Campbell, S. (2008). Wolfsnail – A Backyard Predator. Photographs by Sarah and Richard Campbell. Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mills Press
In this delightful, full-colour book about the wolfsnail, we are taken on the daily round of the predacious mollusk, as he crawls over hosta plants, hides when he detects the presence of a bird overhead, and finally, up close and personal, when he devours a lowly garden snail. We are treated to an amazing zoological shot of the wolfsnail as he extends his long, slimy foot that will help him move over leaves and grasses. In yet another photo, we see a spectacular close-up of the creature’s formidable head, and finally, a picture of him safely home again under the garden porch. In spite of its spare text especially written for Kindergarten to Grade 2, we cannot help but be fascinated with this carnivorous garden creature. The photographers have made sure to hone in on their subject as carefully as possible, to heighten the wonder and dramatic persona that is the wolfsnail. As a result, the photographs are as stunning as they are informative. This was a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book.
McMillan, B. (1988). Growing Colors. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
Bruce McMillan is a skilled and gifted photographer. In this exquisitely-detailed text, he takes us through a photographic tour of a fruit and vegetable garden in full bloom to allow us to see colour in a way that we might not have seen it before. Who knew there were such things as brown peppers? Accompanying each photograph are smaller photos which detail the manner in which each plant grows from the ground. One can almost smell the dense, rich soil in which the red potato grows. Because fruitsand vegetables look especially appealing after a light rain, McMillan has sprayed the plants with water before taking the photographs. This book is for anyone who wants to share the delights of a garden with a 2 to 6 year old, and would be a welcome addition to any nursery school or Kindergarten library as the themes of spring and growing come up in the school year.
McMillan, B. (1995). Nights of the Pufflings. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
This enchanting and original photographic story tells of Halla and her friends who live in Iceland. Every year, the puffins of the island come inland to lay their eggs, and in August, when the chicks are now young pufflings, the children stay up all night long, to put the newly-hatched babies in boxes, and escort them lovingly across the roads, and back to safety nearer the coast. It is a job that all of the youngsters take very seriously as they assume some of the babies’ earliest care.
McMillan has taken great care to portray the love the Icelanders have for their beloved little birds. The photographs are rich and sensuous in detail; the children’s cheeks are ruddy from the cold night air, and you can almost count the stitches in their colourful Icelandic knit sweaters. As with his other books, McMillan is both photographer, and illustrator, because of the way in which he must thoroughly consider each shot, and every detail in his subject. His is the eye of both photographer and storyteller.
Phillips, C. (2001). The Philosopher’s Club. Illustrated by Kim Doner. Berkeley: Tricycle Press
This book appears to be one of the few books of philosophy for children, but yet it deals with a profound truth about every child – the inborn desire to know, and to ask questions to unlock the unknowing. This text challenges its young readers to ask the big questions such as; “What is the nature of wisdom?” It also encourages adults to engage in these kinds of Socratic conversations with children, not so much to get at the right answer, but rather to keep asking the questions. This approach to dialogue from a pedagogical standpoint strengthens the child’s critical thinking skills and deepens mind play.
The water colour and black line illustrations are not a huge contributing factor to the book’s appeal, yet they can be said to provide further reference points for this age group. The illustrations can, and do, frame further questions of their own.
Ruurs, M. (2005). My Librarian is a Camel. Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mills Press
From the farthest reaches of Finland’s Arctic Circle, to the steaming jungle islands of Indonesia, west to the beaches of Blackpool in England, and east, to the vast, sparsely-populated steppes of Mongolia, this book charmingly displays a universal love of reading. The ways in which we are able to tap into the world of books are many: in Indonesia, books are lent to patrons from library boats; Mongolian children eagerly await the book delivery from horse-drawn wagons as well as camels. Children from Nunavut obtain their books from the post… the library is sent to them. This book is a testament to the power of the written word, and the lengths to which we will go to procure our reading materials. While the accompanying photographs help to support the text, they lend the book a somewhat choppy appearance, putting the reader in mind of a travel brochure. Still, the idea for the book is highly original, and it makes for an engaging hour of reading.
Steltzer, U. (1981). Building an Igloo.Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre
This is yet another superb photographic essay. Steltzer has taken an Aboriginal technology, and brought it to light for young readers. The text is somewhat spare; photographs are dramatic, stark, and black-and-white to match. Steltzer’s, technique lends to its subject matter an immediacy that is compelling. With his keen eye, Steltzer went to the Northern Arctic and captured on film a father and son team as they demonstrate how to build an igloo. The reader is taken through the building process with such clarity that one feels it could be duplicated in the back yard! We can almost hear the crunch of crisp, hard snow as the father builds layer upon layer from the inside out. At the end of the book, we see the father put on the finishing touch of the inside of the igloo. He treats us, from this vantage point, to a long shot looking out to the frozen landscape. I felt the text and the photos worked so well together to create a harmonious whole, showing not only the beauty of this mysterious land to the north, but also, depicting the love that the Inuit have for it, and for the ways it has provided for them down the millennia.
Children’s Literature Resources
Fox, Mem. (2001) Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to our Children will Change their Lives Forever. Orlando,Florida: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
I have appreciated this book about reading, and reading aloud. Here, Mem Fox has captured the spirit of readingaloud, and the necessity for doing so, better than almost any other book I have read on the subject. Fox is a passionate advocate of reading well to children, and she makes many suggestions as to how to do that best, emphasizing that this is a talent almost anyone can achieve, provided one is motivated by love for one’s young audience. When I first read this book, most of my children had moved beyond being read to, but I felt acknowledged, in that, at least in this aspect of raising our children, I had done right by them! Like the Fox’s, we too, had a private little book language known only to us. I treasure our book-sharing times in the classroom, and I am certain that Mem Fox will continue to inspire me to seek out the best books for children for all my remaining years of teaching.
Hearne, B. and Kaye, M. Editors.(1981). Celebrating Children’s books.New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books.
Although not a recent publication, this volume is nonetheless filled with humour, and wisdom. Each of the contributing authors feels passionately about writing for young readers; each .feels children are deserving of the best of their craft. Jill Paton Walsh writes about realism and the problem novel. She does not endorse writing down to children, but accepts that children come to the book with needs. Betsy Hearne writes about her early years as a librarian, wondering long and hard about the selection of the books for her library. She likens her path as book critic, from inexperience to experience, to the poetry of William Blake. Arnold Lobel writes lovingly and humourously about the features of a good picture book, and it is obvious that he brings his philosophy to all of his writing, and David Macaulay’s essay deals with the creation of a successful nonfiction picture book for children. The sheer variety of topics makes this book a worthwhile addition to any literary collection of good children’s books, giving the reader a taste of the complexity of the field.
Huck. C. et al. (2001). Children’s Literature in the Elementary School.New York: McGraw-Hill.
This is a text of great magnitude, covering just about every aspect of children’s literature at the elementary school level. Huck’s rationale for compiling such a comprehensive and exhaustive work was “to share knowledge and enthusiasm for the literature of childhood with students, teachers and librarians in the hope that they, in turn, will communicate their excitement about the books to the children they teach.” (Huck, 2001, p.xvi) Because of the scope of the work, Huck and editors were not able to go into too much depth about each book. Rather, the editors have painted with a wide thematic brush to include such topics as realistic fiction, the function of the historical novel, best books for beginners, traditional literature, and modern fantasy. Most relevant for teachers is the chapter on planning the literature programme. Of particular note were the extensive bibliographies at the end of each chapter, and an informative introduction to each topic. Guidelines are given for evaluating each book, as well as resources for teaching. Huck has made certain to illustrate the text with hundreds of smaller, full-colour reproductions from the many books about which she has written.
Juvenile Novels
DeJong, M. (1954). The Wheel on the School. Pictures by Maurice Sendak. New York: Harper Trophy.
This story is as fresh and sweet in 2011 as it was when I read it for the first, second and third times, in 1964, and again to my own children in 1994. The Wheel on the School tells the story of several children in the small Dutch fishing village of Shora. Their schoolmaster urges his students to be deep wonderers, to think through a situation, and see if it can be fixed or changed in some creative way. On her way home from school, Lina has been so moved by her teacher’s petition, that she sets about wondering that very same afternoon…why do storks no longer come to build their nests in Shora? Lina thinks she has found the answer; there are only steep rooftops in Shora, and storks need a flat surface on which to build their nests! She asks the oldest inhabitant of the village, Grandmother Sibble, why the storks no longer come. She and Grandmother form a fast friendship, as Grandmother tells the stories of old Shora, when there were trees in there, and places for storks to rest and hide. The children, and then the whole village, are determined to have their dream of the return of the storks to Shora fulfilled. Through ingenuity and hard work, they are rewarded when once again storks come to nest. The story still has relevance today because of its ecological concerns. It is decorated with delicate black and white sketches by Maurice Sendak.
Hoban, R. (1967). The Mouse and His Child. Illustrated by David Small.New York: Arthur Levine.
The Mouse and His Child tells the allegorical story of self-determination, the importance of family, and the lifelong search for home. The wind-up father and son toy are bought at the toystore, but then discarded when the wind-up mechanism is broken. Tossed into the demimonde of garbage, stale air, and a host of ruthless characters, Manny Rat the most ignoble, they nevertheless persevere against all odds to find a way home. Death and hardship are around every corner, but there is hope, and humour as well. They meet a wandering theatre troupe, The Caws of Art, and find out more about their world. It is here that they discover the world of infinite possibility on the label of a can of Bonzo dog food, where a dog is carrying a tray of Bonzo, on which a similar label is placed, and on and on, till one can no longer perceive the image, but yet must nevertheless never lose sight of their dream.
Jarrell, R. (1965). The Animal F
amily. Illustrated by Maurice Sendak. New York: Grand Central Publishing.
I have long loved this book for its haunting beauty and simplicity. It tells the tale of a lonely hunter who had lost his parents at sea when he was a youngster, and who now lived alone in a small wooden cabin, on a cliff top high above the sea. With its simple poetic language, we are immediately drawn into this hunter’s landscape. One day while he was out hunting, he came upon a mermaid singing a little way out in the water. Soon she left the sea to come live with the hunter. In time, they came to love one another deeply, and their family grew, but not as we would expect: a bear cub, whose mother dies, comes to live with the hunter and the mermaid, and they joyfully welcome a baby lynx and then a little boy. Magical as the story is, it is memorable because it is the story of deep family love and acceptance. This is a quiet and wise little book, and in our family, it was known as Ben’s book. Perhaps the last few lines of the book spoke most powerfully to him, and as a 5 year old we would often tell him this gentle refrain; “The very first day your mother and I came to the house, there you were in the corner, fast asleep.” “That’s right, fast asleep with him,” said the boy, giving the bear a push. “Oh, no,” said the mermaid, “that was years before the bear came. We have had you always.” (Jarrell, 1965, p.180) Each chapter is headed with an evocative pen and ink decoration by Maurice Sendak, which adds greatly to the book’s mystique and gentle wonder.
Lee, H. (1960). To Kill a Mockingbird. New York: Grand Central Publishing.
Harper Lee won the Pulitzer Prize for this now classic story of racial prejudice, set in the deep south during the Depression. Atticus Finch, a widower raising his two children, Scout and Jem, finds that he is defending a black man for a rape he did not commit. From him, his children learn about tolerance and empathy, in a society that clings to its ability to hate. With its surprise ending, the reader, too, is reminded of the power of that empathy, and of the cruelty of assumptions. Scout especially is a beautifully realized central character. The reader learns alongside the 7 year old Scout about what it means to be a good and decent person. She then has the confidence to open her world to include a beleaguered black family, and a recluse who lives next door.
Lobel, A. (1975). Owl at home. New York: Harper & Row.
This delightful early reader tells the story of gentle Owl, with whom I am sure Lobel identifies, as he goes about his days and the rounds of seasons. We worry for him when Wind comes howling through the door and freezes his home, and his delicious pea soup, yet he is a patient creature and waits by the fire for his soup to thaw. We laugh when he thinks his feet are strange bumps in his bed, and we have sympathy for him as he cries for all things sad so that he can make tear water tea. He makes friends with the good, round moon, and wonders how is upstairs is doing while he is downstairs. Owl is so thoroughly human that we can all find parts of him inside ourselves. Lobel has illustrated many double pages with a sepia and soft gray delicate water colour, which further enhances the gentle mood of these homey stories.
Zusak, M. (2005). The Book Thief. New York: Alfred K. Knopf
This is a powerful story that takes place in the pre-war Hitler Youth years leading up to World War II, and then during the war, in the little town of Mochling. It centers around a few strongly-drawn characters who live on Himmel Street. We meet them, and then become drawn into their lives, finding ourselves deeply connected to them and their circumstances. Liesel, the central character, has been put into foster care after the death of her brother. She feels cast adrift at his funeral when she finds a discarded book, The Gravedigger’s Handbook; it is something to cling to, and so begins her career as a book thief. The story is told from Death’s point of view; he is a poignant persona, who cradles the dead gently in his arms as he bears their souls away. Death distracts himself with colours, and Zusak’s descriptions are powerful. Powerful, too, is his portrayal of the sky and clouds, which lend a dramatic backdrop to the story. Perhaps one of the most memorable pieces of the book is the author’s use of words, which Liesel collects, and which save her life. As Rosa does the dishes, she clatters words into the sink, and words are rammed through mailbox slots. Unforgettable.
Picture Books
Berger, B. (1984). Grandfather Twilight.New York. Philomel Books
This a reassuring bedtime story of a gentle bearded grandfather, who lives in the open forest with his dog, cat and books for company, and it is here that he knows deep comfort and rest. The minimal text describes him choosing a new moon, the size of a pearl, each night, from a chest of softly gleaming moons. He carries the moon gently to the shore; all the while it continues to grow in his hand, and then he releases it to the evening’s fading sky. But it is the illustrations which carry the story and best convey the mood. Painted in soft and rosy acrylics, Berger has the pink of sunset show through Grandfather’s figure. Lifelike tide pool creatures sit in hushed rapture on the shore, as Grandfather Twilight tosses the pearl into the silence of the evening. He truly is the keeper of that time of day between sun and playtime, and night, and peaceful slumber.
Carle, E. (2000). Does a Kangaroo have a Mother, too? New York. Scholastic.
Eric Carle, with his successful picture book format, with their vivid range of hues, and repetitive text, has again created a visually stunning picture book for new readers. Because the text is very simple, the reader has scope to study the iconic Carle illustrations. Each page of text is faced with a full-colour portrait of a mother animal and her young. While Carle’s pictures are full of humour, they are nonetheless in correct proportion, mother to baby, and, while slightly exaggerated (note the mother swan’s overarching neck, as she makes sure all of her cygnets are with her) they are also anatomically correct. The animals’ personalities come through so clearly; we are treated to a display of romping bear cubs. Carle uses his distinctive collage style here. He first lays down bright colourful washes on large papers which he lets dry before cutting them into pieces and creating the animals. He then boldly overlays the pieces with wax crayon streaks, making the book seem to come alive.
Dunrea, O. (2002). It’s Snowing. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
It is a dark and quiet night when snow begins to gently be tossed from the sky, and a round and kind mother smells the tang of new snow. This is a time she wants to share with her baby. From her warm and earthy home, painted in shades of softest brown and candlelight yellow, she stokes the fire, bundles her baby, and sets out into this quiet wonderland, painted evocatively in gouache. Several of the double pages are almost completely white, emphasizing the bigness of the landscape. She tosses the baby into the air, and encourages him to smell the snow, to taste it, to touch and to feel it. The text encourages all of the senses. The snow whirling through the night sky is beautifully portrayed across a brown and gray winter night sky, with the deep green coniferous forest as a mysterious backdrop. After a night of play, mother and baby return to their warm brown homey dwelling. Mama rocks the cradle, Baby drifts into sweet slumber and Mama has a hot cup of something by the fire. At the end of the book, the snow has fallen deep and soft around their little home.
Fair, S. (1982). The Bedspread. New York: William Morrow and Company.
This is the story of two elderly and bed-ridden sisters who sleep on either end of a very long bed in the very old home of their childhood. The round of their days has become increasingly boring, and something must be done. They agree to decorate their own ends of their very plain white bedspread, a visual symbol of what has become of their lives. They gather scissors, thimbles, needles and thread and begin to stitch the memories of their childhood home. Maud remembers all of her embroidery stitches, and works with deft precision; everything is symmetrical, and Fair, herself an embroidery enthusiast, uses Maud’s exactitude to portray her own love of the craft. Amelia doesn’t remember her stitches, but only the fun they had as a big family growing up in this higgledy piggledy, rambunctious home. The finished bedspread, when turned around to be viewed by the other, is a surprise to them both. Amelia had indeed forgotten her stitches, but Maud had forgotten the happiness. The book is full of faithful reproductions of many embroidery stitches, and appliqué of old dress pieces and linens. Throughout the book, Fair has also painted backdrops in acrylic. This book is a feast for the stitching eye.
Fleming, D. (1993). In the Small, Small Pond. New York: Scholastic
This Caldecott Honor picture book, with its bright and colourful double-page spreads, depicts the life of a pond, and the lives of the creatures who call the pond home. The text is minimal but joyfully told in rhyme, to appeal to its youngest audience. Fleming takes us through the seasons of the pond with her distinctive choice of medium, using handmade papers from pulp dyed in vivid hues. She begins the story in springtime with the brightest blues, greens and yellows in her pallet. Summers drowse in cooler greens, where brightly-coloured swallows swoop across the double page, and where whirligigs twirl and swirl. As autumn approaches, her pallet changes from cool greens to brightest reds and oranges, which greatly add to the book’s visual appeal; an autumn-fattened raccoon makes his way to the edge of the pond. When winter approaches, fat drops of white dot the landscape, and the pond’s creatures settle into the mud to live out the winter cold.
Fox, M. (1985). Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge. Illustrated by Julie Vivas. La Jolla, CA. Kane/Miller Publishers.
Mem Fox is a bold and brave author for children, and many of her themes touch on crying and death, while her protagonists remain fully human. She is not afraid to deal with the topic of aging, and in this wonderful picture book about a little boy, we are given a glimpse into that world that has so changed his own. WGMP lives next door to an old folk’s home and his favourite person is Miss Nancy Alison Delacourt Cooper, aka Miss Nancy. Miss Nancy is losing her memory, and so WGMP sets out to find out how to retrieve it. Finally, he brings a basket full of things which he believes are memories, and, one by one, Miss Nancy goes through these artifacts, each one connecting to a memory of her childhood. Julie Vivas’ old people are big and bulging and baggy and humourously rendered, but lifelike. Each of her paintings is in soft watercolours, and she is very skilled at committing red to paper, as this medium is hard to control. As well, Vivas paints her subjects from various angles, as a 4 year old might see them, making the book all the more appealing.
Hale, S. (1830). Mary Had a Little Lamb. Illustrated by Salley Mavor (1995).New York: First Orchard Paperbacks.
This is Mary, without the big, beribboned dress, and the more than cute wee lamb we often see in Mother Goose collections. Sally Mavor is an artist who works in fabric of all sorts, and her rendering of this lovely Mother Goose rhyme proves the quality of her craftsmanship. Mary is portrayed as an earthy little girl in a woven gingham dress typical of that era. She dresses the other characters in wool sweaters and rough-woven serge. Mavor renders her subjects in fabric relief, embroidery and soft sculpture, set against backdrops of textured brocades which were dyed and then stitched together. The little lamb is constructed of overlapping french knots and the apple trees seem to jump right out of the coarse linsey-woolsey weave of the earth. Mary’s lamb is born in a cozy cardboard stall, and Mother is knitting a real wool sweater in Fair Isle. It is a joy for anyone who loves the feel of cloth, and the look and textures of a vast array of wools and textiles.
Hall, D. (1979). Ox-Cart Man. Illustrated by Barbara Cooney.New York: Viking Press.
Winner of the 1980 Caldecott Medal, this quiet picture book tells of a time past when society was largely agrarian and all that was good, and sustained one’s life, could be had from the land. When creating a picture book, there must be much thought in the decision about whether the book should be published horizontally or vertically: the horizontal aspect of this book encourages us to take our leave with the ox-cart man, and venture over the hills for many days until Portsmouth is reached. Here the ox-cart man will trade his goods that his family has made and stored over long winter months. Each double page spread has the text on one side, and the illustration perfectly-matched on the other. Each aspect lends to the other a vivid sense of time and place. Cooney reproduces here a style that reflects the time when limners would paint on wood. Her brushstrokes leave out pieces which further heighten the effect of paint on wood. Her choice of pallet accurately portrays the seasons; the deep red sunsets of November give way to the bright greens and apple-blossom pinks of May. This is a stunning book in every way!
Isadora, R. (1979). Ben’s Trumpet. New York: Mulberry Books.
New York in the 1920’s is a steaming, toe-tapping, jazz-loving city, and young Ben is caught up in its heady atmosphere. One evening, sitting on the fire escape, he hears the sound of the trumpet coming from the local Zig Zag Jazz Club, and Ben knows that playing the trumpet is the only life for him. And so he imagines himself a trumpet, and plays for all who will listen, until one day he is taunted by some kids in the neighbourhood. The trumpeter sees him, dejected, on the street and takes him to the club where he can play on a real trumpet. Rachel Isadora’s pen and ink drawings, with their strong zig-zags, electrify the story, and make it come alive, like good jazz, or that smell in the air before a city thunderstorm. Several of the musicians at the jazz club are suggested with shadow, and a pointillist technique, their mouths and lips strongly stated as they belt out their music. The drummer thrums with intensity as he keeps the beat. Throughout the book, there are also many pencil drawings, and each page has strong geometrical lines to further enhance and dramatize the ambience of NYC. Isadora was awarded the Caldecott Honor prize as well as the Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor Book for Illustration.
McDermott, G. (1974). Arrow to the Sun – a Pueblo Indian tale. New York: Viking Press.
This powerful folk tale from the American Southwest, and winner of the Caldecott Award, tells the story of the Lord of the Sun who sends the spark of life to earth to impregnate a young woman, who then gives birth to his rightful heir. The son sets out in search of his father when he becomes a young man. He travels to Arrow Maker, and the boy becomes the arrow shot into the heavens. Throughout the book, the son carries inside of himself the spark of life, rendered in a strong geometrical pattern. We are not meant to lose sight of the fact that he is the chosen one. When he arrives at the home of his father, he finds that he must prove himself worthy of his birth right by passing through the four chambers of ceremony. Here, McDermott discontinues the text, and in its place are bold, dramatic paintings, all strongly-patterned and intensely coloured. McDermott uses gouache and ink to render the story strongly and forcefully. Obviously, the boy is brave and strong and virtuous, and so he willingly takes on these tasks that mirror the trials of Hercules. His palette is filled with intense oranges, and stark blacks and whites, as well as neon greens, pinks and violets. McDermott also uses these strong geometrical lines to create movement, excitement, and emotion.
McCloskey, R. (1941). Make Way for Ducklings. New York: Viking Press.
Anyone who thinks that monotone-shaded books have nothing these days to offer the young listener need look no further than Make Way for Ducklings (and for that matter, Blueberries for Sal). In this utterly charming and ageless winner of the 1941 Caldecott Medal, McCloskey tells the story of Mr. and Mrs. Mallard who are looking for a suitable home in which to lay the eggs and raise their family. What ensues are the comical antics of a family of ducks and the finest ofBoston’s constabulary. It is obvious that McCloskey spent many hours sketching ducks and ducklings, in all manner of poses; and then rendered them with humour and love with the use of sepia-toned pencil and charcoal. The pictures are large enough to portray the busyness of the situation, and the commotion that the ducks are causing, and to portray the emotions of the cast of policemen; we cheer for the pot-bellied Constable Mike as he holds up traffic to let the ducks across the road. I still use this book every spring, much to the delight of my Kindergarten students who beg to have it read again.
Provensen, A. and M. Illustrators. (1978). A Peaceable Kingdom – the Shaker Abecedarius. New York: Viking Press.
While this gentle and humourous alphabet was created to encourage and delight Shaker children in the learning of their letters, it, nonetheless continued to delight and charm my own youngsters 150 years later. The animals portrayed here are filled with whimsy, and the various tiny details in the background, delicately rendered in inks and soft water colours, mirror the Shakers sobriety, but not their lack of wit. Animals real and imaginary march, swim and hop across each double page spread. The papers seem to have been dipped in tea to make the book appear to be even more of a period piece. Each grouping of 4 animals begins with the next consecutive letter of the alphabet, to further stress the joy in the children’s learning: Alligator, Beetle, Porcupine, Whale,
Bobolink, Panther, Dragonfly, Snail, and so on. Amongst the animals are depictions of Shakers going about their simple rounds of daily life, churning butter, hanging out the laundry and teaching flute, all done in the simple and pleasant aspect of a people secure in their love of God.
Root, P. (1999). Grandmother Winter. Illustrated by Beth Krommes.New York: Scholastic
This delightful seasonal picture book opens with Grandmother Winter feeding and caring for her geese and new baby goslings. There is a sense of quiet expectancy, as she gathers up goose feathers while the geese gabble and squawk around her feet. From the start, Root sets a tone of sacredness through the gentle text and charming folk-art inspired illustrations on scratchboard tinted with watercolours. This is a magical weave of story and illustration. The book seems to divide naturally into two parts, the first part telling the reader of the preparations for winter. And then, in the second, we enter the natural world of winter. The illustrations here reflect the hibernating habits of creatures, portrayed accurately in all their creatureliness: earthworms tunnel into the deep brown earth, butterflies sleep in hollowed out logs and turtles bury themselves in the mud below the surface of the water. This book makes a happy read-aloud, and its main offering is the sense of wonder it can engender in a small child.
Shulevitz, U. (1998). Snow. New York: Farrar Straus & Giroux
At first, just one snowflake falls through the leaden gray sky, and no one in the tiny Russian town believes it will amount to anything, except one small boy and his dog. As more snowflakes fall, man with hat says it is nothing, and woman with umbrella declares it will melt. Shulevitz’s text is minimal, but his gentle watercolour washes, his soft browns and greens, blues and grays, and detailed ink line drawings are anything but. There is great humour here in this cast of wintry characters, as they march homeward through the town. Shulevitz’s style puts the reader in mind of the Russian painter, Marc Chagall. When the Mother Goose figures jump from the bookstore mural, and assume lives of their own, they float through the sky in much the same way as Chagall’s subjects do. Boy and dog seem to be placed deliberately in the bottom foreground as they romp through the story. This book brilliantly captures the wonder and hushed excitement of first snow, and it was aptly rewarded the Caldecott Honor Book prize.
Web Sites
http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/
This is a delightful blog about the joy of children’s picture books. The title refers to the six impossible things to do before breakfast suggested at the Mad Hatter’s tea party but Jules, the blogger, wonders why stop at six! It is a personal blog of oneTennesseemother who once was a teacher of the deaf, and a children’s librarian. Her main passion is to watch the power of reading and books open up new worlds for children. Of particular help are all the links she has posted on the sidebars, such as links to the Horn Book, the Children’s Book Council and Embracing the Child, and many more. She also has posted an exhaustive archival list. It is good to read about the pleasure someone else derives from wonderful books for children. Jules also includes author and illustrator interviews, to round out this whimsical blog.
www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc
For anyone who is interested in a look back over the years to see all of the Caldecott Award winners, this proves to be an excellent resource. The Caldecott Award was named for the 19th century illustrator, Randolf Caldecott, and the association has handed out this prestigious award since 1938, to the artist of the most notable picture book each year. Other awards and grants are linked as well to this website, such as the Coretta Scott King Award, and the Theodore Geisel Award. The book reviews are dependable, and of excellent quality. This Association for Library Service to Children is the world’s largest organization committed to the betterment of library services for children. It has a comprehensive list of websites for children, a host of press releases for 2011, links to teachers’ resources and many other features worth looking at as you visit this site.
This website was set up 14 years ago as a non-profit organization to provide books and library access to communities’ most needy children. They provide much needed support to juvenile detention centres, after-school programmes with little funding, and emergency shelters. Of note is a book review of the week. This site is informative as well, in that it provides links to the Caldecott and Newbery winners as well as the Coretta Scott King award winners. There are also links to their archives in which can be found book reviews of a number of different genres. These brief thumbnail sketches would be perfect for a teacher selecting for a class library. This is a worthwhile site with a powerful mission statement; to engage those most at-risk in our society with the power of literacy, so that these children, too, can rightfully claim their place in society.
The Horn Book is another useful site for teachers and librarians. For years and years, the Horn book existed in magazine format, filled to the brim with book reviews, and all and sundry items related to the world of children’s books. Now it can be found online with the same pertinent information, but with some new inclusions as well, such as a blog called Read Roger, a rant from the editor of the Horn book. While one does need to subscribe, there are, nonetheless, other features that make it more than worthwhile visiting this site. For instance, there are interviews with author and illustrators, as well as upcoming events in the world of children’s books and awards descriptions. The choices for the summer picture books in the latest newsletter are lovely, especially In the Meadow by Yukiko Kato. There are resources for teachers and parents, and a most recommended book list. This is an exhaustive resource.
This is an excellent resource for the Kindergarten to Grade 2 classroom as well as for the 3 to 7 year old child who is able to navigate a website. It is extremely child-friendly, and an amusing and motivating way to learn about letters and sounds. For pre-readers, there is a different interactive story for each memorable point in the year. For Hallowe’en, one can customize a jack-o-lantern to the tune ofTurkeyin the Straw, and for a friendship theme, the children can have several options for composing letters to their friends. We use the interactive calendar every day in our Kindergarten class, but we reinforce with our standard calendar, because that can stay visible all month long, whereas you must, at some point, close the computer page (just a small but important point for children who are learning to read to have ready access to their calendar, sight words etc). This is one drawback for using the computer in a primary classroom. starfall.com lacks the frenzy of some of the other websites designed for children, and along with some good reading lessons, I consider it a worthwhile resource.
Movies
Armstrong, G. Director. (1994). Little Women. United States:Columbia Pictures
This is one of the best screen adaptations of Louisa May Alcott’s enduring classic, Little Women. Susan Sarandon, who plays the wise and loving Marmee, is warm and believable. Winona Ryder perfectly captures Jo’s ardent and determined nature, and the film’s Meg is tender and earnest as the oldest sister. The story takes place in Civil War Concord, and the family must fall back on all their resources as they learn to deal with very little. And yet their generous natures shine. This is such a warm family story of a mother raising her four daughters, while their father is serving the war effort. Patiently, she gives of her wisdom to her children who mean the world to her. She wants the best for her girls, and encourages them to take hold of all the good life has to offer. The film itself is beautifully shot. The house, once elegant, is now a little worn down, but still warm and cozy, with enough love to outlast the war. The colours are muted and soft, which fits the mood of the film perfectly. Browns predominate in the home to capture the frugality that the times demand. The director has chosen to make the shots from many different angles; we are skating along the canal with Jo and Laurie’s skates in full view, and when Amy falls into the ice, we are literally in the water with her. This heightens the drama of the scene, as the viewer literally becomes part of it. This is a film to be enjoyed by many age groups.
Miyazaki, H. Director. (1988). My Neighbor Totoro. Japan: Studio Ghibli Productions
This is perhaps the best animated show for children that I have ever seen, and sets Miyazaki front and center as one of the world’s foremost animators. The story is set in postwar rural Japan, before the country has become highly industrialized; the film is full of the gentle nostalgia that Miyazaki feels for the time. A father and his two daughters, Satsuki and Mei, rent a house in the country near the hospital where their mother is convalescing. The house is sagging and the porch is about to topple, but the little family sets about to tidy it up and make it home. While the girls are running around and exploring their new home, they see some dark and slightly scary dust bunnies. Their neighbor, Nannie, says they are dust sprites, seen only by children. On their first full day there, they are treated further to visions of soft, furry creatures, some big, some small who are known as the Totoros of their story books. These Totoros work special magic, especially for little 5 year old Mei; they help her to deal with her mother’s illness.
As endearing as the story is, the animation is stunning. The colour of the summer sky, filled with beautiful cumulus clouds, is such a blue it almost hurts. The scenes are often large, as the family set out on bicycles, or stands out in the rain waiting for the bus. At times the movie is slow and reflective, at others, electric with excitement. We are treated to many interesting shots, often seen from the girls’ viewpoint. The girls themselves are so realistically animated, and retain all of the movements typical of their ages, Satsuki, the long-limbed, quick 10 year old, and Mei, the chubby, scrambling 5! We can see the dark blue night sky peeking through the giant camphor tree in the backyard. But as an auditory person, I loved the sound effects in the movie. We can hear the splintering of the rotten porch posts, the trickling of streams and brooks, the violent wind in the camphor tree, and the drumming of rain on umbrellas. No detail is too small to escape Miyazaki’s attention. It is a children’s film, but would be enjoyed but a wide audience.
Moore, T. Director. (2008). The Secret of Kells. Co-directed by Nora Twomey.Ireland: Flatiron Films
Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2008, The Secret of Kells tells the story young Brendan who is growing up in an ancient, isolated outpost in medieval Ireland. Because it was the monks who were the keepers of biblical wisdom and some of the accumulated world knowledge duringEurope’s Dark Ages, Brendan became aware, when an unknown monk came to the monastery, that an illuminated manuscript of the Gospels was being made. Mystery surrounded the making of the volume, and Brendan knew he was in the presence of something strange and mystical. Brendan is drawn into following this strange illuminator and his marvelous book on a quest that would take him into the land of his deepest fears.
This hand-drawn, two-dimensional animation is visually stunning; many of the images echo the delicate tracery of the Book of Kells, and the highly stylized human and animal figures are exuberant. Parts of the film are delicately rendered; Ellen Jones, of Total Film, states that the movie is “hand-drawn and watercoloured, sublime as a stained glass window.”(2010) At other times, when the monastery is under Viking siege, the red of blood is splattered across the screen, with the looming gray walls of the monastery framed by menacing black trees. The contrasts are powerful. Everywhere in the film, there are visual references to Celtic myth and medieval manuscripts. This hauntingly beautiful film acknowledges the role that imagination and faith play in moving humanity through dark and bitter days.
Mulligan, R. Director (1962). To Kill a Mockingbird. United States: Universal Films
The movie adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name is a faithful re-telling of the story. Gregory Peck is Atticus Finch, a small-town lawyer in the American south who takes on the case of a poor black man who has been accused of rape. The children know that their father is special and different; we come to know that he has earned the high moral ground on which he walks. The film, shot in black and white, was an interesting choice of the director, who could have made the picture in colour. But the black and white serves to heighten the drama and tension of the time; it helps us enter the mood of the children, who see around them the darkness of racial prejudice and wrongful assumptions. It plays into the mystery of Boo Radley, next door recluse, and to the drama of the children sneaking on to Boo Radley’s property. I have seen this movie many times, yet am still awed by its power to move the viewer.
Noonan, C. (1995). Babe. Australia: Universal Films
With its lovely cast of talking barnyard creatures, and its mythical rolling green landscape, I can think of no other movie made for children that has swept me up in all of its charms quite the way Babe has. Babe is to a generation of children as Wilbur was to a former, two adorable little pigs who use their words and their wits to change their lives around. Babe’s life begins in a warm, homey barn, and very quickly, we know he must face sad news. A family of sheepdogs adopts him, and Babe thinks he is a sheepdog as well. We become attached to this lovable little pig, we suffer when he becomes very ill, and we dance with joy alongside Farmer Hoggett when Babe survives the night. His talents lead him to accomplish amazing things, but sheepherding becomes his forte. The animation involved in making the animals speak and move their mouths in unison was ground-breaking, earning the film seven Academy Award nominations. This is a most enchanting and heartwarming film that can be enjoyed by many ages. “That’ll do, Pig. That’ll do” has become a common phrase in our home!
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