Do you know a child with busy feet? The kind of feet that never miss the chance to dance, run or jump? Then take a look at Marcia Bernegerand Susanna Chapman’snew picture book Busy Feet.
Berneger’s created a lively, interactive read-aloud that invites participation from even the littlest of readers.
Feet wake up,
time to play.
Happy feet
out all day!
From the moment they wake until bedtime arrives, these bustling, busy feet can be found moving every which way at home, in the park, and at the beach. Most scenes include a pair of freckled feet and a pair of brown feet and in one spread there’s also a friend in a wheelchair getting into the groove. An added precious pup’s appearance joining in the activities is an added treat for animal lovers. There are occasional glimpses of faces, but in keeping with the title, the illustrations focus primarily on the feet which makes reading all the more fun. It’s an entertaining perspective to share and just right for this story.
Chapman’s swirling art uses vibrant colors that add even more energy to Berneger’s upbeat rhyme of opposites. This book shouts read me loud and read me at story time so I can get up off the floor and mimic everything the characters in the story do. In fact, when I asked Berneger (Full disclosure: she’s a friend) what her 2-year-old grandson thinks of Busy Feet she excitedly replied that he loves it and asks for it every time he visits. So, whether it’s up the slide or down, fast or slow, Busy Feet will make children ready to go, go, go! Oh, and don’t miss looking under the book jacket for a little surprise!
One Day in the Life of You and 59 Real Kids from Around the World
Written and illustrated by Matt Lamothe
(Chronicle Books; $12.99, Ages 5-8)
This Is How I Do It by Matt Lamotheis a great activity book to open kids’ eyes to the lives of children around the world and get them thinking about their own. Following the success of his picture book, This Is How We Do It: One Day in the Lives of Seven Kids from around the World, Lamothe was inspired by how one teacher in particular in Fiji was using the book to have children document their lives. The result is this unique activity book that focuses on different aspects of 59 real children’s lives from countries as varied as America to Vietnam, Bangladesh to Uruguay.
This hands-on 56-page book not only documents almost 60 kids’ lives from around the globe, but it provides an opportunity for young readers to get introspective and fill in the blanks about their daily life (when not in a pandemic). There’s even a die-cut opening in the cover, an inviting feature for children to put in a picture of themselves or draw one. Kids will also find the cool looking postcards and stickers in the back matter appealing for use in their own artwork or on the postcards Lamothe’s designed. A bonus is a fold-out map both in color and labeled with all the countries covered in the book. There’s also a blank map kids can fill in with the names of the places where they’ve visited, lived or want to see in the future. Parents or teachers might want to share with kids/students the website www.thisishowwedoitbook.com where “great resources for communicating with other kids” can be found.
From the very beginning of the book, in the “This is me,” illustration, Lamothe welcomes readers into the book with the warm faces of four international children. This is followed by a spread of “Hello” labels featuring the greeting shown in different languages from China, Kenya, Ukraine, Israel, Ethiopia, Iraq, and Greece. Readers will see different types of housing, beautiful views from out the windows, as well as assorted clothing the kids wear, what they eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner, how they get around, where they learn, who their teachers are, how their food is cooked, and what they get up to in the evening.
I like that the examples given are never boring, sometimes unexpected, and always thought provoking. In “This is how I get around” children learn that Lurongdeji, from China, “lives with his mom and grandmother, who are both farmers. They use a modified motorcycle to get around.” The front is a motorcycle, but the back has been altered into an open truck bed for carrying crops, tools, animals or whatever! In a mouthwatering spread titled “This is a fruit or vegetable that grows near me,” I was surprised to see a picture of a red seaweed called dulse that is dried and eaten as a snack on the west coast of Ireland. My favorite illustration would have to be the one showing some favorite books read around the world with blank lines for kids to fill in with their favorite book, too. It’s nice that Lamothe ends the tour with bedtime and the places where some of the children in the story sleep at night. But this is anything but a bedtime book. It’s ideal for daytime reading and dreaming and will definitely give children stuck indoors a chance for interesting armchair travel.
Reviewed by Ronna Mandel
Click here to read Dornel Cerro’s review of This Is How We Do It.
The week of March 16-22 is International Teach Music Week and April is Jazz Appreciation Month so the timing couldn’t be better for a review of this interactive picture book that will get kids’ toes tappin’.
Author Carolyn Sloanhas written a joyous and swinging story that celebrates jazz, America’s music. Welcome to Jazztakes readers on a lively musical journey from the birth of jazz to present day.
When three cat friends visit The Ripe Tomato Jazz Club in New Orleans, they are curious about their new surroundings. One excited wide eyed cat tells his friends, “I can’t wait for the band to play.”
“What game are they going to be playing?” asks a second cat.
A third friend, decked out in cool jazzy sunglasses, clarifies the confusion by announcing, “The band will be playing music—jazz music.”
When the trio is invited to join in the music making, the fun begins. Readers will enjoy Sloan’s fast paced, fun dialogue between the feline friends and the likeable musicians in the band. The origins of jazz, a selection of instruments, musical greats and even the language of this swinging music are introduced through sidebar information on each page.
Gibson’svibrant full color two spread illustrations, allow us to follow these three cool cats as they become caught up in the celebration and spirit of the music.
With interactive sound and technology, Welcome to Jazz brings the wonder of this music to life and a better understanding of the concepts in jazz like: beat, rhythm, improvisation and scat singing. With the push of 12 chips on the side panel of the book, readers will want to dance and sing along as they join the cool cats and the band in a lively procession out of the club and into the streets of New Orleans.
Reviewed by Lisa Saint
Lisa Saint is a writer, artist, educator and an advocate for the arts. She teaches writing, illustration, graphic novels and bookmaking. Lisa is a member of SCBWI. She is also the daughter of legendary jazz great, Gil Bernal.
Click hereto read a review of another jazz related picture book.
We’ve joined up with this clever Book Love Blog Hop after being tagged by reviewer and blogger, Cathy Ballou Mealey. The goal is to spread some book love which we’re doing for an imaginative picture book from this past September ’14 called Mr. Tweed’s Good Deeds(Flying Eye Books, $19.95, Ages 3-7) by Jim Stoten. The Blog Hop is part of Carrie Finison’s innovative Book Love Blog Hop, and we’re sure you’ll agree that it’s an absolutely brilliant concept!
The idea is to help promote children’s books worthy of positive social media attention. But with so many picture books competing for coverage, it’s difficult for every book to get their 15 minutes (or longer) of fame. As bloggers, we can help get the word out about terrific kidlit titles that may have been overlooked, and play our part in sharing some overdue shout outs.
Mr. Tweed’s Good Deeds, a seek-and-find counting book from 1-10, kept me throughly entertained as I dove in to search the first wildly colorful two-page spread. I was on the lookout for 1 kite that had snapped its string. While trying to locate the kite, I noticed so many other marvelous and zany things the author/illustrator included in a park scene: trees resembling paper airplanes and another sporting sunglasses and a hat, an enormous purple dog, an over-sized snail, some ducks on bikes and even an enormous shoe. Kids’ll have a blast pointing out the various items they notice as Mr. Tweed helps an unhappy little crocodile retrieve his lost kite.
“It felt good to help people,” Mr. Tweed thought to himself, as he left the park.
Next up Mr. Tweed volunteers to find Tibbles and Timkins, 2 adorable kittens belonging to Mrs. Fluffycuddle, that are hiding in a cottage garden. For Americans, the depiction of English scenery is a great introduction to another country although, apart from the double decker buses and no punctuation after Mr. or Mrs., it might be hard to realize the illustrator and book are from the U.K.
Kids and parents alike will have to use keen observation skills to spot the missing mice in the third spread which is a library packed with shelves and shelves of books. My favorite illustrations were of the pool, the market and the river, but I think youngsters will also enjoy the woods, the bustling street scene, the fair, and the big surprise waiting at the end.
Mr. Tweed’s kind gestures do not go unrewarded! Best of all, parents and kids will also be rewarded by the fun that is certain to be found exploring every inch of every single page in this cheerful, quirky counting picture book with its eye-popping artwork and its positive message. Try a little kindness and see how contagious it can be!
– Reviewed by Ronna Mandel
BOOK LOVE Blog Hop Instructions
1. Pick some books you love (any genre) that you think deserve more attention than they are getting.
2. Post reviews for the books you chose on Amazon/social media. The reviews can be brief – even a short review on Amazon helps. Posting on Goodreads or Shelfari is great, too, or Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, etc. The more places you can publicly proclaim your love, the better!
3. If you want, you can also post the reviews on your own blog, or link your blog back to your reviews on social media.
4. Feel free to display the BOOK LOVE badge designed by Dana Carey on your blog – and if you want, link it back to this post so your visitors know what it’s all about.
5. Tag some friends to do the same! Tag friends through their blogs, or on Facebook.
That’s it! If you don’t want to wait to be tagged, you can jump right in and start reviewing and tagging yourself.
Don’t Push The Button!written and illustrated by Bill Cotter (Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky, $16.99, Ages 3 and up) is reviewed by Rita Zobayan.
Halloween is over but there’s still monstrous fun to be had in Don’t Push The Button! written and illustrated by Bill Cotter. Larry, a friendly purple monster, has a red button in his book. The instructions for it are very clear: DON’T push the button. Seriously. Don’t even THINK about it. But Larry does think about it, and what happens as a result is interactive, silly, and just plain good fun. The simple but colorful illustrations are absolutely fitting for the idea of the book and the age of the readers.
My four-year-old daughter loves this book—loves it! The allure of doing something forbidden, pushing the mysterious red button, delights her, and the results make her laugh. She especially enjoys being part of the action and being part of the reason that Larry … well, you’ll have to read the book to find out what happens to Larry. Just be careful to not push the button!
Strike up the band! Maisy and her friends are putting on a show, and we’re invited to attend. Throughout the 14 pages we assist Maisy and company in getting ready for their performance. Pull the tab and Plinkety-plonk! Tallulah plays the pink piano. Move the tab up and down, and Root-a-toot! Cyril plays on the trumpet. The penguins hum a tune. The last page features a 3D pull-out stage where all five band members perform. Illustrated in Lucy Cousins’ distinct style, this is a bright and engaging hands-on read for youngsters.
Fun Fact: Did you know that there are over 29 million Maisy books in print worldwide?
Don’t Push The Button! written and illustrated by Bill Cotter (Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky, $16.99, Ages 3 and up) is reviewed by Rita Zobayan.