Some babies (and books) are wild
Can we read? No. 105
Hello, lovely people!
ICYMI
Last week I published my 2023 special edition on summer, free for everyone! Check it out if you’d like some fresh new reads for the season.
Also! Did you know I have a variety of booklists available to all subscribers?
Many of you are looking for specific booklists — be it for a range of ages or things going on in your life for which you need reading support (we all need some kind of reading support at one time or another 😉)
I have a bunch of booklists on my Bookshop.org storefront just for you:
Books for 3-12 months old / 12-18 months old / 2-year-olds / 3-year-olds / 4-year-olds / 5-year-olds / 6-year-olds / 7-year-olds / 8-year-olds / 9-year-olds
And, lists of ALL the (in-print) books I’ve covered in regular issues of this newsletter: Picture books / Nonfiction / Chapter books / Poetry
Though I created all of these primarily as a simple way to share a large number of titles, if you make a purchase using any of these links, I do receive a small commission. We’re talking pennies, people, but! pennies add up and every little bit helps support this newsletter as well as independent bookstores. (Thank you!)
If you’re looking for another way to support my work — and ensure I keep cranking out book reviews, juicy special issues, and advice for raising readers — forward this to someone who might like it, become a subscriber, leave a tip, or upgrade your subscription to paid. I appreciate it!
Handa’s Surprise by Eileen Browne (1994)
When Handa loads up her basket with fruit, intending to bring it to her friend Akeyo just a short walk away, she expects to make it with a full offering. Along the way, without her knowledge, a cast of creatures steal the fruit, one by one, until right before her arrival, a goat butts against the trunk of a tree, causing a cascade of tangerines that refills Handa’s basket.
Browne’s achievement here — beyond her colorful acrylic illustrations — is the fact that Handa’s surprise isn’t a lack of fruit entirely, but a basket full of different fruit than she began with, which is the sort of gentle twist and humor toddlers love.
If you have a little one ages 2-4yo, don’t miss this one — it’s a timeless delight you should prepare yourself to read again and again 😊
Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco (1998)
As a young girl in early elementary school, Trisha struggles mightily to learn to read — the letters and words and just “wiggling shapes” and though she comes from a reading family, this skill eludes her no matter how hard she tries, and school just becomes harder and harder. Trisha is convinced she’s dumb, until one day, in 5th grade in a new school, she encounters a new teacher: Mr. Falker.
Mr. Falker not only encourages Trisha — which becomes increasingly important as she experiences teasing from her classmates — he actively helps her, making a game out of learning to read until one day, of course, she understands.
Polacco’s immense gift in this autobiographical tale — in addition to her always-emotive watercolor illustrations — is her ability to help the reader sense and feel the depth of Trisha’s struggle and desperation. The messages here about learning disabilities, perseverance, and the life-changing impact of one good teacher are tremendous, but none more so than the empathy.
It’s a beautiful story, not to be missed. (Best for mid- to late-elementary-aged kiddos, who are more likely to identify with — or learn from — Trisha’s journey.)
Some Babies Are Wild by Marion Dane Bauer, photography by Stan Tekiela (2008)
Finding great nonfiction for the littlest readers can be difficult, but Marion Dane Bauer’s got you covered in this department.
This darling title — along with others by Dane Bauer, like Baby Discovers the World and Jump, Little Wood Ducks — offers babies and toddlers the perfect peek into the lives of other small creatures, including adorable real-life photos, just a few words on every page, and the reassurance they all need: that mamas love their babies, “just like your mama loves you.”
Mammalabilia by Douglas Florian (2000)
I don’t know how many of Douglas Florian’s books I’m going to review before I get tired of raving about him (all of them; never) but you can add this to the list of fantastic poetry titles for elementary kiddos, who can relate to Florian’s child-like illustrations, created in gouache on brown paper bags, and delight in his child-like poems about, obviously, mammals. (Some of them are concrete poems — “The Bactrian Camel” is two humps on the page — making this especially useful as an instructive how-to book for a unit on poetry, or hopefully, not just a unit but an all-year-round exploration.)
Florian’s insane skill is packing incredible wit and humor into just a sentence or two, like in “The Boar:”
The boar at best
Is just a pig
That wears a vest,
A coat, and wig.
I love him and his work and it’s going to be awhile before I shut up about it 🤷🏻♀️
Our Friend Hedgehog: The Story of Us by Lauren Castillo (2020)
If you have a kiddo who is just getting comfortable with chapter books and want to hand them a gem — or read-aloud something so sweet and charming only the absolute grumpiest person will dislike it — run, do not walk, to get this one.
This is a deeply sweet story about friendship, devotion, bravery, and how we show up for each. It begins with a Terrible Storm that carries Mutty, a stuffed dog, away from a small island in the middle of a river where he lives with his beloved BFF, Hedgehog (all of which is depicted delightfully in Castillo’s warm watercolors).
Not one to give up on a friend — even if he’s not particularly looking for adventure — Hedgehog sets out on a quest to rescue Mutty. Along the way he meets a cast of characters so adorable and endearing it’s almost painful: Mole, Owl, Hen and her Chicks, Beaver, and a little girl named Annika. I won’t give away the ending, merely assure you that it’s a satisfying and happy one — perfect for the aforementioned new chapter-book-reader or family read-aloud, or if you’re just making the transition to reading aloud with little ones still building their capacity to listen as much as look.
Highly recommended.
Thanks for reading today! You’re the best and you’re doing an amazing job.
Sarah
I’ll have to check out the non-fiction recommendation- this makes it simpler when visiting the library. Thank you.
Thank you for reminding us of the book lists! I often get requests for book ideas on topics like families or new babies from subscribers so I will be sure to point them to your lists.