Who Doesn’t Love Sloths? Check Out these New Picture Books

Lynn: I’ve yet to meet anyone who doesn’t smile upon seeing a picture of a sloth and I guarantee the two books in today’s post will spend very little time on the library shelf! There is something about these unique and fascinating creatures that we humans respond to immediately.

Happy Sloth Day (S&S/Beach Lane, 2022) by the acclaimed author April Pulley Sayre and photographer co-author Jeff Sayre. This wife and husband team spent 8 years photographing sloths in the Panamanian rain forest and learning about this truly amazing animal. The book is a terrific blend of poetry, eye-catching photographs and solid factual information. It is wonderfully child-centered in every way. The poetry is a delight to read aloud, loaded with vivid colorful language.

A tree is a sloth salad

Rip! Snip! Chew. Chew”

Jeff Sayre’s photographs are masterful and a real joy to see. Since these creatures live high in the rain forest canopy, the sheer difficulty of the photographic work is especially notable. Sidebars provide extensive factual information about the sloths and the creatures they interact with. In the back matter, two pages of additional sloth science is presented. This is an absolutely delightful book to read for pleasure and equally well suited to non-fiction reading and reports.

The Adventures of Dr. Sloth: Rebecca Cliffe and Her Quest to Protect Sloths (Millbrook, 2022) by Suzi Eszterhas.

Another outstanding wildlife photographer and author, Suzi Eszterhas also has a fascinating book with enchanting photographs and solid factual information about sloths. Her book, however, focuses on a scientist who is currently doing ground-breaking work studying this complex animal. Very little was actually known about sloths, partly because studying them is a difficult challenge. Eszterhas and Cliffe have become friends and the book presents an excellent look at what the work of a biologist is really like from examining sloth poo, to scaling giant trees to creating sloth backpacks to track and record daily activities of a wild sloth.

Cliffe, who wanted to be a scientist from a very young age, is also deeply involved in sloth conservation as these amazing creatures are threatened in their habitats.Information is provided on how young readers can help protect sloths and back matter includes a glossary, and list of additional resources.

These two outstanding books are must purchases and will have instant waiting lists!

A is for Alphabet Books…and Oboe

Lynn: I can’t celebrate Picture Book Month without reviewing an Alphabet Book! Long-time readers know it is one of my favorite types of picture books. My love of them began farther back than I’d like to admit and in fact, I still own my battered copy of Hillary Knight’s ABCs purchased for me by my father before I was even born. I’ve loved them ever since and have quite a collection. For me, alphabet books are a testament to the extraordinary creativity that illustrators continue to bring to what could be a mundane genre. They continue to be ever-fresh and brilliantly original.

A Is for Oboe: The Orchestra’s Alphabet (Penguin/Dial, 2021) by Laura Auerbach and Marilyn Nelson proves my point! Like all outstanding books, this is far, far more than an alphabet book. In the talented hands of composer, conductor, and pianist Auerbach and multi-award-winning poet Nelson, this remarkable lyrical book is an introduction to the orchestra, its sections, musical terms, and instruments. It gifts readers with lyrical poems for each letter of the alphabet, each cleverly delivering its assigned letter in unusual ways. For example, A is for the note A played by the oboe to tune the orchestra and W is for the new and exciting music written by today’s young composers. Each poem is a little puzzle to unlock and each begs to be read aloud.

Illustrator Paul Hoppe uses ink on paper with his dynamic and energetic drawings, reinforcing the message that the orchestra of our time is diverse in race, ethnicity, age, and gender and is a living experience for all to enjoy.

The vocabulary is often challenging but in accessible ways and is a valuable addition to music and English language classes as well as being terrific for shared reading with an adult. This is a gem and belongs in all collections. It will certainly be in mine!

The Sweetest Scoop – What’s Your Flavor?

Lynn: What kid doesn’t love ice cream? And who hasn’t heard of or tasted one of Ben and Jerry’s crazy flavors? The new picture book The Sweetest Scoop: Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream Revolution by Lisa Robinson had me smacking my forehead and wondering, “Oy! Why didn’t I think of that????” It’s a kid-perfect book, right? Could there be a better book for a classroom intro to biography or nonfiction?

Well, I didn’t think of it so thanks to Lisa Robinson who did! Ben and Jerry were childhood pals and even though they had different skills and interests, their friendship remained strong as they both struggled to find the right path. The friends decided their best plan was to go into business together. But what? The two tried several things. Bagels came first but they settled on a true love—Ice Cream. The boys bought an old gas station in Burlington, Vermont, rolled up their sleeves, and started to work. First, they had to fix leaks and resurrect the furnace, and then came the challenges of actually making great ice cream. And then there were the flavors! How DO you break up enough toffee bars to put Coffee Bar Ice Cream into production? Well, our boys persevered, created their signature wacky flavors to stand out, and Ben & Jerry’s was a huge success. Were there challenges ahead? You can bet your waffle cone it was often a Rocky Road! Have you ever heard of the Flavor Graveyard or the Pillsbury Boycott that aimed to put them out of business? I hadn’t and this sweet book filled me up with fascinating facts.

The Sweetest Scoop is a delicious book, combining an inspiring story of two hard-working men who wanted to succeed at something they loved and do it in a way that upheld their strong beliefs such as sustainable manufacturing and activism. Robinson’s text has a breezy grooviness appropriate for the boys’ 60’s spirit and sprinkles plenty of humor throughout, including groan-worthy riddles here and there. “How do you make a milkshake? Give a cow a pogo stick!” Stacey Innerest’s chalk and watercolor illustrations are totally chill too.

Back matter includes an Author’s Note, Timeline, and Sources. My only wish was for a list of flavors used over the years—AND for a great big cone to eat as I read!

Whatever your favorite flavor, Cherry Garcia, Chunk Monkey, or Save Our Swirl, you’ll love this perfect treat of a picture book!

How To Draw a Duck – Mr. McCloskey’s Marvelous Mallards

Lynn: November is Picture Book Month and what better way to celebrate than writing about a picture book that celebrates a classic and much-loved picture book? Robert McCloskey’s Make Way for Ducklings (Viking, 1941) won the Caldecott and is still treasured by children. The story behind McCloskey’s book has been told in Leonard Marcus’ book, Caldecott Celebration (Walker, 2008) and now Emma Bland Smith brings that inspiring story to children in Mr. McCloskey’s Marvelous Mallards (Calkins Creek, 2022).

Having published his first book, young Robert McCloskey was searching for an idea for a second book. He remembered watching a pair of Mallards and their ducklings waddling into Boston’s Public Gardens all in row. Bingo! But getting the illustrations right turned out to be much harder. He sketched and sketched, only to have his editor, the legendary May Massee reject them all. McCloskey was determined to do better! He started by first bringing home a box of live ducklings to observe and sketch. Still not satisfied, he next brought home adult ducks to add to the chaos in his apartment before finally setting them all free on a pond at a friend’s home. This time his editor loved the sketches and text and an enchanting picture book came to life.

Smith tells this story wonderfully for children with just the right touch of humor and stressing McCloskey’s persistence and hard work to get the drawings just right. Illustrator Becca Stadtlander does a lovely job depicting the famous author/illustrator and his signature illustrations working in gouache and colored pencils in place of McCloskey’s iconic warm brown tones. It is a charming look at the artistic process as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse at how a book is created. A perfect pairing of books for any story hour or classroom.

And, if you missed our earlier post, To McCloskey’s Ducklings with Love, check that out as well as Nancy Schon’s book Ducks on Parade about the sculptures of McCloskey’s ducks created for the Public Gardens in 1987.

Planting a Love for Nature: Park and Garden Picture Books

Lynn and Cindy: We have gardens and parks on our minds! Who doesn’t in these sweet early days of summer when the world is green and inviting? A lovely bouquet of picture books has landed on our doorsteps that will delight any budding gardener. Enjoy and share!

Uncle John’s City Garden (Holiday House, 2022) by Bernette G. Ford

Little Sissie and her brothers work with their Uncle John to plant a garden in the middle of the city. Each child chooses seeds and carefully tends the plants with the goal of a glorious succotash at the season’s end. A bounty crop means a neighborhood celebration and lots of sharing. Frank Morrison’s vibrant oil illustrations make every page delicious. Succotash recipe included!

Celia Planted a Garden: the Story of Celia Thaxter and Her Island Garden (Candlewick, 2022) by Phyllis Root and Gary D. Schmidt.

Celia Thaxter loved flowers from the time she was a young child. She especially loved the color they brought to her gray, white, and black life on the island where her father tended a lighthouse. Her love for gardening bloomed as gloriously as the flowers she tended and the nature writing she nurtured. Melissa Sweet’s colorful illustrations are perfect for this picture book biography, and you’ll be inspired to plant some seeds of your own.

A Park Connects Us (Owl Kids, 2022) by Sarah Nelson.

This lovely picture book celebrates all the ways parks benefit us. Simple sentences and charming illustrations by Ellen Rooney make this a joyous choice for a summer read aloud. Back matter provides information on the history and creation of Central Park in New York City.

Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award 2022 Winners Announced!

Lynn: Drumroll please! The winners of the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award for 2022 have been announced! Administered by The Pennsylvania Center for the Book, the award is named in honor of Lee Bennett Hopkins, an internationally renowned poet, educator, and anthologist. The award is presented annually to an American poet or anthologist for the most outstanding book of poetry published for children in the previous calendar year. The award is sponsored by Pennsylvania State University Libraries and the Lee Bennett Hopkins Trust.

It has been my honor to serve as the chairman of the award jury this year. The jury was a joy to work with as we read and pondered the many outstanding poetry books for children published this year. This year we have a winner and an honor book.

Our Winners are Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renee Watson for their stellar picture book, The 1619 Project: Born on the Water published by Penguin Random/Kokila and illustrated by Nikkolas Smith. “Stymied by her unfinished family tree assignment for school, a young girl seeks Grandma’s counsel and learns about her ancestors, the consequences of slavery, and the history of Black resistance in the United States.”

Our One thing you'd save Honor winner is Linda Sue Park for her verse novel, The One Thing You’d Save published by Clarion Books and illustrated by Robert Sae-Heng. “When a teacher asks her class what one thing they would save in an emergency, some students know the answer right away. Others come to their decisions more slowly. And some change their minds when they hear their classmates’ responses.” Park uses a Korean poetic form, sijo in this inviting story.

Be sure to look for these outstanding books and continue to enjoy poetry!

A Perfect Spot – A Perfect Science Picture Book for Young Readers

Lynn:

I adore Isabelle Simler’s exquisitely beautiful illustrations! Each new book is a new and wondrous visual treat. Her newest, A Perfect Spot (Eerdmans, 2022) has instantly joined Plume, My Wild Cat, and The Blue Hour as some of my favorites.

Here, a tiny Seven Spotted Ladybug completes her metamorphosis and flies off looking for the perfect spot to lay her eggs. A twig, a rosebush, a tall oak, each looks safe but the instant she lands hidden insects reveal themselves. The tired ladybug finally finds a safe place and the cycle begins again.

This is a wonderful way to discuss camouflage and the ways insects employ it to stay hidden for safety or to hunt their prey. Each scene is meticulously detailed and the results are as informative as they are gorgeous.

Back matter includes larger illustrations of each of the insects in the story with accompanying scientific information. Did you know that you can tell the age of a Seven Spotted Ladybug by the depth of their color? This is a glorious purchase for any library and sure to delight young readers, especially those with a passion for insects.

Sweet Potato Pie and Sweet Justice

Lynn: Rosa Park’s name is familiar to most of our students but there were so many more people who sacrificed and worked to make the Montgomery Bus Boycott a success. Mara Rockliff brings us the sweet story of one important woman in the her new picture book, Sweet Justice: Georgia Gilmore and the Montgomery Bus Boycott (Random Studio, 2022).

Georgia Gilmore was a cook in a Montgomery restaurant in 1955 and when a bus driver took her dime and then drove away without her, she started her own personal boycott. Georgia was a big woman and after a hot day cooking her feet ached, but Georgia walked the long way home. In December, Georgia was joined by so many others as the Montgomery Bus Boycott began. But Georgia did so much more than walk. After a long day cooking her famous fried chicken and sweet potato pie, Georgia cooked in her own kitchen, selling her delicious food to raise money to support the boycott. When Dr. Martin Luther King was arrested, Georgia testified at his trial and then lost her job because of it. King gave her money to start her own restaurant and Georgia’s place became the gathering spot for planning and organizing as well as for enjoying her chocolate cakes and stuffed green peppers.

I loved this skillfully written story about a truly inspirational woman who remained important in Civil Rights movement after the boycott and who cooked wonderful meals right up to the day she died. Rockliff provides excellent back matter with additional information about Georgia, a note about her sources and an extensive list of sources.

R. Gregory Christie’s warm-toned illustrations are so moving and vibrant, bringing Georgia and her aching feet and generous heart to life. The only thing missing for me was a taste of that sweet potato pie!

Geography Nerds Rejoice!

Lynn: We prisoners of geography have a treat for all the map-loving kids you know! Each of the books we’re highlighting today bring a fascinating new look at maps, the impact of the often arbitrary lines drawn to created country boundaries and so much more.

The first is Prisoners of Geography: Our World Explained in 12 Simple Maps (The Experiment, 2021) by Tim Marshall. The book is a Young Reader’s adaptation of Marshall’s best-selling adult book. Marshall, a globe-trotting reporter for many years, takes a fascinating approach to providing an introduction to the geopolitics of our world. He touches on history, physical geography, resources of the region, trade, politics, and their impact today. The maps are engagingly drawn and packed with information presented in a way to interest kids and draw them into exploring more. It is a book to read a few pages at a time in order to linger over the wealth of information on each map. Choices had to be made for an adaptation so not all countries are included but those chosen are of definite current interest. As a life-long map nerd myself, this is a book that would have enthralled me as a kid and still does today. Don’t miss it!

Cindy: We have raved here in the past about Atinuke’s beginner reader books featuring Anna Hibiscus, a young girl from Africa, amazing Africa, but this book was completely off the map for me in 2020 and we want to make sure you don’t miss it as well. Africa, Amazing, Africa: Country by Country (Candlewick, 2020) by Atinuke is just that, a look at Africa, country by country. After a few pages of introduction and a full colorful continent map, the book is arranged by region with a regional map accented with images of foods, animals, and other features, a short text introduction to the area as a whole, and the word “Welcome” in each of the languages spoken in that region. Each country in the region is then presented in alphabetical order with a page that includes illustrations, information that varies depending on the country, and highlighted facts of interest. Throughout, Atinuke shares the traditions and history, but also is sure to highlight the large cities, technology, and contemporary features of Africa and its people today. Did you know that some nomads of Eritrea now “use GPS and cell phone apps to check where the rain and the grass are?” A must purchase for all libraries and a great addition to elementary classroom resources.

PHEW – A Picture Book About a Stinky Subject

Lynn: Say the word “poop” and you get every kid’s attention. But of course, the management and disposal of poop is a critically important health issue for people everywhere. So how do you help kids learn about the serious facts behind this stinky subject—all the while acknowledging that the giggles are inevitable? Colleen Paeff has the answer with her wonderful picture book, The Great Stink: How Joseph Bazalgette Solved London’s Poop Pollution Problem (S&S/Margaret McElderry, 2021). Paeff’s fascinating story of the brilliantly innovative engineer Joseph Bazalgette who truly saved London from its offal self is guaranteed to captivate and inform young readers—all without anyone having to hold their noses!

Told with a smile and engaging language, the history will make kids laugh but at the same time clearly delivers important facts about health and history. For most American kids, plumbing is a given and the protection the system provides us mostly out of mind with each flush. The reality for both history and many countries even today, is of course, another story.

Paeff focuses her story on London, beginning in 1500 with an introduction as to what passed for sanitation then. People in those days put human waste into deep cesspools in their basements and hired “nightsoil men” to come dig out and carry away the poop when it got too deep. Yuck!!! In 1819, when Bazalgette is born, flush toilets were just beginning to catch on but all the sewage goes directly into the Thames. A series of cholera outbreaks kills many Londoners who blame the disease on the bad air or misasmas while continuing to drink the polluted water. By 1850, Joseph Bazalgette, now an engineer, disagrees and he thinks he knows how to help.

But the city fathers didn’t agree and it took a lot of years, Bazalgette’s persistence, and a summer heat wave that produced an event called The Great Stink in 1858 to get his plan approved! But soon, thanks to Joseph Bazalgette, the London sewer system is flush with success!

Cindy: I don’t think I can keep up with Lynn’s stream of sewage metaphors but I do agree with her assessment of this important book. It’s hard to make such a putrid topic a joy to read, but Paeff has done it and Nancy Carpenter’s illustrations are the perfect touch to keep young readers flipping through the filth. The watercolor and ink artwork depict detailed scenes starting with the title page showing the royal “throne” occupied by the queen reading a newspaper! Plumbing pipes snake across later pages while earlier pages show Londoners using umbrellas to protect more from chamber pots being emptied than rain falling. Gross! But history isn’t always pretty, eh?

Knighted Sir Joseph Bazalgette’s story comes to an end in this book in 1874, but added backmatter includes an update on “Poop Polution Today” with tips for readers that include building a rain garden, planting trees, and touring a wastewater treatment plant, small acts to help prevent water pollution. There’s also a “Detailed Timeline,” a list of “Further Reading, and a “Selected Bibliography” for children and adults who want to learn more. My husband works in the wastewater industry, and we live on the water downriver from a large city that still struggles with sewage overflow into the river after big storms. Bazalgette was a hero, but it will take many more heroes to keep our waters safe. It’s never too early to be informed, and reading The Great Stink is a great start.