Knowing that I needed a new post soon, I grabbed a handful of picture books for my lunch time reading. Three I liked in particular:
Jim Henson: The Guy Who Played With Puppets
Kathleen Krull has delivered another terrific biography for young readers. With a new Muppet movie out this Thanksgiving, a renewed interest in the Muppets is likely. Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher's illustrations of the Muppets are astonishingly realistic. I really like afterwords in children's biographies, so I was a bit disappointed this has none. A minor quibble in an otherwise excellent biography. I was happy to see a mention of Labyrinth, one of my guilty pleasure movies (we all have them). There's a bit more discussion of the creation of Sesame Street and its Muppets than The Muppet Show, but considering that the targeted audience will be much more familiar with Sesame Street, it makes sense.
The Haunted Hamburger and Other Ghostly Stories
Halloween will soon be in the air, and with that comes requests for ghost stories. This is perfect for children who aren't ready for truly shivery stories. Children are more likely to shriek with laughter than horror at these very silly stories.
Naamah and the Ark at Night
There are plenty of Noah's Ark picture books, but this story (really, a lullaby than an actual story) is from the perspective of Noah's wife (in Jewish tradition, she is called Naamah). Naamah soothes the humans and the beasts of the ark through the tumultuous storm through a soothing lullaby. This is going on my Caldecott shortlist; it definitely deserves a second look come Caldecott decision time.
I'm working on the September order; oh my goodness, there are some great things coming out this month!
I blogged about books for National Library Card Sign-Up Month on the ALSC blog recently. You can check it out here.
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