books4yourkids

Princess Cora and the Crocodile by the marvelous Laura Amy Schlitz  with completely charming illustrations by Brian Floca   is a rare and welcome gem of a little book that reminds me of  Lady Lollipop by Dick King-Smith, which I reviewed in 2010. With a fairy tale sensibility, Schlitz and Floca treat readers to a wonderful little story that can be read at bedtime or tackled by new readers on their own. When Princess Cora is born, her parents thought she was "as perfect as a snowflake." They quickly realize that the princess will one day be queen and the responsibility that it entails. Soon enough, they have her on a rigid regimen of responsible lessons and behaviors. A nanny makes sure Cora is always clean. The Queen studies with Cora every day because, "a princess must be wise." The King turns the old castle prison into a gym where he trains Cora because, "a future queen must be strong!" Cora is beside herself. She wants to be all the things

Deep in the Forest: A Seek-and-Find Adventure by Josef Antòn and Lucie Brunellière is STUNNING. This is such a beautiful, unique, marvelous book, even without the flaps and the hidden surprises, it is worth every penny. Deep in the Forest , while a board book, isn't for the littlest hands, but it would make a gorgeous gift for the right hands. A seek-and-find book, the text of Deep in the Forest invites readers to find different animals, in the trees, in the water and even underground, on each of the fourteen pages in this oversized board book. The book begins, "Deep in the forest, early in the morning, the animals slowly wake." Some of the animals are easy to spot right away, some are smaller and trickier. All 50 animals are numbered and named on the back of the book, giving readers a key to work with. The flaps, which blend in wonderfully with the illustrations, provide prompts for even more searches on every page. The illustrations are styl

Lucky Lazlo by Steve Light is a visual delight, as are all his picture books. With his newest book, I also learned a lot about theater traditions from the author's note at the end of the book that sent me back to the beginning to read all over again with a new eye. Lazlo is in love. He buys the last red rose - how lucky! - from a flower seller and heads to the theater where the girl he loves is starring in Alice in Wonderland  at the Peacock Theater. But in front of the theater, Lazlo runs into some bad luck. A cat steals his rose and the chase is on! Through the stage door and into the backstage where everyone is getting their costumes on, across the orchestra pit, over the prop table and beyond, the chase continues. The cat breaks a mirror - cringe - but drops the rose when he sees a mouse to chase. Lazlo snatches up the rose, a big smile on his face, and he steps onto a stray croquet ball that sends him rolling across the stage to cries of, "Bravo! Bravo!&

The fantasy novels of  Garth Nix  were a large part of my daughter's reading when she was a kid, in part because she loved fantasy but also because his works were widely praised. Somehow, I never got around to reading anything by Nix until now! And it was the high praise of YA author and editor extraordinaire, David Levithan , that made me buy Frogkisser! without a second thought. Levithan compared it to a favorite of mine from my adolescence, William Goldman's The Princess Bride . The comparison is apt, and I have no doubt that for a new generation of young readers, Frogkisser! will be their version of The Princess Bride - a book they will remember always, return to occasionally and, if they are lucky, the next Rob Reiner will make an equally beloved movie of the book. In the kingdom of Trallonia, Princess Anya's favorite place is in the library with Gotfried, a librarian who had been training to be a wicked sorcerer before realizing it didn't suit him as h

I love kid's books and the people who create them. However, I've found that kid's books about the people who create kid's books are not always exciting or interesting to read. Perhaps it is the subject, or maybe the author/illustrator, or likely a marvelous combination of both that make Some Writer! The Story of E.B. White by Melissa Sweet is a joyful, fascinating, beautiful book to read and look at. Sweet, who has an engaging collage style of illustration, makes personal artifacts like handwritten (and typed) letters, poems and stories, journals and brochures part of this vibrant, beautiful book. In fact, taking this quote from White, "I fell in love with the sound of an early typewriter and I have been stuck with it ever since," finds her visual theme for the book, giving it a (elevated) scrapbook feel. Maybe I had some preconceived ideas about the childhood and life of the man who wrote Charlotte's Web and made The Elements of Style an es

I adored all three of the Flora picture books written and illustrated by  Molly Idle . Without words, and with the clever use of gatefolds, Idle dances readers through ups and downs of friendship, collaboration, compromise and joy as the wonderfully round, elegantly funny Flora takes the stage. I was a little sad when the Flora trilogy ended last year, but I am SO HAPPY to see her back on the page with  Flora and the Chicks . And this time Flora is in a board book and counting chicks.   From one to ten, Idle dances the balletic Flora, wearing overalls the same color as the mama hen, across the page. When the hen leaves the nest, Flora takes a peek, discovering a hatchling. Gatefolds open to show surprises as the chicks hatch, explore and play with each other and Flora. The white background adds to the theatrical feel of the story as Flora moves across the pages, the chicks not far behind. Flora and the Chicks is the perfect addition to any board book collection!

With her second authored and illustrated picture book,  Leila Rudge  proves that she has a true gift for telling stories about fitting in and standing out, an often overworked theme in picture books. With her debut,  A Perfect Place for Ted , Rudge told the story of Ted, a "smart dog with his own sweater" who tries everything to get noticed, finally finding his perfect place as a friend to Dot, a girl with a house full of cats. With Gary , Rudge creates a racing pigeon who can't fly, like the rest of his flock, but has big dreams of travel. Gary is just like the other birds in his flock, but on race day he stays home because he can't fly. But, he has a taste for adventure, a keen ear and a growing scrap book. Perched nearby, Gary listens as his flock-mates discuss wind direction, flight paths and waypoints the night before a race, recording all this in his scrapbook. A series of mishaps leaves Gary stranded in the city, his flock mates flyin