Saturday Roundup: Animal Tales

I haven't done a Saturday Roundup in a long time and I thought I'd wrapping up the end of the school year (at least here in NYC) with some of the books we read and talked about during the last semester. These are our favorite animal stories and we hope you enjoy them, too.

Mine! written and illustrated by Jeff Mack

Chronicle Books, 2017, 40 pages, age 3+

When a turf war begins between two mice, things quickly escalate. When blue mouse stands atop a large rock and declares “Mine” and even plants his flag on it, orange mouse immediately wants it, too.  Tempting blue mouse away with a chunk of cheese, orange mouse is king of the rock for only as long as it takes blue mouse to get the rock back. With each victory over the other, the mice declare “Mine” but are they in for a big surprise about ownership. “Mine” is the only word used in the whole book, but Mack’s brightly colored, humorous illustrations are long on body language and facial expression even if short on words. A great book for teaching young kids, be they siblings, cousins, friends, and/or schoolmates all about sharing, this is sure to generate some good conversations and wonderful imaginings.

Big Cat, Little Cat written and illustrated by Elisha Cooper

Roaring Book Press, 2017, 40 pages, age 4+

A big white cat lives alone until one day a little black cat comes to live in the same house. Big cat shows little cat everything a house cat needs to know. As time goes by, little cat grows up and becomes bigger cat, but the two feline friends continue to do things together every day. As years go by, the cats are inseparable, until one day, big cat, now much older, had to go and didn’t return. Bigger cat, along with the whole family, felt very sad - it’s hard losing a best friend. But one day, a new little cat comes to stay and it all begins again. This is such a quiet, gentle, poignant story about friendship and the cycle of life. The story is narrated using a minimal amount of words, and with very simple illustrations with thick black inky line drawings set against softly colored backgrounds. I found myself truly moved by this tale, remembering more than a few kitties I’ve loved and lost. A nice book for teaching children that life goes on and should be enjoyed, even after the loss of a loved one.

Adrift: An Odd Couple of Polar Bears written and illustrated by Jessica Olien

Balzer & Bray, 2017, 40 pages, 4+

Polar bears Karl and Hazel couldn’t be more different. Karl thinks Hazel is mean because she’s quiet and likes to read. Hazel thinks Karl is too loud and smells like old fish. So the two bears like to stay far away from each other. But one night, a big piece of ice breaks away and it just so happen, Karl and Hazel are both sleeping on it. What a surprise they have when they wake up in the morning. As the ice floe melts, getting smaller and smaller, Karl and Hazel can’t avoid each other any more. Can they find a way to be friends and appreciate their differences? This is a nice book for showing young readers that sometimes opposites do attract and can become friends, it just takes getting to know each other. But wait, there’s more: in the Author’s Note, Olien talks about climate change and how the North Pole is melting and shrinking just like Karl and Hazel’s ice floe and some of the reasons why this is happening. There is also suggestions for ways to save polar bears and their Arctic home, and also for learning more about polar bears. Olien’s illustrations are pleasing and whimsical, but her message is serious and important.

Pug Meets Pig by Sue Lowell Gallion, illustrated by Joyce Wan

Beach Lane Books, 2016, 40 pages, age 4+

Pug is a pretty happy puppy. He has a good home, lots to eats, and places to play outside. Life is good for Pug, until…Pig arrives. Suddenly Pig is taking over, eating Pug’s food, sleeping in Pug’s doghouse, playing in Pug’s yard. Pug is ready to pack up and leave, but wait, there’s a doggy door in the big door, perfect for getting away from Pig. But when Pig tries to squeeze through the doggy door, he gets stuck. Now Pug has a big decision to make - help Pig through or not? It it possible that this unlikely pair could possibly become friends? Themes of acceptance and sharing are nicely done, and easy for younger readers to grasp. Joyce Wan’s roly-poly pug and pig are delightfully sweet and similar despite their differences. My young readers loved this book, insisting we read it over and over.

A Perfect Day written and illustrated by Lane Smith

Roaring Brook Press, 2017, 32 pages, age 4+

It’s a perfect day in Bert’s backyard, It’s a perfect day for Cat - sunny and warm with lots of flowers to hide in, thanks to Bert. It’s a perfect day for Dog - a nice full wading pool to sit in and cool off, thanks to Bert. It’s a perfect day for Chickadee - the bird feeder is chockablock full of birdseed, thanks to Bert. It’s a perfect day for Squirrel - there’s a nice tasty corncob waiting for him in the grass, thanks to Bert. Uh-oh, here’s comes Bear. Now, it’s a perfect day for Bear - ruining everyone else’s perfect day and enjoying all those treats that Bert put out for them This is a great book for teaching kindness to animals, and for introducing different perspectives and points of view to kids by looking at what makes a perfect day for each animal. I love this book, and so do my young readers. When we talked about it, it really generated lots of ideas about what makes a perfect day, not just for themselves, but for different animals, as well. I was really surprised at some of their ideas. As always, Lane Smith is just spot on with both text and illustrations. So, what makes your day perfect? This is a great book for teaching kindness to animals, and for introducing different perspectives and points of view to kids by looking at what makes a perfect day for each animal. I love this book, and so do my young readers. When we talked about it, it really generated lots of ideas about what makes a perfect day, not just for themselves, but for different animals, as well. I was really surprised at some of their ideas. As always, Lane Smith is just spot on with both text and illustrations. So, what makes your day perfect?

You can download a Teacher's Guide for this book from the publisher HERE and
you can download some fun activities to go with this book from the publisher HERE

They All Saw A Cat written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel

Chronicle Books, 2016, 44 pages, age 4+

After talking about perspective in A Perfect Day, it seemed only logical to read this book next. A cat walks through the world and as it walks, it passes different creatures - a dog, a fox, a bee, a bat, even a fish, among others. Now, a cat out walking is not terribly unusual but what takes takes out of the ordinary and makes it special is that the reader sees just how each creature perceives the cat in their own way. For example, a child may see a soft, furry animal to pet while a fist sees a gigantic blurry cat, and a mouse sees a scary predator. My kids love reading this book over and over and it didn’t take long for them to participate in each reading once they had the repetitive parts down pat. The text may be simple, but the various illustrations certainly led to vigorous discussions and speculation about the animals left out of the book - giraffes, lions, elephants, etc. This may be Wenzel’s debut picture book as author and illustrator, but it has the flawlessness of an old pro, ummm…like Lane Smith.
You can download a Discussion Guide this book from Edelweiss HERE
You can download some fun activities to go with this book from the publisher HERE

Pete With No Pants written and illustrated by Rowboat Watkins

Chronicle Books, 2017, 40 pages, age 4+

Anyone who has raised a child knows that, somewhere around 2 years old, they go through a period when they just don’t want to wear clothes. Well, neither does Pete, a young elephant who does love a good Knock! Knock! joke but is a lonely little fellow. Seeking companionship, Pete looks to other large gray things that are also pantless to find his identity- boulders, clouds, squirrels, a pigeon - only to be disappointed when they don’t respond to his Knock! Knock! jokes. Finally, Mother Elephants shows up with her son’s pants, which he discards everyday, and at last, Pete gets a response to his joke and discovers his true identity - from Mom, of course, who finally seems just barely more accepting of Pete’s desire to be pantless, though more than willing to play with him. This is a charming story for young readers, and parents who will no doubt remember their youngsters early explorations of the world, their discovery about who they are, and the relief felt when they finally gave in to wearing clothes. The smudgy grayish illustrations reflect Pete’s first existential crisis and the subtle bits of color give hope to a more colorful life now that he knows who he is.

The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet! by Carmen Agra Deedy,

illustrated by Eugene Yelchin

Scholastic Press, 2017, 48 pages, age 4+

The village of La Paz is a pretty noisy place - “everyone and everything has a dong to sing” and sometimes it is hard to sleep. The village holds an election and the new peace and quiet mayor begins to issue laws against noise of any kind. For 7 years, the village of La Paz is quiet as a tomb, until one day a rooster and his family moves in. And that rooster sings and sings - to the annoyance of the peace and quiet mayor. Don Pepe doesn’t everything he can to quiet the rooster, but nothing works. Finally, when the mayor threatens to make soup with the rooster, the townspeople stage a peaceful revolution and send Don Pepe packing. There is a strong message about trying to silence people in this book and how that just can’t ever really be done, all explained brilliantly at the end by author Carmen Agra Deedy. It won’t be lost on young readers (it certainly wasn’t on mine) and in fact, they even made some interesting connections between the book and how they perceive today’s political landscape. Eugene Yelchin’s mixed media illustrations, done in bright primary colors against a yellow background somehow exude the feeling that this rooster will not be defeated in the face of the screaming, hysterical mayor. There are a few Spanish words scattered throughout the book, which is a nice way to get kids to start learning this important language.