Picture Book Saturday

Dreams Around the World
By Takashi Owaki
Published 2012 by One Peace Books
I really, really enjoyed this book. Showcasing a variety of children from around the world, readers are introduced both to their every day lives and their dreams for the future. I loved seeing how the dream differed from child to child and how determined they all seemed to achieve these dreams. Love the variety of children represented and the photographs vividly bring each child to life. This is a great introduction to the similarities and differences of children around the world.

A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse
By Frank Viva
Published 2012 by Toon Books
A young explorer and his companion, Mouse, set sail on an adventure to the bottom of the world. What will they find there? Join them and see. I really adored this book. It's incredibly cute and I absolutely adore the artistic style - it's retro but not outdated, very vivid and appealing I love that four choices are offered for each question - it adds a great level of interactivity to the book, making this suitable for one on one reading and, for the brave, a storytime crowd. Wonderful - looking forward to more from both Viva and Toon Books.

Step Gently Out
By Helen Frost, photographs by Rick Lieder
Published 2012 by Candlewick
Right from the cover, you can tell this book is going to be special. And - wow. That is more than enough to say about this book, but I'll give you a little more. This is an amazing piece of work. The photos of various insects in close-up are breathtaking and inspiring - how do I do that?I love the simplicity and rhythm of the text. Kids will love this and it is a perfect book for sharing at storytime. There are nice endnotes with information about the insects seen in the photos, as well. Please check this book out!

Dillweed's Revenge
By Florence Parry Heide, illustrated by Carson Ellis
Published 2010 by Harcourt Children's Books
I started my first big weeding project at work recently and came across this odd little book in our Junior Fiction section. It didn't have very good circulation numbers, so I picked it up and read through it. I can see why. First, picture books shelved in the chapter book section - personally, I hate this, but I can understand it - a book like this one might be traumatizing to a small child who comes across it in the picture book section. This book is very much like an Edward Gorey tale, with illustrations to match. I didn't particularly enjoy it, despite my love of Gorey. This just didn't quite work for me.