Picture Book Review: Acorn Was a Little Wild by Jen Arena, illustrated by Jessica Gibson (3/15/2022)

 

Quick Booktalk

A free-spirited acorn lives every experience to the fullest - even being planted underground and changing into an oak tree.

About the Illustrations 

This book's autumnal color scheme and earthy textures bring to life the backdrop of the natural world against which cartoonish Acorn and his squirrel neighbors live. Though the story is fantastical, light and color work together to immerse the reader in a realistic forest environment.

Story Time Possibilities

This is a very contemporary and conversational book, and it's the exact kind of thing I loved to read aloud during class visits when I worked in the library. It can stand on its own as a single read-aloud or it would for a whole host of themes: growth, trees, fall, having a positive attitude, forests, and even squirrels. Potential books to pair with it include Ol' Mama Squirrel by David Ezra Stein, Fall is Not Easy by Marty Kelley, and the Pete the Cat series. 

Readers Advisory

The tone of this book is not quite irreverent, but it's not a tame, gentle text either. The author uses slang phrases like "so chill" and there is one reference to fox urine. I have less of a problem when animal bodily functions are mentioned in a natural setting than when books include human-based toilet humor, so I didn't judge this book harshly for this one detail. My kids don't really know what "chill" means but I think they can figure out from the context.

Disclosure 

I received a finished copy of Acorn Was a Little Wild from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.

Picture Book Review: Here We Come! by Janna Matthies, illustrated by Christine Davenier (3/15/2022)

Quick Booktalk

A small boy playing a flute begins an evening parade, inviting human and anthropomorphic animal friends to join him with musical instruments and other methods of making noise. 

About the Illustrations

The illustrations use a lot of blue and white to create the effect of moonlight on the nighttime parade. Each figure is drawn with light, playful strokes that suggest their various movements as the parade processes. The reader can almost feel the rhythm of the text in the postures of the figures. 

Story Time Possibilities

The text in this book begs to be read aloud, as it uses a lot of onomatopoetic expressions and repetition that lend themselves well to spoken performance and audience participation. I read it to a group that included someone of every age from infant up to 10 years old, and everyone liked it. The ending, which seems to lose the main thread of the story, was a bit confusing, but not to the point that the kids didn't enjoy it. 

Readers Advisory 

This book feels very similar to We're Going on a Bear Hunt. It also reminds me a lot of some other books I've received for review in the last year or two, like Ear Worm by Jo Knowles and The More the Merrier by David Martin, as well as the recently released Would You Come Too? by Liz Garton Scanlon. Christine Davenier is a long-time favorite illustrator of mine. She also did Early One Morning by Mem Fox. 

Disclosure

I received a review copy of Here We Come! from Beach Lane Books in exchange for an honest review.

Picture Book Review: I Love You, Mouse by John Graham, illustrated by Tomie dePaola (3/29/22)

Quick Booktalk

A young boy expresses his love to a series of animals, imagining how he would show affection for each one if he were a member of their species, too. 

About the Illustrations

The artwork in this book is done by Tomie dePaola in his instantly recognizable signature style. His animals are not strictly realistic, but their warm, kid-friendly features hint at their animal characteristics. On each spread, the boy appears on the right, and the animals on the left. 

Story Time Possibilities

I read this at story time this week, and I made it a bit interactive by asking the kids to make a sound appropriate to each animal after I read each spread. This was a great success, and even the oldest kids (ages 6, 7, 8, and 10) got into it. For the rabbit page, I asked them to make a rabbit face. For the page at the end with the little boy being put to bed by his dad, I asked them to say, "Shhhh," which quieted them down to transition into the next book. I paired the book with "When Cows Get Up in the Morning." It also would have worked with something like "Old MacDonald" or with "Goodnight" by Laurie Berkner. In addition to the typical animals theme and the noisy theme for which I used it, this book could be good for a toddler-appropriate Valentine's Day story time. 

Readers Advisory

As far as I can tell, this book is the original 1976 text with the same illustrations, except the pictures are now colored and not just black and white.  The text and artwork don't seem to have been updated in any way in terms of content, and the story has an overall timeless feel.  My 2-year-old son who is really interested in animals took a special liking to this book. He's very fond of the owl page. He seems to be the ideal target audience. 

Disclosure 

I received a review copy of I Love You, Mouse from Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.

Picture Book Review: The Big Book of Outdoors by Tim Hopgood (3/29/2022)

Quick Booktalk 

This brightly-colored volume is a collection of facts, poems, and illustrations celebrating the great outdoors.

About the Illustrations

Tim Hopgood uses his signature style to bring various aspects of nature to life. Some of his artwork is more abstract and impressionistic; other pages feature more technically correct representations of plant and animal life. Every page is bursting with color and full of interesting textual and visual details to pore over. 

Story Time Possibilities

This isn't really a book to be read in one sitting, but certainly a page or two could be used in a story time or classroom to introduce a concept. The pictures certainly lend themselves well to being shown to an audience.

Readers Advisory

This book is divided into four seasonal sections, which makes it a handy book to use in a homeschool or brick-and-mortar school setting. Some of the items included are not necessarily unique to the season in which they are placed, but it is helpful to have seemingly disparate items organized in some way. In terms of content this book reminds me a lot of Outside Your Window: A First Book of Nature by Nicola Davies. I think it is most appealing to the 4-to-7-year-old age group, though my art-loving 8-year-old also seems interested.

Disclosure

I received a finished review copy of The Big Book of Outdoors from Candlewick Studio in exchange for an honest review.