Maybe it’s the holidays? Waxing nostalgic? But this well-written, beautifully illustrated picture book brought me to tears. Dadaji’s Paintbrush written by Rashmi Sirdeshpande and illustrated by Ruchi Mhasane is a heart-touching, heartwarming, heart-felt, tug-at-my-heartstrings, picture book. Dadaji’s grandfather teaches him to paint. They use their fingers and flowers to create …
I keep seeking out character books because these days I find them few and far between. Here’s one for everyone’s bookshelf, Knight Owl, by Christopher Denise. We are all probably familiar with Christopher Denise’s glorious artwork from the Redwall series, Bunny in the Middle, Firefly Hollow, just to name a …
This book, was an easy YES, PLEASE! for me. I’m an Andrea Zuill fan and was excited to get my hands on this one. Written by Laura Gehl and illustrated by Andrea Zuill, Donut, The Unicorn Who Wants to Fly, doesn’t hit you over the head with layers of moral …
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that my woman-owned, local, independent, kids’ bookstore owner thrust a copy of Good Night Little Bookstore, written by Amy Cherrix and illustrated by E.B. Goodale, into my hands saying, ‘I love this book, of course I would because I own a bookstore, but I …
Owl T. Fencepost just wants quiet. So he writes a letter to B. Squirrel at the bookshop asking for various (funny) ‘how to’ books to make his world a more peaceful place. But the bookshop is out of each of Owl’s requests and so B. Squirrel begins to send him …
From the author/illustrator of Pokko and the Drum is Matthew Forsythe’s latest book, Mina. I read it and was smitten with the beautiful, subtle color palette. And when I went to pull photos for my post, I was amused to bump into a few reviews from individuals who didn’t adore …
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 …
When I visited The Kerlan Collection of Children’s Literature at the University of Minnesota, I was struck, inspired, surprised, and overjoyed, by many things. Seeing artwork created by iconic illustrators was incredible. The subject of my post today was one of the most overwhelming discoveries that I made and I …
Dr. Irvin Kerlan (1912-1963 (Killed at only age 51 in a traffic accident)) was the chief of medical research for the US Food and Drug Administration and an alumni of the University of Minnesota. An avid collector of rare books, he began focussing his collection toward children’s books. Dr. Kerlan …
Not too long after moving to the Midwest 27 years ago, I learned about an amazing place and put it on my “Must Do List”. A mecca for kidlit lovers, The Kerlan Collection of Children’s Literature at the University of Minnesota’s Elmer L. Anderson Library, houses one of, if not …