The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book one hundred and forty-three

Isn't it odd how sometimes bad things that happen end up being good things in the long run. In my case I got sick around fifteen years ago and I could no longer manage a nine to five job, so I set about trying to create some kind of job that I could do from home. This is how TTLG and CBWS came into being.

In today's picture book you will meet three animals who are galvanized into having a disagreement that could shatter their friendship. The funny thing is that somehow this turns out to be a good thing.

Three by the Sea

Mini Grey

Picture book

For ages 6 to 9

Random House, 2011, 978-0-375-86784-2

  In a beach hut by the sea, a cat, a dog, and a mouse live together peacefully. The dog tends the garden (planting bones), the cat cleans the hut, and the mouse does all the cooking (cheese fondue is his specialty). Then one night a Stranger from the Winds of Change Trading Company arrives at their doorstep. The Stranger tells the cat, dog, and mouse that they are the “Lucky Winners” of a free visit from his company.

   The next day the Stranger points out to Mouse that Dog only plants bones. Why doesn’t he plant anything else? Then the stranger gives Mouse a selection of cookbooks as a gift. Later, the Stranger shows Dog that Cat is sleeping instead of cleaning, and he gives Dog a new collar. Before dinner is served, the Stranger seeks out Cat and he asks Cat if he minds eating cheese fondue at every meal, and he gives Cat some cans of fish to eat.

   At dinner, Cat, Mouse, and Dog have a terrible argument. Cat complains about the food, Dog complains that Cat is lazy, Cat complains about the gardening, and so it goes. Poor Mouse is so upset that he packs up his things and he leaves. Without any warning, the three animals find themselves facing a terrible test.

   This thought-provoking book delves into the nature of true friendship, and it explores the idea that sometimes things have to go wrong so that everyone can see that something needs to be fixed. Children will be drawn back to this book again and again. Is the mysterious Stranger who causes so much trouble a troublemaker, or is he actually doing something good?

   With a wonderful story and unique multimedia illustrations, this memorable picture book is sure to become a favorite with young and older readers alike.

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book one hundred and forty-two

When you are young (and not so young) it can be hard to find a group of people who will accept you as you are. All too often people try to change who they are so that they can  fit in. In today's picture book you will meet a little monster who does not always behave in a monsterish way, and who has to find her place in her world without giving up part of herself in the process. 

Mostly Monsterly

Tammi Sauer

Illustrated by Scott Magoon

Picture Book

For ages 4 to 7

Simon and Schuster, 2010, 978-1-4169-6110-9

On the outside, Bernadette the monster is suitably monstrous, having a tail, two toes on each foot, fangs, and the other features that monsters are supposed to have. She usually behaves in an appropriately monstrous manner, lurching around, growling, and causing “mayhem of all kinds.” What no one knows is that Bernadette has a closely guarded secret. Sometimes, when no one else is around, Bernadette does things that are that cannot, under any circumstances, be considered monstrous. She picks flowers, pets kittens, and bakes. In short, Bernadette is “just a little too sweet.”

   When Bernadette starts to go to school it soon becomes clear that all is not well. During Creepy Noises Class Bernadette sings a love song. In Monster Mayhem Class Bernadette builds something when she should be busy destroying things. Poor Bernadette is desperate to find a way to fit in with her classmates, but what should she do?

   This clever picture book explores the idea that one can be true to oneself and fit in with others at the same time. With a humorous text and wonderful illustrations throughout, this is a picture book that will resonate with children of all kinds.

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book one hundred and forty-one

If we are lucky, some of us encounter people who help us to better understand the world we live in. They help us to appreciate what we have, and thanks to them we see and understand things in a new and more meaningful way. I have met several people who have given me the gift of better understanding, and today's book is about a boy who meets a very odd girl who helps him to see the world in a whole new way.

Earth to Audrey

Susan Hughes

Illustrations by Stephane Poulin

Picture Book

Ages 6 to 10

Kids Can Press, 2005, 978-1554531653

   Ray is having a very boring and lonely time this summer. His best friends have gone to camp, and he doesn’t have anyone to do things with. Then he meets Audrey, and his whole life changes. Ray is convinced that Audrey is an alien. Not only do her pigtails look like antenna, but Audrey doesn’t think about or see things the way he does. She likes to do things that are a little odd, like training grasshoppers and lying on the ground to look up into the sky. Thanks to Audrey, Ray finds out things about his planet that he never knew, and he comes to see it in a whole new light. In fact, Ray comes to realize how truly extraordinary and special his planet is.

   In this wonderful picture book with its evocative pictures, two children share their thoughts about the wonders of the universe. They also share something else that is powerful and special – friendship. Readers can rejoice in Ray’s imaginings about aliens, spaceships, and laser guns. Though we may think that Audrey is just an ordinary little girl who is feeling lonely, we cannot help wondering if she is in fact more than what she seems. In the end, Audrey gives Ray something more precious than gold, and she makes a believer of him.

Poetry Friday - A review of Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats

Happy Friday everyone. For today's poetry book I have a title that is perfect for people who have cats in their lives. Though the book originally came out in the 1930's, it still delights readers of all ages today. The poems in this book were the inspiration for the musical Cats, which I was lucky enough to see on stage in London when I was a child.

Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats

T.S. Eliot

Illustrated by Axel Scheffler

Poetry

For ages 6 to 10

Harcourt, 2009, 978-0-547-24827-1

   Every person who is privileged enough to share their life and home with a cat knows that cats are very singular animals. Unlike dogs, they do not ‘belong’ to humans. Instead, humans belong to their cats. Many humans do not fully appreciate the remarkable nature of cats. Luckily for us, the poet T.S. Eliot was privy to some of their secret ways. In the 1930’s he wrote a collection of poems about cats, which he included in letters to his godchildren. The poems were then collected and published in 1939, and they are still entertaining and enlightening readers of all ages today.

   Eliot begins his exploration into the world of cats by telling us that cats have three names. There is the one that the family uses daily. Then there is the name “that’s peculiar, and more dignified.” It is a name that “never belongs to more than one cat.” Jellylorum, Mankustrap, and Coricopat are good examples of this second kind of name. Finally, there is the name that only the cat knows. I cannot give you any examples of these names because they are a closely guarded secret.

   Eliot then goes on to tell us the stories of various cats, all of whom are very extraordinary creatures. There is Jennyanydots, who is a Gumbie Cat, and who is “deeply concerned with the ways of the mice.” In fact, she is so concerned that she has secretly taken on the job of improving their behavior and manners, and feeding them a good diet. This extraordinary cat even goes so far as to provide cockroaches with “employment” to keep them from being lazy and destructive.

   Rum Tum Tugger is nothing like Jennyanydots. He is a contrary kind of cat who always wants the opposite of what he has. If he is outside, all he wants to do is to come in, and if he is in, all he wants to do is to go out. He refuses to be cuddled when it suits you, but if you are sitting and sewing, he insists on jumping on your lap, which of course makes a “horrible muddle.”

   Just to make sure that you are suitably equipped to deal with a cat, Eliot explains, in great detail, how to “ad-dress a Cat.” You must NEVER treat a cat the way you would a dog. For the most part a dog is a “simple soul,” whereas a cat is a much more complex creature who must be treated with respect.

   In this wonderful edition of T.S. Eliot’s famous cat poems, the poems are paired with Axel Scheffler’s wonderful illustrations. Children and adults alike will enjoy dipping into the pages for poems that are entertaining, amusing, and enlightening.

   

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration - Book one hundred and forty

On this day in 1932 a small red plane took off from an airfield in Newfoundland. The plane was being piloted by an amazingly brave woman, and it was the beginning of  a long solo flight that would be grueling in the extreme.

In today's picture book, you can read the story of this flight and experience what Amelia Earhart experienced during those lonely hours flying above the waves.

Night Flight: Amelia Earhart Crosses the Atlantic

Robert Burleigh

Illustrated by Wendell Minor

Picture Book

For ages 6 to 8

Simon and Schuster, 2011, 978-1-4169-6733-0

   It is 7:12 in the morning on a May 20^th 1932, and Amelia Earhart is sitting in her red Vega airplane waiting to take off from an airfield in Newfoundland. At last, the time is right and the plane “rolls down the runway.” At last, the moment she has been waiting for is here, and she can “follow the wide horizon that never ends!”

   Amelia has achieved a great deal already, and now she is trying to be the first woman to fly alone across the Atlantic Ocean. She wants to do this because it has never been done before, and because Amelia wants to show the world that women are just as brave and determined as men.

   Amelia thinks that this flight will be like so many others that she has made, but it isn’t. At around midnight, Amelia flies into a storm that tosses her little red plane all over the place. Her altimeter breaks so that she has no idea how high she is. Amelia tries to fly above the storm, but ice starts to build up on the wings and the little plane gets “sluggish.” Weighed down by the ice, the plane becomes almost impossible to control.

   In this beautifully written and gorgeously illustrated picture book, the author and illustrator take the reader on a terrifying fifteen-hour flight across the Atlantic Ocean. Readers will get a very real sense of what it was like to be Amelia Earhart during that journey, and they will come to appreciate how courageous and resolute she was.

   At the back of the book, the author provides readers with further information about Amelia Earhart, and the illustrator tells us a little about Amelia’s plane.

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book one hundred and thirty-nine

Just a few days ago my daughter and I opened a box of books that Random House sent me, and when we saw the cover of this book we both said "awwww!" It is a really sweet title, and would make a wonderful book to read at bedtime or nap time.

Buglette the messy sleeper

Bethanie Deeney Murguia

Picture Book

For ages

Random House, 2011, 978-1-58246-375-9

   Buglette is a very tidy little insect. During the day, she sweeps and scrubs, tidies and arranges. Her leaf is always immaculate. However, at night Buglette is so restless that in the morning her leaf is always a mess. Her bedclothes end up in a disordered pile, and her books and pillow are akimbo. Mama Bug wishes fervently that Buglette was more like her siblings who are “such neat little sleepers.”

   After a particularly bad night, Mama Bug worries that Buglette’s “messy sleeping” will attract the attention of the crow. The idea that such a thing might happen greatly frightens Buglette’s siblings, who decide that the solution to the problem is to “put a lid on Buglette’s messy sleeping.” Which is what they do, quite literally. They never imagine that their actions could backfire in a dreadful way.

   With a truly delightful main character, and an engaging story, this tale about a restless sleeper is sure to charm young readers. Even readers who normally don’t like insects will find it impossible not to be captivated by Bugette with her purple hat, purple antenna ribbons and purple shoes.

   

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book one hundred and thirty-eight

Love is a peculiar thing. It can make you feel on top of the world, turn you into a morose lump of misery, or make you act like a crazy nutcase. It can bring out the best or the worst in a person. In today's picture book, love changes the life of an old bandicoot and it gives his existence new meaning.


Hunwick’s Egg

Mem Fox

Illustrated by Pamela Lofts

Picture Book

Ages 3 to 6

Harcourt, 2005,0-15-216318-2

   One day there is a ferocious storm, and once the clouds had cleared away, Hunwick the old bandicoot finds that a large egg is lying next to the entrance to his burrow. None of the other animals know whose egg it is, and after Cockatoo says that the egg “needs a home,” kind hearted Hunwick decides that he will be the one to take in the “lost” egg.

   All the animals wait and wait for the egg to hatch, but it doesn’t. Hunwick in the meantime talks to the egg, tells it his life story, takes care of it, cuddles it, and in general, grows to love it, but the egg still does not hatch. After a time, the other animals decide that the egg isn’t going to hatch after all, and they all feel sorry for Hunwick. Little do they know that Hunwick is not unhappy at all. Quite the contrary. The egg is his, it is a great companion, and Hunwick loves it no matter what.

   This pure, uncomplicated little story about an undemanding and true love is beautifully illustrated to show Hunwick’s spectacular Australian homeland with its plants, animals, and landscapes. On the one hand, we cannot help smiling as the story unfolds, and on the other, we have to admire Hunwick’s ability to give love.

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book one hundred and thirty-seven

Making friends when you are afflicted with shyness is never easy. I know lots of children who hide behind their mother's skirts, play by themselves, and buy their heads in book rather then break through the barrier of shyness that surrounds them. This book was written for children who feel shy, and it helps them to see how much they are missing, and how to take that first step.

Poindexter makes a friend

Mike Twohy

Picture Book

For ages 4 to 6

Simon and Schuster, 2011, 978-1-4424-0965-1

   Poindexter is a very shy young pig. He is shy when his relatives come to visit his house, and he is shy when the other children in the neighborhood ask Poindexter to come outside to play with them. In fact, he is so shy that he spends most of his time reading stories to his stuffed animals. The one place where Pointdexter doesn’t feel shy is at the library. Not only does he love to sit there and read, but he also likes to help Mrs. Polen, who is the librarian.

   One day Poindexter is helping Mrs. Polen when a turtle comes into the library asking for books about “how to make friends.” Mrs. Polen asks Poindexter to show the turtle where the book is, which the young pig is glad to do. He never suspects that this act of helpfulness is going to change his life in a big way.

   Many shy children have a hard time making friends. After all, it is not easy to leave your comfort zone when you struggle with being shy. Thankfully, children can now read about Poindexter, and through him, they will come to understand how to make friends, and what it means to be a good friend.

Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Comics Contest

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The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book One hundred and thirty-Six

When my daughter was younger she was terrified of bees, and I do mean terrified. When a bee came around she ceased to be a sensible and normally quite brave child, and she became a crying wreck. I have since discovered that many children are terrified of buzzing insects, and they think that the only way to deal with bees is to kill them as quickly as possible. 

In today's picture book you will meet a little girl who is terrified of bees, and a bee who is terrified of little girls. For once, children will see things from a different point of view, and they might even consider that perhaps bees aren't all that terrible after all. 

Jam and Honey

Melita Morales

Illustrated by Laura J. Bryant

Picture Book

For ages 4 to 6

Tricycle Press, 2011, 978-1-58246-299-8

   One day a girl goes out all by herself to pick berries so that she and her mother can make “sweet jam,” which she can put on her toast. The girl starts picking, braving the scratchy berry canes, but she cannot help feeling afraid of the bees who are buzzing around the sweet berries. Her mother tells her to hold still and she explains that the bees are there to collect the nectar.

   All goes well until the girl comes nose to nose with a bee. She is scared, but she remembers her mother’s words and holds still.

   On this same day a bee decides to go off on its own to collect nectar so that it can make honey when it gets home. The bee is afraid of the huge humans who are around, but it remembers what its mother told it, that people want berries not bees.

   The bee is happily collecting nectar when it comes face to face with a human. The bee is scared, but it remembers to fly away. There are “plenty of vines for us to share,” it thinks.

   This sweetly simple yet meaningful picture book shows young readers that they can peacefully coexist with insects, and that they can easily share nature’s bounty with them. Presented from the point of view of both the child and the bee, this book will help adults teach their children that it is important to respect all livings things, even little creatures that buzz.