The spring publishing season is in full swing now with new releases coming out every week. You can see the ones I’ve reviewed below.
There’s a little something for everyone on this list. A picture book biography, some nonfiction, some fiction featuring lovable animals. Have you read any of them?
Rumi: Poet of Joy and Love (March 5) Persia
Are the thoughts and words of a 13th century poet and mystic still relevant today?
Rumi was born in 1207. He spent his boyhood days dancing with the butterflies and birds in the garden. As he grew he read books, and as an adult became a respected teacher. However, it was not until he met Shams that he knew love, and became inspired to write.
Like the birds he loved so much as a child, Rumi’s words have taken flight and captivated the hearts and minds of countless people throughout the ages.
Written and illustrated by renowned picture-book artist Rashin Kheiriyeh, Rumi: Poet of Joy and Love, a new picture book biography coming out this week, transports readers to Rumi’s time using brilliant colors and intricate designs. My daughters love the colors, and the fact that Rumi often spun to thank God. The book includes back matter on Rumi as well as an author’s note.
Coincidentally, The Friendship Poems of Rumi, which is translated by Nader Khalili, was given to me by my best friend for Christmas this past year (because it was translated she said!). I have been reading through the poems slowly and can tell you his words bring comfort and inspire companionship in any form.
So, to answer my earlier question, yes, a poet’s words from over 750 years ago, still remain relevant and needed, possibly now more than ever before.
Title: Rumi: Poet of Joy and Love
Author/Illustrator: Iranian-American artist Rashin Kheiriyeh
Publisher: NorthSouth Books [2024]
Rumi was sent to me for review by NorthSouth Books. All opinions are my own.
There are no Dragons in This Book (March 5) Germany
In my experience, kids love knowing things others don’t. There are No Dragons in This Book plays into that in a fun and interactive way.
In There are No Dragons in This Book, there are of course dragons. The narrator is trying to convince readers that there aren’t, but hidden in each illustration observant readers will find parts of dragons peeking out from behind or inside things. By the end, after asking the reader to help him get the dragons back, the narrator does reveal himself and explains why he had remained hidden.
I enlisted the help of extra book reviewers for this one. I couldn’t help but take it to my 7 year old’s class to read it to them, and then also had the opportunity to read it to my 5 year old’s preschool class. After the first page or two they all started yelling out where they saw dragon tails or ears, or mouths. Some of them straight out started arguing with the book saying “there are so dragons in this!”. All were engaged and interacting with the story, which I love to see.
Three classes of little ones all agree, this book is a delight.
Title: There are No Dragons in This Book
Author: German-American Donna Lambo-Weidner
Illustrator: German artist Carla Haslbauer who now lives in Switzerland
Publisher: NorthSouth Books [2024]
There are No Dragons in This Book was sent to me for review by NorthSouth Books. All opinions are mine (and those of my little book reviewer team).
Avocado Magic (March 5) Israel
The day after her birthday Ellie wakes up to discover she has not grown at all even though she’s a year older. She asks her father how this can be. He presents the answer to her as a secret.
He explains to her that just like an avocado seed, she is small, but full of magic. They plant an avocado seed together and as it grows, so does Ellie. As the seed outgrows its pot, Ellie outgrows her room and moves to a different one. She eventually moves away from home, finds a partner, and has a child of her own, all with the avocado tree by her side, steadily growing as well.
Glowing with greens and yellows, the illustrations are teeming with life and growth. Seeing both Ellie and the avocado tree grow side by side creates a beautiful metaphor for understanding life, both of humans and plants.
My 7-year-old has been asking for this book to be read at bedtime. She finds it soothing and has been asking questions about growing up and life in general.
Back matter shows how to grow an avocado tree from seed, something my girls are excited to try. Have you ever tried?
Title: Avocado Magic
Author/Illustrator: Swiss-based author and artist Taltal Levi
Publisher: NorthSouth Books [2024]
Avocado Magic was sent to me for review by NorthSouth Books. All opinions are my own, and those of my little book reviewers.
What Makes Us Human? (march 5)
This month marks my 3rd anniversary of exploring picture books from around the world. In reflecting on this journey, one of the things I return to time and again is the power language holds.
Language provides a sense of identity, connects us to our history, and unites people. Today, about half of the world’s languages are in danger of extinction by 2100. When the world loses a language it loses cultural knowledge and a unique way of understanding the world.
Published in partnership with UNESCO to honor the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022-2032), What Makes Us Human was released today in English.
Written as a poetic riddle, What Makes Us Human celebrates language in all its forms, as well as its importance in history. The book encourages readers to protect and celebrate linguistic diversity around the world.
The collage and digital illustrations showcase language in a variety of ways including spoken, written, Braille, and sign language. Each illustration is detailed and adds depth to the text with tree roots symbolizing the connectedness of languages across time, and yarn showing how a person’s use of language grows and diminishes over a lifetime.
Back matter provides more information about the importance of preserving languages and about UNESCO’s mission to save endangered languages around the world.
Title: What Makes Us Human
Author: Brazilian-American Victor D.O. Santos
Illustrator: Italian artist Anna Forlati
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers [2024]
What Makes Us Human was sent to me for review by Eerdmans. All opinions are my own.
Great Gusts: Winds of the World and the Science Behind them (March 19)
The weather in NJ in March can be a little unpredictable. Over the weekend we had one 60-degree rainy day, followed by a sunny/breezy/snow squally/cloudy/40 degree day. This makes March the perfect time to learn about weather. We get to see it all!
Using Great Gusts: Winds of the World and the Science Behind Them, we were able to travel around the world on the back of the wind to see what kinds of weather others experience. My own girls and the students in my class enjoyed the ride.
Fourteen types of wind including oroshi in Japan, willy-willy in Australia, and ghibli in Liberia are explored in this beautiful book through poetry as well as nonfiction text. When possible, the poems were written in a form unique to the region the wind hails from. For example, the poem about the papagayo jet from Nicaragua and Costa Rica, is written as a copla, a form used in folk poetry from Central and South America.
Nonfiction text explains the science behind each type of wind, and how it is unique to an area. The bright and airy illustrations somehow capture the movement of air and create a strong sense of place. You can almost feel the wind on your face as you read.
I was able to use this book in a variety of ways depending on who I was reading it to. My own girls were interested in the science of each wind, so we read all the text on each page. When I read the book to my class, we read the poems and discussed what we saw in the illustrations. With them I was trying to encourage more language development and use.
Back matter includes more information about wind, a map showing where each of the 14 types of wind are found, a glossary of the terms found in the nonfiction section of each spread, a note about the poetry, and suggestions for further reading.
Great Gusts: Winds of the World and the Science Behind Them would be a perfect addition to any classroom weather unit, or for curious kids in any setting. It’s the perfect blend of art and science and has something for everyone.
Title: Great Gusts: Winds of the World and the Science Behind Them
Author: Melanie Crowder & Megan Benedict
Illustrator: Vietnamese author Khoa Le
Publisher: MIT Kids Press [2024]
This book was sent to me by the author for review. All opinions are my own.
I Want a Lion (March 19) The Netherlands
Do you have any pets? We have 2 cats and some fish, but my family has been begging me to get a dog.
I Want a Lion! tells the story of Jules who wakes up one morning determined to get a pet, and not just anytime, he wants it TODAY!
He has plenty of ideas, like a lion, a hippopotamus, or an orangutan, but his mom refuses each in favor of something boring like a stick insect, or a hamster. Will Jules and his mom ever agree?
My girls can really relate to Jules in this story, which may be why they have me reading it almost every night. Like Jules they want another pet, but like the mom in the story, I always have a darned good reason to say “not yet”. The animals Jules’ suggests have had my own girls and my school children laughing out loud. They know it’s ridiculous to have a rhinoceros as a pet, and the illustrations really drive the point home. This is such a fun book to read aloud.
The end is satisfying as Jules does end up getting a pet he is happy with, which may be why my girls always smile at me sweetly after reading.
Janssen’s bright, whimsical illustrations captivate young readers. There is always more to notice during rereads. My 7-year-old noticed that Jules’ pet suggestions are always depicted as large, colorful, rollicking animals, while his mom’s suggestions are small and dull-looking. I hadn’t noticed, but she’s right, and it definitely adds depth to the story.
As a teacher, I appreciate all the vocabulary and the way Jules uses language to describe the pets he wants. He says “A parrot with a feathery tail, gleaming eyes, and a sharp beak. A parrot to whistle and sing with, and to teach funny words.” So much good stuff in here!
Title: I Want a Lion!
Author: Dutch writer Annemarie van der Eem
Illustrator: Dutch artist Mark Janssen
Publisher: Tra Publishing [2024]
Tra Publishing sent us I Want a Lion! for review. All opinions are my own, and those of my little bookworms.
Where is My nose? (March 26) Italy
Where is My Nose? is one of my class’s favorite books of the year. We’ve read it 3 or 4 times in the past two weeks and I even came up with an art project for the kids to do after reading.
While reading Where is My Nose?, which features a dog who wakes up one morning to discover his nose is missing, my students love guessing what each object is that the dog thinks might be his missing appendage. They also enjoy saying the refrain “But it was not his nose.” as the pages are turned, making this an engaging and interactive read for them.
At the end of the story, the dog realizes how much he has enjoyed exploring the world as he looks for his nose. He heads off to see what else he can find. I love that the ending is left open, leaving the reader to wonder if the dog ever finds his nose. My students ask me every time and I look back at them and say “what do you think?” or “You should draw a different ending.”
These conversations inspired me to draw a simple image of a dog on the edge of a sheet of paper that, when folded, allows the students to finish the dog and have a flap covering part of their picture, just like in the book. It has been a popular choice during language arts center time. I love books published by Tra for this. They generally inspire me to do art with my littles.
What do you think would make a good nose for the dog?
Title: Where is My Nose?
Author/Illustrator: Italian-born artist Lucas Zanotto, who now lives in Finland
Publisher: Tra Publishing
Tra sent me Where is My Nose? for review. All opinions are my own.
Home (March 26) France
“Mommy, where do the deer sleep?” Our new house has a wooded backyard with a stream that runs along the back. Each morning and evening we see a herd of deer make their way from our woods and head out around the neighborhood looking for food. Some mornings we see them resting right along the tree line.
My girls have often wondered where the animals we see sleep. Now we can get some answers.
Home is an exquisitely illustrated book of poems about animal homes from across the world. Common tailorbirds sew leaves together to build nests for their families in South and Southeast Asia. Satin Bowerbirds decorate their nests with blue trinkets to attract mates in Australia. Sociable Weavers build nests with as many as 100 rooms in Africa.
Within the poems there are connections to life cycles, camouflage, habitat, body parts, diet, and animal communities. There’s a lot of great information in here! And there is even more in the back matter.
It would be fun to provide kids with various natural materials to see if they could build one of these animal homes, or create one of their own. Something we might try over this spring break.
Title: Home
Author/Illustrator: French writer and artist Isabelle Simler
Translator: Vineet Lal
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Home was sent to me for review by Eerdmans. All opinions are my own.
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Kids Read the World 