Monday Reading - New and Old!

         

    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!

Thanks to Candlewick Press
for my copy!

         A return to Norendy, where the Puppets of Spelhorst lived, and a new setting at the Hotel Bazaar where young Marta lives with her mother who works as a maid there. Each morning when her mother goes to work, Marta is left to her own days, counting up and down the stairs, watching a cat chasing a mouse (on a clock) and wondering about a painting with one wing in the ocean. However, all is not at all lost when a mysterious countess arrives, with a parrot. With magical stories and the loveliest of light, the tales move, from one to seven, helping Marta begin to have hope that her longlost father could, at last, be returning. Line art by Júlia Sardà enhances the imagination as each story is told; readers will want so much to hurry, to find out "What's Next!" I can imagine reading this, part by part, every day to a young class. It will become a favorite read aloud!

           I so enjoyed this book by Jilanne Hoffmann, the beauty of its presentation, the scientific information given in the picture book story, and more extensively explained in the back matter. The flap summarizes that the dust of the Sahel–a ribbon of land between the Sahara and the savanna– lifts with the harmattan wind each winter season. The dust from both mixes and travels thousands of miles westward, across the African continent and the Atlantic Ocean, to reunite with its unforgotten home deep in the Amazon basin. This is all new to me, and the story illustrated so beautifully by Eugenia Mello carried me along just like the dust is carried, landing at home! Told by the dust itself, readers will be mesmerized by the journey and, fortunately, will get to know more from the back matter, including NASA's observations, continental history, and an Author's Note. There, Hoffman relates that at publication, new research changes some of the earlier findings. It's terrific!

        It's a simple but arresting counting book by Tanya Tagaq, a Canadian Inuk, imagining a grand parade of polar bears, shown in both English and Inuktitut. The first is joined by another, and as they gather, they're sniffing, hunting, playing, dancing, and more. It will be much fun to read aloud, both enjoying the text and the art by Lee Pootoogook, a carver and printmaker. The ending offers a wonderful laugh.

      Buffy Silverman's books are a must when studying nature, along with using them as inspiration for writing. After a trip outdoors, readers can write prose or poetry and perhaps this book, or others from Buffy, can inspire some nature sketching, too!  This time, she offers poems to accompany some observed thrilling evening sounds while connecting the songs to musical instruments! For example, the second verse of one poem ends with "Oo-week, oo-week! Wood duck calls,/She flaps away/as darkness calls." The call is connected to an oboe. 

        The photos, credit given to numerous people, are marvelous to see, and may offer their own inspiration after reading and viewing! 

      There are two sections in the back matter filled with great information: "Meet the Musicians" and "Meet the Instruments".  Don't miss this book when studying the out-of-doors or just enjoying a taste of Buffy's "Starlight Symphony"!

        This is a re-read, but I wanted to share again to offer a new look at how all of us can help Stillwater and Koo "Save The World." My review on Goodreads is here! 

         Mo Yan is the first citizen of China to win the Novel Prize in Literature, which he won in 2012 for Red Sorghum. This picture book comes from his novella of the same name, a poignant story of the time this seven-year-old boy rises early to go with his grandfather, Yeye, to gather grass for drying and animal feed. It's quite a journey, showing such courage and resilience, eventually in a massive windstorm, the "GALE".  As you see from the cover, Zhu Chengliang's illustrations bring the story to life so that readers feel they are also right there with this pair. An excerpt from the novella at the end adds a bit more of their life story. It's a special book! 

Now reading: Sepetys' and Sheinken's The Bletchley Riddle! 

Poetry Friday - In the Night

  

       It's Poetry Friday, and Karen Edmisten is hosting HERE at The Blog With The Shockingly Clever Title! You'll need to visit so you can see just what she's named it! Thanks for hosting, Karen! 

       We all have those special dates that we remember when they come. It's most often a loved one's birthday, and often they have passed on, but I also note the birthdays of extended family, ones I don't see very much anymore.  

         This coming Wednesday, November 20th, is my husband's birthday. He hasn't been with us for eleven years, but I'm sure you know that I will always remember and keep him close especially on his day! This week, Poem a Day shared a poem that touched me deeply. It is new to me and I want to share it, for all of you, and for Arvie, "my love", a Happy Birthday! 

At the head of the table, probably a holiday
long ago! 

At The Mid Hour of Night 

        by Thomas Moore

1779 – 1852

 

At the mid hour of night, when stars are weeping, I fly 
To the lone vale we loved, when life shone warm in thine eye;
And I think oft, if spirits can steal from the regions of air, 
To revisit past scenes of delight, thou wilt come to me there,
And tell me our love is remembered, even in the sky. 

Then I sing the wild song ’twas once such pleasure to hear! 
When our voices commingling breathed, like one, on the ear;
And, as Echo far off through the vale my sad orison rolls, 
I think, oh my love! ’tis thy voice from the Kingdom of Souls,
Faintly answering still the notes that once were so dear.

This poem is in the public domain. Published in Poem-a-Day on November 9, 2024, by the Academy of American Poets.

 You can access the entry here which includes the audio, too.

It's Monday - New Books & Old

 

         

    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!

    I have quite a lot to share but the snowstorm in Denver, south and north and east, kept me busy. We had about a foot, and it'll be around fifty degrees all week, the melting time! It was very wet and heavy, did a lot of damage to trees, thus some lost electricity. My area was fine. Our lines are underground!

        I finally found time to finish the new Richard Osman mystery, We Solve Murders. What a delightful group of the good and the bad, a complicated plot that takes readers all over the world. The many-layered characters, even the ones Osman indicates we'll meet again, are not always perfect, yet bring new ways to look at lives being lived, whether honest or dishonest. If you've enjoyed the Thursday Murder Club books, you'll enjoy this fresh group who do "solve murders"! In the acknowledgment, there is a promise for a return to the older group, too, AND more from this new one! 

        I am laughing at myself because I grabbed this book from my library's shelf, loving Blue-Footed Boobies, and wanted to see what Nancy Vo had to say! No, I didn't know until I read it that it isn't about them at all but about mammary glands and other related things. It's an enticing picture book for younger readers that will entertain, educate, and delight. Nancy Vo keeps the information clear and the child-friendly illustrations close to reality. She starts with the fun fact that Blue-Footed Boobies don't have boobies at all. They're avian, not mammalian, thus begins the explanations of where and why, and how many, all about "boobies" or none. Children wondering about their bodies and changes that will happen with growing older will have an excellent first look at them, in addition to learning about various other animals and plants, with or without boobies! I enjoyed it, but I will have to discover another book about those Blue-Footed Boobies I love!

          Cary Fagan, the author, grew up in Belgium, but his journey of escape during the Nazi invasion kept him out of school, fleeing with his family to Paris, through Spain to Portugal, then, fortunately, across the ocean to a refugee camp in Jamaica. He's created HIS story by telling of a boy named Maurice who has a goal to become a lawyer, but he is not getting to be in school and is very worried about his learning. He finds a professor to teach him and eventually becomes a fine student who is accepted to a college in Canada. His English dictionary that you see him holding on the cover illustration becomes a tool for his life.

         It's a powerful graphic novel illustrated by Enzo Lord Mariano, who uses lights and darks with subtle changes of emotion and scenery to show times spent both happily and in danger. Maurice is courageous and does not quit learning and pushing for better. 

          There is a poignant author's note at the back about Cary Fagan's family, with pictures of them and that fabulous, special dictionary! 

        

Poetry Friday - How It Works

 

       It's Poetry Friday, and Cathy Mere is hosting HERE on her blog Merely Day by Day! In the poem she shares, we learn some good steps for what is certainly next for us all. I am inspired and grateful to start this special Poetry Friday after Tuesday's election with all of you. Thanks for hosting, Cathy!

       Since Tuesday, and during the days before the election, I watched Vice-President Kamala Harris become a woman whose actions I appreciated so much for my grandchildren, a grandson and two granddaughters, to see. She showed resilience, strength, and oh, so much intelligence in her explanations. She had great responses, and especially when questions felt charged with the goal of catching her out, perhaps in a contradiction from previous words. It looked tough, but she was tougher!   

       I enjoyed learning about Kamala Harris's childhood, and seeing the photos of her as she grew up. And, I began to imagine when babies and toddlers in early childhood begin to have agency. If you've experienced that, you might recognize what I wrote and perhaps have your own examples! After this poem's stance, I have hope that every young one will carry on!

My two granddaughters, journaling on a zoo trip quite a few
years ago.

              How It Works

 

I learn by one to watch Mama’s eyes

to see if I’ve cried enough to solve the problem

of thirst.

My puzzle at two is to assess the room 

to discover a strategy for escaping from the crib.

The problem at three is to wait until both parents are asleep

and won’t reverse my decision to crawl in bed with them.

My flexible brain at four uses my memory of problem-solving

in order to use my abilities to fetch anything I want,

like the cookies high in the cupboard.

At five, anything can happen.

 

Linda Baie ©

Poetry Friday - Coda

       It's Poetry Friday, and Patricia Franz is hosting HERE on her blog Reverie! Thanks for hosting, Patricia!

       After an unusually warm October, winter temps moved in Wednesday. I'll have a lot more to do, but I raked leaves all day Tuesday, starting the autumn leaf grab. Too many trees surround my home, so I'll gather for several weeks until a final layer is left for a winter blanket. Raking means slow moving and slow looking, so I discovered a tiny flower not seen before. Taking one's time, to "look long" is often rewarding, thus my poem today. 

       Finale

 

While raking leaves

before the winter party

returns,

I discovered

one stem of purple bells –

still chiming.

 

Linda Baie ©

 

Monday Reading - New and Old to Enjoy!

 

          

    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!

     I had to skip something last week, simply too busy, thus I have a bunch to share. I hope you find some books you'll love among them.

      

         I shared reviews of these next two books on Friday, Oct. 17th, HERE!

Thanks to Penguin Random

House

for my copy!

        Full of many details of, no surprise, "Impossible Creatures", some readers will recognize, others are new, at least to me. The significant characters are young, strong, and persistent in solving, yes, seemingly impossible problems! Others bring differing emotions, both happy and sad, as well as anger and sometimes goodbyes! Some illustrations by Ashley Mackenzie are within the text, adding to the adventure, but one amazing part lies at the back. It's a compendium of the creatures, wonderfully illustrated by Ashley and explained by Katherine. The title is "The Guardian's Bestiary." You'll discover who the guardian is and much more when reading this book. Few other words fit it than "fantastic"! 

       EXTRA! The next one is planned for a 2025 September publishing! 

           A boy, alone, everything is precisely in place, until one day, waking earlier than usual, a few things, like the cactus beside his bed, are  OUT OF PLACE! Thus begins a story that will keep readers going, leaning forward, wondering, "What's on the next page?" It's fun and shocking because, yes, there is a bear! Illustrations carry the humor as the boy has a peek at something now and then. And finally, "Out of the Blue"! It's an older book, if you can find it, and so much fun!

 

               Aimee Lucido tells of family love and sharing food with LOTSA PASTA. She shows this celebration with lots of famiglia (family), and in an anthem of rhyme. Various relatives arrive for dinner and bring a favorite dish, or they make that dish at the house. Everything builds to the big meal, but, wait, does "Lotsa Pasta" mean too much? For a read-aloud while viewing the collaged illustrations of all the families AND the pasta by Mavisu Demirag brought me so many smiles. Can you imagine creating quite realistic pasta? Various cultural relatives arrive with their special names, in Italian, like nonna (grandma) and nonno (grandma), also zio (uncle), and others. " Here is one example of the fun story-telling: "Nonni Titi from Tahiti/only eats our spaghettini." 

Poetry Friday - One Moment

       It's Poetry Friday, and Carol Varsalona is hosting HERE on her blog Beyond Literacy Link with an "Abundance of Autumn"! Thanks for hosting, Carol!

        My daughter and family live west of me, so I am traveling east when I drive home from visiting them. It's often evening, with a grand view of the sunset!

driving and weaving tomorrow

my mind curves into new corners

remembering to look back 

at the weft of yesterday

 

Linda Baie ©

 

Happy Halloween!

a tiny part of the bookstore window

VOTE!

Poetry Friday - Something New to Celebrate, Something Old, too

      It's Poetry Friday, and Matt Forrest Esenwine is hosting HERE on his blog Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme. He has lots of books you'll want to know about on the post today, and some fun poems, too! Thanks for hosting, Matt!

         I was excited when Hannah Brown at Schiffer Publishing sent an email that Charles Ghigna's new book, Bound to Dream, An Immigrant Story, was on its way to me! Thanks, Hannah! No, it isn't one of Charles' beautiful books of poetry, but a heartfelt story of his own great-grandfather, full of the poetry of a life we can all admire. 

          When I received it, an early question was how can I share it for Poetry Friday? Then, last week, a book titled Her Right Foot by Dave Eggers was donated to the used bookstore where I volunteer. Here was my connection, more about immigrating to America. Her Right Foot is also not a book of poetry, but it has a sonnet in it, The New Colossus by Emma Lazarus, written in 1883 to raise money for the pedestal on which The Statue of Liberty stands.

        In Charles' story, his great-grandfather Carlo is shown doing farm chores, then reading and dreaming by candlelight. Now we know he loves books! Hmm, is that where Charles gets his love for words? 

        And those books, as he read, "filled his dreams with people in faraway places." When he was old enough, he traveled (alone) to New York. 

        The story shows a young Carlo, knowing only a little English, walking the streets of the city, desperate for work. One lucky day, he found himself looking at the fabulous books shown in a bookbinder's window, amazed. "'So many beautiful books', he whispered to himself." This lucky young Carlo was seen by the shopkeeper, and the rest of the story shows that through his continuing love of books and a kind teacher and employer, Carlo learned the art of bookbinding. In that work, he studied English in the books at night, then up he rose to start another day, loving his work, making books for others who also loved them. 

          In the story, Charles imagines Carlo's thoughts as he worked: "He loved to make them and hold them in his hands, and he loved how he could smell the forest coming through the pages." That is poetry! 

         Anna Forlati envisions Charles' telling of his family's immigrant story with gorgeous illustrations filling the pages with dreamy muted tones that feel like memories. Along with the beauty in what feels like a collaboration meant to be, Anna lives in Northern Italy, not far from where Charles' great-grandfather lived. 

            Added at the back is a brief piece that explains this book-binding art, which will inspire added research into the artistic process. Also, Charles tells that this story was told to him by his father!

          Dave Eggers gives us another kind of poetry in his book that tells the history of our spectacular Statue of Liberty. He tells all the history, in his "tell it like it is" tongue-in-cheek manner, from the very idea of a Frenchman, Laboulaye, who wanted to do something for the United States to celebrate their centennial and who convinced another Frenchman, Bartholdi, to design a sculpture. As you know, it happened, and the long, long story that came to the fantastic end of 214 boxes sailing across the Atlantic, the statue in parts, holds lots of details, including that Lady Liberty's Right Foot shows she is "on the go," ready to welcome all who come to her country for oh, so many reasons! Shawn Harris illustrates this story in wild colors of diversity, a gift to all here and all arriving.  

             This political season and words said in numerous places are full of hateful words about immigrants, filling the media in various ways, in graphics or speeches. Some seem to have forgotten that we are all immigrants or are descendants of them, every one of us who is not Native American. That is our country called America! 

       by Emma Lazarus 1849 - 1887

                              This poem is in the public domain.

Monday Reading - Old and New to Know!

   

      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! I finished that very long book and now I miss it! And, I'm sharing three graphic novels this week, one new and two that were donated to the bookstore! I have a bunch of picture books to read and share, but they will wait until next week. After the hard, hard week last week, thinking of all who have been affected by Hurricane Helene and Milton, wishing it weren't so, and hoping for better for them every day! 

         After several weeks and nearly 600 pages, I finished this amazing story, filled with love, heartbreak, trauma, life-saving and life-breaking. Only some of those "colors of the dark" feel revealed. It's hard to let go when there is a story conceived of both main and perhaps lesser, but also memorable, characters. I admire Chris Whitaker for knitting the story with innovation and empathy for the people who never stopped living as good people and revealing the horror that also lives in some. This is a book I will ponder and remember for a long while. 

         There is talk in numerous places about teens in crisis. Ash is one who can't understand why their family doesn't seem to care about environmental issues. They try to put up posters at school, only to be ripped down because they don't have the proper permission. Now, instead of going to the family ranch for the annual trip, it's been decided the family's going to Disneyland. The only person who felt as if he understood Ash was their Grandpa Edwin, who was also believed to have built a small cabin somewhere, a secret hideaway. Ash gets permission to go to the ranch without family, and an older cousin is going, too. But the family doesn't know that the cousin is going off partying, leaving Ash to do what they really want to do, survive in the wild looking for that cabin. It's an adventure of a teen finding what matters, learning that they might need more than being left alone, and trying to figure it out. Ash has their dog along with them, which sometimes has its own set of problems. Jen Wang has managed to give both an internal and external adventure of a young teen trying hard to do what they believe is right! Illustrations bring Ash's story to us readers with emotion and heart through text but numerous pages that show only action! It's terrific! 

           It's 20 years old, yet it has kept some hilarious parallels! Duck moves UP the political ladder until he wonders why! This cute book might be fun to discuss with young readers!

          This is an excerpt of Surviving The Fatherland by Annette Oppenlander, a brief published novelette that tells of the two boys who chose to run away when Hitler called for 15 and 16-year-olds to be drafted. It was near the end of World War II, and he was losing and desperate. What they did and how they survived, sometimes roasting a dead wild bird, roasting and eating that small thing just to keep going, often sleeping in freezing weather, shows their incredible determination to escape war and survive. It's quick but certainly memorable.

        A graphic novel about a gang killing, yet mixed into it is the sad life of a boy caught in the mix. Is he a bully, a killer, or a victim of his circumstances? You'll need to read this true story and try to figure it out. Whatever readers decide, it's sad that young ones are caught up in a life they cannot escape, at least until they manage to grow some years older. A narrator tells the story of this real boy, Robert, "Yummy" Sandifer. Look him up if you'd like to learn more! 

      It's a graphic, science-fiction, story of a virus gone very wrong. The underlying science feels scary, and just like the pandemic we experienced, some seemed immune and were left with a "start-over," which is hard to imagine! The story is bleak, illustrations only in black and white. If you like this kind of dystopian story, you'll love it! 

Now Reading:  Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell  

Poetry Friday - Gifting!

          It's Poetry Friday, and Jama Rattigan is hosting HERE on her blog Jama' Alphabet Soup. The post will fill your heart with doughnutty dreams! Voodoo Doughnuts here I come! Thanks for hosting, Jama!

         I also recommend that you find Jama's review of Blue by Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond and Daniel Minter in her post last Tuesday. It perfectly fits Jama's love of "blue," and after reading it, you'll fall in love with "blue," too! 

         So, things seem very rough in our world right now with the recent weather disasters, the politics feeling even more bombastic as we near our elections, and the horrific conflicts in numerous places on earth. I want to help and believe I do what is possible for me at this time. I am grateful that three nephews and families survived Hurricane Helene with little damage except to their roads. Most importantly, they are okay! I've been in the Florida area where Hurricane Milton has hit, and I am feeling very sad for the people and their homes and businesses I have loved and visited. Closer to home, I am sorry for my son-in-law and his extended family who had to say goodbye to his father last week. It's been a fraught and worrisome week. 

         Saturday is my birthday! I chose to share this poem/song you'll find below because I love it, and hope it gives you some peace this week. I taught gifted students for many years and taught them this song, reminding them to be grateful for all gifts, including themselves! 

Simple Gifts

'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,
'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.
When true simplicity is gain'd,
To bow and to bend we will not be asham'd,
To turn, turn will be our delight,
Till by turning, turning we come round right.

You can find out more about it, HERE, at the site of the Shaker Museum. 

        Then, hanging out on FB recently, THIS came up! It felt like my own special gift! 

         If you would like the gift of a poetry book from the used bookstore where I volunteer, send me an email with your address. Many wonderful books are sitting on the shelves, waiting to be read and loved!

          Wishing everyone the gift of another of my favorite things, being outside!

Poetry Friday - No Pancakes! It's "Wild Brunch"

 It's Poetry Friday, and Tabatha Yeatts-Lonske is hosting HERE on her blog The Opposite of Indifference.    Thanks for hosting, Tabatha, and for bringing us so lovely a poem about murmuration and more!

          I first met David L. Harrison in 1983 when I took my daughter to a book signing, and she wanted his new book, A Book of Giant Stories. I remember he was so kind to her and signed it in a special way. Back then, I didn't really know David's poetry power, but when Highlights offered a week of poetry writing with him, I went! And, then, I went the next year, too. Being at Highlights with David was so much fun, as were the ones with Rebecca Dotlich and Georgia Heard. I took the book back that second time, and he signed it then for Sarah's daughters, Ingrid and Imogene! I guess they'd better keep it for their daughters! 

        

          If you want to know more about David, you can see his extraordinary bio by googling his name on line and choosing among the many sites about him. He is now the Poet Laureate of Missouri and of Drury University, from which he has a science degree. He knows a lot about science, and you'll understand that when you see his titles that show off his knowledge. 

         I'm excited to share David's latest title today, showing off a few animals, what and how they eat!  Thanks to Charlesbridge Publishing for my copy!

           Various animals munch through the pages with David's usual humor shining through. There are piranhas where advice is warranted: "When piranha's on the hunt,/you're wise if you retreat." And, much larger, but also in the water, the hippo eats at night. Did you know? They have "teeth like spikes" and in the wisest, but funniest, of an underlying meaning, David writes, "No one ever called/a hippo sweet." The poem shows the warning of just how very fast those un-sweet beasts can run!    

           When he writes about aardvarks, the poem ends with "No matter/how you try to hide–/you can't."  A favorite reminds me of a memory I have. This poem shares all the things a seagull eats: "Darting fish,/leaping shrimp, bugs snatched in flight," and ending with "food from stashes/shaded by beach umbrellas." Once, I sat with a friend on the beach but under an overhang, about to take a bit of my sandwich when SWOOP, a seagull came flying through and grabbed it! As the poem says, "few with feathers/find more ways,/ to fill their bill."

            You can find and enjoy poems about jellyfish, narwhals, houseflies, and more, even one animal that does not eat in David's new book of poetry. Giles Laroche fills the double-page spreads with luscious illustrations, where the cover says he creates with as many as eight layers, "drawing, cutting, painting, gluing". Each one takes me into that animal's world!

            Added at the back are three different sections: "Swimming Eaters," "Land-based Eaters," and "Flying Eaters," which offer more information about each animal. There is also a bibliography for further reading. 

            Two companion books by this author/illustrator pair have come out in earlier years, also offering beautifully written and illustrated poems. Their covers are below!

 

         Reading and seeing David's, and this time, Giles', poetry books is always a joy. I'm happy to share this one with you, hoping you find time to get the book and enjoy every page and poem yourself.