Children’s Books

February 9 – Pizza Day

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About the Holiday

Every day could be pizza day, but today’s holiday gives us a special reason to enjoy one of the world’s favorite foods! Since ancient times, people have been making pizzas of all kinds from flatbread to deep dish, but they all have one thing in common—they’re delicious! Here are just a few interesting facts about this most delectable of foods:

  • The very first pizzeria opened in Italy in 1738
  • The first pizzeria in America was opened in New York in 1895
  • Pepperoni is the most popular topping
  • Over 3 billion freshly made pizzas and 1 billion frozen pizzas are sold in the U.S. every year

The Princess and the Pizza

 By Mary Jane and Herm Auch

 

Paulina loves being a princess. But when her father, the king, gives up his throne, Paulina needs a job! Things don’t go so smoothly, however, so when she hears that Queen Zelda is looking for a bride for her son, Drupert, she springs into action. Armed with her best ball gown, a tiara, garlic for good luck, and herbs to mask the garlic smell, Paulina is off to Blom to win a prince and her old life back.

Twelve women show up to woo Prince Drupert, and Queen Zelda has plans to find him the perfect wife. She pits the women against each other in three competitions—the pea-under-the-mattress test, the glass slipper fitting, and a feast-preparation contest. Paulina easily passes the first two but is thwarted in the third by the shenanigans of the remaining contestants.

By the time Paulina reaches the table that holds the ingredients for the feasts, the only items left are tomatoes, cheese, and the makings of a dough. Paulina throws them together then decides to take a nap (after first removing the sleep-depriving pea from the bed). Rudely awakened from slumber and given a threat she can’t ignore, Paulina tosses her creation on the fire and sprinkles it with her garlic for good luck and the herbs to mask the smell.

The time for tasting arrives and Paulina presents her tray, hoping for the best. Although the concoction may look a mess, it smells scrumptious and with one taste Prince Drupert proclaims it the winner. And so in one fell swoop our intrepid heroine has invented pizza and won the heart of Prince Drupert. But the whole experience has given Paulina a better idea. She dumps Drupert and opens a Pizza Palace. And while she may not actually be royalty anymore, the townspeople are so thrilled they treat her like a queen. Life again is good, but could her father be falling for Queen Zelda?

Paulina is an appealing modern princess—she’s loaded with self-confidence, never gives up, and knows how to play the game. Kids will love recognizing the references to other favorite fairy tales, and the humorous illustrations of the unflappable Paulina will have them giggling with every page.

Ages: 4 and up

Holiday House, New York 2003 / ISBN 978-0823417988

Pizza Day Activity

CPB - Pizza Day Toppings

Create Your Pizza Game

Play this fun game to build your pizza ingredient by ingredient before the others!          For 2 – 8 players.

Supplies

Directions

February 8 – Opera Day

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About the Holiday

Today celebrates a musical art form that began in the 1500s in Italy. An opera is a play that is entirely sung by the actors. Operas can be funny, romantic, or tragic. The actors must have amazing voices that can fill the whole opera house because they do not use microphones. The actors get to sing solos, called arias, that reveal their emotions about particular moments in the story. Because of its grand history in countries such as Italy, Germany, and France, operas are still more popular in Europe than in the U.S. In America we’re more familiar with musicals, like Frozen orAladdin, where some dialogue is spoken and songs tell more about the plot of the story than about the characters’ feelings. If you’d like to listen to a little bit of an opera for children, check out this video of parts of Little Red Riding Hood performed by the BCOpera.

Father’s Chinese Opera

By Rich Lo

 

Recalling personal experience, author-illustrator Rich Lo writes a unique tale set within the Chinese opera. Revolving around themes pertinent to life, the Chinese opera employs actors as well as acrobats and flag carriers who add action and meaning to the play.

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Copyright Rich Lo, 2014, courtesy of Sky Pony Press.

In Father’s Chinese Opera, the son of the band leader and composer for the Hong Kong opera watches the actors flip and somersault across the stage and dreams of joining them. He approaches Gai Chui, the best acrobat in the troupe and asks to be taught the martial arts. Gai Chui agrees and the little boy begins to learn the moves—Praying Mantis, Crouching Tiger, Striking Leopard, and more. The little boy practices hard and believes he is ready to join the other actors, but when he tells Gai Chui he is ready, the master acrobat laughs and tells him it’s not quite that easy.

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-father's-chinese-opera-backstage

Copyright Rich Lo, 2014, courtesy of Sky Pony Press.

Dejected, the boy goes home. His father tells him about how hard he worked to become the leader of an opera troupe, and the boy takes the lesson to heart. The next day he goes back to the opera house and instead of watching the actors, he takes note of the flag carriers—the lowest position in the troupe. He asks if he can be a flag carrier, to which his father agrees—but only for the summer.

As a flag carrier, the boy makes new friends, becomes a better acrobat, and impresses Gai Chui, who tells him that with more practice he will be able to achieve his dreams.

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Copyright Rich Lo, 2014, courtesy of Sky Pony Press.

Rich Lo’s story is full of truths about hard work and the benefits of developing a deep understanding of all aspects of one’s skills. Children may find a conversation like this seemingly unfair, but Lo reveals that such teaching on the part of a parent or other adult is one of the ultimate demonstrations of love. 

Lo’s watercolor illustrations are vibrant and dreamy, perfectly reflecting the beauty and action of the Chinese opera that so captivates the story’s young narrator. His father and the orchestra, dressed in their conservative blue and tan suits and sitting at the corner of the stage, contrast starkly with the bold, riotous mosaic of the actors’ costumes and the swirling moves of the acrobats. It’s easy to see why the boy is attracted to this art. It is back home—where the colors once again become muted and quiet—however, that the boy learns his greatest lesson.

Sharing Father’s Chinese Opera with children is an excellent way to discuss the idea that while a talent may be inborn, practice and patience are also needed to see it come to its full fruition. The book would be a valuable addition to home, classroom, and library collecions.

Ages: 3 – 7

Sky Pony Press, 2014 | ISBN 978-1628736106

Opera Day Activity

CPB - Opera Day word search

Opera Word Search

 

Today’s activity is a Word Search puzzle loaded with words about the Chinese opera. Just print out the puzzle and start looking! The Solution is also included.

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You can find Father’s Chinese Opera at these booksellers

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million | IndieBound

 

February 6 – Lace Day

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About the Holiday

Lace, that delicate material that trims clothing, covers tables, ties up hair, and makes anything seem more dainty and lovely, has been used since the 1500s. When you look at the intricate patterns and fine threads of lace, it’s hard to believe that people once made it all by hand. Lace makers were paid well for their art by the fashion industry, which used it to attract distinguished customers. While lace is mostly made by machines now, the handcraft is making a comeback. Today’s reviewed picture book is about a girl whose lace work was invaluable.

Fiona’s Lace

By Patricia Polacco

 

In Fiona’s Lace author-illustrator Patricia Polacco weaves a tale of family love and America’s early immigrant heritage that is as intricate and lovely as the material we celebrate today. The story begins in Ireland, where Fiona and her sister Ailish live with their muther and da. They live happily in Glen Kerry, where their father works in the textile mill and their mother teaches Fiona her art of lace making.

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Copyright Patricia Polacco, courtesy of simonandschuster.com

In the evenings the girls are entertained by family stories, especially their favorite about how, when their parents first met, their mother left a trail of lace from the factory to her house for her young suitor to follow.

When the textile mill closes, Fiona’s family signs a contract indenturing themselves to a family in Chicago. The voyage to America is long and arduous, but when they arrive in Chicago they marvel at the grand houses and elegant clothes, imagining that this awaits them too in their new home. The reality, however, is much different. Their 2-room apartment is ramshackle, and only by working two jobs can their parents make enough money to live on.

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Copyright Patricia Polacco, courtesy of simonandschuster.com

Fiona wants to help and soon finds that dressmakers will pay handsomely for the lace she makes. The family’s money tin begins to fill up and they are prospering. One night while Muther and Da are away working, a fire rages through Chicago. Fiona and Ailish escape with only the money tin and Fiona’s lace. They run far from home, but worry—how will their parents find them?

Remembering their favorite story, Fiona cuts her lace into strips and ties bits of it along their route to their hiding place. The girls cower in fear until they hear the familiar voices of their parents. Happily reunited, the family lets go of what they have lost, but Ailish cries over the now sooty, torn lace. Ma reassures her and brings comfort, revealing that far from being ruined, this scorched lace is the most valuable and cherished of all because it saved the family.

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Copyright Patricia Polacco, courtesy of simonandschuster.com

Patricia Polacco’s heartwarming and harrowing story of an Irish immigrant family is a beautiful reminder of the unique talents and strong bonds that built America. Readers will be enthralled by Polacco’s realistic dialogue and detailed storytelling in this compelling and suspenseful tale and will cheer as Ailish cleverly uses her ma and pa’s trick and her own skills to save her family.

Polacco’s gorgeous illustrations bring the time period alive for young readers, portraying the intricate art of lacemaking and the clothing styles that made use of this delicate trimming. Her depictions of tenement living are realistic, yet reveal the love and close family ties within through a warm color palette and the inclusion of cozy comforts brought from Ireland.

Fiona’s Lace is a wonderful book for classroom and home story times.

Ages: 4 – 8

Simon & Schuster, New York 2014 | ISBN 978-1442487246

Discover more about Patricia Polacco and her many, many books on her website!

Lace Day Activity

Hide-and-Seek Game

While Fiona and her sister used a lace trail to lead their parents to their hiding place, you can have fun making a hide-and-seek game for your friends. This game can be played inside or outside

Supplies

  • 1 or 2 yards of lace, cut into sections about 6-inches each. You can use lace to celebrate Lace Day or use string, ribbon, or other kinds of material
  • Choose something to hide – this can be a toy, a secret letter, a snack, or anything

Directions

  1. Hide the item you choose in a secret place
  2. Determine the starting place for your hide-and-seek game
  3. Along the route from the starting point to the hidden item, tie the sections of lace onto things like lamps, furniture, stair banisters, door knobs, etc. if  you’re playing inside. If you are playing outside, tie it onto trees, bushes, bird feeders, swing sets, etc.
  4. For very young children the trail of lace can be straightforward; for older children the trail can be longer and more difficult

February 2 – Sled Dog Day

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About the Holiday

On this day we honor the sled dogs who have bravely risked their lives to help human beings survive and flourish in some of the harshest landscapes from our earliest history. One of these memorable times occurred in 1925 when a diphtheria epidemic swept through Nome, Alaska. The only anti-toxin that could help was in Anchorage—more than 900 miles away! The weather was horrific and the only way for the serum to reach the ailing population in time was by dog sled. Through incredible bravery, strength, and perseverance, a relay of dog-sled teams completed the run and delivered the serum.

Today’s Iditarod honors this heroic effort. While this picture book review revolves around the Iditarod, if you would like to read about the serum run and a brave sled dog that made the success of the project possible, I highly recommend another picture book by Robert Blake: Togo.

Akiak: A Tale from the Iditarod

Written and Illustrated by  Robert J. Blake

The annual Iditarod is the setting for this dramatic outdoor adventure that pits mushers and their sled dogs against the harshest climate and each other. Akiak is a veteran of this grueling race from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. She has led a team of dogs to a fifth, third, and second place, but that winning spot has been so elusive. This year Akiak is 10 years old and it will be her last chance to bring home a first-place finish for the 16-dog team and Mick, her musher.

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Image copyright Robert J. Blake, courtesy of Puffin Books

Akiak possesses the drive and heart to lead the sled up and over dangerously steep hills, through icy water and deep snow, and through howling storms. On Day 3 Akiak, Mick, and the other dogs pass Willy Ketcham, their main rival, and the race is looking good. But on the fourth day of the race, ice jams Akiak’s paw and she can’t continue. Mick leaves her at a checkpoint to be flown home while another of the dog team takes her place.

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Image copyright Robert J. Blake, courtesy of Puffin Books

But Akiak won’t give up easily. Taking advantage of difficult weather, she is able to escape from the handlers putting her on the plane and speeds away, following her knowledge of the trail and the scent of the team to find Mick.

Akiak waits out a blizzard, outsmarts trail volunteers who try to catch her, and endures hunger and thirst to narrow the distance between her and Mick. With the help along the trail, Akiak comes closer to her old team. Finally on day 10, just when the team and Mick need her most, Akiak catches up with them! The Iditarod rules say Akiak can’t be put back on the team, but that doesn’t mean she still can’t help.

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Image copyright Robert J. Blake, courtesy of Puffin Books

Akiak knows something Mick doesn’t. While the team is floundering among crisscrossing trail marks, Akiak nudges them onto the right track. Akiak jumps in the sled with Mick, and they glide into Nome ahead of Ketcham – triumphant!

Author-illustrator Robert Blake has created a fast-paced adventure full of as many twists and turns as the Iditarod trail itself. Children of all ages will cheer Akiak along on his journey. Blake’s oil painting illustrations bring to life the whipping snow, howling winds, and deep drifts of this forbidding landscape. The movement and determination of Akiak and the other sled dogs are rendered beautifully as they strive to win. Alaska’s vast beauty becomes a character itself in the icy blue and white tones of Blake’s work.

Ages 4 – 8

Puffin Books, New York, 2004 | ISBN 978-0142401859

Discover more about Robert Blake and his many books, plus sketchbooks and a video on his website!

Sled Dog Day Activity

CPB - Iditarod game map

Race the Iditarod Trail! Board Game

 

Play Race the Iditarod Trail—a game as wild as the run itself! The game board, playing cards, and instructions can all be found here (save images to print a full page):

Even Years Route

Odd Years Route

 Picture Book Review