Tuesday Storytime: Bugs

Spring is officially here, and it's beautifully warm outside, and that means the bugs are out in full force. No better time to feature them in a storytime!

The Caterpillow Fight
Sam McBratney, illustrated by Jill Barton
ISBN: 1564028046
ADORABLE young caterpillars rile up and whale away with their 'caterpillows' in this tongue-twisty rhyme, at least until Big Caterpillar makes them settle down, and removes temptation in a clever way.

The Itsy Bitsy Spider
Lorianne Siomades
ISBN: 1563977273
I have yet to be able to get through this book without singing, but its a great way to model prediction and "what comes next" for the kids, because they all know (and sing) it along with the page turns. There's one glitch where a wordless spread precedes "out comes the sun" that ALWAYS causes hiccups. Still cute and fun. One of the only books I can do about spiders because the little guy is amazingly inoffensively non-spidery.

The Very Ugly Bug
Liz Pichon
ISBN: 9781589250482
A very ugly bug doesn't have plant-mimicking body parts like a leafy-green back, or wings to fly away into the sky, so how is she to avoid getting eaten by a big hungry bird? She tries a disguise and fake wings, but that fails spectacularly. A fun story, and a good lesson that "ugly" is only in your perception.

Tuesday Storytime: puddles!

My only regret for this set of books is that Rain Feet is suuuuch a small board book. I really wish that more of them were a bit closer in size to regular picture books.

Muddypaws
Moira Butterfield, illustrated by Simon Mendez
ISBN: 9781407518404
Sweet nameless puppy gets muddy in all sorts of interesting contexts.

Rain Feet
Angela Johnson, illustrated by Rhonda Mitchell
ISBN: 0531068498
A sweet little Black boy (context not clear so can't tell if AA or otherwise). Bright colors, sweet face.

Puddle
Hyewon Yum
ISBN: 9780374316952
Story-within-a-story of an evolving drawing on a rainy day of a boy and his mom and their dog.

Tuesday Storytime: More and Too Many

I really enjoy doing concept themes, and this one is a fun set.

Just Enough And Not Too Much
Kaethe Zemach
ISBN: 0439377242
Simon the Fiddler has everything he needs, but then he realizes he can get more if he wants, and pretty soon, more has become too much, and he needs a clever plan to get rid of all the things he doesn't really need. His solution is storybook cute, but unlikely to win friends in real life.


Henry Wants More
Linda Ashman, illustrated by Brooke Boynton Hughes
ISBN: 9780385385121
Very like my favorite sweet picture book (Again! by John Prater) Henry is a toddler that wants MORE of whatever is going on, and he wears out his whole family in the process. Cute and very real.


Too Many Frogs
Sandy Asher, illustrated by Keith Graves
ISBN: 0399239782
Rabbit has his habits and his routine, and they're perfect, until Frog comes by and just invites himself along for everything - and THEN starts inviting the whole Frog clan! Enough is enough, but Rabbit balances boundaries with kindness.

Tuesday Storytime: Beach Day

It's been so bloody warm lately that I just felt like I had to.

Surf's Up
Kwame Alexander, illustrated by Daniel Miyares
ISBN: 9780735842205
Orange and Green frog are headed to the beach, but distracted by the tale of Moby Dick. A celebratory look at reading and of the beach.

Beach Baby 
Laurie Elmquist, illustrated by Elly MacKay
ISBN: 9781459809543 (board book format)
Sweet, soft, gentle, soothing. Spreads of gentle beach scenes paired with comforting assurances that baby won't miss anything while asleep. A bit on the quiet side for my group today.

Beach Day!
Patricia Lakin, illustrated by Scott Nash
ISBN: 0803728948
Repetitive and simplistic (large) type indicate it's mostly for beginning readers, but past the repetition, Sam and Pam, Will and Jill have a lovely full day trying (and mostly failing) to get to the beach.

Tuesday Storytime: Chickens

A bit off the beaten track, but hey, Chickens and baby chicks!

A Chicken Followed Me Home
Robin Page
ISBN: 9781481410281
Nonfiction Q&A style fact-book targeted at the very youngest readers/listeners. Very good info, well presented.

Big Fat Hen
Keith Baker
ISBN: 0152928693
The classic counting rhyme gets a facelift with a slightly-oversized bright collection of spreads.

Big Red Barn
Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Felicia Bond
ISBN: 9780060207489
A sweet and gentle look at a person-free day on the farm with animals and their babies.

Tuesday Storytime: Rainy Day

It's the time of year for random rain showers, and there are always so many good rain books floating around.  :)

The Cloud Princess
Khoa Le
ISBN: 9781608877317
Cloud Princess is always lonely and curious about the world, but she dissolves into rain when she gets too close.

Rain
Robert Kalan, illustrated by Donald Crews
ISBN: 0688841392
Simplistic, word-centered (the rain in the illustrations is the word RAIN repeated like thousands of tiny raindrops) and beautifully, simply colorful.

Puddles!!!
Kevan Atteberry
ISBN: 9780062307842
The bunny-loving monster is back, and this time there's a rainstorm, with puddles, mud, and THUNDER! Loud noises are scary even for monsters!

Tuesday Storytime: Valentines Day

I'm always unreasonably pleased when we have a storytime that actually falls on the day of the celebratory event of the season.  This time around we get an actual Valentine's Day storytime, and I had such fun.

Catching Kisses
Amy Gibson, illustrated by Marie Van Lieshout
ISBN: 9780312376475
A sweet tour of United States landmarks following kisses as they blow through the air.

This is a sweet book, and I'm happy to use it on Valentine's Day. We follow various kisses as they travel on the wind between people, and to the hearts of the ones who catch them. Beautiful and charming, and the illustrations of the landmarks kept the adult attention while the little ones pondered all the different types of kisses there were.


Together
George Ella Lyon, illustrate by Vera Rosenberry
ISBN: 0531070476
A pair of young girlfriends play happily together in various imaginative and fantastical scenarios.

A gleeful set of girls plays merrily through the pages of this sweet and fanciful book, where the two of them divide tasks into parts. "I'll find the ball if you'll call the team" and then once together they play at their games, always with the refrain "Let's put our heads together and dream the same dream" across a spread of even more imaginary landscapes. Sweet, visually interesting, and open-hearted.


Love Monster and the Last Chocolate
Rachel Bright
ISBN: 9780374346904
Love Monster has a box of chocolates and an eternal dilemma: should he share them?

The Love Monster is back from vacation to find a box of chocolates on his doorstep. He's delighted, because Love Monsters LOVE chocolates, especially certain kinds. But his glee is soon mired in guilt - he SHOULD probably share with his friends. But if he does, what if there aren't enough to go around? What if someone takes the one he likes best? What if the only one left is COFFEE flavored? What if there isn't one left AT ALL?? Oh dear. Sharing is hard. but Monster comes out on the caring side of things and discovers his friends are sweet and thoughtful too. No word on what happens when two monsters share the same favorite chocolate type.