April Recommendations

April Recommendations highlight these excellent 2023 Picture Book Gold Releases (Part One):

In the delightful SOMETHING WILD, by Molly Ruttan, Hannah loves to play her violin, but she gets nervous when she thinks about playing in front of other people. On the day of the big recital, Hannah wishes for “something wild” to happen” so she won’t have to play. She dreams up a series of fantastical scenarios, but the wildest—and most wonderful—thing happens when Hannah is onstage. This lighthearted, whimsical look at stage fright is lovingly “brought to life with charcoal, pastel, acrylic paint, and digital media.”

LITTLE OTTER and LITTLE WALRUS, are part of a series of warm and tender board books written by Julie Abery and illustrated by Suzie Mason. In the first, Little Otter spends time with mama, learning, playing, and eating a tasty meal of shellfish. In the second, Little Walrus spends a day “sliding” and “gliding” on the ice, until chasing a gull means winding up “lost within the crowd”—fortunately, mama knows just how to find the young pup. Both board books have sweet rhyming text and illustrations to match, making them perfect first books to share with the youngest of readers.

In TOBY TOOTLES, written by Stephanie Gibeault and illustrated by Mary Sullivan, Toby is having the “Best. Birthday. Party. EVER!” until it’s time to blow out the candles on his cake—and he accidentally farts. The kids laugh and call him names, and now Toby is having the “Worst. Birthday. Party. EVER!" So imagine his surprise when, during a visit with Grandma, a “toot escape[s] her bottom” and she doesn’t even care. “Gas happens,” she tells him. Cartoony illustrations up the fun in this fart-tastic tale about learning to take embarrassing moments in stride. Back matter reinforces and expands on the relevant takeaways.

BEE CATASTROPHE, written by Marta Magellan and illustrated by Mauro Magellan, can summed up by its opening spread: "For centuries, fields hummed with the sound of insects. Crickets chirped, katydids trilled, and honey bees buzzed…Here’s the catastrophe: Bee by bee, colony by colony, these buzzers have been disappearing.” We learn how a farmer in Florida discovered his bees were all dying, how the use of a specific pesticide has been tragic for bees and, importantly, why readers should care. Back matter shows what kids can do to help, and also includes Some Cool Facts About Bees. The heartfelt text is accompanied by accomplished illustrations, making it a strong choice to learn about this important issue.

BUSY FEET, written by Marcia Berneger and illustrated by Susanna Chapman is an upbeat, rhyming picture book for young readers. It begins: “Feet wake up,/time to play./Happy feet/out all day,” and just like that, two children go about their movement-filled day. From playground to beach, “busy feet/jump and hop” seemingly from dawn to dusk. For good measure, a series of opposites are woven into the text and emphasized with enlarged type. Short, snappy lines of text, and brightly colored, snazzy watercolor, ink, and digital illustrations, ensure this picture book will be sure to please any number of jiggly little ones!

In BUTTERNUT, written by Jill Dana and illustrated by Rachel Tan-Hwee, when the newly-picked squash wakes up in a supermarket, he searches the store to find out where he belongs. (Hint, he’s not butter or a nut.) Now, in the follow-up BUTTERNUT AND BUTTERCUP, Butternut wants to get his best friend Buttercup a birthday gift, one that will “take the cake,” but doesn’t know what that might be. He hears plenty of advice from his store-mates, but nothing seems right. Eventually, Buttercup figures out the “zestiest” solution to his problem, and the whole store enjoys Buttercup’s “par-tea.” A discussion guide and “Recipe for a Tea Party” complete the punny fun!

--Lynn