The Anne Frank Case

Recommended grades 4-8.  Susan Goldman Rubin shares a biography of Simon Wiesenthal, the 'Nazi hunter,' on his quest to find the man who arrested Anne Frank and family in their Amsterdam hideaway.  The story begins after World War II as Wiesenthal, a Holocaust survivor, is confronted by postwar Neo-Nazis and Holocaust denial.  Though a mature subject, Rubin manages to explain the Holocaust and neo-Nazism in a remarkably clear way.  The book explores Wiesenthal's own experience in concentration camps, and explains his unrelenting drive to find former Nazis and to bring them to trial.  Illustrator Bill Barsworth contributes dark paintings of Wiesenthal, the Holocaust violence, and the afterwar period.  Some of the images in are chilling in their detail; one portrait of Anne Frank, with warm eyes looking off in the distance as she sits writing in her diary, is particularly haunting.  The biography is clearly well-researched; Rubin includes detailed source notes, photographs of Wiesenthal, and a glossary for readers new to the subject.  Though a beautiful picture book, it is definitely meant for mature readers.  This could be a wonderful addition for classes studying the Holocaust using longer narratives, like Number the Stars, or the Diary of Anne Frank itself.  Overall, an incredible story, definitely one worth passing down and including in any class study of the Holocaust. Highly recommended, *****.

babybug magazine

Recommended Birth to age 4.  From the creators of Cricket Magazine, Baby Bug Magazine publishes short, illustrated stories for pre-developing readers.  The magazine, published nine times a year, features around six separate illustrated stories or poems in each issue.  Stories are illustrated in a variety of artists in different styles, including soft watercolors, and bold charcoals.  The magazine is small, a good size for a younger reader to hold, and printed on thicker paper than other magazines from the publisher.  A subscription to the magazine will bring fresh read-alouds, and gives adults access to parenting guides via the Cricket website.  As soon as children grow out of the level of magazine, it is free to transfer to the next level up; a great benefit with rapidly growing readers! Recommended, ***

The Goddess of YA Literature

Review Blog.  Teri Lesesne, aka the Goddess of YA Literature, blogs book reviews daily from Sam Houston State College where she serves as a professor in Library Science.  The Goddess reviews mostly for younger readers- picture books and early chapter books fill most of her posts, though she also makes room for middle chapter books.  Her reviews often run no more than five sentences, and often are two or three.  Most reviews are made of a single sentence of summary, and one or two sentences of glowing review.  The Goddess seems to adore every book she encounters, which is not necessarily a bad thing but at times she seems like the little librarian who cried "excellent!"  One excellent feature of her blog is her grouping of books within themes.  This would be of great use to teachers and librarians for quick story time picks.  She also makes great use of a tagging system which facilitates easy navigation of seven year's worth of daily reviews.  This is a good blog to review for quick picks, but do not expect a critical understanding of contemporary books. Additional selection, **

Forsythia & Me

Recommended Grades K-2.  Forsythia & Me (Farrar Straus Giroux, 2011) is the touching and hilarious story of Chester and his best friend Forsythia.  'Best' is a title Forsythia wears proudly, as Chester explains to us her many accomplishments, including taming the zoo and bringing all of the animals to tea time!  Ultimately, Chester is the 'best' too, at supporting his friend and their friendship builds them both up to their best ability!  Author Vincent X. Kirsch provides playful illustrations in bright colors and incredible detail.  The colors pop, and the thin-lined characters seem more exaggerated for their minimalist features.  The reader can read this book over and over, finding something new to laugh at in the illustrations, which add depth and meaning to the words.  This book is an excellent and enjoyable lesson in friendship!  Highly recommended, ****

The Magic Brocade

Recommended grades 2-4.  Aaron Shepard adapts a Chinese folktale in his picture book, The Magic Brocade (Edustar Press, 2011).  In the story, an old widow becomes enchanted by an image of a fairy palace far to the east of her Chinese Village that no mortal has ever traveled to.  She spends months weaving her own brocade of the scene, only to have it stolen by the fairies themselves.  Her devoted son, Chen, must face certain danger to return the brocade to his mother on her death bed.  Chen is a hero on a familiar journey, and he is rewarded for his bravery with a romance of his own.  Illustrations by Xiajun Li are done in a marbled watercolor that bleeds and exudes a dream-like quality.  It may have been helpful to young readers to have an illustration of the brocade itself to understand the content vocabulary of the book.  The author did not include much background information on the origin of the story, which leads readers wanting more.  This book could still be used to introduce students to classic elements in folk and fairy tales, including traditional heroes, magical beings, and the similarities in these stories across the world.  Recommended, ***

A Blues Ensemble For the Birds

Recommended grades K-3.  Jan Huling brings us a New Orleans flavored fable with Ol' Bloo's Boogie Woogie Band and Blues Ensemble ( Peachtree, 2011).  Huling gives Grimms' Musicians of Bremin an American feel.   In this picture book, Ol' Bloo, a hard-working Donkey, narrowly escapes death when his owners threaten to "end his misery" after a lifetime of back-breaking service.  Instead of sitting by to face his demise, Ol' Bloo makes a run for it, planning on furthering his musical career in New Orleans.  Along the way, Ol' Bloo encounters other musically inclined animals with rough stories of their own, and just like Dorothy on her way down the Yellow Brick Road, Ol' Bloo invites these animals to share in his dreams.  Illustrations by Henri Sørensen contribute the the folk feel of the story, combining rich oil paintings in warm hues with black sillouhettes of the animals incorporated with the text.  The silhouette have the feel of shadow puppets onstage in a children's theater.  Ol' Bloo's story offers young readers a glimpse into the mythic South, and the reader can't help but root for his Boogie Woogie Band, though they would surely be ghastly to the human ear.  Recommended, ***

A Traditional Mother Moose Fairy Tale

Recommended grades 2-5.  Author Willy Claflin may be spending too much time out in the woods listening to Moose ramble, but I suppose they can offer entertaining tidbits.  In the fractured fairy tale Rapunzel and the Seven Dwarfs (August House, 2011), Claflin "translates" a classic "Mother Moose" tale as told to him by Maynard Moose.  This silly amalgamation of fairy tales includes unruly long hair, "eight or nine" seven dwarfs, a wicked witch, an obese prince, and of course, a noble white moose.  Claflin apologizes for his difficulty translating from the original moose language-- apparently they use words differently.  To mediate the language barrier, Claflin includes a glossary of Moose words, marked in the text with tiny hoof prints.  Additionally, the book includes an audio recording on CD of Maynard reading the book for himself.  Maynard sounds a bit like a Rick Moranis sketch, but it is a nice addition to the playful world Claflin has created.  With Claflin's non-standard use of both grammar and language, this book could be used to introduce young readers to the idea of dialect.  James Stinson's angular and cartoony illustrations have an air of computer animation.  The color pallet he uses, deep greens and browns, reflect the mysterious fairy tale elements of the dwarves' forrest.  Readers will have to be familiar with the original stories, but if they are they will surely take devious pleasure in the liberty Maynard Moose takes with the classics.   Recommended, ***

For the Love of Music

Recommended grades 2-5.  Much is known about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the child prodigy who has given the world much of our most beloved classical symphonies, but little is known about his sister, Maria, also considered a virtuoso in her time, and a great influence on Mozart's own composition.  Elizabeth Rusch brings the oft untold story of Maria in For the Love of Music: The Remarkable Story of Maria Anna Mozart (Tricycle Press, 2011).  Each movement in Maria's life is accompanied by a piece of the sonata structure - her childhood is labeled "The First Movement," her tour with Mozart called "Allegro" for it's fast pace.  Rusch's descriptions of the children are lively, many young readers may see some of their brothers and sisters in the text.  The characters and setting come to life with paintings and collages by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher.  Figures are painted in paint so thick that you can see the texture of the brushstrokes, and the clothes they wear as well as the walls in their rooms are overlaid with period fabric.  Pianos and doors are made of handwritten musical notes on pages browned with age.  These techniques express the richness of the culture Maria Mozart inhabited.  This book would be a fabulous way to introduce young readers to classical music and musical composition.  Highly Recommended, ****.

Dog Loves Books

Recommended Grades K-2.  Dog Loves Books (Knopf, 2010) is the perfect picture book to introduce young students to your library!  Author Louise Yates introduce us to Dog, a book loving canine who adores books so much that he decides to open up his own bookstore.  Based on the scowling dogs in the illustration, we might guess that Dog will have a tough time of it.  At first his bookstore struggles to find the right customers, but as soon as Dog is able to guide his customers on his imaginative journeys through the literature he loves, he is able to find the perfect book for everyone!  Yates illustrates in pastel watercolors, pleasing and calming to the eye, and our friend Dog clearly expresses his very human, book-loving emotions in illustrations that are done in a sweet and clever way.  The language is clear and simple for early readers to engage with it independently.  Book lovers and dog lovers alike will be delighted with Dog's endeavors, and may come to wish that he would leave his bookstore for a school library near them.  Highly Recommended, ****

A River of Words

Recommended Grades 3-5.  Jen Bryant narrates the biography of poet William Carlos Williams in her picture book A River of Words (Eerdman's Books, 2008).  The reader follows young William as he explores the scenic country in his childhood home of Rutherford, New Jersey, goes to medical school in Pennsylvania with famous friends Ezra Pound, Hilda Doolittle, and Charles Demuth, and opens a his own office back in Rutherford.  All the while, Williams shapes the world and words around him into poetry.  The illustrations by Melissa Sweet are a high point of the book.  Sweet draws simple figures primarily in earth tones-- rough sketches so that you can still see her pencil line.  Each illustration is worked into a collage style that includes books from Williams' school days, torn pages from his notebooks with his most famous poems scribbled in different drafts and other artifacts from his developing life.  The pictures themselves show the compulsion of Williams' poetical outbursts- that although he was the "busiest man in the county" with his medical practice he could not quiet his mind against the poetic phrases coming in.  The illustrations also demonstrate how Williams broke out of the standard rules of poetry to produce his own free form style that has influenced generations of poets after him.  Both the author and illustrator express their deep love for Williams, and confess that they are members of those influenced by his work.  A River of Words is a Caldecott Honor Book for good reason.  The illustrations will inspire young readers and have the potential to inspire future artistic endeavors, just as William Carlos Williams was the inspiration for this book.  Highly Recommended, *****

Grandpa Green

Grades 2-3 Lane Smith brings us a warm, cross-generational tale with his picture book, Grandpa Green (Roaring Brook Press, 2011).  Our young narrator guides us through "Grandpa Green's" life story through vividly green sculpted bushes.  This story is ripe with historical and literary allusions, many of which come to life in the illustrations themselves.  Adult readers may find their own grandparents and parents within the pages, and could spark a fruitful conversation about older generations with children.  Lane sensitively captures Grandpa's old age, and memory loss in a way that children can understand and acknowledge.  Grandpa's story is on the forefront, in the text as well as in the illustration.  Our narrator is ever present, though his thinly outlined figure, especially in contrast to the lush green sculptures.  Smith creates a wonderful bridge between those who were born long ago ("before computers or cell phones or television"--imagine!) and the reader of today. Highly Recommended, *****

The Last Brother

Grades 3-6 The Tales of Young Americans Series seeks to empower and engage young readers by demonstrating how children have been crucial actors in American history. Trinka Hakes Noble does just this in her contribution to the series, The Last Brother: A Civil War Tale (Sleeping Bear Press, 2006). Our young hero is Gabe, an eleven-year old bugler for the Union Army in Gettysburg on the infamous days of July 1-4, 1863. He has already lost two brothers to the war effort, and fears for his brother Davy who is fighting in his regiment. Noble's writing, along with the heroic illustrations painted by Robert Papp, empathetically captures an authentic feeling character in an incredible situation.  Papp paints much in the style of Caspar David Friedrich's romantic paintings, using realistic figures and majestic backgrounds.  Following the mission of the series, Gabe is able to play a significant, though realistic role in a monumental moment in American history. Gabe's story is both believable and personal. Noble also effectively captures the gray areas in the "Brother vs. Brother" mantra of the Civil War. Overall, an empathetic and captivating piece of illustrated historical fiction. Recommended, ***1/2

The Big Box

Grades 1-4 Toni Morrison and son, Slade Morrison, bring us a moralistic rhyming children's book with The Big Box (Hyperion, 1999). The joke is on the adults, however, as they are to learn the ultimate lesson. The story opens with three kids living in a joyful, adult-free world filled with things that kids love-- ice cream, bean-bag chairs, bunk beds, and swing sets, all inside one room (a big brown box)! Adults are only allowed once a week, and when they come, they bring wonderful presents. Within pages we discover that this wonder-room isn't quite what it seems. Our three heroes have been placed there by adults who love them because they have proven that they can't "handle their freedom." The angular, water-colored illustrations by Giselle Potter follow the children as they break rules at school, at home, and in the greater world. The adults in their lives, fearing they will not be equipped for life in the adult world impose limited freedom in the big, brown box. Toni and Slade create sympathetic characters that make us question how we treat children for the sake of "their own good." The illustrations are a bit jarring, though they lend to the surreal aspects of the story. Overall a thought-provoking and musical read-aloud. Recommended, ***

Me, Frida

Grades 1-4 In Me, Frida (Abrams, 2010), Amy Novesky tells the tale of Frida Kahlo and her husband, Diego Rivera, on a trip to San Francisco in 1931. Rivera has received a commission to paint one of his infamous labor murals, and Frida feels overlooked and small next to her "elephant" of a husband (large in fame and in stature). Novesky's text is joined with breathtaking artwork by Caldecott Award winner David Diaz. Diaz's artwork nods to both Rivera's and Kahlo's styles, while adding his own take to the sites of San Francisco in dripping paint rich in color. His artwork truly carries the story, as the plot is quite detached from childrens' interests or experiences. The richly colored illustrations and highly stylized San Francisco skyline will be a great building-off point for conversations and projects, though the text alone leaves something to be desired. Though Frida's story may be more interesting to older readers and adults, the illustrations will please everybody. Additional Selection, **1/2