Picture Book Round-Up #16

Another round up, with some VARYING levels of kid-friendliness, haha. Another Barnett/Klassen combo—which might be one of their darkest yet–some wholesome library support, a lovely display of representation in Kid Lit fun, and a museum cat.

The Wolf, The Duck, & The Mouse by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen

Uh….wow. That’s really all I have to say. A few days ago a mom told me about how a Barnett/Klassen book scarred her child, and I will not be recommending her this one, that’s for sure! I saw the humor, sure, but I cannot imagine this going well with most children. It’s about a mouse who’s eaten by a wolf, meets the duck living inside the wolf (swallowed, but not eaten) and how they trick the wolf into eating things they can use, etc. It ends wiht a hunter almost shooting the wolf, missing, and the mouse and duck continuing to live inside him. It’s fablistic, and the illustrations are interesting in the way Klassen’s always are, but this felt almost fever-dream-ish and very Aesop, but not the kind of Aesop a kid enjoys until they’re almost a teen, or weirdly into grim stuff.

Nour’s Secret Library by Wafa Tarnowska, illustrated by Vali Mintzi

This picture book retelling of a true story introduces young readers to the war in Syria in a less scary way, focusing on Nour and her cousin’s experiences hiding in basements when war changed their way of life, and then saving books and turning an abandoned basement into a secret library. I do wish the book had talked about how much of a threat they would be under if discovered–or not!–but overall I think it was a well written picture book for older elementary school students that will resonate especially with ones who have found refuge in a library before.

The Runaway Dosa by Suma Subramaniam, pictures by Parvati Pillai

Part foodie tale, part Indian fable, this is an energetic story about a family eating dosas when magic strikes, one comes to life, and runs away. They go on a journey where they encounter various aspects of mythology and Indian life, animals, etc. The illustrations are very computer-animated in a way that could easily become a cartoon, but somehow doesn’t really CLICK as a book. It’s a fun book that kids who love dosas will love to read, and will maybe entice some new fans of dosas!

Sallie Bee Writes a Thank-You Note by Courtney Sheinmel and Susan Verde, pictures by Heather Ross

I’m not crying, you’re crying. This is a sweet, unassuming picture book with a tear-inducing ending. After Grandma sends Sallie a scarf in the mail, just because, it’s not even her birthday–Sallie writes out her thank you while Mom is on the phone. After they decide to mail it as a note, rather than sending a text, Sallie learns that she LIKES sending thank you notes and finds reasons to write notes all week: to crossing guards, to the lunch lady, etc. It’s a sweet idea that will get kids thinking about notes too–with Sallie’s “real” notes in her “real” handwriting getting their own pages. But then we get the ending–when Sallie gets a thank you note of her own from Mom, and I got a little teary-eyed. Solid book!

Keyana Loves Her Family by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley, illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow

This is a sweet, but probably forgettable, more verbose picture book about a little girl who has a VISION for what she wants her family evening to look like–including extended family, balloons, tiaras, etc–but when life gets in the way, she adapts and finds the fun in begin together. The story itself is pretty uninspiring and replicable in a lot of other places, but what stood out to me, and made me enjoy this, was the representation on the page of Keyana, a young Black girl, and her joyous Black family. There’s natural hair and family bonding and a love of each other and fun with extended family, and she falls asleep in a bonnet, and I know that even though this may be a story that I have heard a hundred times, there will be young readers who are really excited to see a main character who looks like them finding out that family matters more than the specifics of a soiree.

Mildred the Gallery Cat by Jono Ganz

What a fun tale! It’s about a “gallery cat”–Mildred–who is assumed to be lazy at this beautiful art museum, but at night, Mildred likes to look at the art and dream of making her own art. However, a mouse chase leads to a minor museum disaster, but without time to fix it…Mildred learns that maybe she is an artist after all. A really fun book with some pieces for adult readers as well—like existential dread, haha.