Doodle #21-22 and Perfect Picture Bk Fri: Big Red Tub

Still having lots of fun with Alison Hertz‘  Doodle Day May.  The subjects today are ‘ shoes’ and ‘design a font.’  I dedicated the Circus font to Alison (if you don’t know why – you need to read her bio/look at facebook pics.)   The shoe doodle made me think of my little girls growing up.

Circus font

I sketched Circus first, then colored it in Photoshop.  I used colored pencils & ink on the shoes.

Shoes

Now on to my pick for Susanna Hill‘s  Perfect Picture Book Friday.

This book reminds me of when my girls were little and it was bathtime. When dad supervised it was always lively with lots of giggling, shrieking and splashing.  The walls were dripping, the floor was submerged and the bubbles were everywhere.  (When I supervised – somehow it never seemed as much fun.)

Title: Big Red Tub  (Note: Released as Big Red Bath in UK) 

Author:   Julia Jarman

Illustrator:   Adrian Reynolds

Publisher: Orchard Books, 2004

Genre: Fiction

Audience Age:  2-4

Themes/Topics: Bathtime, Imagination

Opening Sentences: Stan and Stella in the big red tub.  I splash! You splash!  Splash! Splash! Splash!

Synopsis: Dad is supervising bathtime. The children have lots of fun  especially when all kinds of animals join in.  Dog, lion, kangaroo, duck and even a hippopotamus!  And bathtime ends up going beyond the walls of the house….

Why I like it:  It’s  sudsy fun and the rhythm and rhyme are a rollicking good time.  The illustrations are big and bright.  Matter of fact they are so bubbly and soapy you either need a raincoat or a scrub brush.  When I read this to my grands they immediately wanted a re-read.   This is for a younger audience, but definitely a lively selection.  (You probably won’t want to read it at bed time, tho’ it is such a romp the kids get excited.)

Activities/Resources:   Ms. Jarman has a coloring page from her website here.   And an activity sheet .

 I could recommend something about hygiene, but that’s not fun…. how about   B U B B L E S ?  (Click and scroll down the page to find a dozen bubble activities.)

Availability: Barnes & Noble, Amazon

(Susanna Leonard Hill is the originator of PPBF and you can find all the other PPB recommendations and links  on her blog.)

Have fun enjoying the book.  Stop by tomorrow for another Doodle update.  Blessings on your day!

Laura (grandmamiller)

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World of Birthdays & Dewey’s Christmas PPBF

Susanna Hill who originated Perfect Picture Book Fridays has asked us to celebrate the United Nations  resolution adopted this day  in 1959 to have a Universal Children’s Day.  To honor that resolution, many of today’s PPBF picks  will be multicultural or about human rights or children who have helped changed the world.  (You can find the links to other books at Susanna’s blog today.)

This week I’m going to recommend two books for the price of one visit!  The first is a book about children’s birthdays around the world in honor of the UN resolution. The second is a Christmas book I had already planned on for next week, but  we will not be doing PPBF next week because of Christmas .  However,  I can’t leave this little treasure mewing on the shelf, so,  as Susanna would say, grab your coffee and a donut (or chocolate) and enjoy  a double dose of PPBF.

Title:  The World of Birthdays

Author:  Paula S. Wallace                   

Publisher:  Gareth Stevens

Genre: Non-fiction

Audience Age:  4 & up

Themes/Topics: Multicultural

Opening Sentences: “This little book of birthday traditions is a celebration of the many wonderful ways the world says, “Happy birthday.”  Everyone has this special day, but not everyone celebrates it the same way.  Children in Russia pin their party favors to a clothesline.  In Japan, people eat a special meal of sweet rice with red beans. In Mexico, young people share Three Milk Cake and break a pinata full of candy.”

Synopsis: This book discusses how birthdays are celebrated in Australia, Brazil, Egypt, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and the U.S.  It also includes instructions for making a craft, game or recipe from each country.

Why I like it:   When I was looking for an appropriate book to honor the UN resolution I spied this one (I’m a December birthday girl so I guess I’ve got birthdays on the brain this week).   This wonderfully warm book tours through 10 countries in a bright, lively fashion.  The photographs of the children are beautiful, some in traditional costume, others modeling the crafts or eating the foods that are mentioned, or playing a game of Hanetsuki or Peteca.  The theme is FUN and the smiles on the faces of the children are a universal expression.  Immediately following each country is a craft (with directions and patterns) or a food to try (with the recipe), or a game (with instructions).    This is an appealing book even if you’re not celebrating a birthday.

Activities/Resources:  The book itself has many activities, but also provided in the back are a few more links about birthday traditions around the world, and birthday traditions in Different Countries

Availability:  Amazon, Barnes & Noble

My second choice this week is for the Christmas season.  It is a  story about  everyone’s favorite bibliocat, Dewey Readmore Books….

Title: Dewey’s Christmas At the Library

Author:   Vicki Myron and Bret Witter

Illustrator:   Steve James

Publisher: Little, Brown & Co.

Genre: Fiction

Audience Age: 2 & Up

Themes/Topics: Christmas, Cats

Opening Sentences: Snow and ice, twinkling lights, Kids bundled up on a cold winter night.  Hot chocolate and Santa Claus and decorations just right.  In the small town of Spencer, Iowa, Christmas was everyone’s favorite time of the year.

Synopsis:  Based on the true story of Dewey the library cat, we find him as he celebrates his first Christmas, discovering  the holiday and all the decorations that go with it.

Why I like it:  Through the eyes of a young cat, Christmas is magical.  You’ll laugh as Dewey gets tangled in a ball of yarn, stuck in a gift bag and finds and explores all the tinsel, glitter and boxes he possibly can.  He even adds his own creative touch to the library Christmas tree.  The illustrations are wonderful, depicting Dewey in all types of catly maneuvers and antics.  This would delight young and older children.

Activities/Resources:   Dewey has his own website, and you can find some  related activities for kids based on  Dewey.

Availability: All major booksellers.  Also available as an ebook.

Blessings and enjoy the books!

Laura (Grandmamiller)

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