Picture Book - Little Doctor and the Fearless Beast by Sophie Gilmore

Illustrated by the author

2019 Owlkid Books/Canada

Hardcover $17.95

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 3.93 - 180 ratings 

My rating:  4
Endpapers: Solid jungle green

1^st line/s: " There once lived a child the crocodiles called Little Doctor." 

My comments:  The title should be Fearless Little Doctor and the Beast!  A brave little gril doctor gently cares for all the crocodiles in the (lush) jungle, until a huge croc comes to her and she can't discover what's wrong with him.  With great ingenuity she finally figures out how to get him to open his huge jase - and discovers the crux of the problem.  No words are used to explain the problem, only that inside the open jaws are baby crocs, all wrapped up in plastic six-pack rings.  Subtle message, love it.  Must use to talk about correct recycling of plastics, as well as beautiful illustrations!

Goodreads: Crocodiles come from far and wide to seek Little Doctor's care. She treats each one with skill and kindness--even the toughest crocs with thick skins and large, powerful jaws. Little Doctor marvels at these fearless beasts, listening to their stories, while she diagnoses and cures what ails them. But when she meets Big Mean, the largest crocodile in the land with jaws clamped tightly shut, Little Doctor can't figure out what's wrong. And she might be just a little bit afraid.
          When one creative idea lands Little Doctor right inside Big Mean's tremendous jaws, she is sure she'll be munched or crunched--until she sees that Big Mean isn't so horrible, after all. As it turns out, the crocodile is only protecting her hatchlings, all tangled in plastic, inside her mouth.
          Watercolor illustrations create a richly imagined world in this awe-inspiring story about how even little kids can be fearless, and even big, mean creatures sometimes need help.

PICTURE BOOK - The Adventures of a Plastic Bottle: A Story About Recycling by Allison Inches

2009, Little Simon (Little Green Books)
3.99 in paper

24 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.11 - 83 ratings

My rating: 4
There looks like there's another book called The Adventures of an Aluminum Can that is published by the same publisher.

My comments:       This story is told in diary form, from the point-of-view of crude oil flowing at the very bottom of the ocean.  He’s pumped onto a ship, then to a refinery, made into small plastic bits, then molded into a water bottle.  After the bottling plant he’s purchased by a boy who, after guzzling the water, refills it and gives it to his mom with a flower.  After it’s done its duty as a vase, they recycle it and it’s sent to another place where he’s boiled down, made into spaghettis of plastic, then into a synthetic fleece sweatshirt that astronauts wear.

      There’s no mention of how long plastic takes to break down, which would have been another interesting aspect of the story.  But for a discussion about recycling, this would be a great introductory story.

Goodreads:  Learn about recycling from a new perspective!  Peek into this diary of a plastic bottle as it goes on a journey from the refinery plant, to the manufacturing line, to the store shelf, to a garbage can, and finally to a recycling plant where it emerges into it's new life...as a fleece jacket! 
          Told from the point of view of a free-spirited plastic bottle, kids can share in the daily experiences and inner thoughts of the bottle through his personal journal. The diary entries will be fun and humorous yet point out the ecological significance behind each product and the resources used to make it. Readers will never look at a plastic bottle the same way again!

PICTURE BOOK - One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Women of the Gambia by Miranda Paul

Illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon

2015, Millbrook Press, Minneapolis

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 4.29 - 769 ratings

My rating:  5

Endpapers:  collage of flattened plastic bags

Setting:  Contemporary Njau, Gambia

1^st line/s:  "Isatou walks with her chin frozen."

My comments:  Oooo-eeeee, this is my kind of book!  Ite tells how one woman in Gambia, after realizing that stinky, fly-attracting piles of plastic bags were making her village unsightly and unhealthy, came up with a plan to reuse/recycle them.  In the long run, the women of the town have started one heck of a business enterprise!  Illustrations are collaged and are lovely, as is the story.  My last class at THA recycled plastic bags into PLARN and we made a sleeping mat for the homeless shelter.  It took a lot of hard work and almost a full year, but boy were the kids proud!  This is a great introduction to teaching about recycling plastic gabs AND introducing some really cool DIY activities.

Goodreads:  Plastic bags are cheap and easy to use. But what happens when a bag breaks or is no longer needed? In Njau, Gambia, people simply dropped the bags and went on their way. One plastic bag became two. Then ten. Then a hundred.
          The bags accumulated in ugly heaps alongside roads. Water pooled in them, bringing mosquitoes and disease. Some bags were burned, leaving behind a terrible smell. Some were buried, but they strangled gardens. They killed livestock that tried to eat them. Something had to change.
          Isatou Ceesay was that change. She found a way to recycle the bags and transform her community. This inspirational true story shows how one person's actions really can make a difference in our world.

PICTURE BOOK - Maya's Blanket / La Manta de Maya by Monica Brown

Illustrated by David Diaz

2015 Children's Book Press (Lee & Low Books\
$17.95 HC
24 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.1 - 124 ratings

My rating: 5

Endpapers:  Dark aqua fabric with "stitched" purple butterflies

Illustrations:  Bright and dark, completely filling the page with no white!  Heaven!

1^st line/s: "Little Maya Morales had a special manta that she loved very much."

My comments:  Another extra-special picture book to love.  And when it starts out with a quilt (or a blanket or manta in this case) made by a child's loving grandmother (abuelita), is bilingual, and is also illustrated by the incredible David Diaz....well, need I say more?  The rich illustrations that spread completely across the page from edge to edge in deep purples, greens, aquas, are wonderful.  The story, based on the Jewish folktale about Joseph and his overcoat, if great fun with repetition that isn't boring.  And in these days of recycling, re-purposing, and DIY, this "hidden" theme takes on new importance. Two thumbs up!

Goodreads:  Little Maya has a special blanket that Grandma stitched with her own two hands. As Maya grows, her blanket becomes worn and frayed, so with Grandma s help, Maya makes it into a dress. Over time the dress is made into a skirt, a shawl, a scarf, a hair ribbon, and finally, a bookmark. Each item has special, magical, meaning for Maya; it animates her adventures, protects her, or helps her in some way. But when Maya loses her bookmark, she preserves her memories by creating a book about her adventures and love of these items. When Maya grows up, she shares her book Maya s Blanket/La manta de Maya with her own little daughter while snuggled under her own special blanket. Inspired by the traditional Yiddish folk song Hob Ikh Mir a Mantl ( I Had a Little Coat ), this delightful bilingual picture book puts a child-focused, Latino spin on the tale of an item that is made into smaller and smaller items. Maya s Blanket/La manta de Maya charmingly brings to life this celebration creativity, recycling, and enduring family love."