Picture This: Wolfie the Bunny

Wolfie the Bunny by Ame Dyckman, illustrated by Zachariah OHora

When the bunny family finds a baby wolf on their front doorstep, they’re smitten. They decide to take him in as their own—all of them, that is, except for Dot. “He’s going to eat us all up!” she exclaims again and again as her parents fuss over and spoil the new baby. When all the food in the house disappears overnight, will Dot’s parents finally see the light?

OHora’s bold and colorful illustrations and Dyckman’s comic storytelling gifts combine to create a perfectly timed, laughter- and drama-filled tale of families and new siblings. Wolfie and Dot are sent to the store to replenish the carrot supply, Dot scowling, Wolfie cheerfully wearing a pink bunny onesie, when a bear decides the Wolfie would make a perfect dinner! Dot must think fast if she’s going to save herself or Wolfie. It’s sure to be a blast with kids.

Picture This: Sidewalk Flowers

Sidewalk Flowers by JonArno Lawson and  Sydney Smith

In this beautifully illustrated, wordless picture book, a little girl collects flowers growing out of the cracks in the sidewalk as she walks with her father. He is absorbed in the tasks at hand: talking on his cell phone and getting from here to there. She, on the other hand, is constantly looking, observing, and collecting. When she sees a dead bird, she takes one of the flowers from her bouquet and leaves it with the bird. leaves one of the flowers with it. Soon, she’s giving out her bouquet, one flower at a time, to the man asleep on a park bench, the dog who says hello, her mother, and so on. Regardless of whether the recipients notice her gift she continue to give.

Sydney Smith illustrates Jo Arno Lawson’s story with mostly black and white pen, ink and watercolor. He includes colored accents: her red coat, the yellow cabs, her flowers, multicolored jars. Still, black and white dominate the pages until she starts giving away her flowers. Then color starts to fill the pages. There's a lot of nuance to appreciate here: the location of the flowers (did you noticed the one page where someone is peeking at her through a window?), the people and activities and architecture that fill the streets, the way her father constantly has to wait for her to catch up, etc. Beautiful book.

Picture This: This is Sadie

This is Sadie by Sara O'Leary, illustrated by Julie Morstad

Sadie has a big imagination. A box is not a box to Sadie. It’s a great ship! Sadie especially loves the places and adventures that books take her on. She has lived under the sea, been raised by wolves and even grown wings. Morstad’s illustrations are a perfect fit. I especially liked how she created full color spreads for Sadie’s imaginings, taking the reader into another world for just those pages. Charming and whimsical.

Picture This: Ice Cream Summer

Ice Cream Summer by Peter Sis

Joe writes a letter to his grandpa, describing all his summer adventures: reading, writing, swimming, traveling, going to day camp, map making, the list goes on.

You might be wondering where the ice cream is, considering the title. For that you need the illustrations. Ice cream is barely even mentioned in the main body of the text, but every page is filled to the brim with ice cream. Obviously Joe has a one track mind. Math problems and vocabulary revolve around ice cream. When he visits New York, the skyscrapers resemble cones, as does the ferris wheel, baseball bats, fish, ships, an octopus, lighthouses, pelican beaks, and even the Washington monument sits in a bowl. No doubt it will become a game for readers to find all the ice cream on a page. As he mentions learning about China, Europe and America, the illustrations include tidbits about the invention and history of ice cream. There’s a lot for kids to look at and enjoy in this ode to ice cream.

Recent Read: The Thing About Jellyfish

The Thing About Jellyfish by Ali Benjamin

Zu used to talk a lot—she would fill up empty spaces with scientific facts and explanations of the natural world. But after the death of her best friend, Franny, Zu doesn’t say a word. She doesn’t believe that Franny could have drowned like they say. There must be an explanation. And so, as her parents take her to therapy, and she goes to school and works on homework, Zu ponders how Franny must have been killed by a deadly jellyfish sting. Zu’s mission to prove the real cause of Franny’s death is mixed with recollections of Franny—how they became friends, what their friendship was like, and how it started to crumble.

These memories were my favorite part. They were so vivid and real. They sparked memories of my own. As the Zu’s past with Franny unfolds we begin to understand the motivation behind her drive to prove the “true” cause of Franny’s death. it's heartbreaking. The Thing About Jellyfish is the very definition of lyrical. It sometimes felt like a painting, blending thoughtful descriptions of the natural world with recollections of the past and contemplation about our place in the universe. Lovely, but I also think not for everyone.

The Thing About Jellyfish releases September 22

Picture This: Mesmerized

Mesmerized: How Ben Franklin Solved a Mystery that Baffled All of France by Mara Rockliff, illustrated by Iacopo Bruno

In 1776 Ben Franklin set sail for France to ask for money and soldiers that could help America in their war against the Brits. When he got to France, Paris was buzzing about a man called Dr. Mesmer.

Parisians were captivated by Dr Mesmer’s mysterious, magic-like force. He could cause people to taste vinegar when they drank plain water. He could cure people of illnesses. He sold his treatments and secrets for lots of money. When Ben Franklin witnessed Dr Mesmer’s “force” for himself, he was skeptical. He offered himself to Dr Mesmer, and when Dr Mesmer worked on him, nothing happened. He began to wonder if this “force” was more about people’s minds and the power of suggestion than any ability of Dr Mesmer’s. Ben set out to prove that Dr Mesmer was a fraud. (Spoiler alert: He succeeds.)

The design, illustration and writing are impeccable. I loved how the text really captured the sensationalism of it all--in content, the way that the story is told, and the typography. Iacopo Bruno illustrates the book with the type almost as much he does with the pictures. Sometimes the type is reminiscent of old advertising posters. He uses fonts and font size for emphasis and drama. Of course, the illustrations themselves are fabulous—dynamic, colorful, filled with action and movement, not to mention the fashions! And even the endpapers are bit mesmerizing.

Mara Rockliff incorporates Ben Franklin’s Scientific Method into the story as well, introducing it at the beginning and then including little asides along the way as Ben follows the steps to prove his theory of Dr Mesmer’s fraud. As part of the main book/story she also includes an explanation of hypnosis, and the placebo effect and how medical treatments are tested in modern times. At the end is a biographical note, explaining in more detail the lives of Benjamin Franklin and Franz Anton Mesmer.

And btw, this is where the word "mesmerize" comes from!!

 From the OED:

mesmerism, n. 
Etymology: < the name of Friedrich Anton Mesmer, Austrian physician (1734–1815) + -ism suffix, probably after French mesmérisme (1783). Mesmer settled in Paris in 1778 after accusations of fraud by physicians in his native Austria. 

 A therapeutic doctrine or system, first popularized by Mesmer, according to which a trained practitioner can induce a hypnotic state in a patient by the exercise of a force (called by Mesmer animal magnetism); the process or practice of inducing such a state; the state so induced, or the force supposed to operate in inducing it.

Recent Read: Circus Mirandus

Circus Mirandus by Cassie Beasley

“You promised me a miracle…and I have believed through all these years that if I had need of you, you would come. 
…I need you now.”

All his life, Micah Tuttle has heard stories of the wondrous Circus Mirandus, to which his grandfather, Ephraim, gained entry as a child, with a fish caught in his boot acting as a ticket. The circus is a sort of dream world, home to various magical acts and shows, like the Amazing Amazonian Bird Woman, who flies like her exotic birds, and The Man Who Bends Light, a master of illusion who can bring his audiences to shores of an Antarctic iceberg or to the depths of the Amazonian jungle.

But now Grandpa Ephraim’s health is declining, and Micah’s crotchety great aunt Gertrudis is now running the house. When Micah finds out that his grandpa Ephraim has written to request fulfillment of a miracle promised to him by the Lightbender years ago, Micah is sure that the miracle will save his grandfather. With the help of an unexpected new friend, the academically-minded Jenny Mendoza ( “Lightbender…I guess that’s a stage name?” ), Micah sets out to find Circus Mirandis, track down the Lightbender, and save his grandfather with a miracle.

This story was as magical as the circus for which it is named. Micah is trapped in an impossible situation. Aunt Gertrudis is caring for the grandfather he loves, but in the process she suffocates them both, forbidding all talk of magic and often barring Micah from even seeing his grandfather. But just as the desperation of Micah’s situation is palpable, so is the wonder and magic of Circus Mirandus. Micah, in spite of everything, does not doubt or falter. He follows in in the footsteps of Grandpa Ephraim, always pushing ahead, always believing.

Debut author Cassie Beasley alternates chapters about Micah’s and his quest with those about young Ephraim. The characters are well-drawn, the magic world enchanting, and the writing lovely. Also, those illustrations by are a nice addition, contributing to the feel of this novel. It's a celebration of that childlike ability to believe and hope. This is the one to beat. I’m already routing for it to win the Newbery.