221. Bear With Me. Kerascoët (Sebastien Cosset and Marie Pommepuy). 2023. [June] 40 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book] [near wordless picture book]
First sentence: Bear with me!
Premise/plot: Oh how I love thee, let me count the ways. This is a near wordless picture book starring a growing girl (she's an infant on the first spread and starting school towards the second half) and her beloved bear. Throughout the book, you see her growing up. This sequence is beautifully illustrated and super relatable. The conflict in this one--well, one of two conflicts, perhaps--is WHAT will she do at school without bear? (And perhaps just perhaps what will Bear do all day without her while she's at school.)
My thoughts: I don't always love wordless books, but this near-wordless picture book charmed me from page one. SO much story is expressed on each spread. SO much emotion. So many relatable experiences--from both sides. For example, the sequence where the dad has had ENOUGH and is putting his foot down, so to speak, and washing Bear in the washing machine. Those two pages express so much just through illustrations alone. But I think my favorite pages deal with the girl's attempt to take the Bear with her. Literally, "Bear with me."
I loved this one so much. It was super cute and adorable. It was very relatable.
222. The Together Tree. Aisha Saeed. Illustrated by LeUyen Pham. 2023. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book] [school, bullying]
First sentence: Rumi joined Ms. Garza's class on the first warm day of spring.
Premise/plot: Rumi, the new student, is bullied by his classmates. He spends his time during recess drawing underneath a tree. Soon he's not alone. It doesn't happen over night, nor quickly enough for Rumi, perhaps, but unlikely friends can become good friends.
My thoughts: This is a picture book that addresses bullying AND reaction to bullying. The focus isn't so much on the person bullying and the person being bullied as it is the bystanders who witness bullying situations.
This is a message-driven book. Unfortunately, bullying continues to exist in this world despite all the calls for kindness and compassion. Still every book that promotes kindness and compassion is welcome.
I liked this one. The illustrator has long been one of my favorites.
223. Tap! Tap! Tap! Dance! Dance! Dance! Hervé Tullet. 2023. [May] 64 pages. [Source: Library] [Picture book] [interactive]
First sentence: Ready? Place your hand here. Close your eyes. Concentrate. Wiggle your fingers gently to warm them up. Heads up, your turn now....
Premise/plot: This is an "interactive" book that may [or may not] appeal to young children. It invites them to follow the instructions of the book, be directed by the illustrations. It is written in second person, present tense.
My thoughts: I may not be the right audience for this one. I wanted to be. I just wasn't. I do think it has potential to appeal to young ones. (As do most books). I think if there was more tapping and less swooshing or sweeping, it might have been more enjoyable to me.
© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers
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