I might have mentioned before that there is an entire subcategory of picture books about being lost in the city. I should add "lost in the city" to the card catalog in my sidebar. Dealing with the idea of being lost and alone is not a new theme in children's literature by any means, but I can't think of any other books in which a bear is lost in New York City. If you can, please send them my way.
Amy Hest's (whose books have appeared several times on this blog already) When You Meet A Bear on Broadway
hits upon another classic theme, missing one's mama. Starting out in a manner of fact manner, Hest gives instructions as to what to do if you ever come across a bear. First and foremost -- be polite (something I will certainly do if I ever meet a wild animal). After ascertaining what Little Bear's Mama is like it is important to look all over the city, especially in the park, where you can climb a high tree. Helping to reunite a wee bear with his mama will certainly remind you of the value of your own mother, so it's good to run on home afterward.
Elivia Savadier's watercolor and ink illustrations are a magical accompaniment to Hest's quirky story. She uses saturated colors to make the girl and bear stand out against the washed out cityscape. I also like the way Savadier cleverly highlights the role of nature in the city by including prominently colored autumnal trees wherever the duo go.
Yesterday it was tigers, today it is bears, now I just need a book about lions in the city. Got any good ones?
Want More?
On her website, Elivia Savadier discusses creating the book's illustrations.
Visit Amy Hest's website.
Big Kid says: What part of Broadway are they on?
Little Kid says: Bear book again!
Those of you living in the city may be familiar with the odd news story of individuals found living with wild animals such as tigers or alligators. It might be fun to speculate whether the tiger found in 2003 in Harlem was adopted after its owner read Diane Goode's Tiger Trouble
.
Of course I am being facetious, but Tiger Trouble certainly makes the idea of owning a tiger in an apartment building seem appealing. In an apartment building at #33 River Street, Jack lives with his Tiger, Lily. (Love the name.) They are best friends and do everything together. Unfortunately the new landlord, Mr. Mud, and his bulldog, Fifi, are not fans of cats. However, when Lily saves the day (and Fifi), Mr. Mud turns over a new leaf and Lily gets to stay.
This is a simply charming story. Goode's narration is light, sweet and stands up to repeated readings (I ought to know, this book is requested again and again by my 2 year old!). The setting is turn of the century New York (although, for the most part, it could be any city) where kids roam free, play stickball, chase fire engines and play tug-of-war in the streets. In fact, the city seems to be a place populated almost entirely by independent children. There is nary a parent in sight. Adults are present but only those that serve the plot. The apartment building is the center of the action: kids hang out of every window and they gather on its stairs. Those of us with real estate envy will gaze longingly at the period details which have now come to be so desirable in the NYC housing market.
Goode's illustrations are colorful, playful and she is a master at amusing facial expressions. Close observers will notice funny little details, like Mr. Mud's full name and an homage to a silent picture star.
Love the story, love the pictures, love the tiger.
Want More?
Read about a real life apartment dwelling tiger.
Visit the author's website.
Big Kid says: That is a strange looking fire engine.
Little Kid says: Roar!
I've reviewed several books about Parisian artists, but here's one about how seeing art in Paris can be inspiring.
In Scott Magoon's Hugo & Miles in I've Painted Everything!
, Hugo the elephant has painted everything in his home town. Everything. What's left to paint? Fortunately, friend Miles has the perfect suggestion: why not take a trip to Paris for inspiration? (I can't think of a better idea myself, frankly.) After seeing the city, lots of art and dabbling in cheesy puns (Hugo-mongous, Hu-glow, Van Hugo... you get the idea), Hugo is inspired. He rushes home to Cornville (after reading the puns, this name is painfully appropriate.), where he can "paint everything all over again, only differently." Now that he can paint everything from various angles, in various color media, in various sizes... he'll never run out of ideas.
If you are looking for a children's book about artistic expression Hugo & Miles in I've Painted Everything! is pretty good fun. It presents the ideas in an entertaining and accessible format without becoming remotely esoteric. Hugo and Miles journey around the city looking for inspiration will be familiar to many of us looking for artistic genius to strike. If only we could all go to Paris to do so.
Thanks to Brimful Curiosities for suggesting this book.
Want More?
Read a thorough review that lets you in on many of the book's jokes at Jen Robinson's Book Page.
Visit the author's website.
Big Kid says: Let's do some drawing, now.
Originially published in French under the title, Au Jardin du Luxembourg, André Dahan's Squiggle's Tale
uses the time tested literary device of irony to introduce us to the joys of playing in the park.
It's too bad this book is out of print and, I'm guessing, is going to be hard to find because it's format is very appealing to children. Squiggle writes home to his parents about his good behavior during an outing with his cousins at the Luxembourg Garden but the illustrations reveal a completely different story. Squiggle may confess to having "dipped our toes in [the fountain] just a tiny bit" but fails to mention the dive they took into the water. He writes that he and his cousins "help rake leaves" in the park but the illustration is of the pigs jumping in and scattering a pile of leaves. Of course, all ends happily, as it usually does in Paris (perhaps with the exception of a few picked flowers).
Dahan's appealing and colorful illustrations are reminiscent of Impressionism and we get a thorough tour of the famous park. I love books that are set in urban recreational spaces as they show that kids (and adults) can experience free range play and a variety of activities "off the streets." Who wouldn't love to see a Punch and Judy show, ride a carousel, roll down a lush green hill, play card games and jump in a pile of leaves, all without leaving the exciting city of Paris?
Want More?
Visit the author's website.
I had trouble finding much on Squiggle's Tale, but his book My Friend the Moon
, seems to be more well known (also OOP).
Big Kid says: That is not what really happened. What he wrote in his letter.
Little Kid says: Pig!
What better way to kick off "April in Paris" than to introduce you to Hilda Louise. Hilda Louise joins forces with Madeline and Mirette to create a trio of intrepid Parisian red-haired girls.
Oliver Dunrea's The Tale of Hilda Louise
starts mysteriously, Hilda's parents have disappeared in the Swiss Alps, and even embroidering 2,357 handkerchiefs cannot save her from the boredom of living in an orphanage (loving environment, though it is). The opening image is that of Hilda Louise looking out of a big window at the city, knowing in that in all that bigness whatever she has lost is just waiting to be found.
Things get even stranger, however, when one day Hilda Louise (how can you not love that name?) starts to float. How magnifique to be able to explore the city from above, like a bird. As you might guess, many familiar Paris features figure into Hilda Louise's flight, all of which fascinate her: sidewalk cafes, rooftop ledges where birds nest (after all, it's the city, not the country) cobblestone streets, artists wearing straw hats, and --of course -- gargoyles who, I'm guessing, normally relish their solitude high above the city. But it's not a tourist's guide to the city. Dunrea wisely avoids that temptation.
Only when Hilda Louise finds her heart's desire can she finally come back down to earth. One can only hope for such a happy ending for the rest of us.
Want More?
Visit Olivier Dunrea's website.
Kirkus review.
Big Kid says: Flying is cool.
Little Kid says: That is a bird.
Since I started this blog project I have become intrigued by the many different ways the city can figure in a picture book. The city is not always the star of the show, sometimes it remains quiet, in the background. Yet it is always there, creating an aura of adventure.
Amy Hest's The Purple Coat
, is not about the city. Gabrielle wants, this year, to have a purple coat, not a navy blue one like she has always had. The book is a charming story of how Gabrielle and her grandfather come up with a new idea for her coat and how they convince her mother to compromise on the new color.
What interested me most about the book is the role the city plays. Every fall, Gabrielle and her mother take two trains, arriving through busy Penn Station in New York City where Gabrielle's grandfather is a tailor "on the twenty-eighth floor in a fancy office building that is even taller than that. " By the time the pair reach the tailor's shop in an elevator that is "too fast and too crowded" the city has retreated into the background. The rest of the action may take place in the quiet seclusion of grandfather's shop, but the city is still there. Illustrator Amy Schwartz has wisely included frequent glimpses of the city out the the windows. One of my favorite moments in the book is when the grandfather, contemplating Gabrielle's request for a purple coat, stands looking out the window at the city. It's as if the city, with all of its infinite variety of people and places provides the perfect reminder that one need not always have the same blue coat every year.
The beginning of this book reminded me of how exciting I found trips to the city when I was young (in my case it was San Francisco). The excitement of heading off to the city and the strangeness of the crowds must have added to Gabrielle's nervousness of asking for a purple coat.
The big city and a new purple coat: it's what every girl dreams of.
Want More?
Read A New Coat for Anna, a very different story set in a post-WWII European city (Berlin?). Someone (not me) should write a comparison of the two books.
Visit Amy Hest's website.
Read an interview with Amy Schwartz at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.
Big Kid says: They had to take two trains to get to Penn Station? I wonder what train they took to the shop. That sign says the 1, 2 and 3. [You can see where his interest lies... not with purple coats.]
It sure doesn't feel like Spring here in New York City right now, so it must be a perfect time to read Lucille Clifton's The Boy Who Didn't Believe in Spring
.
Everybody's talking about, but where is it? "Look here, man," King Shabazz says to his friend Tony Polito, "I'm goin to get me some of this Spring." And with that, the two boys set out on a mission around their urban neighborhood to locate the mysterious season. In fact, the illusive Spring ends up being so enticing the boys venture further than they ever have before... even past the corner with the streetlight. Their perseverance pays off when they find Spring: it's small, but for the boys it is beautiful and exciting.
The setting for this book is the inner city of the 1970s, but it's not a grim place. Illustrator Brinton Turkle fills the city streets with a variety of people engaged in everyday activities like delivering the mail and eating at diners. There are yummy b-b-q smells and colorful stained glass windows at the Church of the Solid Rock.
I think even kids who are unfamiliar with the city will be able to relate to the earnestness with which the boys set out on their search. Put it on your to-read list this Spring.
Want More?
Read a terrific and thoughtful review at a wrung sponge.
Read about Lucille Clifton at The Poetry Foundation, or in her obituary in the New York Times.
Learn about the illustrator.
Big Kid says: I love Spring. I also want to find a bird's nest.
I was quite amused by this dog-becomes-detective book. The story is conveyed entirely through letters and newspaper articles which is a change of pace from traditional picture book writing and offers a new listening experience. That must be good for brain stretching or something, right?
In any case, Mark Teague has written and illustrated Detective LaRue: Letters from the Investigation
, the second book about a dog who writes letters to his owner, Mrs. LaRue. When two cats go missing, Ike LaRue becomes the prime suspect. He escapes custody in order to prove his innocence and, of course, solves the case. While on the lam, Ike must visit several city locations. He prowls through parks, searches seedy alleys, explores fancy hotels and finally saves the day on an apartment fire escape.
Well.... it is possible that Ike is using his imagination just a bit much.... black and white illlustrions depict the shadowy, oh-so-dangerous world of LaRue as a high crime detective, but the real story of LaRue's easy, high living life is revealed in color.
A fun book for dog lovers, detective lovers and you.
Want More?
Read a better written review and see some of the artwork at Gathering Books.
Read Dear Mrs. LaRue: Letters from Obedience School
, Letters from the Campaign Trail: LaRue for Mayor
, LaRue Across America
I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by the huge stack of books I want to write about on this blog. In order to avoid my usual response, which would be to write nothing at all, I will choose a simple book.
Even though it's simple, it's still great. I've already written about Stephen T. Johnson's City by Numbers, but his Alphabet City
is also worth taking a look at. At least, the Caldecott judges thought so, for they awarded it an Honor Medal.
There are certainly numerous alphabet books out there, so why pick up this one? I suppose one answer would be that it challenges you to see everyday objects as letters: the Brooklyn Bridge is an M, the curve of a railing is a J, and so forth. However, Johnson's illustrations are so extraordinary -- they border on photography -- that the letter hunt is really a vehicle for exploring beauty in the public urban environment. In fact, I found I was examining the overall composition of the urban objects, rather than actually searching for the letters.
Although, the book is called Alphabet City, most objects will be familiar to non-city kids: lamp posts, leaves on a sidewalk, telephone poles, park benches. Check it out, you will be inspired to take a look around you.
Want More?
Take a look at the author's website. He has done some interesting public art projects, including murals at the Dekalb subway station in Brooklyn and a proposal for the World Trade Center Memorial.
Big Kid says: That must be in the train station.
Little Kid says: A!
Mom says:
I have mixed feelings about Tony Parillo's Michelangelo's Surprise
. On the one hand, it is set in Florence (who wouldn't love that?) and the historical facts behind the story are very interesting. On the other hand, I found it a bit boring. I don't think my 6 year old did, he seemed to like it, but I simply prefer books with a little more zest and whimsy. And, well.... plot.
In 1494, Piero de'Medici commissioned Michelangelo to sculpt a spectacular snowman. Ah, to be rich and have a genius artist at your beck and call. However, the story focuses not on Michelangelo, but instead follows Sandro, a young page, as he searches for his father throughout the palazzo, finally finding him with the famed artist in the courtyard. The author introduces us to various features of the palazzo but there is little excitement. But if your children are interested in Italy, the Renaissance or architecture there might be something in this book to amuse them.
Get it from the library, but don't spend your cash.
Big Kid says: I don't think I could make my snowman look like that.
Mom says:
Despite living in NYC, when someone says "Chinatown" I always think of San Francisco. William Low's Chinatown
, however, is about the New York neighborhood. A young boy takes us on a tour of notable sites in his nabe such as tai chi in the park, ducks hanging in the butcher window, an herbal grocery, all the while imparting to us the wisdom that his grandmother has passed on to him. And what would be a book about Chinatown without Chinese New Year? The tour end with the lion dance in the parade, the wisdom roles reversing slightly when the boy informs his grandmother, "Gung hay fat choy."--Happy New Year.
This book appeals to me for several reasons: like Henry and the Kite Dragon (also illustrated by Low), there is a strong cross-generational relationship, the colors are vivid (take a look at the cover, the yellow positively glows), and it doesn't come across as "teaching us about Chinatown," instead it shares the experience. Truthfully, I also appreciate the length of the book: not too wordy (always a bonus, when a 2 year old is wrecking havoc nearby).
Low cleverly incorporates some very specific urban experiences: living above a store, crossing in the middle of traffic, subway entrances in the middle of sidewalks. These are all part of a celebrated and vibrant landscape.
There's still time to request this from the library before Chinese New Year, I hope you take a look.
Want more? I haven't read it, but Lion Dancer
has photographs of the lunar New Year celebration in New York's Chinatown.
Big Kid says: Let's go to Chinatown again, soon.
Little Kid says: Car!
Mom says:
Moon Rabbit
is one of those "I love the country, you love the city, let's visit but not change places" books. You know the type. City mouse, country mouse, and all that.
What makes this book special, besides the fact that Little Kid LOVES it, are the illustrations. Natalie Russell has used a lovely, muted, palette of colors and a printmaking technique to create a magical atmosphere. Little Rabbit's city reflects Russell's Scottish roots, while the natural world, though simple, includes whimsical touches, such as the patchwork moon and curlicued shadows. The overall feeling of the book is one of gentleness. I was also charmed by the fact that Little Rabbit has "favorite cafe," because don't we all?
There is a sequel: Brown Rabbit in the City
. I'm sure you can guess the plot, although we haven't got a chance to read it yet.
Little Kid says: Moon Rabbit, again!
Mom says:
Despite the title, this is not a version of the familiar song. In Judi Barrett's Old MacDonald Had an Apartment House, the titular character is the super of a building. When his wife's tomato plant droops due to lack of sunlight in their tiny kitchen, Old MacDonald takes it upon himself to chop down the hedge blocking the light. Encouraged by the results of his ingenuity, the super decides the courtyard would be better as a vegetable garden. As tenants begin to move out, he takes over their apartments for gardens one by one so that the remaining residents find sweet potato vines in their faucets hear cows mooing through the walls. A much as I would personally love to have a flock of chickens, I think I will leave Old MacDonald's methods to the imagination of picture book creators and stick to the farmer's market. As the hilarity continues, the owner of the building finally shows up, and is understandably upset. However, this being a children's book, slum landlords are always redeemable and the urban farm is saved, so that even city dwellers can now have fresh produce in winter.
In light of the recent urban farming movement, this book, originally written in 1969, takes on a whole new relevancy. It was fun to use this book as a way to discuss where the food we buy comes from and how we can grow our own food without upsetting our neighbors. As as you can see from the cover, there's a bit of a nod to the American Gothic, as well.
Big Kid says: That is crazy. I don't want a cow in my apartment!
Mom says:
I find the city backdrop in this book a tad odd: the buildings look Parisian, the park ice skating rink reminds me of NYC, a long boulevard runs alongside a body of water (A river? A sea? It is unclear.), it is snowing, yet there are palm trees. This mish-mash of reality doesn't bother me, actually. After all, it is a book about an anthropomorphous dog and crocodile in a city full of people. The croc is cold enough to need a scarf, but not so cold that he needs clothes. Realism clearly isn't important.
Melrose and Croc: A Christmas to Remember
is a cute story of two fellows who, because of a chance meeting on ice, end up the best of friends. Each was expecting to spend the holiday feeling lonely in the big city, but instead they enjoy the festivities of the season together. Personally I felt the story didn't flow as well as it could, but my eldest son really, really liked this book and I did really like the charming illustrations. There are other Melrose and Croc books
that we will have to take a look at.
Big Kid says: Read it again, please.
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Even though we don't actually get to view much of Paris proper in Johanna Wright's 
, I'm including it in "April in Paris" because I absolutely adore the illustrations. I won't bother writing much more since many, many reviews have already been written (see below in "Want More?") by more talented reviewers than I. Suffice it to say that in the glimpses we do get of Paris, it is easy to understand how it came by the moniker "City of Lights."
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If you have ever ridden the NYC Subway you know that some of the stations have some fantastic artwork. I'm a bit sad that my local station is on the boring side. It would be so great to get on the train everyday if the platform looked like 
,
Mom says:
was inspired by his memories of this white winter wonderland as a boy. Even though I still love snow as an adult I have to admit that no one finds more joy in a new snowfall than a child.
Mom says:
by Jonathan Bean is about a girl who can't sleep. Instead, she takes her pillows and goes up to her rooftop garden to enjoy the cool night air where she can imagine herself in the wide world and relax. It is a bit of an urban camping trip. What I love: the lovely watercolor artwork starts local, focusing up close on the girl and her journey up to the rooftop, then expands out to the wider landscape of the city and the water and bridges and lights. It is a lovely representation of the rooftop world of the city, which can be a refreshing, green haven in the summer for those who live in apartments. I also love the way the girl's mom follows her up to the top to watch over her without the girl ever knowing.
Mom says:
, the Great Bellini, a high-wire performer, has lost his courage to walk the wire. By contrast, the young Mirette becomes fascinated by the wire and takes every spare moment to practice. A friendship between the old funambulist (There's a new word for you!) and the young one forms and Bellini confesses his fear to Mirette. When Bellini decides to face his fear and perform again, he finds out too late that he is not quite ready. It takes an act of courage by Mirette to help Bellini find his former strength. This book resonated on many levels for me: it has a heroine, it is a tale of courage, friendship and perseverance and there are some great button-up boots!
, and 
.
Mom says:
, Tommaso searches for his missing line throughout his Italian city (I'm not very familiar with Italy, it may be that it is a specific city that I don't recognize.). He meets a dog, a mechanic, a cat, a barber and a cafe proprietor. They have all seen lines, but none has seen his line. Finally he decides he must take a trip to the country where his grandma shows him how to find the line. I can't tell you where it is, I don't want to spoil the charming surprise. And don't blame me if you end up feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.
Mom says:
is a charming book about the daily routine of a girl living in brownstone Brooklyn.
Mom says:
celebrates the different talents and skills that exist in the urban community.
abandon the 'burbs for the glory and beauty of Manhattan. Demonstrating the excellent taste you have come to expect from snowflakes, they choose to settle in Central Park, alighting on a snowman where they settle in to pass the rest of the winter.
by Leyla Torres is a book to read before getting on the train. On the D train several passengers work together in order to rescue a bird trapped in a subway car. What makes this book special is that the passengers demonstrate our innate cooperative spirit and compassionate nature despite differences in age, gender and ethnicity. The text is written in English, Spanish and Polish but that does not inhibit our understanding of the story or the characters' understanding of each other. I love that my son is growing up in arguably the most culturally diverse city in the world, and this book is a nice testament to the positive effects of cross-cultural communication.
Mom says:
. Based on a poem by e.e. cummings, Raschka's book follows the journey of a Christmas tree from forest to sidewalk to apartment. Along the way, the little tree rides a train, a taxi and an elevator, all the way followed by a very special guardian (you'll have to read it to find out!). Raschka is a master of melodic storytelling and this book is no exception. I have long been a fan of Raschka's art and his illustrations deserve a long look. The geometric design is charmingly reminiscent of stained glass and reflects the patchwork experience of forest and city alike.
Well, there is Library Lion, but most of the action happens inside the library. This book made me think of a sequel to We Are Going on a Bear Hunt called A Bear's Day Out. I think your youngest will like it.
I guess Courdoroy was in a department store in a city? That might be a stretch, though. This one sounds fun!
There's a Shabbat-themed book about a bear lost in Brooklyn. The bubbe (grandma) keeps telling other family members who claimed to have encountered the bear "There are no bears in Brooklyn!" It's called Once Upon a Shabbos: http://www.amazon.com/Once-upon-Shabbos-Jacqueline-Jules/dp/1580130216/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1304714904&sr=1-1