Tiny Treasury

We took a bunch of books out of the library last week, and to my husband’s dismay “My Book of Trucks” was not Sam’s immediate favorite. Instead he went straight for “I Can, Can You?” and hasn’t yet picked up any of the others.

“I Can, Can You?” is a board book featuring full color photographs of children with Down Syndrome going about their day. Each page shows a different child engaged in a different activity like eating, drawing, and going down a slide. Sam’s particularly interested in the baby building with blocks. Each time he picks up the book he turns right to that page, points and says, “Baby! bock.”

The children featured are mostly white, though two Asian children and one African-American child are also shown. The text is repetitive, engaging and subtly encouraging. It’s perfect for a toddler or a preschooler with or without Down Syndrome, though I’d imagine it would be most reassuring for a child with Down Syndrome, who probably doesn’t get to see to many books with pictures of kids like them.

Click, Clack, Moo by Doreen Cronin is just wildly amusing, one of my favorite kids’ books. And it’s also one of my kids’ favorites because they can read along - the text is very simple (and witty!).

I was really glad to see this video clip on YouTube of the book being read aloud - with sign language.

You can download versions here from PBS - or order videos.

Those are just some of the questions that Sam, one of the main characters of Stella, Star of the Sea asks his big sister, Stella, in one of the most delightful children’s books in my home.

I didn’t buy this one, I’ll confess. My friend, Kristin, bought it for my daughter; my daughter’s middle name is Estella and Sam is Kristin’s son. The two are the best of friends and Kristin thought the book concept - of older girl Stella leading around young Sam - was fitting. It quickly became a favorite in the house, not just because of the names of the characters but also because of the poetic nature of the book. And by poetic, I’m not just referring to the imagery in the words and the cadence of the text, which is really lovely to read. I’m also referring to the illustrations which are absolutely beautiful - the illustrations are so soft and yet still stunning - that it takes your breath away. Really. And on each page, there’s a little story within the story. Your children will have fun exploring it.

The book is the first in a series by award-winning Montreal artist Marie-Louise Gay of Canada. Gay clearly captures the spirit of young children with her words and her illustrations. And you can’t find a more perfect example of that spirit than when Stella explains to Sam that starfish were once shooting stars “who fell in love with the sea.” Trust me when I say that you and your children will fall in love with this book.

Marie-Louise Gay, Stella

Like you didn’t think the first place I’d pick would be Philadelphia…

I’m kicking my reviews of books this week that reference specific places - not just generally “in the city” or “on Generic Street, USA” - whether in title, text or setting. And the first book on my list is Good Night Philadelphia.

Good Night Philadelphia, authored by Adam Gamble and illustrated by Cooper Kelly, is part of the Good Night Our World series. Other books in the series include Good Night San Francisco, Good Night Atlanta and Good Night New York City. The premise of the series is, as you could imagine, “to celebrate special places in a way that young children… can easily relate to and enjoy with their families.”

And if Good Night Philadelphia is typical, the series more or less hits the mark. The book introduces the reader to places that are familiar to Philadelphians, though I’m not sure if those who haven’t spent a considerable amount of time in Philadelphia would quite understand or appreciate all of the spots chosen to “visit”.

The opening page missed the boat, I thought. Literally. There is a stretch of Philadelphia along the Schuylkill River (which no one outside of Philadelphia can pronounce) referred to as “Boathouse Row.” If you’ve been to Philly, you know Boathouse Row. And yet, the illustrations of Boathouse Row aren’t accompanied by any reference to it. Instead, the author says “Good morning, Schuylkill River” which is both difficult to pronounce if you aren’t familiar with it, and nearly impossible for new readers. Boathouse Row is simple - and the more common name for the stretch. I’m not sure whether this is a flaw because Gamble doesn’t know the area or if it was purposeful. But I didn’t think it a terribly good start.

After the opening pages, however, the book hits all of the right notes. The author makes stops along Philly’s notable tourist sites such as the Art Museum and Fairmount Water Works - and even stops to wonder what Rodin’s Thinker is thinking. There’s the obligatory mention of cheesesteaks (and thankfully not at Pat’s or Geno’s) as well as the Betsy Ross House and the Liberty Bell. The book is nicely illustrated - I thought the colors popped nicely and worked well with the board book format. I especially liked the crowd scenes, such as in Reading Terminal. It adds considerable interest to the book and encourages lots of finger pointing and question asking of the “Who’s that?” variety.

It’s short and sweet, as picture books - especially board books - should be. It’s a nice introduction to the City, and really does hit most of the main tourist attractions (what, no mention of our infamous sports teams?). I would definitely be inclined to pick up another in the series for my kids for the next time that we travel to New York City, Maine or any of the other places featured in the series. I agree that it’s a nice way to remember a trip without cheesy commercial references and at $9.95, it’s not priced badly either.

Philadelphia, Good Night Our World

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!).