Tag Archives: growing up

Girls Outdoors, Global Community, poc-centric narratives, Women in Science, Women in STEM

Small World

April 3, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Ishta Mercurio

Illustrated by: Jen Corace

For ages: 3-6 years

Language: English

Topics Covered: POC-Centric Narratives, STEM, Space, Growing Up.

Summary:

This is a beautiful book about how a person’s world grows with experience. When Nanda was born, her whole world was her mother’s arms. As she grows up, her world becomes bigger, more magical, and more mathematical. Corace’s illustrations grow to be more geometric as the book continues, culminating in Nanda’s ultimate trip to expand her world.

Nanda’s world grows as she goes to school, learns new things, and has new experiences. The reader is able to harness Nanda’s sense of wonder about the world and apply it to their own, thinking about their place in our universe as well as the interests that make their own world grow larger. The illustrations are beautiful and diverse, and it’s lovely to see an Indian girl be the star of the STEM-driven life she’s making for herself. There is an author’s note in the back talking a bit about how Ishta became inspired to write the book, and the story behind choosing Nanda’s name!

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Ishta Mercurio studied dance and theater at Simon’s Rock College of Bard. In between homeschooling her children, she teaches writers how to use theater techniques to improve public readings. She lives with her family in Ontario, Canada.

Jen Corace is the illustrator of many books for children, including Little Pea. She has a BFA in illustration from Rhode Island School of Design, and she lives and works in Providence, Rhode Island.

Culture & Traditions, Family, Girls Outdoors, Global Community, Historical Fiction, immigration, Jewish Culture and Identity, Judaism, religion, Self Expression, Social-Emotional Learning

Lilah Tov Good Night

March 27, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Ben Gundersheimer (Mister G)

Illustrated by: Noar Lee Naggan

For ages: 3 years and up

Language: English and some Hebrew

Topics Covered: Refugee, Growing Up, Lullaby, Family, Nature, Love, Social-Emotional Learning,

Summary:

This is a very sweet book that delicately explains the refugee experience of a family in a lullaby style. A young girl happily plays outside and then eats dinner with her family, a shiny menorah on their windowsill. When night falls, the foursome set off walking into the forest. The young girl says goodnight, “Lilah Tov” to the animals she sees on their walk, bundled up in the snowy weather. She is shown happy and smiling for the entire book, optimistic and reverent of the natural world surrounding her.

While this is one refugee experience represented, it is not so detailed that it couldn’t be used to generally explain the big picture concept of the refugee experience to young readers. The book itself is beautiful, and the main character is thrilled to wish all things, creatures and non, a good night. The majority of the family’s travel takes place at night, including a long boat ride underneath a large starry sky. This would be a great story for people looking to introduce these lived experiences to younger audiences, or before reading other books that have more violent aspects for fleeing. Four Feet, Two Sandals; My Name is Sangoel, and The Banana Leaf Ball are all books that would fall under this second category. All in all, we enjoyed this book very much and would be happy to have it on any bookshelf we encountered.

This book was generously sent by the author, but all opinions are our own!

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Ben7833-800-x-534 It’s hard to say which has been more of a driving force for Ben Gundersheimer: music or storytelling. Throughout his career the two crafts have intertwined, propelling him as a performer and author. By age nine he was writing his own original songs, and as the son of children’s book author/illustrator Karen Gundersheimer, composing stories was a constant activity as well.

Ben went on to receive a scholarship from Berklee College of Music, travel the world as a singer/songwriter, and earn a Masters of Education. During his student teaching days he engaged his fourth graders through music, and it was this experience that transformed him into MISTER G, inspiring him to relaunch his career to focus on performing for children and families.

A decade later, the Latin GRAMMY Award-winning musician, activist, author and educator, is still fusing music and storytelling. The latest permutation of these two interwoven passions is as a picture book author, with two new books based on his original, multilingual songs. Señorita Mariposa chronicles the extraordinary migration of the monarch butterflies from Canada to Mexico, while Lilah Tov Good Night is a lyrical lullaby celebrating the beauty of the natural world and the spirit of resilience in a refugee family.

From illustrator Noar Lee Naggan’s website: “Hi! I’m an illustrator living in New York, chiefly interested in children’s books. I also have a great passion to tell stories, and do it through my illustrations. I aspire to one day write my own books and illustrate them.

I was born in Israel and graduated from the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem. I previously worked mostly in animation and graphic design with major companies in Israel, but several years ago I found my calling in illustration and I never looked back.”

Community Involvement, Culture & Traditions, feminism, First Nations, Girls Outdoors, Global Community, Indigenous Voices, Own Voices, Social-Emotional Learning

Tanna’s Owl

March 22, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Rachel & Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley

Illustrated by: Yong Ling Kang

For ages: 4 years and up

Language: English, some Inuktitut (pronunciation guide in back as well)

Topics Covered: First Nations, Residential Schools, Own Voices, Responsibility, Pets, Growing Up, Indigenous Voices.

Summary:

This is a lovely book based on author Rachel’s own life experience raising an owl. Tanna, or main character, receives an owlet from her father one day with instructions to care for it and make sure it has everything it needs. Tanna jumps at the chance initially, but becomes a bit worn down when Ukpik the owl requires more and more attention without any affection given in return. It is a wild animal, after all.

We were drawn into this story, with its unique and truthful outlook. This book acknowledges that Tanna doesn’t always feel like raising Ukpik is rewarding, and that is refreshing. At the end of the summer, Tanna must return to school (leaving Ukpik behind), which upon reading the Author’s Note the reader learns that she is educated at a Residential School. When she returns the next summer, Ukpik has learned to fly and isn’t there anymore. Tanna has a lot of respect for the owl, and is glad that she helped it thrive despite not always being excited to wake up early to catch lemmings for it to eat, or clean up all the poop.

I really loved how Inuit cultural values were woven into this story, and coupled with own voices lived experiences from Rachel’s childhood. This story emphasizes the value of hard work and appreciation for nature, it’s a fantastic real aloud for young people who might be expressing interest for a pet as well!

This book was sent to us by Inhabit Media, but all opinions are our own!

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Of Inuit-Cree ancestry, RACHEL QITSUALIK-TINSLEY was born in a tent on northernmost Baffin Island. She learned Inuit survival lore from her father, surviving residential school and attending university. In 2012, she was awarded a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for numerous cultural writings. Of Scottish-Mohawk ancestry, SEAN QITSUALIK-TINSLEY was born in southern Ontario, learning woodcraft and stories from his father. Training as an artist, then writer, Sean’s sci-fi work won 2nd place at the California-based Writers of the Future contest, published by Galaxy Press. Rachel and Sean have worked for decades as Arctic researchers and consultants. In writing together, they have published 10 successful books and many shorter works, celebrating the history and uniqueness of Arctic shamanism, cosmology, and cosmogony. Their novel, Skraelings: Clashes in the Old Arctic, was a Governor General Awards Finalist and First Prize Burt Award winner.

Yong Ling Kang is a full-time freelance illustrator. Having worked in animation studios and a publishing company for some years, she’s now living and working from home based in Toronto. Raised in tropical Singapore, she find comfort in playing water sports, taking walks in green spaces, and savouring spicy food. A glass of milo peng / teh-c siu-dai anytime!

Family, Girls Outdoors, Global Community, Independent Thought, mindfulness, Social-Emotional Learning

Treasure

March 21, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Mireille Messier

Illustrated by: Irene Luxbacher

For ages: 3-8 years

Language: English

Topics Covered: Imagination, Siblings, Growing Up, Nature, Natural World, Appreciation, Lived Experiences.

Summary:

This book is adorable! The tale starts with two siblings taking a walk through the woods near their home, looking for a treasure. There are few words in the book, but they are all the conversation between the two. Something helpful about the book is that one sibling’s words are bolded and one is not, making it easy to keep track of who is speaking. The younger of the two find all sorts of natural objects like feathers, acorns, and milkweed pods, but is told that isn’t the treasure. Eventually, the pair come upon what they are looking for but it won’t fit in their pockets!

The illustrations in this book are absolutely gorgeous! With so few words, the illustrations do much of the storytelling and Luxbacher has created a magical wonderland of small details for the reader to discover while flipping through the pages. The woodland scenes are filled with tiny critters and splendid floral illustrations, making every design element a joy to discover. We love the message of treasure being intangible, and the excitement of the journey is part of the beauty itself.

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Mireille Messier is a Montreal-born, Ottawa-raised and now Toronto-based children’s writer with a background in broadcasting and theater. Before becoming an author, Mireille worked as a television and radio host, a director, a researcher, a book reviewer and a voice actress. Sometimes, she still does those things, too. One of her first “literary” jobs was writing jokes for the bottom of pudding lids!

Since the launch of her first book in 2003, Mireille has published over twenty books. When she’s not at her computer writing, she thinks up new stories while she walks, drives or sails her big old boat.

Mireille loves doing author visits. On average, she meets about three thousand kids a year … give or take a thousand. Some of the funniest questions she has been asked by students are: “Do you dream in French?” (Yes!), “How many minutes does it take you to write a book?” (About a million!) and “Are any of the characters in your books real?” (Yes, they are often different versions of me and the people I know).

Mireille lives in Toronto with her husband, two wonderful teenage daughters and two extremely fluffy cats.

Irene Luxbacher graduated from Queen’s University in 1992 with a degree in Art History before studying at the Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver, British Columbia. Since returning to Toronto in 1994, Irene has exhibited her work while teaching art at the Avenue Road Arts School and consulting at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Learning Through the Arts Program. In 2002 and 2003, Irene curated several well-received children’s art exhibits at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and BCE Place on behalf of Arts for Children of Toronto, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising funds and awareness of the value of art education. Irene is the author and illustrator of The Jumbo Book of Art, which won the 2003 National Parenting Publication Award, and The Jumbo Book of Outdoor Art. Her latest project for Kids Can Press is the Starting Art series, which includes the titles 123 I Can Paint! and 123 I Can Draw!

Family, friendship, Independent Thought, Neurodiversity, Own Voices, Social-Emotional Learning, Women in STEM, young adult

What Stars Are Made Of [released 3/31]

March 19, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Sarah Allen

For ages: Middle Grades, 5th and up.

Language: English

Topics Covered: Growing Up, Own Voices, Turner Syndrome, Neurodiversity (NLD), STEM, Women in STEM, Friendship, Social-Emotional Growth & Development.

Summary:

Hot damn, I’m glad this book exists. This middle grade novel follows 12 year old Libby over the course of a school year. Libby has difficulty making friends, and talks to famous women in science that she’s learned about inside her head. When Libby’s sister Nonny moves back home because her husband Thomas is on a longterm job in another state and Nonny is pregnant, Libby is both excited and worried. Libby has Turner syndrome, and because of this she has some complications like giving herself shots daily, and sterility. She’s worried that the baby might need extra help too.

This book covers a wonderful amount of topics throughout the story, and I seriously could not put it down. Libby navigates family dynamics, making friends with a new girl at school, and figuring out how to win a Smithsonian contest with a 25k grand prize (that could really help Thomas and Nonny). Libby has a good relationship with her teacher Ms. Trepky who encourages her to submit the essay and works with her on editing.

There is a particularly beautiful part of the book that really stuck with me after finishing it. Libby and Ms. Trepky are in the classroom, discussing how the world is shaped by individuals, but the individual that changes the world is also shaped by an innumerable amount of people themselves. Libby takes a moment of reflection and comprehends the magnitude of the fact that “the world was shaped by billions and billions of unknown hands…that meant [she] could sculpt and write on the DNA of the universe from [her] little corner of it, too, no matter [her] smallness or genetics or scars” (p137 of ARC). This is a profound realization for a middle schooler, and a mindset that we have sought to emulate by creating ripples of change wherever we can. For us, that means sharing stunning Own Voices texts such as this one. This book comes out on March 31st and please do yourself a favor and devote a few hours to this splendid read, you will absolutely not regret it.

This book was generously sent to us by Macmillan, but all opinions are our own! Note: the quote we cited may differ slightly from the published edition, we will be checking for correctness once the edition is actually published.

About the Author:

Sarah Allen got her MFA in creative writing from BYU and while Utah will always be her home, Sarah moved around a bit and currently lives in the Seattle area.

Pretty much every area of writing interests her, and regularly submits short stories, poetry, articles, and other fun things. Sarah is a Slytherin (with a Hufflepuff exterior), overenthusiastic about most things, and a shmoosher of dog faces. Her superpower is speaking fluent movie quotes. Sarah is also a major lover of Pixar, leather jackets, and Colin Firth.

Family, Global Community, latinx

The Day Abuelo Got Lost

March 12, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: Diane de Anda

Illustrated by: Alleanna Harris

For ages: 4-8 years old

Language: English, some Spanish.

Topics Covered: Family, Dementia, Aging, Latinx (Mexican family origin), Social-Emotional Learning, Growing Up, Change.

Summary:

This is a sweet story about a young boy named Luis and his Abuelo, who has always lived with Luis and his parents. Usually, Luis and Abuelo spend time together after school, cooking and building models together. Slowly, Luis realizes that Abuelo starts to forget things and the pair can’t use the stove anymore. One day, Luis returns home from school and Abuelo isn’t there. He had gotten lost on a walk, and Luis’s parents found him.

This book addresses in a way that is understandable to children what happens when a grandparent or older family friend ages. It talks about real feelings that the reader can identify, like Luis. Things are changing with Abuelo but in small ways that don’t seem to change much on their own, but the sum of the parts mean that Abuelo will spend time with other older adults that can’t remember so well while their families are at work. What Luis learns is that they will always love each other, and they can still spend time doing things that they love together.

About the Author & the Illustrator:

DIANE DE ANDA is Professor Emerita in the Department of Social Welfare at the UCLA School of Public Policy and Social Research. Her most recent books are entitled Violence: Diverse Populations and Communities and Social Work with Multicultural Youth.

ALLEANNA HARRIS is a US illustrator who has been drawing for as long as she can remember. As a little kid, she would draw on every page of her mom’s legal pads, doodle on her notebooks at school and on the programs at church.

She graduated from the University of Arts with a BFA in Animation with Honors, and it was during this time she realised her love for illustration. Alleanna finds inspiration in the beauty in everyday things. Everything inspires her. In her work, she seeks to create images that are immersive, rich in color and have a sense of warmth. She lives in NJ.

feminism, friendship, Historical Fiction, Historical Figures, LGBT, Neurodiversity, Social-Emotional Learning, young adult

The Degenerates [released 3/17]

March 11, 2020 lockehardy Leave a comment

Written by: J. Albert Mann

Cover Art by: Design: Rebecca Syracuse; Illustration: Sarah Maxwell-Folio Art

For ages: YA (14 years and up)

Language: English

Topics Covered: Historical Fiction, LGBTQ, Growing Up, Mental Health, Disability, Own Voices, Interracial Love, Family, Friendship, Institutionalized Lives, Courage, Bravery, Love.

Summary:

This book is incredible. I truly hope this book review does it justice, I couldn’t put it down. We were given the opportunity to read the book before it’s released on 3/17 and I am so appreciative! Four young girls (Rose, Alice Maxine, and London) are all institutionalized at the Massachusetts School for the Feeble-Minded, also known as the Fernald School. Set in 1928, readers get a look inside the dismal and regimented existence that these girls as well as the rest of the inmates are subjected to. The book is told in the four voices of the girls mentioned above, and the reader learns the schedule of the “school” and why they were abandoned there. Using the language of the day, you can anticipate outdated terms for Down syndrome as well as learn about the eugenics movement that drove the incessant testing and measuring of intelligence leading to categories that we no longer use (but that many still use as ableist insults today).

I don’t want to give away too much, but The Degenerates is a slow burn, and made my little gay heart go pitter patter all the way until the last pages. It’s a fantastic historically accurate book, and I’ve already told several people how much they need to read it!

In an extensive note in the back, we learn more about the author and how she developed the book from actual records found from the Fernald School, which was finally closed in 2014. We coincidentally live very near the Fernald, so this book was of particular interest to us! Everything in the book that a doctor or nurse says to a character was pulled from hospital records, as well as the characters names and their conditions. The author herself is disabled, giving a personal voice to the probability that she herself would have been committed to an institution such as this one should she have been born last century. Honestly, we probably would have been committed too, due to the criminalization of queer people in addition to the other disabled and marginalized citizens. This adds another layer to reading the book and the heinous “care” that these individuals committed for life were given.

The Degenerates will be released on March 17th! This book was sent to us by Simon & Schuster, but all opinions are our own. This is a YA book everyone should devote a few hours to reading!

About the Author & the Cover Artist:

J. Albert Mann is the author of six novels for children, with S&S Atheneum Books for Young Readers set to publish her next work of historical fiction about the Eugenics Movement and the rise of institutionalism in the United States. She is also the author of short stories and poems for children featured in Highlights for Children, where she won the Highlights Fiction Award, as well as the Highlights Editors’ Choice Award. She has an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts in Writing for Children and Young Adults, and is the Director of the WNDB Internship Grant Committee.

Sarah Maxwell is an American illustrator based in London. She was born and raised in Austin, Texas, only to then travel to Paris for studies. Having lived there for over 5 years, she has made the move to travel across the pond to the UK to start a new chapter of her life.

Her work ranges from fashion illustration to animated GIFs and comics. The best way to describe her work is summed up in 4 key words: nostalgia, tenderness, femininity, and 80’s electronic music.

Rebecca Syracuse is a graphic designer and illustrator, highly experienced in children’s publishing and product design.