Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen

 

Many of us were introduced to Jon Klassen’s illustrations with his debut picture book, I Want My Hat Back (picture book gold, by the way). This was followed with This Is Not My Hat, which I’ve yet to review, but as it was recently awarded the Caldecott Medal, it goes to show that it wasn’t just me that thought it was brilliant. 

So, you can imagine that I was pleased to see that there was yet another picture book illustrated by Jon Klassen in the market. (I know it’s been out a while now, ‘Life’ has been keeping me from writing reviews).

The fact that it’s illustrated by Jon is enough for me to love it already, but it shouldn’t overshadow Mac Barnett’s writing. This is a smart and snappy book that delights in play between words and pictures. 

Top 10 for 2012

As I said in the last blog post, I wanted to do my highlights of 2012. Now I’m going to start off by saying that these are not necessarily books published this year, but I read them this year and so they have helped make up my Year of Reading.

I understand that the year isn’t over, but If I read anything stand out between now and New Year I’ll be sure to let you know.

I figured I’d give you my Top 10. Now, these are only in a loose order, it can be very hard to rank several different kinds of genius, and so I’ll do my best.

# 10

The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas by David Almond and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers

This is a tame book for a David Almond Title, but for me, that will give it more general appeal. It’s quirky, fun, and tender at its core. There is one passage that won me over. He basically describes techniques writers use to tell stories, to jump from place to place and back and forth in time, while actually telling you the story! It was brilliant! I’d quote it, but it goes on for a few pages, so I’ll let you read it for yourself.

Find it on Goodreads

Apologies and Happenings

So, I should apologise, first and for most for going dark for the last three and a half months. I had such good intentions, that I had written and scheduled blog posts for weeks  ahead, knowing that the move interstate would really slow me down, but I really didn’t anticipate what was waiting for me when I got to Melbourne.

For starters, my work load almost doubled from what it was in Sydney. Add to that that I’d never really been to Melbourne before (once for a weekend, 8 years ago, and when I was 6 or 7 and my only memory is Port Melbourne and getting on the Able Tasman) and so getting to know the area was also an issue. Oh that’s right, I was also enrolled in two subjects for my Masters, which due to the move I had to change to external. And I don’t know if it’s just me, but external seems SO much more work than internal. Internally you can do your readings and assignments, then in class you join in the discussion for 2 hours a week. Externally, it all online discussion which requires a lot of reading (other people’s posts) careful crafting of your discussion points (you can’t um, and ahh, and ‘you know what I mean?’) and then checking back to respond to responses.

In any event, after work (paperwork often not being finished till 6-7 at night, sometimes much later) and then Uni taking up my weekends and any other free time I found myself with, I was struggling to find time to spend with my partner and explore our new home city. Needless to say, my blog took a hiatus while the insanity passed. When my final assignments were in (thrilled with two Distinctions, under the circumstances) I was able to breathe a bit, and then I finished up work last Friday and I have three weeks off and I am loving it! Reading when I want to, writing a bit, swimming every other day, picnics, watching movies, watching Smash (my latest favourite show) playing Lego Star Wars on the play station, lounging around… it’s fantastic. The other day I had a 3 hour nana nap for the first time in I don’t know how long! I’ve only been on holidays for 5 days and I feel like it could have been two weeks. Who knows if I’ll even remember what work is by the time I go back on the 7^th of January.

I’m absolutely loving living where we have moved. It’s a beautiful heritage place that’s been converted into units. But the main point that will be of interest to you, bookish people, is that we now have the wall space to have continuous bookshelves! See how beautiful they are! It makes me so happy to walk through the door and see that every day.

So, where to from here? I know there’s that statistic that most blogs die off in less than a year, or whatever it is, and I didn’t want that to happen to mine. I’ve put a whole lot of effort into it, and I’m still getting around 1200 hits a month even though I haven’t posted in nearly 4… But in all honesty, with full time work, uni, life in general, and my much neglected writing, posting 5 entries a week just doesn’t seem viable. So for next year, I’ll be looking for a new formula. I think it might be more like 1 or 2 posts a week which are more substantial and talk about the books I choose in more depth. With more things like “Genre Favourites” or something where I post about a genre and give my personal highlights from it. If anyone has any suggestions for topics or genres they would like me to talk about, ask away. That’s if anyone is still reading this. I know I’ve been terrible with my audience.

I’m going to start with a highlights of 2012. I’ll post that separately .

Hope someone’s still reading. 

-LittleElfMan

(Michael)

Wolves by Emily Gravett

Emily Gravett is wonderful! I love the way she uses book conventions to make her stories truly irreverent.

In this book, for example, We follow Rabbit, who goes to the library and borrows a book about wolves. Oh what's this? The reader in now holding a book called wolves which contains a rabbit holding a book about wolves... we read together...

Gray wolves live in packs of between two and ten animals. 

We find out more and more about them, as the rabbit walks home, too engrosed in the book to notice that a wolf has come out of the pages. He even walks right up the tail and along its back.

Then we learn, at the same time as the rabbit, that it eats lots of kinds of animals, both large and small... like beavers, voles and ...

We turn the page to see a viciously ripped and clawed back over and the torn remnants of a page saying "rabbits."

We turn the page again to read:

The author would like to point out that no rabbits were eaten during the making of this book.

It is a work of fiction.
And so, for more sensitive readers, here is an alternative ending. 

I'll leave it to you to read the alternative ending for yourself, but it's much happier and unrealistic. but it clearly illustrated by torn scraps from earlier in the book. 

She's just too good! I wrote a review a little while ago on one of her other books and I just love everything she does.

 

4.5 Gold Stars

Find it on Goodreads

Butterfly Butterfly by Petr Horáček

Petr Horáček's illustration style is bright, engaging and full of life and movement. So when you sit down to read a book about colours set in the garden, you know you're in for a treat!


When Lucy finds a butterfly in the garden and chases it around, we are introduced to lots of different colours visually, just by her garden setting. When she returns the following day, she can't find the butterfly, but she does find a pink earthworm, a brown spider, a green beetle and some spotty red ladybirds.


By this point in the story, we have been introduced to some cut outs that add an extra level of enjoyment to the pictures. It continues with other insects, colours and cutouts until the finale which sees the beautiful butterfly springing from the page in a fantastic simple pop-up.

I've heard people say that Petr's illustrations are "like Eric Carle's" but I wouldn't really say that. It's true there is a feeling of collage and a bright use of colour, but other than The Very Hungry Caterpillar his illustrations really haven't done much for me. Petr Horáček, on the other hand, I engage with each of his books immediately. I think you will too. This is a fantastic colours book because there's more to it than just colours.

 

4 Silver Stars

Find it on Goodreads

The Heart And The Bottle by Oliver Jeffers

Once there was a girl, much like any other

She delighted in everything, in discovering new things, and questioning and thinking and exploring 

... until the day she found an empty chair.

So, to avoid the unpleasant and painful thoughts and feelings, she put her heart in a safe place: A bottle that she hung around her neck. 

She didn't notice, question or dream any more, but at least her heart was safe. 

Then one day, she couldn't answer a question a child asked her and she discovered with out her heart, she couldn't answer it, nor could she remember how to get her heart back out of the bottle. 

Luckily she meets a girl who knew what to do and she put her heart back where it belonged.

Awww. This is one of those books that just feels good. You might have noticed that my picture book reviews tend to keep coming back to this sort of theme. I love stories about being in touch with your emotions/creativity/imagination. It's a better way of being, in my opinion. And this is such a lovely book for that collection.

Find it, read it, enjoy it.

 

4.5 Gold Stars

Find it on Goodreads

Ish by Peter H. Reynolds

 

Peter H. Reynolds captures particular ideas in such a beautifully simple way, his straight forward books can be life changing. In the way that the slightest of redirections can lead you to a very different destination. As in: If you always look at things the same way, you'll never see them differently, turn your head just a bit, and the view is delightfully varied and diverse. 

I feel I'm not making any sense, let's just say this is a review-ish...

Ramon loved to draw.

Any time.

Anything.

Anywhere.

One day, Ramon was drawing a vase of flowers.

His brother, Leon, leaned over his shoulder.

Leon burst out laughing.

"WHAT is THAT?" he asked.

I think we've all been there at some point in our lives, even if it's not with drawing, or anything particularly creative. Sometimes people laugh at, or don't understand things that we have worked very hard on. And that can really throw us off. 

Ramon has trouble finishing drawings, he just can't make them look "right" until he finally gives up. 

Then he sees his sister has taken a scrunched up piece of paper and he chases her back to her room where he is met by a veritable gallery of smoothed out discarded drawings. Including the vase that started it all.

This is one of my favourites,"

Marisol said, pointing.

"That was SUPPOSED to be a vase of flowers,"

Ramon said,

"But it doesn't look like one."

"Well it looks vase-ISH!" 

she exclaimed. 

Enter the slight change in seeing things. With the freedom of 'ish' Ramon launches back into his drawing knowing that things don't have to be "right" or "perfect" but can be an expression and still be considered valid and good. 

It's this type of book that alleviates the weight of the world from your shoulders.

 

4.5 Gold Stars

Find it on Goodreads