For the longest time, I've been in love with Nancy Vo's fictional stories, my two favorites being The Ranger and The Outlaw, the first two in the Crow trilogy. The third is slated for publication in 2024. I had planned on waiting until July to feature this nonfiction book, but I love it so much, … Continue reading Boobies – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Attention musicians! Well, really anyone who wants to be inspired by a woman who created "her own story," who didn't "wait for things to happen" to her, who "made her own opportunities." Text ©Shannon Stocker Illustration ©Devon Holzwarth Here is Evelyn, enjoying life on her family's farm in Aberdeen, Scotland. This image took me back … Continue reading Listen: How Evelyn Glennie, a Deaf Girl, Changed Percussion – Perfect Picture Book Friday
First a tiny taste of what makes Big and Small and In-Between so special. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOuj347HKHw Text ©Carter Higgins Illustration ©Daniel Miyares The unusual paper art in this book is a treat. There are a handful of instances throughout for the reader to discover, and the ending is a wonderful, inevitable surprise! I'm really trying to … Continue reading Big and Small and In-Between – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Perfect for those little scientists, or for kids who love nature and its amazing idiosyncrasies. Actually, most kids and adults love this kind of info. Text ©Jennifer Ward. Illustration ©Alexander Vidal The story is told in rhyming couplets that provide information about each symbiotic relationship, with an additional layer of text that provides more details … Continue reading Just You and Me – Perfect Picture Book Friday
If I were that krill, I'd be looking for the emergency exit right now. Good thing there's strength in numbers, or at least enough survivors to ensure the production of billions more. The cover gives the reader an important clue: this is not going to be a dull book about sea creatures. It's going to … Continue reading Good Eating: The Short Life of Krill – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Sometimes lives that appear beautiful from the outside, are not so beautiful on the inside. At least they didn't start out beautifully. Such is the case for a baby girl named Elsa, a girl instead of the boy her parents had wanted. A girl who is named after a nurse in the hospital, because her … Continue reading Bloom: A Story of Fashion Designer Elsa Schiaparelli – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Here's another exquisitely beautiful book in translation from 2021 that nearly missed my radar. Of course it's published by Enchanted Lion. You might think you know what a river is: a strip of water that flows from a source(s) to a delta, whether the mouth of the delta is on the ocean like the Mighty … Continue reading What Is a River? – Perfect Picture Book Friday
When I first heard Maggie Tokuda-Hall talk about her book based on her grandparents, I knew I had to have it for my own library. It's a true story about how love can miraculously be found under the most trying of circumstances. Take note of the armed guard in the tower outside the window of … Continue reading Love in the Library – Perfect Picture Book Friday
I don't know why, but ever since I watched Chicken People, the documentary about people who breed and show chickens, I've found chickens to be somewhat engaging. And after reading this book, I find them fascinating, too. Did you know they can count up to four? Cats can only count up to three. (oh, the … Continue reading Chickenology – Perfect Picture Book Friday
I'm taking a step back into 2020 for this week's featured book. The mix of STEM, humor, and subversiveness was too good to pass up. Check out that florescent pink! Text/Illustration ©Anna McGregor Meet Anemone Text/Illustration ©Anna McGregor Anemone hates "being stuck here with the boring barnacles." Cue the snickers. Especially when you look closely … Continue reading Anemone is Not the Enemy – Perfect Picture Book Friday
Jilanne Hoffmann 