Look Who Is Back!

Yes, that's right. I am still passionately interested in books and reading...Perhaps just not so much in typing about them in the last little while. This last semester of library school is coming to an end and I'm so excited about it! But that also means that I have pretend programs to plan, discussions to lead and storytimes to do!

I've been doing bits and pieces of storytimes over the last few weeks at my practicum, and I'm sure that they add up to several whole ones. However, my supervising librarian also loves doing storytimes so she likes to keep in there too. Which is good. It's nice to share! Haha, as soon as I typed that I thought that sounded like a storytime...Goodness knows that there are enough books about sharing.

Instead of doing a YA book post this time, I'm going to talk a little bit about several picture books that I've read lately. The first is an oldie but goodie that was one of my favorites when I was young, but has held up amazingly well over the years. I actually read it recently for a "Sweets and Treats" storytime to about 85 preschoolers...Craziness. But it kept their attention well and they loved the ending!

The Wolf's Chicken Stew by Keiko Kasza. It's all about a scheming wolf who decides that the demure hen strolling through the forest would be just perfect for a delicious chicken stew. However...An idea comes to the wolf and he decides that it would be best to fatten the chicken up for a HUGE stew. He starts to make her hundreds and hundreds of tasty treats. Will the chicken survive? Or will the wolf have some tasty stew tonight? I love the illustrations. You can definitely see the scheming in the wolf's eyes as he stalks the chicken through the forest.

Another excellent book that I think is more of a lapsit book is Mini Mia and her Darling Uncle by Pija Lindenbaum and translated by Elisabeth Kallick Dyssegaard. In it, Ella or Mini Mia has a favorite uncle Tommy. They do all sorts of fun things, like dyeing Ella's hair multiple colors or people watching together. However, one day all that changes when Fergus enters Tommy's life. Mini Mia (called that because she loves soccer so much) hates having to share her uncle, but eventually learns that Fergus isn't so bad. This is a beautifully illustrated and funny book that shows a nontraditional relationship very naturally. It would be great for working with jealous little kids. There are so many books dealing with new siblings, etc but not quite as many for those who enter the family a different way, such as new uncles or aunts. The illustrations are quite amusing, especially Mini Mia's other uncles, who look exactly the same...BORING!

A book for people a little older, but still a picture book is Harlem by Walter Dean Myers and illustrated by Christopher Myers. The illustrations are beautiful and almost seem to be in motion. The poem that makes up the text is quite lovely and really makes you feel how much Harlem was and is for many people. Myers also alluded to specific historical events that, younger children probably wouldn't know. For example, on the very first page, talking about how people got to Harlem he said:

"The third deck down from Trinidad
A wrench of heart from Goree Island
A wrench of heart from Goree Island" (Myers 1).

Goree Island is an island in Senegal where many Africans saw their last glimpse of Africa before being sold into slavery. Many children would not understand why the term "wrench of heart" was used. But the poem is not all sad. It also talks of blues and rent parties and playing checkers.

I would definitely recommend all three of these picture books, perhaps for different uses but they all are excellent.