It's Monday - Reading ReCap

    Visit Kellee and Ricki at UnleashingReaders and 

  

Jen at Teach Mentor Texts to see what they and others have been reading! Your TBR lists will grow! Happy Reading! 

        Last Poetry Friday, I shared a new book by Charles Ghigna here. It's a lovely book of joyful fun celebrating love. 

         Just in time for Halloween, yes, I'm sharing a new Zombert tale by Kara LaReau with freaky illustrations by Ryan Andrews! Mellie and Bert are fast friends now, and Danny, the horror movie-maker is there helping Mellie do a little training. You see, those dastardly people at the YummCo Foods factory have "cooked up" a scheme to get Bert (they know him as Y-91). They're having a Harvest Festival with all the games and prizes, and food, free. Mellie hopes that Bert will win the "best pet" contest. She needs the money for Bert's vet bills. Things get weird late on the festival day. Townspeople appear to be even hungrier! And Mellie has lost Bert! But I'll leave you to wait to read what happens next, and then, a longer wait for the third book in the series! I raced through this one, imagine young readers will, too!

              Thanks to Candlewick Press for the copy!

            I am amazed at what Owen Davey can do with pop-ups! Remember the earlier Pop-Up Dinos? This time, it may be a 'first' pop-up for children, but the topics introduced will become an inspiration to discover more about these monsters, both the goodness in them and the bad. There are fifteen fabulous pop-ups, with the country of origin and a brief text telling about it added with each.  

          First comes a most familiar one, a dragon, from various origins they are either one of "wisdom or wickedness". Cerberus makes an appearance, as do Scandinavia's huge, wolflike Fenrir and the one with luck from the Philippines, Sarimanok. Everyone will love these beautifully colored mythological monsters pop-up to introduce themselves in this special book! 

          Thanks to Candlewick Press for the copy, the US edition in 2021! 

I imagine everyone has favorite Halloween picture books or a few marvelous scary stories to read or tell! Here's a new one to add to your list! Thanks again to Candlewick Press. 

              Pete Oswald's night scenes are pretty scary, and readers might go 'eek!' a few times after Eric Geron's poor chicken crossed the road and did not get to the other side, but did rise to THE OTHER SIDE. However, most of the time they will laugh at Geron's hilarious puns. This chick has become the Poultrygeist! All those other animals there to meet him must convince, explaining with words like "It's cock-a-doodle-BOO! time for you" and "It's time to get foul, fowl!" This is Geron's debut picture book and another fun one to add to the Halloween stack. 

                 

         This new book by NoNieqa Ramos celebrates everything a mama can be and in a poetic way, tells this daughter about that Mama. With color-bursting illustrations by Jacqueline Alcántara, the story includes some struggles, like using Mama's make-up in order to look like her (oops!) but "Your Mama so forgiving,/she lets you keep on living." Yet that's the fun shown, not so bad and the terrific compliments flow on and on. There are road trips, family dinners, marching in protest marches, doing math. In all, Spanish words add to the flavor of this story about her Mama, who is "so Woke", "so Strong" ("When you both had that fever, carried you to emergency") and, in the opening, "Your Mama so sweet", she leaves love notes in your almuerzo, homemade. She's the cinnamon in your tembleque, the tres leches to your cake." I love two of the final pages with pictures of the two in a photo booth!

         It will be a lovely gift for Mother's Day next year, but I wanted to share it now!

One more not to miss during this beautiful autumn!

out my window

         Jamie Swenson's poetic tale tells just what the title  

 declares; it's a party for everyone! Invitations have been sent  

 and every animal in the woods you imagine are preparing. As 

 written: "The creatures donned their autumn best–Fur and 

 feather primped and pressed./Coyote groomed, Pheasant 

 preened, Porcupine shook, Otter cleaned." There are more 

 taking care to be their best while "Autumn wind prepared 

 the ball." Fabulous color-filled pages bring this season to us 

 as young readers learn the word 'windfall', explained later 

 in the author's note that animals are helped when varied 

 fruits and nuts are blown from the trees. "Windfall", as you 

 probably know, also can mean a special stroke of luck! It is quite a wonderful celebration just like we are celebrating ourselves this October! There is a surprise at the very end, 'after' the author's note!

Earlier favorite fall books I also want to share:

          Fall Leaves - Loretta Holland and Elly MacKay

          Fletcher and the Falling Leaves - Julia Rawlinson and Tiphanie Beeke

for next week! In November - Cynthia Rylant and Jill Kastner

Still reading: The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer. 

Happy Halloween!