Category: Cream of the Crop Nominees

The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle

The Adventures of a Girl Called BicycleThe Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle by Christina Uss
Published by Margaret Ferguson Books on June 5th 2018
ISBN: 0823440079
Pages: 320
Goodreads
five-stars

Handpies! Family feuds! Stampeding pigs! A runaway Kentucky Derby horse! A man in a chicken suit! Mostly-silent monks! French cuisine! A friendly ghost! Cookies! And among all of this, a girl on a bicycle looking for a friend. This refreshing middle grade novel offers some of the quirkiest characters and scenes this reviewer has ever encountered. When Bicycle shows up at the Mostly Silent Monastery as a toddler wearing only a shirt with a bicycle on it (how she receives her name, of course), she is taken in by the not-so-silent, big-hearted, well-intentioned Sister Wanda who does all of the talking for the Mostly Silent Monks. She also does all of the schooling and socializing of Bicycle, or she tries to. When she gets it into her head that Bicycle needs to attend the Friendship Factory Camp, where she is guaranteed to make at least three friends, Bicycle knows that the only friend that she needs to make is the world-famous cyclist Zbig Sienkiewicz. So she sets off on a 4000-mile bike trip across the United States to prove her point and meet that friend. What follows is a madcap adventure like no other filled with silliness, fantastic scenarios, and plenty of delicious fried pies. Bicycle will win your heart and prove that making friends is easy when you have an open mind, a sympathetic ear, and a rumbling stomach.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth

five-stars

The Dam

The DamThe Dam by David Almond, Levi Pinfold
Published by Candlewick Studio on September 11th 2018
ISBN: 0763695971
Pages: 32
Goodreads
five-stars

Two award winners; David Almond known for his stories and young adult novels including Skellig ,Kit’s Wilderness and Heaven Eyes, and Levi Pinfold whose picture book Black Dog won the Kate Greenway Medal have created a powerful picture book about the building of a dam and what was lost in the building and what was gained. Based on  a true story , a father and daughter, musicians are going into the area that will be flooded, land lost forever, to play one last time for the people, animals, birds and flowers that will no longer live on the land and for those who lived on the land in past times. But they also play for the new life that the dam creates- a lake which invites people and animals to it and the music binds the old wit the new.

The text is poetic , simple and direct, the illustrations are in browns and blues, somber and striking but not sad. The full page of the new lake formed is hopeful and makes the loss bearable. this is a visually striking book. with a message of hope delivered in a story  not commonly told in a picture book.

Use in art classes to demonstrate how art can tell express feelings and tell a story, use in music classes to explain the power of music to keep the memory of a bygone time alive and not forgotten.

The author’s note explains that such a dam was built in Northumberland, England and that musicians played for what was lost and then what was found.

So often teachers and librarians must encourage older children to take the time to visit the picture book section. Somehow children seem to think they are too old to enjoy this genre. This is one of those books that is to be enjoyed by children of all ages.

Grades 3-6

Submitted by Kathy George, Gray Public Library

five-stars

Inkling

InklingInkling by Kenneth Oppel, Sydney Smith
Published by Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers on November 6th 2018
ISBN: 152477281X
Pages: 272
Goodreads
five-stars

Recommending this for Cream Consideration.  Oppel’s begins this realistic drama, suitable for grades 4-6,  with a splat of inky magic from the point of view of Rickman the family’s cat.  Rickman discovers the ink splotch that escapes Dad’s sketchbook and devours written print to learn how to communicate with the family.  Sixth grader Ethan finds the ink splotch, Inkling, first and Sarah, his younger sister with Down Syndrome, is immediately enthralled by Inkling’s ability to make the shape of a dog.  Inkling becomes a likeable and driven character.  It absorbs books, literally, and provides the family members, as well as readers, energy, inspiration and comical relief as the inquisitive splotch takes on the vernacular of whatever it “tastes”.   Anne of Green Gables, The BFG and Twenty Leagues under the Sea are some of the many titles that readers will be inspired to explore further.  Deeper themes bubble to the surface as the Inkling becomes helpful to Ethan and his father.  Grief, honesty, being yourself and friendships can be found in the ever changing dynamic that is presented as Inkling becomes known to others outside of Ethan’s family.  The design of the book, with ink splats on every page and comic illustrations, by Sydney Smith, liberally place throughout makes this a complete package.

Reviewed by Sheila Dube, Springvale Public Library, Springvale

five-stars

Zola’s Elephant

Zola’s ElephantZola's Elephant by Randall de Sève, Pamela Zagarenski
Published by HMH Books for Young Readers on October 9th 2018
ISBN: 1328886298
Pages: 40
Goodreads
five-stars

A new girl moves in next door to our narrator – another little girl.Thus the begins the back and forth conversation between our narrator and the reader. Our little girl tells us that her neighbor has an elephant, who eats toast, takes baths , plays hide and seek and other fun things. that is the reason the two girls will surely never meet and be friends. As each reason they should not meet is imagined, Zagarenski in her signature style shows the reader on the facing page what is really happening. Eventually, they meet and of course, become friends. The text is sparse and direct, as someone making an excuse for not meeting a potential friend might say, the truth is in the illustrations. This is a picture book where the illustrations support the text. Zagarenski creates thru color and atmosphere, beautiful, fanciful imaginative illustrations that the reader can pour over. Her signature images of bees, foxes, crowns and wheels are included in her message of friendship.It is a beautiful book for its story and its art.

grades pre-k- 3

submitted by Kathy George, Gray Public Library

five-stars

Thirty Minutes Over Oregon: Japanese Pilot’s World War ll Story

Thirty Minutes Over Oregon: Japanese Pilot’s World War ll StoryThirty Minutes Over Oregon: A Japanese Pilot's World War II Story by Marc Tyler Nobleman
Published by Clarion Books on October 9th 2018
ISBN: 054443076X
Pages: 40
Goodreads
five-stars

Books for readers of all ages have been written about the bombing of Pearl Harbor , causing the United States to enter World War ll. The United States received a second set of bombings by the Japanese in September of 1942, which does not make the history or text books that often. This picture book depicts the story in both text and illustration of a Japanese submarine coming into  the waters off the coast of Oregon, to launch a small plane which would bomb the forests in Brookings, Oregon. The hope was to start a fire that would spread and consume the forests. Though the mission failed, it changed the lives of both the Japanese pilot and the inhabitants of the Oregon town. Author Nobleman and illustrator Iwai work together to engage the reader in this little known event. Even more important to the actual events is what happened in the years following. The townspeople invite the pilot to visit and begin a friendship between post war Japan and Brookings .

This book is one of many that offers the reader moments in history that may have been overlooked. That is what makes this book worth adding to any collection. It both informs and brings history to our younger readers so these small pieces of our history can be acknowledged and honored. Use this with units about US history, friendship and forgiveness.

grades 3-6

submitted by Kathy George, Gray Public Library

five-stars

The Unwanted: Stories of the Syrian Refugees

The Unwanted: Stories of the Syrian RefugeesThe Unwanted: Stories of the Syrian Refugees by Don Brown
Published by HMH Books for Young Readers on September 18th 2018
ISBN: 1328810151
Pages: 112
Goodreads
five-stars

Don Brown , known for his picture book biographies , has of late turned to historical events, The Great American Dust Bowl and Drowned City and given them story in  graphic novel form. He has outdone himself in his latest book about the Syrian refugee crisis. In his signature style of illustration, he examines the Syrian story from its beginning in 2001 when the people of Syria demanded the end of president Assad’s rule. Assad turned the military on his people and kidnapped, executed and massacred millions. thus began the massive exodus of Syrian citizens. Brown went to one of the largest refugee camps in Greece to better understand the plight of a people who want only to have  self determination and a voice in how they are governed.

What he reports is both heartbreaking and courageous. Here, he puts down in word and picture, the stories of why and how the Syrians and all refugees seek a better life and what they are willing to risk for freedom. This is a hard book to read. This is a book that must be read and shared so those of us who think we know hardship understand what we take for granted-the “unalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. In the author’s note he shares: “There are 5.7 million registered Syrian refugees. In the first three months of 2018, the United States has accepted 11 for resettlement.”

submitted by Kathy George, Gray Public Library

grades 6-12

 

five-stars

All the Animals Where I Live

All the Animals Where I LiveAll the Animals Where I Live by Philip C. Stead
Published by Roaring Brook Press on March 20th 2018
ISBN: 1626726566
Pages: 48
Goodreads
five-stars

Philip Stead has written a story that is part memory and part imagination. He tells the reader of his move from the city to the country and the animals that he encounters. He then takes the reader back to his childhood, to his grandmother who made him a stuffed bear- that he still has and the quilt she covered him with- the ones with chickens on it. This is the memory part of the book. Now he invites the reader on an imaginary journey – if his grandmother had been an animal- she would have been a hummingbird. She would have introduced herself to the animals in the neighborhood.

This is a storybook , the text is soft and needs to be read slowly, like a story is told. The illustrations are soft and quiet, they support the story and they too should be looked at slowly and savored. This is a story to be enjoyed and talked about. Discussions on what wildlife lives in the reader’s neighborhood, about grandparents and their role in the readers life , and to be always observant in our lives.

grades K-4

Submitted by Kathy George

                             Gray Public LIbrary

five-stars

The Monarchs are Missing

The Monarchs are MissingThe Monarchs Are Missing: A Butterfly Mystery by Rebecca E. Hirsch
Published by Millbrook Press (Tm) on January 1st 2018
ISBN: 1512452505
Pages: 56
Goodreads
five-stars

There is so much to say about this book. Whether you are a seasoned scientist with a passion for monarch butterflies or a novice with a curiosity about this recognized summer visitor, this is the book every reader. It is full of information about one of the most widely recognized insects we know. It has a 3000 mile journey it makes in September from the eastern United States and Canada to Mexico. It is one of the world’s great migrations. It wasn’t until the 1970’s that scientists knew where in Mexico the monarchs wintered. The information is fascinating and will make all who read this selection life long conservationists. The general belief   that if the butterflies are in trouble, the entire insect population is in trouble. Author Hirsch makes the case for the monarch, both how crucial it is to our environment and how the everyday person of any age can help or hinder its very existence.  Use in curriculums on the environment and insects. It is a must for all libraries.

grades 2-6

submitted by Kathy George

Gray Public Library

 

five-stars

100 Bugs: a Counting Book

100 Bugs: a Counting Book100 Bugs!: A Counting Book by Kate Palaces Narita
Published by Farrar Straus Giroux on June 12th 2018
ISBN: 0374306311
Pages: 40
Goodreads
five-stars

 

This is a different type of counting book in that the reader counts bugs and learns about plants. From katydids , dragonflies,to walking sticks, each count of ten is on a two page spread and introduces the reader to both insects and the plants they are drawn to. By the time the reader reaches the end of the book- they have counted 100 bugs and learned the different combinations that add up to ten.The large,  bright illustrations with lots to see will catch the attention of all who open the book. Combine this  with a rhyming text and you have  STEAM at its best: seek and find, math and science. This can be used as a “seek and find” lap read for one or a story time  selection to share.  Add this to your math curriculum, or a study of plants and insects.

use for grades pre k – 3 rating 5-cream

submitted by Kathy George

Gray Public Library

 

 

 

five-stars

On A Sunbeam

On A SunbeamOn a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden
Published by First Second on October 2nd 2018
ISBN: 1250178134
Pages: 544
Goodreads

This YA graphic novel love story set in space has depth of story and character as well as heft, coming in at 500+ pages. Using a muted palette, Walden toggles between two time lines, one told in flashbacks, that of Mia and Grace in school and in the early days of their love story in hues of purple-grays, and one in present time, that of Mia as part of a ship’s crew hiding away her story but still burning for the girl that got away in hues of reds and amber yellows.  By setting her story in space, Walden is free to meld whimsical elements like spaceships shaped like fish and to press the edges of the page and the imagination with towering architectural structures and deep chasms of nothingness where not only Mia can ruminate on her past but the reader can fall into the spaces between the stars, lost in the story. The characters are all female with the one exception being a non-binary mechanic with secrets of their own. The fact that there are no men is not a question; it is a statement, and it works beautifully.  The characters demand honesty and exhibit expansive thinking and acceptance and unconditional love. Walden has turned the space cowboy trope on its head with quiet grace and has lost none of the intrigue and adventure.  There are expletives and some mild scenes of romance but nothing an upper-middle school reader couldn’t handle; the size and non-linear storytelling and depth of content probably make this better suited for 9th grade and up, but the more people who read Tillie Walden, the better. Highly recommend.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth