Poetry Friday

You know, I love Poetry Friday. I really, really do. You can post your own poetry--say, about spring, or about (hellish) winter, or about graduation--or you can just post a picture of your cat and link it tangentially to a Poetry Friday book review.*

Today I review a rhyming picture book over at Book Buds for Poetry Friday. [ETA: The review will be up next week at Book Buds.] The book in question is the utterly fun Someday When My Cat Can Talk, by Caroline Lazo and illustrated by Kyrsten Brooker. In Someday When My Cat Can Talk, the little girl protagonist imagines what her cat would say if he could talk. And, guess what? He takes a witty trip around Europe and has great things to say. Check out this fabulous stanza, which is my Poetry Friday entry:


He'll speak fondly of the snail he met
while camping out near Cannes.
And he'll whisper why she's hiding
from the chef at Cafe Sands.

Oh, snap! That's one smart cat. (And one smart picture book.)

My cat, however, pictured above, is a different sort of animal. I imagine his thought process as follows: Paper! R-i-i-i-i-p! [Blank] What's that sound? Food? [Blank] What's that sound? Food? Food? Food? [Blank] [Blank] [Blank] [Blank] R-i-i-i-i-p!

And, yeah, that's pretty much it for poor Norbert. He's a book killing, pear-shaped, dim witted, sweetheart of a cat. We love him, but he is not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

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* Speaking of original poetry...can I just say that I am getting several hits per day from people searching for "pedicure poems"? I'm honestly truly shocked by this.

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Also, did you know it's Vampire month? I'll be back in a few hours with a Vampire graphic novel review!
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Writer2be is on the roundup. Head on over and leave your links!

Graphic Novel Review: Flight Explorer Volume I

Flight Explorer Volume I is a collection of graphic shorts for the six-to twelve-year-old reader. Beautifully produced by Villard, this a collection that will appeal to boys and girls, to reluctant and proficient readers. There's something in this volume for everyone: traditional space battles (see cover), cute monsters, animals, boy and girl protagonists.

Edited by Kazu Kibuishi, Flight Explorer Volume I contains ten stories from four to twenty pages long. Kazu Kibuishi's story (graphic story?) "Copper: Mushroom Crossing" is the first in the volume and my personal favorite of the ten stories. A boy and his dog are walking along a field of giant mushrooms. The boy can't resist the mushrooms, telling his dog, "Those mushrooms are practically screaming for us to jump on them." And they are, Kibuishi shows us visually. The mushrooms are thick forest of shiny, squishy, jumpy goodness. When the boy jumps into them, his more prudent dog follows. They jump from mushroom to mushroom until the dog falls below the mushroom caps. There the mushrooms give him a talking to, instructing him to take the bridge instead. The story closes with the little boy saying, "I was getting a little worried there. It looked like you were having too much FUN." And the dog replies, "Let's NEVER do that again." But you just know they will. Next time something as awesome as giant talking mushrooms calls them again.*

Johane Matte brings us a regal Egyptian cat, Kean Soo a monster named Jellaby, and Philip Craven an annoying-but-lovable Big Mouth creature. Jake Parker goes with nostalgic space fun in "Missile Mouse," while Steven Hamaker brings a new hero (a fish in a tank) to the space wars. Ben Hatke's "Zita the Space Girl" struggles with robot imitators, while Rad Sechrist's fat cat helps his human friend trick a bunch of neighborhood hecklers. Bannister's funny Tarzan story "Delivery" and Matthew S. Armstrong's charming and sweet "Snow Cap 2nd Verse" round out the collection with humor.

Flight Explorer Volume I is a book every school library and classroom should have on hand. If you're making donations, this is a great one to keep in mind.

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Speaking of reviews, Julie M. Prince reviewed Flight Explorer Volume I for this month's The Edge of the Forest. Also, I have a review of Eric Rohmann'sA Kitten Tale up today over at Book Buds .

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* Unless we read "Copper: Mushroom Crossing" as a drug (or, rather, drug prevention) allegory. Then, I guess, we should hope the boy and his dog don't give into temptation again.

Sally and Dave: A Slug Story

Slugs are cute. Or, at least Sally and Dave of Sally and Dave: A Slug Story, by Felice Arena, are. Check 'em out today over at Book Buds!

Hey, it's a spring like day in Smalltown, with the 6-foot high ice banks finally starting to melt. Won't be long before we see slugs out and about.

Miscellania

I have a review of Barbara Park's funny new picture book--Ma! There's Nothing to Do Here!--up over at Book Buds today. It's the perfect book for any toddler expecting a new sibling.

And, yes, The Edge of the Forest was down the past 24 hours. The server got hit, but everything's been restored and is running smoothly again.

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And, re: yesterday's OT post: Uber-fierce! This is the first time I've ever called Project Runway. (My favorites were Kara Saun, Santino, and Laura in seasons 1, 2, and 3 respectively, so, yeah, my track record was pathetic. But, now. I'm 1 for 4.)

A do-not-miss picture book

Today I have a review of a beau-ti-ful picture book up over at Book Buds.

Kate Bernheimer's The Girl in the Castle inside the Museum is simply lovely, and Nicoletta Ceccoli's illustrations divine.

Good Morning!

I have a review of this beauty--Charles Santore's The Silk Princess--up over at Book Buds. If you like picture books for school-aged children, this one is for you.

I'm busy editing the January The Edge of the Forest today. This work reminds me: If you have any great ideas for features for the February or March issues, please let me know!

Book Buds Review: Lickety-Split

I have a review of a wonderfully noisy picture book--Lickety-Split, by Robert Heidbreder and illustrated by Dusan Petricic--up at Book Buds. Lickety-Split is perfect for that child who loves noisy words.

Picture Book Review

Book Buds is back and today is Thursday. That means I have a picture book review up.

This week's choice is the utterly charming and funny You Think It's Easy Being the Tooth Fairy? by Sheri Bell-Rehwoldt and illustrated by David Slonim.

Review: Mouse Shapes

Mouse Paint is my all-time favorite toddler book.

Ellen Stoll Walsh has a companion title, Mouse Shapes, coming out July 1 and I have a review up today over a Book Buds.

A quick review and a big congrats!

My review of Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple's Sleep, Black Bear, Sleep (ill. by Brooke Dyer) is up at Book Buds. Also, Jules reviews the same title over at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast as part of a Bear roundup. (I swear, for those of you who remember Middle School, I did not call Jules and ask, what are you reviewing today?)

A super-duper, gigantic congratulations goes out to Don Tate whose picture book story was accepted by Lee & Low. To watch Don dance and to congratulate him, head on over to Devas T. Rants and Raves.

A Seed is Sleepy review

My review of A Seed is Sleepy, by Dianna Hutts Aston and illustrated by Sylvia Long is up over at Book Buds.

Now I understand what all the fuss was about re: An Egg is Quiet. A Seed is Sleepy is brilliant in every way.

My first Book Buds review is up.

This week I review How to be a Baby--by Me, the Big Sister, by Sally Lloyd-Jones (illustrated by Sue Heap).

Call me Bud

I love a good picture book. But I also love MG and YA. What's a girl to do? Become a Bud, that's what. A Book Bud.

Once a week, my picture book reviews will be up over at Book Buds. I'll also continue to review picture books for The Edge of the Forest, which is up monthly. This new arrangement allows me to post reviews of primarily Middle Grade and Young Adult titles here. (I'm in the middle of a review of a fantabulous MG title at this very moment.)

Thanks, Anne!

New book contest

Anne at Book Buds is relaunching her blog with a Famous First Words contest.

What would you say if you were the first to land on Mars? I posted "Get me outta here. I wanna go home!" But, then again, I'm space-phobic.

Head on over to Book Buds and leave your Famous First Words--they're sure to be better than mine!