It’s Raining Tacos! By Parry Fripp and Peter Emmerich - HIGH

It’s Raining Tacos! by Parry Fripp, illustrated by Peter Emmerich. PICTURE BOOK. Harper, JUNE 2021. $18. 9780063006478 

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH (just the tacos part) 

A boy’s birthday is ruined when his new puppy eats the pizza. Thankfully, after he makes his birthday wish, it starts raining tacos. Saved! 

I missed the “Raining Tacos” song when it came out on 2012, but my students remember it well. Like me, however, they are not fond of the whole birthday framing for the classic song. They want a new song with the whole thing, or they want a shorted intro to the tacos. Like Baby Shark, whoever, this will probably be a hit despite my students’ personal thoughts (they’re 7th graders). 

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS 

Real Pigeons: Nest Hard by Andrew McDonald - ESSENTIAL

Real Pigeons: Nest Hard by Andrew McDonald, illustrated by Ben Wood, 201 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL Random House, 2019. $14. Content: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL – ESSENTIAL  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Pigeons fight crime in the busy pigeon park. Five pigeon friends have three different adventures and work together to defeat evil. In this epic adventure, they help solve a case of a vulture losing his nest, a pigeon friend’s family gets kidnapped, and they help a little girl who they think is lost. The hilarious pigeons might be a little confused about what is really a danger or not, but their hearts are in the right place. 

Crime fighting pigeons are hysterical.  The drawings add to the story because they give you a funny mental image of what the pigeons are up against and how they are acting.  I enjoyed this book because it made me laugh out loud and get lost in the pigeons’ quests for justice.  

Reviewer, Logan, age 12

Luna’s Yum Yum Dim Sum by Natasha Yin and Violet Kim - ADVISABLE

Luna’s Yum Yum Dim Sum by Natasha Yin, illustrated by Violet Kim. PICTURE BOOK. Charlesbridge 2020. $7. 9781623541996

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

It’s Luna’s birthday and her family is out for dinner at a dim sum restaurant. Six pork buns should be easy to share among three kids, but when one falls to the ground, how do you share five? 

I like the different ways the kids try to decide who should have the most, and the mention of the Chinese zodiac. The final solution is the cutest of all. The back matter packs a lot of very useful info, including ways to lightly introduce math concepts to smaller children. 

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS https://amzn.to/3bu0oSg

I Like the Wind by Sarah Nelson and Rachel Oldfield - ADVISABLE

I Like the Wind by Sarah Nelson, illustrated by Rachel Oldfield. PICTURE BOOK. Barefoot Books, 2021. $10. 9781646860944 

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Nelson and Oldfield jointly craft an ode to the wind. 

 Nelson’s whirling words and Oldfield’s dynamic illustrations show and tell the movement and flow of this natural force. 

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS 

Into the Deep: Science, Technology, and the Quest to Protect the Ocean by Christy Peterson - OPTIONAL

Into the Deep: Science, Technology, and the Quest to Protect the Ocean by Christy Peterson, 152 pages. NON-FICTION. Twenty-first Century Books (Lerner Publishing), 2020. 

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: G.

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - OPTIONAL  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW

This has a very encyclopedic tone to it and could be a good reference book for a library, but I don’t imagine students checking it out to read cover to cover. The glossy pages have some appeal but there are limited illustrations and lots of lengthy passages. I do like that the information has focused on how we are learning what we are about the ocean and how we can take care of the ocean and its inhabitants. There is a lot of information about the ocean itself, but it is all paired with the act of discovery and how scientists reached their conclusions.  

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

The Creakers by Tom Fletcher and Shane Devries - ESSENTIAL

The Creakers by Tom Fletcher, illustrated by Shane Devries, 344 pages. Random House (Penguin Random House), 2019. $17

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG.

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - ESSENTIAL   

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

When Lucy and her friends wake up one morning they quickly realize that all the adults in their town are gone. Their emotions range from delight to sadness to fear and a select few go in search of their parents, starting with the disappearing hole that is under their beds from which they discover Creakers emerging and into which will take them to Creakerland where everything is opposite.

I love novels that require sustained effort and attention but include larger fonts and occasional illustrations. A young reader will feel accomplished after finishing this novel, a feat that should be possible because the subject matter is one that will peak young imaginations - what if all the adults were gone, what if there are creatures under your bed, what if there is a parallel world below ours. Fun situations to imagine and feel playful with. There is also a good dose of humor in this book, with a narrator who has a very specific voice.      

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

My Best Friend by Rob Hodgson - OPTIONAL

My Best Friend by Rob Hodgson. PICTURE BOOK. Frances Lincoln Children’s Books (The Quarto Group), 2020. $19. 9780711248342

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

A mouse is delighted that he has made friends with an owl. They play chase and hide and seek and it is clear from the pictures that the owl is not being friendly and the mouse is misinterpreting the situation. 

Honestly, this book felt a little uncomfortable to me. The pictures are bright and on the surface it is a funny story, but I kept getting perpetrator and victim vibes. It felt to me like it turned a victim into a fool, which did not settle well. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Malamander by Thomas Taylor and Tom Booth - ESSENTIAL

Malamander by Thomas Taylor, illustrated by Tom Booth, 289 pages. Walker Books (Candlewick Press), 2019. $17

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG.

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - ESSENTIAL  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Herbie Lemon is the young Lost-and-Founder at a classically old fashioned beach hotel in an eerie town. He is in charge of everything that has been lost at the hotel and returning the items to their owner. When a young girl comes looking for her lost parents, the adventure begins as they must discover the truth about the Malamander and, more specifically, the Malamander egg, to uncover the details of the mystery. 

This is an excellent book for newer sustained attention readers given the larger font and occasional pictures that are not provided at the cost of a detailed story and sentences with interesting structure and dynamic vocabulary choices. The setting and tone are reminiscent of the The Series of Unfortunate Events and will likely engage that reader base. By second grader and my fourth grader both independently read and enjoyed the book.        

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Discovering History’s Heroes: Ida B. Wells Fighter for Justice by Diane Bailey - ESSENTIAL

Discovering History’s Heroes: Ida B. Wells Fighter for Justice by Diane Bailey, 139 pages. Aladdin (Simon & Schuster), 2019. $18

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: PG; Violence: G.

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - ESSENTIAL  

AUDIENCE APPEAL:  AVERAGE

Ida B. Wells showed bravery even in her youth when she returned to her hometown, disastrously infected with Yellow Fever, with the sole purpose of caring for her younger siblings after their parents had died. Ida successfully kept the family together and developed her own career, first as a teacher and later as a journalist and finally as an activist. One of her primary goals was to stop the practice of lynchings.  

This book provided a smooth reading experience - revealing a clear timeline and thematic focus and highlighting any words that a reader might find challenging and providing a glossary. Each unfamiliar word was surrounded by enough context clues that the glossary is really just a backup resource. This is an easy introduction to biography reading. There are some details about lynchings which may be sensitive for some readers.    

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

 

Kevin the Unicorn: Why Can’t We Be Bestie-corns? by Jessika von Innerebner - ESSENTIAL

Kevin the Unicorn: Why Can’t We Be Bestie-corns? by Jessika von Innerebner. PICTURE BOOK. Dial Books for Young Readers (Penguin Random House), 2020. $18. 9781984814807

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ESSENTIAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Kevin has a new neighbor and he can not wait to be best friends. The neighbor is also thrilled about having a best friend but as they spend time together they find that they actually have very little in common. They decide they can be friendly but don’t have to be best friends. 

This book has a very lighthearted tone and playful energy, but I have actually not been able to stop thinking about its message for several days. The idea that we need not be best friends with everyone, but also must be respectful and kind to those same people is actually very interesting and a good lesson for adults and kids alike. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

 

Space Maps: Your Tour of the Universe by Lara Albanese and Tommaso Vidus Rosin - OPTIONAL

Space Maps: Your Tour of the Universe by Lara Albanese, illustrated by Tommaso Vidus Rosin. PICTURE BOOK. What on Earth Books, 2020. $30. 9781912920563

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

This large format book has maps of the night sky in different areas of the world and then moves on to diagrams of the solar system and all of the planets. The illustrations use a variety of muted colors and utilize a slightly mid century aesthetic. 

I really wanted to love this book because large format books always seem so visually appealing, but this book didn’t draw in myself or either of my kids. The book was too big to really read the information comfortably and the maps and diagrams just didn’t have that much information on them alone. After not much time the illustrations lost appeal as the muted color got boring the the fuzzy aesthetic was hard to stay engaged with.   

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Speak Up, Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell and David Catrow - OPTIONAL

Speak Up, Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell, illustrated by David Catrow. PICTURE BOOK. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (Penguin Random House), 2020. $18. 9780399260025

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Molly Lou Melon is a tiny child who learns all kinds of big lessons from her mom. These lessons come in hand when Molly Lou Melon goes to school and stands up for her friends and even those who she wouldn’t necessarily call her friends. 

I found this book a bit chaotic. The first half is scattered lessons from the mom and the second half is Molly in school dealing with a bully. I know this character is well-loved by many, but I found her character a little odd and hard to connect with; I think the fact that her eyes are closed in a lot of the illustrations created some of that disconnect for me. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher