It's Monday! What are your reading? From Picture Books to YA (34)

It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Sheila of Book Journey. Jen & Kellee from Teach Mentor Texts have adapted this to focus on Picture Books to Young Adult Books.

With just a couple more weeks before school starts, I am trying to keep working on some of my reading goals.  I continued to work on the Caldecott (& Caldecott Honor Books) Challenge and read 26 more Caldecott Honor Books in my quest to read every Caldecott Winner and Honor Book this year.  I also seem to be working my way through Jeanette Winter picture books, and quite a few other books.

Here are some of my favorite Caldecott Honor Books from the past week's stack:

Sector 7 by David Wiesner - This wordless picture book is beautifully illustrated. 

A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Marla Frazee - I love this book.  Frazee's storytelling and illustrations are just plain fun.

Alphabet City by Stephen T. Johnson - I love finding alphabet books that are different or unusual and this one definitely fits that category.


Here are some other books that I was reading this past week:

UnWholly by Neal Shusterman - The much anticipated sequel to Unwind is almost here.  Excited to have a chance to read the Advanced Reader's Copy of this book.  Love Shusterman's ability to tell a story and to challenge the reader.

Babymouse: Dragonslayer by Jennifer L. Holm and Matt Holm - Somehow I missed reading this Babymouse book.  I loved it and all the literary references. 

Mac and Cheese and the Perfect Plan by Sarah Weeks; Illustrated by Jane Manning - A fun early reader.

Emily Dickinson's Letters to the World by Jeanette Winter - One of my favorite Jeanette Winter's book from the pile this week.  Introduces young readers to the poems of Emily Dickinson.

She Loved Baseball:  The Effa Manley Story by Audrey Vernick; Illustrated by Don Tate - Effa Manley advocacy for civil rights and baseball's Negro League and its players was new to me.  I enjoyed reading about Effa Manley.

If You Lived Here: Houses of the World by Giles Laroche - I really enjoyed the format of this book about houses around the world.

So, what are you reading this week?

Author Event & Book Feature - When Blue Met Egg

Today I had a chance to meet the wonderful Lindsay Ward, author/illustrator at Vroman's Bookstore in Pasadena.

 

Lindsay introduces the book When Blue Met Egg to her young audience.  

Children and parents had a chance to hear Lindsay read of When Blue Met Egg.  I enjoy listening to authors read their own books.

Here Lindsay shares with readers that the end pages of the book contain images of all the places in New York City that Blue & Egg visit. 

Lindsay shared with the audience that they could go to her website and download a paperdoll of Blue.   If you take a picture of Blue wherever you are, she would love to see it.  She has a spot on her blog called Where in the world is Blue?

Lindsay explained that she cuts each image out of paper that she has collected.  She searches around for unique and vintage paper to use in her art.  Each of the pieces in the picture above were created from different pieces of paper.  When you look at it from that perspective, the illustrations in this book are even more amazing.  

Here is a favorite picture of mine when Blue finds Egg for the first time and decides he needs to find Egg's mother.

Lindsay also explained that she cuts each piece to scale.  I was hoping the imagine would give readers a sense of how small some of the details are.  These are all really tiny.  I can't believe what it would take to make such a tiny cut-outs.

Here is part of the bridge scene that is a 3 page spread that opens up.  Lindsay admitted that it was a challenge to create the bridge from one piece of paper.

Blue and Egg go on lots of adventures throughout New York City.  They even take a ride on the subway. 

Blue and Egg is a story of friendship and adventure.  It is a delightful book and one that is in my top 10 picture books for the year.  If you haven't had a chance to read When Blue Met Egg, I encourage you to seek it out at your local library or independent bookstore.   


For more information about Lindsay Ward: website | blog | facebook | etsy | twitter

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday - Timeless Thomas

Author/Illustrator: Gene Barretta
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (July 17, 2012)
Audience: Grades 2nd to 5th
Source: Personal Copy
Nonfiction * Biographical * Inventors

Description from GoodReads:
What do record players, batteries, and movie cameras have in common?
All these devices were created by the man known as The Wizard of Menlo Park: Thomas Edison.

Edison is most famous for inventing the incandescent lightbulb, but at his landmark laboratories in Menlo Park & West Orange, New Jersey, he also developed many other staples of modern technology.  Despite many failures, Edison persevered. And good for that, because it would be very difficult to go through a day without using one of his life-changing inventions. In this enlightening book, Gene Barretta enters the laboratories of one of America’s most important inventors.

My thoughts on this book:
I discovered Gene Barretta's books (Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin; Neo Leo: The Ageless Ideas of Leonardo da Vinci) a few months ago.  I loved his way of making information about famous inventors/thinkers very accessible and fun for young readers.  When I went in search of more information about Gene Barretta and his books, I discovered that a new book would be out soon.  I have been eagerly anticipating Timeless Thomas: How Thomas Edison Changed Our Lives and it didn't disappoint.

Barretta's latest book focuses on the life and inventions of Thomas Edison.  After a short introduction to Edison, Barretta begins by comparing "Present Day" activities such as recording sound or the photocopier and compares them to "Edison's Lab" and how some of Edison's inventions or ideas were forerunners to what we often take for granted.  There are over 15 examples of how Edison's inventions were instrumental in the development of the many common day items that are essential to us today.  Each of these items are presented in very readable text accompanied by bright, cartoon-like illustrations that add to the enjoyment of the story.

At the end of the book, Barretta provides the reader with short bios for 20 of Edison's Employees.  Additionally, there are some trivia facts and a bibliography that will hopefully encourage readers to learn more about Thomas Edison. Overall, this is an enjoyable look at Thomas Edison that will hopefully inspire children to not only try to succeed with taking risks but also model Edison's philosophy that failure is just as important to learning as getting it right.

I would encourage teachers and librarians to make a set of Barretta's books available in the classroom or school library.  I have a feeling that a lot of children will enjoy checking them out.  Look for Timeless Thomas at your local school or public library, and when purchasing books, consider supporting your local independent bookstore.

For more information on Gene Barretta: website | blog | facebook | twitter

  Don't forget to link up your nonfiction picture book reviews here:

It's Monday! What are you reading? From Picture Books to YA (33)

It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Sheila of Book Journey. Jen & Kellee from Teach Mentor Texts have adapted this to focus on Picture Books to Young Adult Books.

I had a crazy reading week. I read just over 60 books.  After taking a break from intentionally seeking out Caldecott Honor books (I finished the Winners earlier this year), I jumped back in with a huge stack.  I read 34 Caldecott Honor Books in my quest to read every Caldecott Winner and Honor Book this year.  Though I really enjoyed many of these books (most were from 1990 to the present), I am only going to highlight a few of them.

Here are some of my favorite Caldecott Honor Books from the past week's stack:

The Spider and the Fly by Mary Howitt; Illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi - The illustrations in this were truly wonderful.  I loved DiTerlizzi's choice of a 1920's/1930's film style for this.

The Stinky Cheese Man: And Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Sciezska; Illustrated by Lane Smith - Laugh out loud funny - If you haven't read this one, and enjoy fairy tales, you must read it.

The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sís - This is an amazing and powerful story of Sís's life. 

Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors by Joyce Sidman; Illustrated by Pamela Zargarenski - Joyce Sidman's poetry has been illustrated by some amazing artists.  If I have counted right, her books have received 3 Caldecott Honors. 

Here are some other books that I was reading this past week:

Malcolm X: A Fire Burning Brightly by Walter Dean Myers; Illustrated by Leonard Jenkins - This is an older picture book that I came across at the library.  A solid picture book biography of Malcolm X.

A Meal of Stars: Poems Up and Down by Dan Jensen; Illustrated by Tricia Tusa - This small book of poems demonstrate the fun you can have in writing poems from top to bottom and from bottom to top. 

What You Know First by Patricia MacLachlan; Illustrated by Barry Moser - I read this after seeing it on Katherine Sokolowski's Nerdy Book Club post.

The Secret Chicken Society by Judy Cox - What happens when you end up with 5 baby chicks and one turns out to be a rooster?  Let the fun begin.  An early chapter book for 2nd and 3rd graders.

Small Medium at Large by Joanne Levy - I love the title of this book and it was definitely a fun read. Lilah discovers that after being struck by lightning she can hear ghosts.  What is she going to do especially when her grandmother wants her to help her divorced dad?  This will be easy to book talk with Middle Grade girls. 

From What I Remember by Stacy Kramer, Valerie Thomas - A fun summertime read that has the feel of a John Hughes' movie.

Silverfin (Graphic Novel) by Charlie Higson- This graphic novel tells the story of Bond, James Bond before he was a Secret Agent. 

So what are you reading this week?

Hot Off the Press! - 7/29/12

Hot Off the Press is fairly regular feature focusing on picture books that are recent releases.  I usually base the post on my weekly visits to Vroman's Bookstore or Mrs. Nelson's Bookstore in LaVerne.  The following titles can be found at either bookstore.

Here are some of the new picture book releases out in the wild....

Rocket Writes a Story by Tad Hill (Random House, July 24, 2012) - If you loved How Rocket Learned to Read, you will enjoy this sequel. 

Random House has put together several resources to accompany this book.  Click here to check out several downloads. 

The Night Rider by Matt Furie (McSweeney's McMullen, August 7, 2012) - This wordless picture book is a bit of a dream journey in full color. 

 

 

Click here to get an inside look at the book.   

ABC ZooBorns! by Andrew Bleiman and Chris Eastland - This gets the cuteness vote of the week.

 

For fans of really cute baby animals, ZooBorns has their own website, and has put out a board book version, early readers, e-book, an app and more. 

Timeless Thomas: How Thomas Edison Changed Our Lives by Gene Barretta (Henry Holt, July 17, 2012) - I was eagerly awaiting this one and it didn't disappoint.  My review is coming this week.