210-211. Two Fosterland Chapter Books

210. Adventures in Fosterland: Emmet and Jez (Adventures in Fosterland #1) Hannah Shaw. Illustrated by Bev Johnson. 2022. 144 pages. [Source: Library] [chapter book; animal fantasy; series]

First sentence: Thud! The whole world seemed to be spinning around Emmett as he hit the pavement and rolled into a ditch. Ouch. That hurt! Little Emmett brushed himself off and lifted his head, which was now throbbing, and squinted as he watched a truck disappear into the distance.

Premise/plot: Emmett, a pig, becomes best friends with Jez, a cat. These two meet in Fosterland. Emmett is the only of his kind--at least at that time. So he spends a good bit of time thinking he's a cat just like Jez. And Jez is happy to treat him as such. But as the two grow up, their differences become more and more undeniable. Will Emmett (and Jezz) find their forever homes? 

My thoughts: This series is written by Hannah Shaw, aka KITTEN LADY. These characters are based (somewhat loosely) on her own past fosters. The book is told exclusively from Emmett's point of view. And the focus is never on any of the humans, just on other animals. I liked this one very much. 

211. Super Spinach (Adventures in Fosterland #2) Hannah Shaw. Illustrated by Bev Johnson. 2022. 173 pages. [Source: Library] [chapter book; animal fantasy; series]

First sentence: "Pow!" shouted a tiny tabby named Bruce as his paw struck a crinkle ball, sending it flying toward his littermates. "Bam!" called his sister, Sally, as she swiped it out of the air with her fluffy mitts.

Premise/plot: Spinach, a cat, needs corrective surgery that will enable her to live her best life ever and be up for adoption. After the surgery, Spinach wears a super-armor and super-sock. Spinach is convinced she is a superhero--a real one--with actual super-powers. She even finds a sidekick to help her on her adventures. She spends her recovery time at Fosterland and has plenty of adventures...but will her super powers disappear after the special super-suit is gone?

My thoughts: I definitely enjoyed this one. Perhaps even more than the first book in the series. I loved getting to know the characters--mainly kitties--and it was just a great read.

 

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

206-209. Picture Book Parade

 206. Simon and the Better Bone. Corey R. Tabor. 2023. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [Picture book; animal fantasy; dogs; humor]

First sentence: Simon was out playing by the pond when he found a bone. If there was a better bone in all the world, Simon hadn't seen it. But then he spotted something in the pond. It was another bone. A better bone. There was a dog holding the bone. But it was a scrawny little dog. Certainly no match for Simon.

Premise/plot: Simon is a LOVABLE dog who though he has a bone wants a BETTER bone that the pond-dog has or seems to have. Will Simon convince the pond-dog to trade bones? Will Simon be left with any bones by the end of the book?

My thoughts: I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this sweet, humorous picture book. Simon was incredibly lovable--and silly. Readers will inevitably be a bit brighter than Simon which makes for some amusement. I love the way this one ends. 

This one reads differently than most books--literally--in how the pages are turned. I thought this was fun. 

I think this would be a great read aloud for parents, of course, but also for libraries. (I'd say pre-K and Kindergarten could join in on the fun. Not sure if it would work for older grades. Though to be honest, I think readers of all ages could enjoy this one.) 

 

207. How To Talk Like a Bear. Charlie Grandy. Illustrated by Alex G. Griffiths. 2023. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book; animal fantasy; bears; humor]

First sentence: I am going to teach you how to talk like a bear. 

Premise/plot: Best case scenario this is an INTERACTIVE read that kids can join in on. It is written directly to readers. The star of the show, a bear, is going to teach YOU the reader how to talk like a bear. There are several lessons. There are some mishaps along the way, no one gets it right the first time, which could lead to some giggles.

My thoughts: This was SO MUCH FUN. I think this could easily be one to read again-again-again-again. I wouldn't be surprised if it encourages kids--especially younger kids--to try talking like a bear outside the context of reader participation while listening to this one. It's just so much fun, so super-silly. 

I would definitely recommend this one. Again, I think it would work in homes, libraries, and younger elementary grades. 

208. Fox Forgets (Goose and Bear Stories) Suzanne Bloom. 2013/2023. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book; animal fantasy]

First sentence: I have to go. But I'll be right back.

Premise/plot: Fox forgets to tell Bear that Goose has gone...but will be right back. Bear and Fox spend the book looking for Goose. 

My thoughts: I do like some of the books in this series. This wasn't one that I loved...or even enjoyed. But if your little one loves these characters, this one isn't bad. It's just not absolutely wonderful.

I absolutely DO love the illustrations.

209. Bear Can Dance! (Goose and Bear Stories). Suzanne Bloom. 2015/2023. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [Picture book; animal fantasy]

First sentence: I wish I could fly.

Premise/plot: Bear REALLY wants to fly. He spends most of the book wishing to fly and trying to fly. By the end of the book, he learns that while he cannot fly he has learned to dance....and dancing is almost like flying. 

My thoughts: I definitely enjoyed Bear Can Dance more than Fox Forgets! I love the illustrations so much. A good reminder of why I enjoy this series by Suzanne Bloom. Both books are newly reprinted/republished.

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

205. Hope In the Valley

Hope In the Valley. Mitali Perkins. 2023. 304 pages. [Source: Library] [J Fiction; MG Fiction; everybody-fiction, "historical" fiction, realistic fiction]

First sentence:  Our front porch is a mess. Stepping around a discarded skateboard and a rusty tricycle, I avoid a couple of splintery wooden chairs and make my way down the steps. As I cross the street to the old Johnson place, I move slowly, casually, in case eyes are tracking me. The riskiest part of this escape is ducking behind the overgrown oleander bushes. But I'm careful as always. There. Now I'm hidden.

Premise/plot: Hope in the Valley is set in the early 1980s, I believe, in California. Pandita Paul, the protagonist, is going to be an eighth grader in the fall. And she doesn't like change--not this change nor any other, not really. Perhaps because she's already experienced one of the biggest changes she could face--the death of her mother. (And it happened on vacation, when they were visiting her grandparents in India). She is holding onto every single memory, every single moment. She has a BIG secret that her and her mother held. The abandoned mansion across the street is their favorite "quiet" place. In particular the porch swing on the porch. There's a cushion where they hid letters, notes, pictures. This is her "safe place" mentally and emotionally. But soon after her birthday (or perhaps on her birthday), she learns that it is soon to be demolished and sold. She's crushed, angered, scared. Can she find a way to save the past? 

Of course, that's only ONE of a handful of story threads in the novel...

My thoughts: I absolutely ADORE this one so much. I loved the main character. I loved getting to know her older sisters. I loved meeting her friends--not all of them her own age. I loved the characters, the relationships, the stories. I loved the inclusion of drama camp and SOUND OF MUSIC. It is just a fantastic coming of age story.

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

202-204. Picture Book Parade (Mini)

202. This Is The First Book I Will Read To You. Francesco Sedita. Illustrated by Magenta Fox. 2023. [May] 32 pages. [Source: Library] [Picture book]

First sentence: This is the first book I will read to you, my sweet child. After we take our bath, I'll put you in your softest pajamas. And wrap you in your blanket. You'll wiggle your feet and squirm as I hold you. And I'll be nervous--to share this moment that only you and I will be a part of. You might not want to listen at first. Maybe you'll want to be doing something else. But then we'll find our way together. 

Premise/plot: A father reads a book to his baby. It is written in second person, directly to the baby--child. 

My thoughts: It is a sweet, sensitive. It isn't trying to be funny--just sincere. It stars a father--not a mother. The only two we meet in the book are father and child (baby). There are folks in picture frames, but no details given. (Nor should there have to be.) 

I'm torn. Part of me is trying to restrain from overthinking a single page. The other part is finding it difficult not to overthink. For example, all the MANY positions the dad is in that would make me actual reading from a book difficult. When you've got a tiny one still needing swaddling, it's probably not best to walk around reading a book. How will you turn pages with just one hand free? And while I'm sure that plenty of the spreads are more metaphorical than literal--a father goes from walking into a nursery with a wooden floor to being outside in the woods--the scene where he's walking up hill reading the book while cradling the baby in his other arm--it just seems hazardous with all the trees about. Again, I know it's imaginative and creative--not literal. 

But I think the sweetness, the tenderness, the emotional journey of this one outweighs even my overthinking.

203. Something's Wrong: A Bear, A Hare, and Some Underwear. Jory John. Illustrated by Erin Kraan. 2021. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [Picture book]

First sentence: "Let's see...I ate my breakfast. I wrote in my journal. I watered my plant. I took my bath. I tried on the gift from my grandma. And I combed my fur. Hmm. So why do I still feel like I'm forgetting something? Something's wrong!"

Premise/plot: Jeff (the bear) feels something is WRONG. As he walks through the woods/forest, he's even more certain. All the animals are looking at him strangely. He needs a friend, his good friend, his best friend, Anders (the hare), to tell him the truth! Will Anders come through and prove he's the best friend a bear could have?

My thoughts: This one is text-heavy but definitely humorous. Also a great example of getting exactly what is promised. The cover lets you know exactly what to expect. 

204. Bing! Bang! Chugga! Beep! Bill Martin Jr. Michael Sampson. Illustrated by Nathalie Beauvois. 2023. [April] 32 pages. [Source: Library] [Picture book]

First sentence: This old car,
it is blue,
yellow, red, and purple too.
With a bing, bang,
Chugga, beep,
Bouncing here and there,
This old car goes everywhere.

Premise/plot: I couldn't find anywhere on the jacket copy that it's meant to be song to "This Old Man," but I think it is meant to be. The jacket copy just says "singsong" story. What you see is exactly what you get. A car (and toy-car) themed rhyming song to share with little ones at home and at school. 

My thoughts: Bill Martin Jr. died in 2004. I don't know exactly how/where these new books are coming from--cowritten with Michael Sampson, but I'm not exactly complaining. I think this one--like so many other classics--fits right in in a pre-K, kindergarten, first grade environment. Or at home, of course. Or the library. I do think you'll probably want to practice singing this one before you have an audience. But I think it is possible to get the rhythm right with a practice-run first.

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

201. Sometimes Shy

201. Sometimes Shy. Julie Bliven. Illustrated by Dang Khoa Tran. 2023. [May] 32 pages. [Source: Library] [Picture book]

First sentence: At first, the sun barely stretches through the crack between my curtains. The morning is slow to cast its glow over the harbor in our little town. Still, no one calls the sun shy. 

My thoughts: This one felt PERFECT to me. 

Premise/plot: Sometimes Shy is a unique (and lovely) twist on the traditional book about shyness. It stars a little boy who is sometimes shy. In addition to being shy (at least sometimes) it shows that he is observant and thoughtful/wise. There are many observations he makes about the world around him. For example, he notes that while no one does call the sun "shy," it certainly can act that way. It is in some ways a day-in-the-life book. After the school day where he is shy, readers meet him in his element, among his immediate family. He is NOT always shy. Sometimes he's exuberant, talkative, playful, joyful, full of energy and life, holding nothing back. 

My thoughts (part 2): I loved this one so much!!! Shyness is NOT condemned in this one. It is honestly explored. I also LOVED that it was not a problem to be solved by the end of the book.

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers