PICTURE BOOK - We've Got the Whole World in Our Hands by Rafael Lopez

The words are from a traditional spiritual, pronouns changed

Illustrated by Rafeal Lopez

2018, Orchard Books, NY

HC $17.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.05  - 274 ratings

My rating:  5, the illustrations!!!
Endpapers: front:  white, daytime, rolling yarn
back:  black, nightime, rolling yarn continues on to the stars....

1^st line/s:  "We've go the whole world in our hands"

My comments:  "Nay-sayers" don't even make me roll my eyes anymore, they just make me laugh.  How can you not love this book?  It's joyful, its message is beautiful - we're all connected and in many ways - no matter our ethnicity, our humanity, or our place in the world.  Its roots in the original spiritual are still there, so changing the pronouns includes everyone, doesn't omit a soul.  You can believe in god, any god; or you don't have to.  Rolled-out multi-colored yarn connects everyone and everything.   Just believe in the simple idea that we're all connected and depend upon each other.  The illustrations are just gorgeous.  What a wonderful book to look at, to share, and to SING!

Goodreads:  Award-winning illustrator Rafael López brings new life with his adaptation of "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands," saluting the lives of all young people. The rhythmic verse and repetitive emphasis on "we" and "our" encourages inclusive communities and the celebration of unity and diverse friendships all around the world.
i"We've got you and you got me in our hands.
We have the whole world in our hands."/i
Come and read along and sing along as we celebrate the magic of unity. From the rivers to the mountains to the oceans and to the sea -- we've got the whole world in our hands. 
As an added bonus the sheet music is included in the back of the book for piano, guitar, and recorder for classroom, library, and home sing-alongs.

PICTURE BOOK - Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett

Illustrated by Jon Klassen
A Caldecott Honor Book

2012 Balzer & Bray

HC $17.99

40 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 4.08 - 13,707 ratings

My rating:  5

Endpapers a darkish sage green

1^st line/s:  "On a cold afternoon, in a cold little town, where everywhere you looked was either the white of snow or the black of soot from chimneys, Annabelle found a box filled with yarn of every color."

My comments:  Start with a great story....about yarn! ....and knitting! ... and doing for others! ... add great illustrations ... make the protagonist a YARNBOMBER! ... and you have one happy knitter/reader/picture book enthusiast .... me!    I've read this over and over, but this is the first time I've written about it.  I think I'll take it to my "stitcher's group" next week and read it aloud to them.  Good idea, huh?

Goodreads:  This looks like an ordinary box full of ordinary yarn.

But it turns out it isn't.

PICTURE BOOK - The Pink Hat by Andrew Joyner

Illustrated by the author

2018, Random House

HC $17.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  3.56 - 151 ratings

My rating: 5

Endpapers: Bright Pink

Illustrations: Black & white except for the pink hat

1^st line/s:  "First, there wasn't a hat....
                     Then there was."

My comments:  Why do people's expectations divert their liking for a book?  This is a subtle story, not the in-you-race-story with lots of political information that many reviewers wanted.  The message is there, it's quiet, and it's perfect for today's kids as well as today's young women.  It was fun to see where the story was going.  Let it BE what it IS, sit back and enjoy.  This is a fantastic book.  Another will be written to satisfy those who want more political references!

Goodreads:  Celebrate the 2017 Women's March with this charming and empowering picture book about a pink hat and the budding feminist who finds it.
          Here is a clever story that follows the journey of a pink hat that is swiped out of a knitting basket by a pesky kitten, blown into a tree by a strong wind, and used as a cozy blanket for a new baby, then finally makes its way onto the head of a young girl marching for women's equality. 
          Inspired by the 5 million people (many of them children) in 82 countries who participated in the 2017 Women's March, Andrew Joyner has given us a book that celebrates girls and women and equal rights for all! 
          With themes of empathy, equality, and solidarity, The Pink Hat is a timeless and timely story that will empower readers and promote strength in the diverse and active feminist community.

PICTURE BOOK - A Hat for Mrs. Goldman by Michelle Edwards

A Story About Knitting and Love
Illustrated by G. Brian Karas

2016, Schwartz & Wade Books

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 4.34 - 386 ratings

My rating:  5 stars

Endpapers:  Front:  vague knit stitches  Back:  the same vague knit stitches plus pompoms!

Hat AND PomPom instructins follow the story...and they're really easy!

1^st line/s:  "When Sophia was a tiny baby, Mrs. Goldman next door knit her a tiny baby hat to keep her warm."

My comments:  Okay, I love this book.  LOVE it!  Mrs. Goldman knits hats for everyone she knows, many, many hats.  Sophia tries to knit, but discovers she'd rather make pomp poms for Mrs. Goldman's hats.  She's really good at that, and Mrs. Goldman assures her that it's a mitzvah.  Okay, I'm sold.  Knitting.  Mitzvahs. Hooray!  You could end right there and I'd be happy. But then Sophia discovers that Mrs. Goldman has given her own hat away, and their long winter walks are cold and blow Mrs. Goldman's hair everywhere.  Sophia comes up with a plan....and problem-solves through issues she encounters until the story reaches a very satisfying conclusion.  Bravo!

Goodreads:  Here’s a heartwarming winter picture book that’s sure to appeal to families who love knitting. 
          Mrs. Goldman always knits hats for everyone in the neighborhood, and Sophia, who thinks knitting is too hard, helps by making the pom-poms. But now winter is here, and Mrs. Goldman herself doesn’t have a hat—she’s too busy making hats for everyone else! It’s up to Sophia to buckle down and knit a hat for Mrs. Goldman. But try as Sophia might, the hat turns out lumpy, the stitches aren’t even, and there are holes where there shouldn’t be holes. Sophia is devastated until she gets an idea that will make Mrs. Goldman’s hat the most wonderful of all. Readers both young and old will relate to Sophia’s frustrations, as well as her delight in making something special for someone she loves.

PICTURE BOOK - Knit Your Bit: A World War I Story by Deborah Hopkinson

Illustrated by Steven Guarnaccia

2013

HC $16.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 3.80

My rating: 3.5

Endpaper: five WWI era photos of children - mostly boys - knitting

Illustrations: a little too Tin-Tinny for my tastes....

1^st line/s: "When Pop went to be a soldier, I wanted to go with him."

My comments:  I'm drawn to picture book about knitting and quilting, and this historical fiction - about World War I - is a good one!  I'm not drawn to these illustrations, though (apologies to Mr. Guarnaccia).  Yes, boys can knit, too!  Check out:  Knitting for Charity at knittingforcharity.org!

Goodreads:  Mikey’s dad has left home to fight overseas during World War I, and Mikey wants to do something BIG to help. When his teacher suggests that the class participate in a knitting bee in Central Park to knit clothing for the troops, Mikey and his friends roll their eyes—knitting is for girls! But when the girls turn it into a competition, the boys just have to meet the challenge.
                                  Based on a real “Knit-In” event at Central Park in 1918, Knit Your Bit shows readers that making a lasting contribution is as easy as trying something new! 

The Mitten Tree - Candace Christiansen

Illustrated by Elaine Greenstein Fulcrum Publishing; Golden, CO, 1997, 2009 Paper $7.95 32 pages Rating: 4 "Old Sarah" (okay, let's stop right now and say I hate that that's her name) watches the neighborhood children play. She misses the time when her own children were young. One day she notices a boy standing to the side, watching the kids make a snowman. His hands are shoved in his pockets and she realizes that he has no mittens to wear. Sarah hunts through her house for her old supply of leftover yarn and begins knitting a pair of mittens. She works all night and then hangs them on a tree near the school bus stop for the boy to find....which he does. She begins to knit more and more mittens for the neighborhood kids, leaving them anonomously hanging on a big decidious tree (thus: the mitten tree). And when she runs out of yarn , a big basket of yarn appears at her door. No one's paid any attention to her, so the book ends with this small, wonderful, mystery. Who's been watching her and who cares enough to do this? Cool book. I just bought five copies and I've been knitting mittens like crazy for the last couple of days. I've also found a fleece mitten pattern that looks pretty easy, and fleece is pretty inexpensive. So as my list of new nieces and nephews begins to add up, I'm happily creating this year's Christmas present for all of them - a book, and two very different pairs of mittens! My favorite Christmas story when I was a kid was "Granny Glittens and her Amazing Mittens." Maybe I'll find a copy of the story and include it. I really loved that story! I'm not even sure why.