Tiny Treasury

It’s War of Words Wednesday! In honor of Dr. Seuss’ birthday on Friday, which is the better Seuss classic:

Green Eggs and Ham or The Cat in the Hat?

Each week, I’ve been asking my guest author or illustrator what their favorite books were growing up - the answers appear on the Friday Fifteen.

I’m also curious as to what you, my readers, think. What are your favorite books of all time? Post your favorites (then or now) in the comments below through the end of March. I’ll add up all of the responses and post the results in April. For kicks, I’ll compare our list to the NEA list for adults and kids. And best yet, I’ll review the top 20 books throughout the spring.

So, post away. This should be fun!

And to prevent “ballot stuffing” - Harry Potter fans, you know who you are! - please limit your favorites to ten.

top children’s books

In honor of the man that most of us revere
We’re hosting a contest - the deadline is near!

That’s right, it’s a contest in honor of Doc Seuss
Enter your rhyme, you’ve got nothing to lose.

If you’ve not yet been over to give the rules a peek
you must do it soon, you’ve got less than one week!

So be it clever or witty with advice sage or wise
Submit by March 2 and maybe win the big prize!

See, Dr. Seuss-like talent not required! Don’t forget to enter the contest, the deadline is this Friday (on Dr. Seuss’ birthday).

During the week, our book collection at the house grew. Out of the bunch, both girls were immediately drawn to Josephine Nobisso’s Hot Cha-Cha, perhaps as a result of the colorful, fun, bright illustrations of Joan Holub (Amy’s exact quote upon seeing the books on Holub’s web site home page was “I wish I could have one of those!”).

The main character in the book is a young girl named Maria. Maria’s big coup is finding a key (the finding of the key is Katie’s favorite part) in a cookie jar. While the key, on the surface, unlocks the city playground which had previously been locked, it really opens up a world to Maria and her friends, who spend the afternoon exploring and playing - until the grown-ups crash their party!

It’s a simple story written in a fresh voice. What could have been routine (and frankly, boring) is made interesting and merry with the use of rhythmic language which challenges adult and child readers to keep the energy up (!) and delights children with its silliness:

See a What
See an ah
See an oo-la-la!

What did she find in the cookie jar?
Fireflies?
Or crackers?
Or the moolah-la?

Further keeping the energy level up are Holub’s vibrant illustrations (both of my girls give Holub high marks for the use of color - and the dog on the swing!). Each page offers a spirited glimpse into the mood of Maria and her friends. You cannot help but smile from page to page - the illustrations really do complete the book rather than simply reflect the storyline, as in so many children’s book.

If you’re in the mood for a book that’s a little bit different, check out Hot Cha Cha! It’s a rollicking good time (cha-cha!).

It’s Friday Fifteen, when we get to know children’s book authors and illustrators.

Today’s guest author for Friday Fifteen is Judy Roth, author of Cups Held Out(Herald Press). Here’s what she had to say:

1. Where are you now?

Elkhart, Indiana

2. What were your favorite books as a kid?

I remember reading the nurse series about Sue Barton (but it never made me want to become a nurse!). I discovered Madeleine L’Engle in 5th grade, and read everything I could by her. I loved the Mary Poppins books and the Edgar (Edward?) Eager books….and Eleanor Estes and Elizabeth Enright….I read Mrs. Mike when I was in 7th grade and loved it. I just reread it recently, and it’s still a great book….

3. What are you reading now?

I ran out of books from the library, so I pulled a book from my library. I’m rereading Summer of My First Love, by Isabelle Holland.

4. Do you have kids?

Two sons, 18 and 14 years old.

5. What projects are you working on now?

A book of soccer poems, a short story for Highlights, a rewrite of a picture book for an editor (who probably won’t buy it because she keeps sending it back) and a rewrite of a novel in poetry form.

6. What is your biggest writing or illustrating luxury?

Going to a conference every year. Lately it’s been to the Michigan SCBWI fall conferences.

7. Coffee or tea?

Hot chocolate.

8. Name five artists on your iPod (or mp3 player).

My son tells me I need to get an iPod so he doesn’t have to keep hearing me play John Mayer on the CD player. If I had one, I’d also have on it Switchfoot, James Taylor, Julie Miller, and Newsboys.

9. What would I be surprised to know about you?

Since I don’t know what your impression of me is, that’s a hard question to answer. You might be surprised that I buy most of my clothes at Goodwill; or that I’m a chocoholic; or that if I can’t remember where I’ve seen an actor before, I can’t sleep until I figure it out….Or maybe you won’t be.

10. What college did you attend (in what subject)?

Fresno Pacific College; English and music.

11. If you weren’t working with kids’ books, what would your dream job be?

Writing screenplays with settings in Europe that I would of course be invited to come along to view as they filmed….and getting to write the songs for the movie as well, along with my husband.

12. What’s the best thing on TV right now?

Studio 60.

13. How did you get your “big break” into the field?

I’ve had more little triumphs than big breaks. And that came from plain perseverance.

14. Which celeb would you want most to meet?

Um, I guess I’ll say Steve Martin, because not only is he hilarious and fun to watch onscreen, he’s also a good writer.

15. Who is the best book character EVER?

I don’t think it’s possible to answer that question. But I’m leaning toward Winnie-the-Pooh.

–

Thanks, Judy, for joining us! And Good Luck with your book (I’m reviewing it in an upcoming post).

If you’re a children’s book author or illustrator and would like to be considered for our Friday Fifteen, shoot me an email.

Stuck in the car? Not sure what to listen to? Tired of Raffi? Swearing off Laurie Berkner? Getting the willies from the Wiggles? Consider an audio book. Yeah, yeah, I know. They can be expensive. Consider checking out books on CD from your public library or, better yet, download a chapter or two for free from librivox. No need to read that twice, I said free. Gratis. �費. Gratuitement. 無料�. Gratuitamente. 무료로.

You can check out the children’s library at librivox available for download here, some available as updating podcasts!

(And psst, Mom, Dad, there’s more grown-up fare here.)

It’s war of words Wednesday! Which Princess made for a better story?

Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty?

Philadelphia’s own Please Touch Museum has announced the winners of its 22nd Annual Please Touch Museum Book Award. The award is given annually to two books in categories based on the age of the museum’s visitors, children under the age of 7.

“Since 1985, the Please Touch Museum Book Awards have been unique in highlighting some of the best examples of storytelling for young children,” says Please Touch Museum’s President and CEO Nancy Kolb. “We’re very proud to be announcing two more outstanding books which we hope will help children discover the joys of reading and learning.”

This year’s winners are:

Age 3 and under – In the Fiddle Is a Song: A Lift-the-Flap Book of Hidden Potential written and illustrated by Durga Bernhard
Age 4 to 7 – I Love Our Earth by Bill Martin, Michael Sampson and photographer Dan Lipow

And yes, if you recognize the name Bill Martin, Jr., he is the author of a number of books including Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

Winners Durga Bernhard and Michael Sampson will be honored at the annual Delaware Valley Association for the Education of Young Children (DVAEYC) conference Friday, March 16, 2007, at 11 a.m. at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The authors will appear at a book signing event at Please Touch Museum on Saturday, March 17, 2007 at 12 p.m. The museum will also be displaying original illustrations and photographs from both books during April and May as part of the annual “Celebrate Stories” months presented by The Albert M. Greenfield Foundation.

“I have this little sister, Lola…”

In 2001, author Lauren Childs penned the first Charlie and Lola book. Since then, she’s gone on to author a number of books as well as a Charlie and Lola series for the BBC and DVD.

My kids are hooked and I am glad. The Charlie and Lola series is witty and well-written. The illustrations are terrific. Best of all, as in any good book, is the central story. Charlie and Lola are siblings. Charlie is 7 and Lola is 4. And gasp, they get along. In that way, it’s a wonderful example for children about not always agreeing but always working it out and remaining friends.

Here’s the list of Charlie and Lola books out currently:

I haven’t read them all (I think I’m missing three). My plan is to review each of them separately but I wanted to give you a preview of things to come. Pick one up yourself at the store and give it a go!

PS - Once you start reading, I dare you to try without a British accent! It’s nearly impossible. As for me? I now sound like Madonna.

Charlie and Lola, Lauren Childs, BBC

This is both the crazy and good thing about Harry Potter: hype regarding the last installment, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, is already running high and it’s not officially being released until July (you can pre-order it from Amazon.com here for a pre-order guarantee price of less than $20 - the sale price in July will be close to $35).

I have (gasp) never read a Harry Potter book before. David, however, has, and if you’re interested in actual Harry Potter news, please pay him a visit. I swear, by the time that Deathly Hallows is released, to be able to craft an intelligent post about it…

But the story behind the Harry Potter mania is important to me, both as a mom and a blogger. Whether you enjoy Harry Potter or not, you have to admit that the overwhelming success of the series has inspired an entire generation of children to pick up a book and read again. I first realized this when my good friend waited in line to buy a Harry Potter book for her eight-year old nephew. She was waiting in line. For a book. For an eight-year old.

And a phenomenon was introduced.

Harry Potter

Continuing the Dr. Seuss theme this month, it’s worth mentioning that the 2007 Theodor Seuss Geisel Award winner is ZELDA AND IVY: THE RUNAWAYS by Laura McGee Kvasnosky. It is the story of Zelda and Ivy, sisters and foxes who take off on an adventure in an effort to avoid a lunch of their father’s cucumber sandwiches.

Honorary mentions for 2007 went to:

Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride written by Kate DiCamillo and illustrated by Chris Van Dusen (Candlewick)

Move Over, Rover! by Karen Beaumont and illustrated by Jane Dyer (Harcourt)

Not a Box by Antonette Portis (HarperCollins)

The winner for 2006 was Henry and Mudge and the Great Grandpas written by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Suçie Stevenson (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers). Honorary mentions were awarded to Hi! Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold (Cartwheel Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.); A Splendid Friend, Indeed by Suzanne Bloom (Boyds Mills Press); Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa written by Erica Silverman and illustrated by Betsy Lewin (Harcourt, Inc.); and Amanda Pig and the Really Hot Day written by Jean Van Leeuwen and illustrated by Ann Schweninger (Dial Books for Young Readers, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group).

The Theodor Seuss Geisel Award was established in 2004. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, for the most distinguished contribution to beginning reader books published in the United States during the preceding year. Criteria for the award includes great creativity and imagination in an effort to engage children in reading.

Don’t forget to enter our Dr. Seuss contest! Details here.

Dr. Seuss, Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, Association for Library Service to Children

At our house, neither my husband nor I knows exactly who is going to read to the children until the last minute each evening. This is because, board meetings and night classes aside, we allow the girls to choose their night time book. And the decision as to who reads is pretty easy after that: I read the English books and my husbands reads the German books. My husband is fluent in German and has access to a number of great children’s books, it’s a great way to expose the children to another language without pressure.

That said, one book that translates easily in both languages is Swiss author’s Marcus Pfister’s Rainbow Fish (oder Regenbogenfisch auf deutsch). It is, quite simply, a stunning picture book, as illustrated here in prints available on art.com:

In the books, the scales on the rainbow fish (his pride and joy) are shimmery thanks to foil inserts over watercolor prints. The illustrations are especially beautiful in dim light, perfect for right before bedtime.

You’d think that this classic, which remained on the NY Times bestseller list for ages, is pretty innocuous: it’s a book with beautiful pictures and a fairly straightforward storyline (more about that in a bit). It’s my youngest daughter’s favorite right now in English and German (we have both) - she especially enjoys the talking octopus. So imagine my surprise when I surfed over to amazon.com and found this, the most controversial customer reviews that I’ve ever seen on amazon.com for a children’s book! Yes, it’s worth following the link to see such gems as:

Give this book to your children if you would like them to grow up as communist homosexuals.

and

The message made me recoil, it honestly did. It says: if you do not do what I want you to do, I will run whinning to everyone I can and convince them that I have been injured and you will be a social pariah– different is to be fear and emotional bullying is okay.

I will not flog this horse anymore, as Mr. M. Newman, one of the reviewers, said it best any way.

This book is cruel and mean in message and should be kept away from any child that we hope to make into a good, productive citizen of this country.

and

Analysis:

1. I do understand that this is *supposed* to be about sharing, but I think that pulling parts of yourself off and giving them away is not a good idea
2. It seems rather socialist to me–everyone simply must have a shiny scale whether or not they have the capacity to grow their own shiny scales or not.
3. Why should anyone have to pay people to be their friend???

Whoa. It’s a kid’s book. But, boy did it hit a nerve with some people. I never read into what others did, especially the part about pulling bits of yourself off - c’mon, sharing the scales is a metaphor! And, psst, fish don’t really talk either, but that didn’t stop Nemo…

At any rate, I thought the book had a nice moral about sharing. In the beginning of the story, the rainbow fish has no friends and believes that his beauty might enough to make him happy. He eventually finds that it isn’t and he seeks counsel from the wise old octopus who advises him to share with others. In the end, the rainbow fish shares his scales with the other fish and he makes friends.

Despite the negative reviews to the contrary, I don’t think that giving away what makes you special makes you less special. It’s a good lesson to learn that sharing your music, art or talent with others, rather than keeping it to yourself, makes the world a better place. And I certainly didn’t think that the book was some sort of entreaty to give away all of your worldly possessions in order to make friends. Instead, I thought it was a cautionary tale about the dangers of relying upon things to make you happy.

What makes this a good story, no matter what side you come down on in terms of the moral, is that it’s a good book to discuss with your children. That’s one of the best things about children’s books, they provide an opportunity to talk to your children, which often gets lost in today’s busy schedules. You can chat with your children about their favorite characters, what they thought about the story, what the story meant to them. And if you think that there is something wrong with the message, that’s the time to talk to your children about that, too.

All of the controversy about the message notwithstanding, as I mentioned earlier, the book is beautifully illustrated beautifully. In fact, the book and its characters still enjoy a lot of popularity in the mainstream. There is even an HBO animated series based on the Rainbow Fish.

Of course, you’re the best judge of what makes sense for your children. So, rather than rely on a number of mixed reviews, I encourage you to pick up a copy and judge for yourself what the hub-bub is all about. And stop on by afterwards, I’d love to hear what you think!

Rainbow fish, Marcus Pfister, illustrations

I told you that there would be some changes as I feel my way around the site as the new girl… I’m announcing that I’m instituting War of Words Wednesday! Each Wednesday, I’ll post two books, two authors, two series - two something - and we’ll see which is more popular by your comments. It only works if you post, so pop in each Wednesday to tell us what you think (and better yet, why you think it).

Better detective read:

Encyclopedia Brown or The Three Investigators?

Encyclopedia Brown, The Three Investigators

One of the things that you learn pretty early on as a parent is that each book that comes into your house has the potential to be the one - you know, the one that you read over and over again. And while I have a list of things that I like to consider when searching for a book, I will confess that “not annoying the parents� has jumped to the top of the list.

That’s why “Philadelphia Chickens� is such a favorite in our house.

I know what you’re thinking… I bought it because of the Philadelphia connection (I live and work in Philly). Well, half true. I bought it initially because it had Philadelphia in the title. And partly because it was Sandra Boynton (and who doesn’t love Sandra Boynton)? But sometimes those gut instincts turn out to be spot on. This one sure was.

The book is a compilation of songs and drawings. The book can be stand-alone but is much more fun when you listen to the accompanying CD. The songs on the CD are performed by such artists as Laura Linney, Eric Stoltz, Kevin Kline, Meryl Streep, Scott Bakula, Natasha Richardson, Patti LuPone, the Bacon Brothers (though daughter Amy refers to them jointly as “Kevin Bacon”) and a whole bunch of Boyntons. I even have some of the songs on my iPod, perfect for drives in the car when other kids’ music won’t do.

Not in the mood to listen to the CD? The lyrics in the book do double duty as poems with the kind of illustrations that you’ve grown to know and love with Sandra Boynton. For the musically inclined, the sheet music is printed at the back.

My daughter, Katie, gives it five pages out of five (her highest rating) claiming that the best thing about the book is “the Philadelphia song� (you can hear a snippet here - requires free RealPlayer) With lyrics like, “Poultry in motion is a beautiful thing�, how can you disagree?

Sandra Boynton, Philadelphia Chickens, Bacon Brothers

Dr. Seuss is perhaps one of the best loved children’s authors of all time. His style has been copied and imitated, but never quite duplicated, throughout the years. March 2 marks Dr. Seuss’ birthday. In honor of Dr. Seuss, I’m hosting a contest! Here is your chance to create your own Dr. Seuss style rhyme about anything so long as it’s not defamatory or offensive (see below).

The winning entry will be posted on my site and the author will receive a free Dr. Seuss book.

Here are the rules:

1. Your entry must be 100 words or less.
2. Entries must be posted in the comments below or sent via email to me by the deadline.
3. Plain text only, no attachments.
4. Include your name, location (city and state or country is sufficient) and email address with your submission. I won’t publish your email address, but I do need to be able to contact you.
5. You retain the rights to your rhyme, but if you enter the contest, you’re giving me permission to post any part or all of your rhyme, first name and location on my site.
6. Entry deadline is 11:59p.m. EST on March 2, 2007.
7. The winning entry will be determined by me, in my sole discretion.
8. Offensive entries (whether an entry is offensive will be determined by me and will include but isn’t limited to language which is sexually explicit or includes profanity or slurs) will be disqualified and deleted from the site.

Good luck! May the best rhyme win!

Dr. Seuss, contest