Caldecott Winners - 2009

The annual awards have been handed out. Here are the books that were honored as being the best picture books published in the United States by American authors.

The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson

This is the gold medal winner for 2009. It is a calm, gentle bedtime story with illustrations that invite the reader in again and again. The text is simple, the story is charming.

A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Marla Frazee

This honor book is very much like a comic book, and tells the story of two boys who are going away to a nature camp at their grandparent's beach house. The boys resist every attempt to get them interested in the outdoors, but become inseperable to the point Grandpa gives them a single name. On the last day, the boys do go out and make their own nature discoveries. All ages. Caldecott Honor Medal.

How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz

Save this for school age children, as this is the story of the author's family's escape from Poland in 1939, and their subsequent days of hunger in Turkestan. Father brings home a map instead of food, and the family is at first very angry. The map changes life for the narrator, as he begins to see, through the map, the many places in the world yet to be seen.

The author's end notes add more information, and make this an amazing book to read again and again. Caldecott Honor Medal.

A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant

Alas! I have not yet seen this book. Here is the review from School Library Journal:School Library Journal
Gr 3-6
This stunning picture-book biography combines a lyrical text with wonderfully creative mixed-media illustrations in an impressive and personable homage to an extraordinary and accomplished man. Bryant's poetic writing-"Gurgle, gurgle-swish, swish, swoosh.... The water went slipping and sliding over the smooth rocks, then poured in a torrent over the falls, then quieted again below"-describes beautifully how, as a child, Williams would lie peacefully by the Passaic River, listening to the sounds of the water; he appreciated nature and the ordinary experiences of life. Book pages form a background for some of the illustrations and prescription pads become the paper for the doctor's poetic scribbling. A lovely spread shows a display of constellations while in the foreground, the poet sits framed in the light of an attic window, with one of his poems about a night sky laid out on a book cover. Williams's poems, which appear in the book in a variety of colors and fonts as part of the art, are highlighted in uniform type with standard line breaks on the inside cover pages. A time line of his life juxtaposed with a list of world events, a brief author's note about his significance as a poet, and an illustrator's note that explains how Sweet researched the project are appended.-Kirsten Cutler, Sonoma County Library, CA Caldecott Honor Medal.

A few good books, and more to come

I am so far behind in posting good books! I will try and catch up a little bit at a time.
Melody




No! That's Wrong! by Zhaohua Ji
Make sure you look carefully at the end papers, front and back after you have read the story. The story begins on the title page with a lacey red pair of underwear blowing away in the wind. A rabbit finds them and promptly puts them on his head; they seem to make a perfect hat for rabbit. Kids, of course, see the error in his way and can join the narrator in saying, "No! That's wrong! That isn't a hat!" Rabbit tries the 'hat' on the other animals, but it just doesn't fit anyone else as well as it fits Rabbit.
Read this for laughs, again and again!




Jack's Garden by Henry Cole
Winter will be over soon, and spring will be here. Time to think about planting a garden. This simple book uses the rhyme, "This is the house that Jack built" and turns it into "This is the garden Jack planted." The illustrations name different tools, seeds, plants, and insects, so it is a fabulous vocabulary building book.
You will not find detailed gardening advice, though the book reminds us to contact our local County Extension Office! And here is the link for you to use: http://elpasoco.colostate.edu/


to be like the SUN by Susan Marie Swanson
Here is a second simple planting story. Have some sunflower seeds that were meant for planting on hand. Make sure the soil is warm, or start the seeds indoors in pots. You may have fun drawing sunflowers, too!









Let's Play in the Forest While the Wolf is Not Around by Claudia Rueda
Underwear show up in this story, too! Wolf is getting dressed for school. Everyone is playing in the forest - wolf is not around! This fun book has the song and music from the traditional French/Spanish children's game. There is plenty of repetition of phrases, which is just right for preschoolers and those who read to them.




Pssst! by Adam Rex
Older readers - school age - will enjoy the visual jokes, while reading this goofy book that begins with the gorilla saying, "Pssst!" to the child at the zoo. Each animal wants her to get something for them. She finally does, and the surprise is what the animals do with all of these items.







Adèle & Simon in America by Barbara McClintock
In addition to a nice story about visiting notable places in America, this is also a 'can-you-find-it' book. Simon keeps loosing things, and the reader can try and find the missing item on each page. Illustrations are detailed, and the items you are looking for are tiny. School age children will enjoy this more. The author shares the location for each picture at the end of the book. Look for the first Adèle & Simon book, set in Paris.