April is Poetry Month. Here is a story about finding yourself/your identity and your place in the world – all in nicely written verse. (Images to post very soon.) Bartholomew Quill: A Crow’s Quest to Know Who’s Who Written by Thor Hanson Illustrated by Dana Arnim Little Bigfoot    4/05/2016 978-1-63217-046-0 32 pages     …

I Want to Be a Lion Tamer  (or a Vet . . . or a Zookeeper . . . or a Safari Guide . . .) SERIES:  I Want to Be . . . Written by Ruby Brown Illustrated by Alisa Coburn Kane Miller EDC Publishing     3/01/2016 978-1-61067-405-8 22 pages   8″ x …

The Brownstone Written by Paula Scher Illustrated by Stan Mack Princeton Architectural Press  1973–1/05/2016 978-1-61689-428-3 32 pages   Ages 3—8 “Living in harmony with your neighbors isn’t always easy, but it’s doubly difficult if you’re a bear in a New York City brownstone, trying to hibernate. Who can sleep through the Kangaroos’ tap dancing, or …

My Crazy Inventions Sketchbook: 50 Awesome Drawing Activities for Young Inventors Written by Lisa Regan Illustrated by Andrew Rae Lawrence King Publishing    9/29/2015 978-1-78067-611-1 128 pages     Ages 8+ “DO YOU HAVE SOME CRAZY INVENTIONS UP YOUR SLEEVE?! “This new doodle book will speak to the imaginative and to future ‘Shark Tank’ contestants …

Are We There Yet? Written by Nina Laden Illustrated by Adam McCauley Chronicle Books   3/01/2016 978-1-4521-3155-9 32 pages    Ages 3—6 “We’ve all been there. Or more accurately, we’ve all been with kids in the backseat clamoring (over and over!) Are we there yet?” [back cover] Review It’s time for a trip to grandma’s. …

Originally posted on heylookawriterfellow:
Here it is! The moment you have been waiting for! It is time once again for… Thank you for the fanfare, Mr. Elephant. A WIN A DOODLE CONTEST! (Woo!) IF YOU WIN, I WILL DRAW WHATEVER YOU WANT! Don’t believe me? I have proof. Past winners have asked for a Caffeine…

Jacky Ha-Ha Written by James Patterson and Chris Grabenstein Illustrated by Kerascoёt* Jimmy Patterson Books    3/21/2016 978-0-316-26249-1 380 pages    Ages 8—12 “Hey, bet I can make you laugh! “With a name like Jacky Ha-Ha, that’s what I was born to do! You could say I am an expert on wisecracks, pranks, gags, and …

I found out the Toledo Imagination Station is on the finalist list for the 2016 National Medal for Library and Museum Service. One of the other finalists is The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art (I would love to visit this museum). Today is Very Hungry Caterpillar Day. What could be more appropriate for this day than a book …

Rise of the Ragged Clover SERIES: The Luck Uglies, #3 Written by Paul Durham Illustrated by Pétur Antonsson Harper    3/01/2016 978-0-06-227156-3 400 pages      Ages 8—12 “Once a Luck Ugly, always a Luck Ugly. Until the day you take your last breath.” “Against all odds, Rye managed to find her father, Harmless, in the …

#BabyLove:  My Social Life Written & Illustrated by Corine Dehghanpisheh My Art to Inspire    7/09/2015 978-0-9851930-4 18 pages    Ages 1—3 “’Click.’ ‘Tap.’ Tag and post. An adorable baby tells a modern tale about life in today’s digital world. #BabyLife: My Social Life highlights the social phenomena of sharing daily activities using technology and …

Before you check out Apples and Robins, an amazing picture book if there ever was one, check out the winner of two Tristan Hunt and the Sea Guardians author signed books. Each reader who commented was assigned a number, beginning with the first comment posted. (reverse order of there placement). Using Random.org ‘s generator, the …

How to Keep Your Helicopter Written and Illustrated by Ben Greene Altanimus, LLC     May 15, 2015 978-0-692-42287-8 40 pages     Ages 4—8 “Benjamin is tired of sharing. His little sister Sandy is ALWAYS asking to play with his favorite toys. But when Sandy wants to p lay with Benjamin’s absolute favorite toy of …

Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear Written by Lindsay Mattick Illustrated by Sophie Blackall Little, Brown and Company   10/20/2015 978-0-316-32490-8 32 pages Ages 4—8 . . “Before Winnie-the-Pooh, there was a real bear named Winnie. In 1914, Harry Colebourn, a veterinarian on his way to tend horses in World …

THE NORMAL NORMAN BOOK TOUR Normal Norman Written by Tara Lazar Illustrated by S.britt Sterling Children’s Books   3/01/2016 978-1-4549-1321-4 40 pages   Ages 4+ “What is ‘normal?’ That’s the question an eager young scientist, narrating her very first book, hopes to answer. Unfortunately, her exceedingly ‘normal’ subject—an orangutan named Norman—turns out to be exceptionally …

Quackers Written and Illustrated by Liz Wong Alfred A. Knopf BYR    3/22/2016 978-0-553511543 32 pages    Ages 3—6 “Quackers is a duck. Sure, he may have paws and whiskers. And his quacks might sound more like…well, meows, but he lives among ducks, everyone he knows is a duck, and he’s happy. Then Quackers meets …

My calendar said today is World Read Aloud Day. As you can see, it’s wrong. This took place on February 24th. Not sure how I messed this up, but really, can’t any day be a good day to read aloud? If you know a middle grader who is unable to read, even if only for today, …

Stingray City SERIES: Tristan Hunt and the Sea Guardians, Book 3 Written by Ellen Prager Illustrated by Antonio Javier Caparo Mighty Media Junior Readers       5/03/2016 978-1-938063-70-1 280 pages     Ages 9—13 . “Being a teenager is never easy. Especially when you can talk to sharks! Hunt has enough to worry about …

President Squid Written by Aaron Reynolds Illustrated by Sara Varon Chronicle Books    3/01/2016 978-1-4521-3647-9 44 pages       Ages 5—8 “President Squid hilariously explores the ideal qualities of a President. Squid knows he’s perfect for the job because he lives in a big house, does all the talking, bosses people around, and wears …

Fantastic Fugitives: Criminals, Cutthroats, and Rebels Who Changed History (While on the Run!) The Changed History Series Written by Brianna DuMont Sky Pony Press     1/05/2016 978-1-63220-412-7 1196 pages       Ages 9—12 “Throughout history—and even today—the head honchos usually like things the way they are. Rocking the boat does not make them …

Liberty Frye and the Witches of Hessen Written by J. L. McCreedy Penelope Pipp Publishing   11/18/2012 978-0-9882369-1-2 256 pages     Ages 8—12 . “The average ten-year-old girl seldom travels far from home. She doesn’t worry about being kidnapped by witches or imprisoned in medieval castles where children meet their unspeakable demise. She rarely …

A quick note, if you’ll indulge me. I have been gone for a few days, thanks to the lupus. The fatigue alone was, well, tiring. The disease in unpredictable in many ways, especially when it will cause trouble.  Nothing to fret about, but I didn’t want you to think I’d abandoned ship. I am excited …

I am not reviewing How to Put Your Parents to Bed for a while, but don’t want you to miss the opportunity to WIN PAJAMAS to celebrate this new release from debut children’s author Mylisa Larsen and Babette Cole (HarperCollins, 978-0-06-232064-3). Open to US, Canada & Great Britain    Mylisa Larsen’s tongue-in-cheek bedtime story about a role …

My Tummy Disaster SERIES: An Embarrassing to the Max Book Written and Illustrated by Scott Nelson Heritage Builders Publishing  6/23/2015 978-1-941437-54-4 32 pages   Ages 4—8 “Max is having a tough day at school. While his classmates are singing during chorus practice, our hero is at the back of the band room losing his breakfast …

Here Comes Valentine Cat Series: Here Comes Cat Written by Deborah Underwood Illustrated by Claudia Rueda Dial Books for Young Readers    12/22/2015 978-0-525-42915-9 88 pages     Ages 3—5 Junior Library Guild Selection “Cat is no fan of VALENTINE’S DAY, especially when it brings a new dog to the neighborhood. “Ouch. I’m sorry, Cat. …

Chuck and Woodchuck Written & Illustrated by Cece Bell Candlewick Press    3/08/2016 978-0-7636-7524-0 32 pages    Ages 4—8 “When Caroline’s classmate Chuck brings a woodchuck to show-and-tell, Woodchuck is so funny, their teacher says he can come to school every day! Woodchuck is friendly to everyone, but he’s especially sweet to Caroline. He gives her Chuck’s hat …