Title: JJ Goes to Puppy Class
Author: Diane Rose-Solomon with Lyssa Noble Dennis
Illustrator: Lisette Rotman
Publisher and/or Distributor: SOP3 Publishing
Pages: 32
ISBN: 978-0-9857690-3-1
Price: $11.99
Publishing Date: 2014
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This children’s picture book for elementary-aged children who have misbehaving puppies is superb. It covers many common problems that young dogs exhibit. To correct these problems and to socialize the pup, JJ, Maya and her parents enroll JJ in Puppy Class. A dog trainer, Lyssa, provides excellent instructions and the reasons for them to correct behavior challenges. The language is easy to follow and is made much more interesting by building a story around the learning process. I felt especially drawn to this book since I have a one-year-old rescue puppy who displays many of the problems addressed in this book. The training advice was spot on for our rambunctious little guy. In fact the book became quite useful to us. This is the second book by this author and her excellence is very consistent. We rated it a high four Hearts.
Title: Guardian of Dreams
Author: Wendy Torrel
Illustrator: Kendall Klingbeil
Publisher and/or Distributor: White Tulip Publishing
Pages: 32
ISBN: 9780974689029
Price: $14.95
Publishing Date: 08/01/2014
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This healing book is in its 10th anniversary year. A common problem for children is troubled sleep, especially from nightmares. Sometimes these are in reaction to real time problems or to general fears. The challenge is to chase away the bad dreams and regain restful sleep. This book provides useful mind management tools through its story in order to overcome this challenge. We rated it four hearts.
Title: JJ The American Street Dog and How He Came to Live In Our House
Author: Diana Rose-Solomon
Illustrator: Rachel Cellinese
Publisher and/or Distributor: SOP3 Publishing
Publisher Website: www.sop3publishing.com
Pages: 32
ISBN: 9780985769017
Price: $16.99
Publishing Date: 2013
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This hardback children’s book delightfully follows a young girl, Maya, in her family’s quest for a dog as a pet. She has shown her parents that she has the maturity to handle that responsibility. Jerry, her uncle, happens upon a poppy scrounging for food in a garbage can at a soccer field He takes him home and notifies Maya’s family. The book demonstrates the proper ways to search for an abandoned pet. It is an excellent guide to our problem of wayside waifs. We rated it a solid four hearts.
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Title: Jack the Husky Dog: When Your Friend Loses A Parent
Author: Gina Maria Sanfilippo
Illustrator: Nicolas Peruzzo
Publisher and/or Distributor: Mirror Publishing
Publisher Website: www.http://pagesofwonder.com/
Pages: 28
ISBN: ISBN 978-1-61225-150-9
Price: $9.99
Publishing Date: 2012
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
This outstanding picture book helps children deal with the death of a parent. Jack the Husky Dog is a good listener and offers sound advice to his mistress when her father does not survive a surgery. Having a dog give the advice on how to deal with the emotions children inevitably experience makes it somehow more acceptable since pets are more accepting and less judging. Jack walks a little girl through the grieving process, addressing the need for spiritual support along the way. The pictures are clear and supportive of the text. This is an important book in a series that addresses common children’s values. We rated it five hearts.
Title: The Lonely Little Peach
Author: Aloka L. Patel
Illustrator: Saurabh S. Mehta
Publisher and/or Distributor: Mirror Publishing
Pages: 36
ISBN: 9781612251608
Price: $13.99
Publishing Date: 2012
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This is an excellent picture book for 4-7 year-olds. It portrays the life cycle of a peach from growing on a tree, to falling off, to providing the seed to grow an additional tree. The art work is good and the story is believable about a lonely little peach and what happens to it over time.
The story line is believable and it explains all the phases of the peach’s life cycle. This could be used to support a Botany or Horticultural class. We rated it four hearts.
Title: Mushy Red Stuff
Author: Faye Alison Gilbert
Illustrator: Leo Silva
Publisher and/or Distributor: Mirror Publishing
Pages: 23
ISBN: 9781612251486
Price: $9.99
Publishing Date: 2012
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This is a cute picture book for 6-8 year-olds. The mushy red stuff if a horseradish sauce used to flavor gefilte fish at a traditional Jewish Seder meal. Eli, a young Jewish boy, goes with his father, mother, and little brother Danny to his grandparents’ home for a traditional Seder meal to celebrate the escape of the Israelites from Egypt.
Many Jewish customs are portrayed in this book. The story demonstrates how young people interact with adults, especially grandparents. It is an educational story that easily connects with children. The grandfather looks like Mr. McGoo and is quite humorous. This is an excellent diversity support story. We rated it four hearts.
Title: Jack the Husky Dog: When Your Friend Loses A Parent
Author: Gina Maria Sanfilippo
Illustrator: Nicolas Peruzzo
Publisher and/or Distributor: Mirror Publishing
Pages: 24
ISBN: 978-1-61225-150-99
Price: $9.99
Publishing Date: 2012
Reader: Bob Spearr
Rating: 3 hearts
This 24 page children’s picture book illustrates the sadness involved with losing a parent and how to make it through the same. Jack the Husky Dog is a good listener and offers sound advice to his mistress when her father does not survive a surgery. This is part of a series designed to help children through challenging emotional experiences. Using the dog provides a non-judgemental safe friend in which to confide. It provides spiritual guidance as a means of dealing with the sadness of losing a parent. We rated this book three hearts.-
Title: We’re All Different But We’re All Kitty Cats: First Day of School
Author: Peter J. Goodman
Illustrator: Nicolas Milano
Publisher and/or Distributor: Emerald Book Company
Publisher Website: www.dreambigpress.com
Pages: 52
ISBN: 978-0-9850683-0-1
Price: $16.95
Publishing Date: 2012
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
This 4-7 age picture book uses different kinds of cats to illustrate how different types of children may experience challenging times if they are too different, their feelings, and what reactions might be expected. It is an excellent lesson in diversity being OK. One cat is the hairless variety and experiences derision by the kitties with fur on the first day of school. Some stick up for him. He finally wins acceptance when he knows all the alphabet and no one else does.
In the back of the book are fun facts about cats and a list of reading guide questions to test a child reader’s understanding. We rated this book five hearts.
Title: Every Little Girl Is A Princess
Author: Andree Prendergast
Illustrator: Riva England
Publisher and/or Distributor: Create Space
Publisher Website: www.andreeprendergast.com
Pages: 62
ISBN: 9781466294516
Price: $?
Publishing Date: 2011
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This picture book does an excellent job of teaching self esteem while explaining and illustrating the values of: Faith, Love, Kindness, Courage, and Friendship. Callie is a young girl who constantly seeks perfection as a way to happiness. Her perfection role model is that of a princess. When her dog, Toby, digs up an instruction book on becoming a princess, Callie reads it and learns that she must earn the five princess virtues through her deeds and actions. She does this through the story’s scenarios that illustrate what these virtues really mean. By the end, she realizes she had the aspects of being a princess all along.
This book is very appropriate for ages 5-8. It explains righteous living without being preachy. It holds the reader’s attention while creating sympathy for the characters and understanding of these value concepts. We rated it four hearts.
Title: Jack the Husky Dog: When Your Friend’s Parents Get Divorced
Author: Gina Maria Sanfilippo
Illustrator: Nicolas Peruzzo
Publisher and/or Distributor: Mirror Publishing
Pages: 24
ISBN: 9781612251226
Price: $9.99
Publishing Date: 2012
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This is a matter-of-fact approach to dealing with the turmoil families can go through during divorce. It is non-judgmental and uses a Husky dog as a helper-dog for a boy and his emotions. Talking to the dog and explaining what the boy understands is an excellent way of helping young ones understand what divorce means to them without putting them on the spot. The book gives examples of how one may ask for help from Heavenly Father with appropriate prayerful wishes. The text is presented in rhyme. What is touchingly a flash of the blinding obvious is how kids going through their parents’ divorce proceedings and beyond suddenly find themselves owning two of many things, a set of essentials for each household. We rated this a solid four hearts.
TopThe illustrations are almost museum grade. The text is written in an understandable manner. Children and parents will identify with the story and learn from it. We graded this picture book five hearts.This is a wonderful child rearing tool for when children are frightened by nightmares. A young kangaroo, Joey, awakes and runs to his parents’ bed to tell them of his bad dream. Each time he does so, his parents reassure him and walk him through a logical process that focuses on remembering what he may have done or experienced earlier that could have caused the bad dream. Eventually, he doesn’t need to run to his parents any longer, but goes through the same process on his own, feels reassured, and goes back to sleep. This process gives a child much more control over his life.Rating: 5 hearts
Reader: Bob Spear
Publishing Date: 2012
Price: $18.99
ISBN: 9780983866404
Pages: 32www.smartlovepress.comPublisher Website: Publisher and/or Distributor: Smart Love PressIllustrator: Jo Gershman
Author: Martha Heineman Pieper, Ph.D.Title: Mommy, Daddy, I Had A Bad Dream!
Title: The Christmas Nest
Author: Toni KernIllustrator: Dave O’Connell
Publisher and/or Distributor: Mirror PublishingPublisher Website: www.pagesofwonder.com
Pages: 28
ISBN: 9781612250793
Price: $13.99
Publishing Date: 2010
Reader: Bob SpearRating: 5 hearts
This picture book is about a little bird who becomes upset when his parents move their family into a dusty old barn. As they build a new nest, Little Bird is angry that they’ve moved away from their friends and the new nest is rough and uncomfortable. He runs away in search of a new friend or family to live with. He attempts to live with Buddy Beaver, Sammy Skunk, and Perry Possum, but none of those situations work out right. Then he notices a new bright star and how many other animals are rushing to the dusty old barn. He returns there to find his parents have built a comfy nest and have been worried about him. From their vantage point in the rafters they witness the Christ Child, Mary, and Joseph. Jesus is lying in a nest, too, and shepherds and kings have come to visit and love him. Little Bird realizes he’s loved, too, and that the most important thing.The art work is lovely and the story line carries Little Bird through a variety of negative emotions until he realizes that the positive one of Love is the most important. With our mobile society today, children can easily identify with some of the emotions portrayed in this story. Sweet Baby Jesus embodies his love for mankind in this story and Little Bird grows up just a little. We rated this five hearts.TopTitle: Ambition’s Not An Awful Word
Author: Zack ZageIllustrator: Adam Watkins
Publisher and/or Distributor: Ivy Court PressPublisher Website: www.ivycourtpress.com
Pages: 32
ISBN: 9780983607823
Price: $16.95
Publishing Date: 2012
Reader: Bob SpearRating: 5 hearts
This very cute story about a young boy, Zach, with big dreams. His teacher devises a class project based on what her students want to be. Zach tries to barge into the class’s alphabetic order for responses, but his teacher puts a stop to that. When his turn finally comes, he portrays what it would be like to become an astronaut on the moon, a bull-riding cowboy, an opera singer, a chef, an artist, a doctor, an architect, a banker, a lawyer, and a columnist. In each case, someone puts him down, proving he’s not likely to become any of these things. When his mother tucks him in that night, however, she tells him it’s OK to dream and that “ambition” isn’t an awful word.At the back of the book is a Glossary for the parents that is cutely funny. The text throughout the book is attention catching and the illustrations are top-rated cartoons that really convey what the text is saying. Frankly, adults will get even more chuckles out of this book than the kids. It’s very tongue in cheek and memory provoking. Protagonist Zach reminds me of my own son when he was growing up and always coming up with big dreams. We rated this book five hearts.TopTitle: The Potato Chip Puzzles
Author: Eric BerlinIllustrator: Eric Berlin
Publisher and/or Distributor: Puffin Books / PenguinPublisher Website: www.penguin.com/youngreaders
Pages: 244
ISBN: 9780372241614
Price: $7.99
Publishing Date: 2009
Reader: Bob SpearRating: 5 hearts
This is a Missouri Mark Twain Book Award winner for mid-grade students. It is a story of Winston Breen and his friends teaming up to compete in a puzzle contest to win $50,000 for their school from a potato chip magnate. The story is filled with, what else, all kinds of puzzles. Some puzzles are answered within the context of the story and others have their answers in the back of the book. All the competing teams are coached by school teachers/Administrators, who bring adult level cheating to the fray. This is an excellent values teaching book, as well as excellent entertainment. We ranked it a five hearts score.TopTitle: A Wedding, Me, and the Family Tree
Author: Faye Alison GilbertIllustrator: Leo Silva
Publisher and/or Distributor: Mirror PublishingPublisher Website: www.pagesofwonder.com
Pages: 26
ISBN: 978-1-61225-048-9
Price: $9.99
Publishing Date: 2011
Reader: Bob SpearRating: 4 hearts
This precious picture book features a 6-year-old Jewish girl who has a problem thinking too literally. She wants to call the police because some guy stole her aunt’s heart and yet she still wants to marry him. At the wedding at the synagogue she discovers a stained glass window of Moses at the burning bush, yet he doesn’t have a stain anywhere on him. She gets to sing with the band at the reception and sample the cake frosting before it’s cut. Days later, she and her mother look at wedding pictures and then she rushes outside to find their family tree her mother keeps talking about. All in all, this is a delightful book that reminds me of Amelia Bedelia.The author does a good job of using literal thinking as a means to explain to children how words don’t always mean what they say and how funny that can be. We rated this book a high four hearts.TopTitle: Crush and the Blue Box
Author: Greg and Stephanie Burgin
Illustrator: Aimee McEwen
Publisher and/or Distributor: The Smidgens Press / Dichotomy Enterprises, Inc.
Pages: 44
ISBN: 9780983154303
Price: $8.99
Publishing Date: 2010
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
This pre-school to early elementary picture book is the 1st in a series of 16 Smidgen characters who represent the “Green Movement.” Crush is all about recycling cans and bottles into the blue recycling boxes used in many communities. The cute, friendly character, Crush, shows children at play how easy it is to pick up trash around their playground and what fun it is to work together. Crush sports a recycling symbol tattoo on his arm and each subsequent character has one germane to each one’s specialty. They all have their unique aspects, but in a consistent way for reinforcement.
The series focuses on:
•Teaching the language of Green
•Social skills training
•Environmental modifications
This is a wonderful series to support the environmental movement and such times as “Earth Day.” It is excellent for teaching stewartship.We rated this first book five hearts.
Title: If Babies Went to School
Author: Barbara Lock
Illustrator: Guy Tarantino
Publisher and/or Distributor: Author House
Pages: 38
ISBN: 978-1-4520-5940-2
Price: $10
Publishing Date: Aug/2010
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This cute picture book for 4-7 year olds begins with a brother and sister wondering what it would be like to bring their little baby brother to school with them. Using critical thinking in the form of inductive reasoning, they then expand the idea to include all their friends bringing their baby brothers and sisters to school. They then go through how the babies might do or not do typical school activities. These range from the possible to the ridiculous. In the end comes the realization that the babies would need a lot of help.
The author combines an adorable fantasy with the nicely done illustrations to teach critical thinking. This is best done through lots of realistic examples, which she does by using excellent “If…then” statements which cause the reader to follow through the characters’ thought processes. Learning should be fun for children, and that is what this author has done. The visualized situations with all the babies involved in an art project or writing in journals readily brings smiles to hand. We rated this book four hearts.
Title: Love, Friendship, Imagination
Author: Andres Mendez
Illustrator: Andres Mendez
Publisher and/or Distributor: Homiedre! Corporation
Pages: 126
ISBN: 9780980092035
Price: $39.87
Publishing Date: 2009
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
This is a very professionally produced boxed set of three topical books based on answering what love, friendship, and imagination are. It is targeted toward young children of pre-school through early grammar school age, although there are concepts applicable to all mankind. The books are being marketed in support of the efforts of the Broadway and movie actress Carol Channing and her friend Barbara Walters to enhance the learning and teaching of the arts in our schools through their “School Starts with the Arts” Kullijian Foundation.
The author/illustrator uses high tech computer-generated artwork to present the visual framework behind his explanatory poems, which promote each book’s central theme of love, friendship, or imagination. These themes enhance children’s understanding of the emotions of relationships and how to use their minds to think outside the box. We gave the series as a whole five hearts. Reviews of each book follows below.
Title: What is Love?
Author: Andres Mendez
Illustrator: Andres Mendez
Publisher and/or Distributor: Homiedre! Corporation
Pages: 42
ISBN: 9780980092004
Price: $17.87
Publishing Date: 2009
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
The main theme is that love is everywhere one seeks it. It can rarely be defined by size or shape, but it’s just waiting to be found. There are so many everyday items that symbolize love: birthday candles, cookies, balloons, ice cream sundays, all kinds of food and in all kinds of people. Love is there in animals and sports, homework, and play. All you have to do is recognize it when you see it.
The main character is easily recognized by his two little black dots for eyes and various kinds of hoods covering most of his brown/blond hair. In the back, there is a doll of the main character and samples of clothes. We rated this book five hearts.
Title: What is Friendship?
Author: Andres Mendez
Illustrator: Andres Mendez
Publisher and/or Distributor: Homiedre! Corporation
Pages: 42
ISBN: 9780980092011
Price: $17.87
Publishing Date: 2009
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
Thoughts of friends can bring smiles and laughter. Sharing with friends is important, as is their trustworthiness. Friends are for playing and sharing troubles or problems. They help one another, give support, and make memories together. They’re also there when you need a shoulder to cry on.
The main character is a little boy with cool robots for friends. Many settings and examples of friendly activities are shown. The poetry is easy to follow and poignant. We rated this book five hearts.
Title: What is Imagination
Author: Andres Mendez
Illustrator: Andres Mendez
Publisher and/or Distributor: Homiedre! Corporation
Pages: 42
ISBN: 9780980092028
Price: $17.87
Publishing Date: 2009
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
Imagination is the essence and foundation of art. Each new day is seen as an opportunity for people who like to use their imaginations. As the little girl Petunia and her dog Patches make their way through the day, they are pictured in mundane settings that quickly become exciting as they use their imaginations. A ladder becomes a mountain. Petunia and Patches become smaller than insects. Even when they have to eat or do something unpleasant, they use their imagination to make it tolerable and even pleasant for them.
Again dolls of the characters and clothing for them are pictured in the back of the book. The book’s illustrations help guide young readers so they will get an idea of what can be done with imagination to build upon reality. We rated this book five hearts.
Title: The Scruffy Little Crumb-Grabbers
Author: Peggy Krause
Illustrator: Peggy Krause
Publisher and/or Distributor: Create Space
Pages: 156
ISBN: ?
Price: $8.99
Publishing Date: 2010
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 3 hearts
This ages 7 to 11 children’s book focuses on a young cat which has been named Spider Man by his owner’s grandchildren. This young brother, Frankie, and sister, Ruby, pair is derisively known as the scruffy little crumb-grabbers. Ages 3 and 4, the two are spoiled rotten by their mother, Nancy, and maternal grandmother, Marcy. The two rapscallions are constantly making wrong and thoughtless choices and then seeking forgiveness by offering insincere “sorry’s.” Spider Man becomes very concerned when he learns that the children are moving in because their father has lost his job. His concern centers on the kids’ unfeeling mistreatment of the cat by yelling, jumping, grabbing, tightly squeezing, and their sticky hands dirtying his fur. He is constantly having to hide and run away from the terrible two and reporting all their activities to all his feline friends, who are sympathetic to his plight. Eventually, he is instrumental in saving their lives when they sneak into a neighbor’s swimming pool.
The author does a good job of presenting a pet’s view of its world. Spider Man doesn’t understand why the children are never punished for their egregious transgressions and neither does his friends. Marcy’s gentle chidings and suggested alternatives to the choices the children make illustrate proper behavior to children listening to or reading of this book. It makes a good learning tool. We rated it three hearts.
Title: Finding My Molly
Author: Peggy Krause
Illustrator: Peggy Krause
Publisher and/or Distributor:
Pages: 114
ISBN: 978-1-4343-4279-9
Price: $???
Publishing Date: 2007
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This National Humane Education Society’s Recommended Reading List children’s book can be described with one word—cute. It’s a story of a young cat, Soupy, whose curiosity causes him to go outside the house and becomes hopelessly lost. Ending up in a wooded area, he finds shelter in a hollow log. He makes friends with an older cat who allows him to eat food from her dish to survive. He takes in what he thinks is a new kitten but is actually a orphan raccoon kit and raises him. Throughout all these adventures, he never ceases looking for Molly, his young girl owner. The coon grows up and leaves with a mate and Soupy eventually finds his way back home to Molly.
The story deals with handling strong emotions and how different points of view can see the same person very differently. Soupy sees Molly as a radiantly beautiful young girl. In actuality, she is messy with jelly and dirt on her face. She’s losing her baby teeth, and has earned the nickname of Messy Molly from her peers. Children will closely identify with the characters and how scary a world with monster dogs can be. We rated this book four hearts.
Title: The Land of Expression
Author: David & Muttya Vision
Illustrator: Ignacio Alcantara
Publisher and/or Distributor: Vision Works Publishing
Pages: 48
ISBN: 9780981625409
Price: $17
Publishing Date: Nov 2009
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This picture book is a wonderful lesson in diversity. The different drops of color worked very hard in the Reality Factory to produce realities in all colors. Unfortunately, the color black tended to overwhelm the other colors, which threatened and angered them. They waged a negative campaign against him, which greatly saddened him. The Creator felt sorry for Black and elevated him to the heavens where he defined and contained the beauty of all space. Back at the Reality Factory, the other colors now felt incomplete. They were less defined and began to fade. Finally they pleaded for Creator to bring Black back to them. The Creator didn’t want to, but Black begged to be allowed to come to the aid of his old, bullying fellow colors. The Creator finally allowed him to come back and remain in the Heavens at the same time. All ended well.
This team of creators have produced a visual lesson in the importance of allowing diversity to come together; that everyone or color has its roles to play. The only thing I felt was missing was the fact that black is the sum of all other colors, and that it encompasses all colors. There is some of every color in Black, but the other colors didn’t recognize it. This is an excellent tool to teach self-worth to children of color and non-color alike. We rated it four hearts.
Title: My Friend and Teacher Sammie
Author: Steve Peruski
Illustrators: Shery Larson & Jane McGarigal
Publisher and/or Distributor: Compassion Pets Publishing
Pages: 36
ISBN: 978-0-615-30968-2
Price: $15.99
Publishing Date: January 2010
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This is a touching story about how the author came across and adopted a friendly Springer Spaniel Mix dog he named Sammie. There are several lessons that form the foundation of this story. One is the rewards one gets for practicing compassion. One is the importance of never taking for granted what handicapped animals and people are capable of doing. Finally, there is the unconditional love which can come from pets. A stray dog, the author notices Sammie shivering on a General Store’s front porch up in the Northern Californian mountains. He takes Sammie home, hoping to find his owners, but none are forthcoming. A strong bond of play and friendship quickly forms between the two.
This bond is challenged when one of Sammie’s front legs becomes totally and inexplicably useless. The leg has to be amputated, giving Sammie’s owner doubts as to whether his dog can live a safe life in this predator-infested mountain region. Sammie quickly proves his mobility and unflagging courage and uplifting attitude. The dog continues to teach valuable life lessons to his loving master. We rated this lovely story four hearts.
Title: The Mystery of Journeys Crowne: An Adventure Drawing Game
Author: K. Michael Crawford
Illustrator: K. Michael Crawford
Publisher and/or Distributor: Happily Ever Art
Pages: 48
ISBN: 978-0-9817940-0-6
Price: $14.95
Publishing Date: 2008
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This highly unusual picture book promises an adventure, and it delivers. Although the author claims it is for eight years and up, I would weigh that toward the up side. The book is a story about how to find a worthy prize; however, it requires the reader to draw many pictures along the way. It is also filled chock full of hints in codes. Did I say codes? The way is absolutely inundated with them. Some are easy partial substitution codes but many others are much more complex. Some have hints or solving instructions and many do not. In fact, some are not readily recognized for what they are. This book is not only fun, it is designed to stretch the reader’s mind further than a rubber band.
This reviewer takes pride in working both the daily crossword and the cryptogram in the newspaper and at on line puzzle sites. I can affirm that these codes are tough. If you buy this book for a child, don’t be surprised if that young person cries for assistance. Don’t be surprised if you have a difficult time providing it. Many of these puzzles and clues require a wide range of cultural knowledge. Take nursery rhymes for example: at what time did the mouse run up the clock? Or, did he run down then? Try reading a sentence that, like the Hebrew language, has no vowels, which must be determined by the context of the sentence.
All that being said about its challenges, it would be a very worthwhile endeavor to work through the pages with a child and use each hard place as a learning moment. The exhilaration of solving a difficult step along the way and drawing pictures in the space provided (or on a plain sheet of paper) that cause the reader’s visual senses to develop is well worth it. We rated this exciting keep-them-quiet-for-the-summer vehicle a high four hearts.
Title: Birds of a Feather: A Book of Idioms and Silly Pictures
Author: Vanita Oelschlager
Illustrator: Robin Hegan
Publisher and/or Distributor: Vanita Books, LLC
Pages: 32
ISBN: 978-0-9800162-8-4
Price: $17.95
Publishing Date: 2009
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 5 hearts
This delightful children’s picture book blends the real meanings of common American idioms such as: “Don’t let the cat out of the bag;” “It’s raining cats and dogs;” and so on. Each idiom is stated and explained, then, an example of how it might be used is provided. The fun illustrations show scenes of what a child might imagine when hearing an idiom for the first time and taking it literally.
The combination of our language’s funny sayings and the even funnier visual jokes the illustrator has generated will make for delightfully gigglely read-a-louds. Children will get a real hoo-ha out of this book. We rated it five hearts.
Title: Ivy in Bloom: The Poetry of Spring from the Great Poets and Writers of the Past
Author: Vanita Oelschlager
Illustrator: Kristin Blackwood
Publisher and/or Distributor: VanitaBooks, LLC
Pages: 40
ISBN: 978-0-9800162-7-7
Price: $17.95
Publishing Date: 2009
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 4 hearts
This children’s picture book’s purpose is more than just entertainment. Its pictures and connecting text lead the readers through young Ivy’s emotional changes and activities and dress as she wanders through the end of winter and through all of spring. These aspects are enough to make the book interesting; however an additional dimension is added throughout the pages by quoting several of our best loved poets from the past to kick up the quality level.
The pictures and the illustrator’s command of her various art media provide an excellent visual background that stops just short of museum quality level. She reminds me a little of “Madeline” by Ludwig Bemelmans.
The decision to use excerpts from famous poets with an explanation of each one in the book’s back material is to be applauded. Today, it is almost impossible to hear or see poetry being taught, read, or written in public schools. It has been left behind as a victim of the “No Child Left Behind” movement, which focuses on basic skills and hard science and math and little on any of the arts. This book is an excellent awareness raiser. We rated it a fairly high four hearts.
