Loving Lessac

Lately, I've been enjoying the work of a wonderful author and illustrator—Frané Lessac.  Her style is deceptively childlike: at first you see her paintings and think Psssh! My 8 year old colors like that! I guess anyone can illustrate children's books. Then you look a little closer or turn a few pages and realize that her folk art is absolutely filled with thoughtfulness and detail... color and feeling.  This is more than what most children can do— Lessac has a bright ability to make stories come alive with innovative attention to detail.  And every new book I see illustrated by her, I inevitably love.

She spent part of her life living on the Carribean island of Montserrat and this has influenced her work heavily.  The story My Little Island  was the first encounter I had with her and I was struck with how fitting her style is with summery, beachy, island themes, similar I guess to the way that Jan Brett really shines brightest in her Scandinavian themed books.  The flavors of island life practically jump from the pages in My Little Island.  And they do this as well with Drummer Boy of John John which is a fun story about the upcoming festival of Carnival featuring lots of foot stomping, hand clapping onomatopoeia.

The next time I stumbled across Frané was when I picked up On the Same Day in March at the thrift store.  What a gem! I really love LIVING social studies books and this one immediately went into my homeschooling basket for my 2nd grade and under crew. It examines different parts of the world at the exact same time of year.  It is so fun to see the differences in weather and lifestyle!


Next I found Monday on the Mississippi at the library and marveled at how beautifully the text and pictures complemented each other.  This book takes the reader from the headwaters all the way to the Gulf of Mexico... I immediately pegged it as a great companion to Minn of the Mississippi and any other studies of this river or rivers in general.


I really loved Lessac's illustrations in Queen Esther Saves Her People by Rita Gelman also.  I think it can be a challenge to translate many Bible stories into children's books while retaining the story element. But this one absolutely brings the fantastic story alive and wonderful to kids while remaining faithful to the story of Esther.




Lastly, I want to highlight the best World War I picture book I've seen so far: The Donkey of Gallipoli: A True Story of Courage in World War I.  How do you bring the horrors of war into a picture book without horrifying young children?  I think the answer to this is in the art of storytelling and the way the pictures fill in the blanks.  For example, while Patricia Polacco's highly acclaimed Pink and Say is a moving story taking place during the Civil War, I removed it from our collection.  I just had an aversion the graphic depiction of blood even if it was couched in beautiful sentiment.  But the Donkey of Gallipoli is balanced beautifully.  There are war scenes to be sure and the story doesn't avoid the topic of death.  Yet, the folk style of Lessac really helps to soften the harshness of what is being read and the lovely story really is one that all children will enjoy.  The ending leaves us thoughtful and hopeful... not scared or disturbed.  Highly recommended!

Frané Lessac is a wonderful artist whose style is a refreshing and quirky change on my bookshelf of classic artists.  There are many other books she's collaborated on not listed here which I am eager to get my hands on... and I understand she has many more in the works so keep your eyes open for her vivid bursts of delightful art.

The difference between good and great

Last night, the children picked a couple story books before bedtime. Two of the books chosen last night struck me for two different reasons. I wouldn't classify either of these books as "must have" literature... they were picked up probably at a garage sale or some such for a quarter a piece in my efforts to rely less on the library and more on our own shelves for read-alouds (these overdue fines are killing me!)

The difference in good and great text in a picture book is sometimes very subtle.  It's an attention to quirky details or a particular knack for speaking in a child's language.  We read Babar Visits Another Planet and in the story Babar loses a shoe on the sticky surface of the planet.  Read this next part:

The concept of an elephant being conscious of dignity in footware is wonderfully fresh and thoughtful for a reader to stumble upon.  This is partially why Laurent de Brunhoff has been successful in furthering the Babar series that his father—the famous Jean de Brunhoff— created in 1931.  I tend to love the originals by Jean best... this visit to another planet thing doesn't amuse me as much as my boys but I really did appreciate this little line. 

The next book we read was the wonderful The Giant Jam Sandwich.  Fun rhyming, a superbly inventive concept... what's not to love?!  But just try to imagine what this book would look like with illustrations like digital, bright, generic cartoon characters.  *shudder*  The magic would be gone.  John Vernon Lord hits a home run here because of his wonderfully detailed images:

Just look at this last one!  There is a photographer down the road, a morose looking man along the parapet, three children chasing each other on the horizon, and a bunch of women laying out the blanket in the field.  But the text is only about the horses pulling the bread to the site. This is how illustrations should be: not just showing a visual of what the words say... but filling in the idiosyncrasies of a tale and doing half the tale-telling themselves. This book illustrates (Ha! Punny.) that concept so well it is no wonder that Vernon Lord is a lecturer on the art of illustration!  Delicious!

a brief scholarly detour

... to engage those brain muscles of yours. This only tangentially relates to picture books, but I stumbled on this bit by C.S Lewis on the importance of reading old books.  It's more than intellectual snobbery or biblio-aesthetics... read the whole thing when you get a minute, or at least read until he starts talking specifically about the book he's introducing if that doesn't interest you.

Introduction to Athanasius' On the Incarnation.

photo of the day

Clever.

Indestructables!

A few weeks ago I went to a baby shower where the new mom was gifted with a couple Indestructables.  Well, me being the kind of woman I am, I was immediately intrigued by its claims to withstand baby trauma and wanted to sink my teeth into the pages.  For the sake of propriety, I refrained, but I did discreetly tug and pull on the pages as I examined this breakthrough in children's books.  They've apparently been around a few years now but this was rocket science to me.

See, board books are the standby classic for babies.  And most babies do fine with board books.  My children, however, manage to soak or rip the cardboard eventually, and while they'll last longer than our paper books, the board books are indeed mortal. Plus, this genre is very often older children's books, reprinted on cardboard and then marketed to babies.  (Don't get me wrong, I love board books... for about 18 months up to 4)  But indestructables are specifically made for BABIES.

Indestructables promises the fountain of youth in picture book world. They can be eaten and bent and disheveled in every which way, only to come out just as loved and bright as before.  They even promise to be machine washable!  Wowzas!

I personally wasn't in love with the way the books felt... they are paper thin (made of a strange, vinyl-esque material) and would fit nicely into a purse (folded up!!!) or diaper bag, but I can absolutely appreciate what they offer... a pre-literacy inclusion for our youngest of bibliozealots.  The books are wordless, designed to just stimulate baby's mind with the way a book "works" without ruining said book.

Mama and Baby!  and Plip-Plop, Pond! were the two books I examined closely. I was quite impressed and think these would make excellent baby shower gifts... who doesn't love the irony of a baby product that is baby proof?!

Adult Diversion #1

Taking a step away from the picture book world to share what I'm reading.  Typically, I have about three books going at once: something non-fiction—to educate, something spiritual—to inspire, and something fiction—mind candy. What I read depend on what mood I'm in or what is particularly great.

First, I just finished What to Expect When No One's Expecting: America's Coming Demographic Disaster which was brilliant and fresh and highly educational. I thought it would largely be a piece of pro-natalist propaganda (yes, it happens on both sides!) but was surprised to find the author's points compelling, well thought out and scientifically backed up. I highly recommend this book.

Second, I'm about half-way through a birthday gift that was given to me this year: Sigrid Undset's biography of Catherine of Siena. This reads like a piece of fiction because Undset is a great storyteller (I first fell in love with her over the Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy) and I'm loving learning more than the abstract version of this very popular saint.

In Adoration I can currently be found with with Abandonment to Divine Providence tucked under my arm. It's not exactly heavy reading... but it is theologically dense and I have to take it slowly because so much goodness is packed into so few words at a time. Fr. Jean Pierre de Caussade was deeply influenced by St. Francis de Sales and St. John of the Cross so you can imagine how this book packs a spiritual punch.

Lastly, I recently finished the first of the Eliot Family Trilogy by Elizabeth Gouge which has been out of print and unaffordable for so long!  They have just re-released the books and I immediately bought The Bird in the Tree.  It is beautifully written... and the themes are refreshing and timeless: love, duty, family, nobility, honor, legend.  I am happy to have read it and am looking forward to reading Pilgrim's Inn next. (But why do they have to ruin a good story with a modern photo on the cover! That man is NOT how I envisioned David to look and I always feel a little bit crushed at these photographic invasions of my imagination.  Artist sketches don't bother me since they are a bit more subjective but a photo implies an unbending reality! This is one reason I NEVER buy books that have the new movie characters on the covers—e.g. The Chronicles of Narnia, or Lord of the Rings— let the kids put together their own faces of the characters without being told that Frodo looks like Elijah Wood!)

So there you have it. Ellie's current reads for herself.  You'll get this every now and again I suspect...

The Tale of Lazy Lizard Canyon... etc.

I've said before that asking a bibliozealot to choose a favorite book is like asking her to choose a favorite child.  And although I have dozens and dozens of "absolute, 100%, very, very favorite books", I think I'm ready to back-peddle on that statement.  I do have a favorite book.  This post isn't about that though... a thorough post on that is coming...

This post is about a title by the same illustrator: Doris Burn.  I have made a point to collect all the books that were written and illustrated by Doris Burn (there are only three and two are out of print).  But she has illustrated a half dozen books in addition to these.  A fellow Washingtonian, Doris Burn won my heart with Andrew Henry's Meadow years ago. Then I stumbled on my precious, precious favorite which she illustrated We Were Tired of Living in a House.  I'm not linking it because I don't want my unwitting readers to accidentally buy the new, awful version of that book... more on this later.

Last year, I acquired The Summerfolk and loved it.  This year, I finally got my hands on the missing part of the trifecta— I'll offer pictures before commentary:

The first thing I noticed about the book was the departure from her earlier style of simple black and white sketching.  In this title, Burn uses a brown pencil wash which is actually quite fitting for the Old West themed story.

The story itself didn't immediately grab me in the way her other titles have.  This is written in a true, olden time fashion.  Unlike modern cowboy books, Doris doesn't shy away from whiskey, guns or brawls.  She tells it like it is to which many contemporary parents will probably stick up their noses.  The tale is of two feuding families ultimately brought together by a romantic, non-fighting son and a pretty lil' Miss.  This isn't something I would read to my 6 and under set, but my 8 and 10 year old boys found it to be amusing, while I found the writing... the STORYTELLING to be indeed very deliberate and authentic.  I don't think you will find much in children's picture books these days about the authentic Old West... fun, stylized versions, yes... but the nitty, gritty, dag-nabbit, root-tootin mess that it often was?!  Not likely.  So this book is nice to fill in that area.  

That said, it wasn't an area that I felt essential to get into and I wouldn't call this title a MUST-HAVE for anyone other than die-hard Doris Burn lovers like myself...

If You Want to See a Whale

I was eagerly waiting to get my hands on this book.  When Julie Fogliano paired her first story And Then It's Spring with illustrator Erin Stead... it was a match made in Heaven and one of my very favorite books of last year.  I loved it so much that I did what I almost never do for children's books: paid full price for it just to call it mine and see it sitting pretty in my springtime basket. So when If You Want to See a Whale came up, I snatched it up at the library and dove right in.

I had to read it twice. I wasn't in the right mindset at first and I found myself getting lost in the lyrical side of it, wondering what the heck relevance this book had to a young reader. The pictures were gorgeous of course, and the text placement well thought out and the paper quality excellent... but I missed the magic boat initially.  So I read it again without my analytical, book critic glasses on.  It occurred to me that from the perspective of a young child, this book was a pure slice of lovely. Who cares if it was slightly off-center with where-is-this-going logic?!  I had to look at it the way I have to look at the genius of the incomparable A Hole Is to Dig for example.

      If you want to see a whale you shouldn't watch the clouds, some floating by some hanging down in the sky, that's spread out side to side or the certain sun that's shining because if you start to look straight up you just might miss a whale.

I read an interview of Fogliano recently where she remarked that she loved working with Erin Stead because Stead often knew what she was trying to express better than she did. And I think this point is especially evocative in this story. The illustrations make the magic; they connect the sometimes disparate sentences.  Don't get me wrong; the writing is great, and the cadence is well done... you just have to snuggle up with someone little and love it with them and for them to really appreciate it.

The NEXT Top Ten Alphabet Books

I can't help it; there are so many good ones!  Whether it's lovely alphabet books that tell a story or clever ones that explore a concept or theme, the genre is loaded with many books that are much better than any disconnected alphabet books that may exist. So, here is my Top 10 NEXT best Alphabet Books... to be taken as a follow-up to the first titles that made the cut.


 Alligators All Around by Maurice Sendak is one title I can't believe I forgot on the first list! Maurice Sendak at his best and I really love the size of this book. This is an important piece of psychological consideration authors and publishers have to make.

ABC Bunny by Wanda Gag. Here is a sweet, simple story (decked out in Gag's wonderfully folksy illustrations) that just happens to be an alphabet book.

 The Z Was Zapped by Chris Van Allsburg.  The man who thrives in the "books noir" category has given us a clever little treat detailing the demise of all the letters of the alphabet.  Whether the B gets bitten or the K gets kidnapped, this is a fun book for kids just past the toddler stage.


 On Market Street by Arnold Lobel.  There is nothing super clever about the text in this book, it's the illustrations that make it shine.  Watching the man get smothered by his purchases on market street will be sure to evoke giggles from all.

 The Alphabet Tree by Leo Lionni.  Now this is an unusual alphabet book.  Rather it's a story about phonics and literacy and team-building.  Don't expect the typical "A is for..." Instead it's a learning adventure, good for slow-to-start readers perhaps.

 The Alphabet Game by Trina Schart Hyman.  No story here, just pictures filled with words beginning with each letter of the alphabet.  I am a fan of Schart-Hyman's work in the fairy tale genre and this came as a refreshing addition to her opus. It's another small book for small hands... I love those.

 Anno's Alphabet.  Who doesn't love Anno?!  Each page spread features a letter and an accompanying picture of something starting with that letter.  It works the brain though too; there are hidden images in the border... lovely all around.

 The Hidden Alphabet by Laura Vacarro Seeger.  A truly clever book. Each letter contains the shape somehow of objects beginning with that letter.  A fun exercise for kids to figure out what it's trying to detail.  Check out the product video on Amazon.

 Richard Scarry's Cars and Trucks From A to Z.  The classic.  All homes should have this in their baby basket.  It's one of the best, simple and most engaging books for toddlers ever.  Get it now.

 ABC3D by Marion Bataille.  I love this book even though I won't own it.  See, it's a pop-up and we have a volatile relationship with pop-ups here in this house.  But I see it's tremendous benefits especially for kids who may struggle with dyslexia or other learning issues.  It offers a tangible, tactile presence of the letter and that is valuable for many, many learners.