendship that exists between two very different species of animals. Through the story we see how friendship can grow and prevail even in the most unlikely of situations. This is a powerful thing to see because, after all, friendships based on mutual respect and love really do help to make our lives worth living.

Tarra and Bella: The elephant and dog who became best friends

Carol Buckley

Nonfiction Picture Book

Ages 4 to 8

Penguin, 2009, 978-0-399-25443-7

Tarra the Indian elephant lives on the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. She was the first elephant to live at the sanctuary, and she likes to welcome all the new arrivals personally. Every elephant who arrives at the sanctuary soon develops a special relationship with another elephant. Winkie and Sissy are best friends, as are Dulary and Misty. However, Tarra has never found that special elephant friend and she is alone.

   One day Tarra meets a stray dog called Bella. When Tarra walks off, Bella follows her and Tarra is delighted by this development. The friendship between these two very different animals flourishes, and Tarra and Bella become inseparable. Then Bella gets very ill and the friends were separated, which makes both the animals extremely unhappy.

   As they read this very moving picture book, readers will discover that friendship can truly cross extraordinary boundaries. Though they are very different in size, and speak different languages, and eat different food, and have very different histories, Tarra and Bella have connected on a special level.

   With a simple text and wonderful full-color illustrations, this is a picture book that will charm readers of all ages.

Picture Book Monday with a review of Not Quite Narwhal

One of the things that many children struggle with is finding out where they belong in the complex society that often dominates their social life. When I was young I certainly had a hard time figuring out where I fit in. The story in this beautiful picture book describes the journey that a young narwhal makes. Through him we get to see that sometimes the best way to solve the "where do I belong" problem is to follow your heart.

Not Quite Narwhal

Jessie Sima

For ages 5 to 7

Picture Book

Simon and Schuster, 2017, 978-1-4814-6909-8

Kelp was born in the ocean and it soon became clear that he wasn’t quite like the other narwhals. His horn was short, he did not like eating squid, and his swimming skills were not of the best. This was not really surprising when you consider that he did not have fins and a big flat tail suitable for swimming. Instead, Kelp had a flowing tail and legs, which was rather odd. Thankfully, none of Kelp’s narwhal friends minded that he different, and so “Kelp decided he wouldn’t either.”

   One day Kelp was swept away by a current and was carried to the surface. When we poked his head out of the water he saw that he was very close to the land, and standing on a headland, illuminated by the moon, was an animal that looked just like him.

  Kelp overcame his fear of the land, figured out how to walk on it, and then began to explore, hoping to find the creature that he had seen on the headland. Eventually, after walking through a forest, he found the creature and many others like it. Kelp thought that the animals with manes, tails, and legs were land narwhals, but it turned out that they were unicorns. And he was one too!

   Kelp was delighted to get to know the unicorns and to find out things about himself that he did not know, but there was a problem. He missed his home in the sea and the friends that he had there.

   In this incredibly sweet and heartwarming picture book story, we watch as a little animal struggles to figure out where he belongs. Many people face this very same problem, and seeing how Kelp finds a solution is uplifting. This story is a celebration of acceptance and inclusivity.

Picture Book Monday with a review of Over and Under the Pond

Nature is full of miracles, big and small. For me, being out in nature is soothing, healing, and grounding. For this reason I review a lot of books about the natural world, and I was delighted when today's book arrived in the mail. The book takes us on a journey of exploration. Paddling around in a canoe with a boy and his mother, we see the creatures and plants that can be found under and above the water in a pond.

Over and under the pond

Kate Messner

Illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal

Picture Book

For ages 5 to 7

Chronicle, 2017, 978-1-4521-4542-6

One day a mother and her son climb into their canoe and paddle out onto the pond. Looking into the water, and seeing something moving beneath the surface, the boy asks his mother “What’s down there?” She tells her son that beneath them is a “whole hidden world” full of creatures of all kinds.

   As they paddle past rushes, whirligig beetles skate across the surface of the water. Below, minnows swim in the grassy forests where brook trout wait for them. The boy and his mother see painted turtles sunning themselves on a log and watch as they drop into the water as the people approach.

   Among the cattails a red-winged blackbird carries grass in her beak to build a nest. Below, on the bottom of the pond, a caddisfly larva builds a nest around herself using sand and little pebbles.

   The visitors see a moose standing in the water munching waterlilies, and beneath the surface a beaver gathers tasty roots to eat. Young animals above and below the surface prepare to take the next step into adulthood: a goldfinch readies itself to fly, and tadpoles transition into becoming frogs.

   All around the boy and his mother, as the day changes from morning to afternoon to evening, above and below the surface of the pond, animals go about their business seeking out food, avoiding predators, caring for the babies, and building their homes.

   This wonderful book takes readers through a day spent paddling across a pond. We get to know the birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, mammals, and fish that call the pond their home, and see how they coexist in their beautiful environment. At the back of the book readers will find further information about pond ecosystems and the animals mentioned in the book.

Poetry Friday with a review of Animal Naps

Most people will admit (more or less freely) that when they see a sleeping child or animal they get a little squishy feeling inside. I am one of these people, and therefore my Facebook page is crowded with photos of my sleeping cats and dogs. I was therefore attracted to this book from the very start. I saw the cover and had to suppress an immediate "awwwww." The fact that the book pairs gorgeous photos of sleeping animals with beautiful poems made it a must-read title for me. I hope you get the chance to read the book for yourself.

Animal Naps

Catherine Ham

Poetry Picture Book

For ages 5 to 7

Earlylight Books, 2011, 978-0-9832014-1-0

There is something incredibly appealing about a sleeping animal, even an animal that is normally considered scary. At that moment, with their eyes closed, they are vulnerable and even cute. At that moment we can admire them (or gawp at them) knowing that they are not going to run, fly, or slither off.

   In this wonderful book the author pairs beautiful photos of sleeping animals with poems, giving us a unique frozen moment in time to look at all kinds of animals when they are dozing, snoozing, and napping.

   She begins with a trio of shar pei puppies that are piled up, their wrinkly skin loose and rippled, their eyes scrunched shut. She asks us if we think that “maybe they’re dreaming / of growing to fit into their skin.”

   Next there is a fox and we learn from the poem that foxes on their own don’t sleep in a den. As far as the lone fox is concerned “Almost any place will do.” The fox settles down on the ground and drops off after it has wrapped its “warm tail around his face.”

   Koalas are a little more particular about where they sleep. They tend to prefer a fork in a tree that offers them a secure place to nap, which they do for many hours every day.  

   Sloths also sleep in trees, which is not surprising as they rarely come down to the ground. These strange animals favor sleeping upside down. The author wonders if we should “give that a try, you and me?”

  In all, the author of this book gives us twenty-four animal portraits to enjoy. In many of the poems she provides readers with information about the featured animal, telling us about their habits, what they eat, where they live and more. The poetry forms she uses vary greatly, and readers will be delighted at the touches of humor that can be found in many of the verses.  

Books of Hope - What Goes up

Have you ever noticed how many You Can't and You Shouldn't people are out there? There are a lot of them. They are the ones who tell us that our wishes can't come true, and that we shouldn't even try to make them a reality. They are the ones who tell us that we are the wrong shape to be dancers, that we are too old to learn a new skill, or that we are too young to build something from nothing. They are negative people who pull us down. Thankfully, there are a lot of people out there who are the opposite. These are the people who support us and encourage us; they often help us to pursue that thing that matters to us.

In today's Book of Hope you will meet a dragon who has a dream. He wants to fly. The problem is that Martin the dragon has wings that are so small that they can't even get him off the ground, let alone propel him through the air. Martin does not give up on his dream, and neither do his friends.

What Goes Up
Paula Bowles
Picture Book
For ages 6 and up
Tiger Tales, 2013   ISBN: 978-1589251199
Martin the dragon is sad, and the children in the village, who love Martin, are worried about their scaly friend. When they ask him what is wrong, Martin explains that he wishes he could fly. Unfortunately, his wings are just too small to support his body, and inevitably “What goes up, must come down.”
   Then Martin sees a bumblebee buzz by and he gets a splendid idea. “Stripes must be the key to flying,” he says and he quickly paints some stripes on his body. Alas, stripes are not what Martin needs.
   After Martin sees autumn leaves drift by on the breeze he decides that what he needs to do to fly is to be in a tree. Then he, like the leaves, will be carried off by the wind. After sitting in the tree for quite some time, Martin determines that dragons and leaves do not behave in the same way.
   Martin tries to be fluffy like a cloud, but when he - wrapped in dandelion fluff - leaps into the air, he and his fluff crashes to the ground. Poor Martin is feeling “so low” that the children decide to take him in hand. There must be something that they can do to help their friend.
   Sometimes something we want very badly indeed seems completely out of reach. No matter how hard we try, that coveted something is unattainable. This charming, funny, and delightfully sweet picture book story will remind readers of all ages that one cannot give up hope. With a little help from our friends, we can achieve just about anything our heart desires, even when our wings seem too small for the job.

Picture Book Monday with a review of Hank has a dream

Stories are powerful things, and sometimes the best gift we can give to those we love are the stories that we know. The sharing of a tale becomes a shared experience, and it is also allows us to give someone we care about our time and our companionship.

Today's book, with its gorgeous photographic artwork and its charming main character, celebrates the joy that storytelling gives to the teller and the listener.

Hank has a dream

Rebecca Dudley

Picture Book

For ages 5 and up

Peter Pauper Press, 2014, 978-1-4413-1158-0

One morning Hank wakes up and he runs to tell his friend the hummingbird all about the wonderful dream that he had. In the dream, Hank, who is alone, flies up into the sky in a hot air balloon. One would expect that little Hank might be afraid to go on such an adventure up into the sky, but he is not afraid at all.

   Hank shows his little friend how, in his dream, he sailed down a path, a path that is much like the real path that wends its way through their forest home. As he sits on a little bridge over a stream Hank tells the hummingbird how the path led “all the way to the sea.”

   In his dream Hank went higher and higher; he went far away, “past the trees” and up into the clouds, and then above them. Then he came “whooshing down” again. Hank never imagines that the description of his dream is going to have a profound effect on his little avian friend; that his dream is going to become a story worth hearing over and over again.

   This charming picture book brings back the little monkey that we met in Hank Finds An Egg. This time Hank shares something precious with a best friend, and at the end of the narrative we see how he goes on to give his friend an even greater gift.

   Using handmade characters made of fabric and felt, and wonderful backgrounds using paper, fabric and other materials, the author of this book has created an atmospheric picture book that will charm readers of all ages.

Poetry Friday with a review of Underneath my bed: List Poems

I have always been a list writer. Lists help me focus, and crossing things off my lists makes me feel as if I have accomplished something. In all the years that I have been writing lists, it never occurred to me that they could actually be creative. I was therefore tickled pink when I came across today's poetry title. It turns out that a list can actually be a poem! Who knew.

Underneath my bed: List Poems  
Brian P. Cleary
Illustrated by Richard Watson
Poetry
For ages 6 to 8
Millbrook, 2017, 978-1-4677-9343-8
A list is just a list, right? There is nothing creative about a list because it is utilitarian; unless it is a list poem. A list poem is a list that is turned into something more. The words in such poems can rhyme or not, and they can “range in tone from serious to silly.”
   In this excellent introduction to list poems the author begins by telling us what list poems are. Then he presents us with lots of samples of this poetry form to read. For example, we visit a bus stop where we meet a group of people, all of whom are doing different things. Tonya is texting while “Tony twirls like a ballerina.” Chloe is reading, and “Luke listens to tunes.” This list may not seem like much but after you read the poem a time or two you realize how effectively it captures a moment in time, giving us a picture of the people who are who are waiting at the bus stop.
   Further on in the book we encounter a poem called Summer Camp. In it a narrator lists all the woes of summer camp life, which include, among other things, the stinging and biting insects, the “corny songs and no TVs,” and let’s not forget the bunkmate who cries every night due to an acute case of homesickness. There is no doubt that camp can really be “a bummer,” and yet the narrator still “can’t wait till I come back next summer!”
   The topics covered in these poems will certainly resonate with young readers. There is a poem about the ties a teacher wears to school, one about the stuff a child stashes under his bed, another about the reasons why dinosaurs went extinct, and much more.
   All in all this is a wonderful poetry collection. Perhaps best of all, young readers will see that something as mundane as a list can be turned into something creative, amusing, or thought- provoking.
 
 

Books of Hope - Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures

Sometimes life gives us so many knocks that we give up hoping that good things can happen. Our cynical outlook protects us from being disappointed when things go wrong. If we are really lucky something or someone comes along that changes our attitude. We learn that living without hope and optimism, love and laughter is not living at all.

Today's Book of Hope title introduces us to a squirrel, who by some miracle, comes into the life of a girl who desperately needs to relearn how to live again.

Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures
Kate DiCamillo
Illustrator:  K.G. Campbell
Fiction
For ages 8 to 12
Candlewick Press, 2013, 978-0763660406
There was a time when Flora was happy, when she perhaps dared to let a little hope to sneak into her heart. Now, since her parent’s divorce, Flora has become a true “natural-born cynic.” She expects nothing good to happen, and unfortunately most of the time this is exactly what happens. She lives by the words “do not hope: instead, observe.”
   Then one day something happens that turns everything upside down. It all begins when one of the neighbors, Mr. Tickham, gives his wife Tootie a new vacuum. She is not thrilled by the gift and does not really want to try it out but he insists. Since it is a “multi-terrain” device, they take it outside, where it goes berserk. Flora is reading an issue of her favorite superhero comic and she looks out of the window just in time to see the vacuum cleaner suck up a squirrel.
   In spite of her determination not to get involved in other people’s issues, Flora runs outside and she manages to get the squirrel out of the vacuum, and then she does CPR on the little creature. The squirrel, who is in the process of dying, reverses his journey and comes back to the land of the living. The thing is that he has changed. He still thinks a lot about food, which is what squirrels think about most of the time, but he also understands human speech and appreciates beauty and love.
   Flora quickly realizes that the squirrel, whom she calls Ulysses, is special. She realizes that he understands her, and they become instant best friends. Flora, Tootie, and Tootie’s great-nephew William soon find out that Ulysses loves words. During his first night living with Flora, Ulysses discovers her mother’s typewriter and he writes a poem, carefully typing out the words. Later he writes another poem on Tootie’s computer. Tootie, William, and Flora are thrilled. Flora’s romance-novel-writing mother, Phyllis, is not. When Flora’s father, George, comes to take Flora out for the afternoon, Phyllis insists that George “put the squirrel out of its misery.”
   George has no real intention of killing Ulysses, and after the squirrel saves him from a vicious cat, George becomes yet another person who grows fond of Ulysses. Will his support be enough to convince Phyllis that Ulysses should stay with Flora?
   In this charming, sweetly funny book Kate Di Camillo explores the nature of love and friendship. We watch as Ulysses, who has his own peculiar form of magic, helps the humans he encounters by showing them how to accept and to give love to others.
   Throughout the book the text is complimented by illustrations and by sections of graphic novel type art.

Picture Book Monday with a review of The Tree: A Fable

Many of us go through life not properly thinking about how our actions affect nature. We pave over a wild meadow, cut down trees, and throw trash out of car windows without considering that doing these things will change the lives of countless animals and plants.

Today's picture book in very minimal and yet it shows to great effect how two people learn that sometimes we need to change our plans to accommodate the needs of others.

The Tree: A Fable

Neal Layton

Picture Book

For ages 4 to 6

Candlewick Press, 2016, 978-0-7636-8952-0

On the side of a mountain there is a tall tree, standing on its own. The tree provides many different kinds of animals with a home. A bird’s nest sits high up near the top of the tree. Lower down there is a squirrel’s nest, and in the trunk of the tree a family of owls lives in a hollow. Deep beneath the tree a family of rabbits lives in a series of burrows.

   What these animals don’t know is that the tree is standing on a piece of land that is for sale. One day a young couple drives up in a pickup truck that is loaded down with building supplies and tools. They have bought the land and they plan on building their dream house right where the tree is standing. The first thing that they are going to have to do is to get rid of the tree, and so they start sawing away at the trunk.

   As they saw through the wood, their cuts makes the tree’s trunk vibrate. The parent owl flees from its hollow, the bird nest falls to the earth, and the rabbits rush out from their burrow and run away. The couple looks down and they see the nest full of baby birds lying on the ground. They are expecting a baby of their own and seeing the little babies in such dire straits breaks their hearts. What have they done?

   All too often we humans do not see that our actions have a negative impact on the environment. We do not see the homeless animals and the scarred landscape. This incredibly simple yet powerful story shows to great effect how important it is to have compassion for all living things, and how, with a little creativity, we can cohabit with our wild animal neighbors.

Poetry Friday with a review of One minute to Bedtime: 60 Second poems to send you off to sleep

When by daughter was little, every night we would go through a series of rituals. She would have her bath and put on her jim jams, and then she brush her teeth and her hair. Then, up in her bedroom, she would choose the stuffed animals she was going to sleep with, and the book she wanted me to read to her. After story time we would turn out the main light and she and I would sing our goodnight song together. Of course, Elise would try to find ways to prolong her bedtime. She would ask for another story, another round of our song, a different stuffed animal...and so on.

Today's poetry title was written for children of course, but it was also written for all those wonderful, patient grownups who have to put procrastinating little ones to bed every night. The book is packed with short little poems that are perfect for those "just one more" moments. They give little children a little something extra before they finally close their eyes and go to sleep.

One minute to Bedtime: 60 Second poems to send you off tosleep

Selected by Kenn Nesbitt

Illustrated by Christoph Niemann

Poetry Book

For ages 4 to 6

Little Brown, 2016, 978-0316341219

Many grownups hear, on a regular basis, the words “just one more!” at bedtime; one more story is required before the light can be switched off. The child in their life is sleepy, warm, and cozy in bed, and yet he or she is not quite ready to fall asleep. Almost, but not quite.

  This book of poems is just the thing to pull off the shelf when those words are uttered. The collection is packed with short poems that “feed the imagination, fuel the love of reading,” and send the child “off to sleep in a snap.”

   We begin with a poem called Whew! which takes us through the evening and bedtime rituals of a young child. Dinner is eaten, the trash is taken out, the child gets clean, and teeth are brushed. Pajamas are slipped on, pillows are fluffed, and Ted is picked up and carried off to bed. It is only after all these things are done that the child is at last free “to read.”

   Then there is a poem about how every book we read “makes a home inside your head.” In another a child tells us how much he or she likes “old stories” that are full “inky drawings of  / enchanted castles, clanking chains, / pirate treasure” and many other marvelous things. The child does not mind that the storybooks that contain these tales are dusty, and that they have tattered pages. After all, the stories that lie between the covers might be old, but once, perhaps many years ago, they “were new.”

   In addition to books and stories, bedtime would not be complete without stuffed animals. In the poem Stuffed Animal Collection by Eileen Spinelli, we encounter a child who has so many stuffed animals that the mother calls her child’s bedroom a zoo.

   In this book there are poems of every flavor, color, shape, and size. In short, there is something here for every mood and inclination, and each one is a perfect gem that is just right for that, almost-asleep-but-not-quite interlude.