Lion, Lion

LION, LION by Miriam Busch with illustrations by Larry Day. Balzer and Bray, 2014.

What can lion eat?
Too many foods disagree
Making lion sneeze.

I Like to Read

THE BIG FIB by Tim Hamilton. Holiday House, 2014.

We fibbed to Miss Finn
But felt guilty afterwards.
Then we made it right.

Imagination at Work

THE BOY WHO CRIED ALIEN by Marilyn Singer with illustrations by Brian Biggs (Disney/Hyperion 2012) has a unique format that is part GN, part picture book. It tells the story of Larry the Liar, a boy known well for his prevarications (one of the synonyms for lies in the book). Larry introduces himself to the reader in several short verses. Meanwhile, an alien ship lands. The alien language seems inscrutable (though clever readers will figure it out and there is a key and direct translations at the back of the book). Larry tries to convince everyone about the aliens, but he has little luck. Eventually, Larry helps the aliens leave Earth and head toward home. <212>




AN AWESOME BOOK by Dallas Clayton is indeed awesome (Harper 2012). The tale is all about dreams (and tie this to Langston Hughes' poem, too) and the importance of having big, even unrealistic, dreams. It is told as it were to a child at bedtime. If no one dreams big, how will we ever make any of them come true. Love the idea of a dream-etery where dreams go to die. Here is a book that should appeal as much to adult readers as to kids. <213>




We are all familiar with the old rhyme about what girls and boys are made of. However, this book gives us a new perspective at least when it comes to boys. WHAT LITTLE BOYS ARE MADE OF by Robert Neubecker are things like wings and tails and dragon scales, rocket ship to Mars, AND sugar and spice and everything nice, too. <214>

wild child

PETUNIA GOES WILD by Paul Schmid (Harper 2012) follows Petunia as she dreams of getting away from the baths and all the other "haftas" that come her way. She would rather be a pet than a child. Finally, she finds a way to solve her problems. <98>




LUCY CAN'T SLEEP by Amy Schwartz Roaring Brook, August 2012) shows Lucy trying everything she can think of to ease herself to sleep. She stands and stretches; she tries a midnight snack. Ultimately, she discovers that sitting on the porch with her bear and doll might just be the ticket. <99>




ISABELLA GIRL ON THE GO by Jennifer Fosberry with pictures by Mike Litwin (Sourcebooks 2012) follows the confident Isabella as she transforms the world around her into settings ripe for adventure. From the Great Wall of China to the pyramids and beyond, Isabella is indeed a girl on the go. <100>




FLABBERSMASHED ABOUT YOU by Rachel Vail with illustrations by Yumi Heo (Feiwel and Friends, July 2012) has my new favorite word in it: flabbersmashed. Katie and Jennifer have been best friends. But now Jennifer wants to hang out with someone else and a BOY to boot. Katie is flabbersmashed and all alone in the middle of the playground. How does one survive being flabbersmashed? <101

picture books

TRAIN MAN by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha (Holt, March 2012)is a perfect book for any child who dreams of becoming a train engineer. A young boy plays with his trains and imagines what it will be like to become a train man. He will drive the train up mountains delivering passengers safely. Of course, he will take along his little brother, too, so he can also become a train man when he grows up. <32>




HELP ME LEARN ADDITION by Jean Marzollo with photographic illustrations by Chad Phillips (Holiday House, March 2012) addresses basic math concepts with numbers from 0-20. Clear photographs allow readers to count and "manipulate" puppets, chicks, and other objects as they learn the various ways numbers can operate in addition.
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