It's National Poetry Month, so it's time to feature a book of poems that makes me wonder at the creativity and determination of the latest generation of young activists, the movers and shakers, protectors, caretakers, reformers and makers. NO WORLD TOO BIG features youth activists and how they're raising awareness about climate change and making … Continue reading No World Too Big – Perfect Picture Book Friday
My son went to an elementary school where they enjoyed a week of "farm" school camping, or outdoor education, every year. Each week featured hiking, sitting outside, and taking a close look (using other senses, too) at nature. As part of the program, kids wrote poems about what they observed through their senses, how it … Continue reading Animals in Surprising Shades – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Two weeks ago, I featured a picture book with a parallel structure. This week's picture book also features a parallel structure with two timelines, one that moves forward in current day, and one that moves forward in the past. Text ©Anne Wynter Illus. ©Daniel Miyares Before a grip on a branch and a fall to … Continue reading Nell Plants a Tree – Perfect Picture Book Friday
From the moment I read the first line, I new this book would be filled with lyrical moments that explores the relationship between parent and child, child and the natural world, child and friends/family members, and child and their interior world. When you ask me why your skin is brown, I will tell you that … Continue reading You Are My Favorite Color – Perfect Picture Book Friday
As a country kid at heart, I identify with city-living Frances and her itch to DO THINGS! The problem is Text ©Liz Garton Scanlon. Illustration ©Sean Qualls City walls aren't for climbing and city cats aren't for catching. (Don't you just love that alliteration and assonance?) Text ©Liz Garton Scanlon. Illustration ©Sean Qualls City rooms … Continue reading Frances in the Country – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Mirelle Ortega, one of our featured authors at Kidquake this year, is also an illustrator whose debut picture book mirrors its title. It's magic! Let me tell you about the place I'm from, a faraway land brimming with magia. Powerful magic that twists and turns and touches everything around you. Text/Illustration ©Mirelle Ortega With those … Continue reading Magic: Once Upon a Faraway Land – Perfect Picture Book Friday
What can I say about a book that is so lyrical, so beautifully (and classically) illustrated, and holds up to read after read after read that there is nothing left to say? Well, I do have more to say: This is a story about Ruth Krauss, a child who always finds a way to be … Continue reading A Story Is to Share – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Ladies and gentlemen! Please silence your cell phones and keep those crinkly candy wrappers in your pockets. For your viewing pleasure, I present to you The Crab Ballet!! Sea creatures spring to life in this lyrical, rhyming performance of a picture book, complete with French classical ballet terminology. But first! First! the announcer must make … Continue reading The Crab Ballet – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Being a farmer's daughter, I am a fan of dirt and nature in all of its gritty wonderfullness. I also love how poetry helps kids understand science concepts, because they often engage with poems in a different way than if it's just straight prose. That said, the text on the first spread is written in … Continue reading The Dirt Book – Perfect Picture Book Friday
When I think of the hundreds of years of colonial oppression of indigenous cultures around the world, I wonder how some cultures still survive. And then I read a story like Child of the Flower-Song People, and I realize that those cultures, or the knowledge contained within those cultures, still exist because of individuals who … Continue reading Child of the Flower-Song People – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Jilanne Hoffmann 