Um, so yeah, in honor of Picture Book Month, I intended on reading and blogging about a picture book a day. And I did great until November 3. November 4th was a wild day at school, followed by some more wildness at home. Why do I always leave packing till the last minute? That, and I tried to load my relatively new iPhone with audiobooks for my trip.
On November 5, I woke early after a short and horrible night's sleep to travel to Columbus, Ohio for the American Association of School Librarians semi-annual conference. This is my first time and I was pretty psyched. Still am, each day has been jam packed, exhausting and useful. Unfortunately, I've had little time or energy for reading or blogging. I did take copious notes to refer to if and when I got around to blogging. Then I managed to delete them and now have to devote some time to recovering them.
So, Picture Book Month celebration is going on without me. I will try to catch up. Happy Picture Book Month! Have you read one today?
Toys Meet Snow by Emily Jenkins. Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky. unpgd. Schwartz & Wade Books/ Random House Children's Books, September, 2015. 9780385373302. (Won in a raffle.)
Three toys, Lumphy, the stuffed buffalo, StingRay the stuffed sting ray and Plastic, a rubber ball are left behind when Little Girl goes away for the day. It has snowed and the curious toys head outside to experience snow for the first time. Lumphy overflows with questions about snow, StingRay waxes poetic about the experience and Plastic spouts facts she read in a book. Together, the three explore, wonder about the change in landscape, try to build a snow man and find that snow angels are much easier. The double-page spread featuring their angels is so sweet! They play until the day fades into a glorious sunset, realize that they are wet and cold and return to the house to warm up and draw a picture about their adventures.
I adored the trilogy about these toys. Knowledge of the trilogy is absolutely not needed to enjoy this; but older readers of the books will delight in revisiting the toys in this gorgeous and tender picture book. Surely a must-purchase book for school and public libraries. It would make a great gift book as well. This is one I want to give to my colleague at the elementary school and want for my own collections both at the middle school and at home; so I will be purchasing a few copies. The lovely cover features the three friends sprinkled with snow and invites touching. Don't miss this gem!
Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russell-Brown. Illustrated by Frank Morrison. unpgd. lee & Low Books, August, 2014. 9781600608988. (Won)
Melba Doretta Liston was a musical prodigy born in Kansas City in 1926. When she was seven, she begged her parents for a trombone and, although she could barely hold the instrument, soon mastered it. By the time she reached high school, she was a respected musician and composer. She played with many of the jazz greats of the time, including Billie Holiday, Dizzie Gillespie, Duke Ellington and Quincy Jones.
The rhythmic text is zingy and accented by onomatopoeia. The exuberant illustrations fairly pop off the pages. This biography celebrates the life and contributions of an African-American woman who routinely confronted racism as she brought joy to fans. Even after suffering a stroke, Ms. Liston continued to compose.
This is a fine addition to the biography section of any classroom, school or public library.
November is Picture Book Month! To honor it, I will read one a day and try to review it. We'll start off with:
Mama's Blanket/ La Manta de Maya by Monica Brown. Illustrated by David Diaz. 32 p. Children's Book Press/ Lee & Low, August, 2015, 9780892396. (Won)
Oh how I adored Something from Nothing by Phoebe Gilman (Scholastic, 1993). It was also a favorite of my sons. This version is just as endearing featuring a bilingual text on the recto side with Spanish words embedded in the English side.
Maya's grandmother makes her a lovely blanket embroidered with blue butterflies but when it gets frayed, Abuelita helps her make it into a dress, then a skirt, followed by a shawl, a scarf, a bookmark and finally a hair tie. When that is lost, Maya creates a story.
Exuberantly illustrated by David Diaz, this book is a treasure from end-page to end-page. The colors are rich and the cast of characters are diverse. This would be an amazing addition to any school or Spanish classroom library.
