is it time? harvest?
soil erupts with sharp fragrance,
come, my garlic treat
earth treasure by Angie Quantrell
Photos by Angie Quantrell
Yakima Valley
This is our third successful (meaning: no earwig damage) allium crop! Maybe next year should be a season of rest for the garden beds when I grow just alliums and let the exploding earwig population die off a bit. The idea does bear tasty consideration…
Photo by Angie Quantrell
Yakima Valley
seeking light, water
face to the sun, wearing your
tiny fairy hat
buds tight with promise
urgency to bloom and seed
hello leek princess
by Angie Quantrell
Yakima Valley
Tales from My Garden
Photo by Angie Quantrell
Yakima Valley
Whole Whale
Words by Karen Yin
Art by Nelleke Verhoeff
Barefoot Books, 2021
Thank you, Kidlit411 and Karen Yin for sending me a copy of Whole Whale! What a wonderfully huge and engaging picture book!
I follow several picture book and book blogs to keep up with what is going on in the book business. I love reading about new picture books and encouraging authors and illustrators. Several blogs share updates about agents, editors, and publishing houses, which is always interesting. And sometimes, to my joy, I comment on blog posts and my name is pulled from the hat and I win a copy! I have met many wonderful books (and authors and illustrators) this way. Plus, I’m keeping up with what’s happening in the kid book world. Win-win-win.
A recent post at Kidlit411 shared about Whole Whale and Karen Yin. Whole Whale is her debut picture book. What a splash! Be sure to hop over to Kidlit411 and read her interview.
Why I LOVE this book:
~ The book size is huge – just like a whole whale! 12 x 12 inches!
~ How do you fit a whole blue whale in a book? Can you? What a fun mystery for young readers.
~ Fun, rhyming language builds suspense
~ A catchy repeating chorus, “But can we fit a whole blue whale?”
~ A fun fold-out surprise at the end
~ The final page which lists all the animals in the book
~ Can you count 100? Fun, fun, fun!
~ A wide variety of animals, land, sea, and sky
~ Encouragement to make room for just one more
~ Fantastic colorful illustrations
Congratulations, Karen and Nelleke! What a fun book!
You can find Karen:
KarenYin.com (sign up for the Purposeful Prose Newsletter)
Twitter: @karenyin, https://twitter.com/karenyin
Instagram: @karensoffice, https://www.instagram.com/karensoffice/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/karenyin
Karen sent me this book via Once Upon a Time, a bookstore in Montrose, CA. Thank you!
Monet was trying to help me post this review. Can we fit the big fat cat?
what’s next door, beyond?
sentinel blocks me, but fails
peek-a-boo neighbor
peek-a-boo by Angie Quantrell
photo by Jamie Quantrell
Fort Simcoe Historical State Park, Washington
Photo by Angie Quantrell
Yakima Valley
Happy Father’s Day, friends!
Photo by Angie Quantrell
Yakima Valley
Pigs to the Rescue
Written and illustrated by John Himmelman
Henry Holt and Company, 2010
Who would you want to rescue you from certain peril? Be it a tractor breakdown, gardening mishap, or a broken shoe string? Pigs? That’s a great answer!
Our library is doing a thing now. They group like-themed picture books together, band them, and add a tag to tell you about the theme. I found this fun pile of picture books all about pigs! Of course I had to check them out. (They also group movies, if you liked this book you’ll love this one, and many other catchy groupings to, well, catch patron’s eyes. It works!)
Why I Like This Book:
~ Pigs! haha
~ Rescue pigs, not pigs that need rescuing, but pigs that do the rescuing
~ Rescue attempts that overshoot the mark, but truly are meant to be helpful
~ The farmer’s family, beneficiaries of the piggly help – their expressions!
~ Just a normal everyday family, going about life, having little problems – and BAM! The pigs race in to save the day (sort of)
~ The ending is funny and satisfying
~ Funny illustrations, humor, exaggeration
~ The helpful attempts of the pigs remind me of preschoolers trying to help mommy or daddy complete a task, totally adorable and sincere, but often causing more work to be done or creating mayhem along the way
This is such a great pig book. What is your favorite pig book? Oink, oink.
Love, Laughter, and Life 