When I got my first look at Matt Lilley’s DEBUT book, GOOD EATING, the Short Life of Krill, I knew I had to talk about it here. Why? Because it’s beautifully done, for one thing–informative, light, voice-y and engaging, and illustrated to perfection … but also because I’d once had …
Though this book, Chicken Little, The Real and Totally True Tale by Sam Wedelich,| is a couple of years old, I keep going back to it. This retelling is fun, funny and surprisingly relevant. And I love the illustrations. I was going to suggest its timeliness, too, but thinking about …
This was a dangerous topic for me. I knew I’d likely tumble down a rabbit hole, all too happy to stay there. Join me in the rabbit hole to admire a legion of unsung heroes of illustration. Most of the books I’m about to share did name those illustrators. Tsk-tsk …
“What makes you big? What makes you small?” the blurb on the back of Nina Crews’ new book, I’M NOT SMALL, asks. In spare text and lively digital collage, a little boy, or maybe a BIG KID, sets off to explore this idea in his own backyard. When mom tells …
What’s better than ice cream on a hot summer day? A cool new picture book to go with it, of course! I was delighted to have a chance to interview Stacy Innerst, the illustrator of THE SWEETEST SCOOP: BEN & JERRY’S ICE CREAM REVOLUTION, written by Lisa Robinson. Chunky Monkey. …
It’s summertime, summertime, sum-sum-summertime! If you jotted down a list of things that tie into this time of year, I’m pretty sure two of the items on your list would be outdoor adventures and bugs. Lucky for us, my critique buddies, Dianne White and Catherine Bailey, have new picture books …
THE BLUEST OF BLUES, Anna Atkins and the First Book of Photographs, written and breathtakingly illustrated by Fiona Robinson. Having a father who was a scientist, Anna Atkins was inspired by nature and education from a very early age. She studied shells, plants, insects, and illustrated their minute details. Her …
Are you a rock star? Either in reality, or secretly deep inside? If so, you might like LUPE LOPEZ: ROCK STAR RULES, a new picture book from Candlewick Press written by e.E. Charlton-Trujillo and Pat Zietlow Miller and illustrated by Joe Cepeda. The book is a story about Lupe, a …
A writer named Rebecca Gardyn Levington came super close to being my #PBChat mentee in 2019. I wrote her a private note to let her know how impressed I was by her rhyming skills. So much so that I encouraged her to KEEP writing rhyming manuscripts (which I don’t often …
Geometry is one of my favorite math units to teach in kindergarten. Kindergartners mold playdough shapes for ages, chatter about sides and vertices, and become suddenly fascinated with rectangular tiles—tiles, people! And the books! We have enough shape books in our classroom library to fill a big ole’ basket. But can …