Articles of Interest.

{Image via The Alantic}

A round-up of interesting articles about books, parenting, creativity, and education from around the web:

• 8 Great Picture Book Biographies - Reading Rockets 
• What Grown-Ups Can Learn From Kids Books' - The Atlantic
• Gear for a Stellar First Day of School - Daily Candy
• How to Read a Victorian Novel - Novel Readings
• Back-To-School Blues - My Brown Baby

Happy Reading!

Book Review: I Had A Favorite Dress

First things first, this book is fabulous for the illustrations alone. (Julia Denos is one of my favorite illustrators. I dare you not to love her work.) When I came across I Had A Favorite Dress by Boni Ashburn, I was extremely excited. Way more excited than a grown woman (mother or not) should be about a picture book. A little black girl! Pretty pictures! A crafty mother! Creativity! Happiness! More pretty pictures! I was in love with this book. Thankfully, AB humored me. She agreed that it was a very lovely book and that it might be a good idea to keep it. Her appreciation for the book has increased since she acquired a favorite skirt of her very own that she wears on Saturdays.

I Had A Favorite Dress is about an urban mini-fashionista with a favorite dress that she is,to her dismay, starting to outgrow. Her mother says, "Don't make mountains out of molehills, make molehills out of mountains." The little girl decides to make something out of the dress. So, her mother makes the beloved dress into a shirt. When the little girl tears the sleeve, the mother makes it into a tank top. When school starts, her mother makes it into a skirt. When skirts are deemed "out" and pants 'in", the mother makes it into a scarf. And so on, and so forth, until the little girl is left with nothing but a few scraps of the fabric that used to be her favorite dress. She uses the fabric in a collage of herself wearing her favorite dress, making it possible for her to wear the dress every day of every season.

It's a great story about a little girl being creative and resourceful. It also highlights the seasons (including seasonally appropriate clothing) and days of the week. And, oh yes, it has very pretty pictures. 

Articles of Interest.

A round-up of interesting articles about books, parenting, creativity and education from around the web:

• Are Enhanced E-Books Bad For Kids? paidContent
• The End of Brain, Child Magazine - Motherlode
• The World of Beatrix Potter - Steady Mom
• Artists Cover Philadelphia Neighborhood in Color - PSFK
• Lauren Child's New Girl Detective: Ruby Redfort - Telegraph
• The Best Interactive and Pop-Up Books of the Season - New York Times

Happy Reading!

Book Review: Dog Loves Books

Now that AB has discovered the joy of chapter books, she tends not to look at picture books as much. But there was one in particular that caught her eye, Dog Loves Books by Louise Yates. I asked AB why she picked this one up, especially since she hadn't really seemed interested in picture books lately, and she said rather matter-of-factly, "I love dogs and I love books." Fair enough.

Dog Loves Books is a story about a dog who, well, loves books. He loves books so much that he decides to open up a bookstore. He works hard to set up the shop and is really excited for the Grand Opening. Unfortunately, no one comes. He putters around trying to keep busy until he finally gets a potential customer. Yay! But the woman thinks he's operating a tea shop and is not interested in books. After a long wait, another customer arrives. Yay! But the man is only asking for directions. So, to Dog's dismay, his first day is not turning out so great. But then he remembers that the best way to pass the time waiting for customers is to read. So, he gets lost in a few good books. Before he knows it, another customer arrives who is actually looking for a book. And since Dog is such a booklover, he know exactly which on to recommend.

The message of this book is that reading is not just a solitary activity. Sure, we read the books by ourselves, but then, we share it. If we loved a book, we tell everyone we can about it. We cannot shut up about it. We find threads of the books theme throughout our relationships and everyday existence. We benefit from other people being the same way. We love recommendations: blurbs on a book we picked up by chance, a booklist  the school librarian, the book review section of the newspaper, online literary magazines, or you-should-reads from friends/family/acquaintances/strangers. The sharing of a great book is part of the fun.

So, here's a challenge: share a book that you have enjoyed (or that your kiddo has enjoyed) with one other person. Spread the book love.

Articles of Interest

A round-up of interesting articles about books, parenting, creativity and education from around the web:

• Are Moms Taking Over the Blogosphere? PSFK

• Writing in the Dark: Confessions of a Literary Night Owl - New York

• Are You Mom Enough? Why Attachment Parenting Drives Some Mothers To Extremes - TIME

• Mothers and More: Books About Families - Reading Rockets

• 11 Secrets of a Creative Mama (a.k.a How to Get Stuff Done w/ a Kid) - Goddess Leonie

• The Kid Lit World Remembers Maurice Sendak - School Library Journal

Happy Reading!

Articles of Interest.

A round-up of interesting articles about books, parenting, creativity and education from around the web:

• When Do Kids Stop Being Cute? Babble

• How Technology is Ingraining Creativity at an Early Age - PSFK

• The Book Review is Dead, Long Live the Book Review - Book Riot

• 10 Great Green Books for Kids - TLC Parentables

• Narcissism in Pink and Blue: Gender-Reveal Parties - The New Yorker

• Multiracial Children: Teaching My Children to Check The Latino Box on Applications - HuffPost Parents

Happy Reading!

Book Review - Charles Dickens: Scenes from an Extraordinary Life

Confession: I have yet to read a Dickens book in its entirety. (Though I am determined for Bleak House to be my first.)

I love Charles Dickens. I love his style. I love his back story. I love that his pen name was Boz. I love that he is a Victorian author. I love the word "Dickensian". Therefore, I have been in absolute heaven with the festivities going on in honor of he 200th birthday this year. I am fully on board with the Dickens 2012 mania*. When I saw the recent picture book biography, Charles Dickens: Scenes from an Extraordinary Life by Mick Manning and Brita Granstrom, I immediately picked it up. This book was the perfect way for me to share my obsession interest with AB. This book did not disappoint. Mick and Brita are a writing-illustrating duo that also happen to be married with four kids. Their illustrating style is reminiscent of Quentin Blake. (Interesting side note: He included their book, A Ruined House, in a list of his 50 all-time favorite children's books.)

Over the course of a week, this was our read aloud bedtime book. AB helped out by reading the dialogue. The authors use Dickens' own words to describe events in his life. Then using comic strips, they either describe a bit of Victoria Era history (i.e. what is a debtor's prison?) or tie the life event to one of his novels. They give just enough of the plot to get you interested in the book and then encourage you to find out the ending by reading the book yourself. The end pages provide an attractive map of "Dickens' London" including places that were instrumental in his life and prominent in his writings.

I didn't think it was possible, but this book has made me love Dickens even more than before.

*Check out podcast episodes about Dickens from Stuff You Missed In History Class, The Penguin Podcast, & The Guardian Books Podcast.

Book Review: Looking at Lincoln

I am finally reading Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin. It has been on my TBR list for awhile. So, I've had Lincoln on the brain lately. AB, eve\r the mini-me, found Looking at Lincoln by Maira Kalman. (I wish that we found it earlier because it would have been a great addition to the Historical Biographies Booklist: Politicos.)

Looking at Lincoln tells the story of a little girl who is curious about the man whose unusual face is featured on our money. She heads to the library, of course, to satisfy this curiosity. She gives the reader a nice overview of the main points of his life, with a few fun facts and speculations in between. Apparently, Lincoln's favorite opera was the Magic Flute. His favorite dessert was vanilla cake, so perhaps Mrs. Lincoln made it for him on the day he was elected. "But maybe he forgot to eat his slice. He was often too busy thinking to eat." 

The author also makes sure to touch on some of the less pleasant aspects of his presidency, namely, slavery, the Civil War, and his assassination. It would not be a true biography without them. However, she addresses them in a way that I found refreshing. They were not glossed over. She beautifully illustrates prominent African-Americans of the time, former slaves Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass. She also depicts what slavery was with an illustration of slaves picking cotton under a harsh sun while a white overseer on horseback yells as he cracks his whip. The slaves pictured include children and women, one of whom has a baby strapped to her back. It is a truly arresting illustration that you don't normally see in a picture book. In addition, there is a soldiers uniform with a bullet hole over the point of the heart, a pistol, and a empty upholstered rocking chair with a stovepipe hat laying beside it.

Maira Kalman's amazing illustrations are a crucial aid to her story telling. Her modern style is a nice change from the traditional illustrations that usually accompany historical picture books. Her writing style is also effective. She never mentions John Wilkes Booth by name, but simply refers to him as a "wretched man who did not want slavery to end." On the other hand, she makes sure the reader knows the name of one of the first soldiers killed in the Civil War. After describing his uniform with the bullet hole, she writes ,"The soldier's name was Elmer Ephraim Ellsworth. Terrible things happen in a war." The numbers of those killed in the Civil War (or any war for that matter), allow a certain dissociation. The numbers are far to large to truly grasp that each and every person killed was somebody's child. That each and every person had a name. That each and every person lived and breathed just as we do today. 

Reading this book with AB forced me to discuss some less pleasant aspects of race and history with her. To explain that her ancestors were slaves. To explain to her that her ancestors were also likely slave owners. I didn't dwell on it, because she is only six. (I mean, it's not like I'm reading Roots to her at bedtime.) But, these are things that I want her to be aware of and I want to be the one to introduce her to them. Yet, at the same time, I do not want to burden her with race. As the black mother of a biracial child, I do not want to skew her perspective of the world to be "black" perspective. So, I struggle with finding the right balance to allow her to find her on way, hopefully as color blind as possible. 

We need more historical picture books that introduce history to younger readers in an interesting factual way that is not overwhelming. Books that encourage curiosity and research. Books that encourage discussion and engagement. Looking at Lincoln is a perfect example of that type of book.

Book Review: The Unruly Queen

AB picked up this gem at the library. She came over to me and said, "Mom, I know you're really going to like this one." She held up The Unruly Queen by E. S. Redmond. The cover alone had me. She's like a punky blend of Eloise and Fancy Nancy. AB and I love quality illustrations, but we have a special place in our hearts for quirkier illustrations of the Tim Burton variety. (Who knew that a preschooler would become so smitten with The Corpse Bride?)

Minerva is an only child of wealthy globetrotting parents. She is a spoiled brat who goes through a nanny a week. However, the 53rd nanny is different. She whips Minerva into shape with some cunning reverse psychology, crowning her the Unruly Queen for being "the single most difficult child to control." Minerva is presented with a beautiful purple crown. She is informed that with this title she is able to live far away on Petulant Peak where her royal subjects will be beasts and monsters who are loud and noisy. Her subjects will, of course, misbehave, just like the Unruly Queen herself. Minerva is none to happy to hear the perks of Petulant Peak and sets out to prove the 53rd nanny wrong about Petulant Peak being the perfect place for Minerva. So, she behaves. She even goes so far as to take a bath and brush her hair. Eventually, she gives up her Unruly Queen crown for her current comforts of butlers and pink satin pajamas.

Aside from the great illustrations and funny story line (written in rhyme!), AB loved that The Unruly Queen is a book about manners. She gravitates toward books of this sort because she enjoys admonishing the characters. Thankfully, she does not act that way with her friends. Yet, I do wish that it translated into a perfectly well-behaved AB. Well, a mother can dream, can't she?

Book Review: Extra Yarn.

AB and I love knitting and we also love to find our names as characters in books. (i.e. The Doll People by Ann M. Martin with main characters named Tiffany and Annabelle.)

So, it comes as no surprise that we are in love with the picture book Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett. It is a book about knitting and the heroine is named Annabelle. What more could you ask for?

There are many reasons to love this book. First, Jon Klassen's illustrations are fantastic. Second, the villain is an archduke. My kid now know the word "archduke" and uses it while playing. Score. It's just such a fun word. Third, it features yarn bombing. That's right, adorable little Annabelle becomes a guerilla knitter thanks to her extra yarn and desire to prove a naysayer teacher wrong. Last, but definitely not least, it teaches a great lesson about honoring your gifts. You may look at someone else's talents and envy them. It may seem that their process is simple and ordinary.  You may attempt to imitate, but it just doesn't work. It doesn't look right. It doesn't feel right. Why? Because it's not your. Like the archduke,  you have stolen the extra yarn only to wind up staring into an empty box. Instead, find what makes you truly happy  and you have found your own gift that looks right, that feels right, that works.

Knitting + heroine named Annabelle + happy ending = a favorite book.

Historical Biography Booklist: Politicos

I  have been a history geek since I was a little girl. I am particularly drawn to political history, so my non-fiction picture book offerings to AB have been slightly heavy in this department. But, I believe that it is important for me to impart on her that the things that she is able to do today are a direct result of the courage that someone had years ago to stand up and speak their mind.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Jack's Path of Courage: The Life of John F. Kennedy by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by Tavares

Focusing on courage and perseverance, this book is a nice survey of the major points in JFK's life. I appreciate Rappaport including some more difficult aspects that are not so easily explained to young readers, such as the Cuban Missile Crisis. However, she does it simply and seemingly effortlessly. By not sugarcoating JFK's experiences for her audience, she allows for the theme of courage to shine even more brightly. She also works in excerpts from JFK's personal letters, speeches and interviews which lend authenticity. Tavares's illustrations are a brilliant aid. Jack's Path of Courage is a great way to introduce a child to John F. Kennedy, as well as the concept of primary and secondary resources in research.



What To Do About Alice? by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham

The illustrations are a fantastic fit to the story of rebellious Alice Roosevelt embodying the spirited nature of Theodore Roosevelt's oldest daughter. While she had her own share of struggles, losing her mother when she was a newborn and wearing leg braces for many years due to a mild case of polio, she resisted being pitied and bullied. This motivation drive her to be even more extraordinary. She truly "ate up the world" serving as a informal goodwill ambassador for her father during his presidency. She did not shy away from politics as an a "boys only" realm, instead she made herself an indispensable advisor to her father and husband.  Alice was outrageous and offensive as she eschewed the rules but that is what made her so fabulous. Oh Alice, indeed.



Eleanor, Quiet No More: The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by Gary Kelley

Juxtaposed with her exuberant cousin Alice, we have the more reserved (but no less opinionated) Eleanor. The illustrator's style in Eleanor, Quiet No More is a beautiful reflection of Eleanor's style reserved yet striking. Rappaport's effective style of interweaving the subject's own words into the story (as always) works wonderfully. Placing Eleanor, Quiet No More and What to Do About Alice? side by side and asking children to describe the kind of person the book is going to be about is a wonderful exercise in the power of illustration. It is also a way to emphasize that you don't have to be the loudest or most outgoing person in the room to be heard. It is important to speak up for what you believe in and Eleanor is a perfect example. Even if it did not align with public opinion, she still spoke up, whether it was against racism and discrimination (including disagreeing with her husband's decision to allow internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II) or in support of better housing, health care, and education. After her husband's death, she raised her voice to a global level, as she advocated for international human rights as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Alice and Eleanor are two women that I introduce to my daughter as examples of strong women who informed themselves, formed intelligent opinions and entered the discourse, making great strides and paving the way.

Of Thee I Sing: A Letter To My Daughters by Barack Obama, illustrated by Loren Long

President Obama gathers an inspiring collection of Americans who have made contributions to American society through their varying talents including artists, scientists, atheletes, and activists. It helps underscore my belief that no matter what your personality, no matter what your talent, you can use your strengths to make a difference. It is also a great reminder that all children have a great mixture of creativity, intelligence, bravery, kindness, and perserverance in them, but it will manifest differently in every child. We as parents, teachers, aunts and uncles, friends and neighbors must be aware of the light that shines in every child. We must nuture it and protect it because (as cheesy as it sounds) it is true: the children are our future.

Happy Reading!