Posted on Sep 23, 2008 under Family & Relationships |
My Dad’s a BirdmanDavid Almond
Illustr. Polly Dunbar
Ages 9-12
Hardcover, 128 pages
Full color throughout
Candlewick
ISBN-13: 978-0763636678
$15.99
Buy the book
Our story opens as Lizzie has gotten herself ready for school in a flurry of activity. As she wakes and attempts to get her dream-daft father to relinquish his PJs and comb his hair, we learn that Dad has taken to eating bugs and worms while creating a set of wings so as to enter the Human Bird Competition. I cannot say much more without spoiling, but it will suffice for readers to know that what seems at first either a tale of the absurd or a mental health disaster in the making quickly takes on depth and compassion when we learn that loss has touched these two, and Dad’s oddness is understandable. A cast of supporting characters keeps things light, as Auntie Doreen bustles in grumpily with helpful home cooking, Mr. Poop officiates grandiosely over the contest, and Lizzie’s headmaster falls head over heels in at least three ways.
On its face it is a tale of relentless silliness. Author Almond’s energetic dialogue with its wildly nutty moments (”Blitheration!” “Oh, puddly pittlepot.”) offers the option of a merely light read. For those looking deeper, however, the story suggests that allowing your feet to leave the ground for the realm of dreams and imagination can help us navigate the dark times. Together Lizzie and her Dad, the birdman, throw themselves crazily into life both because of and in spite of their loss, in the process rediscovering their faith in and love for themselves and each other.
It would be tough to imagine a finer visual interpretation of this new novel for young readers by writer David Almond, winner of a Carnegie Medal and a Michael L. Printz Award, than the wide-eyed, spindly-legged, lighter-than-air mixed-media characters of Polly Dunbar. This is a feast of a book. Its subtle messages of hope, patience, kindness, and compassion miraculously penetrate the package in which they arrive: a goofy romp about flying and faith and hope, that famous “thing with feathers.” Dive in!
Ceci Miller owns CeciBooks, an editorial and book publishing consultancy that empowers authors to write, publish, and market irresistible books that uplift and inspire. Ceci has written, co-authored, and edited books with bestselling authors and experts since 1988. See new and recent book projects here. Get expert information on writing, publishing, and marketing a book in CeciBooks Chats (”Getting Started” series is FREE).
A graduate of the University of Iowa Writer’s Workshop, Ceci Miller is also the author of two published children’s picture books, and former contributing editor for Darshan, an international magazine. A student of yoga and meditation since 1976, Ceci leads seminars that explore language as a vehicle for personal transformation. Based on her book Sacred Visitations, and the popular book she co-authored with John Lee, Writing from the Body, Ceci’s work (both with CeciBooks authors and in public programs) blends writing, intuitive guidance, and contemplative practices that connect your right brain creativity with your true intention.
Posted on Sep 12, 2008 under Family & Relationships |
Kenny & the DragonWritten and Illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi
co-creator of
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Ages 9-12
Hardcover,160 pages
Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing
ISBN-13: 978-1416939771
$15.99
Buy the book
“What do you do when your new best buddy has been designated a scourge by the community and marked for imminent extermination?”
The star of this very enjoyable new fairy tale is young book lover Kenny Rabbit, son of an excitable farmer and his much calmer wife. Kenny’s short on friends who “get him” until he meets and befriends the You Know What whose name is “Grahame like the cracker.” It’s not long before the other townfolk discover Grahame, too, and react predictably. When Kenny learns that his other best friend George a bookstore owner and former dragon-killing knight is coming out of retirement at the King’s request, Kenny must find a way to stop the madness.
The book’s greatest strength is Kenny’s authentic characterization, ably accomplished with flourishes of emotional description and snippets of dramatic detail that show us he is a true, as well as quite literate, hero with the heart of a regular kid. At times, however, the descriptive passages read like the well-worn territory of an animated Disney screenplay. If this aspect of the writing irked me slightly, its bouts of whimsical musicality (who could resist a chapter title like “Kerfuffle Down in Roundbrook”?) together with the superb illustrations of Kenny’s world, eclipsed any shortcomings.
The dragon Grahame is a uniquely furry, flop-eared fellow with a Cheshire Cat-like grin and a high degree of gustatory sophistication. There’s a Wind in the Willows classicism about Riddell’s cast of animal characters — rabbits, badgers, a bushy-tailed squirrel, a porcupine, and the occasional turtle or toad, often garbed in waistcoats and hats. Kenny gets around on a 1920s two-wheeler with a gigantic front wheel. Despite its period sets and costumes, our leading man Kenny’s slightly nerdy looks make him both an individual and an Everykid — a shy, bike-riding, good-natured guy who does his homework. On his fearless quest to confront the dragon, Kenny wears a saucepan helmet — the very picture of earnest innocence.
Lovers of great illustration will be compelled to buy this book at first glimpse of the brilliant cover illustration alone. The unlikely pair — rabbit and dragon — reveal a pleasing resemblance, set at eye level by the height of Kenny’s comical high-seated two-wheeler. The story’s a good read, but it was the yumminess of DiTerlizzi’s pencil illustrations that won my heart and mind.
Readers will appreciate Kenny & the Dragon, a modern send-up of the legend of St. George and the Dragon, for its humor as well as its sincere respect for the genre of the fairy tale, complete with an object lesson on the folly of harboring expectations based on what’s printed in books or whispered in hallways.
Also available as an audiobook download or CD.
Ceci Miller owns CeciBooks, an editorial and book publishing consultancy that empowers authors to write, publish, and market irresistible books that uplift and inspire. Ceci has written, co-authored, and edited books with bestselling authors and experts since 1988. See new and recent book projects here. Find expert information on writing, publishing, and marketing a book in CeciBooks Chats (”Getting Started” series is FREE).
A graduate of the University of Iowa Writer’s Workshop, Ceci Miller is also the author of two published children’s picture books, and former contributing editor for Darshan, an international magazine. A student of yoga and meditation since 1976, Ceci leads seminars that explore language as a vehicle for personal transformation. Based on her book Sacred Visitations, and the popular book she co-authored with John Lee, Writing from the Body, Ceci’s work (both with CeciBooks authors and in public programs) blends writing, intuitive guidance, and contemplative practices that connect your right brain creativity with your true intention.
Posted on Jun 11, 2008 under Family & Relationships |
Ocho Loved Flowers
by Anne Fontaine
Ages 4-7
Stoneleigh Press
www.annieseries.com
Hardcover $14.95
Paperback $6.95
In Ocho Loved Flowers, the first of The Annie Series, young Annie learns that her best friend–her mischievous cat, Ocho–suffers from a terminal illness and is going to die soon. This compassionate book shows our main character learning to help with a new level of pet care at the same time that she learns a new level of love. Endorsed by the Elisabeth Kubler-Ross Foundation, Ocho Loved Flowers has found some of its first fans among the hospice care crowd. Always on the lookout for compassionate books about death and dying, these brave folks have surely noticed that very few children’s authors have dared to tackle the subjects of grief and loss. Although it’s s difficult story to tell, Anne Fontaine does so with grace and humor. Teachers, parents, and compassionate veterinarians will welcome the page of helpful discussion questions at the back of the book.
Written for ages 4-7, Ocho Loved Flowers doesn’t avoid showing her young readers the painful reality of losing a beloved furry friend. Yet its poetic language adds an especially tender offering to the small group of well-written, compassionate books about death and dying. Lively, bright illustrations by Obadinah (see www.Obadinah.com) help to balance as well as inform the serious subject matter. The book ends with a beautiful two-page illustration that shows us Annie’s grief doesn’t keep her from playing with friends and enjoying life. Her dear cat Ocho is gone but not forgotten.
