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Two for Tuesday

In our last Halloween-themed post,we meet cuddly monsters and vampires sure to impress little ghouls with their charming ways.

First up is Fred, by Kaila Eunhye Seo (Peter Pauper Press, $15.99, 40 pages, ages 4-8), a story about a young boy surrounded by amazing creatures only he can see. That is, until the real world starts to eat away at Fred’s free time – between school, and new (human) friends Fred grows up, and slowly forgets about his old pals, who wait patiently for the day that he sees them again. Kaila’s debut picture book tackles growing up with an unexpected airiness and humor. Her pen and ink renderings of big-eyed, fuzzy monsters aren’t intimidating in the least, and captures the wacky, wonderful world of a child’s imagination.

If you’ve ever opened a jam jar only to find it totally empty, perhaps your pantry was visited by a Jampire. In Jampires (David Fickling Books; $16.99, 32 pages, ages 3-6), writer/illustrator duo Sarah Mcintire and David O’Connell teamed up to confect a sticky tale of whodunnit. Sam won’t stand for dry doughnuts at breakfast, and convinced of thievery, lays a ketchup-laced laundry basket trap to catch the perpetrators. Turns out, the pointy-eared filchers are endearing, and take Sam to visit their sugary hacienda in the sky. Readers racked by a sweet tooth will savor this story and revel in the playful tricks and treats throughout. 

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One Bear Extraordinaire, by Jayme McGowan; Abrams Books for Young Readers, $16.95, 32 pages, ages 3-7.

Debut children’s book author-illustrator Jayme McGowan has crafted a triumph of three-dimensional illustration in One Bear Extraordinaire, and her dedication is evident throughout. After rendering the characters using watercolors and colored pencils, McGowan cuts out each piece of paper and assembles the scenes inside a book-size paper theater, suspending the characters and scenery with toothpicks, twine, and even clothespins. Once satisfied with the setup, McGowan scrupulously photographs her creations using various lenses and camera settings. (Art teachers might find this book useful in teaching design concepts and paper cutting techniques.) It’s not a popup, but every page in the book is full of depth and complexity, the result of many hours spent getting every last piece just right. The tale itself is one of camaraderie and acceptance: A musical bear wakes one day and discovers that he can’t quite play the song he hears rumbling in his head. So he sets out across the forest, and along the way collects a banjo-playing fox, a raccoon with an accordion, and even a little wolf pup who can’t seem to play any instrument…yet. The story, while charming, is upstaged by the fantastic art. That said, I think McGowan will bring wonderful things to the world of children’s picture book illustration and I’m looking forward to what she does for her encore presentation. 

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(via 89 Years of Winnie-the-Pooh – The Fine Books Blog) Winnie-the-Pooh:89 and Looking Fine!

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Ghostlight, by Sonia Gensler; Alfred A. Knopf, $16.99, 256 pages, ages 11 and up.

Every summer, twelve-year-old Avery May Hilliard laments, in pitch-perfect tween style, that nothing exciting happens at her grandmother’s quiet farm. Well, that all changes when Julian comes to town. He wants to shoot a haunted-house movie at an abandoned mansion called Hilliard House, and Avery is thrilled at the prospect. Here’s the rub: Avery’s grandmother has forbidden her to enter the premises. Of course, Avery jumps at the chance, and while filming, all sorts of creepy things happen. Gensler, whose previous middle-grade novels include The Dark Between and The Revenant, has conjured a perfectly spooky story about ghosts, growing up, and facing one’s fears. While Ghostlight flirts with elements from ‘The Blair Witch Project,’ there’s nothing here that will keep kids (or their parents) up at night. Equal parts detective novel, ghost story, and coming-of-age narrative, Ghostlight is a great choice for middle-grade readers who enjoy reading thrillers but don’t want to be terrified out of their wits. 

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For the past two decades, Robert Lawrence Stine (better known as R.L to fans) has written over 300 books full of terrifying tales of goblins and ghosts and shows no signs of slowing down. This year Stine wrote his autobiography called It Came From Ohio: My Life As a Writer (Scholastic Books, $6.99), aimed squarely at his target audience. The author covers everything, from his early years as a clarinet-playing youngster to his experience as a substitute teacher to how he keeps coming up with new stories.  Black-and-white snaps of Stine through the years (including the obligatory Bar Mitzvah shot) will no doubt enthrall fans. The book coincides with the recent release of a film adaptation of Stine’s life called ‘Goosebumps’ and stars Jack Black as the author.  In an interview this past Sunday with NPR’s Michel Martin, Stine reflected on what he hopes his legacy will be. “I guess on my tombstone – he got boys to read,“ he responded.  With 400 million books in print, that sounds like a frightfully sure bet.

(Listen to Michel Martin interview R.L. Stine here)

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I am Henry Finch, by Alexis Deacon, illustrations by Viviane Schwarz; Candlewick Press, $16.99, 40 pages, ages 3-6.

Henry Finch knows he’s destined for greatness, but until now, all he’s done in life is flutter from tree to tree, outwitting the hungry beast who prowls below. One day Henry has enough of the lubmering creature eating his friends, and realizes this is his chance to be great. Well, Henry ends up in the belly of the beast, but what he does there is a charming ode to courage and resilience. Author Alexis Deacon (llustrator of Russell Hoban’s Soonchild) confirms with wit and humor that heroes can appear from the least likely of places. The birds are rendered as red thumbprints and stick figure illustration (courtesy of There Are Cats In This Book author-illustrator Viviane Schwarz), a reminder that we are all unique and capable of soaring high.

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I am a Bear, by Jean-François Dumont; Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, $16.00, 34 pages, ages 4-7.

Hawaii is making news this morning for declaring a state of emergency in order to deal with its surging homeless population, and the story brings up an interesting point: What’s the best way to discuss this with young children? Jean-Francois Dumont’s I am Bear tackles the subject with grace and sensitivity. Winner of the 2004 Prix Saint-Exupery, Dumont explores how societies often dehumanize the homeless by setting a bear right in the middle of a big (Parisian-esque) city. The bear doesn’t know how he arrived on the streets, or what circumstances led him to sleeping under in cardboard boxes, but there he is, like so many of the urban homeless who’ve become faceless and invisible. There’s a lot going on here – compassion, empathy, plenitude in the face of poverty – and yet the author manages to avoid being didactic by keeping the text simple and straightforward. Hope materializes in the welcoming smile of a little girl who looks beyond the dirt and tatters and sees a bear that reminds her of her own beloved playthings. Dumont’s illustrations highlight the duality of urban life and the willing refusal to see the suffering of those right on our doorsteps. This is a book that grows with children as their world becomes larger and they begin to notice people and things around them. While the girl’s compassion is encouraging, it’s not a panacea: The bear remains homeless, but through empathy grows the possibility for change.

As the holidays approach, and with them the usual Christmas/Kwanza/Hanukkah fare, consider this book as an unexpected, poignant, and relevant alternative to teaching kindness. 

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The Iliad, by Homer, retold by Gillian Cross, illustrated by Neil Packer; Candlewick Press, $19.99 160 pages, ages 9 and up.

Rediscover Homer’s epic poem that pitted the ancient Greeks against the fearsome Trojans in this superb retelling of The Iliad by Carnegie Medalist Gillian Cross, who also refitted the Odyssey for a younger audience. Cross has managed to take this daunting work and wrangle a fluid and enjoyable version full of action and adventure. The book opens with helpful a character map and concludes with the Greek alphabet and an appendix dedicated to discussing whether or not the Iliad was based on a true story. Illustrator Neil Packer, who collaborated on Cross’s Odyssey (2012), returns here to render the scope of human emotions with his instantly recognizable gouache and pen and wash art. (His work ought to be familiar to Folio Society fans: previous commissions for that publishing house include Umberto Eco’s The Name of The Rose (2001) and 2004s illustrated version of Joseph Heller’s Catch-22.) Here, Greeks and Trojans locked in eternal battle are rendered in bold colors and appear as if they’ve been plucked directly from some ancient amphora, and it’s wonderful. (Readers interested in seeing Packer’s art for themselves can do so through October 24 at the Illustration Cupboard in London.) Printed in a large-format volume, this Iliad is a welcome addition to the picture-book world, filling the void between overly sanitized editions and those with blood practically oozing from the binding. A masterful gift for the ages.