Jacinta's Orderly World

Written by Margaret Sullivan

Illustrated by Scot Ritchie 

Plumleaf Press

978-1-73889827-5

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

May 2024

 

We  all like to have our things where can find them. For some, like Jacinta, having routines and things in order makes all the difference to having her day so smoothly. But then she meets someone who does things a little differently and still makes it work for them.

From Jacinta's Orderly World, written by Margaret Sullivan, illus. by Scot Ritchie

Jacinta likes order in her life, whether it's how her socks are organized in a drawer or using an egg carton to house her 12 most special rocks. (She's also very good at repurposing objects.) That control over what she does and how she does it brings her contentment. But outside of her control, things are always different and sometimes difficult.

From Jacinta's Orderly World, written by Margaret Sullivan, illus. by Scot Ritchie

Jacinta finds it stressful when her grandmother comes over to babysit and throws off Jacinta's order. Doesn't Grandma Nancy know that the cereal and cookie boxes are organized according to the colour spectrum ROY G BIV? And what is she supposed to do with the new stuff Grandma Nancy brings that don't fit in to her organization scheme?

From Jacinta's Orderly World, written by Margaret Sullivan, illus. by Scot Ritchie

But a trip to Kenny's garage to pick up their car gives Jacinta a new perspective. Without knowing it, she finds the beauty of her order in the chaos outside of her home. Whether it's the rainbow she discovers in spilled oil or a tiny mouse that resides in Kenny's garage, Jacinta finds that she can appreciate that which initially seems disorganized.

 

Margaret Sullivan, a poet and writer from Salt Spring Island, shares her experiences of seeking comfort in organizing her room via Jacinta whose own quest for order gives her satisfaction. Growing up in a military family who often moved locations, Margaret Sullivan found stability in the organization of her own space. Most young children feel a lack of control in their lives, having their activities from eating to sleeping, learning and play dictated by the adults in their lives so for Jacinta to be able to exercise some level of authority over her surroundings is important.  But, while Margaret Sullivan could have made Jacinta an anxious child, she made her one who appreciates order but could see beyond that which appears disorganized. She gives us a character that is multi-dimensional, who knows what she likes and how to get it but is open to others who may want something different.

From Jacinta's Orderly World, written by Margaret Sullivan, illus. by Scot Ritchie

Scot Ritchie's illustrations depict both the order and the chaos effectively and with kindness. His art shows the complexity of colour in our lives but also that it's up to us how we live with all that colour. He makes sure we don't see Jacinta's life as anything less than full. She doesn't live in a world of black and white, or even grays. Her life has everything she needs and likes and she still is able to look beyond herself. Her openness to new experiences and to the needs of others demonstrates that the richness of her life reaches beyond herself.

I like Jacinta. She's a cool kid. I like how she organizes and repurposes objects and how she opens her heart. She could have closed herself off to protect herself from that which might disturb her but, from her grandmother and mishaps and meeting Kenny, Jacinta takes it all in stride to find a way to cope. In fact, she does better than cope. She finds a way to appreciate them all. Life can be jumbled but Jacinta shows us that there is a way to see within and beyond and give it an order that works for us.

Easter Morning, Easter Sun

Written by Rosanna Battigelli

Illustrated by Tara Anderson

Pajama Press

978-1-77278-177-9

24 pp.

Ages 3-6

March 2021 

For those who celebrate Easter, Rosanna Battigelli and Tara Anderson will give life to your celebrations of hot cross buns, Easter egg hunts and family feasts. For those who don't, Easter Morning, Easter Sun shares springtime festivities that herald a new season of colours, freshness and connection of family and friends. So, we're all invited to enjoy Easter Morning, Easter Sun.

From Easter Morning, Easter Sun by Rosanna Battigelli, illus. by Tara Anderson

This Easter begins, as it does for many, with an Easter breakfast and hot cross buns which the mother cat has just pulled out of the oven. Then the family heads outside with their baskets, as do other families, for an egg hunt and to enjoy the spring: apple blossoms, a robin singing at its nest, a white duck and her ducklings on the water, and daffodils and grape hyacinths colouring the grass.

From Easter Morning, Easter Sun by Rosanna Battigelli, illus. by Tara Anderson

In rhyming verse, Rosanna Battigelli lets us join the diverse family of cats–mom is a white cat, dad is a jauntily-bereted cat of black, while little ones are grey, grey-striped, orange-tabby, and brown tabby–as they listen and watch and enjoy.

Easter springtime,

Easter buzz,

Easter chirping,

Easter fuzz.

They tumble and play, alongside a family of charming mice, until, to the evident delight of all, their guest, a dapperly-dressed rabbit with half-moon pince nez eyeglasses, joins them until it's time for goodbyes.

Easter sunset,

Easter light,

Easter bedtime,

Easter night.

From Easter Morning, Easter Sun by Rosanna Battigelli, illus. by Tara Anderson

Rosanna Battigelli delighted us with her debut picture book Pumpkin Orange, Pumpkin Round (2019), which was also illustrated by Tara Anderson, giving us a holiday-themed rhyme perfect for young children. They'll appreciate the rhythmic verse and repetitive nature of the text, sure to know the words after just a few readings. It's simple in its vocabulary but meaningful and comprehensive in its story. This is all the more so due to Tara Anderson's artwork created with oil-based coloured pencils and mineral spirits. There's a texture to her illustrations, from her medium to her technique, that emulates the grain of a blanket or the grass, the water or the cats' fur. What's more, her cats never fail to bring joy and smiles from their expressions and antics, and now we have mice from Tara Anderson that do likewise.

It doesn't matter if you celebrate Easter or not because Easter Morning, Easter Sun will take you into one cat family's festivities to partake in their traditions–you can even decorate your own eggs with the recipe provided–and rhyme along as they enjoy their day.

From Easter Morning, Easter Sun by Rosanna Battigelli, illus. by Tara Anderson

The Snake Mistake Mystery: The Great Mistake Mysteries, Book 3

Written by Sylvia McNicoll

Dundurn Press

978-1-45973-973-4

224 pp.

Ages 9-12

January 2018

But my mind tries to sort through all the details that float through my thoughts: a missing snake, an empty ring box, spray-painted cars, a stolen phone and laptop, a stolen Mr. Universe medal.  What do they have in common? Not Noble Dog Walking. Can't just be Noble Dog Walking. (pg. 89)

As in The Best Mistake Mystery, the first book in Sylvia McNicoll's Great Mistakes Mysteries, there are plenty of mistakes to be made and a new collection of mysteries to be revealed and solved.  And Stephen Noble and best friend Renée Kobai who walk dogs for his father's dog walking company are on it.  If they could just keep Noble Dog Walking from being blamed for all the mishaps, some criminal, happening in their Brant Hills neighbourhood, then Dad wouldn't lose all his clients and he wouldn't have to give up and take on telemarketing from home.  That's a lot of what ifs but Stephen and Renée are an astute pair of twelve-year-olds who take note of much in their neighbourhood: suspicious vehicles, coincidences, human and animal behaviour. If anyone can solve all the mysteries within The Snake Mistake Mystery, they can.

When a powerful storm hits, Stephen is instructed by his flight attendant mom to check on King, the pet of a new neighbour.  But with a power outage, Stephen and Renée are delayed and by the time they access the house via a hidden key, they find the ball python gone. When the kids return to Stephen's, they learn Mrs. Irwin, the owner of five Yorkies, has accused Noble Dog Walking of leaving her door unlocked and allowing the theft of a Mr. Universe gold medal while Mr. Mason, a former client, claims his cell phone and laptop disappeared because they still had a key to his house. Knowing none of these crimes have anything to do with them, Stephen is determined to find the culprit, hoping to solve the mystery, plus a few more, while he and Renée determine how to locate and capture a missing snake.

At every turn around the neighbourhood, there is something else either going amiss or being revealed.  With a motley band of neighbours–their techie friend Reuven; Renée's brother Attila and his girlfriend Star, both taggers; artists Mr. Kowalski and Mrs. Irwin; Principal Watier and her love interest Mr. Sawyer; skateboarders Serge Watier and Red; Mr. Mason; the Bennetts; Mr. Ron and his mother; the wacky Janet Lacey of the Burlington Animal Shelter; neighbourhood patrol Mr. Rupert–there are plenty of suspects for the crimes and just as many red herrings.  Add to that an assortment of canine friends, including leads Ping, a Jack Russell, and Pong, a greyhound, and The Snake Mistake Mystery is a whodunit with a colourful cast and entertaining riddles. Fortunately, like the multiple leads of a professional dog walker, the plot lines may get twisted but there is much satisfaction when all are straightened out.

While Sylvia McNicoll writes superb young adult fiction (e.g., Crush. Candy. Corpse., 2012; Dying to Go Viral, 2013; Best Friends Through Eternity, 2015), with strong characters and intriguing plots, her middle-grade fiction is outstanding, giving readers fun adventures, compelling mysteries and real characters.  She knows what will get readers interested and she delivers.  And did I mention the bounty of animals that round out the cast of The Snake Mistake Mystery?  Of course there are the dogs of the Noble Dog Walking, both current and former clients, but there are lots of cats up for adoption, mice as bait and pets, and a ball python.  In fact, while Sylvia McNicoll makes reference to snakes in the news, it is her attribution of Stephen and Renée having read Snake in My Toilet that is wonderful and deeply personal. I can't think of a nicer way to honour her dear friend and author Gisela Tobien Sherman who passed away unexpectedly last year.  She'd probably be chuffed to know her snake found a place with that of Sylvia McNicoll's in an adventure in which middle-graders succeed where adults mess up.

The Great Mistake Mysteries

🐕🐕🐕🐕🐕🐕🐕

There's a short video that was uploaded just days ago to celebrate the release of The Snake Mistake Mystery.  It features a reading by author Sylvia McNicoll and her own Mortie, the model for the book's Ping. Do check it out (as well as Sylvia McNicoll's cool Jack Russell pin)!

Uploaded on January 14, 2018 by Sylvia McNicoll to YouTube.

Woodrow at Sea

Written and illustrated by Wallace Edwards

Pajama Press

978-1-77278-029-1

24 pp.

Ages 3-5

November 2017

Not since an owl and a pussycat set off to sea have two wholly unlikely friends shared a boat on the open water.  But the story of Woodrow at Sea is less love story than story of friendship and a far more poignant one than Edward Lear's nonsense poem.

From Woodrow at Sea 

by Wallace Edwards

When Woodrow, the elephant, waves goodbye to his family, setting off on his adventure with only a boat, a paddle and a spyglass, he could never imagine finding a small white mouse marooned on a purplish mound in the open water.  The mouse tells of his own tale of saying goodbye to his own family who gift him with a compass and heading out in a teacup vessel until upturned by a purple, gold and orange creature. 

From Woodrow at Sea 

by Wallace Edwards

Together the travellers set out to seek adventure, with the mouse teaching Woodrow to sing. When a foul cloud blows in nasty weather and the calm sea is awoken into turmoil, the little mouse uses the spyglass to rescue Woodrow. Together they battle their way to calmer waters and, though they both return to their different island homes, they're both richer for their encounter and adventures.

From Woodrow at Sea

by Wallace Edwards

Because Woodrow at Sea is a wordless book, author-illustrator Wallace Edwards allows his illustrations to carry the story.  But it really isn't just one story.  Everyone will read something different into his touching and considerate artwork.  Though less elaborate than his art in earlier books such as Once Upon a Line (Pajama Press, 2015) and Unnatural Selections (Orca, 2014), Wallace Edwards provides more than enough depth of detail for our youngest readers to interpret the illustrations in a myriad of ways.  They will easily recognize the value of friendship and teamwork but there will be questions.  Why did Wallace Edwards choose and elephant and a mouse? Are the elephant and mouse singing or whistling?  Does Woodrow know how to sing or did the mouse have to teach him?  Were the two animals planning on an extended adventure that was interrupted by calamity or were these just day trips? When recounting their adventures to family, why did they focus on different events though both emphasize the goodwill of the other?  For a story told with no words, Woodrow at Sea has much to tell.  And a lesson in creative thinking and visual literacy would not go amiss here.

Woodrow at Sea is truly a story about the importance of friendship and the good fortune of having a friend who has your back when seas get a little rough. It may not always be an angry ocean or a purple monster, but there's always something that is eased with the support of a friend.

From Woodrow at Sea 

by Wallace Edwards

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

Wallace Edwards will launch his newest picture book this weekend in Toronto. Details for this event were posted here.

Heartwood Hotel: A True Home

Written by Kallie George

Illustrated by Stephanie Graegin

HarperCollins

978-1-44344-393-7

163 pp.

Ages 7-12

July 2017

The Heartwood Hotel is enchanting and Mona is the endearing mouse who brings heart to it and this first book in Kallie George's new series. Though the Heartwood Hotel is a long-established abode for travellers in search of rest and safety, Mona stumbles upon it when displaced by a storm from her stump–hardly a home, just her most recent residence–and transported by raging water deep into Fernwood Forest.  She is given shelter for the night by the badger proprietor, Mr. Heartwood, in exchange for help in cleaning up after the First Acorn Festival, a rollicking event held in the ballroom.

From Heartwood Hotel: A True Home 

by Kallie George 

illus. by Stephanie Graegin

But when he learns of her sad story of no family or home, only a walnut-shell suitcase with a heart carved into it, he takes her on as a maid to assist Tilly the squirrel while the housekeeper Mrs. Higgins, a hedgehog, is under the weather.  Though Tilly is supposed to familiarize Mona with the routines and layout of the hotel, she is rather mean to the young mouse and Mona seems to make many a mistake as she learns for herself what to do and not do.  Fortunately, there is a wonderful cast of characters to help her out: Gilles the lizard desk clerk; Ms. Prickles the porcupine cook; Mr. Higgins the hedgehog gardener; and Maggie and Maurice, the sibling laundry bunnies.  But it's the guests like skunks Lord and Lady Sudsbury and Miss Cybele the swallow that truly recognize Mona's spirit in supporting the hotel's motto,

We live by "Protect and Respect," 

not by "Tooth and Claw." (pg. 11)

Still after one too many mistakes and Tilly encouraging her to pack up before she is fired, Mona departs the hotel.  Huddled in an old log, she learns of a planned attack by wolves. The little mouse rushes back to warn Mr. Heartwood and the rest, coming up with a plan to ensure the safety of the Heartwood Hotel and her new family of staff and guests.

"...as she explained, the eyes of the animals grew wide and bright with the power of a big idea, of a brave idea, of a brilliant idea." (pg. 136)

From Heartwood Hotel: A True Home 

by Kallie George 

illus. by Stephanie Graegin

How do I convey to readers the infinite sweetness and gentility of A True Home? From the warm-hearted atmosphere and compassionate mission of the Heartwood Hotel and its staff to the plot of finding home, amidst common foibles and uncommon dangers, Kallie George's text is rich in friendship, courtesy, diversity and affection.  That majestic tree's hotel is built upon a solid foundation of respect for all creatures and the natural world of interrelationships, though as in the human world some need to be avoided if one is to survive.  But even the wolves, though frightening to many of the residents at the Heartwood Hotel, have an inane quality about them, squabbling about their achievements and the existence of the Heartwood Hotel. By doing this, Kallie George makes A True Home a suitable read-aloud for younger children who will easily be able to imagine the Hotel with its miscellaneous accommodations (including the root floors with hibernation suites, trunk floors, branch floors, twig floors and honeymoon and penthouse suites) and star-gazing balcony and ballroom. Graced with the black-and-white pencil drawings of American illustrator Stephanie Graegin, Heartwood Hotel's first book, A True Home, has surely found a place for itself in youngCanLit by captivating and gladdening our own hearts.

💟💟💟💟💟💟💟💟

The launch for the first two books in the Heartwood Hotel series, A True Home and The Greatest Gift, will be held next week in Vancouver so, if you can, be sure to check it out. Details here.

Heartwood Hotel: Book launch (Vancouver, BC)

Award-winning children's author

Kallie George

who delights young readers with

her series

Magical Animal Adoption Agency

will be launching her newest children's book series

Heartwood Hotel

with 2 books in one

Heartwood Hotel Book 1: A True Home

Written by Kallie George

Illustrated by Stephanie Graegin

HarperCollins Canada

978-1-44344-393-7

176 pp.

Ages 7-10

July 2017

Heartwood Hotel Book 2: The Greatest Gift

Written by Kallie George

Illustrated by Stephanie Graegin

HarperCollins Canada

978-1-44344-396-8

176 pp.

Ages 7-10

July 2017

on

Thursday, July 13, 2017

7 p.m.

at

Kidsbooks

2557 West Broadway

Vancouver, BC

604-738-5335

www.kidsbooks.ca

The two books are described, on the HarperCollins Canada website, as follows

Book 1: A True Home

Downton Abbey meets The Tale of Peter Rabbit in this heartwarming chapter book about a mouse discovering where she belongs.

When Mona the mouse stumbles across the wondrous world of the Heartwood Hotel in the middle of a storm, she desperately hopes the staff will let her stay. As it turns out, Mona is precisely the maid they need at the grandest hotel in Fernwood Forest, where animals come from far and wide for safety, luxury and comfort. But it’s not all acorn soufflé and soft, moss-lined beds. Danger lurks nearby, and as it approaches, Mona has to use all her wits to protect the place she’s come to love. Because this hotel is more than a warm shelter for the night. It might also be a home.

Book 2: The Greatest Gift

Follow sweet Mona the mouse and the rest of the Heartwood Hotel staff as they settle in for a relaxing winter—or so they think!

Mona has finally found a place to call home: the cozy Heartwood Hotel, where she works as a maid and sleeps cozily snuggled up to her best friend. Following the festive St. Slumber celebration, most of the guests have settled in to hibernate, and the staff is looking forward to a relaxing winter. But disruptions abound, from a difficult duchess to a mysterious midnight snacker. As the snow stacks higher and the food supplies shrink lower, Mona will have to gather friends both old and new to keep the peace, finding help along the way in some of the most unexpected places.

Though Vancouver is impossible for me to visit for this book launch, I look forward to reviewing both books for HarperCollins Canada who sent the book(s) in the most adorable of promotion packages I have ever seen.  See if you don't agree:

It's a box that opens into a hotel room 

(grass bedding, pillows and comforter) 

for a small woodland creature. Too cute!

Friend or Foe?

by John Sobol

Illustrated by Dasha Tolstikova

Groundwood Books

978-1-55498-407-7

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

October 2016

The beginning of Ottawa author John Sobol’s debut picture book Friend or Foe? is only missing the “Once upon a time…” because the sentiment is definitely that of a traditional tale, here based on a lonely, dark mouse who lives in a small house beside a great palace in which a white cat lives.

The two creatures have their evening routine, with the mouse creeping out onto the roof of the house, and the cat peering down from the palace’s tower window, each staring at the other. When the mouse notices a tiny hole in the palace’s exterior wall, he decides to slip into the palace, hopeful that he might find a friend in that cat with whom he feels a connection.  As he makes his way through the palace, he continues to wonder whether the cat really is a friend or perhaps a foe.

As the mouse climbed the stairs to the palace tower, he began to grow afraid.
What if he was wrong? If he was, the cat would tear him to pieces.  Still he kept climbing.
Was the cat friend or foe?
He had to know. (pg. 11)

But as he approaches the feline from behind, asking her aloud whether she is a friend or foe, the feline is startled and tumbles off the palace tower.  John Sobol ends Friend or Foe? with a twist, both in the animals’ reversal of fortunes and in the answer to the titular question that is probably reflective of many relationships though nebulous in its honesty.

From Friend or Foe? 

by John Sobol, illus. by Dasha Tolstikova

John Sobol's story is aptly illustrated by American Dasha Tolstikova’s austere artwork which emphasizes the disparity in the characters’ sizes and situations, powerfully using hues and tints of greys with only dashes of brightness in a red brick wall or orange light bulb.  Though there is little colour in Friend or Foe?, supporting the idea that there really is a subtle differentiation between the two situations of the title, Dasha Tolstikova uses colour cleverly both to reflect that contrast and suggest their similarity. Friend or Foe? is a very artful examination of connection in which only differences and likenesses are normally perceived.

From Friend or Foe? 

by John Sobol, illus. by Dasha Tolstikova

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

A very special launch event is in the works for John Sobol’s Friend or Foe? 

Be part of Small Print Toronto’s Cat & Mouse City 

with author John Sobol 

for young readers 

(ages 2-8, who must be accompanied by an adult) 

on Saturday, October 22, 2016 

from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. 

at 

Lillian H. Smith Library 

(Toronto Public Library) 

239 College Street 

Toronto, ON 

The event is free but participants must sign up early as space is limited so register at https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/cat-mouse-city-with-john-sobol-tickets-27655152305

Small Print Toronto’s invitation describes the event as follows: 

Our popular model city-building workshop, Mouse City, is about to face its its biggest urban planning challenge yet: the arrival of cats! Urban planners aged 2-8 can decide how Mouse City will accommodate its new, feline citizens. 

Ottawa author John Sobol will unveil his new book, Friend Or Foe?, and help young planners find the best place for their cardboard buildings on a large city grid.

Mouse Pet

by Philip Roy

Illustrated by Andrea Torrey Balsara

Ronsdale Press

978-1-5530-443-7

32 pp.

Ages 4-8

September 2015

Happy the Pocket Mouse, introduced in Mouse Tales (2014) and revisited in Jellybean Mouse (2014), is back in his third adventure and this time he wants to share his happiness with a pet that he and his human John could take for walks and pat.

John listens to the little mouse’s wish and all the fun Happy is sure will be theirs but helps him to understand the significant responsibilities required of pet care.  In fact, Happy decides they should get a goat–even naming it Lola–and has an answer to every objection John makes. Fortunately, and with much affection, John suggests an alternative and one that makes everyone happy!

Happy the Pocket Mouse has a heart full of love and he shares it so completely with John that it only makes sense that he extend that love to another and maybe even another.  The dialogue that Philip Roy has created between Happy and John is so endearing and honest that the reader will feel privileged to eavesdrop on their affection and tender conversation.  With so much caring and compassion, you know that the resolution to their pet discussion will be a sweet one.

The text is so appealing and yet concise and emotive, and the illustrations by Andrea Torrey Balsara are just as charming.  It’s like drinking hot cocoa and eating sweet treats.  The anticipation is just as wonderful as the consumption and you’re left with a warm feeling of goodness and sweetness and look forward to another helping soon enough.

Nut and Bolt

by Nicole de Cock

Translated by Margriet Ruurs

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

978-1-55455-364-8

32 pp.

Ages 3+
April, 2015

Nut is a mouse.  Bolt is a donkey. And they are friends.  Real friends.  And "real friends would do anything for each other!" is the message that Nut and Bolt shares with young readers.  

While the very simple story is based on the litany of Nut's generosity–providing games, shade, cleaning, entertainment– all provided with great effort, joy and efficacy, the young reader will start to wonder whether the friendship is one-sided.  Nut is working tirelessly for his friend and Bolt enjoys the fruits of Nut's labours, page after page, but what of Bolt and his friendship for Nut?

Margriet Ruurs, whose recent book A Brush Full of Colour (Pajama Press, 2014) demonstrates the breadth of her writing, keeps the message of Dutch author Nicole de Cock's text short, simple and powerful.  And just when the reader will start to wonder what Bolt does for Nut, Nicole de Cock provides a final illustration, an endearing rendition of what Bolt gives Nut.  It's Home. It's Shelter. It's Comfort. It's Life.

It's a Delight.

Gustave

by Rémy Simard

Illustrated by Pierre Pratt

Translated by Shelley Tanaka

Groundwood Books

978-1-55498-451-0

56 pp.

Ages 4-7

For release October, 2014

From the title page alone, Gustave evokes a rough darkness with its heavily-inked, coarse lettering and shades of colours with overlays of black.  There's black, black and more black. Sombre and fearful is how Gustave begins, with a little mouse overwhelmed by the loss of his dear friend Gustave when they venture too far from home and encounter a cat.  Gustave will not be returning home with the little mouse whose sorrow is well conveyed by the spare words of Rémy Simard's blunt text:

Gustave won't play with me anymore.
He won't tell me goodnight.
He won't look at me anymore. (pg. 6)

But Pierre Pratt's illustrations, in ink and gouache, are the force by which the story of Gustave is told.  The double-page spreads of artwork, sometimes with few words, if any, overwhelm the story, just as the consequences of the little mouse's actions smother him with sorrow.  It is only in the last half-dozen pages of the story that the colours are able to seep through, ending with a single page of bright artwork opposite a white page of text. It is a bright, hopeful ending in both text and illustration.

Though I may describe Gustave as having a dirge-like quality, it is nothing but brilliant in its masterful picture book story-telling of a mouse grieving the loss of a friend.  I suspect that, even without the unexpected twist at the end, this story could not have been told any better than it has been by Rémy Simard and Pierre Pratt, thankfully translated by Shelley Tanaka so that so many more of us can appreciate it.

Gustave is currently nominated for a 2014 Governor General's Literary Award for Illustration in a French Children's Book. Bonne chance, Pierre Pratt!

Shh! My Brother's Napping

Written and illustrated by Ruth Ohi

North Winds Press/Scholastic Canada

978-1-4431-1993-1

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

For release April 2014

When Mommy and her boys return from grocery shopping, it is evident that baby brother needs to rest.  He's already sleeping in his stroller, and Mommy insists that everything be kept quiet because he's napping.  In rhyming verse, Ruth Ohi shares the older brother's reminders from Mommy and himself about his sleeping brother, though he is still a young child himself and interested in making music with pots and pans, and wanting to include his little brother in his fun. He does soon realize that there are lots of activities that he can do quietly, like reading and painting.  Of course, he may know that he's supposed to be quiet, but the illustrations indicate that his actions don't always focus on the quiet aspects.  After all, reading can be quiet, if you don't throw your book when it gets scary.  And painting can be very calming and silent, as long as you don't take your paintbrush to your little brother's face.  And building a town of blocks and books is very structured, unless it falls.  But it's the reciprocity of their relationship that brings this story to its surprisingly appropriate conclusion.

Everyone knows Ruth Ohi from her darling books about Chicken, Pig, Cow (Annick Press), siblings, and most recently Kenta and the Big Wave (Annick, 2013; reviewed here).  As in most of her books, including those she illustrates for others, Ruth Ohi speaks to relationships between friends or family members, both positive and those in need of reconciliation.  Here big brother knows what he should be doing, as Mommy reminds him, "Shh! Your brother's napping." He tries to follow Mommy's instructions and do quiet activities like reading, painting, and block-building, though it is hard when there's so many fun things to do, including with your little brother.  There is no evident meanness or sibling rivalry, just the desire for the boy mouse to include his baby brother in his play, though not always in the most thoughtful of manners.  In fact, when little brother does awaken and the two siblings start to interact, baby brother recognizes the need to reciprocate that kindness of quiet.  Well, maybe.  Shh! My Brother's Napping is a delightful tale of sibling love from several angles, including the one from which Mommy observes them.

Mouse Tales

by Philip Roy

Art by Andrea Torrey Balsara

Ronsdale Press

978-1-55380-262-4

32 pp.
Ages 4-8

February, 2014

Happy the Pocket Mouse, the star of Philip Roy's new picture book series from Ronsdale Press, doesn't seem very happy when he can't sleep and insists that he would fall asleep very quickly if John, his human friend, would just tell him a bedtime story.  With the love of a parent or caregiver, John awakens (okay, Happy does have to open his eyelid) and considers the best story to tell, without frightening Happy.  He starts with the story of Hansel and Gretel, providing answers to Happy's multitude of questions and comments e.g., "How poor were they?" "That's not scary." "She made her house out of GINGERBREAD and CANDY?" Although he's being very brave and inquisitive, Happy is shocked to learn that witches keep spooky things like mouse tails in little jars. Well, Happy's very ready to go to sleep then (or at least end that story) but he has more questions, to which the answers are even more unsettling.  So our adorable little rodent, with the incessant questions, clever ideas and passive determination (really!), finds the means to sleep, albeit with a few detours.

Happy and John take me back to the days of Topo Gigio snuggling up to "Eddie" on The Ed Sullivan Show*, though I see a compassionate John Lennon in Mouse Tales' John. (Is the same name just a coincidence?)  The repartee Philip Roy has penned between the two is brisk, endearing and expressive, and never will the reader believe there is anything but love between these two individuals. And Andrea Torrey Balsara, a new illustrator definitely to watch in youngCanLit, gets the right mix of sweetness and reality, never going saccharine on the characters or the setting.

I love Mouse Tales and look forward to reading it to my kindergarten students, luckily never close enough to bedtime for them to adopt Happy's concerns.  But I especially look forward to more adventures in the Happy the Pocket Mouse series, knowing that the collaboration between Philip Roy and Andrea Torrey Balsara is marked for great youngCanLit success.

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* If you're too young to remember Topo Gigio, check out the first 30 seconds of the YouTube video at http://youtu.be/QjkElT5w6AE.

The Stowaways

by Meghan Marentette

Illustrated by Dean Griffiths

Pajama Press

978-1-927485-33-0

240 pp.

Ages 8-12

October 15, 2013

Gone are the days of innocent children's stories in which anthropomorphized animals experience relaxed lives of friendly outings.  Maybe older readers will remember the animal novels more typical of earlier times, in which ordinary life was exciting enough.  There was The Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame, 1908), Winnie-the-Pooh (A. A. Milne, 1926) and Charlotte's Web (E. B. White, 1952).  The Stowaways will return older readers to their memories of these favourite and introduce younger readers to a similarly delightful tale of a family of mice known as the Stowaways.

The Stowaways family, always known as an ancestral line of explorers and adventurers, currently centers around Papa and Mama, twin boys Rory and Morgan, their baby sister Bimble, and Gran.  With Grampa having disappeared long ago while on an adventure, Papa is very strict about the adventures they take beyond Biggle's Farm into the World Beyond, emphasizing a plethora of rules to keep everyone safe. But Gran is convinced that Grampa is still out there, and the adventure-craving Rory is happy to believe this as well.

While life in the country may seem charming, the mice of their community, known as Weedle mice, are less than welcoming to the Stowaways who had come from town originally.  The Weedles accuse them of hoarding, looking down on the Weedles and threatening their safety with their relationships with townies.  Surprisingly, when the Stowaways head to town for a family adventure at the market, Papa doesn't want them to trade with the town mice who disrespect the Weedle mice, calling them "naked country bumpkins" (pg. 47). Still, Rory purchases a book of mouse tales, particularly curious about "The Proud Mouse and the Trap", convinced that it's about his Grampa.

When Rory discovers the specifics about his grandfather's disappearance, he and his Gran slip away to the Museum of Natural Curiosity while the rest of the family have their own unexpected adventures at Sparkle's Toyshop.  An exhibit at the Museum and some new acquaintances direct Gran and Rory in their investigations, resulting in a new series of adventures, some life-threatening.  While Papa and Mama, Bimble and Morgan return home, they learn that sometimes safety is just an illusion and adventures can arise spontaneously, wanted or not.

Meghan Marentette re-introduces readers to the charm of family stories that don't rely on preachy social commentary, unending action, or shock and violence to grab readers' attentions.  The appeal of these books, as with The Stowaways, lies in the bonds of family and friendship, and steadfastness of loyalty and compassion.  With the inspired selection of Dean Griffiths as illustrator, the genial nature of the story and characters are even more compounded.  While the elements of fantasy allow the delightful Stowaways (the family) to speak, build bicycles, and make Juneberry Paste, it's their solidarity and amiability, courtesy of Meghan Marentette and Dean Griffiths, that elevates The Stowaways (the book) to its unconventional but quaint familial richness.

Miss Mousie's Blind Date

by Tim Beiser

Illustrated by Rachel Berman

Tundra Books

978-1-77049-251-6

24 pp.

Ages 4-7

2012

"Spring is such a funny thing-

it wakes up all the plants

And makes our furry woodland friends

go cuckoo for romance.

And so it was, one day in May,

when stopping by the deli,

Miss Mousie's eye fell on a guy

who turned her knees to jelly." (pg. 2)

In its refreshing take on the theme of finding love where least expected, Miss Mousie's Blind Date starts with Miss Mousie spotting the debonair Matt LaBatt, the water rat, with his handsome looks and lemon yellow teeth.  Unfortunately Miss Mousie's attempts to attract his attention are scuttled when she hears him call her the "fat girl".

Such a blow to her fragile ego sends Miss Mousie to hide herself in her burrow to avoid further ridicule.  But an unexpected invitation to dinner and its surprising outcome leave Miss Mousie with her dignity restored and a quickening in her heart.

Tim Beiser and Rachel Berman's first collaboration, Bradley McGogg, the Very Fine Frog (Tundra, 2009), resulted in nominations for the Blue Spruce Award, the Chocolate Lily Book Award, the Governor General's Award for Children's Fiction Illustration, and the CBA Libris Award for Children's Picture Book of the Year.  And the same sweet rhyming and endearing illustrations are evident in Miss Mousie's Blind Date, making it another charmed read.  

While romance may seem an unusual theme for readers of picture books, no young reader will see anything but lightheartedness in the soft, not fat, Miss Mousie in her adorable millinery and her hopeful expectations for possible love.  The perfect collaboration of Tim Beiser and Rachel Berman takes Miss Mousie from crushing on the handsome rat to despairing over his disregard for her and finally to delight, with an ending that will please even those too young to know the pangs of first love but will understand the value of being oneself.