July Recommendations

BITSY BAT, SCHOOL STAR, written and illustrated by Kaz Windness, is about a little bat who dreams “BIG STAR dreams.” But on her first night at school, Bitsy seems to be doing everything wrong. (She hangs rather than sits, uses her feet to paint rather than her fingers, and her snacks, well, they crawl!) Finally, Bitsy has “a FIVE-STAR meltdown.” Back home, with the help of her loving family, Bitsy realizes that “everyone shines a little differently,” and she comes up with a “BIG STAR idea” to help her classmates understand. Back matter provides info on autism and an author/illustrator’s note makes it personal. Graphite and Photoshop illustrations showcase a really fun character design and palette, and they add plenty of punny humor to the buoyant text. This entertaining story never lags.

100 MIGHTY DRAGONS ALL NAMED BROCCOLI, written by David LaRochelle and illustrated by Lian Cho, is a humorous, quirky, and super-original counting book, featuring—yes—a hundred mighty dragons all named Broccoli, and they disperse in wide-ranging and unexpected ways. There’s plenty of subtraction, a bit of addition, and a surprise twist at the end. Vibrantly-colored acrylic and colored pencil dragons are full of life and personality. The zany illustrations are a perfect match for the zany text, and this whole zany book will keep even the most math-averse readers engaged.

REMEMBER, written by Joy Harjo and illustrated by Michaela Goade, beautifully celebrates “where and who you come from,” as well as poetry itself, which brings “the most secret dreams of your heart into existence.” The book is a call to remember “the sky that you were born under,” “the sun’s birth at dawn,” as well as “sundown and the giving away to night.” To remember your birth, the earth, and all in this life who “have their tribes, their families, their histories, too.” Who are “alive poems.” The striking, jewel-toned watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil illustrations invoke Tlingit creation stories and “the concept of haa shagoon, which is the understanding that our ancestors are united with the present and future generations.”

HOW TO GET YOUR OCTOPUS TO SCHOOL, written by Becky Scharnhorst and illustrated by Jaclyn Sinquett, is full of punny advice for getting your reluctant octopus to school, something you know he “will love…if he gives it a chance,” but who “would much rather stay home with you and play hide-and-seek or dress-up.” Since octopuses are very, very good at hiding, and hugging, and trying on lots of different outfits, getting him there is going to take a while. And once he’s there, well, we’ll just see who has trouble letting go. Digital illustrations are full of energy and amp up the fun. Kids should have no trouble relating to this one, and the humor still leaves room for plenty of heart.

In LIA & LUÍS: PUZZLED, written by Ana Crespo and illustrated by Giovana Medeiros, when Lia and Luís open a package from their grandma, they find “a puzzle…with a secret message.” Mamãe tells them they must hurry and finish the puzzle, and Lia and Luís figure out how to do just that. They inspect the pieces closely, and learn about sorting them based on shape, color, and size. Finally, the puzzle is done and it’s time to solve the mystery. Digital illustrations are bright and clear. There’s a glossary of Portuguese words, an author’s note, and some math activities which make this picture book even more appealing for very young readers.

AS NIGHT FALLS: CREATURES THAT GO WILD AFTER DARK, written by Donna Jo Napoli and illustrated by Felicita Sala, is a lyrical look at nighttime and the creatures that inhabit it. Beginning slowly with “some young ones, who close their eyes and nestle sweetly into sleep without a whisper,” readers will turn the page to find many “other young ones,” whose thoughts “wiggle and giggle and race to burst free.” We see how “nighttime is action time,” as the “mini go ballistic,” and the “big ones go berserk.” Bumping, striking, slither-crawl-looping and swooping verbs drive this narrative, making it sing. But, for me, it’s the wondrous and wonderful gouache, watercolor, ink, colored pencil, and oil pastel illustrations that truly set this book apart. I would happily frame any spread in this book!

--Lynn

July's Book of the Month--The Flamingo

July’s Book of the Month is The Flamingo, a grounded-yet-fanciful, mostly wordless graphic novel by Guojing.

A young girl visits her beloved Lao Lao, and together they enjoy the nearby beach and its many treasures. When the girl finds a flamingo feather in her aunt’s home, Lao Lao begins the story of finding an egg, then hatching and caring for a little flamingo. Scenes of domestic tranquility are interspersed with more whimsical ones of raising the flamingo chick, and much love permeates all.

Back home in the city, the girl dreams of—and draws—a flamingo (is it the flamingo?) on which she flies back to Lao Lao, and the two sail away, on its back, together. The girl’s book of drawings, mailed to Lao Lao, further connects the two loving relatives who live so far apart.

The expressive Photoshop, watercolor, and pencil illustrations wonderfully convey the warm relationship between child and adult, and also the wonder the flamingo brings to their world—soft and muted for reality, bright and colorful for the tale, readers will have no trouble moving between the two. A charming, magical, and lovely book!

PS: maybe it’s because I grew up in the city, but there’s a spread near the end where the child flies away on the back of the flamingo—orange-pink bird against the blue-grey-purple skyscrapers—I’m right there, and I’m flying away, too!

--Lynn

Shelf Awareness--Teddy's Midnight Adventure

PB Review: Teddy's Midnight Adventure

Teddy's Midnight Adventure by Yoko Mori, transl. by Cathy Hirano (Pushkin Children's Books, 32p., ages 3-7, 9781782694014)

In the enchanting, ethereal Teddy's Midnight Adventure, one young girl and her stuffie experience the magic of a moonlit night as they search for Teddy's lost eye.

Akiko and Teddy are playing outside until Akiko's mother calls the girl in. That's when "Teddy's eye pop[s] off and sail[s] through the air." Akiko searches, but the eye doesn't turn up. She lovingly wraps a bandage around Teddy's head and wishes she was "as small as Teddy" so she might "walk under the grass and look for it." That night, Akiko wakes to find that she is indeed very small. She leads Teddy outside and they hunt for the eye, though at first, it's nowhere to be found. The "trilling" bell crickets, Mee-chan the cat, and sleeping Mrs Crow are no help, but after a sudden rainfall Akiko and Teddy find toadstools, "balloon-like" puffball fungi, and "a forest of glowing mushrooms." By the light of these magical lamps, Akiko spots Teddy's eye. When she wakes the next morning, Akiko is "back to her normal size," and Teddy's eye is "back on his face, just like always."

Yoko Mori's story depicts what could be any child's dream: a post-bedtime adventure that transforms the comforting realm of the everyday into fantasy. Hirano's gentle translation fully expresses the magic and sweetness in Mori's picture book. Detailed gray-scale illustrations feature pops of red to highlight Akiko's clothes and the wonderful glowing mushrooms. The intricate, accomplished, often whimsical art fills Mori's nighttime world with glamour. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger, and children's book author.

Shelf Awareness--The Chaperone

YA Review: The Chaperone

The Chaperone by M Hendrix (Sourcebooks Fire, 448p., ages 13-up, 9781728260006)

In M Hendrix's compelling, vivid dystopia, The Chaperone, 17-year-old Stella struggles with the near-total domination of women in a society where the Minutemen party controls everything, "from the top branches of government--liberty and security--all the way down to the military constables."

In New America, unmarried females who reach puberty must be supervised by a chaperone at all times; they are not allowed romantic relationships, a college education, or careers--only marriage and "babies right away." When "golden-brown"-haired Stella's beloved chaperone, Sister Helen, dies suddenly and mysteriously, she leaves Stella a cryptic message: "Angel." Her new chaperone, Sister Laura, is unusual: Stella is allowed to jog with her usually off-limits dad, take self-defense lessons, and read banned books. These freedoms at first feel terrifying but quickly become liberating. Sister Laura even allows her to spend time alone in public, which Stella and her female classmates are told is exceptionally dangerous due to supposed kidnappings of unchaperoned young women in public. The more independence Stella gains, the more she questions--by the time she figures out "Angel," she knows it is essential she escape.

Hendrix's first work of fiction presents an infuriating, nonsensical diminishment of women that turns them into helpless children and baby-bearers. With its shades of Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, The Chaperone depicts a New America that feels all too real. Hendrix's storytelling is first rate: characters develop believably, and the action builds dramatically to a satisfying conclusion. A strong, rewarding contemporary vision of oppression. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger, and children's book author.

Shelf Awareness--Under the Blanket Sky

PB Review: Under the Blanket Sky

Under the Blanket Sky by Tim Fischer (Doubleday Books for Young Readers, 40p., ages 3-7, 9780593645918)

Under the Blanket Sky is a lyrically written, lushly illustrated picture book about one magical summer friendship that may endure forever as something "between a memory and a dream."

One morning, "with a brush of wind and flutter of sunlight," a "strange creature" appears to a child. It has "bright eyes," soft feathers, and "smell[s] like the sky." The two become friends and, all summer long, the child shares their "favorite things to do and places to spend time" with the owl-like being. When the child wonders if things will "always be this way," the creature assures the child that he's "glad we have today." Then a day arrives "with a curious feeling"--a day that hints of autumn--and the friends know the time has come for the creature to "spread his great wings and return to the sky." Even as summer ends and school draws near, the child sees hints of "hello and goodbye" in the form of "bright eyes at the window" and "blue feathers in the sky."

Tim Fischer's bittersweet debut is a delightful flight of fancy wherein an imaginary creature enriches what might otherwise have been a lonely time for a solitary child. The bond between child and creature is heartfelt and wonderfully communicated through an excellent balance of text and art. Fischer evocatively builds a powerful sense of connection as well as the passage of time through a series of wordless, elegant double-page spreads. This tale of enduring friendship captivates from stunning sunrise to idyllic evening--and all the summer days between. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger, and children's book author.