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The Bear’s Surprise Written & Illustrated by Benjamin Chaud Chronicle Books       9/15/2015 978-1-4521-4028-5 32 pages       Age 3—5 “Little Bear is ready for yet another adventure! But, wait! Where is Papa Bear? Never fear, Little Bear will find him! Follow the curious cub through the interactive cut-outs on every page …

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by Davide Cali illustrated by Benjamin Chaud Chronicle Books 2015 Excuses, excuses, but it's the SIZE of the lies that impresses here. When asked why he was late for school a boy goes into a lengthy, imaginative journey into all the obstacles in his path. From a story perspective it's exactly what one teacher once described as "one dang thing after another," and the twist on the last page

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A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School…

Written by Davide Cali
Illustrations by Benjamin Chaud
Chronicle Books              3/3/2015
978-1-4521-3168-9
40 pages            Age 8 to 12

“EXCUSES, EXCUSES! Or are they? First, some giant ants steal breakfast. Then there are the evil ninjas, massive ape, mysterious mole people, giant blob, and other daunting (and astonishing) detours along the way to school. Are these excuses really why this student is late? Or is there another explanation that is even more outrageous than the rest? From “I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . .” author/illustrator team Davide Cali and Benjamin Chaud comes a fast-paced, action-packed, laugh-out-loud story about finding your way to school despite the odds—and unbelievable oddness!”

Review
In the same style as I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . (HERE), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School . . . contains hilarious excuses why this young boy is late for school. Will the teacher believe these excuses any more than she believed why he did not do his homework? Will you believe?

Would you believe the boy missed breakfast because giant ants stole it from him? Would you believe a huge—and I mean HUGE—ape mistook the school bus for a banana? Would you believe the boy meet a girl wearing a red coat and needing help finding her grandmother’s house in the woods? No?

The illustrations are great. The title page shows the first book lying on the floor, open as if the boy had been reading it the night before. The clock shows he is late, as does the look on his dog’s face. There are so many little details on each page it could take you a long time to finish this quick read. If you have read Farewell Floppy (reviewed soon) The Bear’s Song (HERE), or Bear’s Sea Escape (HERE), you will instantly recognize Chaud’s distinctive style.

The excuses may be wild but the young boy actually makes it to school on time . . . then realizes he forgot his backpack (with his homework inside). I love this reference to I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . ., which brings the two books full circle. I hope that does not mean this is the end of the line for the young boy, his imagination—or is it real—and the teacher who patiently listens to the young boy’s story.

This is hilarious and kids of all ages will appreciate the young boy trying in vain to get to school on time. Along the way, look out for the Little Red Riding Hood, the Pied Piper, falling—rather grabbed by mole people—into a sewer hole ala Alice in Wonderland, the Gingerbread House, Bigfoot, and Yeti. Of course, there is a fabulous twist and a most humorous ending befitting the young boy’s trouble getting to school. If you liked I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . ., you will love A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School . . .Together, the two books make a great double-tale of middle grade woe.

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO SCHOOL . . . Text copyright © 2015 by Davide Cali. Illustrations copyright © 2015 by Benjamin Chaud. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Chronicle Books, San Francisco, CA.

Purchase A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School . . . at Amazon—B&N—Book Depository—Chronicle Books.

(CHeck this out!) BEHIND THE SCENES: A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO SCHOOL…
Learn more about A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School . . . HERE.

Meet the author, Davide Cali, at his facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Davide-Cali/164285603678359?
Meet the illustrator, Benjamin Chaud, at his facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/benjamin.chaud.1
Find great books at the Chronicle Books website:  http://www.chroniclebooks.com/

Copyright © 2015 by Sue Morris/Kid Lit Reviews

Filed under: 5stars, Books for Boys, Favorites, Library Donated Books, Middle Grade, Series Tagged: 978-1-4521-3168-9, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School..., Benjamin Chaud, Chronicle Books, Davide Cali, kid's excuses, late for school, school excuses

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The Bear’s Sea Escape

written and illustrated by Benjamin Chaud

Chronicle Books       8/05/2014

978-1-4521-2743-9

Age 3 to 5      32 pages

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“Papa Bear and Little Bear were trying to sleep  . . . Suddenly, a case of mistaken identity results in a big adventure for Little Bear, with Papa Bear in pursuit! This sequel to the New York Times Notable Book The Bear’s Song follows the bears from a snowy city to a tropical island where sea-inspired surprises are in store, leading to fun in the sun, a warm reunion, and, finally, the perfect place to sleep!”

Opening

“High atop the opera house with snowflakes falling fast, Papa Bear and his cub snuffle their snouts up through the snow.”

The Story

Papa Bear decides the rooftop of the opera house is not the best place for he and Little Bear to sleep. They go off in search of a better place to sleep. Papa Bear finds the perfect place among many, many other bears that are already hibernating comfortably. Little does Papa Bear know is that he has chosen a toy store in which to slumber. A little boy takes a liking to Little Bear, adopts him, and off they go to who knows where. Papa Bear awakes from his deep sleep enough to notice Little Bear gone. He grans a scooter and goes in hot pursuit after his cub.

Review

By taxi and train, Little Bear finds himself escorting a young boy who believes Little Bear is his new toy. Now embarking on a cruise ship, Papa Bear will need some wits about him to get on that ship and find his Little Bear. And how Papa Bear gets on the ship is quite ingenious, especially for a bear. But this bear has been finding himself smack in the middle of Benjamin Chaud’s expansive imagination.

The illustrations are amazingly intricate. And Papa Bear is not the only one acting a bit strange around the ship. There is a man swimming, a kid in a pool ring, and even a penguin in what should be chilly waters below the ship. I love Chaud’s illustrations. In Bear’s Song and in I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . Chaud adds details one can easily miss, even after several readings if one does not take the time to scan the pages, taking in the beautiful, and often zany, extra details no one expects.

The story is good—we know Papa Bear and Little Bear reunite—so for me, most of the fun in reading The Bear’s Sea Escape is taking in all the world’s Chaud has created. On each spread, somewhere, you can see, if you look well enough, both Little Bear and his Papa Bear. It is not always easy, nor should it be. But I would much rather hunt for those two adorable, anthropomorphic bears than Waldo any story time. Your child will need patience and focus to spot the two stars. A super sleuth might just find Waldo, wearing his iconic black plastic glasses and striped hat, somewhere on a beginning spread.

Papa Bear continues to chase after Little Bear who is crossing the ocean to a tropical island. Papa Bear hunts high atop the ship and low beneath the sea looking for his cub. Little Bear seems to be enjoying himself and why not? He is on a tropical island! In the middle of winter! What better place for a bear to hibernate than in the cool tropical breezes.

Children who read it The Bear’s Sea Escape will have a feast for their little eyes. The book is taller than most, allowing for large full-spread, mesmerizing illustrations that will look gigantic to some little eyes. Kids will like the funny situations Papa Bear gets into while chasing after Little Bear. He hangs from a crane, dives deep under the sea emerging thin and scraggly (and probably a tad smelly; he is a bear), and he dances in a never-ending Congo line. The ending is sweet and unpredictable.

 

I love Papa Bear and Little Bear and will devour every adventure they find themselves forced into by Little Bear’s disappearance. Though I wonder, will Papa Bear ever find himself in need of rescuing? Little Bear would find him, but not before strolling, running, and dancing through twelve luscious spreads of art.

THE BEAR’S SEA ESCAPE. Text and illustrations copyright © 2012 by Benjamin Chaud. English translation copyright © 2014 by Chronicle Books. Reproduced by permission of Chronicle Books, San Francisco, CA.

The Bear’s Sea Escape was first published in 2012, entitled Coquillages et petit ours by French publisher helium. BLOG

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Purchase The Bear’s Sea Escape at Amazon —B&N—Book Depository—iTunes—Chronicle Books—your favorite bookstore.

Learn more about The Bear’s Sea Escape HERE.

Meet the author/illustrator, Benjamin Chaud, at his facebook:   https://fr-fr.facebook.com/benjamin.chaud.1

Find other great books at the Chronicle Books website:   http://www.chroniclebooks.com/

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Also by Benjamin Chaud

 

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And in 2015:        A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School Hardcover – February 24, 2015

Video with Benjamin Chaud : http://www.wat.tv/video/fee-coquillette-mercredi-janvier-1zzgn_2ey1r_.html

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Filed under: 5stars, Children's Books, Favorites, Library Donated Books, Picture Book, Series Tagged: adventures, Benjamin Chaud, brown bears, children's book reviews, Chronicle Books, French publisher helium., intricate illustrations, Papa Bear & Little Bear, picture book, The Bear’s Sea Escape

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Tell me and tell me true, what do the following have in common?

From the title of this post you have no doubt concluded that they all share the same illustrator.  However, had you asked me prior to my recent meeting with French artist Benjamin Chaud, I don’t know that it would have necessarily occurred to me.

Over the years I’ve noticed Chaud’s work, but only in the vaguest possible sense.  You see, I’m a big fan of the Pomelo books by Ramona Badescu, published by Enchanted Lion Books here in NYC.  Each title stars an odd pink elephant-type of character.  Pomelo is a strange little fellow, and I do mean little since his best friends include snails and dandelions.  He also sports a hopeless crush on a frog in a case of unrequited pachyderm/amphibian love.  Kermit and Piggy have nothing on Pomelo.  The books that have made it to American shores include:

But my favorite by far has to be . . .

Because, quite frankly, if you want the kookiest opposite book of all time, this is it, folks.

Well, I was pleased as punch to learn that Mssr. Chaud was in town for ten days, visiting the States and the kids that are here.  I swear, when Herve Tullet moves to Brooklyn he’d better embrace a role as host for all his incoming countrymen.  Publisher Claudia Zoe Bedrick invited me to nosh and meet Benjamin and so we did!  At Le Pain Quotidien, no less.

So what does your typical French artist do when visiting New York City?  Well there’s MOMA, of course.  And Central Park.  There’s Rockefeller Center and bookstores like Book Court and, naturally, NYPL’s current exhibit The ABC of It.  But the best part was hearing about his visits with the kids.  Chaud took a trip to The Lycée Français de New York, a bilingual school for kids of all ages.  While there he met with 106 “very enthusiastic” children and created art with them.  And here we can see the results of his visit to Book Court:

 

As you can see, Pomelo comes easily to the man’s pencil tip.  So easy, in fact, that he had time to create some fun little off-the-wall images of Pomelo in his own shoes:

I love these.

Talking about Pomelo naturally lead to a discussion of the differences between French and American picture books.  Claudia had some interesting things to say about the changes made to the aforementioned Pomelo’s Opposites when bringing to the book to the States.  We talked about changing certain images from “good” and “bad” to “right” and “wrong”.  Or why the opposite of cucurbit made the final cut.  And we talked about Pomelo himself and his journey.  Since his true author is Ramona Badescu this was all conjecture, but we talked about what it would mean if in his last book he went so far as to die.  And then we got to thinking about picture book characters in series and if any of them have ever died.  At the time I couldn’t come up with any, but since then I was able to think up one.  The Sally books by Stephen Huneck followed a Labrador on various adventures, finally ending with Sally Goes to Heaven.  But it’s a bit of a rarity.

So we talked about the approach of death in various books for small children.  The European picture books have a comfort level with death and dying we lack here in the States.  Here in the U.S. you can discuss death, but only if it is the ONLY topic at hand.  In other countries, death can be far more of the narrative.  It was an illuminating conversation, worthy of a post in and of itself.

In the end, I bid farewell to Benjamin Chaud and thanked him for his time.  With the latest Pomelo book out this year (Pomelo’s Big Adventure) as well as a sequel to last year’s The Bear’s Song (you can see it in my recent Chronicle librarian preview) he’s certainly slated to become better and better known.  And for that, I am well and truly pleased.

Thanks to Claudia for the meeting and to Benjamin for being willing to meet.

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Book trailer AS FÉRIAS DO PEQUENO URSO Benjamin Chaud from Orfeu Negro on Vimeo.

Thank you to Three Books a Night!

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I Didn’t Do My Homework Because…

by Davide Cali & Benjamin Chaud

Chronicle Books     2014

978-1-4521-2551-0

Age 8 to 12    40 pages

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Back Cover

“WHEN TO  USE THIS BOOK: Whenever you haven’t finished your homework.

“CAUTION: Each excuse may only be used once.”

Opening

“So, why didn’t you do your homework?”

“I didn’t do my homework because . . . An airplane full of monkeys landed in our yard.”

The Story

A middle grade student has not finished his homework and must give his teacher an excuse. Why did he not have his homework? As  you already know, an airplane full of monkeys landed in his yard. If that wasn’t enough,  a rebellious robot destroyed his house. He barely got out with his books intact. Oh, the actual homework, you ask? Well, that is hard to complete when you have a bedroom full of recently escaped convicts hiding there. And then, anything he did get done was eaten by his dog, and it was eaten by another dog, so he spent the rest of the day at the vet’s office.

The teacher, being like most teachers, didn’t believe a syllable that this young student said. So he kept on trying. Who would not believe that some huge birds made a nest out of his house’s roof, and then the birds must have flown off with the roof, because now it is gone? “Okay, maybe that was much,” the middle grader would say, “but my brother was kidnapped by a circus and I was forced to watch him perform.” The teacher never did believe a word this poor, homeless, now only child had to say in his own defense.

Review

In I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . The young boy has some of the most inventive excuses I have ever heard. The true test is with teachers. How many of this young man’s excuses have been heard before, versus the number that are fresh and new? Only the latter excuses will matter to the average middle grade reader. Most excuses are only good once. There is some kind of underground network, where teachers file excuses for all other teachers to check their student’s excuse against,  similar to how Grammarly helps teachers check for plagiarism.  If your excuse is on this registry there is no chance it will work, even when it is true.

The  illustrations detail the excuses with wonderful detail that will hold the attention of your mind’s eye. The author and illustrator worked together to make sure you could easily remember these excuses. If instructions would have been included they would have said, “Read it aloud and study the picture. The more senses you can involve the better you will remember. The illustrations depict the excuse as closely as possible with more than enough intimate features and qualities to ease the process. Sometimes silly illustrations are used to help you remember that excuse.”

If your brother were kidnapped by the circus,  would you remember this better if you saw him leaning out of a huge cannon, and the ringmaster at the other end with a large match ready to shoot him into outer space? You bet it would. That picture will stay in your head—and the teacher’s—long after the she has forgotten about your missing homework.

Obviously, I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . is a humorous book depicting outrageous excuses one would never  actual encounter. The book is cute, makes fun of the silly excuses kids can think up and teachers must hear. This is a not a real story, as one expects a story. Nor is this a handbook of excuses, because they are too outlandish to be believable, though sometimes truth is stranger  than fiction.  I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . .is tongue-in-cheek fun middle graders will laugh at, as will younger kids—even those who cannot read.  There might even be a few teachers laughing along.  The book is a novelty-type book exaggerating the ritual of excuses for laughs and smiles. I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . easily accomplishes this goal.

If you like jokes, if you like comics, if you like silliness, or if you need more unbelievable excuses this year, I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . .  is for you. The book reminds me of the thin library jokes books or silly poetry books I’d  carry home by the arm loads. This light reading never needed to be dog eared—or cat whiskered—before closing the book unfinished. These books, and I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . .   are thin enough to find your place or start over and get to the last page read in minutes. The entire book will take no more than fifteen minutes to read cover-to-cover. Every time I read those books a smile jumped onto my face. I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . did the same, with a few BIG laughs.

A smile can change one’s entire attitude for the better. I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . will have kids giggling, parent’s grinning, and teachers groaning, but all will smile that magic transformative smile, the kind that instantly makes you feel good, as smiles are meant to do. If you want that smile of innocent complicity, this is the book to read. Keep it in your locker or desk drawer for quick reference or a needed smile. Most importantly, remember to check off each excuse as you use them. Beware of the teacher underground, .I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . . is not guaranteed to get you out of doing your homework.

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Learn more about  I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . .  HERE.     And on iTunes.

Get  copy of  I Didn’t Do My Homework Because . . .  at Amazon—B&N—Chronicle Books—your local neighborhood bookstore.

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Meet the author, Davide Cali:     wiki    facebook     twitter     goodreads

Meet the illustrator, Benjamin Chaud         blog     facebook     pinterest    vimeo     ficker     goodreads

Find more interesting Chronicle Books        website    blog    facebook    twitter    pinterest    instagram    G+    youtube    tumblr

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I DIDN’T DO MY HOMEWORK BECAUSE . . . . Text copyright © 2014 by Davide Cali. Illustrations copyright © 2014 by Benjamin Chaud. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Chronicle Books, San Francisco, CA.

ALSO BY BENJAMIN CHAUD.

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The Bear’s Song.

Filed under: 5stars, Books for Boys, Favorites, Library Donated Books, Middle Grade Tagged: Benjamin Chaud, books for boys, children's book reviews, Chronicle Books, Davide Cali, novelty book, picture book, school excuses, students, teachers

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Pomelo, a pink erasure of an elephant with an extremely long and expressive trunk, is surprised to find a familiar dandelion looking small. Wonder of wonders, he's getting bigger! His growth spurt brings with it a lot of questions. To wit...

* Is he too big for his world?
* What if he doesn't grow equally all over?
* Does everyone grow at the same speed?
* Will he have to stop clowning around?
* Does growing up mean growing old?

Pomelo ponders these and other questions as he wanders through the pages of this unusual picture book. Without a traditional storyline, certain readers may chafe at Pomelo's philosophical musings, but many more will no doubt discover that his worries and concerns match their own. The whimsical, dream-like illustrations alternate between Pomelo wandering in a garden setting overflowing with produce, insects, snails and other friendly creatures and surreal images of his thoughts, such as a cutaway that shows an assembly plant inside him. By the end, Pomelo realizes that growing brings with it the joy of new experiences as well as responsibilities. And he's okay with that.

The book originally was published in France and was translated. The copyeditor in me did notice a typo in: "There's no question, he want's to know more." ("want's" should be "wants"). But hopefully that will be corrected in the next edition.

Pomelo Begins to Grow
by Ramona Badescu
illustrations by Benjamin Chaud
Enchanted Lion Books, 48 pages
Published: August 2011

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