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
Hello everyone! Taking a break this week to enjoy my son being home from college. Which means I'm back to making lots of food, LOL. Love it! Love him to pieces! Here are a couple of photos I took of The Last Bookstore in Los Angeles. Part bookstore. Part art gallery. Lots of cozy nooks. … Continue reading Family Downtime & The Last Bookstore
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
I will go out on a limb and say that if you read only one picture book this year, it should be this one. Okay, the limb is creaking because there are so many wonderful picture books, but this one should truly be at the top of your list. Watercress is about memory. It's about … Continue reading Watercress – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Need a book that will make your energetic child beg to go to bed? Here it is: And if the cover didn't give you a clue as to the energy level of this book, the dedication page will. Enter, dog with football as the family appears to be arriving home from a game. Football fans … Continue reading Huddle Up! Cuddle Up! – Perfect Picture Book Friday #PPBF
I was leafing through a pile of picture books (imagine that!), and found this gem. Daniel Minter's acrylic wash illustrations are vibrant and luminous in this 2019 Caldecott Honor book. They make me feel like I am peering through the translucent glass of time at a memory. Pure magic. On reunion morning, we rise before … Continue reading Going Down Home With Daddy – Perfect Picture Book Friday #PPBF
In honor of tomorrow's game, I'm reblogging a post from May 2012, a tribute to my German heritage. When my son came out of his bedroom this morning wearing black sweatpants tucked into the tops of his yellow soccer socks and a red shirt to celebrate family heritage day at school, I knew I … Continue reading Spätzle (Spaetzle) 911 — aka U.S. vs Germany, World Cup
A couple of weeks ago, I told you about my husband's cousins who are hiking the Appalachian Trail with their two children. The children were reciting from Moby Dick and Frost's "The Road Less Traveled." NPR caught wind of the family's adventure and interviewed them on the trail. While there was no recitation during the … Continue reading Appalachian Trail Hikers on NPR
Peter Hoffmann, editor and publisher of the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Newsletter, a forward-thinking energy policy reporter extraordinaire, and my father-in-law, died April 18, 2014. He was 78. Peter, we will miss your humor, particularly your puns, your tender heart for animals, your curiosity, and your quick intellect. I'm thinking your afterlife involves sipping a … Continue reading Peter Hoffmann – Hydrogen Guru
Jilanne Hoffmann 