THE PIE THAT MOLLY GREW: A Picture Book Review and Mini-Author Interview

This must be the season for new picture books because my email box is full of books waiting to be reviewed. I'm happy to share one by author and self-proclaimed backyard explorer, Sue Heavenrich. 

The Pie That Molly Grew  (Sleeping Bear Press: 2023) combines the rhythm of the nursery rhyme, This is the House that Jack Built with the science of growing pumpkins. It ends with a yummy feast and STEM back matter (including directions for scooping out a pumpkin and a pie recipe) that every preK-first grade teacher will love. 

REVIEW

Here is the opening page which reflects the simple beginning of what becomes an enormous plant.

The lyrical book proceeds to show Molly planting the seed and watching it sprout. Next, she plants it in her garden:

         "to grow from the seed that Molly sowed."

(Are you starting to hear the rhythm?)

Next to arrive on the scene are leaves as "big as your head turning sunlight to food wherever they spread."

As Molly tends to her pumpkin plant, the vine grows and grows and begins to produce blossoms.

The author makes sure that her readers understand the important role that bees have in pollination.

Molly proudly displays her pumpkin "big and round" which is "sliced and diced and baked in a pan and left on the table till feasting began."

for the seed and the sprout,

for the vine and the leaves,

for the flowers that nourished the hardworking bees.

And the wonderful pie that Molly made.

Parents, grandparents, and educators-beware! Every child who hears this book will want to: 

a) scoop out a pumpkin and save the seeds

b) make a pie

c) plant pumpkin seeds next spring!

Chamisa Kellog's bright illustrations will grab young readers' attention as they are drawn into The Pie That Molly Grew. 

Mini-Author Interview

Carol: I’m curious about the different types of bees that you have seen pollinating your garden. Can you talk about that a bit?

 

Sue: I love watching the insects that share my garden and listening to their buzzing and humming. I started looking at them more closely when I became one of the community science volunteers at the Great Sunflower Project (https://www.greatsunflower.org), growing flowers for – and counting – the pollinators in my garden. And by “growing flowers” I mean that I allow flowers that some folks call weeds to grow in my garden bed: Queen Anne’s lace, yarrow, dead nettle, mullien, red clover – the bees love clover! I don’t know the names to all the bees that visit, but I’ll see common eastern bumble bees, tricolor bumble bees, yellow bumble bees, carpenter bees (they are the ones with shiny bee butts!), leafcutter bees, metallic green sweat bees, and squash bees. There are also a number of flower-pollinating flies, too.

A bee doing her job in Sue's garden.

Carol: Do you ever save your pumpkin seeds?

 

Sue: I do. Saving the seeds from a pumpkin is pretty easy: cut open the pumpkin (which you have to do whether you’re baking it for pie or making a jack-o-lantern) and scoop out the guts. Then I pull out bunches of seeds and rinse them in a strainer to get the strings off, and let them dry on a wax paper-lined cookie sheet for a few days. Pumpkins are related to other squashes,  cukes, and melons, and sometimes they can be cross-pollinated. So you might get a surprise when you plant your saved seeds – especially if your pumpkins were growing within flight distance of zucchinis. But hey! It’s science. 

                                            *****

To read Sue's answers to some commonly asked questions, check out Chamisa's interview on Sue's blog.

Here are more blogs that are featuring Molly this week and next:

Aug 15 - at Vivian Kirkfield's blog for a Book Birthday & giveaway

 

 Aug. 16 - we'll join the STEAMTeam at Maria Marshall’s blog, The Picture Book Buzz

Aug. 18 - at Carol Baldwin’s blog & a giveaway!

Aug. 23 - with Kathy Halsey on the GROG blog

Aug. 25 - over at Beth Anderson's blog

Aug 28 - with Lauri Fortino at Frog on a Blog

GIVEAWAY

Sleeping Bear Press is providing a giveaway copy. If you are interested in winning this informative and fun book, please leave me a comment by August 21. As usual, if you share this post on social media or are an educator or librarian, you get an extra chance. If you are new to my blog, please leave your email address. U.S. addresses only. If you prefer, email me to enter the giveaway.

THE FATHER GOOSE TREASURY OF POETRY: A Review and Giveaway Through Talking Story

 As promised last week, I'm back again with another marvelous poetry book by Charles Ghigna. But this time, it's not just one poem It is one hundred and one! THE FATHER GOOSE TREASURY OF POETRY (Schiffer Books: 2023) is divided into seven sections. There is one section for each season, plus "Home," "Animals," and "Poetry." In this blog, Charles talks about the process of how he decided which poems to include in the anthology-- as well as his favorite sweet treats.

REVIEW

Charles uses nature themes and a vivid imagination to write poetry that brings smiles to readers of all ages. The way he incorporates sensory imagery makes readers take notice of word choice and world details. 

Take this poem for example:

            White Butterflies

I like to watch the falling snow.

It puts on such a lovely show.

It looks like little veils of lace,

White butterflies upon my face. (p. 37)

I found three types of figurative language in this word picture--how many do you find? Highlight the following phrase for the answer. personification, simile, metaphor).

Or, how about this sing-song poem with its unique way of rhyming? This one reminds me of how Charles listened to music as a child--you can almost hear the music behind his words.

The title itself makes me laugh and the illustrations of trees dancing in the wind compliment the poem perfectly. Look closely at the cloud and goose and you'll see collage elements that illustrator Sara Brezzi incorporated.

"Morning Rain" reminds me of one of my childhood favorites, Robert Louis Stevenson's A Child's Garden of Verses. (Does anyone else remember the "Land of Counterpane"? I was pleased to find out that Charles and I both read this book as children!)

           Morning Rain

Like a shadow

Passing by,

Storm clouds

Fill the morning sky,

From my window

I see wonder,

A lightning strike,

A clap of thunder.

I sit beside

The window pane

And watch the world

Fill up with rain.  (p.21)

Many of Charles' poems are playful,

            Thunder Bugs

On stormy nights

I often wonder,

Do lightning bugs

Make the thunder? (p.59)

Some are thought-provoking:

                 

      Orion's Way

 

Each evening

he enters

the black forest

of night

and spreads

his star crumbs

across the sky

to find his way

back home.  (p. 29)

And, 

In honor of the Talking Story issue on wordplay, I had to share this one:

       Wild Romance

I love EWE

I'm not LION

I really GOPHER you.

I never GNU this would happen.

You are so DEER to me.

It's more than I can BEAR.

Let us SEAL our love with a kiss.

I will always BEE yours.

I will never have any EGRETS.

You are my one and only GULL.

OWL always love you. (p. 101)

CURRICULUM RESOURCE and GIVEAWAY

Parents, grandparents, teachers, and librarians--don't miss the opportunity to add this book to your collection! It's a wonderful read-aloud as well as an opportunity to teach figurative language.

Leave one comment here for one chance to win this book. Leave another through Talking Story for a second chance. On the far right column, you'll see an email address to enter four giveaways. Click on the link and let me know which book you are most interested in winning. (I try to honor requests-but I can't guarantee what Random.org picks!). U.S. addresses only. The giveaway ends on July 15th.

Congratulations to Gail Cartee who won A Poem is a Firefly from last week's blog.

BRAINSTORM! A Word Play Picture Book + A Giveaway

 Every once in awhile in my "career" as a picture book reviewer, I come across a book and I ask myself, "Why didn't I think of this?" BRAINSTORM! written by Rebecca Gardyn Levington and illustrated by Kate Kronreif is one of those books. From the title, to the puns, poetry, and figurative language on every page--there is A LOT of wordplay going on.  

REVIEW

In the first spread, we find our character feeling stuck.

Like raindrops, words and pictures start dropping into the girl's mind as a storm lets loose.

  An easy breeze... becomes a blast of funny phrases flying past.

Suddenly, there's a word whirlwind!

After stomping around in the mud of ideas and words, (and what writer can't identify with that metaphor!)

 I pounce and play, embrace the storm, as sentences begin to form.

Finally,

It stops. It's over. Done. The clouds float off and out comes...sun.

That's the climax, but there's a wonderful denouement that brings this story full circle.

CURRICULUM RESOURCE

This is a text that kindergarten to second-grade teachers will be able to use in the classroom to encourage young writers. If I were in a classroom, I would first read it out loud and let the class enjoy the rhythm and images. The second time, I would ask students to pick out the figurative language: similes, alliteration, onomatopoeia; as well as great adverbs and adjectives.  It would be fun to discover how many ways the author, illustrator, and the little girl all play with words. 

A fun extension activity would be to ask the students to draw words playing in the same manner in which Kate Kronreif dances them on the page!

LINKS

For a behind-the-scenes look at the book’s backstory, how Rebecca worked with the illustrator and her publishing journey, please see this interview: https://susannahill.com/2022/08/02/tuesday-debut-presenting-rebecca-gardyn-levington/ 

Here’s a podcast for more information: https://susannahill.com/2022/08/02/tuesday-debut-presenting-rebecca-gardyn-levington/

And a joint interview with both Rebecca and Kate: https://susannahill.com/2022/08/02/tuesday-debut-presenting-rebecca-gardyn-levington/

GIVEAWAY

The July issue of Talking Story is on wordplay and I will be giving away this book then. Leave me a comment now and I'll add your name to the giveaway list. Leave a comment through the newsletter (not a subscriber? Click here to subscribe) and I'll enter your name twice. If you’re a teacher or librarian, I’ll enter your name twice. Trust me. This is a book that every writer, caregiver, and teacher should have on her shelf to share with the young readers in her life! U.S. addresses only. I have to approve comments, so be patient if your comment doesn’t appear immediately! 

TWO SPLENDID SEAFARING PICTURE BOOKS + 2 GIVEAWAYS

 If you're like me, you give books as presents. On today's blog, I have two fun books published by Sleeping Bear Press that will make great presents for a young pirate or sailor in your life. Both books use great wordplay which will tickle the ears of both kids and adults.

REVIEWS

PIRATES DON'T DANCE

What happens when a young man (who loves to dance) signs up to be a pirate? Author-illustrator Shawna J.C. Tenney answers that question in this action-packed picture book.

More than anything, Jack wanted to be a pirate. 

......

When Jack heard the 

slosh slosh slap of the waves,

the flip flip flap of the sails,

the creak creak crack of the ship,

he felt the rhythm in his soul

But, he quickly found out that,

Jack danced without knowing it. At sword-fighting practice, he saw the pirates-in-training stumble and fumble. Jack couldn't help himself.

He showed his fellow trainees how to grand jete' over gullies during a treasure hunt. But that got everybody in trouble.

Finally, a feared pirate came on board. Jack and his friends hid and watched.

Jack couldn't just stand by and do nothing--he had to dance! 

It was a fierce battle. In the end, the Captain conceded. "Blimey! Keep dancing, Jack! KEEP DANCING!"

Jack's amazing dancing steps won the battle, the Captain's heart, and the reward of becoming an official pirate. From then on, everyone put their best foot forward.

Parents, grandparents, and teachers will enjoy the pleasure of reading this story out loud and children will enjoy the onomatopoeia and how an unlikely hero wins the day.

To read about Shawna's backstory for writing and illustrating this book, please see this post on Kathy Temean's blog.

Back matter includes an author's note, explanations of dance movements, and pirate speak definitions.

MONSTERS IN THE BRINY

Lynn Becker's rhyming debut picturebook is about mythical sea creatures and the mayhem they cause when they meet up with a boat full of hardy, young sailors. Scott Brundage performs his magic with marvelous illustrations that are as funny and rollicking as the text. 

The first monster who appears even before the first page is a Kraken.

You would

Share some jokes and your best riddle,

Feed her cakes from Cookie's griddle,

Teach her how to bow the fiddle,

Kraken in the briny.

Just when the sailors successfully tame a surly, scruffly, sea goat, the ship gets a visit from a

The sailors 

Keep a bucket at the ready,

Mop his forehead if he's sweaty,

Tuck him into serpent beddy,

Serpent in the briny.

Next, the brave sailors meet a tearful turtle. They find innovative ways to cheer him up.

 Readers will be anxious to find out what sea monster is next. 

How about a hungry hydra?

"Yo! Ho! And up he's rising, Yo! Ho! He's quite surprising,

But wait. 

One of the sailors is sick of shipwrecking monsters.

So,

Yo! Ho! And up we're rising,

Yo! Ho! We're all surprising,

Yo! Ho! We're harmonizing,

Monsters in the briny.

The back matter includes two pages about sea monsters and the music to "Monsters in the Briny" which is based on an old sea shanty about a drunken sailor. 

If you're interested in reading about Lynn's book journey, you can find it on Kathy Temean's blog. 

I recently took a webinar with children's book author Pat Miller. She encouraged picture book writers to look at different frameworks for their story idea. Using a song was one of her suggestions. Now I see how that can work so well--particularly with the imaginative team of Lynn Becker and Scott Brundage. This week Lynn and Scott will share some of the inside scoops behind this sea-faring creation in the Talking Story Facebook group. Don't miss the childhood game that inspired Lynn and some of Scott's drafts! (P.S. If you're not a member yet, just click on the link and request to join it.)

GIVEAWAYS

Please leave a comment by November 23 and let me know which book you're interested in winning. MAKE SURE YOU LEAVE YOUR NAME AND EMAIL ADDRESS IF YOU ARE NEW TO MY BLOG. If you follow my blog or sign up to follow it, I'll give you two chances. 

Congratulations to Theresa Milstein who won SUPERPOWER? from last week's blog. 

Two Socks, One Giveaway

Congratulations to Gwen Porter who won "A Boy Like You" and to Linda Townsend who won "A Fist for Joe Louis and Me."

*******

If you didn't win last week, here's another chance at winning an adorable picture book, also courtesy of Sleeping Bear Press. 

Little Sock

This debut picture book by Kia Heise and Chrispher D. Park, is one that children (and their parents or caregivers) will enjoy reading. 

Little Sock is bored. Every day it's the same old thing. He gets worn, gets dirty, and gets washed. "All the other Socks seem happy, but Little Sock dreams of something different." He's heard of a place called Sock City where every day is a new adventure and he is determined to find it--even though it means going through a scary, dark tunnel in the back of the dryer. 

On the other end of the tunnel Little Sock finds Sock City and lots of different Socks,

and determines to go back again. 

Only next time, he'll bring a friend. 

One Red Sock

This is the second book I've reviewed by author-illustrator Jennifer Sattler. Like BULLY, ONE RED SOCK also is light on text but full of bold, larger-than-life illustrations which will amuse young readers.

How many purple hippos do you know who live in a room full of colorful dots? And how many can't seem to find a red sock to match the one she already has on? Young readers will enjoy meeting this unique hippo, identifying colors, and learning the rhymes.

In the end, after trying out a rainbow of colored socks, Ms. Hippo decides to wear one that has polka dots to match her room.

Jennifer was featured last week on Kathy Temean's blog. Check out the link to see more of Jennifer's illustrations and her entire process!

GIVEAWAY

Since my youngest grandson is turning one this week, LITTLE SOCK is on its way to his house. I think his older sister will enjoy reading it to him. 

Four-year-old Eleanor, "reading" Five Little Ladybugs
to her brother, Luke. According to my daughter,
Luke listens the best when she reads to him.

ONE RED SOCK is up for grabs though! Leave me a comment by August 8 and I'll enter your name in the giveaway. Just make sure you leave me your email address if I don't have it.