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2003 / the Winner was My Friend Rabbit

The Spider and the Fly, IL Tony DiTerlizzi text by Mary Howitt
Hondo & Fabian by Peter McCarty
Noah's Ark by Jerry Pinkney

(nb: we've already read Noah's Ark by Peter Spier)

2004 / Winner: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers

Ella Sarah Gets Dressed by Margaret Chodos-Irvine
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems
What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

2005 / Winner: Kitten's First Full Moon

The Red Book by Barbara Lehman
Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale by Mo Willems
Coming on Home Soon IL E.B. Lewis, text by Jacqueline Woodson

2006 / Winner: The Hello, Goodbye Window

Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth
Rosa IL Bryan Collier, text by Nikki Giovanni
Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems IL Beckie Prange, text by Joyce Sidman
Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride by Marjorie Priceman

2007 / Winner: Flotsam

Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet by David McLimans
Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom IL Kadir Nelson text by Carole Boston Weatherford

Quite a variety of books this month, including poetry, biography, science, humor, history....

I don't have them all in yet, but what I do makes quite a stack!

One of the ones I don't have (yet?) is What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?, but it is avl on youtube: .

Delightful to see a Mo Willems on the list.

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! is so creatively illustrated, with the different fonts showing the different emotions & attitudes, for example. And the use of endpapers and title pages for extensions to the story. And how does the man get such vivid expressions from such simply-drawn faces & bodies?!

One of my favorite children's authors.

The Spider and the Fly is brilliantly illustrated! It's a book I never would have picked up on my own, as I've no interest in creepy or horror sort of stuff. But I'm glad we're reading it here, because DiTerlizzi did a stunning job.

I love the ghosts of former bugs, and the flapper-costumed fly, and all the details in the pictures, and the several 'appendices' giving credit to Howitt & other tidbits of information.

I really do highly recommend this.

The Spider and the Fly
This beautiful, creepy book is designed in the style of an old-time black-and-white silent movie. The Spider is dressed like a gentleman and the Fly is attired as a 1920s flapper. I loved the illustration where the Spider is seated in an armchair with 3 legs crossed over 3 of his other legs, with a ladybug as a footstool. I also loved how the insect ghosts kept trying to warn the Fly as best they could to leave. A blurb in the back of the book describes the illustrations thus: "The illustrations in this book were rendered using Lamp Black and Titanium White...Gouache and Berol Prismacolor Pencil on Strathmore 5-Ply, Plate Bristol board and reproduced in silver and black duotone. Based on a poem by Mary Howitt, this picture book is definitely not for very young or sensitive children as the Fly does not leave the Spider's home alive.

Hondo & Fabian
This simple, understated story with illustrations in muted browns, blues and reds contrasts and parallels Fabian the cat's day with Hondo the dog's day. The illustrations have a hazy, fuzzy, sweet look. While Hondo is romping with his friend at the beach, Fabian has to create his own fun in the house. But when Hondo comes home, he and Fabian eat dinner side by side, and then sleep in their accustomed spots of Fabian on the windowsill and Hondo on the floor. The story is deceptively simple, but very effective, and the illustrations are a perfect match.

Noah's Ark
Pinkney's artwork in pencil, colored pencil and watercolors is lovely and detailed. I was just a bit surprised that he made Noah and family look white rather than Middle Eastern. But his illustration of the ark is right on, as the archeologists have determined it would look. I really liked his illustrations of the animals: the huge blue whale on the front end-pages; the huge elephants on the title page; the humpback whale and sharks swimming under the ark, with towns all about under the water. The text is adapted and simplified from the Scriptues. This version has only one double page spread of family and animals inside the ark; compared to Spier's many panels in his version Noah's Ark. But the large illustrations in this version make it easy to share with a group.

Thank you for commenting on Hondo & Fabian. This is my third time reading it, and I just don't 'get' it. Maybe it'd be more effective if I actually had a toddler to share it with... I imagine I'm overthinking it, wanting it to more than it is. But, as you say, Beverly, "deceptively simple" is undoubtably exactly right!

Hondo & Fabian
Favorite Illustration: the baby holding the cat. I love the way kids pick up pets and drag them around; and the pets (the good ones, at least) put up with it for love of the kids.
This is a sweet little book about the different way two house pets spend their day. Not my favorite, but the dreamy, muted tones in the illustrations match very well with the sweet, slow story.

Noah's Ark
Favorite Illustration: The front endpapers with the dinosaurs and birds on the island and the whales flowing underneath in the sea.
This is a beautiful rendition of the Bible story of Noah and the Ark. Using simple words, Pinkney is able to effectively tell the story of why God flooded the Earth, and he uses all of the elements we are now familiar with (two of each kind of animal, 40 day rains, the dove and the olive branch, the rainbow). He accompanies this story with beautiful and richly detailed paintings of Noah and his family as well as many different kinds of animals. I especially love how not matter what page you are on, you can search and find little animals hidden throughout the ark - even down to spiders and ladybugs!

Ella Sarah Gets Dressed
Favorite Illustration: Ella Sarah admiring herself in the mirror! She just looks so proud of herself.
A simple little tale of a little girl's determination to wear her own style. I love this story, as K(7) has always had strong opinions of what she should wear, and I have had to learn as a Mommy, that sometimes it just doesn't matter. We do have nice clothes for church that she can't wear to play in, and when we have family or school pictures she calls it "Wear what Momma tells you and smile" days, but otherwise, she can wear whatever she wants. As a parent, you learn to pick your battles! :)

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
Favorite Illustration: The page with 8 frames and the pigeon offering different ways to make his request ("I have dreams, you know!")
This funny little book is so fun to read aloud to little ones! My daughter LOVES it and requests it over and over again. She especially loves the way my husband gets so exasperated when he voices the pigeon and we never finish the book without a big case of the giggles.

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?
Favorite Illustration: What do you do with ears like this page. I also really love the way each body part on the "what do you do" pages is shown at roughly the same size, so the rabbit ear is about the same size as the cricket's. This kind of makes it more difficult to guess which animal may have that body part!
A fun introduction to different ways animals have learned to adapt and survive in their environments. I also like the "for more info" paragraphs at the end of the book. This would be really fun to discuss in a classroom with younger elementary kids; and maybe have them imagine themselves with their favorite animal parts!

The Red Book
Favorite Illustration: When the boy and girl realize they are looking at each other looking at each other!
This fun little wordless book tells you what every reader knows to be true: books can take you on an adventure! This was cute, but it didn't knock my socks off!

Rosa
Favorite Illustration: The detail of Rosa's hands holding the strap to her purse, and the accompanying page talking about the strength of the women before her.
This is a beautiful telling of the events leading to Rosa Park's famous refusal to give up her bus seat. I love the detail in the illustrations and while I don't necessarily love it, I like the not from the illustrator that talks about why he used the color tones that he did. I think this is a book for kids learning about the human rights movement, giving a lot of information without becoming too unwieldy or boring.

Ella Sarah Gets Dressed
This funny story of a young girl who wants to wear what she wants to wear, whether it matches or not has colorful illustrations created with various printmaking techniques. Although her family suggests alternative outfits, Sarah Ella is determined to wear what she wants. Some of the illustrations are set against colorful backgrounds, while others are set against a white background. Ultimately, she dresses the way she wants so she can play with her friends. I have a niece who, when she was a pre-school child, refused to wear anything but dresses. Now she is an adult and is a veterinarian, so I expect she has to wear scrubs now!

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus
I loved this silly story from the first time I read it, but I am a fan of silly. Who knew a cartoon pigeon could be so expressive? The artwork is deceptively simple, with spare pages, and the pigeon front and center carrying the bulk of the story. And I like the way the author/illustrator wrote the text, so that the reader gets to "interact" with the pigeon and the bus driver.

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This
This is a wonderful animal science book for young children to introduce them to some of the amazing things animals can do with tails, noses, ears, mouths, and feet. The cut paper collage illustrations are just as amazing, created to make animals look smoth, furry, bumpy, or spiky, depending on the animal. Youngsters (and possibly adults as well) will be intrigued to learn that crickets hear with their knees, bats see with their ears, and horned lizards squirt blood from their eyes, among other interesting facts. Additional information about each animal is at the end of the book. This book well-deserved its Caldecott Honor award.

Red Book
This wordless book very clearly tells the story through the pictures. Some of the illustrations are full-page, and others are in panels. Most of the colors are a bit muted, so the red book stands out against them. The children's faces are expressive, and the contrast between the cold, snowy city with gray skies and the warm beach with brilliant blue skies is very well executed. A simple, warm-hearted fantasy.

Knuffle Bunny
I really liked the illustrations in this book, with the exaggerated caricatures of people in front of sepia photos of the various places Trixie and her dad passed to and from the laundromat. Trixie's emotions are clearly depicted in her eyes, mouth and flailing arms. Observant readers will see what happened to Knuffle Bunny, that causes all the ruckus. I also liked the family photos on the title page of the book.

Coming On Home Soon
This is a heart-warming story with lovely watercolor paintings. Faces and expressions are especially well-executed. Colors are somewhat muted and quiet, perfectly matching the mood of the story.

Zen Shorts
I am not Buddhist, but I still appreciated the wisdom in Stillwater's stories, especially the final one about carrying (or not carrying) grudges. The watercolor illustrations are lovely. I liked how the illustrations switched from full-color to tri-color for the three short parables, which set them off clearly from the framing story.

Rosa
Collier uses paintings and realia collage to create these illustrtaions of the brave woman who said "no" on the bus. Collier explains in a note at the front of the book that he used a lot of yellow in the paintings to depict the heat in Alabama. The peultimate spread is a gatefold depicting a large group of people near the Capitol building in Washington, D. C. I liked E. B. Lewis's execution of faces better in Coming on Home Soon.

Song of the Water Boatman
These lovely poems are illustrated with beautiful woodblock prints hand-colored with watercolors. Sidebars give a little more information on the animal or plant. The illustrations are large and detailed; I especially liked the pictures of the caddis fly larvae in their protective cases, and the microscopic tardigrade (water bear) in the drop of water with other microorganisms.

Hot Air
I am not a big fan of Priceman's illustrations, but they are energetic, colorful, and humorous. While there is text at the beginning and end of the book, most of the historic balloon flight with the three animals is wordless; the story told through the eyes of these passengers. Priceman did make their faces very expressive. I especially liked the scenes of the animals looking down at the ground. Double-page and single-page spreads alternate with panels featuring the many adventures of their 8-minute flight. The end-papers give a brief history of the development of the hot air balloon.

Gone Wild
This beautiful alphabet of 26 endangered animals uses only 3 colors: black, red, and white, making it a very eye-catching book. Each alphabet letter incorporates part of the animal, which is stark black and white on a white background, so that it pops from the page. Each page also features the name of the animal, its Latin name/classification, and a red-bordered rectangle with 5 basic facts about the animal. In addition, a drawing of the animal in red is in the rectangle. After the last animal (a zebra), there are five pages with additional info about each animal. This book certainly deserved its Caldecott Honor award.

Moses: When Harriet Tubman...
I am a big fan of Kadir Nelson's artwork; his execution of people's faces and expressions is spot on. His paintings are beautiful; and the painting of the sun behind Tubman's back is very effective. His use of light and dark is also very effective. I also very much liked the story of Tubman trusting God and praying to Him to help her on her difficult journey. The information at the beginning and end of the book was also enlightening and helpful.

I found What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? to be unexpectedly rich... and challenging! My guesses were usually (but not always) in the right family or order, but I often had no idea of the species. And even when revealed, there were critters that I'd never heard of before, eg the 'four-eyed fish.'

And I agree w/ the Caldecott committee that the pictures are wonderful. I, personally, do prefer Actual Size and Prehistoric Actual Size, though.

Hondo & Fabian A simple story of a dog and cat. The dog, Hondo, spends his day at the beach with his friend. Fabian, the cat, spends the day at home with the baby. Their daytime activities may be different, but these two are friends and enjoy their evening together. A sweet story of friendship.

My 8 year old said, "That was short but I loved it. They are so cute. I loved Fabian, especially!

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
When my 8 yo was in preschool/kindergarten, she loved these books. She LOVED rereading this one today. The books are simple but humorous. I can't even quite explain their charm and yet the charm is real. These are favorites for so many preschoolers and beginning readers. As we revisited it today, she pointed out how the talking bubbles were used and she giggled and said repeatedly, "I just love this book!"

The Red Book This is a wordless book about a wordless red book that can transport you to other places. A fun concept and I enjoy the homage it pays to books and imagination.

Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom
A very spiritual account of Harriet Tubman's own escape from slavery and how she returned multiple times to lead other slaves to freedom. She believed that she was led by God to escape and to help others through the Underground Railroad. Very touching and amazing artwork. Kadir Nelson is a wonderful illustrator.

With the end of the school year approaching and an especially busy month, I'm not going to have time to reread the honors winners that I have read before. So I am posting my old reviews for those that I have read previously (along with reviews for those that are new to me):

Coming on Home Soon Ada Rose's mom has gone to Chicago to earn money for the family. Ada Rose is left behind with her grandma. I love the warm relationship between Ada Rose and her mother, as well as between Ada Rose and her grandma. The language is beautiful and match the gorgeous illustrations. Your heart breaks along with Ada Rose each day when the postman passes by with no letter from Mama. But Grandma assures her that her mama will be coming on home soon.

Rosa A beautiful reminder of the strength, courage, and integrity it took for not just Rosa but so many to stand up for equal rights and refuse to be treated as second class citizens.

Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal AlphabetAt first I was disappointed by the "writing" in this book...it is an alphabet book that just lists the name of the animal, then in a box it tells where it lives, how endangered it is and why. I was hoping for a sentence or two about the animal...but it is there, at the back of the book. Ultimately, I am giving this a 4 star rating for 2 reasons...first, my (almost) 3 year old has asked me to read it over and over again to her. And second, the illustrations are so clever. He has chosen animals that he can illustrate by turning that letter of the alphabet into the animal, adding stripes or spots, horns, tails, etc. The illustrations are all black and white and are so clever that it really makes this a great alphabet book.
(That almost 3 year old is now almost 9! It was fun to remember how much she loved this book.)

Coming on Home Soon is beautiful, and important, but so sad. I have no idea how I would teach it, do you?

The illustrations for Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride are a lot of fun. And the notes at the back are educational. Together, they probably appeal to children. They give me a strong feeling of dissonance, however.

In most ways Rosa is well done.

I do have a problem with the illustrator's visit in August making him choose colors reflecting the kind of heat that come before a storm, and the fact that Rosa's act of defiance took place in December. And, in general, I would like more facts. Try these, for a start, if you agree: .

Not sure of the audience of this. It's pretty short. And the gorgeous, vibrant art makes it feel accessible. But it has details that make it feel really intense, like the mention of the lynching of Emmett Till, and details of legal issues, like the use of college resources to make the flyers.

I just loved Ella Sarah Gets Dressed. And of course I agree that her family is being ridiculous. Of course the little girl should wear what she wants to for her party with her own friends.

The illustrations are captivating. I love the technique, even though I'm not an artist and don't have the knowledge to say what I like about it. The only image that threw me is the one when she's saying "no" to her dad, getting physically angry; I just don't see real anger on her face. But that's a very minor quibble.

I am delighted to have had this excuse to reread Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems. Excellent science, evocative & eloquent poetry in a diversity of formats, bright & lovely illustrations, a glossary... a perfect book. A perfect gift for a classroom teacher or homeschool family, too.

I really wonder about the committee for 2006. Imo, any of the honors were better than the winner, esp. this and Zen Shorts (which I actually own.)

I've always had mixed feelings about Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale. I don't remember any of my three getting away with ruining a whole load of laundry... couldn't they have just watched the toy spin, and rescued it in, what, half an hour?

Otherwise, the art is creative and appropriate, and the details of the temper tantrum ("went boneless") are perfect. And, after all, Willems did give us the subtitle "A Cautionary Tale." So I would still give this 4 stars and give it to new parents.

I respect Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet but for some reason it didn't wow me. In part, it may be because I cannot see the Alligator in the A, and that failure (on my part) set the tone, therefore, for the remaining 25 entries.

Here are some similar books to share with your students or children... a good lesson for young readers with developing sophistication would be to compare and contrast the appeal, kind and quality of information, effectiveness of each.

P Is for Pangolin: An Alphabet of Obscure, Endangered & Underappreciated Animals
D Is For Dolphin
Animal Alphabet
The Extinct Alphabet Book
The Icky Bug Alphabet Book

and others from this list: /list/show/1...

Cheryl wrote: "Coming on Home Soon is beautiful, and important, but so sad. I have no idea how I would teach it, do you?"

It's been a couple of years since I read it but it is beautiful and sad. A different circumstance but many of my past students have had periods of time when they were separated from a parent (sometimes due to a parent's being imprisoned and more often due to immigration issues..often one parent coming to the US first and then the rest of the family following)...so it seems like many of my past students would have been able to relate to it. I think i would have just read it and then had a discussion. The students I teach now (as I changed schools last year) are less likely to have experienced anything like this...they would probably need more background given before reading and both groups would need discussion after. But I haven't ever used it in my classroom...maybe I should try it out. The year is almost over and I doubt I'll get to it this year.

I can see that, if you've successfully created a comfortable classroom community, Coming on Home Soon wouldn't necessarily need to be taught directly, but rather simply read and discussed. And I can see that it would be wise to consider the students' awareness of the situation depicted, or of similar situations. Thank you.

Cheryl wrote: "I can see that, if you've successfully created a comfortable classroom community, Coming on Home Soon wouldn't necessarily need to be taught directly, but rather simply read and discu..."

You're welcome! If I can squeeze it in in these last few (very busy) weeks, I will and I'll report back. It would be interesting to get my students' response to the book.

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? I'm not sure how it's possible that I have not reviewed this before. This was the first book I ever read by Steve Jenkins. I own this book and have used it many times in my classroom (particularly when I taught 2nd grade and taught adaptations). I love Steve Jenkins' nonfiction books about animals! I love this book's approach...showing just a small portion of several animals (on one page you see tails, on another you see noses, another ears, etc.)...encouraging the reader to guess what animal it is and how they sue that body part. Then you turn the page and the animals are revealed with a brief description of how that animal uses that body part. For further information, you can turn to the back and get a description with greater detail such as habitat, food, size and other facts. The illustrations are engaging and the illustrations and text complement each other perfectly. Jenkins and Page make quite a duo.

I don't really understand The Red Book except to note, as everyone else has, the resemblance to "Flotsam." This is my second try; years ago I was not impressed, either. Looking through reviews, all I can find is that it's a fantasy, and some ppl use the term "magical realism."

Well, I did find this gem:
"Adam rated it
My 4 year old son is all ready for Common Core because he connected this book with Flotsam."

Btw, the child in the city (and on the cover) is indeed a girl. That much I figuredout on this read!

Jerry Pinkney's art style is unmistakable. I love the picture of the fishes & whales swimming over the drowned cities. The story of Noah's Ark is concisely and elegantly told. Good book for cultural literacy.

This is a reread for me of Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom. Again, it has struck me dumb. 'Stunning' is the only word I have.

Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems
Sidman has such a way with words! She is a master at combining poetry and science fact to create engaging books. I loved reading about the pond plants and animals (and other aspects of the pond). My favorite poems were In the Depths of the Summer Pond, Listen for Me, and A Small Green Riddle. The illustrations are wonderful and add depth to this beautiful book.

Cheryl wrote: "I really wonder about the committee for 2006. Imo, any of the honors were better than the winner, esp. this and Zen Shorts (which I actually own.) "

Amen, sister!