Devourer of Books » Saturday Story Spotlight

Frankenstein by Ludworst Bemonster – Saturday Story Spotlight

Oct 132012

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our children. These are books that they, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

Frankenstein: A Monstrous Parody by Ludworst Bemonster (Rick Walton and Nathan Hale)
Published by Feiwel & Friends, an imprint of Macmillan

I doubt I am alone in this, but when I was young I simply adored Ludwig Bemelmans’s Madeleine. In Frankenstein, Rick Walton and Nathan Hale – writing under the pseudonym Ludworst Bemonster – parodies the beloved childhood classic to monstrous effect. Their main character, as you might expect, is a little Frankenstein, although instead of the littlest of them, he is the ugliest one.

The first portion of Frankenstein is particularly clever. Bemonster has a good ear for the rhyme and meter of the original Madeleine and the story is cute. The monsters’s teacher Miss Devel wakes one night, certain that something is quite wrong and finds that Frankenstein has, quite literally, lost his head.

Frankenstein has some really great ‘spooky’ vocabulary. Things are grotesque and gory, full of shrieks and howls and groans, the monsters torment Miss Devel. The plot loses a bit of steam at the end, though, particularly after what should be the end of the book. There are two more pages of illustration that are so anti-climatic that they nearly ruin the entire book.

Of course, that is all from an adult’s point of view. Daniel, who is now three years old and has never read Madeleine, thoroughly enjoys Frankenstein. He has pronounced it his “favorite,” seemingly due to the good cadence and rhyme, as well as the cutely spooky illustrations.

Buy this book from:
Powells*| Indiebound*

Source: Publisher
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

The Smiley Book of Colors by Ruth Kaiser – Saturday Story Spotlight

Mar 242012

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

The Smiley Book of Colors by Ruth Kaiser
Published by Golden Books, an imprint of Random House

Smiles are contagious, whether from a family member, or made out of macaroni and cheese. Ruth Kaiser makes a point of seeing – and photographing – smiley faces everywhere and they are highlighted in The Smiley Book of Colors. Sorted by color and accompanied by brief rhyming text on each page, there are some 30 smileys faces found in every day items in The Smiley Book of Colors in addition to those found on the end papers.

I must admit, I was skeptical about The Smiley Book of Colors, most of all whether Daniel would appreciate it. Surely 2 and 1/2 is too young, I thought, to comprehend something as abstract as faces in inanimate objects. Luckily I took a chance with it anyway, because Daniel absolutely adores The Smiley Book of Colors. He seemed to be not entirely sure what he was looking at when he first flipped through the book, but once we showed him one smile, he could see them in each and every picture and found each of them absolutely delightful. He can also tell us what most of the objects actually are as well. In addition, the book is enhanced for him by the color groupings; not only does he want to go through and find all the faces, he goes through and announces the color on each page as well.

The Smiley Book of Colors will both delight children, and teach them to look for the creative and unexpected in the world all around them.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Publisher
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

The Gingerbread Man – Saturday Story Spotlight

Mar 032012

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

The Gingerbread Man illustrated by Karen Schmidt
Published by Scholastic Paperbacks, an imprint of Scholastic

I’m sure you all know the basics of this one: gingerbread man comes to life, taunts those who attempt to chase him, becomes over-confident, gets eaten by a fox.

We started reading this with Daniel around Thanksgiving and it became a favorite in no time and has been an oft-requested book for the entirety of winter (or what has passed for winter this year, anyway). Most of the time Daniel now “reads” this to us, at the very least reciting the gingerbread man’s lines “Run, run, run, as fast as you can, you can’t catch me I’m the gingerbread man!” Actually, he doesn’t just recite those lines when we’re reading the book, if he’s running (particularly if he’s running AWAY from us around the house) he is extremely likely to be shouting the same lines.

The predictive text in this book is great for a pre-reader like Daniel, but what is even better is how much it has captured his imagination.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Personal copy
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

My Fire Engine – Saturday Story Spotlight

Jan 072012

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

My Fire Engine by Michael Rex
Published by Henry Holt and Company

What little kid doesn’t want to be a fireman. The unnamed protagonist of My Fire Engine gets to do exactly that. “I have a fire engine,” he tells us on the first page, “I fight fires all the time.” From there, he goes on to run through a typical fire call at the fire house, from dressing and sliding down the pole, to driving the different fire engines to the scene. Once at the fire, he and his crew look for people, break holes in the house to let the gases escape, and even rescue the family’s pet snake.

One of the best things about My Fire Engine is how adaptable it is. There are a lot of fairly specific details about fire engines that go way over Daniel’s head right now but would be great for older kids. The bright, colorful pictures as well as the basic fact that there are FIRE ENGINES! makes this one of Daniel’s favorite reads.

We borrowed My Fire Engine from the library, but I think we’ll be buying it; this book has real staying power.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Library copy
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

The Night Before Christmas – Saturday Story Spotlight

Dec 172011

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore, illustrated by Ted Rand
Published by North-South Books

Sometimes I underestimate Daniel. I would have thought that the length and the often complex and old-fashioned language of The Night Before Christmas would have had him squirming in his chair after just a few pages.

I was so far off, it isn’t even funny; Daniel LOVES The Night Before Christmas. We have read this so many times, now, that he knows the end of every line, and can recite the first few stanzas – not that he gets every word, of course, but most of it makes sense. I’m not sure exactly what it is, sure the Santa part is neat, but that actually seems to be his least favorite. I think it is just the whole Christmas excitement, since he is much more aware of it than he has been in the past.

Don’t be afraid to try this classic with your young children, you may just find that they love it!

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Personal copy
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Llama Llama Holiday Drama – Saturday Story Spotlight

Dec 102011

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

Llama Llama Holiday Drama by Anna Dewdney
Published by Viking Juvenile, an imprint of Penguin

There is a lot to do during the holidays: buying presents, making cookies, putting up decorations, and doing a million little things. This is all a lot to handle for a little llama who is getting dragged to and fro with his mama llama. Llama Llama is more than a bit frazzled and overwhelmed by the whole thing. Finally, his little self is unable to handle it any more and he throws a temper tantrum. Luckily, Llama Llama has a smart mama who, though she lost site of his tolerance a bit while trying to get ready for the holidays, does realize that the point of all of this is to create an atmosphere for togetherness, and that she needs to not let preparations get in the way of time with her little llama. She explains all this to Llama Llama, and takes time out of her busyness to sit still and cuddle with him, which helps to stop the llama drama.

This is our second Llama Llama book, and both Daniel and I are big fans. The illustrations are adorable, and Llama Llama is the typical extremely cute and occasionally frustrating toddler. He has very toddler reactions, which means that Daniel can relate, understand, and empathize (“Llama Llama is SAD!”). His mama is both firm and loving, a great role model for fallible parents who might similarly forget their child’s limits during holiday preparations. My only real criticism of Llama Llama Holiday Drama is that it didn’t seem to scan quite as well as Llama Llama Red Pajama. Still, though, we will absolutely be buying and reading more of Dewdney’s Llama Llama books.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Personal copy
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Who is Coming to Our House? – Saturday Story Spotlight

Dec 032011

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

Who is Coming to Our House? by Joseph Slate, illustrated by Ashely Wolff
Published by Putnam Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin

It is a special night in the barn. The animals are abuzz with excitement about the special guest who is coming ever closer. “Who is coming to our house?” they ask mouse, in wonder, “Someone, someone” he replies. So of course the animals must get ready for their special guest, sweeping the floor, lining to manger with eider, anything they can do to make the barn comfortable. Finally, of course, Mary and Joseph show up, and in the end, so does the baby Jesus.

Who is Coming to Our House? is a very cute book, an early introduction for young children to the Christmas story. Having the story come from the perspective of the animals lends an extra degree of interest for kids. Daniel yells “look, mommy!” on basically every page. This is clearly not theologically deep, but it is a good opening for parents to explain a bit about the Christmas story. I do wish the lines scanned a bit better, however. The animals are called mouse, cow, etc, but I find myself wanting to read them as THE mouse, THE cow for them to flow better.

Over all, a good religious Christmas book for young children.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Personal copy
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Five Silly Turkeys – Saturday Story Spotlight

Nov 192011

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

Five Silly Turkeys by Salina Yoon
Published by Price Stern Sloan, an imprint of Penguin

Five Silly Turkeys is not dissimilar to Five Little Pumpkins. Here, again, is a holiday counting story, but this time much less known, and with turkeys instead of pumpkins. Instead of counting up to five, however, the turkeys are counting down from five to one. One turkey twirls away from the group, another gets stung by a bee, until there is only a single turkey left. Luckily, he is then able to join all his friends again at the end.

One thing that makes Five Silly Turkeys a special counting book is the set of gold feathers, one attached to each page. In addition to counting how many turkeys are left on the page, kids can also count how many feathers remain on the right.

Five Silly Turkeys isn’t going to blow anyone’s mind, but it is a fun book to read around Thanksgiving, and fun for practicing counting down skills.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Personal copy
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Over the River: A Turkey’s Tale – Saturday Story Spotlight

Nov 122011

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

Over the River: A Turkey’s Tale illustrated by Derek Anderson, based on the song by Lydia Maria Child
Published by Little Simon, an imprint of Simon & Schuster

Over the River: A Turkey’s Tale is a fun board book based on the song “Over the River and Through the Woods.” Instead of a human family merrily making their way to Grandma’s house for Thanksgiving, though we have a family of turkeys on their way to Grandma’s house for their (presumably vegetarian) Thanksgiving feast. The only problem is that a young boy and his dog are looking forward a turkey dinner, and this family of turkeys look like prime candidates.

Anderson did a wonderful job reimagining such a classic song. I’d never pictured a family of turkeys, but now I’m not sure I can picture anything else again. His recreation is made to fit very nicely into the song as it stands. The illustrations are bright, fun, and engaging. This has been Daniel’s new favorite book for a couple of weeks now, and as a result he is slightly obsessed with the song, now asking to hear the song before bed, and wanting to sing it all the time.

Definitely a fun Thanksgiving book for little kids. Highly recommended.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Library
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Llama Llama Red Pajama – Saturday Story Spotlight

Nov 052011

Welcome to Saturday Story Spotlight, my feature where I discuss books my husband and I are reading with our son, Daniel. These are books that he, we, or all of us particularly enjoy.

Llama Lllama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
Published by Viking, an imprint of Penguin

After reading Llama Llama a story, Mama Llama puts him to bed and go downstairs. Not quite ready to go to sleep, Llama Llama wants a drink. Well, actually, he just wants his Mama Llama to come back and keep him company. So Llama Llama begins to call and cry for his mother.

I’m sure most little kids can relate to Llama Llama here, not wanting yet to go to sleep, just wanting Mommy or Daddy to come and cuddle, and not getting it. Mama Llama has things that need to be done while Llama Llama is in bed, so she doesn’t return immediately, but when she does return, she reassures her little Llama Llama that she is always around, even when she isn’t immediately present.

Daniel has decreed this his new favorite book. “Do you want to read XYZ?” “No! Llama Pajama book!” I don’t blame him, really. For one thing, the illustrations are beautiful and the little llama is absolutely adorable. Plus, Llama Llama Red Pajama is a book that simply begs to read aloud. Llama Llama gets progressively more anxious the longer his mother is away and Dewdney uses incredibly expressive words that are perfect for a slightly dramatic reading.

I think part of the current appeal of Llama Llama Red Pajama is that Daniel is attempting to transition from his crib to a toddler bed. It is making him more anxious about bedtime than usual, so Llama Llama is somewhat reassuring.

We now love Llama Llama (and our cute little Llama Llama doll in his red pajamas that Unabridged Bookstore included with our order). I have a feeling that we’ll be buying all of Dewdney’s other Llama books soon.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Personal copy
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

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