All in Book Review
I have this huge affinity for snails that started when I was little. There's a great video of my cousins, sisters, and me playing in the backyard with snails. I think theoretically we are rescuing and clearing the garden from them. I also remember putting them in jars and watching them kiss.
The Crossover centers around Josh and his twin, Jordan AKA JB, who are two middle schoolers who play basketball, just like their dad. The family dynamics are spelled out easily, and the interaction between (mainly) the three of them is heartfelt and wonderful. At its heart, this novel is about a family. But, yes, it's about basketball too, and relationships, and coming of age.
In Seb and the Sun, we follow Seb and Walrus through their very specific coastal town and community. And as we follow this close-knit community, Seb realizes that something is missing and he knows exactly how to go find it. Gigot contrasts the brightness and darkness in her illustrations, creating a beautiful reflection of each other.
The first book that caught my eye when I saw the display for Women In History at the local library last month was Eleanor, Quiet No More: The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Gary Kelley. The cover is a gorgeous painting of Eleanor Roosevelt, that looks like a photograph. What's more, it looks like Eleanor is looking at the reader right in the eyes.
It may be news to you but I've always been a bit obsessed with fashion designers. I learned to sew when I was a kid and I loved to fiddle with my clothes or make them my own when I was a teen. Just little things here and there. And while I still love to make things, I don't have a talent for pattern making.
Niko Draws a Feeling by Bob Raczka is about learning to look at the world with different eyes, or at least accepting that others may see the world in different ways than you do. I parallel Niko with some of my patients who express themselves differently—maybe they have autism, maybe they have a different artist's eye than I do, maybe they don't speak yet (or at all). But they may have specific ways of communicating with others.
One book I came across was Ordinary, Extraordinary Jane Austen written by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by Qin Leng. It's no secret that I'm an Austenite. I even endured that film about her with Anne Hathaway (Becoming Jane). And I took a course on Austen as a grad student that was purely for the delight of discussing all of her works.
So I've always known that Jane Austen was extraordinary.
I thought Love was a beautiful and inclusive ode to the many ways that we see love in our every day. What I loved most was how tactile everything felt in the story. De La Pena spun his words so I could see every image in my mind--besides what was on the page--and what's more I could feel the scent in the air, hear the music notes being played.
Pattan's Pumpkin tells a similar story as Noah's ark, though the setting is in a valley below the Sahyadri Mountains in Southern India. Pattan and his wife live in harmony with the animals and people around them, and Pattan shares his food with everyone in his village. When great rains start, he looks out to an ever-enlarging pumpkin in his field for a solution. As a community, the animals help to hollow out the pumpkin so they can use it to survive the flood.
As a pediatrician, I talk about sleep habits every day. And I admit to my patient families that my girls weren't the best sleepers. Despite that, we still tried to establish a routine early on: after Mini Me started solids at six months of age, Mr. Bookworm would feed her a rice cereal snack and read her books.
One way to re-focus on bedtime is to have the last book of the night be something about bedtime. We have some all-time faves, including The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton. And now, Laurie Berkner has teamed up with Camille Garoche to translate her "Pillowland" song into the picture book market.
Every so often, Mini Me will check out a cookbook. For a very long time. We're terrible about hoarding our books and keeping them too long. This time around we've been hoarding Let's Cook a Treat: A Step by Step Guide, which is from the DK family of books.
I don't normally post our crafting or cooking processes because I don't come up with new recipes or craft ideas. I tend to do a mish-mash of craft ideas I've heard of, unless I'm problem-solving a costume. But since the holiday season is coming up, I'll tell you that this book was great for baking with a 7 year old!
I'm keeping with the unicorn theme for the next few book recommendations, thus locking in my other moniker as Dr. Unicorn/the Unicorn doctor. :D This time we're talking about Bob Shea's Unicorn Thinks He's Pretty Great in which a unicorn takes on a goat in a fight. Sort of.
Dr. Bookworm writes a letter to the past ten-year-old Shannon Hale in her review of Real Friends, a graphic novel written by present-day Shannon Hale and illustrated by LeUyen Pham.
In honor of MerMay, Dr. Bookworm discusses Fish Girl by David Wiesner and Donna Jo Napoli.
Dr. Bookworm reviews Dan Santat's The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend.
May the Fourth be with you! In honor of this funny little Star Wars holiday, Dr. Bookworm reviews Star Wars: The Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight by Tony Diterlizzi and illustrated by Ralph McQuarrie.
Dr. Bookworm reviews Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin and illustrated by Daniel Salmieri.
Dr. Bookworm reviews Nina the Neighborhood Ninja by Sonia Panigrahy and illustrated by Hazel Quintanilla.
Borrowing from my sister's bookshelf: Dr. Bookworm reviews I Wish You More by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld.
