Kid Lit Round-up

Children's literature is ever-expanding. These titles have been released within the last six months. Check 'em out!

It’s a dog’s life and Bailey’s Day by Robert Haggerty exposits that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In big, vibrant pictures, illustrator Bobbi Switzer presents a canine view of “A Day in the Life.” And what a day it is.

Bailey is a large, brown and white dog who tackles life with gusto. Her dad is a mailman, and when he goes off to work, Bailey begins her day. She lives in Arizona, so she gets to play with lizards, and—lucky for the lizards—they’re faster than she. Bailey enjoys napping on her dad’s shirts after eating a satisfying breakfast of dog food and a treat.

Clearly, Bailey is the kind of dog we all want. Young children will enjoy Bailey’s Day for its simple story of canine rebellion and its full page illustrations of a happy dog at play. There really is a “Bailey” and following her story is an album of family photographs—Bailey at home doing the things she likes, including playing pool and browsing in the refrigerator, and Bailey with her dad in the mail truck.

In Bailey’s Day, she has a pet door so she can let herself out. Her yard has a nice high wall around it, but that doesn’t stop her from jumping the wall and visiting Frankie the dachshund next door. The two dogs spend their day visiting children in the park, swimming, eating with the taco man, and engaging in other dog-satisfying activities, one of which is hiding from mail trucks (this is where Bailey differs from a certain dog I know who is intent on eating the mail truck with the mailman in it. Are you reading this, Charity Marie Doggy-Dog?).

Bailey’s dad doesn’t know she is out and about every day, but this day he finds Bailey and Frankie and gives them a ride home. Frankie and Bailey share a wink when the mailman says, “I hope you two dogs don’t get out every day.”

Upon arriving home, Bailey heads straight to bed, knowing she’s done something wrong (or at least knowing she’s been caught doing something wrong). Dad tells Bailey not to do it again and goes about his business. The story ends with Bailey planning her next day out—tomorrow.

Bailey’s Day is recommended for young readers. The text is simple, yet vocabulary-building. One of the things I especially appreciated is the font Haggerty chose for his text. If you’ve ever rejected a children’s book because the font was too fancy for a young reader, with letters that could easily be confused, you will welcome the bold, block letters used in Bailey’s Day. Additionally, it offers a number of opportunities for discussion of both the dog’s behavior and right and wrong, or bad and good. Readers will find that Bailey is a good dog with a taste for adventure.

Bottom Line: Would I buy Bailey’s Day? Yes, it’s an entertaining book for young children and beginning readers. Dog lovers will also find it amusing.

There are so many children‘s books about dinosaurs, and so many of them are very good. Not all, but many. Changing of the Guard by Ted Rechlin is a delightfully imaginative children’s book, that juxtaposes beasts that roamed YellowstoneNational Park 70-million years ago with its current inhabitants. Handsomely illustrated, Changing of the Guard  would make a wonderful gift for that dinosaur-obsessed child found in every family.

 Not so much a story as a vivid scene, Changing of the Guard allows us to follow Yellowstone denizens one morning and to compare and contrast them to its former inhabitants. Not everyone can picture an animal that is 20-feet tall, 45-feet long, weighing 14,000 pounds. Rechlin offers us the grizzly bear as its modern-day counterpart (not by species, but by presence), and it’s easier to imagine T-Rex’s size in comparison. 

 Every animal introduced in the book is accompanied by its vital statistics: height, length, weight, and eating habits (herbivore, carnivore, omnivore). This information is essential to appreciate the variety of life that inhabits (or had inhabited) the LamarValley where YellowstoneNational Park is located. The animals are also introduced according to their place in the food chain, from smallest to largest. First come the Columbian ground squirrel and the prehistoric rodent-like mammal purgatorius. Each has a brood of newborns squealing to be fed, so each must go out into the valley and find food without becoming meals themselves.

 Peaceful herbivores graze and wade, but all is not serene. We soon meet carnivorous dromaeosaurs and gray wolves, also out hunting breakfast. Successful in their hunts, they still face defeat by tyrannosaurus rex and the grizzly bear. Although some of these beasts are fearsome to behold, Rechlin does not drench his pages in gore. Instead, he treats his readers to 38 dramatically drawn pages of wildlife as seen in its natural habitat. The animals are not caricatured or personified in any way, which broadens the audience appeal.

 Changing of the Guard is aptly targeted at children “of all ages who love dinosaurs and for those who love Yellowstone.” It neither sugar-coats nor frightens. This is Ted Rechlin’s first book, he is also an artist  who illustrates books and produces comic book art and trading cards, as well as tattoo and graphic design. When not creating or teaching, he can be found hiking the Yellowstone back country, his obvious inspiration.

 If you’re not a paleontologist, Changing of the Guard may expand your knowledge of dinosaur species. It is an engaging read for those interested in, either or both, prehistoric and current native wildlife, as well as for those who are looking for a good read to share with the kids.

 Bottom Line: Would I buy it? Yes. I’m already planning to give a copy to B³ Reilly, our family’s resident dinosaur expert.

America’s Black Founders by Nancy I. Sanders

 Let’s get one thing straight. I did not go to school during the Revolutionary War. No, not even grade school. Everything I know about that time period, I learned in school (except whatever I picked up in the movies).Both grade and high school in the 1950’s and 60’s offered comprehensive courses in United States history, if by comprehensive we accept that United States history was made by white, Christian, men (except for Betsy Ross, but a man told her what to do). In the small grammar school I attended, there was one African-American student. My high school experience was different, and for the first three years I attended a rural high school that served thirteen towns. Kids tended to hang with kids they lived near; friendships were forged at bus stops. Neighborhoods were pretty homogeneous, so most kids were friends with people who were from the same race and class as they. Somehow I managed to end up in a multicultural group of misfits who rode the “detention” bus, which was actually the bus for juvenile delinquents and athletes. In those days that would have been two separate groups. Color didn’t put me in the back of the bus, proclivity did. My family moved right before my senior year, and I ended up in the first school system to voluntarily integrate (in the early 60’s).  Nevertheless, high school history lessons were as white and male as grammar school’s were.

 America’s Black Founders by Nancy I. Sanders is a combination of history and activities designed to teach children about the role of black people—men and women—in early America. It begins with the story of Richard Allen, a seven-year-old boy who was sold as a slave, traces his life, and fittingly ends with his death in his 70’s. America’s Black Founders is filled with photographs and drawings, portraits and illustrations of many black people who helped pour the foundation of America, as well as reproductions of documents and scores of other pictures, modern and historic. It is a rich, photographic treasury of our past.

 Readers are introduced to one memorable person after another, many of whom they have never heard. Wealthy sailmaker James Forten, patriot Prince Estabrook, wealthy Louisiana farmer Marie-Therese Coincoin Metoyer, and founder of the Sunday School Movement Catherine “Katy” Ferguson are but a few of the historic figures profiled.  Many of these people were influential members of their communities; some influenced our nation and society.  A number were associated with more famous figures such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. It’s sad to think that few of these people have appeared in history textbooks. Knowing that fifty years of history have been squeezed in since I was a lass, I doubt that they are getting all that much press now.

 Certainly America’s Black Founders is a terrific teaching tool for Black History Month, but its appeal is much greater. This is a fascinating collection of vignettes which Sanders has fashioned for readers of all ages. There are relatively few people who couldn’t learn something new and interesting within its pages. Were that not enough, there are 21 activities designed to introduce readers to facets of subjects’ lives, from stuffing a straw mattress to publishing a newspaper. Crafters will enjoy making a clay pot, weaving a fanner, or making a stamp. Artists can “Draw a Political Cartoon” and “Paint a Historic Picture”; writers can “Write a New Verse for ‘Yankee Doodle’” and “Pen a Patriotic Poem”; and cooks can “Bake Firecakes,” “Cook Pepper Pot Soup,” and “Make Homemade Salt.” In addition, there are suggestions for young movers and shakers: “Write a Government Official,” “Write a Petition,” and “Form a Literary Society.” There are activities appropriate for every age level that would make great classroom projects, but can also be done at home.

 America’s Black Founders is a very attractive, large format paperback--an appropriate gift for both children and families. For those interested in history, it is educational without being pedantic. For those of us with ADD, it doesn’t need to be read from beginning to end; leaf through it, stopping here and there, and you will be hooked. No matter how little reading time you have, you have enough time to read these profiles, a little at a time.

 Bottom Line: Would I buy America’s Black Founders Enthusiastically, yes.

Things that occur in the dark are mysteries to young children. For the more adventuresome, a late night walk with an adult could be illuminating. For the child who wants to nestle into bed and be read a bedtime story, there is Nine Things Nathan Noticed at Night by Christy Baldwin, a short picture book that introduces the child to some facts behind the mysteries.

 Nathan’s nine things are related only by their nocturnal occurrence.  One such happening is “Raccoons and Skunks wander in our yard looking for food.” The author provides an explanation of the activity Nathan has observed and an associated Bible verse. Charmingly primitive watercolors by Sarah Barnes complete each lesson.

 Because the book is only 18  pages long and contains a minimum of text, one might be tempted to read it to a child in one sitting. However, each of Nathan’s nine things can be approached individually as a springboard for discussion. All of the Bible verses are taken from the Old Testament and invite conversation on the nature of God and creation. For example, Psalm 90:4 “He is like a watch in the night,” accompanies “Owls and bats only come out when its dark” (sic). The somewhat pedantic facts behind the “things,” may also lead to interesting discussions on  a variety of topics including the mating habits of crickets.

 Nine Things Nathan Noticed at Night is recommended for 3-to-8-year-olds, but 7- and 8-year-olds will probably find one reading enough; there’s not much substance. It is also not appropriate as an “early reader” book, as some of the words and concepts are foreign to the very young.  Adults will find an inconsistency of style and an unfortunate grammatical error. Since Nathan is not actually introduced in the text—he is represented by an illustration of the back of a pajama-clad child looking out a window—those reading to children are required to provide the back-story.

 Bottom line: Would I buy this book? Sadly, no. I enjoyed the alliterative title and an illustration of skunks by a garbage can, but little else. For a book designed for a young audience, it is surprisingly emotionless.