Format: Picture Book Fiction

The Little Blue Bridge

The Little Blue BridgeThe Little Blue Bridge by Brenda Maier, Sonia Sanchez
Published by Scholastic Press on June 1, 2021
ISBN: 1338538012
Pages: 40
Genres: Folklore
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

This book is a fun update of The Three Billy Goats Gruff and kids will enjoy making the connection but will also enjoy it on its own merits if they don’t. Ruby is ignored by her brothers, despite being creative and eager to go on adventures. When she wants to pick blueberries her brothers won’t let her and then each, in turn, is denied crossing the bridge to the berries by a local bully. Ruby engages with the bully and wins him over with her solution to not crossing the bridge. It’s a nice, feel good book with enough rhyming and repetition to make it a good read aloud choice for younger kids.

Reviewed by Sarah Maciejewski. Patten Free Library, Bath

four-stars

See Where We Come From!

See Where We Come From!See Where We Come From!: A First Book of Family Heritage by Scot Ritchie
Published by Kids Can Press on May 4, 2021
ISBN: 1525304976
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

See Where We Come From!

 

 

In Scot Ritchie’s picture book, he examines traditions from five different heritages as a school is having a festival where students share foods, crafts, and a musical instrument.  Readers learn about the Japanese, The Haida Indigenous peoples, Brazilians, Scandinavians, and the Egyptians.  There are two moms in one family.  Acceptance of all cultures is emphasized.  At the end readers are urged to make their own Heritage Box.  A Glossary is included to help with understanding.  The illustrations are excellent as the children walk together from one house to another through their neighborhoods.  This is a beginning book geared towards the variety of countries from which we have come.

 

Reviewed by Ellen Spring, Oceanside High School, Rockland

four-stars

My Red Hat

My Red HatMy Red Hat by Rachel Stubbs
Published by Candlewick Press on February 2, 2021
ISBN: 1536212717
Pages: 32
Genres: Adventure, Fantasy
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
three-stars

My Red Hat is a simple, sweet story that is about a grandfather that passes down his red hat to his granddaughter. The reader is taken upon a journey of what the hat will bring or offer to the young girl.  The hat offers protection from natural and human elements that the world brings;  an extension of her grandfather’s love and protection. An object that will hold memories and dreams.

The book is illustrated in the same muted colors of grey, blue with splashes of red on each page.  The duo is almost on every page of this book together except a few. These few pages are where the child is off exploring the world by herself while wearing the special hat.  In closing, she returns home to her grandfather; the illustration almost identical to the very first one in the book.  However, now as the new owner she wears the hat.   The message one can take away is that you can and must go out into the world and encounter many things, but home and family  will always be there for you.

This would be a lovely book to read in a story time setting or to young children in school.

 

Reviewed  by Amy Tobalske, Walker Memorial Library , Westbrook

three-stars

Training Day

Training DayTraining Day by Elaine Bay, Raúl the Third
Published by Versify on May 4, 2021
ISBN: 0358380383
Pages: 56
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
three-stars

This is the beginning of a new early reader series by Raúl the Third. The series, El Toro and Friends features the luchadores from his previous picture books. The illustrations are full of color and action, and in Raúl the Third’s style, they’re very busy. Some may find this off-putting, some will enjoy the classic comics aspect of the art. The text is minimal, repetitive in vocabulary and features a mix of Spanish and English.

Recommended for confident new readers ages 6 and up. Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

three-stars

Oh Look, A Cake!

Oh Look, A Cake!Oh Look, a Cake! by J.C. McKee
Published by Clarion Books on May 11, 2021
ISBN: 0358380308
Pages: 40
Genres: Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
three-stars

A sloth and a lemur find a cake. They decide they should have a party but are unsure who to invite as everyone presents a challenge with the cake. Elephant will eat the entire cake. Tiger will eat the entire cake and then eat them. Ants require too many tiny pieces. They finally decide to eat the entire cake themselves. Tiger comes along and accuses them of eating the cake that belonged to them. The story then implies that Tiger eats the sloth and lemur, and the story ends there. This ending could prove traumatic for sensitive kids, but the rest of the book is silly and fun. If not for the ending, this book would be a GREAT one for story time. There is minimal text on each page and the colorful illustrations will keep young readers engaged. Recommended for readers 3 and up (with the warning about the ending).

Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

three-stars

Fish and Sun

Fish and SunFish and Sun by Sergio Ruzzier
Published by HarperAlley on June 22, 2021
ISBN: 0063076640
Pages: 48
Genres: Adventure
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
three-stars

Little Fish is bored, and he’s tired of the cold and dark of under water. When he heads to the surface, Little Fish finds a new friend in the sun. The only problem? The sun goes away at the end of the day. When Sun reappears the next day, Little Fish is thrilled and the two new friends continue to play for several days.

This early reader is part of a new I Can Read Comics series. There is information at the beginning of the book about how to follow the comics — directionality of panels, word bubbles, etc. This is a level 1 book and the language is appropriate for that level. The illustrations are colorful, cartoonish and help carry the story. Fish and Sun play lots of games like hide-and-seek so the illustrations really make the story at some points. This is a great book for emerging readers and good for building confidence.

Recommended for readers 5 and up. Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

three-stars

Chicken Little and the Big Bad Wolf

Chicken Little and the Big Bad WolfChicken Little and the Big Bad Wolf by Sam Wedelich
Published by Scholastic Press on March 2, 2021
ISBN: 9781338359008
Pages: 40
Genres: Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

A companion book to Chicken Little: The Real and Totally True Tale. Chicken Little isn’t afraid of anything. Or is she? When she encounters the so-called Big Bad Wolf, she is terrified, but her fear is nothing compared to that of the rest of the flock who debate whether to fight or flight. The smart and scientific Chicken Little gets to know the wolf and realizes that he is nothing like the preconceptions of him and invites him to a “pot-cluck” so the other chickens can get to know him, as well. The message of inclusion and acceptance is delivered with humor and grace. Told almost entirely with the use of speech bubbles. Not quite up to the standards of the first book but an enjoyable story with a worthy message.

Reviewed by Barb Rehmeyer, Liberty Library

four-stars

How to Apologize

How to ApologizeHow to Apologize by David LaRochelle, Mike Wohnoutka
Published by Candlewick Press on May 11, 2021
ISBN: 1536209449
Pages: 32
Genres: Animals
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Apologizing is important. Doing it well is equally important. This book runs through a variety of reasons why we apologize but also how to apologize. It has a lot of good information in it, but it is also really funny and fun. A snail apologizes to a sloth for stepping on his toes because he was running too fast. The gouache illustrations are colorful, detailed, and funny. They really add the humor to the instructional and informative text.

Recommended for readers 3 and up and for Cream of the Crop. Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

five-stars

The Little Library

The Little LibraryThe Little Library by G. Brian Karas, Margaret McNamara
Published by Schwartz & Wade Books on March 23, 2021
ISBN: 0525578331
Pages: 40
Genres: Realistic Fiction
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Jake is nervous about going to the new library and about meeting the new school librarian. All his classmates are super excited, but Jake would rather stay back and sharpen pencils. Jake was a slow and careful reader, and he often felt overwhelmed by all the books and the flurry of going to the library. The new school librarian, Beck, notices Jake in the corner, and they bring Jake a book about woodworking. Jake takes the book and reads it over the remaining part of the school year. Beck often checks in with Jake and renews the book for him. When the school year is ending, Jake is dismayed at the idea of having to return the book and also at not being able to visit the library. So Jake builds a little library for outside the school building using the skills he learned in the book Beck gave him. After school closes, Beck sends Jake the woodworking book — they’ve removed it from the library collection because of low circulation before Jake picked it up.

This book has so many things going for it. The librarian is nonbinary, there is a diverse representation of kids presented in the classroom, and Jake builds the little library with his grandfather and not a parent. The illustrations are colorful and bring the story to life, but it’s the actual story that really makes this book.

Recommended for readers 4 and up and for Cream of the Crop. Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

five-stars

The Collectors

The CollectorsThe Collectors by Alice Feagan
Published by Kids Can Press on May 4, 2021
ISBN: 1525302043
Pages: 32
Genres: Adventure
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

Best friends Winslow and Rosie have a tree house on the edge of the forest. There, they keep all the treasures they’ve collected, and they only have room for one more thing. It needs to be spectacular and something extra special. They set off on an elaborate and long expedition in search of that one special thing. They’re chased home by a bear, and they’re sad to have not found anything to complete their collection. In the end, the thing they were looking for was right outside their window.

This is a fun story about friendship, adventure, and recognizing the good that’s around you every day. The cover suggests the story may be a bit scary, but it isn’t at all. The two friends find all sorts of fun things on their adventure. The paper cut collage illustrations are beautiful and really carry the story. Without the illustrations, the text would not convey the discoveries they make on their expedition. Hand this to kids who love adventure and collecting treasures.

Recommended for readers 4 and up. Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

four-stars