It’s the season of renewal, time to add to the books you’ve been reading to the kids all winter. The current crop of picture books is a delight, with ecology leading the way, especially books about trees that turn up here in several categories. Whatever spring holiday you celebrate, consider these or other wonderful books as gifts for the little ones.
From Minnesotans
“100 Mighty Dragons All Named Broccoli”: by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Lian Cho (Dial Books for Young Readers, $19.99)
David LaRochelle, award-winning author of goofy books such as “See the Cat: Three Stories About a Dog,” gives us an ode to dragons and math in this inventive book sure to delight the kids and help them understand numbers.
On a mountain live 100 dragons all named Broccoli. Then a tremendous wind blows half the dragons away, Ten others sail off to become professional surfers in Hawaii. The oldest and youngest take a train to New York City to start their own band, and a wizard turns four more into a unicorn, a werewolf, a zombie and a tiny pink poodle. Three dragons board a bus to Wisconsin to play football for the Green Bay Packers.
As the story progresses, readers have to figure out how many dragons are left after each departure.
What’s fantastic about this book, besides LarRochelle’s funny text, is the way New York-based illustrator Cho gives each dragon a personal identity and look. Some have wings; others wear hats. Several have disconcerting bottom teeth. They’re all different colors, too, making for busy, lively pages. A special treat at the end is small pictures of each dragon and their names.
LaRochelle will launch the book at 10:30 a.m. May 13 at the Red Balloon Bookshop, 891 Grand Ave., St. Pau. For information go to: redballoonbookshop.org. (And watch for “See the Ghost: Three Stories About Things You Cannot See,” with illustrations by LaRochelle’s frequent collaborator Mike Wohnoutka, to be published in July.)
“This is the Planet Where I Live”: by K. L. Going and Debra Frasier (Beach Lane Books, $18.99)
This is the planet where I live./here are the people who share the planet where I live./here are the homes that shelter the people who share the planet where I live.
The inter-connectedness of all things is celebrated in this book that links people, homes, fields, clouds, the ocean, in what’s called a cumulative story, a rhythmic story with a narration that builds upon itself, adding on and repeating previous information. Former Minnesotan Debra Frasier’s bold, brightly-colored collages, especially a yellow sun on a black background, are stunning. (Fun fact: “This is the Planet Where I Live” was published in mid-March the same week as the paperback edition of “Other People’s Clothes” the debut novel by Frasier’s daughter Calla Henkel.)
“Sam and the Incredible African and American Food Fight” by Shannon Gibney, illustrations by Charly Palmer (University of Minnesota Press ($17.95)
Shannon Gibney, who’s having a busy year, draws on her own family’s life to tell the story of Sam, who is caught between cultures when his Minnesota-born mom makes pizza and his aunt from Liberia cooks rice and okra soup. Sam’s hungry, but he doesn’t have room in his stomach to eat the different meals that will keep both sides of the family happy. Finally, Sam figures out a way to end the African and American food fight and brings the family together at the table.
Gibney is a transracial (mixed race) adoptee and her children’s father is Liberian. She is winner of a Minnesota Book Award for her young adult novel “Dream Country,” and got great reviews for her speculative memoir “The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be,” published in January.
She will launch “Sam and the Incredible African and American Food Fight” at 4 p.m. Tuesday, April 18, at North Hennepin Community College, 7411 85th Ave. N., Brooklyn Park. There will be a reading from the book by Gibney and her son Boisey Corvah, who inspired the book, along with discussion, arts, activities, games, and complimentary food samples of African-American and West African dishes. It’s free, but registration is required. Got to z.umn.edu/41823.
“Cinderelliot: A Scrumptious Fairytale”: by Mark Ceilley and Rachel Smoka-Richardson, illustrated by Stephanie LaBeris (RP Kids, $17.99)
Mark Ceilley (St. Paul) and Rachel Smoka-Richardson (Minneapolis), put an LGBTQ+ spin to the story of Cinderella, with a male protagonist who loves to cook, which he has to do for his wicked step-brother and step-sister. When the Prince announces a baking contest, Cinderelliot can’t go because his siblings say he’s covered with batter. Along comes his Fairy Godfather, who persuades Cinder to bake his best creation and sends him to the palace in a limo. As the clock strikes, Cinder runs to make it home before midnight, dropping his chef’s hat. The Prince, having fallen in love, roams the kingdom until he finds the man who fits the hat. “And they lived scrumptiously ever after.”
“Sophie and Her Sisters Decorate Eggs for Easter”: by Terese Wallack Waldron, illustrated by Lisa Mendillo Kulhanek (independently published, $19.99)
The authors, who are cousins, dedicate this book about decorating eggs in the Ukrainian pysanky tradition to their grandparents, who arrived in the United States in 1923. ‘”…They come from near and far,/every Easter week,/five sisters of Ukrainian descent,/who are slightly past their peak.” The women and their nieces are charmingly depicted as egg-shaped. The aunts show the girls, step by step, how to write intricate designs on eggs with melted beeswax, then add colored dyes to create unique patterns. For buying information go to: [email protected]. (A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the St. Jude’s Global-Safer Ukraine initiative to support Ukrainian children battling cancer.)
“Good Girl, Karma”: by Laurie Hanson, illustrated by Jessica Anlauf (The Write Place, $13.95)
Inspired by the author’s golden retriever, who has crossed the Rainbow Bridge, this is the story of a day in the life of a dog who likes to help with chores, look for lost things, cuddle, keep secrets and kiss goodnight. It’ll touch the heart of every dog owner, because aren’t they all good?
“I Built a Snowman”: by Julane Severson, illustrated by Rober Buckner (Winterbutterfly, $3.68
It’s the time of year when the little ones might ask “Where do snowmen go in summer?” Julane Severson’s poems, inspired by Robert Buckner’s collection of snowman illustrations, are combined with their memories of snow days, building snowmen, moonlight on the snowman in the woods. Where do the snow people hide as the sun gets stronger? This isn’t a mystery so we’ll quote from the book: “Braving Minnesota summers,/this place is where they stay,/with princesses made of butter/known as the Milky Way.” Yes, they’re in the dairy building at the Fairgrounds.
Celebrating Poetry Month
“The Dream Train: Poems for Bedtime”: by Sean Taylor, illustrated by Anuska Allepuz (Candlewick Press, $19.99)
This oversized, thick book from a British team, with lots of illustrations that match the mood of each poem, is a bargain at $19.99. These are simple, short poems that will send the kiddos into slumber with visions of being with mom and dad and having a good day. Here is “Run Free,” which captures the book’s gentle tone: “All day long,/working things out,/Then it’s nighttime – /minds run free./all day long, questioning, answering./Then it’s bedtime-/minds run free./All day long,/thinking thoughts./Then dreams come – minds run free.”
“Trees: Haiku From Roots to Leaves”: written by Sally M. Walker, illustrated by Angela McKay (Candlewick Press, $19.99)
This collection of haiku introduces readers to the wonder of trees, with poems that engage with every season and stage of a tree’s life cycle. Further explanations of each of the book’s sections — Treetops, Leaf Laboratories and others — explain the science behind the poems. Part of the author’s Sci-ku Haiku series that melds the scientific and artistic.
“Where I Live: Poems About My Home, My Street, and My Town”: selected by Paul B. Janeczko, illustrated by Hyewon Yum (Candlewick Press, $18.99)
Thirty-three poets lend their voices to this anthology, including Nikki Giovanni, Langston Hughes, Naomi Shihab Nye and Charlotte Zolotow. Here’s X.J. Kennedy’s “Home”: “East side, West side,/all around the town./Which side/is the best side?/Wherever you sit down/to eat your supper, pet your cat,/do homework, watch TV./Any old place/that’s your home base/is where you want to be.” Lots of opportunities here to talk with the kids about their own neighborhood.
Appreciating nature
“A Bed of Stars”: by Jessica Love (Candlewick Press, $18.99)
This story by a New York-based actor and author/illustrator is one of the best of the season. The captivating cover, in black and white, draws the reader with its depiction of a dad and child lying in the back of a truck, looking at the sky. The child imagines the endless of outer space and is too uneasy to sleep. One day the dad says, ” ‘We’re going camping, you and me.’/”Where?’ I ask./’The desert’ says Dad./’Why?’ I ask./And Dad says, ‘to shake hands with the universe.’ ” They pack up their old truck called Darlin’ and head out of town. In the mountains they find wild flowers Dad identifies, complemented by pretty sketches of each bloom. Same with the desert birds, including hawks.
When it’s time to go to sleep and the child admits to being afraid because of how the universe “goes on and on forever.” Dad explains what stars are made of — energy: “Same as the beetles and crows and coyotes. We’re all friends and family. Maybe if you learned their names, they wouldn’t feel so much like strangers.” And so they lie back and name the stars for the folks they met that day. The child adopts one star: “It’s not that I feel bigger or the universe feels smaller, it’s more like I know we are made of the same stuff, but in different bodies. I fall sleep.” And when they get home, Mom has a star-inspired surprise. This story would be perfect for kids who are between picture books and reading by themselves.
“Eco Girl”: by Ken Wilson-Max (Candlewick Press, $17.99)
The author, raised in Zimbabwe, tells of a little girl who looks after trees in the surrounding forest. When she visits Grandma her birthday gift is her very own baobab seedling. Grandma says: “It will grow into a sprout, then a sapling like you. It is next to your dad’s tree, which stands/next to my tree. And my tree stands next to/my mothers tree. All these trees/were planted by our family./One day, yours will be as big as the other trees in this forest.” A gentle lesson in traditions in a different culture.
“Cool Green: Amazing, Remarkable Trees”: by Lulu Delacre (Candlewick Press, $17.99)
The baobab also appears in this poetic text that describes in child-appropriate terms the characteristics of trees around the world that show ecological diversity and adaptation, as seen through the eyes of a landscaper and his granddaughter. The baobab, for instance, is described as “…an upside-down tree/with a trunk like a sponge./In a downpour, its belly swells./In a drought, it’s belly sinks.” They study the umbrella thorn acacias, the mighty moringa (“a miracle tree”…), and the giant redwood called General Sherman in Sequoia National Park in California. Fuller explanations about the trees are in the back of the book, with text and pictures by an award-winning author/illustrator.
“One Tiny Treefrog”: by Tony Piedra & Mackenzie Joy (Candlewick Press, $18.99)
Deep in the tropical rainforest of Costa Rica, 10 sticky frog eggs cling to a leaf. Nine eggs survive. Only eight tadpoles wind up in the water below. As they grow, the frogs’ numbers diminish until only two nimble tadpoles prepare to leave the water. One of them sees something familiar – a crocodile. Then no tiny tadpoles are left, only one tiny treefrog. An explanation of the dangers of growing up for these frogs is in the back of the book, and it will be up to parents to explain why the offspring of many species don’t survive to adulthood. The story itself relies on few words, making it just right for early readers.
“One World: 24 Hours on Planet Earth”: by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Jenni Desmond (Candlewick Press, $18.99)
This award-winning team takes a trip around the world to see what’s happening on Planet Earth in just one moment in places where it’s night, in other places daytime. When it’s one minute to midnight in Greenwich, London, here’s what’s going on elsewhere. In Svalbard, Arctic Circle, it’s 1 a.m. and a mother polar bear is hunting for seals for her cubs on diminishing ice that threatens the little family’s future. In Gahirmatha Beach, India (5:30 a.m.) baby sea turtles are hatching and running for the ocean. In California’s Pinnacles National Park (4 p.m.), the air is alive with the buzzing of bees and whisper of hummingbird wings. This is a very interesting oversized book with lively depictions of day and night.
