Review: MOTHER GOOSE PICTURE PUZZLES by Will Hellenbrand

I have ALWAYS love rebus books, and Will Hellenbrand's MOTHER GOOSE PICTURE PUZZLES has made me a happy camper. 

Hellenbrand's drawings are lovely, and the cheerful style he has chosen just suits these classic rhymes perfectly.  

(sorry my scanner doesn't do this artwork justice)

Here's a list of Contents:

Old Mother Goose
Hey, Diddle, Diddle
Jack And Jill
The Pumpkin-Eater
Miss Muffet
Baa, Baa, Black Sheep
Little Bo-Peep
Little Boy Blue
The Black Hen
The Little Bird
Humpty Dumpty
Old King Cole
Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary
Pat-A-Cake
Polly And Sukey
Yankee Doodle
Hickory Dickory Dock
Wee Willie Winkie
There Was An Old Lady
The Star

As a child I like rebuses (rebeii?) because they were fun. As a mom I learned to love them because they help little ones prepare to be good readers. This style of story telling teaches young children to take clues from any images on the page, and also promotes memorization as they have to recall what the actual wording is that the pictures represent.

Highly recommend.  There is just nothing I don't like about this charming book.

Pam~


MOTHER GOOSE PICTURE PUZZLES
by Will Hellenbrand

Reading Information:
Page Count: 40
no reading information currently available
--sample pages and reviews available

BOATS! Speeding! Sailing! Cruising! by Patricia Hubbell

BOATS!  Speeding!  Sailing! Cruising! is part of Patricia Hubbell's THINGS THAT GO series.  In previous books, she covered cars, horses, trucks, and planes.  Now boats and ships!

BOATS! is a natural fit for me, seeing that I love books that are layered and have things to point at, discuss, and teach.  And that I love books that rhyme.

And the rhyme is perfect.  It's one of Patricia's strengths and she didn't let us down.  I had no problem reading it aloud the first time through.  It just glided off my tongue.  And given the topic I think that's pretty amazing.

Yachts with flags both fore and aft.
Dory.
Dingy.
Shell.
Raft.

also,

Ferries with their decks packed tight
ply the seas both day and night.

Icebreakers smash an icy floe;
penguins dive down deep below.

Which brings me to the second thing I really like about this book. There's lots to learn. Besides the many types of ships --sail types and motored types-- that author and artist name parts of the ships, some of the jobs that are available onboard, as well as some of the missions boats and ships undertake.

As far as artwork, as you can see in the samples above, it's rich and engaging.  But, I would note, the pages aren't in the vivid colors that some very young children prefer.  So if you get this book home and your toddler isn't immediately engrossed, put it aside until they are a little older.

Wonderful work by Megan Halsey and Sean Addy the artists.  We loved Ms. Hubbell's wordsmithing and I definitely recommend you check this book out.

Other reviews here.  And here.

Pam~


BOATS!  Speeding!  Sailing!  Cruising!
by Patricia Hubbell
Illustrated by Megan Halsey and Sean Addy

**Starred Review** ALA BookList

Page Count: 32
no reading level information currently available

Trashy Town! by Andrea Zimmerman

One of the things that early childhood educators say is important for young children is to be exposed to poems and other rhythmic literature. And they tell us, it is very helpful for kids to learn to recite. It is for these and other reasons that I really, really like this book. Not only is the artwork fun and charming, but the topic is interesting to children and the words are just repetitive enough to make it a great read... and a great recitation!

I know that after we read it through half-a-dozen times, the kids and I would find ourselves out fooling around in the yard and someone will simply yell, "Is the trash truck full yet?" and the rest of us (including dad on occasion) would shout yes or no; and then we will be off reciting the whole piece.

What better evidence than that and the constant calls for `again, read it again' can you provide to prove that a book is good. This is a great book for the 6 and under crowd!

Pam T
Somewhere in the X-burbs


Trashy Town

Reading Information
Word Count: 354
32 pages
Accelerated Reading level: 1.9 / points: 0.5**
AR quiz: 34813
Lexile: AD230L

ISBN-10: 0060271396
-- amazon



**An Accelerated Reading (AR) designation of 1.9 means that the average 1st Grader in the 9th month of school (an almost 2nd Grader) should be able to read it without getting frustrated by the vocabulary. It can be read aloud to any age, of course.


You might also want to check out the DVD that includes not only Trashy Town but:

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Rosie's Walk
The Caterpillar and the Polliwog
The Foolish Frog (by Pete Seeger)
Joey Runs Away
Changes Changes

Can't praise this video enough.
(hard to track down. Check your library or amazon)

Sing a Song of Bread-Making!

Most of us probably don’t make bread very often, if at all. We buy it at the store or the bakery or maybe we have one of those nifty bread machines that does all the work for us.

I admit, I’ve only made certain sweetbreads and muffins at holiday times, never a loaf of the more standard stuff. So when my husband started up his bread-making experiments (yes I have a husband who bakes!) I quickly became familiar with the smell of a loaf baking and the taste of freshly made bread with a bit of butter or honey. It’s a small pleasure that’s easy to overlook.

Bread has been made for thousands of years, and it’s still considered a staple of many meals. Breadmaking is a practice that reminds us of home and hearth. Of the simple and essential things in our lives. And much to my bemusement, it took my husband to bring this domestic treat back into our family.

In my current collection of books for my son, there is one titled Blue Bowl Down by C. M. Millen, illustrated by Holly Meade that captures the pattern and essence of old fashioned bread-making.

The Butter Battle Book by Dr. Seuss

Well, this is the Seuss book that riles the feathers of some adults. It's got a definite anti-war theme and deals with the consequences of a military arms escalation.

Who's at war? It's the Yooks and the Zooks. Essentially the same sorts of people, they clash over whether bread should be eaten butter side up or down. The story is told from a little boys (?) perspective and is the only Seuss book I can recall that ends on an ominous note.

"Grandpa!" I shouted. "Be careful! Oh gee!
Who's going to drop it?
Will you...? Or will he..."
"Be patient," said Grandpa. "We'll see.
We will see..."

It's hard to say whether kids pick up on these various messages. My own impression is that they won't, unless you sit and have a chat with them. They will be far too busy listing to the clever rhymes and gazing at the wild Seussian artwork.

Meant for practice reading, the Accelerated Reading designation for "The Butter Battle Book" is 3.9 which means that end of year 3rd Graders should be able to read this book themselves without getting too frustrated by words they don't know.

The "Official" Interest Level is given as Preschool thru 2nd Grade, but that makes no sense given the reading level. And personally, I would say that it's more appropriate for First thru Fourth Graders.

My own two children showed moderate interest in the book and they are currently 6 and 8; boy and girl. They requested multiple reads and the book is a pretty good read-aloud. Not amongst Seuss' best, in my opinion. It IS definitely worth a read.

Considerations :::
The Butter Battle Book has an Accelerated Reading (AR) designation of 4.6 which means that the average 4th Grader in the 6th month of school should be able to read it without getting frustrated by the vocabulary. It can be read aloud to any age.

Awards: New York Times Notable Book of the Year

Smelly Locker by Alan Katz

Alan Katz' lyrics remind me of the silly songs that we used to sing at Summer Camp. The principal difference being that the songs in Smelly Locker are definitely edgier than those of John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt (wiki link).

Here's a stanza to be sung to the tune of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game".

I don't want to do homework!
Please, I'm fed up with math!
Don't give assignment's I'll surely botch.
Let me relax, I've got TV to watch!
And on't make me study my English
I've learnt it real extra good!
So please say, "No homework tonight!"
'cause you know you should.

Avant-guard, edgy or not, I have to say that one of the reasons I like this book is because my children --currently 6 and 8 y.o.-- like to read it. I don't know whether it's because of the musical aspect but they are willing (even my little guy!) to plow through the text and figure out words they don't know.

As a consequence, I would recommend this book to school teachers as well as camp instructors, even though at least one teacher-reviewer at Amazon.com made an objection to some of the topics. (Myself, I tend to be VERY tolerant of any book that my children avidly want to read.)

Quick Summary :::
Like other Alan Katz' books, this one has unique songs that combine traditional tunes with goofy lyrics. The artwork is bright, full page, and attractively silly. The songs themselves are not meant for very young children who won't be able to appreciate the snide attitude nor the reasons for the whining complaints. If your children know the lyrics "On Top of Ole Smokey, all covered with cheese..." they would probably enjoy this book.

Considerations :::
Smelly Lockers has an Accelerated Reading (AR) designation of 3 which means that the exact level designation has not been determined. It can be read aloud to any age.

POETRY FOR YOUNG PEOPLE: CARL SANDBURG

This is another addition to one of the best literary projects to come along in quite some time…Poetry for Children. This particular work of course deals with the works of Carl Sandburg (wiki). It is illustrated by Steven Arcella whose semi-surrealistic art work is worth the price of the book alone.

This book, as with the others in this series, starts with an introduction to the poet. This is good stuff. It is good to know something about the author of the work you are reading, and children, probably more so than adults, need this information.

This volume includes Sandburg’s Fog, From the Shore, Young Sea, Last Answers, A Sphinx, Little Girl… Be Careful What You Say, Margaret, Arithmetic, Plowboy, Monotone, Phizzog, Mask, Summer Grass, Summer Stars, Sky Talk, October Paint, Old Woman, Buffalo Dust, a Coin and Doors.

I certainly am not going to remark on the quality of Sandburg’s work. Those who read him will be well aware of this. This collection though, is upbeat, delightful and gives a pretty good view of the poet’s range.

The art work which accompanies the poems is very appealing and relaxing and very well executed. Like the poetry, it has a dream like quality and is a delight.

This is a book which is perfect to read to your child or to an entire class. Poetry has fallen out of fashion in many of our schools now, which is not only a shame, but I feel almost a crime. Our kids are missing so very, very much. This little edition is an ideal start. It, and the rest of this series, should be in ever school library, in every class room and indeed, on your kid’s book shelf. This work is recommended for children ages 9-12, but to be quite frank, age has little to do with this poets work. A child under the age of nine may have problems reading the book on their own, but this is why parents and teachers exist! Reading poetry with a child is a wonderful experience for both the child and the reader. This particular collection of poem is idea for this activity. I do highly recommend this one.

Considerations:::
Full Accelerated Reading numbers are not available for this book. The general number "5" has been assigned which means that the book is on the 5th Grade level. But whether that is 5.0 or 5.9 has not been determined.

For a list of all the POETRY FOR YOUNG PEOPLE books see our list.

BEST LOVED NURSERY RHYMESIllustrated by TEDDY WILLIAMS

Okay, I admit it. Even though I am well into my dotage now and at times read some pretty sophisticated books, such as Stephen King and Louie L’Amour novels and their ilk, I am still a big push-over for the nursery rhymes I grew up with. I love the rhythm and cadence of them, love the simple, if not always logical stories they tell, and at this time, love the warm nostalgic feelings they give me. I, like many of my generation, was first introduced to the written word, the oral traditions of our society and, yes, imagination, by having these read to me by my mother and various other adults in my life…the giants who shaped me.

How many miles to Babylon?
Three-score miles and ten.
Can I get there by candle light?
Yes and back again.
If your heels are nimble and light
You may get there by candle light.

or

Hark, hark, the dogs do bark,
The beggars are coming to town,
Some in rags, some in tags
And some in velvet gowns.

Now tell me, does it get any better than that? I don’t thinks so. But if those are not to your taste, there are 43 others to pick from in this wonderful volume published in 1971. Best Loved Nursery Rhymes which has been illustrated by Teddy Williams is one of my favorite collections of these old, tried and true ditties. Now please keep in mind. Many of these rhymes are very, very old, dating back centuries. Also remember that there are probably a dozen versions of the same rhymes, at the very least. This, really, is as it should be. The origin of some many of these small children’s poems have, in many cases, been completely lost. Others we can trace, more or less, to their origin. Quite a number apparently have several origins, different countries, different times and different cultures.

This volume contains such favorites as Little Bo Peep, Lucy Locket, Humpty Dumpty, A Diller, a Dollar, Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat, Jack and Jill, Old King Cole and many, many more. Each rhyme is accompanied by a wonderful, fully colored painting which is quite detailed in a mode fit for children. I got sort of tickled when I first read this book and viewed the pictures. There is no doubt that the illustrator/artist was heavily influenced by Grim Natick, the originator of Betty Boop, one of my all time cartoon characters. The paintings are colorful, cute and funny and go perfectly with the text.

There is much to be said of nursery rhymes. They teach, they entertain, they stimulate imagination and they give old men and old women something to remember when they read them to their grandchildren and other wee ones.

The Brook by Alfred Tennyson, Charles Micucci artist

Let me start by saying that this book isn't going to be right for every child. However, if you have children who like poetry you ought to give it a try as I think it is an excellent introduction to more adult fair.

What makes “The Brook” a good transition piece is the gentle quality of the poem and in the case of this book, the artwork. The pastel drawings are not flashy, nor something you would hunt down and appreciate on their own, but they are a fantastic match for the theme of the poem, which is best exemplified by the lines: “Men may come and Men may go, but I go on forever....”

In the drawings we see children maturing into young adulthood, wooing, getting married and finally having children of their own. And while they and other wild life grows old, the brook and it's little surroundings of hills and bridges, goes on unchanged.

Because my own children are only 6 and 8 years of age, I quite certain that they don't understand the finer nuances of this poem, but I'm a firm believer that understanding comes in stages and for right now I am satisfied that we've discussed the general gist of the theme, and that they enjoy the cadence and beauty of the words.

Rating ::: A
This is not a 'perfect' book, but without being able to say how they could possibly have improved it, I'm going to give it an “A”. The artwork is simple, attractive and fits the poem beautifully. And the poem... what can one say, Tennyson is delightful and this is a poem that enriches the lives of all who can appreciate it.

Find It!
At Amazon => The Brook