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
At last! A book that seeks to answer the burning question: What do you do with a grumpy kraken?Crabby, cranky, crusty kraken?What do you do with a grumpy kraken?Kraken in the briny. Text ©Lynn Becker Illustration ©Scott Brundage (My apologies for the washed out colors. The pages are quite glossy and do not photograph well.) … Continue reading Monsters in the Briny – Perfect Picture Book Friday
In my early teens, ©️I learned to play The Entertainer, loving its rhythm and the feeling that my hands were somehow accomplishing great feats while I enjoyed the song (after many hours of brainwork and practice that it took to keep my left hand hitting the backbone notes while my right hand capered off to … Continue reading King of Ragtime – Perfect Picture Book Friday
How often do we find a picture book that combines rhyme with genetics? Hmmmm....never! Until now. Text ©️Rajani LaRocca Illustration ©️Steven Salerno Why aren't you fuzzy like a dog,or buzzy like a bee?Why can't you eat ants with your nose,or breathe beneath the sea? Questions lead to questions until we start getting answers: Text ©️Rajani … Continue reading The Secret Code Inside You – Perfect Picture Book Friday
No Perfect Picture Book Friday post for me this week. It's time again for Susanna Hill's Halloweensie contest! Hundreds of writers join in the fun each year. Rules: 1) Entries must be 100 words or less, not including title; 2) Must contain some form of the words: goodies, glow-in-the-dark, and goosebumps; 3) must not contain … Continue reading Swamp Beast Bewitched by Sweets – Halloweensie Contest Entry
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
Announcing a fabulous new book for all those mooooody little critters out there. You know who you are. Look at that face! Mootilda woke up in a huff with hay stuck in her hair. "What's going on? My pillow's gone. My doll's way over there!" She hugged her moomaw cow who said, "Oh sweetie, have … Continue reading Mootilda’s Bad Mood – Perfect Picture Book Friday #PPBF
I don't know about you all, but I'm desperately feeling the need for a little sweetness of spirit and connection. When this book arrived this week, it felt like it could help heal a tiny part of what's broken in our world. Swashby's an old salt, a curmudgeon, a grumpy old man who has no … Continue reading Swashby and the Sea – Perfect Picture Book Friday #PPBF
Lee Bennett Hopkins passed away earlier this year, but he left behind a massive body of work, both his own poems and ones of other poets collected for anthologies. Here we have a fine example, with a front cover that offers a glimpse of what we can expect inside. Then there's the playful back. For … Continue reading A Bunch of Punctuation – Perfect Picture Book Friday #PPBF
Jilanne Hoffmann 