Books | Rarest Kind of Best

Also by this illustrator: Once a Mouse…, Cinderella, or The Little Glass Slipper , Stone Soup, Dick Whittington and His Cat, Puss in Boots, The Steadfast Tin Soldier

Ox-Cart Man

04 Feb 2012 Leave a comment

by Kim in Books, books 4+ Tags: American history, country life, farming, history, seasons

CALDECOTT MEDAL WINNER – 1980

Ox-Cart Man

Donald Hall, text

Barbara Cooney, illustrations

Viking Press, 1979

38 pp.

Age: 4+

Interests: history, farming, country life, self-sufficiency, seasons, American history, New England, folk art

Also by this illustrator: Miss Rumphius

Hey, Al

29 Jan 2012 Leave a comment

by Kim in Books, books 5+ Tags: adventure, birds, city life, dogs, Magic, New York, travel, vacation

CALDECOTT MEDAL WINNER – 1987

Hey, Al

Arthur Yorinks, text

Richard Egielski, illustrations

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1986

28 pp.

Age: 5+

Interests: birds, dogs, city life, travel, adventure, vacation, New York, magic, apartments

Other Titles by this author and illustrator: Homework, What a Trip!

Noah’s Ark

27 Jan 2012 Leave a comment

by Kim in Books, books 5+ Tags: animals, Bible, boats, god, religion, wordless books

CALDECOTT MEDAL WINNER – 1978

Noah’s Ark

by Peter Spier

Doubleday, 1977

46 pp.

Age: 5+

Interests: bible stories, animals, boats, wordless books, religion, God

Also by this author/illustrator: People, Circus, The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night, London Bridge is Falling Down, Christmas!

Raising Readers

26 Jan 2012 1 Comment

by Kim in Books, Parenting

Much parental hand-wringing and gnashing of teeth occurs over the extent – and type – of reading that children do. It’s a high-stakes concern, since academic proficiency is greatly aided by voluminous reading. Young bookworms almost effortlessly gain a larger vocabulary and an instinctive knack for proper grammar and spelling, not to mention all the spiritual/artistic/empathetic/etc. benefits of literature.

Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions

26 Jan 2012 Leave a comment

by Kim in Books, books 6+ Tags: Africa, alphabet, country life, family, folktales, geography, nonfiction

CALDECOTT MEDAL WINNER – 1977

Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions

Margaret Musgrove, text

Leo and Diane Dillon, illustrations

Dial Books, 1976 (now available: Picture Puffin Books)

28 pp.

Age: 6+

Interests: Africa, folklore, traditions, rituals, family life, alphabet books, geography

Also by these illustrators: Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears; The People Could Fly – The Picture Book; Who’s in Rabbit’s House: A Masai Tale; Pish, Posh Said Hieronymus Bosch

Newbery, Caldecott winners announced

24 Jan 2012 Leave a comment

by Kim in Books

The ALA has announced the 2012 Newbery and Caldecott winners – check them out here.

I’m still working my way through the Caldecott list, reading and reviewing every title, and I’m almost done! Go to LISTS above to see the complete list, and click on the links to my reviews.

(I’m back from our trip, still reeling from the Disney World experience, and contemplating the hyper-reality of it all…)