Tuesday Storytime: Rainy Day Storytime

We got drenched this morning, so I pulled one of my usual fall storytimes forward to celebrate the sudden thunderstorm.

Tap Tap Boom Boom
Elizabeth Bluemle, illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Urban residents take to the subway underground station to seek shelter from a sudden rainstorm, and find friendship and fun while down there.

Rain
Sam Usher
A boy is DELIGHTED that it's a rainy day, and can't wait for all the rainy-day adventures to begin, but his grandfather persuades him to wait and wait and WAIT for the rain to end before heading outside for the eventual fun. Gets a little surreal at the end, might confuse littler ones as to what's real and what's imaginary.

Like a Hundred Drums
Annette Griessman, illustrated by Julie Monks
A lovely nature-and-farm-animal focused look at an incoming thunderstorm, heavy on the anticipation. The people are almost an afterthought, and it's a surprisingly lyrical and longing take on the subject.

Tuesday Storytime: Summer Adventures

Last week's storytime was done by my coworker, celebrating the last dregs of summer fun before school starts back up.

Ice Cream Summer
Peter Sís

Summer Days and Nights
Wong Herbert Yee

Maisy Goes on Vacation 
Lucy Cousins

Tuesday Storytime: Imaginary Selves

There's lots of focus placed on imaginary friends, but this time around I wanted to focus on how children imagine themselves as bigger, stronger, or more interesting people (or versions of themselves) to empower themselves through life and challenges. Here we have three different versions of "imaginary selves" helping kids face some pretty common kid struggles: baby siblings, bedtime, and new schools.

Rodeo Red
Maripat Perkins, illustrated by Molly Idle
Rodeo Red does NOT like that new cowpoke Sideswiping Slim. That ornery thing snaps up toys, food, and even messes up her favorite hat! Not only that, but the "law" (mom and dad) are inexplicably and unfairly on that little snake's side! When he steals her sidekick Rusty the (stuffed) dog, Red just has to set things right. After a few botched attempts, an unwanted gift proves to be a welcome distraction. Maybe, just maybe, things can get set right with this rascal eventually.

Bedtime for Batman
Michael Dahl, illustrated by Ethen Beavers
A sweet side-by-side comparison story shows a small boy in Gotham readying for bed in the persona of his favorite caped crusader, Batman. While the boy faces challenges like the potty and managing to stuff all of his toys into the bin, Batman is cleaning up familiar evildoers from the sewers. The comparisons are funny and sweet, and the story is full of good rituals (with a checklist at the end for good measure). There's a companion story "Sweet Dreams, Supergirl" (and one with Superman and Wonder Woman) which is also adorable, but I liked the paired storytelling of this one best.

Ally-saurus and the First Day of School
Richard Torrey
Ally-saurus is a dinosaur for her first day of school, which helps her be brave and gives her something to focus on while she learns to navigate desks and class rituals. When lunchtime comes, despite being shunned by the "princess table," she finds a set of friends (all of whom have their own favorite animal (or item) to play happily, even with the princesses, during recess and afterwards into class again. A positive story about the impact of imagination and acceptance and being friendly.

Tuesday Storytime: Summer Fun

These were selected by my coworker!

An Island in the Sun
Stella Blackstone, illustrated by Nicoletta Ceccoli
A "House that Jack built" narrative structure, and a lovely rhyming flow make this sweet but fairly empty story move along quickly, held largely together by the utterly beautiful illustrations of sun and wind and water and islands in a tropical imagination of a world. Beautiful but slight.

North, South, East, West
Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Greg Pizzoli
An unpublished little gem from Margaret Wise Brown has a little bird fluttering off into different climates as she flies in each cardinal direction to discover where she most wants to be - finally (seemingly) returning home to settle and raise a family who end the story by taking wing in all different directions just like their mother.

Leo Can Swim
Anna McQuinn, illustrated by Ruth Hearson
Leo is Lola's little brother, a Black British child who has family-and-child-centered real-life adventures with his family and father, much as Lola does in her books. In this story, Leo and his dad go to a swim class at a local pool, and encounter locker rooms, swimming gear, a swimming lesson, and a nice rest after class. Perfect little books for explaining life experiences for kids about to start on them personally, or for kids who may never have that experience to learn about them in a realistic way.

Summer Reading Storytime, space, week 8

Last week of Space! We say goodbye with a set from my coworker:

Mail Harry to the Moon!
Robie H. Harris, illustrated by Michael Emberley
Our unnamed narrator is QUITE DISPLEASED with the new addition to the family, especially now that his things (and food, and parental affection) are getting seriously infringed upon. When smaller ideas - toss him in the trash, flush him down the toilet - don't gain any traction, he goes for the ultimate solution and decides that they need to just Mail Harry to the Moon! But the next morning he's shocked by the silence - did they ACTUALLY do it? But the baby's too young to be on the moon by himself! So off he goes to the rescue, deciding it's really not that bad to have a baby brother after all.

Space Cows (easy reader)
Eric Seltzer, illustrated by Tom Disbury
This silly story reminds me of Sandra Boynton's goofyness, but in a easy-reader format. Nothing serious or ponderous, just a silly little nonsense rhyme featuring cows in spacesuits cavorting about in space and on the moon, and in spaceships.


A Big Mooncake for Little Star
Grace Lin
This sweet fable (adapted from childhood memories of the actual Chinese Moon Festival, although not from the mythology associated with it) has Mama and Little Star as a small family, baking lovely tasty mooncakes that Little Star can't resist slowly nibbling on through the month, leaving a trail of crumbs as the milky way. Sweet and gentle and a fun "just-so story" for the phases of the moon being caused by a hungry little girl.

Summer Reading Storytime, space, week 7

Last week of the SRP, but we're going to roll the storytimes for 8 weeks and end on the last day of July.

Here are our second-to-last space summer reading books for Pendleton's Family Storytime group!

Moondogs
Daniel Kirk
His parents are desperate to get him a pal, but Willy is convinced that no pet will be as good as a moondog. But when an alien threatens everyone, a good old earth mutt saves the day, and changes Willy's mind.

Boy + Bot
Ame Dyckman, illustrated Dan Yaccarino
A cute short fable of good friends trying their best to meet needs even in the face of unexpected challenges (and operating systems). The weird tiny scientist at the end is icing on the cupcake.

Garcia and Collette go Exploring
Hannah Barnaby, illustrated by Andrew Joyner
Garcia and Collette can't decide WHERE to explore, so they build their own devices (rocket and submarine) and head off on their respective adventures, but they realize the true fun of exploring is having someone to share the fun. Back they come, the inventions are invented upon, and a mutually-enjoyable destination is discovered in the end.

Summer Reading Storytime, space, week 6

The end of summer got away from me!

For this week, we had some cute stories picked out by my coworker:

Little Fox and the Missing Moon
Ekaterina Trukhan
After a nightmare where he eats the moon, Little Fox (and eventually his friends) head out into the dark night to find it. A bit wandering, but cute illustrations, and a sweet story.

No, No, Kitten!
Shelley Moore Thomas, illustrated by Lori Nichols
Kitten just needs a bowl and a basket and a laser pointer and a spaceship... What? Kitten wants to go to Jupiter, of course!

Roaring Rockets
Tony Mitton, illustrated by Ant Parker
Nonfiction content in a narrative form, with anthropomorphic animals as the cast, and wobby "crayon" faux naif illustrations. Super cute and I appreciate the attentiveness to veracity.