It's Monday - Sharing Lovely Books

       

        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! It's been another warm, wonderful spring-like week with a few green leaves popping. And now, just as I wrote last week, we've had snow! An April fool welcome, right?

         I'm writing and posting a poem every day for April, Poetry Month! Hoping you will come visit when you can! 

        One thing I love about Kate DiCamillo's stories is that one can see she loves every character, too, each one, like all humans, with their goodness along with their quirks. This newest story centers around Emma Phineas Wilkey's summer before fifth grade. She's called Ferris because she was born under a Ferris wheel. It's also about her family, best friend Billy Jackson, and a few others, both from the past and her current beloved neighbors. It's about loving life and the people in one's life, taking great care of them, no matter how very hard it might be. The story shows the loving, though sorrowful goodbyes of life, and carrying on that love as time does not stop, but moves on no matter how much we might want it to. Knowing the right words for a moment has its own thread. You'll see and love that, too. I am glad I had the fun of reading one more from Kate DiCamillo, but sorry to see it end.

Thanks to Candlewick Press 
for this copy!

         For middle schoolers, who often feel as if they have no power, a new graphic novel series by Kekla Magoon and Cynthia Leitich Smith begins the stories of Riley Halfmoon and Maya Dawn, cousins who haven't seen each other in years but have moved to Urbanopolis to live with their activist grandma. They couldn't be more different, and besides being in a brand new environment, home, and school, they must share a room! They're just making some progress in their relationship when they begin to wonder about their school's vice-principal, who seems only interested in the many cameras spying on all the students and sending many students to detention. With the challenges at school and learning from their grandma that they do have star power, they begin to see their differences just might be a huge strength. It's a great story of persistence in doing what's right and figuring out differences add to the whole in a very good way. Molly Murakami's art shows all the story's action and emotions in this powerful and inspiring story.

 

Thanks to Candlewick Press 
for this copy!

         This is book number one in this new series about Frankie and her family and creating her own news show! (The next one, out soon, is about protests!) Frankie's mother is a reporter and sometimes has to leave suddenly to cover "breaking news". Frankie and her teen sister, Raven, are sad but understand that covering news can be a sudden need for action. This time, when it happens, Frankie decides to create her own newsroom and prepare for her first "broadcast" with the help of her doll, Farrah, Robert the toy robot, and her tabby cat, Nina Simone.  Then, right in her household, Frankie hears crying and knows, as her mother had explained, it's a "developing" story. Time to explore! It's a creative way to show a loving family who has their own problems, along with showing how news and gathering news works. The illustrations are sweet as they show a supportive and loving family as well as portraying Black women in journalism. In addition, there is a great glossary at the back that explains all the trade terms. 

        It's always fun to read a new, creative re-telling of an old fairy tale, and Troy Wilson has written one that will reach every reader's heart! Little Red still loves her grandma, and when learning that she is ill, she makes a treat for her and takes off through the woods. Along the way, when meeting (guess who?) the wolf, she shows that she's been reading just how to protect herself. They are lessons from other books that she's "read"; however, taking every bit of that learning backfires into a surprise and lovable ending for books. It will make a great read-aloud to see what the audience predicts as the pages turn and how much they'll love the ending! Ilaria Campana's bright and colorful illustrations add to the action and emotion of the story beautifully!

             When this grandson visited his Nana in the city, he had to get used to a few things, like the noise! Now, his Nana is visiting him in the country, and he's excited to show her "new" things. However, she seems to know them all already! (See the cover!) One evening, though, there is a "thunderclap," and rain pours down. Nana doesn't like it at all, especially when she spots a sheep that's escaped the pen. Yes, the boy does have a few things to show her! Lauren Castillo's story of this relationship continues as a loving, feel-good story about grandparents and grandchildren with her usual beautiful watercolor illustrations. 

          Patricia Toht tells a rhyming tale of a happy taxi's day, all over town, first carrying a woman to an important appointment. Others shop, get to soccer, home from the airport and more! The busy day is filled with people in a busy city with Maria Karipidou's colorful illustrations, including a terrific vertical two-page spread when Taxi has to stop for an emergency vehicle! The page with an excited "Taxi, Go!" (on the cover, too), shows the happy feelings of this important city company, helping all kinds of people! The youngest children will love it!

        If you'd like a beautiful, more detailed review, go here to Jama's Alphabet Soup, whose blog you should know about. She shares all kinds of books, art, recipes, and poetry in marvelous posts!

         It's a sweet story by Sara O'Leary of the early life of most beloved authors, a story of the younger Brontës, whom you may have thought had an unhappy childhood. Two older siblings who had not reached their teens both died when these four were 10, 9, 7, and 6. Their mother had passed just a few years earlier. They lived in a remote home on the moors and were cared for by their aunt, father, and a housekeeper. They had lessons and were free to read and play, to create, at home and on the moors. They had each other. This tells about their love of stories and the many "Little books" they made for each other, starting with one by Charlotte for Anne. There is an author note, a timeline, and pages showing how to make one's own "Little Book." It's a lovely story with beautiful mixed-media illustrations by Briony May Smith!

for adults or young adults

           Madeline Martin writes of the Nazi occupation of Poland during World War II, centering on the courage of one librarian but including many others who fought to save books and to save their Jewish friends, and their city, Warsaw, as well. There is a message here that resonates in our world today, eighty-five years later, of those who seek to deny readers of all ages any book they wish to read. One quote from Zofia, whose tale is told: "Books inspired free thought and empathy, an overall understanding and acceptance of everyone. In the pages of books that were burned and banned and ripped apart for pulping, Zofia had found herself. These were the parts of her that were human and strong and loving, parts that understood lives that she had never led." It's a lesson that is needed in our world today.

What's Next:  Starting one I'm sorry I missed last year, The Many Assassinations of Samar, The Seller of Dreams, by Daniel Nayeri, illustrations by Daniel Miyares.