- Before After by Anne-Margot Ramstein and Matthias Arégui (Candlewick Press)
- Wall by Tom Clohosy Cole (Candlewick Press)
- Up & Down: a lift-the-flap book by Britta Teckentrup (Candlewick Press)
- Sam & Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen (Candlewick Press)
- The Princess in Black by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale, illustrated by LeUyen Pham (Candlewick Press)
Episode Transcript:
First up is Before After by Anne-Margot Ramstein and Matthias Arégui. This is a gorgeous book of graphic illustrations where two images are paired together: a before and after image. There are pictures that are funny pairings. There are poignant pairings. There are just thoughtful pairings. There are some that seem obvious and some that are surprises. I love, for example, that we have all these ingredients laid out on one side of the page, and on the other we have the finished cake. We have an acorn on one page and on the other side we have a fully grown tree. We have fireworks laid out on one side and on the other page fireworks exploding. Those are more obvious and wonderful to look at, but you also have things like a ship at sea and a storm followed by the ship resting at the bottom of the ocean. You have a cannon prepared to fire canning and the next page a hole in the brick wall. It's just wonderful. Surprise after surprise, and it's a good, long, thick book. Lots and lots of pairings to explore. Something that I think kids of all ages can enjoy a lot.
The next book is Wall by Tom Clohosy Cole and this is a story about the Berlin Wall, a story that takes place while the Berlin Wall was still erected. And it being erected through Berlin, Dad gets stuck on one side of the wall while mom and two kids are stuck on the other. And a we see that the two sides are really something completely different. One was really sort of oppressed and the underside had freedom, but we still have a family apart. What I really appreciate most about this is Tom's language in his illustrations, as well as the play on light and dark in the colors. I think this is the book that's perfectly suited for a young audience, but still takes on a topic that is very, very heavy. And the notion of a boy tryng get back to his dad and wanting to tunnel below the wall to get over there is something that is is the driving force in this book and pays off really well in the end.
The third book is Up & Down: a lift-the-flap book by Britta Teckentrup. And this is so fun! It's penguins! One penguin separated by an iceberg to another and they're trying to get to one another. And the lift-the-flaps are just amazing! You're flipping quarter sheets of paper that they go from left to right and then end up going diagonal across the page, until they become entire entire page within a spread. I can't even really explain it to you. You'll have to check it out for yourself. But the penguin is going up and down and through he ocean and around different animals to get to his partner. And it is just beautiful. It's a beautiful work of art, reminding us all why picture books in this medium work so well. To be hands-on. To be in print. It's just lovely. I see myself sharing this with lots and lots of other people. I know my son and I have already enjoyed it an awful lot already.
Okay! Sam & Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen. This is a book that I think has been on a lot of a radars this year already. Two boys set out to dig a hole, looking for something unexpected, some treasure. And. wouldn't you know it, at each turn they keep thinking they hit a dead end, so they turn another direction. But we the readers notice in the illustrations that they're actually missing bigger and bigger fortunes, bigger and bigger jewels hidden. I think the bigger picture here. though really for the story is that it's all about being together, the experience is what we take away. But nonetheless, Mac and Klassen have created storyhere that will make the audience and make the reader cringe with excitement and wanting to just scream at the page at where they should be going because of all these very closely missed diamonds and jewels and funny stuff like that. It's a great one to explore with the pictures.
And finally my best work ever this week is The Princess in Black by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale, illustrated by LeUyen Pham. This is number one in what will be a series and it's an easy reader and it's so good. It's about this princess, Princess Magnolia, who's all dress in pink at all prim and proper and what have you, but she has a secret. She is the princess in black! And while she has Duchess Wiggtower over an emergency happens: a monster gets out and she has to go save it… save the town and get this monster back in his monster hole. And it's just so funny and lovely and wonderful. The language is spot on. And I love that it takes the princess story and turns it on its head. It's such an enjoyable story. The illustrations are perfect in it. And it's got content here, characters here, that the readers are going to want to run back to right away, so I know that anyone who has read Princess in Black already is just chomping at the bit for book two to come out. So, very well done. That's why I'm calling The Princess in Black the best book ever this week. Way to go, Princess in Black!
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