Hawk Rising is a children's picture book that masterfully demonstrates that it is not what the story is about but how it is told. The story is about aHawk Rising is a children's picture book that masterfully demonstrates that it is not what the story is about but how it is told. The story is about a child observing a Red-Tailed Hawk all day long. The text and illustrations complement each other because the text is written in an impressionistic and poetic way - suggesting valuable details without spelling them out in complete sentences. Meanwhile, the illustrations provide a fuller depiction in a studied and detailed sketch style. The illustrations created a full picture while the text provided poetic emphasis. The story has the necessary level of excitement, when the hawk attempts to catch a meal, that my adventurous 5 year old enjoyed. In addition, the book increased awareness and interest in observing the natural world....more
This was a cute didactic tale about a chipmunk secretly collecting nuts for a squirrel who does not want to except anyone's charity. My 5 year old wasThis was a cute didactic tale about a chipmunk secretly collecting nuts for a squirrel who does not want to except anyone's charity. My 5 year old was very engaged by the colorfully illustrated animals and the idea of doing something secretly. I appreciated that the book sweetly described levels of charity: not only was Hanina the chipmunk collecting nuts to give to someone else but also she was doing it in a way that would not embarrass the recipient - an increase in empathy which imparts wisdom. Although, I can't guarantee my kid understood the lesson completely sweet books like these create touchstones for when an opportunity for considering charity options comes up in our life....more
Another very captivating book by Idan Ben-Barak for my 5 year old to learn about the bones, muscles, and nerves inside us. The cute and fun illustratiAnother very captivating book by Idan Ben-Barak for my 5 year old to learn about the bones, muscles, and nerves inside us. The cute and fun illustrations, the plot about helping aliens get to a birthday party, and the physical interaction with the book all combined to be a clever and interactive way to learn about human bodies. This book should be a shining example of how to make a great book to teach kids science....more
This was a playfully illustrated introduction to Darwin's theory of evolution. The illustrations captivated my 5 year old and, although some of the coThis was a playfully illustrated introduction to Darwin's theory of evolution. The illustrations captivated my 5 year old and, although some of the concepts would be better suited for people a little older, some of the concepts did sink in. Illustrations that demonstrated creatures changing via evolution and how diverse living things are related to each other made an impression. This probably would work as a good primer even for high school biology students - I refined my understanding of selective breeding versus natural selection. ...more
After my 4.5 year old kid asked me, "Did G-d create the world?" I was looking for a book that would answer the larger questions about how life began aAfter my 4.5 year old kid asked me, "Did G-d create the world?" I was looking for a book that would answer the larger questions about how life began and the librarian expertly recommended this book. We Go Way Back is brilliant because it explains a current understanding of how life began but also leaves the lesser known parts vague as exciting options - for example as to where on Earth life began it shows dynamic pictures of different areas like a pool of warm water, near undersea vents, in mountains, or in clouds. Also the use of the colorful bubbles to represent the simple organisms was both cute and clear enough for my kid to start understanding the concept of simple organisms that then evolved into more complex organisms. In addition, my kid laughed at some of the illustrations like the bubble that had three eyes - and if my kid laughs I know I have a winner of a book. This was fun to read, made current scientific understanding accessible to a young audience, and helped in my mission to make sure my kid does not get distracted by overly simple stories of G-d creating life....more
An excellent underdog story about the garbage truck saving the day. Adds pride and joy to municipal services with its happy, refined, and efficient ilAn excellent underdog story about the garbage truck saving the day. Adds pride and joy to municipal services with its happy, refined, and efficient illustrations which are full of angular shapes and almost zero outlines....more
Spider-Man: Animal Assemble was the best kind of comic book for young kids. It had Marvel superheroes my kid was excited to see, it had a great balancSpider-Man: Animal Assemble was the best kind of comic book for young kids. It had Marvel superheroes my kid was excited to see, it had a great balance of humor and action, it had a fun selection of animals, it was an original story (rather than a kid-sanitized story from another comic), and there was basically no violence. I was also so captivated by the drawing style which was similar but better than the Spidey and His Amazing Friends TV show in that it was both cute and comic-book-y. It even had a moment my kid loves to quote "Axolotl SMASH!!"....more
It is hard to go wrong with any Mo Willems book but this one is special because "Waiting is Not Easy" is a mantra my 4 year old says when he has no chIt is hard to go wrong with any Mo Willems book but this one is special because "Waiting is Not Easy" is a mantra my 4 year old says when he has no choice but to be patient. I am grateful to this book for making that concept vivid and relatable. In addition those very clever word balloons of Gerald groaning make him giggle every time we read it....more
This Usborne book complements another Usborne book Look Inside Trains which covers similar material but the Look Inside Trains has more detail about hThis Usborne book complements another Usborne book Look Inside Trains which covers similar material but the Look Inside Trains has more detail about how trains and railways work. The Usborne Big Book of Big Trains became captivating to my 4.5 year old because of the large foldout pages and bright illustrations. The book is essentially illustrated lists of different models of trains grouped by the type of train such as steam trains, diesel trains, high-speed trains and more. It also introduces how different train technologies work.
Trains and a bridge to explore further:
Southern Pacific 4449 (California, USA)
Milwaukee Road class A (Midwest, USA)
Darjeeling Toy Train - tourist train that goes up the Himalayas (India)
Noojee Trestle Bridge - oldest wooden trestle still in use (Australia)
Fairy Queen - the oldest steam train still in use (Delhi, India)
The Golden Eagle Trans-Siberian Express - one of the longest train routes (Russia)
Maglev (Shanghai, China)
Mallard - fastest steam train (UK)
...more
This train book, which covers all kinds of trains with a global perspective, can spring-board from simply fascination of trains as machines to a fasciThis train book, which covers all kinds of trains with a global perspective, can spring-board from simply fascination of trains as machines to a fascination with what makes different parts of the world special. The book is strictly informational and provides a brief survey of different types of trains with photographs of them. I am very grateful that despite being a broad survey the captions and descriptions give very precise details like the name of the train and where it is located. Europe is heavily represented but Asian train technology such as bullet trains and maglev trains are also highlighted. When we read it both my kid and I imagine fun trips on these very cool and real trains.
Trains and stations to explore further:
Bristol Station (UK)
Shinkansen Trains - bullet trains (Japan)
Pendolino Trains - tilting trains (Europe and recently Poland)
Cable Cars (San Francisco, USA)
Funicular Trains - oldest in Budapest, Hungary
Monorail (Japan)
Maglev (Shanghai, China)
Crowded commuter trains with people on the roof (Indonesia and India)
...more
"Never walk on the tracks!", said my son - affirming the lesson from this book about the danger a group of kids encounter after taking a shortcut via "Never walk on the tracks!", said my son - affirming the lesson from this book about the danger a group of kids encounter after taking a shortcut via train tracks. In addition the use of the growing size of the train sound text was very clever. My son and I take the train all the time so I am grateful for this book....more
I am not sure exactly which child needs a very solid allegory for the cold war but Dr. Seuss did it! My son was very engaged and seemed to start to coI am not sure exactly which child needs a very solid allegory for the cold war but Dr. Seuss did it! My son was very engaged and seemed to start to consider the dangers and sadness of potential war - after my guiding questions at least. He also was excited to see the different vehicles and silly weapons. This book is great as a conversation starter for many age groups....more
A cute story about a guinea pig community that learns the dangers of over-consumption of resources, in this case the dandelion greens they love. Then A cute story about a guinea pig community that learns the dangers of over-consumption of resources, in this case the dandelion greens they love. Then by learning some delayed gratification Nibbles the Guinea Pig was able to cultivate a more sustainable life-style. I can't say my 4 year old took away all those lessons but he enjoyed the book....more
These "Look Inside" books made by Usborne are phenomenal! The illustrations in combination with the intricately designed flaps make non-fiction so engThese "Look Inside" books made by Usborne are phenomenal! The illustrations in combination with the intricately designed flaps make non-fiction so engaging for my 4 year old. Look Inside Our World cleverly introduces young readers to natural geography. There are at least 10 well crafted flaps on each page inviting the readers to first get introduced to various natural resources of our world and then lift a flap to either see another stage in the natural process or get more depth on how the process works. For example the page about water demonstrates how fresh water starts in the mountain tops (then by lifting a flap we see how rain is formed), flows down rivers (then by lifting flap we learned how rivers carve canyons), can get stopped at reservoirs (then by lifting a flap we see how people use the reservoir), and finally flows to the ocean. They even make an astute connection in the "Deserts" section showing how deserts can be made of sand but also deserts can be ice like in Antarctica. I can't believe these natural processes have been depicted in a way that a 4 year old continues to learn and enjoy and even laugh - especially that flap with an octopus squirting ink....more
My son was laughing out loud at all the silly facial expressions from Floyd Peterson who DOES NOT want anyone to call him a monster. This was very funMy son was laughing out loud at all the silly facial expressions from Floyd Peterson who DOES NOT want anyone to call him a monster. This was very fun to read and reminded me a lot of the Mo Willems "Pigeon" books because it contains one character that addresses the reader directly....more
The magic of this book is that the text and the illustrations very accurately and joyfully depict the suspense and thrill of taking a rollercoaster foThe magic of this book is that the text and the illustrations very accurately and joyfully depict the suspense and thrill of taking a rollercoaster for the first time. The book precisely contains itself within the phases of waiting in line, boarding the rollercoaster, the quickness of the ride itself, and then exiting - nothing more, nothing less. The illustrations have Norman Rockwell style details of the variety of people in line for the roller coaster. Another fun aspect is that although by the end there is sort of a focus on one pair of the passengers a reader can follow any of the roller coaster passengers as they are mixed in within the line and finally as they ride and react to being on the roller coaster. The simplicity of the story made it engaging and exciting for my 4 year old and the depth of the illustrations made it engaging for me....more
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