Walking with Georgia O’Keeffe through her yard and into the desert, Lasky provides her readers with a special insight, while Eitan illustrates the setting with simple, but color-drenched images of the woman and her surroundings.  From the bones she picks up on the path, to the ladder that she climbs to her adobe home roof, to the “spicy stew of chicken with sweet chili peppers, beans, garlic, and onions,” Lasky gives her readers one more snapshot into the life of Georgia O’Keeffe—the woman and the artist.

Whether this is the first picture book you have of Georgia O’Keeffe or the tenth, you will be delighted by the text and images that Lasky and Eitan provide.  While this work is considered historical fiction, the primary and secondary sources used to support this creative narrative will provide young readers with information and direction to learn more about one of America’s most beloved artists.

Georgia  Rises: A Day in the Life of Georgia O’Keeffe is appropriate for ages 4 to 8.

Discussion Questions for Georgia Rises

Before you know that BIRDS is a picture book written by Caldecott winning author-illustrator Kevin Henkes you are drawn to the beautiful cover. Three birds, painted in primary colors of yellow, red and blue are perched cheerfully across from the oversized title. Then you realize this book although written by Henkes is illustrated by his talented wife artist Laura Dronzek.

The story follows a little girl as she experiences nature’s most beautiful wake up call------a robin singing from a tree outside her bedroom window. She looks out and sees an array of winged creatures of all colors. Especially attractive is Dronzek’s double page illustration showing a number of birds including an owl, a seagull, a hummingbird and a very tall pelican sharing the space. The illustration is designed with humorous proportions. The pelican is so large that only its swooped neck, head, legs and feet can be seen. The artist knows the subject matter well and translates it superbly for children.

Henkes’ storyline puts forth some very interesting situations for youngsters.  One such situation shows a line of robins sitting on a telephone wire as if they were about to commence a choral performance. However, within a flash they are all gone and the next page comes up silent without birds or text -- just an empty telephone wire. Another page depicts a lone cardinal steadfastly facing a gentle falling of snowflakes from a perch high in a wintery tree. The creative team of Henkes and Dronzek are able to interlock every element beautifully----including the peacefulness that is inherent at the core of the image.

 Their most dramatic picture and word integration comes when four and twenty blackbirds crowded together in one tree experience an incident of sudden flight. “Surprise”, reads the text, as the birds lift off in all directions. It is delightful as is the little girl’s discovery about what she has in common with the birds.

BIRDS written by Kevin Henkes and illustrated by Laura Dronzek is ideal for children 2-5 years of age (Greenwillow, 2009).

This is Sue Ann Martin for THE CHILDREN’S BOOKSHELF

Discussion Questions for Birds

Lion passes the cake to elephant with the directive to “Please help yourself.”  Elephant begins by thinking that she could eat it in a single bite, but decides that it might seem greedy, so she cuts it in half and passes the remaining half onto hippo who cuts in half again and passes on the remaining quarter of the cake to gorilla who does the same and passes it on to the next guest and so on until it finally reaches the Ant.  When she, in turn, tries to cut her tiny piece in half, it crumbles, leaving nothing for Lion.  The others are quick to cast disparaging remarks to Ant stating how they had each shared the cake when it was passed to them.  Horrified that she is placed in this light, Ant responds by offering to bake her “special strawberry sponge cake” for the king and promises to bring it to him the next day. 
He responds by thanking her for her generosity.

Needless to say, the others do not want to be outdone by Ant, so beetle offers to bake TWO double-chocolate fudge cakes, frog promises to bake FOUR raspberry layer cakes, while macaw doubles that and promises EIGHT carrot cakes.  The competition continues with warthog pledging SIXTEEN mud cakes, tortoise pledging THIRTY-TWO apple walnut cakes, and gorilla offers SIXTY-FOUR banana crumb cakes.  Hippo chokes out her promise of ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-EIGHT spice cakes, and finally elephant—not to be out done—promises to bake TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY-SIX peanut butter pound cakes.

While the others struggle to meet their promises to the king, Ant takes her time and prepares a “very fine cake” for the king and delivers it to him the next day where the two of them sit down together to share it.

This tale is a wonderful exercise in math and human behaviors—one that will generate a good discussion about both.  The illustrations are creations of watercolor, ink, and digital techniques that are colorful, insightful, and provide wonderful representations for understanding these mathematical concepts.
The Lion’s Share by Matthew McElligott is appropriate for ages 4 to 8.

Discussion Questions for The Lion's Share

THE MITTEN is a popular Ukrainian folktale retold in beautiful style by Jim Aylesworth and illustrated by Barbara McClintock. The story takes place in the winter and revolves around a little boy’s lost red mitten knitted by his grandmother. Not to worry she says as she makes him hot cocoa and assures him that they will find it in the morning. In the meantime a whole menagerie of animals find it and one by one they crawl into it in order to warm their toes. First there is a squirrel, followed by a rabbit, a fox and then a bear! Each one begs to be allowed inside the mitten and each one is given entry ----although they worry that the bear is just too big. 

McClintock’s illustrations of the bear trying to push his huge body into the strained mitten are priceless as are the facial expressions of each of the other squeezed animals. Just as they all start to nap a small mouse comes by and asks for entry. He climbs in but there seems to be no breathing room and the terribly over- stuffed mitten explodes!  This illustration is humorous and very kinetic. Pieces of curly yarn fly into the air along with the animals tossed from their warm mitten bed.  When they fall to earth the animals scatter leaving the yarn in a heap in the snow just waiting for the boy and his grandmother to find it. And they do. Not to worry she says as she again assures him that she will make him another. Love is at the core of the story. The text and pictures are awash with homey details such as cozy fireplaces, hugs, warm scarves and hot cocoa.

True to the cover design of other picture books created by this team there is a recipe on the back cover for Hot Cocoa made just like Grandmother does with loving doses of sugar, cocoa, water, milk, vanilla and whipped cream.

THE MITTEN retold by Jim Aylesworth and illustrated by Barbara McClintock is ideal for children 3-6 years of age (Scholastic Press, 2009).

This is Sue Ann Marin for THE CHILDREN’S BOOKSHELF

Discussion Questions for The Mitten

Taken from the sayings that arose during the 2008 Presidential election, Cook has chosen a few key individuals to illustrate that challenges faced by African Americans crossed all professional venues and that those accomplishments made it possible for the children of today to achieve anything they set out to do.

Each illustration captures the time period and individual action with stunning clarity.  Whether done with acrylics, water colors, pastels, or collage, each rendering is a moving representation that will invite you to read and share this lovely book again and again.

OUR CHILDREN CAN SOAR: A CELEBRATION OF ROSA, BARACK, AND THE PIONEERS OF CHANGE is appropriate for grades K through 6.

This is Pamela Gates for the Children’s Bookshelf.

Discussion Questions for Our Children Can Soar

All the while the kids interact with the busy feet, music, and pace of each culture.
The beautiful mural- filled walls of Mexico’s subway stations precede their final
Tokyo destination. Here the children disembark to play with kites in the sunshine.                 

The illustrations by Sue Rama are digitally enhanced and colorfully designed.
Splashes of blues, yellows, gold and purples entertain the eye of the young reader.
The watercolors capture the energy, excitement and wonder of world travel.
The children wave, smile, jump on and off trains and seem to completely enjoy life.
Quoting from the book’s rhymed text, ”We bump and sway. We hold on tight.
We zip through tunnels dark as night.” There is a description of each subway at the back of the book

featuring fun facts. For instance, the research sites the New York subway as having 468 stations.
This is the greatest number of stations in any system in the world.

SUBWAY RIDE ,written by Heather Lynn Miller and illustrated by Sue Rama, is ideal for children 5-8 years of age (Charlesbridge , 2009).

Discussion Questions for Subway Ride

Polacco uses pencils and markers to create the illustrations used IN OUR MOTHERS’ HOUSE.  Theydepict wonderful visual representations of a family, a neighborhood, and a home that express the importance of love and commitment that binds us together across generations. 
Patricia Polacco calls Union City, Michigan home and has written and illustrated 49 books for young people.  While this book is intended for readers ages 4 to 8, it will be enjoyed by all who appreciate Patricia Polacco’s continued commitment to children and their unique life stories.
This is Pamela Gates for The Children’s Bookshelf.

Patricia Polacco.  IN OUR MOTHERS’ HOUSE. Philomel Books: New York, 2009.

Discussion Questions for IN OUR MOTHERS’ HOUSE

MERMAID QUEEN: A True Story written by Shana Corey and illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham is a bold and attractive book about the vibrant life of Australian swimmer Annette Kellerman. Although she suffered a condition in childhood that rendered her legs weak and almost useless, after years of swimming lessons and water therapy, she shaped a physically active career around water.

Kellerman not only invented the art of water ballet and was the first woman to try to swim the English Channel but also dramatically changed the swimming fashion for a generation of women. Her bathing suit design liberated women from the restrictiveness of bathing dresses, bloomers, collars and corsets to a flexible short-fitted skirt over a tank suit. This notion was scandalous in 1908. After Kellerman had been arrested for wearing a tank suit at Boston’s Wonderland Park, she revised the design of this suit and added a small short skirt in order to appease criticism.  It worked. This incredible woman also went on to promote the cause of female athletes, write bestselling books on fitness and appear in the first films featuring synchronized swimming.

Shana Corey is very successful at bringing forth Kellerman’s life, leadership qualities and courage.  She uses a conversational narrative full of zest and energy.  The typeset is very animated as it dips, dances and glides in, over and through the pages.  Corey’s research notes at the back of the book are full of great biographical details and direct quotations by Kellerman.

Edwin Fotheringham’s pictures, created in digital media, color the story of this fascinating woman in deep aquatic blues and bright sea greens. The pure orange colored-bathing suit energizes the full-bodied and healthy ego of the book. Each page has a strong and commanding visual voice. Thanks to the artist’s imagination this book puts on a great performance from beginning to end.

MERMAID QUEEN: A True Story written by Shana Corey and illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham is ideal for children 5-9 years of age (Scholastic Press, 2009).

This is Sue Ann Martin for THE CHILDREN’S BOOKSHELF

Discussion Questions for Mermaid Queen