Shapes & Colors Archives -

Shivery Shades of Halloween by Mary McKenna Siddals

October 22, 2014
goodreadswithronna
Ages 3-7, Children's Book Reviews, Concepts - Colors, Halloween, Holidays & Celebrations, Juvenile Fiction, Magic, Pre-school Learning & Fun, Read-alouds, Rhyming book, Shapes & Colors

Mary McKenna Siddals‘ Shivery Shades of Halloween: A Spooky Book of Colors (Random House Books for Young Readers, $12.99, Ages 3-7) with illustrations by Jimmy Pickering is such a great idea for a picture book!

REVIEW:

I liked Shivery Shades of Halloween: A Spooky Book of Colors so much that I want to read more books like it, a series perhaps: The Tasty Tones of Thanksgiving or maybe the The Crimson Colors of Christmas! Okay, so those titles need some work, but after you read this clever new picture book and hear the hardy laughter of your kids, I’m sure you’ll agree it’s very, very catchy and it couldn’t hurt to have others in the queue for our favorite holidays.

Best of all, it may be called “A Spooky Book of Colors,” but Shivery Shades of Halloween isn’t scary in the least! In fact it’s funny, clever and educational. Siddals’ picture book will get your children thinking not only about all the different colors presented (green, purple, white, gray, blue, yellow, brown, black, red and of course, orange), but all the different words used to describe those colors in excellent internal rhyme …

HALLOWEEN IS WHITE
… Stony-bony, pearly-swirly, mostly ghostly
Wisp of white.

… in addition to the synonyms used for the word “color” – had to look that one up and it’s not easy, but Siddals pulls it off perfectly. There’s tinge of green, stain of red, glint of yellow … pigment anyone?

Pickering has designed an adorable (well, the sharp teeth aren’t SO adorable) bat-like creature (see lower right hand corner of cover above) who is colored all the shivery shades of Halloween and changes hues to match each scene it’s in. The youngest readers are bound to get a kick out of seeing when and where it turns up. The entertaining artwork features a bandaged-up red devil, a yellow cheese ball moon and a caped black cat. Pickering’s imaginative illustrations reminded me of Phineas And Ferb, one of my cartoon faves, meaning they’re never creepy and actually quite inviting.

Frankly, good Halloween picture books are hard to find. It’s why we see older titles turning up on lists and book shop displays again and again. So when a cute, creative new one like Shivery Shades of Halloween comes along, it’s worth noting. No newcomer to children’s books, Siddals gift of rhythm and rhyme is evident on every page promising to make Shivery Shades of Halloween a read-aloud request this holiday.

– Reviewed by Ronna Mandel

GUEST POST:
Mary McKenna Siddals – children’s author

GRWR: How did you come up with the idea for the book?

MMS: The idea for SHIVERY SHADES OF HALLOWEEN began with asking myself the question that opens the book: What color is Halloween? While musing about how black and orange predominate as the colors typically associated with this holiday, it occurred to me that Halloween is not only brimming with other colors, but that every color actually takes on its own distinctive spooky tone.

I began brainstorming the images that came to mind for each color, playing with the adjectives that might be used to describe them… and before I knew it, a manuscript was beginning to take shape. Of course, there was lots more tinkering involved… establishing a framework with rhythm and rhyme… giving the text a direction that implied a journey through the spectrum of the night… and plenty of wordplay to make it all work… but in the end… BOOyah! What emerged was the spirited text for SHIVERY SHADES OF HALLOWEEN: A Spooky Book of Colors.

Find Shivery Shades of Halloween on Facebook here.

Follow Jimmy Pickering on Facebook here.

Best Valentine’s Day Books for Children: We Love Each Other, Never Too Little to Love & Love Monster

Read about: We Love Each Other, Never Too Little to Love & Love Monster

♡Our Valentine’s Day Roundup from Rita Zobayan♡
features a selection of faves for the whole family!

Valentine’s Day is almost here. For many adults, the day is a fun indulgence of chocolates, flowers, jewelry, and the beverage and meal of choice. With children, however, the celebration is so much purer: to love and be loved. These three books wonderfully encapsulate the true sentiment of Valentine’s Day for children.

mne_HK_We Love Each Other_Cov_z_Layout 1.jpg — We Love Each Other by Yusuke Yonezu, Minedition, 2013.

We Love Each Other by Yusuke Yonezu (Minedition, $9.95; Ages 2-5) is a cleverly disguised shapes and colors die-cut board book. Six colorful animal pairs and one trio love each other and form shapes. The red birds are cozy next to each other and create a heart. Parent elephant shelters baby elephant and together they form a gray semi-circle. The cuddly brown bears don’t like to be apart, so they hug and create a square.

The text and drawings are appropriately simple for a young audience. Mice love each other. Rabbits love each other. Cats love each other. The animals are presented on a white background that does not distract from the purposes of the text: to highlight love and to teach shapes and colors. We Love Each Other is a Valentine’s Day book that can be read all year long.
What’s a mouse to do when he’s in love with someone a lot taller?

Never-too-Little-to-Love-jpg. — Never Too Little To Love by Jeanne Willis with illustrations by Jan Fearnley, Candlewick Press, 2013.

Never Too Little to Love (Candlewick Press, $8.99; ages 3-7), written by Jeanne Willis and illustrated by Jan Fearnley, chronicles Tiny Too-Little’s quest to kiss his beloved, Topsy Too-Tall, a giraffe. Tiny Too-Little painstakingly and ingeniously stacks items to help him reach the heights:

He’s too little, even on tiptoes on a matchbox,

He’s too little, even on tiptoes on a teacup,

He’s too little, even on tiptoes on a clock,

Tiny Too-Little reaches way up. Wobble…wobble…wobble…CRASH!

Alas, all his hard work is in vain! Poor Tiny Too-Little! But, Topsy Too-Tall loves him and she has an idea. Will her idea work? Will Tiny Too-Little and Topsy Too-Tall finally get their innocent kiss?

Children will enjoy this book, perhaps especially for its unusual use of pages. As Tiny Too-Little stacks his “ladder” of love, the page lengths become progressively shorter. It’s a clever and engaging technique that helps the young reader visualize Tiny Too-Little’s efforts. Jan Fearnley’s artwork is spot on. The pastel colors and endearing details, such as little hearts floating up to Topsy Too-Tall, fit beautifully with the sentiment of the story.

Never Too Little to Love proves that when it comes to true love, your size doesn’t matter. What matter is the size of your heart.

Love-Monster-Rachel-Bright-jpg — Love Monster by Rachel Bright, Farrar Straus, Giroux, 2014.

Sometimes being a monster isn’t easy, especially if you happen to live in Cutesville: Home of the Fluffy. Love Monster (Farrar, Straus Giroux, $16.99; ages 4-7) by Rachel Bright presents the heartfelt and brave undertaking of Monster, who does not quite fit in Cutesville.

When everybody loves kittens…and puppies…and bunnies. You know, cute, fluffy things, it’s hard to be a slightly hairy, I-suppose-a-bit-googly-eyed monster. But, Monster is not one to mope and decides to take matters into his own hands. He sets off to look for someone who’d love him, just the way he was.

His journey is not easy, and Monster searches far and wide. Along the way, he must overcome disappointment and fear. And, just as Monster has reached his limits, he unexpectedly learns that things can change in the blink of a googly eye.

In a society that bombards children with the idea that self-worth and overall acceptance are tied to a cuteness factor, this book is a breath of fresh air. I love that at no point does Monster attempt to make himself cute or change who he is. No, instead, he looks for a love that will accept him as he is. It’s a powerful message of unconditional love for and acceptance of oneself as being worthy of love.

The illustrations are as monstrously enjoyable as the storyline. Children will have fun reading the titles of Monster’s self-help books and his list of places to look for love.

Love Monster is a must-read for Valentine’s Day.

Round is a Tortilla by Roseanne Greenfield Thong

January 24, 2014
goodreadswithronna
Ages 3-5, Beginner Spanish, Children's Book Reviews, Juvenile Fiction, Multicultural stories, Shapes & Colors

Roseanne Greenfield Thong's Round is a Tortilla book cover — Round is a Tortilla, A Book of Shapes by Roseanne Greenfield Thong with illustrations by John Parra, Chronicle Books, 2013.

Round is a Tortilla, A Book of Shapes (Chronicle Books, $16.99, Ages 3-5) by Roseanne Greenfield Thong with illustrations by John Parra, is reviewed by Ronna Mandel.

Round is a Tortilla has been chosen for the 2013-14 Macy’s Multicultural Collection of Children’s Literature!

A great way for preschoolers to begin learning a foreign language is with picture books. They introduce new words in a simple, straightforward way making them fun to read with a parent and easy to remember, especially when presented in rhyme and coupled with shapes or colors. SoCal author Roseanne Greenfield Thong has done that so well with her picture books that she’s now written four in the series: Round is a Mooncake, Round is a Tortilla, Red is a Dragon, and the forthcoming Green is a Chile Pepper.

Thong does an impressive job incorporating circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, ovals and stars into scenes of daily life that could be here in the States or anywhere in Central America, places where Thong’s lived and taught English. Parra’s bright, cheerful, folksy illustrations complement every stanza making Round is a Tortilla an uplifting read-aloud.

“Rectangles are carts
with bells that chime
and cold paletas
in summertime.”

Paletas are ice pops and a little girl and boy character are about to enjoy them before they melt. They’re muy trio and muy delicious and writing about them just makes me want a cold and delicious popsicle, too! For triangles Thong’s described “Sandias (watermelon) chilled in tubs of ice, quesadillas by the slice …” She’s managed to rhyme what could have been difficult words, but everything flows beautifully. Some of the words in Round is a Tortilla are: abuela, campanas, huevos, masa and many more. Before moving onto the next shape, Thong always asks a question, “Square is a fountain from long ago. How many square things do you know?” so that parents or caregivers and children can discuss what’s been read, perhaps making a game out of searching for all the different shapes in the book, and maybe even in a child’s bedroom. A helpful glossary of all the Spanish words in the book is included at the end. I’m ready to learn colors now with Green is a Chile Pepper, the next book in the series which also happens to be just my speed.

RECOGNITION FOR ROUND IS A TORTILLA

Macy’s Multicultural Collection of Children’s Literature List, 2014 (Round is a Tortilla)

Georgia Book Award Nominee, 2013

Texas Library Association’s 2 x 2 List for 2014 (Round is a Tortilla)