Books have always been magical to me, and while I had outgrown board books and the like almost as soon as I started reading (which according to my parents was really early), I (re)discovered my love for them when I became a parent myself. Now my kids have long outgrown board-books and picture books but I still enjoy reading them! There is something simply magical in their simplicity that many a time says a lot more, in that thrill of easy to read words that can be enjoyed by those beginning readers, and in those colors and rhymes that are almost a trademark of those books.
So today, I bring to you reviews of a few of those books that I have read at the same time hoping to increase that woeful NetGalley ratio of mine 🙂
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Magical Whimsical Picture Books
Owl Love You
Owl Love You
by Matthew Heroux & Wednesday Kirwan
Cameron & Company
Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA)
Children’s Fiction , Outdoors & Nature
Pub Date 18 Sep 2018
GoodReads Description:
The sun is setting, time to rise! At dusk, when an owl’s day is just beginning, a baby owl asks questions and a mama owl offers comforting answers in this gentle, reverse bedtime book, featuring lulling, lyrical text and luminous illustrations of the nighttime world.
My Thoughts:
Hoo’ll hang with me when my friends aren’t around?
Owl hang with you when things feel upside down.
The sweet owlet is predictably wondering about so many things, and seeks answers and reassurance. And hoo better to comfort and answer her than mom.The book delivers on sweetness as mother owl shows little owlet all that is wonderful about their home, and lets owlet know that she’ll always be there for him.
I truly loved those little details that are captured in both the sweet, rhyming text and the gorgeous, colorful illustrations; as well as between them. For instance, the words from the book I added above use ‘hang with me’ and that is exactly what my kids (now older) say when they want to be their friends – ‘hang with’. And the illustrations accompanying these words – those mammals that hang upside down – bats 🙂
In Summary:
Hoo’ll love this book? Owll of us, I am pretty sure! Anyone who picks up this book will be delighted by it – both the illustrations and the words.
A book that portrays parenting so wonderfully! And on a side-note, I love that the authors are from the Bay Area (I do not know them, but it is always cool to read books from someone you might potentially run into!)
Rating: A
Reading Level: 4 – 8 years
Reread Level: 5/5
You can order the book from:
The Book Depository
Or from Target
From Amazon
Lion of the Sky
Lion of the Sky
Haiku for All Seasons
by Laura Purdie Salas and illustrated by Merce Lopez
Lerner Publishing Group
Millbrook Press
Children’s Nonfiction , Poetry
Pub Date 02 Apr 2019
GoodReads Description:
you gasp as I roar,
my mane exploding, sizzling–
lion of the sky!
Haiku meet riddles in this wonderful collection from Laura Purdie Salas. The poems celebrate the seasons and describe everything from an earthworm to a baseball to an apple to snow angels, alongside full-color illustrations.
My Thoughts:
I love haiku, and I love riddles. I also love Laura Purdie Salas. So, of course, I had to check out this book.
What did I (re)discover as/after I read this book:
- Riddle-ku are a fun way to introduce the young reader to the haiku!
- A fun way to think and try to answer the riddles. Note that you should first read out the riddleku to your young one before they look at the illustrations (at least on the first read) so they can try to answer it without any help from the beautiful helpful illustrations.
- Seasons come and seasons go; each one puts on its own show! So make sure you enjoy all of it – heat, fall-colors, rain, and snow!
- As with her other books, Laura Purdie Salas easily shows the reader that there are so many different ways to look at the world around us – from the dandelion to those brilliant fireworks that light up the sky:)
- Again, as with other books, a helpful resource is included in the last couple of pages. One of them is a quick guide to how to write your own riddle-ku. The second includes books for further reading and answers to the riddle-ku in the book.
In Summary:
The verdict, well of course, it must be clear by now – I love this book too! Check out Laura Purdie Salas’ website for free activities and to share any riddle-ku you write.
Rating: A
Reading Level: 5 – 9 years
Reread Level: 5/5
Pre-order the book from:
The Book Depository
Or from Target (best price on the physical book currently!)
From Amazon
Ida and the Whale
Ida and the Whale
by Rebecca Gugger with illustrations by Simon Röthlisberger
NorthSouth Books
Children’s Fiction
Pub Date 02 Apr 2019
GoodReads Description:
What lies behind the sun, the moon, and the stars?
Ida can’t stop thinking about these and other very important questions. Then one night, a flying whale wakes her and takes her on an amazing journey—where some of her questions are answered and even more created.
This gentle, philosophical tale is a visual treat sure to fill curious little listeners with wonder.
My Thoughts:
A dream come to life via the pages of this book – that is what it felt like as I read this book. Simon Röthlisberger’s illustrations wow with their whimsy and are definitely the star of this book.
The story itself – as I mentioned, is dream-like, complete with narratives that seem to move randomly from one to the other and you wonder if you missed something, and you realize it is just a dream! You know, like a movie where the scene suddenly cuts to something else and you rewind back to a moment ago (if you happen to watch it somewhere where you can do that).
Since this is a book, I flip back a page to check if I missed a page but am fine. Once I decided to read it with the dream assumption, I totally enjoyed it.
And at the risk of repeating myself, the water-color illustrations that take your imagination on a wonderful journey, made it more enjoyable. I also loved how the text itself is printed on the pages, with different fonts and in unique ways to be more in line with the words being said.
In Summary:
If you love flights of fancy and whimsical illustrations, then this book is for you! Granted, this is not a book that works well for a read-aloud, but it does wonders to your imagination..
Rating: B
Reading Level: 5 – 9 years
Reread Level: 3/5 (4.5 for just the illustrations)
Pre-order the book from:
The Book Depository
Or from Target
From Amazon
Disclaimer: Thanks to NetGalley and each publisher for the digital review copy of the books above. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated in any other way by the publishers or others for this review.
For Ultimate Blog Challenge and for IMWAYR (It’s Monday, What Are You Reading?) hosted over at Teacher Mentor Texts
This is for Day 7 of UBC (and I know it is the 8th already :))
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6
Those all sounds like really cute books. I know my niece and nephews would really enjoy them.
Thank you Luci, I am sure they will!
The descriptions of these books make me want to have children so I have an excuse for reading them! I’m glad you still read them though as you’re clearly doing what makes you happy. I loved the wordplay in the owl back by the way, very cute!
You should go ahead and read them anyway Zoe! 🙂 Books make me happy – any books and these have an appeal all their own
My youngest loves picture books and has become quite the artist.
that is so cool.. books do inspire in so many ways..
What a lovely post – I shall definitely try to find some of these books – such gorgeous descriptions you provided. 🙂
thank you Myra 🙂 for your comments.. i love reading about your book finds – always so cool
What a beautiful selection of children’s books! Thank you for sharing this, I will be getting some for my friends kids!
thank you Carrie..
These all sound wonderful & so unique! I know I would have loved reading them as a child, thanks for sharing!
-Madi xo
http://everydaywithmadirae.com/
thank you Madi.. you should go ahead and check these out anyways..
Lion of the Sky looks WONDERFUL! This is the first I recall hearing of it. I’m adding it to my TBR list right now. Thanks so much for all these shares, Vidya. Have a wonderful week of reading!
thank you Shaye.. I enjoyed Laura’s earlier books and when I saw this one on NetGalley, I knew I had to check it out.. 🙂
Awww, you made me suddenly want to read picture books. They are the cutest, especially the one about mother owl and her owlet. 🙂
Then my blog made its impact! 🙂 The mama owl made me cuddle my little ones (well, not so little with one a teen and the other almost there as well)..
These look so cute!
thank you Heidi 🙂
It’s been ages since I’ve read a picture book!
🙂 It had been ages when I restarted reading them to my kids when they were picture-book-ages, I just never stopped after that.. Now I read middle-grade books with my tween, and YA books with my teen, and books for adults as well as picture books for myself 🙂
Glad you liked it
Thank you DJ:)
Awe they all look so cute. I review picture books often on my blog.
Thank you Stacey.. I will look out for your picture book reviews
Thank you so much, and I’m glad you enjoyed LION OF THE SKY! I’m going to have to get OWL LOVE YOU and IDA AND THE WHALE. I’m going to a launch party this weekend for my friend David LaRochelle’s ISLE OF YOU, similar wordplay in title at least to OWL LOVE YOU :>)
thank you so much for visiting Laura.. and I will check out Isle of You.
I love your book recommendations- all of them sound like they have amazing stories and concepts! It just occurred to me how there are SO many new books out that are great for children, and I need to take a look at all of them now because another thing I love about whimsical books is their illustrations!
thank you Reesa.. and agree with the illustrations comment
Is it be too childlike of me to want to read picture books again?
not at all!
Ida and the Whale looks especially cute! I think both my kids would enjoy this one 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing these!
thank you Megan, glad you liked the shares..and am sure your kids will enjoy the read
Great post! I haven’t read any of these, I need to check them out!
Thank you Amanda!
Great reviews, all these books looks and sounds really like cute and adorable children’s books. I’m really glad you fully enjoyed each book, thank you so much for sharing your awesome post.
thank you Kati