The Places You Will Go

Picture Book of the Month: Zen Ties

March 2008
ZEN TIES
Written & Illustrated by Jon Muth
Publisher: Scholastic, 40 pages
ISBN: 978-0439634250
Addy and Michael meet Stillwater, a wise and gentle giant panda who tells them stories based on zen parables. In Zen Ties, Stillwater's nephew comes to visit. The young panda is called Hi and speaks in verse: zen-influenced haiku ("Hi, Koo!" say the children, pun intended on Muth's part). Stillwater introduces the siblings and Hi to an old woman who seems surly but is simply lonely. Miss Whitaker helps Michael learn to spell and he wins a red ribbon at a spelling bee. The friends all celebrate by wearing red ties - zentai is Japanese for "whole" or "togetherness" and Zen Ties celebrates the joy of friendship and being part of a circle of friends.

Picture Book of the Month: Come On, Rain!

January 2008

COME ON, RAIN!
By Karen Hesse
Illustrated by Jon Muth
Publisher: Scholastic Press, ,40 pages
(ISBN:978-0590331258)

You can imagine this story being performed at a spoken-word gig. Karen Hesse's words dance like sunspots on your skin, trickle like cold water down the back on your neck, ripple across your consciousness - rumbling like thunder, sizzling like an egg frying in a pan full of butter. When the rain comes, you feel like you could stick out your tongue and catch a few raindrops. Jon Muth's watercolours shimmer with heat and then dissolve in silvery wet streaks as the heavens open and the rain finally comes ...

Picture Book of the Month: The End

November 2007

THE END
By David LaRochelle
Illustrated by Richard Eqielski
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine, 40 pages

For a change, this picture book starts with happily ever after. The princess and brave knight fall madly in love but how did that happen? Turn the pages and find out by going back in time and over the series of unfortunate events that led to The End.

David LaRochelle has created a zany story that kids (who relish absurd, slapstick humour) will love. Eqielski's illustrations are larger-than-life and remind me of Tenniel's renderings of the Duchess and her baby in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

This is a great book to use during storytime, providing much scope for interaction as everyone tries to guess ... not what happens next, but what happened before! The possibilities, of course, are endless.

Picture Book of the Month: I'm the Biggest Thing in the Ocean

September 2007

I'M THE BIGGEST THING IN THE OCEAN
Written and illustrated by Kevin Sherry
Publisher:Dial Books, 32 pages
A giant squid is delighted at being the biggest thing in the ocean. Even when he is swallowed by a whale he is only momentarily taken aback before he declares, proudly, that he is "the biggest thing in this whale!"

What an example of positivity. This is one squid who will always see the doughnut and not the hole.

Kevin Sherry's flat, brightly-coloured illustrations are eye-catching and cheerful. And his sea creatures have such a friendly look about them: Babies will be charmed!

This book comes with bathroom clings so your kids can decorate the bathtub or bathroom wall with sea creatures. (Try not to steal them, they're that adorable!)

Picture Book of the Month: Can't Sleep

August 2007

Can't Sleep
Written and illustrated by Chris Raschka
Publisher: Orchard Books, 32 pages
ISBN: 978-0531094792
A puppy can't sleep and listens out, wide-awake and anxious in his bedroom, to the sounds of his brother and his parents getting ready for bed. Meanwhile, the full moon, gentle and kind, watches over him, offering comfort, love and, finally, a goodnight kiss. "When morning comes, the moon will go to bed. Now you may stay awake and keep her safe ... you'll keep her safe." This book is simply magical. Our copy is covered in kisses as my little girl finds the moon's big, round, beautiful yellow face irresistible.

Picture Book of the Month: The Dancing Tiger

July 2007

The Dancing Tiger
By Malachy Doyle
Illustrated by Steve Johnson and Lou Francher
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Books, 32 pages

One moonlit night, a little girl sees, from her bedroom window, a tiger dancing in the woods. She goes to investigate and is asked by the big, graceful cat not to tell anyone his secret. In exchange, he will let her dance with him on moonlit nights. And so, the little girl and the tiger dance together, every moonlit night, through the seasons and the years, until she is an old lady. Her great-granddaughter then takes her place and the dancing continues.

The illustrations are by Steve Johnson and Lou Francher, who, with their paintbrushes, magically bathe each picture spread with the milky glow of moonlight. The painting of the girl and the tiger skipping through fields of bluebells is especially enchanting. Malachy Doyle tells the story in rhyme that is simple and gentle in tone, making The Dancing Tiger perfect for bedtime.

Picture Book of the Month: No, David!

June 2007

NO, DAVID!
By David Shannon
Publisher: Scholastic, 32 pages
David is a little boy who behaves like a little monster, and David Shannon's vibrantly hued illustrations make him look like one too! Actually, David is just a regular kid. Like all children (most anyway) he gets into a whole lot of mischief.

I can relate to this book (or, rather, the mother in this book) because goodness knows I'm always crying, "No!" and "Stop it this instant!" and "Be silent! Now!" to my children.

David's sins include trying to empty the gold fish out of its bowl ("It was an accident! Honest!"), running naked out of the house (this is acceptable in some cultures and countries), picking his nose (this is acceptable in some households) and playing baseball in the living room (is this better or worse than trying to turn the bathroom into a swimming pool?).

But at the end of the day, no matter what he's done, his mum loves David all the same. And that's the way it should be!

Picture Book of the Month: Zen Shorts

May 2007

Zen Shorts
Written and Illustrated by John J. Muth
Publisher: Scholastic, 40 pages
ISBN: 978-0439339117
THREE siblings learn important lessons from their new neighbour, a giant panda called Stillwater. "I'm sorry for arriving unannounced," he says, speaking with a "slight panda acccent".

Stillwater is wise and gentle, and very, very "zen" about everything, hence the book's title. Stillater tells each child a tale, from Zen and Taoist literature, and there are lessons to be learnt from all of them, but they are also just good, interesting stories.

Muth's words are simple, and his style elegant and easy to read. His watercolours are lovely, the colours true and bright, reflecting a serene and beautiful world. Black and white ink sketches illustrate Stillwater's tales and are more cartoonish and quirky than the colour plates. Personally, I found "Zen Shorts" inspiring. Others may just think, "What an adorable panda!" However you feel, this book is destined to be a classic.    

Picture Book of the Month: The Lost Thing

April 2007

The Lost Thing: A Tale for Those Who Have More Important Things to Pay Attention To

By Shaun Tan

Publisher: Lothian Books, 32 pages

A boy encounters a "lost thing" on the beach. Despite it's huge size, no one else seems to notice it, being too busy with ... life. At home, it towers over his parents, as they read the papers and watch telly, but remains "invisible". When the thing is pointed out to them, they make irrelevant comments and then ignore it again. The boy decides to find a place for the lost thing to go. He sees an ad in the paper, posted by The Federal Department of Odds and Ends, whose motto is "Sweepus underum carpetae". It claims to  be the place for lost things. The boy sets off, with the thing, to find this department, but gets mysteriously directed elsewhere. Will the lost thing ever belong? And what about the other lost things in this world. Do we even notice them or do we have more important things to pay attention to?

Picture Book of the Month: Pete's a Pizza

March 2007

PETE'S A PIZZA
By William Steig
Publisher: Red Fox, 32 pages
ISBN: 978-0099411284

Pete has the sulks when rain prevents him from going out to play. And so, his parents set out to cheer him up ... by turning him into a pizza! They use talcum powder for flour, water for oil, checkerboard pieces for tomatoes, and paper for cheese. Pete is kneaded and pulled and stretched and tossed out of his bad mood, and, finally, after a big hug, he sees that the sun has come out again! Every child should have parents like Pete's!