Adèle & Simon by author and illustrator Barbara McClintock is a joy to read, to hear and to see.  It is an accumulative tale of sorts in reverse.  As the story moves forward Adèle and her younger brother Simon walk home after school through the streets of early 20th century Paris.  On route, Simon, who loves every minute of the walk, manages to lose his possessions including the picture he drew of a cat, his books, then his scarf, followed by his right glove and then his left glove, his hat, crayons, knapsack, coat and sweater!  Adèle is very perplexed with this accumulation of lost objects but Simon is not a bit worried.

Defining Feature: The detailed pen and ink drawings of such Paris landscapes as Notre Dame, the Louvre, the National History Museum and the Metro Station at St-Michel among others are brought to life with vibrant watercolor.  Each of the illustrations are full of marvelous details, humor and people.  McClintock cleverly tucks each of the ten lost items in each of the ten illustrations for the reader to play a classy version of “I Spy.”  In the Louvre she actually has the likes of Edgar Degas, Mary Cassatt and Edouard Vuillard looking for Simon’s crayons!

There is an addendum at the back of the book that identifies each landmark and gives a list of its history and cultural significance which lends a breadth and scope to this beautiful picture book.  McClintock has a facility for telling a story with just enough beauty, humor and realism.  Each picture is wonderfully situated with delightful details including the final illustration that shows ten Parisian citizens of all walks of life lined up at Simon’s door to return one of each of the lost items.

Adèle & Simon is ideal for children ages 4 to 8 (published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, September 5, 2006).

This is Sue Ann Martin for Children’s Books...The Dean’s List

Discussion questions for Adèle & Simon

The Gift of the Magi by author O. Henry and illustrator Lisbeth Zwerger is a genuine Christmas classic for older children (and adults) that has stood the test of time.  Written as a short story in 1906, it tells the gentle story of a loving couple, Mr. and Mrs. James Dillingham Young, who find they do not have enough money to buy each other a Christmas Gift.  Quoting from the opening paragraph, “Three times Della counted it.  One dollar and eighty-seven cents.  And the next day would be Christmas.”  Della decides to sell her long, beautiful hair to buy Jim a platinum fob chain for his watch and Jim decides to sell his watch to buy Della a set of tortoise shell combs for her hair.

The joy, heartbreak and love in this story is enhanced brilliantly by illustrator Lisbeth Zwerger.  Her ink drawings with a watercolor wash are both delicate and powerful.  Her use of brown, gray, beige, white and soft gray blue is very mesmerizing.  The only hint of bright color is in Della’s orange scarf. The text is told on the page in a delicate script print.  The picture of Madame Sofronie cutting Della’s long hair off for $20.00 is full of resolution.  The most dramatic picture is where Della swirls in front of a mirror and catches a glimpse of her beautiful hair while at the same time first forms the idea of trading it for money in order to buy Jim’s gift.  Lisbeth Zwerger is an internationally praised artist of distinction.  She won the Hans Christian Anderson Medal in 1990 and multiple Best Illustrated Book of the Year kudos from the New York Times.

The Gift of the Magi is ideal for older children ages 8 to 12 and adults who still love this story (published by Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, October 3, 2006).

Discussion questions for The Gift of the Magi

The Christmas Gift – El Regalo De Navidad

Francisco Jiménez, award-winning author of the autobiographical work, The Circuit:  Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child, intended for early adolescent readers, has chosen his favorite Christmas story from that book to retell in a straightforward and touching first-person manner for young children.  In this bilingual story, The Christmas Gift - El Regalo de Navidad, young Panchito, or Jiménez, describes an especially hard Christmas his family experienced in California during a rainy winter when there were few opportunities to pick cotton for the money they needed.  As they prepare to move from their migrant cabin to a tent where the family of seven share one common mattress, they are visited by a young husband and his very pregnant wife who are trying to sell their few belongings—an almost-new leather wallet and a hand-embroidered handkerchief.  Panchito’s father explains that his family, also, is “broke” with no money to help them, even though his mother expresses appreciation for the beauty of the woman’s handkerchief.

All Panchito can think about is his own hope that this year he will receive a red ball, like the one at school, as his Christmas gift, but the fear that his father is “broke” makes him think his dream may not come true this year.  When Christmas Eve arrives, Mamá tells the family the story of the birth of Jesus and the visit of the Wise Men with gifts, but still Panchito can think only of his hoped-for ball.  On Christmas morning, as Panchito and his brothers unwrap their presents, they each find only a bag of candy.  Before Panchito can express his disappointment, he sees the tears in Mamá’s eyes.  Next Papá presents to her the gift he has bought—the lovely embroidered handkerchief, and her eyes light up with joy.  When Panchito sees all of this, he forgets his red ball and hugs his parents with words of gratitude for the candy.

The Christmas Gift is a genuine story of sacrificial giving comparable in power to O’Henry’s The Gift of the Magi.  This simple story can provide an excellent opportunity to discuss with children the true meaning of a gift that is from the heart.  Claire Cotts has provided illustrations that mirror the realistic nature of this story for children aged four to ten, and the bilingual style make The Christmas Gift an excellent book to use with children for whom Spanish is a first language or for students learning Spanish as a second language.  Middle grade students and older adolescents may even want to read Jiménez longer work, The Circuit, and evaluate for themselves this adaptation of one chapter as The Christmas Gift.

Francisco Jiménez.  The Christmas Gift – El Regalo de Navidad.  Illustrated by Claire B. Cotts.  Boston:  Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000.

Discussion questions for The Christmas Gift

The Polar Express by author and illustrator Chris Van Allsburg is a genuine Christmas classic for children.  Having won the Caldecott Medal in 1986 and becoming a major motion picture in 2004, the story of a little boy’s trip to the North Pole in the mysterious Polar Express has become well known to children.  But, at holiday season it bares retelling with book-in-hand around the fireplace. 

The narrative begins with a young boy going to bed on Christmas Eve and laying awake listening for Santa’s sleigh.  To him, the bells on Santa’s sleigh would prove that there is a Santa Claus.  Quoting the book, “Late that night I did hear sounds, though not of ringing bells.  From outside came the sounds of hissing steam and squeaking metal.  I looked through my window and saw a train standing perfectly still in front of my house.”  The little boy, clad in pajamas and slippers, is invited on board the Polar Express for a trip to the North Pole.  As the story unfolds, the train arrives at the North Pole amidst great activity filled with Santa’s elves, Santa’s sleigh and Santa.  Chosen as the child to get the first Christmas gift, the young boy selects a silver bell from Santa’s sleigh.  What happens to that bell that night, Christmas Day and throughout the boy’s life holds the key to this marvelous story.

Defining Feature: Chris Van Allsburg’s illustrations are very special.  His use of light to focus each picture captures the visual imagination.  The massive train standing silently below the boy’s window is powerful and inviting.  The illustration of the wolf pack watching the Polar Express move through the dark forest brings forth a spiritual quality and comparison between nature (the wolf pack) and man (the train track).  The pictures of the North Pole are full of busy factories and houses.  As Van Allsburg said in his Caldecott Medal acceptance speech, “How could it look any other way, given the volume of toys produced every year?”  The Polar Express is ideal for ages 4 to 8 and for everyone who is a believer (published by Houghton Mifflin, October 28, 1985).

Discussion questions for The Polar Express

Carl Sams and Jean Stoick’s Stranger in the Woods tells the story, through amazing wildlife photography, of animals in the woods responding to a stranger newly arrived in their midst—a snowman built by two young children.  But this is not just any snowman.  The children have decorated it with a red cap and gloves, and have placed bird seed, nuts, and even a carrot nose on the snowman to feed their forest friends.  Readers and listeners will enjoy hearing the various wildlife creatures debate who will go first to see just what or who this stranger is.  It is, in fact, the lively “Chickadee-dee-dee” who first lands on the carrot nose, challenging the others, “What are you waiting for?  I’m there already-dee-dee!”
Once the animals have enjoyed all the food provided on the snowman, the children return to replace each item with plans to continue this process “for a long, long time . . . until the frogs start to sing and the trees grow new leaves.”  Stranger in the Woods is a wonderful celebration of nature and winter wildlife and even includes construction directions for young readers who may not have built a snowman before with examples of the foods animals will enjoy.

Sams and Stoick have dedicated their book to “those who protect wild places and to the snowman that lives in every child’s heart,” and this sense of commitment to wildlife is clear in the respect shown in this delightful winter tale that will be enjoyed by children aged four to ten.  The use of descriptive language as the first snowflakes arrive through a “twisting twirling dance” and daybreak moves  through the woods “yawning as its rays slowly” stretch “across the snowy meadows”  make it a perfect read aloud to stimulate young imaginations.
Sams and Stoick, native Michiganians, have also produced a filmed version of Stranger in the Woods in DVD and VCR format.  The film blends video and photography from the book with additional characters and original music, increasing even further the enjoyment and delight young children will find in this story.

Carl R. Sams II and Jean Stoick.  Stranger in the Woods:  A Photographic Fantasy.  Milford, Michigan:  Carl R. Sams II Photography, 2000.

Discussion questions for Stranger in the Woods

Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw Tale of Friendship & Freedom is a beautifully crafted story by master storyteller and member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Tim Tingle.  It is about two communities living on either banks of a river:  the Choctaw on one side and plantation owners and slaves on the other.  Quoting the book, “There is a river called Bok Chitto that cuts through the Mississippi.  In the days before the War Between the States, in the days before the Trail of Tears, Bok Chitto was a boundary…If a slave escaped and made his way across the Bok Chitto, the slave was free.  The slave owner could not follow.  That was the law.”  As this tale unfolds a young Choctaw girl, Martha Tom, crosses the river in pursuit of blueberries, gets lost in the woods and comes upon a forbidden slave church.  The slaves befriend her and direct one of their young boys, Little Mo, to help her find the way back to the river.  Martha Tom, in return, reveals to Little Mo the secret bridge of stepping stones hidden just under the water’s surface that enables the Choctaw to cross the Bok Chitto safely.  This secret plays an important role in saving Little Mo and his family.

The rhythm and flow of the narrative is fascinating, especially the recurring advice from Little Mo’s Daddy to “move not to fast, not too slow, eyes to the ground, away you go.”  The pictures are strong and bold in color, facial expressions and resolve.  The striking tableau of the Choctaw women dressed in white gowns holding candles as they lead Little Mo’s family across the hidden stepping stones in the dark and fog is beautiful and haunting.

Discussion questions for Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw Tale of Friendship & Freedom

The Very Hungry Caterpillar is genuinely a modern classic of enduring popularity with young preschool and first grade audiences.  Now over twenty-five years old, today’s parents may enjoy sharing this book they remember from childhood with their own young children.  And, for anyone who has not read it, The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a delight not to be missed. Our caterpillar begins his life as a little egg on a leaf in the light of the moon.  Eventually, encouraged by the sun’s warmth, the tiny caterpillar pops from his egg—tiny but “very hungry.”  And as he ventures forth in search of food, young children love to watch his daily journeys, following the actual holes he makes in the foods pictured.  They can count the pieces of fruit he munches through—one apple on Monday, two pears on Tuesday, three plums on Wednesday, and so forth.  But at the end of each day, he is “still hungry.”  Saturday is a true feeding frenzy as he eats his way “through one piece of chocolate cake, one ice-cream cone, one pickle, one slice of Swiss cheese, one slice of salami, one lollipop, one piece of cherry pie, one sausage, one cupcake, and one slice of watermelon.”  Even the very hungry caterpillar finds his stomach unsettled after this meal, and on Sunday he eats only “one nice green leaf” and feels much better.  But he is now, not surprisingly, “a big, fat caterpillar” who soon builds himself a cocoon from which he eventually emerges as “a beautiful butterfly!”

In this very short tale, Carle tells the simple story of a caterpillar’s life from egg to butterfly.  The imaginative way in which he portrays the foods eaten in big, bold, and colorful illustrations never fail to hold children’s attention.  This is a book they will enjoy examining over and over again—identifying and counting the various foods eaten and watching the amazing transformation of “the very hungry caterpillar.”

Discussion questions for The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Mommy? is a spectacular pop-up book. In essence it is a walk through a haunted house with a baby (looking very much like Sendak’s young Max without his wolf suit) who is trying to find his mommy.  While in the house the baby meets Dr. Frankenstein, Frankenstein’s monster, Igor, the Mummy, the Werewolf, Dracula, and others as he playfully tours the grounds.  The Sendak signature can be seen throughout.  On one page, there is a bag full of hands, a little mouse in chains, and a poor pig tied under the stairs.  Bats fly about on most pages in fine Sendak fashion.  However, none of this is too scary for the baby to handle.  In fact, the baby has quite a lot of fun sharing his soother with Igor, unscrewing the head of Frankenstein, playing with the Mummy’s dressing, and tugging on Werewolf’s trousers. It is not until the final page where all the monsters assemble, that the baby finds his Mother. Behind a closed door with a skeleton head, out pops his Mommy – the Bride of Frankenstein!

The scenario, by Arthur Yorinks, is full of fun.  The paper engineering, by Matthew Reinhart, is exquisite.  And of course, the art by Maurice Sendak is a joy. The book is full of clever details such as a baby picture of Frankenstein in diapers hanging on a wall and wonderful engineering, especially when the Mummy rises from his casket while at the same time a snake pokes its head through a basket.  The same gutsy Sendak philosophy of childhood that we have all come to understand and appreciate is foremost in this book. This is a terrific pop-up book for the Halloween season as once again, the baby wins out.

Mommy? is ideal for ages Preschool and up (published by Michael de Capua Books/Scholastic, September 26, 2006). Of course all pop-ups must be handled with care with adults in attendance.

Discussion questions for Mommy?

Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes, popular author and illustrator of books such as Owen and Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse, received last year’s coveted Caldecott Award acknowledging his excellent illustrations for Kitten’s First Full Moon.  Unlike the bright and colorful illustrations often associated with children’s books, Henkes has chosen more muted contrasts of black, white, and shades of silvery gray for this story.  This decision works perfectly and matches the simplicity of this wonderful tale of a young kitten’s nighttime explorations.

As the story opens, kitten spots her first glimpse of the full moon which she quickly mistakes for a large, inviting bowl of milk.  As would be expected, she begins her continuing pursuit of this illusionary bowl as she licks, jumps, chases, climbs, and finally plunges into the moon’s reflection in a pond.  She ultimately escapes wet and exhausted but much wiser from her many escapades.

There is much in this book to love.  Henkes pulls on the reader’s emotions, creating sympathy for the kitten with the repeated refrains of “Poor Kitten” and the reminder that “still, there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting.”  Such repeated lines serve as perfect invitations for children to join in the telling of the story and demonstrate Henkes’ understanding of his intended audience of very young children.  His simple, sparse text, stingy with detail but rich in action, will appeal to pre-school children.  The absence of bright colors allows the bold, straightforward black lines and smooth shapes to guide young children as they focus their attention on the details that compliment and complete the story.  And, finally, it will make perfect sense to children that there is no color, as the entire story takes place at night, in the dark, with only the light of a big, white moon to cast shadows, to illuminate the little kitten, and to play with our imagination.

The kitten may have been confused, but Kevin Henkes knew exactly what he was doing in Kitten’s First Full Moon, a perfect book to share with children aged three through seven.

Discussion questions for Kitten's First Full Moon

Mama, I’ll Give You the World is a comfortable little story about the love between a mother and her small daughter Luisa.  It is also a story of how it takes a village to raise a child.  After school Luisa goes directly to Walter’s World of Beauty beauty parlor where her mama works.  Quoting the text, “Everyone greets her---Walter, Rupa, Georges, but especially Mama. Mama smiles and makes a place for Luisa---on a cushion, under the palm tree. ‘First things first,’ Mama always says, so there by Walter’s Bottles of Beauty, with names that whisper promise--Raspberry Radiance, Evening Glamour Glow, . . .---Luisa does her schoolwork.”

The cozy text describes how Luisa does her math, writes a story for English and then draws pictures of all the wonderful people getting their hair cut, colored, and curled.  Throughout the week Luisa has helped sweep up snippets of Mr. Anselmo’s hair, assisted Mrs. Malloy with her walker, helped Mama braid Hazel Mae Dixon’s hair, sprayed Mrs. Fogleman’s hair just like she likes and removed rollers from Mrs. Rodriguez’s hair.  All the while, she was whispering in their ears about Mama’s surprise birthday party planned for later in the week and how she was going to get Mama back to the beauty parlor without her knowing anything about it.

The illustrations are as comfortable and happy as the story.  Smiling and caring faces are all directed at Luisa.  The brown and honey colors are warm and inviting and give a fine contrast to Luisa’s red sweater and red striped slacks which literally jump off the page when she is dancing.

It is a genuine story about a community of people who give love and support to a single mom and her small daughter.

Mama, I’ll Give You the World is ideal for ages 4 to 8 and up (published by Schwartz & Wade Books, August 22, 2006).

Discussion questions for Mama, I'll Give You the World

Jenkins and Page have packed a great deal of information into a rather small book, and the audience of ages five to eight for whom this book is intended will enjoy sharing their new-found knowledge with friends and family.  At the book’s conclusion, considerably more information is provided about each animal and where and how they live, information that will prove helpful to adults responding to more questions from young listeners.

What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? is a book that young children will enjoy exploring over and over as they remind themselves of their new-found knowledge of the many peculiarities of animal life.

Steve Jenkins & Robin Page.  What Do You Do with a Tail Like This?  Boston:  Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.

Discussion questions for What Do You Do with a Tail Like This?

This marvelously imaginative tale has very humorous and vibrant illustrations.  Artist Chris Gall has hidden 10 visual fish puns within the pictures of the book.  They include such things as jellyfish picking up jars of peanut butter and sea horses at the rodeo.  The most delightful picture is of Peter Alan’s classroom where a school of fish moves in and takes up every available space much to the shock of the students.  Hundreds of fish slip in between the chairs, the blackboard and the teacher’s desk.  There is a lot of fun to be had and many things to learn with this book.

Chris Gall’s unusual illustrations were done by hand-engraving clay-coated board and then digitizing with Adobe illustrator.

Dear Fish is ideal for ages 7 to 10 (published by Little, Brown and Company, May 10, 2006).

Discussion Questions for Dear Fish