How The Stars Came To Be by Poonam Mistry

 

How The Stars Came To Be

By Poonam Mistry

This has got to be the most beautiful book I've ever seen! The illustrations are breath taking! The story is beautiful as well. The Fisherman's Daughter was worried about her father fishing in the dark when the moon was new so the Sun took a golden ray and shattered it into a million pieces for her to place in the sky. As she meticulously placed the stars into the sky in patterns of animals, beginning with the North Star that she called Polaris, a monkey saw the bag. The glistening stars caught the monkey's eye and he grab the bag and climbed a tree. The Fisherman's Daughter went after the monkey and she pulled the bag of stars from the monkey's grip, all of the stars fell out of the bag and right into the sky. Even though the stars lumped together and were very unorganized, they lit up the sky and allowed her father enough light to see his way home safely.

This is a perfect book for a folktale theme. Beautiful pictures and an easy to follow tale.

Trying By Kobi Yamada

 

Trying

By Kobi Yamada

This is one of my favorite authors. He has also written What Do You Do With A Problem and What Do You Do With An Idea which are also really great books. I haven't read his other books, but I'm sure they are just as good.

Trying is about a boy who walks in on a sculptor and wishes he too could sculp such beautiful things. The sculptor tells the boy that he can, but he must try first. The boy replies "I'd rather just watch. I can't mess things up if I just watch." The sculptor tells the boy that you succeed because you are willing too fail. Every time you try to do something, then you are one step closer to succeeding and that you should be proud of your failures because it means that you are learning. The sculptor takes the boy in the back of his shop and shows him all of his failed sculptures. "These are my friends. These are my failures." The sculptor tells the boy, "When we make it safe to fail, we make it safe to succeed."

Trying is such a powerful and amazing book and I recommend it for both children and adults. It provides a very different perspective on failure and the necessity to try.

Each Kindness

Each Kindness

By: Jacqueline Woodson

Illustrated by: E. B. Lewis

2013-2014 MD Black-Eyed Susan Nominee

In Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson, kindness is compared to a ripple in the water's surface when a stone is thrown plunked into the water. The ripple gets bigger and bigger as it spreads throughout the world. When Maya comes to school, the girls were mean to her. They wouldn't talk to her and made fun of her second-hand clothes. They wouldn't even smile at her when she tried to smile at them. Then one day, Maya was gone. When everyone got to drop a stone into a bowl of water to see how their kindness spreads, one girl could not think of anything she had done. She felt bad for how she treated Maya, but now it was too late to say sorry. 

Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson is a great story for World Kindness Day (13 November) and to teach children that the kindness they show to everyone around them, just gets bigger and brighter!!

Pizza For The Queen

Pizza for the Queen

By Nancy Castaldo

Illustrated by: Melisande Potter

October is Pizza Month!

Raffaaele was the finest pizza maker in the land and his reputation stretched straight up to Queen Margherita! She sent her royal messenger to order pizzas from Raffaele's pizzeria Pietro e Basta Cosi. The Queen wanted to taste the pizza that her servants were raving over!  Rafffaele visited local markets to pick up the favorite tastes of the Napoli people. He did not get the 'best', but got the people's favorite. The first pizza was spread with olive oil and tomatoes and oregano and garlic. The second pizza was spread with sausage and mozzarella and basil. By the time Raffaele got to the third pizza, he noticed all the anchovies were gone! Inspired by the flag of Italy, Raffaele spread the last pizza with tomatoes, basil and mozzarella cheese. Queen Margherita loved Raffaele's pizzas, but particularly noticed and loved the last pizza which came to be known as - Pizza Margherita! The book even includes it's own recipe for Pizza Margherita.

Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match

Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match

By: Monica Brown

Illustrated by: Sara Palacios

Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match was a MD Black-Eyed Susan nominee in 2013-2014. 

Little girls love to mismatch! Marisol is no exception, but she takes it to unusual lengths. She writes in cursive and in print, she brings peanut butter and jelly burritos to lunch, she likes to play soccer-playing pirates and she speaks spanglish. One day on the playground, Ollie says to Marisol that she couldn't match even if she wanted to! Marisol takes this as a challenge and comes in the next day with matching clothes. She plays just a pirate at recess and eats a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on mushy white bread. Marisol's teacher asks her if she is okay and at the end of the day gives Marisol a note explaining that she likes Marisol just the way she is. Marisol learns that it's okay to be different. It's important to be YOU!

Maybe Something Beautiful by F. Isabel Campoy and Theresa Howell

Maybe Something Beautiful

By F. Isabel Campoy and Theresa Howell

In a drab, gray world, Mira draws beautifully colorful pictures and hands them out to people in her community until one day she meets a man. This man was a muralist and with his brush he spread colorful sunshine throughout the city. Neighbors, family, friends all joined in with the muralist and Mira and the music played and the city came alive with color! It brought the city together and made the people happy. 

Maybe Something Beautiful by F. Isabel Campoy is based on a true story of downtown San Deigo, CA. Rafael and Candice Lopez came up with the idea to color their community in effort to bring people together through art. Rafael was an artist and his wife, Candice, was a graphic design. Together they invited their whole community to come up with the concept of the Urban Art Trail. They painted murals and benches and utility boxes...and transformed their neighborhood into something beautiful. 

Here are few links to checkout:

Maybe Something Beautiful website

Rafael Lopez talks about an upcoming mural in Chicago

Here are some pictures of the Urban Art Trail in San Diego and a picture of Rafael Lopez. Notice how things like Port-o Potties and junction boxes are painted!

Helen's Big World: The Life of Helen Keller

Helen's Big World: The Life of Helen Keller

By: Doreen Rapport

Illustrated by: Matt Tavares

October is World Blindness Awareness Month

Has there ever been a more celebrated advocate for the blind than Helen Keller? Helen Keller was not born blind. In fact, she was a perfectly healthy baby until she became sick at 19-months old. Her sickness left her in a dark world that she didn't understand and a world that she fought against.  Alone and afraid, Helen raged against her new, dark world. Helen's parents didn't know how to help her until Annie Sullivan came into her life. Annie Sullivan had been legally blind, but after several operations she was able to see again, but her eyes were weak. Annie worked with Helen and brought light to her world and gave her words to communicate with those around her. 

Helen's Big World was a MD Black-Eyed Susan Nominee in 2014-2015 and is a wonderful picture book about the life of Helen Keller. It is also a wonderful book to teach kids that there is no boundary to your dreams and with hard work and dedication, you can accomplish anything.

Blackout by John Rocco

Blackout

By John Rocco

2012-2013 MD Black-Eyed Susan Nominee

Life can get pretty busy sometimes and it's hard to just stop and take a break until...the power goes out. When all of the power in the city goes out one hot summer night, folks break out of their homes and abandon everything and are forced to take that moment to be with neighbors, to dance, to sing, to be with each other and to see the lights in the sky! Sometimes when one thing fails, there is something marvelous that can be born. Blackout is a great reminder to us all to off the "lights" and take that time for family.

The Library Dragon by Carmen Agra Deedy

The Library Dragon

By Carmen Agra Deedy

Miss Lotta Scales was a real dragon. She guarded the books at Sunrise Elementary School. Maybe a little too well. The kids were not allowed to check out any books and story time was a thing of the past. Soon, no one went to the library until...Molly Brickmeyer. What happened next made the scales drop off Miss Lotta Scales one-by-one until all that was left was Miss Lotty, librarian extraordinaire. 

Seven and a Half Tons of Steel

Seven and a Half Tons of Steel

By Janet Nolan

Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez

Wow! This is an amazing book about a beam that was taken from the wreckage of  the Twin Towers after they collapsed. This beam was melted down and molded into the bow of the USS New York. Construction of the Navy warship was halted due to Hurricane Katrina, but the workers made a camp at the shipyard and building continued until the USS New York was placed in the water and started it's journey home to New York. From New York, the mighty ship sailed into the Atlantic only to return in 2011 to it's home port for the 10th anniversary of 9/11. 

For those of us who were a part of this American tragedy or who watched helpless on televisions around the world, this book is a reminder of that fateful day, but a solid lesson that there are good, strong things that come out of the even the worst situations. 

Just a forewarning, have tissues handy!

Little Red Writing

Little Red Writing

By Joan Holub

Follow along with Little Red Pencil as she takes her basket of 15 red words and sets out on a story. Along the way she got lost in the dark descriptive forest, squeezed out too many glue words and was rescued by "suddenly" and friends. In the middle of her story, something exciting happened and she got scared and threw words. She wound her way all through pencil school to Principal Granny's office where she found the grumpiest, growliest...well, you're just going to have to read it find out. This is a WONDERFUL book about building a story and how words work. This would also be good for older children who are having with writing.

Picture Book

What's Your Favorite Animal?

What's Your Favorite Animal?

By Eric Carle and friends

Eric Carle likes geen bean hiding cats. Lane Smith likes elephants that show off their smarts. Susan Jeffers loves the purest of white horses. Nick Bruel really likes octopuses despite how Kitty feels about it. What is your favorite animal? Maybe it might be a favorite of your favorite author's too!

Picture Book

The Days The Crayons Quit

The Day The Crayons Quit

By Drew Daywalt

Duncan is a little boy with a big problem. Instead of crayons, he has a stack of letters. Each one of Duncan's crayons have issues. From red who is used too much to pink who is not used at all to peach who would like it's wrapping back. Each crayon writes a letter of complaint, but in the end a masterpiece would not be complete without each one.

Picture Book

Hampire By Sudipta Bardham-Quallen

Hampire

By Sudipta Bardham-Quallen

What a creepy tale of a vampire piggy that is sorely misunderstood. Hampire marvelously sets up the reader and builds the suspense right up to the moment Hampire has everyone cornered. What happens next is the true mystery you'll uncover when you read Hampire by Sudipta Bardham-Quallen.

Picture Book

No Biting, Louise By Margie Palatini

No Biting, Louise

By Margie Palatini

With a brand new tooth, Louise can't resist the temptation to use it. She bites everything and everyone. She really doesn't mean to hurt anyone. Then Grandmama Sadie comes for a visit and proclaims Louise's nibbling is just a phase she'll grow out of. Is Grandmama Sadie right? What will replace the biting phase? Find out in No Biting, Louise By Margie Palatini.

Picture Book

Just Because By Rebecca Elliott

Just Because

By Rebecca Elliott

Sometimes there are just no reasons. Just Because is all about Clemmie who is the best big sister. She's the best big sister, who makes sweet noises and helps with drawings and isn't mean or screams or pulls hair. Clemmie has a special chair to fly to the planets and offers cuddles to fall asleep in. Find out what else makes Clemmie special in Just Because by Rebecca Elliott.

Picture Book

All By Myself By Emile Jadoul

All By Myself

By Emile Jadoul

A quiet house in the middle of the night can be intimidating, but when you gotta go...ya gotta go. MOM! DAD! Leon finds out that going potty in the middle of the night isn't as frightening as he thought and makes Mom and Dad proud in All By Myself by Emile Jadoul.

Picture Book

The Giving Tree By Shel Silverstein

The Giving Tree

By Shel Silverstein

The Giving Tree is an all-time classic about a tree and a boy. It's about loving someone so much that even when you think you have nothing left to give, there is always more. This book should be a part of every family's book collection and makes a great gift!

Picture Book

Three Nasty Gnarlies By Keith Graves

Three Nasty Gnarlies

By Keith Graves

I LOVE THIS BOOK!!! Grubby Gurgle, Stanky Stoo and Ooga-Mooga are nasty Gnarlies that live in the dump. Life was fun and full of song until Snooty Judy Butterfly came along and told the Gnarlies that they "...are not beautiful." The Gnarlies try to be like Judy until they realize that they were just fine before. They had been perfect all along. Set to easy-to-read, rhyming prose, "Three Nasty Gnarlies" by Keith Graves tell us you have to be happy with who you are. Perfect for children who are insecure about themselves in relation to others around them.

Picture Book

Think Cool Thoughts By Elizabeth Perry

Think Cool Thoughts

By Elizabeth Perry

It's hard to imagine right now the hot days of summer where the air is so hot it can melt chocolate bars. I bet Angel would appreciate our snow right now, but she's experiencing the hottest day of summer. There seems to be no relief until her Aunt Lucy and Mom tell of a childhood story about sleeping on the roof. Angel has got to try it so they lug a mattress, sheets and pillows to the top of their apartment building and Angel is amazed at the sky. While the adults chat, Angel dreams crazy dreams and when she wakes up an amazing thing happens. Find out what that amazing thing was in "Think Cool Thoughts" by Elizabeth Perry. Great book for winter too!

Picture Book