February 22 – National Dog Walking Day

About the Holiday

Whether you’re still in the midst of winter or spring is knocking on the door, dog owners know that one part – maybe the best part – of their day will be spent taking their beloved pooches for a walk. Today’s holiday celebrates this special time people share with their pets and encourages them to make today’s walk extra fun by taking a new route or rewarding your pup with a few extra treats or minutes of playtime.

Thanks to Floris Books for sharing a copy of The Dog Walk with me for review consideration. All opinions on the book are my own.

The Dog Walk

By Sven Nordqvist

Anyone who spends time outside with their pet knows that you start to see the yard, neighborhood, and perhaps even the world in a different way. Small details of nature, hidden creatures or objects, odors and sounds wafting on the breeze, and people passing by all become new when seen through the eyes of an animal. In his wildly whimsical The Dog Walk, Sven Nordqvist takes readers on a wordless meandering out of the city and into fantastical worlds where anything is possible.

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The frame for this adventure is the titular dog walk, in which a child takes their grandmother’s shaggy pet for a jaunt, setting up dazzling discovery as well as an amusing search-and-find puzzle. Following along on this journey, kids and adults are treated to Nordqvist’s endlessly delightful creativity that plays with perspective and size, the expected and the extraordinary and invites readers to look, look again, and ponder.

As the train leaves the station, traversing a bridge that elevates it high above rolling hills and the vast tree houses residents call home as well as a derelict stone castle that now serves as the trunk of a tree, a giant chess board, and giggle-inducing images of a man rowing a boat with a giraffe as passenger (cargo that requires the drawbridge to be raised and traffic to back up) and a bull sitting on the river’s bank and enjoying a tuft of grass like a person picnicking while his bovine friends chomp grass the regular way.

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The train is headed for a maze of tracks that twist their way through a castle that houses no fewer than five kings and boasts a turret-top pool. The next stop is a sculpture and animal park, where readers will want to stop and join the cleverly posed statues that tour the gravel paths via goat-pulled platforms and a variety of familiar and fanciful creatures welcome them.

Continuing on, take in the orchestra that’s playing in the bandshell while the appreciative audience enjoys pastries, ice cream, and tea served by a walking teapot and creamer. Further on, readers come to a seaside vista, where small islands of thatched buildings set sail. And if there’s no wind to power them, that’s okay because each island has its own windmill. On shore, a giant couple sit enjoying the sun; the woman reads under a parasol, while the man, his painting supplies at hand, carefully recreates the tiny kindergarten-drawing island. Other islands dotting the inlet are in the shape of hats, while the harbor’s lighthouse is a burning candle atop a top hat.

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After a bite of lunch, the child is literally dragged into an antiques store – breathtaking in its intricacies – when the pooch chases a cat inside. This showstopper of a two-page spread juxtaposes items from homes of yesteryear with those of today with, of course, surreal and inventive additions to capture readers’ attention and imagination. From here, the walk takes the child into more bucolic scenery, where the dog gets to frolic with other animals while blueberries are picked from tall trees by a well-steered dragonfly.

Then dodging spitballs through a field, the two come to a sleepy castle where Escher-like stairways lead to the exit and a game of croquet – or is it billards? It’s nearly time to get back home, but first the dog becomes distracted in a community of cats. But nothing – not even a bicyclist balancing on a huge orange; a unicyclist juggling lit torches, an ax, a knife, and a toaster; or a hot dog big enough to fee four – can arrest the dog’s attention when it sees… Grandma!

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Beyond lingering over Sven Nordqvist’s hilarious, ingenious, and unbelievably detailed drawings, The Dog Walk offers unending opportunities to expand on and engage with every page. Whether embraced in a classroom or at home, every page provides plenty of inspiration for kids to create their own stories, artwork, inventions, games, and so much more based on the images. Searching for repeated themes, objects, and creatures will also keep kids happily occupied.

A book for sharing or enjoying individually that will spark laughs, awe, inspiration, and fun conversations, The Dog Walk would make a treasured gift and is a highly rewarding and recommended addition to home, school and public library collections.

Ages 3 and up

Floris Books, 2021 | ISBN 978-1782507437

National Dog Walking Day Activities

I Love Dogs! Word Search Puzzle

If you love dogs, you’ll have fun discovering the names of eighteen dog breeds in this printable word search puzzle!

I Love Dogs! Word Search Puzzle | I Love Dogs! Word Search Solution

Peppy Puppies Match Up Puzzle

Each of the puppies has a friend. Can you match them up based on one trait? There may be multiple right answers! Why do you think the dogs you chose go together in this printable puzzle?

Peppy Puppies Match Up Puzzle

**You can find The Dog Walk at these booksellers**

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million

To support your local independent bookstore, order from

Bookshop | IndieBound

Picture Book Review

January 3 – Festival of Sleep Day

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

After all the celebrating, we’re finally ready for some down time – and when I say down time, I mean sleep! That feeling of sinking into a deep slumber and waking refreshed the next morning is so comforting. And the opportunity to sleep in – or sleep all day? That’s luxury! To take full advantage of today’s holiday, jump in bed, pull up the covers and…Zzzzzzzzzz…

Henry & Leo

By Pamela Zagarenski

Ever since Henry was two, he and his stuffed lion, Leo, have been inseparable. “Perhaps it was his glass button eyes, which made him look as if he knew secret things” that made him so special and unlike Henry’s other toys. One Saturday Henry’s parents suggested a hike in the Nearby Woods. Henry was excited because he knew Leo would love the outing. Henry’s sister thought this idea was foolish, after all Leo wasn’t real, she said, and couldn’t love anything.

Henry didn’t care what his sister thought, and as they walked through the forest, he “could tell that Leo loved hearing the birds and finding the woodland animals as much as he did.” When evening began to fall, the family headed home, Henry riding on his father’s shoulders. At home, Henry discovered that Leo was missing. They looked everywhere, but Leo could not be found.

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Image copyright Pamela Zagarenski, courtesy of Houghton, Mifflin Harcourt

Papa promised that they would resume the hunt in the morning, but Henry worried. He knew Leo would want to be home with him tonight, and asked that a light be left on for him. Henry’s mother suggested that since Leo was only real in Henry’s imagination that he “‘imagine Leo tucked into a safe place.’” In the morning, she said, they would return to the Nearby Woods and find him.

In the darkness of his room, clutching a stuffed rabbit and fox, with a toy bear nearby, Henry thinks about Leo. He “knows that his family just didn’t understand what it truly meant to be real.” But Henry and Leo were best friends. They cared for each other. “That’s real.”

Meanwhile, in the Nearby Woods, a bear, a rabbit, and a fox discover Leo sitting at the base of a tree. With a twig, Leo sketches a house in the dirt, washed white in the gleam of the full moon. The rabbit produces a compass as the fox consults the stars. The foursome takes off down the path, watched over by owls and other night creatures. As the trip grows longer, Leo rides on the bear’s back. At last they reach the edge of the forest, and in the distance Leo points to a house bathed white in the moonlight.

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Image copyright Pamela Zagarenski, courtesy of Houghton, Mifflin Harcourt

With the dawning sun Henry and his family take up the search again. Suddenly, Henry spies Leo near the front door. “‘Leo!’” he shouts. His family sighs in relief, but his sister and father are both perplexed. They know they had “‘looked in that very spot last night.’” As Henry hugs Leo tightly, he whispers “‘You found home! I love you, Leo.’” And Leo whispers back, “‘I love you, too, Henry.’”

With her signature grace and lyricism. Pamela Zagarenski infuses her lost-toy story with the mystical imagination of childhood. As the title suggests, she presents the experience from both Henry’s and Leo’s perspectives, echoing the wonderful ability of young children to fully embrace and transfer their emotions, giving—and accepting—love from animate and inanimate objects equally. Zagarenski’s illustrations are glorious, with the richness of royalty—a motif that is carried through in the crowns that hover above and settle on the heads of Henry, his family, other toys, and the woodland animals. Children may enjoy discussing and interpreting the different crowns. The middle spreads of nighttime in the forest are wordless, allowing the animals to communicate in their own way and in a way children believe. Young readers will appreciate the gentle suspense and be satisfied with the correctness of Henry’s prediction as Leo finds his way home. Fans of Zagarenski’s work will notice familiar images, such as teapots, tea cups, and paper sailboats, scattered among the pages.

The beauty of Zagarenski’s art and her stardust magic of imagination make Henry & Leo an excellent choice for bedtime and quiet time reading, and would be an often-asked-for addition to children’s bookshelves.

Ages 4 – 7

Houghton, Mifflin Harcourt, 2016 | ISBN 978-0544648111

To learn more about Pamela Zagarenski, her books, and her art, visit her website.

Festival of Sleep Day Activity

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Snuggle Buddy Craft

It’s easy to make your own snuggle buddy with a few pieces of fleece, some fiber fill, and a needle and thread or fabric glue. The great thing about creating your own friend is you can personalize your pal anyway you want!

Supplies

1 8-inch by 11-inch piece of fleece in the color or your choice for the body (or scraps if you have some from an earlier project). A larger piece of fleece can be used to make a larger buddy
1 5-inch by 8-inch piece of fleece in the color or your choice for the hair (or scraps if you have some from an earlier project)
1 small piece of fleece or other material for a pocket, clothes, or blanket
Small scraps of fleece or other material for the face
Fiber Fill
Thread and sewing needle OR fabric glue
Scissors

Directions

To Make the Body

Fold the large piece of fleece in half lengthwise and sew along the open side and along the bottom. Alternatively, if using a larger size piece of fleece, fold upward and sew or glue the two sides closed.
Turn the form inside out

To Make the Hair

Cut a piece of fleece as wide as your buddy and about 7 – 8 inches long
Fold the fleece lengthwise
Insert both ends of the fleece into the opening at the top of the body
Sew or glue the opening shut, securing the hair
Cut strips about ¼-inch wide from the top of the hair to close to where the hair is sown into the body

To Make a Pocket or Clothes

Cut a piece of fleece in the shape of a pocket, shirt, pants, diaper, or blanket
Sew or glue the pocket or clothes to the buddy

To Make the Face

Cut eyes, a nose, and a mouth in whatever way you would like your buddy to look.
Sew or glue the face to the buddy

**You can find Henry & Leo at these booksellers**

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

Picture Book Review

July 10 – Don’t Step on a Bee Day

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

The bee population is in decline around the world due to habitat disruption and destruction, pesticide use, and colony collapse disorder. Bees (and other pollinators) are crucial to the world’s food supply. Today’s holiday is a reminder to protect bees and help preserve their habitats. By planting flowers and herbs that attract bees and providing safe nesting places for them, you can be part of the solution.

Bee & Me

By Alison Jay

As you open the cover of Alison Jay’s glorious, wordless Bee & Me, don’t be surprised if your heart skips a little faster when you find yourself in a city that’s familiar but also magical. From a high vantage point, you look down on a main thoroughfare where a café, a music store, a hat shop, an optometrist, a barber, and a shoe shop line the busy street; stylized cars, buses, and trucks pass by; and people—tiny from this distance—walk a dog, ride a unicycle, carry bags, and try to keep up with two running children. Elevated trains traverse their arched track and helicopters and planes dot the sky.

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Turn the page and you’re looking into a four-story apartment house. On the first floor a woman does battle with a fly as her husband types at his green typewriter; on the third floor a boy tries to coax a pigeon to eat out of his hand; and in the fourth-floor apartment, a woman sits at her easel, painting. And what about the second floor? That’s where the story gets started.

A bee, attracted by flowered curtains, has just flown into a little girl’s window as she’s reading a book about flowers. The little buzzy guy flies right up to her face, causing her to toss the book aside and run away in fright. She procures her weapon and raises the fly swatter into position but reconsiders when she sees the bee’s scared face and little legs waving in his own defense. The girl decides to trap him under a drinking glass, but when the bee weakens and then faints, she reads up on bee culture and offers him a spoonful of sugar water, which he slurps up eagerly. The girl goes to the window and releases the bee under the interested gaze of the little boy upstairs.

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That night a storm rages and the rain continues the next day. At her window, the girl finds the bee soaked through. She brings him in, feeds him another spoonful of sugar water, and then, while he sits on a playing die on her vanity, she dries him with her hairdryer and a toothbrush. Happy and fluffy, the bee decides to stay. He and the little girl become fast friends and begin doing everything together. They play checkers, dance, have tea parties, and go places with the bee riding in the girl’s doll carriage or bicycle basket. Nourished with cups of sugar water and popsicles, the bee begins to grow and grow, becoming as tall as the girl, and then taller. They play at the park on the slide and the swing, and the bee even learns how to ride the girl’s bike.

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But on a stroll downtown, the bee sees a beautiful bouquet of flowers in a florist’s window. He presses his face to the glass, and the little girl, noticing, buys him a flower. At home, the bee thinks of a meadow of flowers, and his sad face tells the little girl all she needs to know. She gets out a map and shows her friend where there’s open green space. The girl climbs on the bee’s back and they soar from the window, unseen by anyone except the little boy on the third floor.

They fly out of the city, over the river, and into farmland where they find a field of flowers. Carefully, they gather seeds in their bags and on the way back home scatter them across the city. The last seeds in the girl’s bag go into her new window box. Fall has come and the bee and the girl hug and then say goodbye as the bee flies away from her window.

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With winter, an invitation comes from the boy upstairs in the form of a yellow-and-brown striped scarf dangled out of his window, and the two build a snow bee outside their apartment building. In the spring, they walk together through the rain under a polka dot umbrella, and summer sees the seeds in the girl’s window box begin to sprout. In fact the whole city has begun to sprout, with colorful gardens blooming on rooftops, along the edges of sidewalks and streets, and in yards sprinkled here and there.

The purple, yellow, blue, pink, and white flowers attract butterflies and bees, and the people on the street stop now to enjoy the beauty around them. And the girl’s BeeFF? He, of course, comes back to visit and play.

A Bee Aware! Author’s Note about the importance of bees, the kinds of flower and herb plants that attract bees, and how to create and help bees find places to nest follows the story.

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While following the story, which is played out with perfect pacing, humor, and sensitivity, readers can glimpse surprising, delightful, and funny details on every page that tell them more about the people who live in the little girl’s apartment house and the buildings nearby. Alison Jay cleverly uses these snippets of life to show the passage of time and the subplot of what is happening for the little boy who lives upstairs. The girl’s kindness and attention to the needs of the bee, whom she once feared, reminds readers of the benefits of education and opening your heart.

A superb story that encompasses awareness of nature, urban sprawl, the power of friendship, and the change one person can make on another and the world at large all wrapped in stunning art that invites multiple readings, Bee & Me is perfect for cuddly story times with little ones and impactful read alouds with older kids. The book is a must for home, classroom, and public library collections.

Ages 2 – 8

Old Barn Books, Candlewick, 2017 | ISBN 978-0763690106

You can learn more about Alison Jay and her books, and view a portfolio of her art on Children’sIllustrators.com

Don’t Step on a Bee Day Activity

CPB---Busy-Buzzy-Bee-Maze

Busy Buzzy Bee Maze

Can you help the little bee find her way through this printable Busy Buzzy Bee Maze? Here’s the Solution!

**You can find Bee & Me at these booksellers**

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

Picture Book Review

November 13 – World Kindness Day

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

Instituted in 1998 by the World Kindness Movement, a coalition of nations, World Kindness Day is an international celebration that encourages people around the world to be mindful of others through mutual respect, inclusion, empathy, and gratitude. To celebrate, people are asked to perform acts of kindness—big or small. Events include, the Big Hug, handing out Kindness Cards, and flash mobs showing and promoting kindness. The day spotlights good deeds—both individual and community—and focuses on “the positive power and the common thread of kindness which binds us.” It doesn’t take cost anything to celebrate today with a simple “hi,” a smile, or an offer of help or support to someone in need. Don’t limit your care and concern to just one day, either. Promoters of the holiday hope that kindness becomes infectious, inspiring good relationships every day of the year.

I Walk with Vanessa: A Story about a Simple Act of Kindness

By Kerascoët

With smiles on their faces a family carries boxes from the moving van into their new home. The next morning the teacher introduces brown-skinned Vanessa to her new class, and she takes a seat in one of the two empty desks—the one separated from a straight-haired girl in a yellow dress by the other empty desk. During the lesson, Vanessa keeps her head down shyly as other kids raise their hands and answer questions. At recess, Vanessa sits alone on the bleachers while her classmates dribble basketballs, shoot baskets, and talk and laugh together.

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When the bell rings the kids pour out of the building, forming pairs and groups to walk home or play. Vanessa starts her route home by herself. At the crosswalk, a blond boy wearing a scowl approaches Vanessa and stops to talk. But he doesn’t offer friendly chit-chat. He sneers and taunts and points at her accusingly. Then with a huff, he turns and goes back the way he came.

The girl in the yellow dress has stopped with her friends by a tree. Instead of watching the squirrel scampering up the trunk, though, she sees and overhears the altercation between the boy and Vanessa. She looks as Vanessa stands a bit shell-shocked and then hurries across the road with tears in her eyes. Vanessa’s classmate is shocked too by what she’s seen. She feels sad and even sadder as Vanessa runs away and into her new home.

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The girl returns to her friends and tells them what happened. They all react with surprise and sadness. All the way home, as her mom and dad cook dinner and her siblings watch TV, at bedtime and late into the night, the girl thinks about Vanessa. Vanessa has a sleepless night too.

In the morning, the girl gets dressed for school and heads to the table for breakfast. It’s while she’s drinking her orange juice that it hits her—what she can do. She grabs her lunch box and races out the door. She approaches a house and knocks on the door. Vanessa opens the door a crack and looks out. The little girl in her yellow dress talks to Vanessa and takes her hand. They walk down the sidewalk as other kids emerge from their own houses. A boy hails them and takes Vanessa’s other hand. Another boy joins the group and then a girl in pigtails. As more kids gather on the way to school, they come running to join Vanessa’s group.

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The boy from the day before looks on with surprise. Soon the small group has become a wave as kids from all classes join in, streaming around the boy and passing him by. His face reddens and he sulks as the wave, led by Vanessa and her new friend enter the school building. In class, Vanessa takes her seat while the straight-haired girl moves to the desk next to her.

Backmatter includes advice for children on what they can do to help someone who is being bullied and helpful vocabulary to use when sharing the book with children.

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Kerascoët’s perfectly constructed wordless picture book powerfully demonstrates the feeling of being overlooked and ignored, the emotional toll of being bullied, and how an act of bullying affects even those not directly involved. There is so much right about the details in this book from the empty desk between Vanessa and her soon-to-be friend on her first day of school to the suspense of what the girl in the yellow dress says to her friends after witnessing the bullying and their reaction to the facial expressions on all of the characters faces.

Kerascoët’s use of color sets the tone as the background illustrations of the classroom and neighborhood is washed in a pale blue, putting the spotlight on the diverse classmates in their colorful clothes. A compelling double-spread center image gives vent to Vanessa and her classmate’s feelings through a stormy night with roiling black clouds and a torrent of rain. The two girls are connected by their lighted widows—the only bright spots in the darkened neighborhood. Turn the page and that glow is shining into the window from the sunny day. The homes are now lemon colored, with Vanessa’s house a standout pink.

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As the little girl talks to Vanessa and holds her hand, you will feel tears spring to your eyes, and the gathering children with their smiles and waves will swell your heart. In the sense of motion caused by the children rushing to join Vanessa’s group, the bully is now the one overlooked, and as the small groups become a crowd all walking in the same direction, the bully—facing the other way and at the bottom of the page—is far outnumbered. As the wave of kids enter school, the bully appears in the bottom corner, red faced and frowning. The possibility the empty desk poses at the beginning of the story is fulfilled when the girl in the yellow dress moves there to sit next to Vanessa.

The wordless quality of this book allows for readers to volunteer what they think is happening and what is being said. It also allows for deep discussions of similar experiences and can lead into an expanded lesson on kindness, empathy, and how to handle bullying.

I Walk with Vanessa is a moving portrait of how a simple act of friendship multiplies and changes lives and is a must for home, classroom, school, and public libraries.

Ages 4 – 8

Schwartz & Wade, 2018 | ISBN 978-1524769550

To learn more about the husband and wife team Kerascoët and their work, visit their website.

National Kindness Day Activity

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Kindness Cards to Share

On World Kindness Day people are encouraged to give out Kindness Cards to friends, family, and especially those who look as if they need cheering up. Here are some printable cards for you to use!

Kindness Cards to Share

**You can find I Walk with Vanessa at these booksellers**

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

Picture Book Review

May 22 – National Maritime Day

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

In 1933 The United States Congress established National Maritime Day to honor the important contributions of the maritime industry. The date of May 22 was chosen to commemorate the 1819 voyage of the steamship Savannah from the United States to England, which marked the first successful crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by steam power. Special ceremonies and celebrations are held throughout the country to recognize the day and the people involved in our maritime industry. To learn more about the history and continuing service of America’s maritime industry, visit the Maritime Administration website.

Float

By Daniel Miyares

On a rainy day a little boy folds a paper sailboat and sets off outside to launch his boat. He’s sailing it over the waves of his picket fence, when the sky darkens and the rain pelts down fast and hard. The boy hides his boat in his yellow raincoat until the rain becomes a gentle drizzle. He finds a large puddle and floats his little boat across the surface. He jumps into the middle, splashing and flustering the birds.

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Next he sets his boat in the current rushing along the gutter, and the little paper boat zooms off with the boy running after it. Suddenly, the boat plunges through the grate into the darkness underneath the street. The boy reaches to catch it, but can’t quite capture it. He runs to the stone bridge and watches to see if the boat passes underneath. He moves to a hill and stares out to see his boat deposited from a drain pipe.

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The boat is soggy and unfolded. The boy retrieves it with a stick and trudges sadly home holding the wet newspaper in his hands. His dad opens the door and enfolds his son in a big hug. He helps him get dry, pours a cup of hot chocolate, and folds another page from the newspaper. Then he sends his little boy back outside to soar in the now sunny afternoon.

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Daniel Miyares’ exquisite wordless picture book takes readers on a moving journey through the emotions of life, including joy, exhilaration, disappointment, loss, love, and new beginnings. Rendered in gray tones with splashes of color, Miyares illustrations beautifully use various perspectives, the play of light and dark, motion, and readily recognizable facial expressions to tell his story. The mirrored images of the boy’s neighborhood in the puddle and the ready hug of his father reassure children that while life may not always be smooth sailing, home and love are never far away. The suspenseful chain of events will keep young readers riveted to the story until the surprising and uplifting ending.

Float is a gorgeous book for quiet story times at home and in the classroom and would be an inspirational book while teaching reading skills and creative writing.

Ages 4 – 8

Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2015 | ISBN 978-1481415248

Discover more about Daniel Miyares, his books, and his art on his website.

National Maritime Day Activity

Sunny Seas Steamer Ship Coloring Page

Celebrate all the ships at sea with this printable Sunny Seas Steamer Ship Coloring Page.

Picture Book Review

October 1 – International Coffee Day

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

Is there anything better than sitting down with a steaming cup of coffee for a little break during the day? Today’s holiday lets people all over the world do just that. Whether you like your coffee strong and hot, with lots of milk, or flavored with tastes of the season, there are versions of this delicious drink just for you. With an ancient and storied history, coffee is one food that unites us all. To celebrate why not grab a cup of joe for yourself, stir up a foamy hot chocolate for your kids, and sit down with a good book – like today’s brain teaser!

Undercover: One of These Things Is Almost Like the Others

By Bastien Contraire

Undercover agents complete successful missions by blending in with their surroundings and the people they encounter, but’s impossible for them to actually become the people they are investigating. In the same vein Undercover: One of These Things Is Almost Like the Others cleverly inserts a closely shaped item onto a two page spread that contains a family of objects (for instance a soccer ball among fruit).

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Image copyright Bastien Contraire, courtesy of phaidon.com

The pink, green, and brown stenciled illustrations boldly placed on a white background offer stimulating visuals while also making the task of discovering the interloper surprisingly tricky as out perceptions and even preconceived notions are tested. Many of the match-ups provide not only a challenge but sly humor as well, riffing on the shapes, purpose, relationship, and even history of the items on the page.

Picking out the imposter is only the beginning of the fun readers can have with Undercover. Each page can start a discussion of how the odd item is different and how it is similar to the others; the similar objects can be categorized into smaller sets; industrious kids may like to design their own pages giving the “almost” image some companions; and wordsmiths may want to invent stories involving the groupings and how they came to be.

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Image copyright Bastien Contraire, courtesy of phaidon.com

Fans of “I Spy” types of books and games will love testing their knowledge and observational skills against the pod of whales, city modes of transportation, insects and fish, sea-worthy craft, various types of food, office equipment, and a host of birds and animals in this 64-page wordless picture book. Perfect for classrooms and home bookshelves, Undercover: One of These Things is Almost Like the Others is sure to be asked for again and again on any day when fun, quiet entertainment is just what’s called for.

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Image copyright Bastien Contraire, courtesy of phaidon.com

Bastien Contraire’s stylized stencil-print illustrations of long-antennae beetles; flat and spiny fish; friendly dinos; ice cream treats; farm, forest and antlered animals; musical instruments; and more will delight kids and spur them to discover the names of each. The rounded edges, sleek lines, and delineated details of the images may even inspire budding artists to try their own hand at stenciling.

Ages 4 and up

Phaidon Press, 2016 | ISBN 978-0714872506

International Coffee Day Activity

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Mug Masterpiece

Somehow drinks taste better in a mug you’ve decorated yourself! With this easy craft you can design a mug for your hot chocolate, tea, juice, or any favorite drink!

Supplies

Ceramic mug, available at craft stores
Paint included with mug decorating kit
OR
Bakeable ceramic markers
Paint brush

Directions

Design and decorate your mug
Follow the directions on the mug kit to bake on the paint OR
Follow the directions of the ceramic markers to finish your mug

June 7 – It’s National Fishing and Boating Week

Posted by Kath Carroll

About the Holiday

National Fishing and Boating Week promotes the fun of getting out on the water and enjoying time in the sun. Whether you glide in a sailboat, zip around in a motorboat, or leisurely row a kayak, dingy, or other craft, the freedom of the open ocean or river is enticing. Fishing is also a wonderful way to spend time together outdoors. To celebrate this week go boating or learn a new skill, grab your fishing pole and cast your line, or do both together!

Fish

By Liam Francis Walsh

A boy with fishing poles and tackle box in hand and faithful dog at his heals pass a runner as they sprint toward a rowboat. The boy takes the oars and is soon off shore. The pair cast their lines overboard, and soon the little boy brings up an F. Another try snags an I. The boy happily aims his line in another direction, but his dog sees danger on the horizon—a rising C. He tries to warn the boy, but when they turn around again, the waters are calm.

This is one successful fishing trip as the boy’s line again grows taut. He pulls up his catch. A Q—not a keeper. He unhooks it and throws it back as his dog pokes at him in alarm. Again, when the boy looks, the water is peaceful. The two fish in contented silence until the boy catches a big one. The beast runs with the boy’s line, even pulling him out of the boat.

The boy holds his breath as he’s pulled into the depths amid swirling schools of H, B, M, O, and V. Not deterred from his quest, the boy swims toward an H, but it slips from his grasp. The boy tumbles and sinks, but eventually grabs the H and zooms to the surface. He cheers! They’ve caught an F, I, S, and H!

His dog points—something’s coming for them! Suddenly, they’re surrounded by a swarm of Bs and the sharp fins of As. The C swells, swamps the small dingy, and the F, I, S, H are lost in it’s wake. The boy stares dejectedly into the water, but his dog taps him on the back. He has a surprise to share. When the boy turns around, his dog reveals that he’s been a successful fisherman too!

With their quarry safely stowed, the boy rows back toward shore. He leaps out and darts through a group of disoriented road racers toward a sign that reads N I. No one it seems knows what to do. The boy offers his string of letters, and with the FINISH marker complete, the racers cross the line in victory!

With a well-barbed hook, Liam Francis Walsh reels in readers with his fabulous, funny fish story. Wordlessly, but with plenty of visual wordplay, Walsh tells the tale of a boy with a great idea and his eagle-eyed companion with emotion, action, and lots of heart. The bold blue, black, white, and red illustrations have an engaging quality—at once loaded with old-fashioned charm and modern sophistication. Fish is a wonderful addition to anyone’s bookshelf or coffee table. This is one catch you don’t want to let get away.

Ages 5 – 9

Roaring Brook Press, 2016 | ISBN 978-1626723337

National Fishing and Boating Week Activity

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-tackle-the-tackle-box-game-cards

Tackle the Tackle Box Game

A good fisherman always needs a well-stocked tackle box. Play the Tackle the Tackle Box Game to earn lures, bobbers, hooks and more to fill your box. The first player to complete their set is the winner! for more fun you can color the tackle box items any way you like. There are even three extra cards per set for you to draw your own tackle box items!

Supplies

Printable Tackle the Tackle Box Game Board Template
Printable Tackle the Tackle Box Game Cards
Colored Pencils, crayons or markers
1 playing die
Scissors

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-tackle-the-tackle-box-game

Directions

Print one Tackle the Tackle Box Game Board for every player
Print one set of Tackle the Tackle Box Game Cards for every player
Each player can color a set of playing cards
Cut the cards apart
Gather all the cards and set in separate piles
Roll the die to determine who goes first, highest roll goes first
The first player rolls the die, and adds the item that corresponds to the number on the die. The list is below.
Play continues with each player rolling the die and collecting cards
If the player rolls a number for a card that he or she already has, the die passes to the next player
The first player to fix their tackle box is the winner!

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Fish

By Liam Francis Walsh

National Fishing and Boating Week Activity

Tackle the Tackle Box Game

1: Fish Lures

2: Hooks

3: Worms

4: Fishing Line

5: Flies

6: Bobbers

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**You can find The Dog Walk at these booksellers**

**You can find Henry & Leo at these booksellers**

**You can find Bee & Me at these booksellers**

**You can find I Walk with Vanessa at these booksellers**