Picture Book - How To Read a Book by Kwame Alexander

Illustrated by Melissa Sweet

2019, Harper

HC$17.99

36 pgs. - one opens out to a double spread, and one is smaller, inserted into the middle

Goodreads rating:  3.79 - 1824 ratings

My rating:  3
Endpapers:startling bright neon pink

1^st line/s:  see below

My comments: This book is a poem, using a clementine orange as a metaphor.  It's really quite lovely.  And I love, love, love Melissa Sweet.  However, the poem got totally lost in these illustrations.  I could barely read the words myself, let along having a child try to read it.  It's too busy, and almost too bright, though I do love the vibrancy AND the collages, but not with this text in this book, too much is too much.

Goodreads:  Find a tree—a
black tupelo or
dawn redwood will do—and
plant yourself.
(It’s okay if you prefer a stoop, like Langston Hughes.)

With these words, an adventure begins. Kwame Alexander’s poetry and Melissa Sweet’s artwork come together to take readers on a journey between the pages of a book.

PICTURE BOOK - Dia de Los Muertos by Roseanne Greenfield Thong

Illustrated by Carles Ballesteros

2015, Albert Whitman & Co., Chicago

HC $16.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  3.93 - 189 ratings

My rating: 3.5

Endpapers: charcoal with small sugar skulls and simple flowers, all in gray and white

Illustrations: all aquas and oranges, with tiny bits of lavender and pink thrown in.

1^st line/s:  "It's Dia de Los Muertos, the sun's coming round,
as ninos prepare in each pueblos and town.
For today we will honor our dearly departed
with celebraciones -- it's time to get started!

My comments:  Here's another fun book about Day of the Dead to add to my collection.  The story is written in verse form using couplets and infusing many of the terms associated with this special holiday in Spanish.  There's a glossary at the back, but most meanings can be gleaned from the text.  The illustrations seem a little busy but they're fun and full of information and items to hunt for from page to page. There's also an excellent description of Dia de Los Muertos at the end, after the poem.  I liked it.

Goodreads:  It’s Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) and children throughout the pueblo, or town, are getting ready to celebrate! They decorate with colored streamers, calaveras—or sugar skulls—and pan de muertos, or bread of the dead. There are altars draped in cloth and covered in marigolds and twinkling candles. Music fills the streets. Join the fun and festivities, learn about a different cultural tradition, and brush up on your Spanish vocabulary as the town honors their dearly departed in a traditional, time-honored style.

PICTURE BOOK - Every Day Birds by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater

Illustrated by Dylan Metrano

2016, Orchard (an Imprint of Scholastic!)

HC $17.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.35 (122 ratings)

My rating: 5, It's a beauty

Endpapers: Orange
Illustrations:  Layers of cut paper.  Bold.  Gorgeous.

My comments:  What a lovely way to illustrate a poem.  The amazing illustrations are layered cut paper.  A perfect picture book!The 4-page Afterward explains a bit about each bird, with a smaller size replica of the illustration.

The poem: 
Every day we watch the birds
weaving through our sky.

We listen to their calls ans songs.
We like to see them fly.
Chickadee wears a wee black c ap.
Jay is loud and bold.
Nuthatch perches upside-down
Finch is clothed in gold.
Hawk hunts every day for prey.
Cardinal flashes fire.
Woodpecker taps hollow trees.
Crow rests on a wire.
Heron fishes with his bill.
Sparrow hops in brown.
Mockingbird has many voices.
Pigeon lives in town.
Eagle soars above the land.
Oriole hangs her nest.
Owl swoops soundlessly late at night.
Robin puffs his chest.
Hummingbird drinks flower nectar.
Goose flies in a V.
Bluebird sleeps at meadow's edge.
Gull states at the sea.
Every day we watch for birds
living right outside our door.
We pay attention to the birds.
Every day we learn some more.

Goodreads:  Young readers are fascinated with birds in their world. Every Day Birds helps children identify and learn about common birds. After reading Every Day Birds, families can look out their windows with curiosity--recognizing birds and nests and celebrating the beauty of these creatures!
          Every Day Birds focuses on twenty North American birds, with a poem and descriptions written by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater and beautiful paper-cuttings by first-time picture book illustrator Dylan Metrano. Interesting facts about each bird are featured in the back of the book.