On The Day You Were Born - Debra Frasier

Title: On the Day You Were Born

Author: Debra Frasier

Year: 1991

Country: USA

Rating: 5 out of 5

First sentence: On the eve of your birth word of your coming passed from animal to animal.

I love this book. Love, love, love it. It is currently one of my favorite picture books. It comes in a few different versions, including a board book, but we bought the picture book that comes with a CD. It is a story of celebration of the birth of your child, and is told in a wonderful, lyrical way. Reading this book to a child tells them they are a blessing--without any religous undertones--incorporating their birth into the natural world in a way that would make any child feel special.

"On the day you were born the Moon pulled on the ocean below, and, wave by wave, a rising tide washed the beaches clean for your footprints..."

The illustrations, also done by the author, are simple and breathtaking, a perfect fit for the nature-oriented tone of the story. The CD is a must have. I thought it would only contain an audio version of the story. In addition to that--which is wonderfully narrated and set to music. In addition, there are a few more tracks of songs which are a delight to listen to. This would make a wonderful gift for any new mother.

"On the day you were born the Earth turned, the Moon pulled, the Sun flared, and, then, with a push, you slipped out of the dark quiet where suddenly you could hear...a circle of people singing with voices familiar and clear."

Baby Shoes - Dashka Slater

Title: Baby Shoes

Author: Dashka Slater (Pictures by Hiroe Nakata)

Country: USA

Year: 2006

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

This is a very cute, fun book. Baby has brand new, white shoes, that he picked out all by himself. We follow Baby throughout the day as he tramples through plums, jumps in puddles, and plays in the grass. After each activity, a stain in a new color is added to his white shoes. 

The best part of the book is the 'refrain' that follows each mishap: Baby says, "Uh-oh!" Mama says, "Oh, no!" But those shoes just go, go, go. After reading this once with Maya, we found ourselves saying 'uh-oh's and oh-no's after each of Maya's antics. It caught on quickly, and brought quite a few laughs out of Maya. The watercolor style illustrations are beautiful and with a catchy flow, I'm sure this would be a hit for toddler-aged kids.

My Friend Jamal - Anna McQuinn

Title: My Friend Jamal

Author: Anna McQuinn (artwork by Ben Frey)

Year: 2008

Rating: 5 out of 5

This book is about a friendship that transcends cultural differences. The narrator, Joseph, introduces us to the friendship he has with Jamal, who was born in the same hospital as Joseph, but whose family is from Somalia. Both boys enjoy the same activities: basketball, playing superheroes, and talking too each other too much at school. With simple prose from the perspective of a young and innocent mind, we learn about the bond between two boys despite the difference in their lives.

At Jamal's we get to eat sitting on the floor. It's like a picnic every day!

My favorite thing to eat at Jamal's house is Sabayad, which is a kind of pancake.

When we have pasta, Jamal's mom puts a banana in it-which sounds weird but tastes awesome.

I asked my mom if we could have banana in our pasta at home. She says she'll think about it.

I love this picture book! It is an ideal story for discussing cross-cultural friendships with pre-readers and young readers. Joseph tells about the two families in a straight forward way free of bias and ethnocentricity. Anna McQuinn covers a lot of topics in this little book: tolerance of different religions, refugees and civil war, English as a Second language, and differences within a culture and religion -

I met one of Jamal's aunts at the party. She was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt.

I thought if you were Somali you had to wear Somali clothes, but she said you can still be a Somali in jeans!

His aunt didn't wear a headscarf like Jamal's mom. I asked her why not and she said she only wears it when she prays.

I asked her lots of questions.

Although at first glance the illustrations and photographs didn't appeal to me, as soon as I read the story I saw how well they tie together. The illustrations, a combination of photography and art, are bright and bold, and complement the narrative.

Despite the serious undertones in the story, it consistently remains light-hearted and age-appropriate. It is refreshing to see a children's book addressing the topic of cultural diversity in such a non-judgmental way. Many adults would benefit from reading this book too!  

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

Title: Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

Author: John Steptoe (also the illustrator)

Country: USA

Year: 1987

Rating: 5 out of 5

Just take a look, it's in a book - reading rainbow!

I had a little rush of excitement when I picked up this book and saw the reading rainbow sign. I haven't read a Reading Rainbow book in years!! And this one certainly does not disappoint.

First sentence: A long time ago, in a certain place in Africa, a small village lay across a river and half a day's journey from a city where a great king lived.

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters is based on an African folk tale first published in 1895; the illustrations were inspired by the ruins of an ancient city found in Zimbabwe. Both of Mufaro's daughters are beautiful on the outside. However, while Nyasha treats both the animal and human kingdom with love and kindness, her sister Manyara is a tad, prideful. When the king starts looking for a woman to be his queen, both sisters start out on a journey to the king's city to appear before him.

Both the story and illustrations are beautiful. You could spend all day with a young child pointing out all of the interesting tidbits found in the illustrations on each page (of course, what young child has that kind of attention span!). This picture book would be a great way to introduce your kids to folk talks from other cultures, as this one has a universal theme (a moral lesson on pride), and bears some similarity to the Western fairy tale Cinderella.

The Castle on Hester Street - Linda Heller

Title: The Castle on Hester Street
Author: Linda Heller (illustrated by Boris Kulikov)
Country: America
Year: 1982
Rating: 5 of 5

First sentence: One day while Julie was visiting her grandparents, her grandfather said, "Did I ever tell you about my good friend Moishe?"

This a cute story about a grandfather's tall tales of the family's immigration from Russia to America. By countering grandpa's stories of castles and moons made of matzoh, with grandma's explanations of how things really were, Linda Heller has created a gem of a book in teaching kids about the experience of immigration. It's an endearing story that all ages could enjoy.

Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan

Title: Sarah, Plain and Tall
Author: Patricia MacLachlan
Country: USA
Year: 1985
Rating: 3.5 of 5
Pages: 64

First sentence: "Did Mama sing every day?" asked Caleb.

In the late 19th century, a farmer and his two children on the great Plains puts in an advertisement for a wife. When Sarah replies, and arrives from Maine, Anna and Caleb do everything they can to convince her to stay, despite her homesickness for her family and the sea.

This is the premise of Sarah, Plain and Tall, a story about acceptance, loss and love. The story did not capture my emotions in the same way that other Newbery winners have in the past. I found the characters to be a bit one-dimensional and flat. It was hard to get past the "mail-order bride" vibe that ranckled my inner feminist. However, the story is not that simple, and is sweetly seen from the eyes of Anna and Caleb. To them, their whole world is resting on Sarah's decision whether to leave or stay. It is a nice story for young kids.

Possum Magic - Mem Fox

Title: Possum Magic
Author: Mem Fox

Illustrator: Julie Vivas
Country: Australia
Year: 1983
Rating: 5 out of 5

First sentence: Once upon a time, but not very long ago, deep in the Australian bush lived two possums.

Possum Magic is a delightful tale of two possums, Hush and Grandma Poss. Grandma Poss practices bush magic, and one day makes Hush invisible. When Hush decides that he no longer wants to be invisible, Grandma Poss can not reverse the magic! We follow the two as they set off on a trip around Australia, sampling tucker in different cities in an attempt to make Hush visible again.

We received this book from a good Australian friend of ours, after Maya was born. This was one of her favorite books as a child, and I can see why. We lived in Brisbane, Australia for four years, and plan on taking Maya back on vacations; this book will be a great introduction to Australian wildlife and culture. The illustrations are beautiful, and were able to capture a six week old's attention for an extended period of time! I look forward to someday reading Koala Lou by Mem Fox as well.

Grandma Poss hugged Hush, and they both danced "Here We Go Round the Lamington Plate" till early in the morning.

Young Readers Challenge

Young Readers Challenge
Hosted by: Becky
Blog: Young Readers

Now that we have an aspiring young reader in our family (who is currently snuggled in my lap sleeping), I thought this would be a great challenge to join. Here is a list of books that I might choose from, and will probably add more along the way. Many of these are picture books.

Possum Magic - Mem Fox (finished 11 January 2008)
The Castle on Hester Street - Linda Heller (finished 7 February 2008)

Baby Shoes by Dashka Slater (finished 22 May 2008)

Dappled Apples - Jan Carr (finished 3 October 2008)
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters - John Steptoe (finished 29 February 2008)
Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan (finished 28 January 2008)
The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (finished 7 April 2008)
The Birchbark House - Louise Erdrich (finished 8 April 2008)
On the Day You Were Born - Debra Frasier (finished 21 July 2008)

My Friend Jamal - Anna McQuinn (Finished 29 April 2008)