March 2024 Prime Picks
Reviewer's Choice
Reviewer's Choice
Blind Not
Broken
Lucy Edwards
Hamlyn/Octopus
Publishing
9780600637653
$24.99
www.octopusbooksusa.com
Blind Not Broken: Your Guide to Turning Loss and
Grief Into Happiness
is highly recommended for any reader struggling with loss and grief.
With so
many books already on the market about the subject, readers might not
think
this book will add an extra dimension to the topic … but, it does.
Embedded in
Lucy
Edwards’s experience of losing her eyesight when she was seventeen, the
story
charts the upward path to self-discovery, recovery, and overcoming
trauma to
find new opportunities in life.
While this
is a memoir
of experience, it also illustrates the process of tapping into hidden
strengths
and perspectives to find a way upward, presenting examples and tools
readers
can apply to virtually any form of grief, whether it be the loss of
another
person or the loss of their own abilities.
The result
is a
powerful story that draws with examples that are vivid, engrossing, and
alluring. Libraries will find Blind Not
Broken easily attractive to a wide audience of
general-interest readers and
a strong recommendation for book clubs seeking thought-provoking
memoirs that
embrace growth experiences and personal transformation.
Young Adult/Children
Albatros
Books
www.albatrosbooks.com
Two new
books by
Albatros Books are top recommendations for elementary-level libraries.
Pavlína
Kourková’s
The Souls of Flowers:
The Loveliest Flowers in Our Meadows and Gardens
(9788000071008, $24.99) is
more than a field guide to flowers, as some might expect.
It’s a
literary, as
well as a scientific, review of flowers that covers topics not typical
of
flower surveys, such as chapters on ‘Treating Flowers With Respect’ and
viewing
them “though the painter’s eyes.”
Pavlína
Kourková’s
vivid, full-page color art drives a celebration of flowers
and painting, making The Souls of Flowers
a standout for elementary-level libraries. It will even appeal into
adult
circles, while libraries will find its oversized presentation and
captivating
cover lend well to display.
Teaching Eddie to Fly by Katrína Macurová
(9788000070773, $14.95) is a whimsical story of a bird who is
flightless
because “nobody taught him how.”
Arthur
determines to
teach his friend the basics. This lends especially well to his
personality, as
he loves giving lectures and addressing fears. But, is Arthur the
perfect
teacher to get Eddie airborne?
The
whimsical tale
will prove not only entertaining, but attractive to read-aloud adults
who will
appreciate the value of its underlying messages about friendship,
education,
and effort.
Both are
excellent
choices that libraries will find attractive.
Born Brave
Megan Bomgaars
Flowerpot Press
9781486727865
$12.99
www.flowerpotpress.com
Many
children’s
picture books address issues of courage; but Megan Bomgaars adopts a
very
different approach in considering the qualities of bravery, how it
helps in
life, and why kids should consider its ultimate connection to making a
difference in the world.
The basic
contention
is that everyone is ‘born brave’, with the underlying message
considering acts
of bravery, how Megan’s efforts mirror life obstacles, and the benefits
of
facing them head-on.
Every child
needs
this message, which in Born Brave
is couched
in a story that will widely appeal to young audiences.
Bunny’s Most
Fabulous
Vacation Ever!
Brian Fizgerald
Red Comet Press
9781636551012
$18.99
www.redcometpress.com
Bunny’s Most Fabulous Vacation Ever!
explores an adventurous, trip-savvy
bunny’s best experience. This will appeal to young travelers and
parents who
like stories that support discussions of what makes a good vacation
great.
Bunny’s
encounter
with the world and people in it introduces the concept that new
experiences are
attractive opportunities … even an approaching storm.
As a monster
and
Bunny become involved, a dilemma evolves that tests her skills,
courage, and
flexibility.
Kids and
parents will
appreciate the whimsical illustrations and dilemmas Bunny faces in her
journey
to realize what makes life experiences exceptional.
Candlewick
Press
www.candlewickpress.com
New arrivals
from
Candlewick offer libraries and young readers a fine variety of quality
stories.
Kate
DiCamillo’s Orris and Timble: The Beginning
(9781536222791, $16.99) is a chapter book following an unusual
friendship
between a rat and a small owl who needs his assistance.
They are
natural
enemies—but does that mean they can’t ever be friends? Orris the rat is
challenged
to think outside his upbringing as he engages with Timble.
Carmel Mok’s
appealing illustrations capture the characters nicely.
Loree
Griffin Burns’s
One Long Line: Marching Caterpillars and
the Scientists Who Followed Them (9781536228687, $16.99)
focuses on pine
processionary caterpillars and two scientists who study them.
How
environmental
research is conducted, conclusions drawn, and theories posited receives
a
lively focus that highlights education while delivering these facts
with the
drama and intrigue of descriptive encounters.
Jamie
Green’s
two-color illustrations provide added value as kids learn about not
just these
specific caterpillars, but how to better observe and consider nature.
Sylvie
Kantorovitz’s Monti and Leo
(9781536222777, $16.99)
tells of very different individuals who each cultivate disparate ideas
of what
makes for a good morning routine.
Their
similarities
create conflict as Monti’s favorite sitting rock becomes a bone of
contention
between them.
Kids
attracted to the
graphic novel’s colorful format will find the story enhanced by
appealing
drawings.
Mermaid Lullaby by Kenneth Kraegel
(9781536204667, $17.99) gives
picture book readers another lullaby approach that contrasts nicely
with
Kraegel’s previous Mushroom Lullaby.
Strikingly
colorful
pages explore fantasy and undersea fun as the world turns different
colors, and
reflective mood observations accompany these natural changes.
Read-aloud
adults
will appreciate the opportunity to help the very young connect color
and
environment with moods.
Lauren
Castillo’s Just Like Millie
(9781536224818, $17.99)
comes from a Caldecott Honor winner, and explores the changing world of
a young
girl who moves to a new apartment in the city.
The
protagonist is a
loner, perfectly happy with her own company, and is not interested in
forming
new friendships—until she meets rescue dog Millie, who holds a
different
attitude toward new things.
The ways in
which
both characters blossom through their relationship will introduce
thought-provoking
themes of change and adaptation that are perfect for adult/child
exploration.
All are
excellent new
arrivals, highly recommended for discriminating elementary-level
libraries and
read-aloud adults.
The Door
That Had
Never Been Opened Before
Mrs. & Mr.
Macleod
Union Square Kids
9781454945451
$18.99
www.unionsquareandco.com
The Door That Had Never Been Opened Before
tells of Sheila’s cousin
Gerald’s big secret … he knows about a door that must NEVER be opened.
But,
why? That is the question.
Picture book
readers
receive a mystery along with an intriguing story of a boy’s
determination to
protect his door at all costs—especially from his twin sister Geraldine.
Action words
and
descriptions accompany the clash between siblings as an all-important,
mysterious door comes between them and illustrates their very different
approaches to and perspectives on life.
Read-aloud
parents
will find the deceptively simple descriptions embrace a deeper message
perfect
for discussion.
The Endfixer
Noemi Vola
Berbay Publishing
9781922610713
$18.99
www.berbaybooks.com
The Endfixer is translated by Rosa
Churcher Clarke and poses a
somewhat complex, intriguing idea to young picture book readers. What
if they
had the power to change the endings of stories, like the ‘endfixer’
does in
this book?
Readers, in
fact,
already harbor the power to do so, which is demonstrated in a story
that taps
young minds to consider their own creative imaginations and power to
adjust
different scenarios and narratives.
The
challenge of this
story translates well to read-aloud adult participation and guidance,
as it
encourages creative thinking through whimsical, fun characters and
comments
about the writing process.
The Goat and
the
Stoat and the Boat
Em Lynas and Matt
Hunt
Nosy Crow
9789887770529
$17.99
www.nosycrow.com
The Goat and the Stoat and the Boat is
about a stoat that is very
happy being alone on his boat, until Goat arrives to change his loner
status
and dynamics.
The more the
poor
stoat tries to get rid of his unwelcome visitor, the less seaworthy and
positive his boat becomes. What can a hermit stoat do to preserve his
lifestyle
against the world’s intrusion?
Libraries
and
read-aloud adults will find that the whimsy is delivered alongside
deeper,
thought-provoking messages about friendships, differences, and
flexibility. These
will serve as good foundations for discussion even as the entertainment
value
provokes laughter and problem-solving insights alike.
Sleeping
Bear Press
www.sleepingbearpress.com
These new picture books from Sleeping Bear represent winning subjects and interesting topics designed to appeal to both elementary-level libraries and kids and parents who frequent them.
Maryjo Scott’s Sam and Lucy (9781534112766, $16.99) tells of Sam, who loves his flock of chickens … especially Lucy, a small hen who is the best of them all.
Lucy, in turn, shows care and consideration for her fellow hens and their babies.
But, now Lucy is older and unwell. How can she be supported in her own aging needs?
Read-aloud parents will find Sam and Lucy the perfect choice for introducing topics of aging and change.
Just Flowers by Erin Dealey (9781534112827, $18.99) receives colorful illustration by Kate Cosgrove as it presents a new neighbor who doesn’t respond to young Izzy, nextdoor, and her passion for plants and flowers.
The only thing this neighbor likes are his roses, which aren’t yet in bloom. Despite Izzy’s efforts at inviting him to enjoy other flowers, he resists everything else.
How can a grumpy neighbor come to see the beauty Izzy observes in her world?
Underlying lessons on flowers and plants accompany a story rooted in joy and discovery.
These are excellent choices.
Would You
Dare Put a
Diaper on a Bear?
Lillias
Kinsman-Chauvet
Boxer Books
9781915801654
$18.99
www.boxerbooks.com
Would
You Dare Put a
Diaper on a Bear?
encourages kids to think about
not only the dangers in diapering a bear, but the possibilities of
attaching
one to other animals.
Would a
crocodile be
happy with a diaper? NO.
How about a
hen?
Ditto.
A host of animals enter the bigger picture of diapering, with a surprise twist at the end which will please parents seeking a fun exploration of diapers and happiness.
Next
Level: A Hymn in Gratitude for Neurodiversity
Samara
Cole Doyon
Tilbury
House
9781668936832
$18.95
www.tilburyhouse.com
Next Level: A Hymn in Gratitude for Neurodiversity is illustrated by Kaylani Juanita, and celebrates the world from the perspective of a mother of a child with autism.
This unusual viewpoint gives young picture book readers (and their read-aloud parents) an excellent series of lessons about acceptance, joy, gratitude, and celebrating neurodiversity as it explores various people who communicate and move through the world in their own unique, strong ways.
Kids will learn much about the habits, thinking, and gifts of children who may not be quite like them, but are equally important.