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A New Take on Dinosaurs

I just got Uneversaurus (by Aidan Potts) in the mail and popped it open to find myself staring at an inside cover full of something that could look like a pattern of "scales" in striated ribbons of color with matching names... like a giant painter's palette. Or, else, it looks like a prismatic "eye" done in the colors. I was struck that it was a palette - and amazing one. And then, we started reading. And, this is a beautifully done and fascinating book with a clear science edge. The focus: the "colors" of dinosaurs and that we don't know what colors they were. The book goes through all kinds of ways that scientists might try and deduce what colors a dinosaur was. But the fact remains, we don't know. The illustrations are fabulous. The science is thought-provoking and accessible and all-together wonderfully done. And, the back cover... why it's a very detailed full-spread dinosaur for YOU to color the way you imagine the dinosaur might look.

"Treasure" Math Reader

X Marks the Spot
by Lucille Recht Penner, Jerry Smath (Illustrator)

What a wonderful "math" reader for kids! X Marks the Spot begins with brothers who are not thrilled about moving into a new house until they get a note from their grandfather that sends them on a treasure hunt. They first find a set of maps in the attic with clues to follow. By learning to use the coordinates of the map to move throughout the neighborhood, they follow the clues and end up finding a special hideaway all of their own. The use of the map in X Marks the Spot is handled smoothly in both the text and the supporting illustrations, and the story itself is winning and innovative... a sure hit for young readers, especially those with a nose for maps, scavenger hunts, or treasure.

Knitting-Themed "Reader"

Carrie Measures Up
by Linda Williams Aber, Joy Allen (Illustrator)

In Carrie Measures Up, the main character is waiting for her grandmother to arrive, and trying to decide which sweater her grandmother made that she wants to wear. The grandmother is a big knitter and knits all the time and everything. When the grandmother arrives, she enlists Carrie's help with a tape measure and instructions to secretly get measurements needed for the items on her "to knit" list. Carrie measures and measures and measures... and then comes up with all kinds of things that could be knit that are not on her Grandmother's list. The grandmother teaches her how to knit, and they go to the yarn store, and soon Carrie is all set. Her grandmother teaches her the basics, and Carrie decides to make her grandmother a scarf for her birthday. She secretly figures out the measurements for the scarf and begins knitting. And knitting. And knitting. But somewhere along the way, she forgets to check her measurements. Carrie Measures Up, is part of the Math Matters line of books. It's a cute knitting story, a great story in terms of introducing young knitters to the craft, and it's cool that there's an easy-to-follow real-world math tie-in as well as a gentle lesson to be learned about what happens when you don't pay attention to measurements.

Good Picks by David Lucas

I just recently saw a new book written and illustrated by David Lucas called Nutmeg. Nutmeg is a charming story about a family of three (Nutmeg, her uncle, and her cousin) who live a seemingly stark and monotonous life underscored by three routine repetitive boring and tasteless meals a day... Deciding to change her reality and maybe her routine, Nutmeg goes for a walk and finds a genie in a bottle. With her 3 wishes, Nutmeg wishes for something different to eat. The resulting appearance of a magic spoon really stirs things up.

David Lucas is also the author and illustrator of Halibut Jackson... a children's book we at theFLAP.com totally adore. If you have children and haven't read Halibut Jackson, you are missing out. Even if you don't have kids... this is one you should look at, particularly if you are shy or if you are interested in fabrics or if you sew or if you are an artist but have ever felt like an invisible artist. The book is a wonderful story of Halibut Jackson, an amazing clothing designer, but Halibut Jackson is shy and tends to blend into the background... quite literally. Lucas employs wonderful illustrations that show Halibut Jackson in clothing patterned to match his surroundings. (Kids will find it fun to "find" Halibut blending into the garden, the library, the chair, and so on.) Then, one day, Halibut makes a mistake... he accepts a royal invitation but misinterprets where the party will be held and shows up in something that doesn't blend in at all. But everyone loves it. And soon everyone has to have a Halibut Jackson design of their own. This is a wonderful story that celebrates uniqueness, unique talents, and creativity. Give Nutmeg a try, too. It's a very interesting manifestation of the genie and the three wishes idea.

Preschool Art

Alphabet Art: With A to Z Animal Art and Fingerplays
Judy Press
This book is an amazing collection of easy-to-make animal projects that mostly use standard preschool craft materials... toilet paper rolls, paper towel tubes, coffee filters, paper plates, paper bags, and so on. Each letter of the alphabet is introduced and includes instructions for tracing, cutting out, and decorating (in a letter-specific manner) each uppercase and lowercase letter of the alphabet. At the end of the book, you would have a full alphabet, neatly patterned, printed, painted, and ready to hang. Each letter is accompanied by an animal project and a song, poem, or fingerplay making this a really well-rounded book and an excellent project resource for those working with the 2-6 crowd. Some of the animal projects: a collage butterfly, a paper-bag cat, toilet-paper roll elephant, muffin cup hummingbird, paper-plate turtle, a vulture, a whale, an x-ray fish, a lion, a jellyfish, a giraffe, a kangaroo, an inchworm, and, yes, a zebra. (And, each of the animals has a letter-appropriate name -- for example, Allan the Alligator and Freddy the Frog!) Seriously, these are wonderful and cute animal projects. If you like 3-dimensional projectmaking with your kids or students, you'll find lots of inspiration and clear, easy instructions here.

Science Play: Beginning Discoveries for 2- to 6-Year-Olds
Jill Frankel Hauser
This book is chock-full of easy projects that demonstrate scientific principles perfect for the preschool crowd. From "wiggly water necklaces" and "sugar crystal necklaces" to "spinners" made from cardboard circles and toothpicks to kites made from ordinary paper and straws to shadow art to wind socks , there are really solid, really fun activities here sure to delight young explorers and scientists. My favorite... the recipe for a "purple cow" - a combination of grape juice and milk that sounds too gross to be true but tickled our young taste testers and demonstrates the concept of a "solution" neatly. Many projects are less craft-oriented and more focused on observation... throw a bunch of things in a bowl of water and see which ones sink and which ones float... but it's a good resource for finding new and innovative ways to introduce science concepts at this level.

Gizmos and Gadgets: Creating Science Contraptions that Work (And Knowing Why)
Jill Frankel Hauser
Following on the heels of Science Play, Gizmos and Gadgets for kids age 7-14 is an excellent "next" book of science-related projects. We love it for both the novelty of the projects included and the in-depth, hands-on scientific explanations and lessons that accompany the projects and discussions. We tried the super easy "flow-and-go boat" made from a cup, a bowl, two plates, and a straw with a set of preschoolers. The project was a big hit, and they all got to watch the boat be powered by the water dumped into the cup flowing through the straw into the water of a small swimming pool and causing the boat to "move" forward. A big hit. From wobble balls to amazing aliens, to more complicated super spinners, to yo-yos, boomerangs, and a marshmallow catapult, there's a wide range of material here... and numerous ideas sure to engage and excite the school-age crowd. You may even find the perfect "science fair" project in here... one your child can do him/herself!

Fun with My 5 Senses: Activities to Build Learning Readiness
Sarah A. Williamson
Great collection of activities for ages 2 to 6, although many of them definitely seem most appropriate for the younger end of that spectrum. There are a few "projects" in the book, like "phoney phones" and "stained glass windows," but most of the activities are more simply acts of "doing" something designed to emphasize the senses... walking in nature, walking in the dark, feeling things, listening. There's less real "science" for preschoolers here than you might expect. But, again, the book is a good compilation of activities for pre-preschoolers especially.

Cukoo for Klutz

This morning, we spent time building a football kicker from the Lego Crazy Action Contraptions: A Lego Inventions Book (published by Klutz. If I haven’t mentioned recently how much I love Klutz, let me just say it here. For the record, I am head over heels stoked on Klutz right now. I would go to work for Klutz in a heartbeat.

I remember Klutz from when I was younger. I remember the “how to juggle” books, followed, I think, by a “how to hackie-sack” book. Remember those? They were cool, but the Klutz lineup today is just knock-your-socks off cool. I wish we’d had books like these when I was a kid. Somehow, all of a sudden, we’ve fallen into Klutz world. For the last few months, I’ve been repeatedly hit in the head by books showing how totally cool Klutz books are. The LEGO book, which I got Matthew for Christmas, was the first Klutz book for us – my first as a parent, in other words. It’s fabulous. The creations are totally out of the ordinary, totally cool, and totally work.

Then, I ordered a "lacing" book for Spencer: Amazing Lacing Activity Book, also by Klutz. Very, very cool. As a creative type who has spent a lot of time with a needle of one form or another in my hand, I don’t think you can overestimate the importance of lacing exercises and activities. Lacing cards have always been popular in my house, and this book is like a spiral bound set of uber-cool lacing cards with a little pouch of cool, sparkly, curly, reach-out-and-touch me laces designed to get your kid’s attention. (Warning: Be careful with the corkscrew one. That one can snap at you sort of like an elastic band.)

Next, we stumbled over the hands-down worlds greatest color-by-number book ever, again, by Klutz: Paper Stained Glass: Color-By-Number Art for Your Windows. With transparent openings framed by black, the projects have a stained-glass effect, and the book offers suggestions for different ways to display or “use” many of the projects. (A snake one, for example, has instructions for cutting it and hanging it as a mobile.) Each page can be colored one of two different ways by simply flipping the sheet to one side or the other of the two-page spread. Or, you can come up with your own color-scheme for the page, and do something totally different. It’s a fabulous book, well-executed, comes with a pouch of numbered colored markers, and the drawings themselves are challenging and full of color.

Now, I find myself looking for Klutz. I spent some time oohing and ahhing over the "Twirled Paper" Klutz book the other day. It’s amazing. It will, no doubt, someday end up on my shelf. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. If you haven’t seen Klutz since the time of the juggle book, it’s definitely time for another look. For your own kids, grandkids, or gifts for friends, the bulging Klutz shelf or results page should be your first stop.

Here are a few other titles (many in the new Chicken Socks line) that caught our attention:

• Penny Games

• Melty Beads Activity Book

• Super Scissors Book

• Totally Tape

• Rescue Trucks

The Quigleys by Simon Mason

For the 4-8 crowd, The Quiggleys is sure to elicit giggles with its quirky tales of life in this unconventional - or maybe not so unconventional - family. Readers will laugh along at Lucy's work on the bee costume - and her subsequent manipulation of poor Dad - and Will's campaign to get a bird for Christmas. The depth is just right for the target audience, and as Dad plays babysitter and loses a child and as Mum gets a special ballet performance on her birthday, young readers will find much to laugh at - and may discover some quirkiness in their own lives.

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

If we had to pick one going to bed baby book, Goodnight Moon would be our choice - hands down. The story is lulling in its simplicity as the bunny carefully catalogues all the things in his room - and then says goodnight to each. The images of the "great green room" and its elements are beautifully drawn, alternating between black and white and color pages that capture a child's attention even as the rhythmic text soothes and comforts. Parent and child alike will end up loving the Goodnight Moon bunny, and "Goodnight stars. Goodnight air. Goodnight noises everywhere." will be a refrain you can share for many years of peaceful bedtime reading.

Stella, Star of the Sea by Marie-Louise Gay

From our first glance at the illustrations in Stella: Star of the Sea, we were charmed and delighted. The watercolor paintings are beautifully rendered, and the story of Stella and Sam's visit to the ocean is great fun for young readers. Sam has many, many questions, and Stella has all the answers. But what she really wants is for Sam to "come on in" and play in the water. A beautiful book with an innovative style in both illustration and storyline. The "Stella" collection is one young readers will quickly dubb a favorite.

Draw Me a Star by Eric Carle

We are big fans of Eric Carle, and our 13-month old adores such classics as Brown Bear, Brown Bear, The Mixed-Up Chameleon, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Draw Me a Star contains the same wonderful collage illustrations that Carle is known for, but this is simply a beautiful book. In some ways, a creation story, Draw Me a Star populates a world beginning with a star, which then asks for a sun, which asks for people, who ask for a house, and so on until the story comes full circle with a moon asking for a star. The book is wonderfully done, and babies and young readers alike will find someething here to latch onto.

Bubbles for Spring

How To Make Monstrous, Huge, Unbelievably Big Bubbles
by David Stein, Editors of Klutz (Editor)
I saw a picture of a huge bubble made with this kit/book on the Yarn Harlot's knitting blog, and I had to point it out here. This book/kit is definitely on order now for my own little one. I can only imagine how much fun we'll have with this!

Ten Timid Ghosts on a Christmas Night

The Holidays are over, but Ten Timid Ghosts on a Christmas Night is still the book that Matthew picked out a few nights ago for a bedtime read. It's an adorable book that flips the idea of ghosts being "scary" on its head - a good thing for little ones. The ten ghosts get frightened when they hear Santa coming. They eventually collide with Santa, scaring everyone involved.

The illustrations are charming, and the ghosts appear starting with "one timid ghost..." and moving up to "ten timid ghosts." My little one loves to count the ghosts on each page, and loves it when one or more is hiding in an unusual or hard-to-find place. We highly recommend this one.

Art by Alison Jay

Having a 3-year-old already, I don't know how I've missed out on Alison Jay's work. I stumbled over her name (and several books she's illustrated) a month or so ago at the Magic Cabin web site where I was trying to track down and out-of-print maze book for my very maze-smitten son. My interest piqued by the snippets of illustration I was seeing, I headed out looking for more detail - and more titles.

As a result, my almost 1-year old received a set of special Santa gifts in the form of 4 books illustrated by Alison Jay. Unfortunately, they weren't board books (which I'd just assumed they were). They're full-sized hardbacks, but they're, nevertheless, wonderful. Here's how we (umm, Santa) got our Alison Jay collection started.

I Took the Moon for a Walk
by Carolyn Curtis, Alison Jay
This is a wonderful story of a little boy's "walk" with the moon prior to going home to bed. The illustrations are priceless; the person-like moon is adorable; and hearing a little boy talk about going swinging with the moon and taking a flashlight in case the moon got scared walking through the woods is simply precious.

ABC: A Child's First Alphabet Book
by Alison Jay
I love this one. A classic "ABC" book, each page contains a large picture of something starting with the letter (and appropriate text) as well as many smaller pictures scattered throughout the scene that you can find that start with the letter. Plus, each page contains a hint to the "next" letter in the alphabet, too. The book is a lot of fun, is a puzzle of sorts, and the pictures are superb.

If Kisses Were Colors
by Janet Lawler, Alison Jay
A wonderful and sweet lullaby of a book. If you've ever told your child "I love you to the moon and back," then this is a book you'll appreciate. With simple but beautiful text that runs along the lines of "If kisses were colors, you'd see every one/of the bands of a rainbow that shines in the sun. If kisses were pebbles, your beach would be lined/with stones by the millions, of all shapes and kinds," the book makes me think of Margaret Wise Brown's classic Runaway Bunny. But the text here is fresh, sweet, and fun, and the illustrations are charming.

William and the Night Train
by Mij Kelly, Alison Jay
A sweet bedtime story, William and the Night Train will appeal to a little boy's instinctive love of trains. William is on the "night train" that takes us to tomorrow, but William doesn't want to go to sleep. A charming story with Jay's characteristic illustrations.

Santa made good choices, and as a Mom, I don't think you can go wrong with illustrations by Alison Jay. There's wonderful. Warm. Fun. Special. Classic. All wrapped up in each page is the feeling of what it means to be a parent and enter into the magical world seen through a toddler's eyes.