Día de los Muertos (Book Review)

Día de los Muertos is an educational board book that teaches young readers about “The Day of the Dead” – a festival celebrated in some parts of Mexico that honors loved ones who have passed.

Written by Hannah Eliot and illustrated by Golden Globe-nominated Mexican artist Jorge Gutierrez, this book is visually engaging and chock-full of insight into the occasion. Although the bulk of the story is told in English, bilingual lessons are scattered throughout (primarily as captions to select illustrations, though Spanish words are occasionally defined in the text). As the mother to a child being raised speaking both English and Spanish, I was happy to see those Spanish “Easter eggs."

My only caveat: since this is a board book, I expected it to be for a very young audience. But in fact, there is a decent amount of copy (to be fair, I can’t imagine cutting it down further without losing essential narrative), which is why I recommend Día de los Muertos for ages 4-8 (though it could work as an educational tool for older kids, too). My 2-year-old had no problems sitting still for this, but I'm not sure how much she retained. We’ll revisit it as she gets older; it’s worth the wait (and the board book format gives it a longer shelf life, notwithstanding toddler chewing and book-throwing tantrums).

Día de los Muertos is the second board book in the “Celebrate the World” series, which features special occasions and holidays across the globe (the first book in the series covered Ramadan). Whether you’re teaching kids about their own culture or exposing them to worlds beyond their front door, this series is shaping up to be a fine addition to classrooms (and home libraries) for teachers and parents alike.

BUYING TIP: Halloween (and with it: Día de los Muertos) will be here before we know it. Whether you’re creating a goodie basket for a young reader or looking for door prizes for your Halloween party, consider adding Día de los Muertos to the fun.

Wee Beasties are My Toddler’s New Besties (Book Review)

I'm convinced the sign of a good book, for a toddler, is anything they grab off of the shelf and "read" to themselves (as seen here).

Let’s be honest: many “board books” are really just “bored books.” They often teach valuable lessons, but they don’t always do so in a way that engages the child and the parent. The new “Wee Beasties” books from Ame Dyckman (writer) and Alex G. Griffiths (illustrator) are a wonderful (and welcome) exception.

There are two books in the series thus far: “Roary the Lion Roars Too Loud” and “Huggy the Python Hugs Too Hard.” Each book is as delightful as the previous, with both exploring concepts in social etiquette. In “Roary,” a baby lion learns how to control the volume of his voice, whereas “Huggy the Python” learns how to hug just right. Both involve audience interaction and challenge the child reader to help the protagonist in their quest.

These books are charmingly illustrated, and my daughter laughs right along with us at the funny bits (there are a few). Highly recommended for 2-5 year olds, particularly those who need a little help understanding concepts like using their inside voice (Roary) or gentle touches (Huggy). I'm hoping we'll see more from this series in the months ahead.

Baby's First Mystery: The Case of the Pinched Stradivarius (Book Review)

Bedtime is a sacred time in our household, as I suppose it likely is for many families with toddlers.

It’s that wonderful window of shrieks and snuggles, offset by the occasional battle to put on PJs and brush two ever-expanding rows of teeth.  

And what follows is little short of bliss: a window of quiet as you remind yourself that you have an existence beyond parenthood.

But let’s back up a minute. Bedtime.

There are a few constants in our end-of-day routine: bath, beverage and books.

We typically leave book selection up to our daughter, who has surprised us by frequently foregoing age-appropriate board books for the Little Golden Book Library edition of Star Wars (which skews older).

So when I had the opportunity to check out another book written for slightly older kids, "The Case of the Pinched Stradivarius,” I jumped at the chance.

Ready, set, read!

Written by Elaine Loeser and illustrated by Greg Arvanitakis, “The Case of the Pinched Stradivarius” is geared toward kids ages 3-8: well beyond the range for our not-quite-two-year-old. It’s the story of two pet turtles who witness a crime and try their darndest to make sure the bad guy is caught. Only problem is: they’re turtles, and their owner doesn’t seem to hear a single thing they say to her. Even the household dogs – who seem to understand slightly better – aren’t much help.

It’s a fun idea with a cast of characters that’s a little longer than what we're used to seeing in toddler lit. In fact, when we looked at the character list, my husband and I both got a tad nervous. Our daughter can’t read yet (underachiever, I know), so the responsibility of doing all of the voices fell squarely on our shoulders. And unlike the children’s books we’re used to, this one takes a fairly unique approach to storytelling: each page includes dialog that reads a little like a script. In fact, the format is somewhere in-between "storyboard for a television show" and "comic book." Each character’s lines appear next to their face, with the dialog going back and forth. There’s minimal narrative/stage direction, with the illustrations telling that part of the story (fitting when you consider the author used to write for Law & Order).

No, I'm not holding her down. This is an actual toddler staying still entirely on her own.

If there are other kids’ books out there that follow this format, we haven’t seen them. We’re a family of actors, writers and comic book readers, so we were open to the approach. That said, it was a bit tricky doing the same voice for each character whenever it was their turn to “speak.” Perhaps the fault is on us for not divvying up characters and establishing voices before we got started. Or perhaps we shouldn’t have bothered with voices at all. Point is, that was our one hesitation with the book: reading it out loud with just two people can be tricky. Fun. But tricky.

Our daughter didn’t seem to mind our inconsistent voices; she stayed engaged with the story and enjoyed the illustrations. With some “longer” stories – the aforementioned Star Wars books notwithstanding – she loses focus and wanders off. But with “The Case of the Pinched Stradivarius,” she stayed on my lap for all 40 pages (anyone who has ever parented a toddler knows what an amazing feat that is). Since our initial read-through, she has grabbed the book a couple times and paged through it, talking to the pictures and repeating the words she remembers.

All in all, a success even for a pre-reader. But this format works especially well for kids who are learning to read and so can either play the part of a character or two – or read quietly to themselves.

Missing woman emerges after she finishes reading Ransom Riggs’ “Library of Souls”

Books are things people should read but often don't

BUFFALO GROVE, Ill—When resident Nicole Smithers failed to report for work this past Thursday, her boss took notice.

“She’s always on time,” said Marshall Winston. “So when she didn’t show up, we got worried.”

Numerous attempts to reach Nicole failed, and her social media accounts went dark.

“Normally she posts on Facebook a few times a day,” said friend and coworker Andrea Stephenson. “But her last post was on Wednesday, and it was really esoteric. She was babbling on about ‘hollowgasts’ and ‘wights,’ which in itself was alarming. We were pretty concerned.”

Area police waited the requisite 24 hours before attempting to locate Smithers at her residence.

“We could hear someone mumbling inside but no one answered the door, so we were about to break in when the door was opened ever so slightly,” said Sgt. Michael Murphy. “We could see Ms. Smithers on the other side, her hair disheveled and looking in a pretty worried state. She insisted we remove our sunglasses so she could make sure our eyes had pupils, and open our mouths so she could count our tongues.”

Once Smithers determined the officers posed no danger, she allowed them into her apartment, but was clearly agitated.

“She was holding a book at her side, her thumb marking her place as she paced the room. She said she ‘needed some alone time’ and she ‘just needs to know what happens next,’" said Sgt. Murphy. Smithers admitted she hadn’t eaten since she first bought the book this past Wednesday, and said she might have “minor bladder damage” due to “holding it in” until she got to a place where she could break for a minute, and walk to the bathroom with the book in tow.

Officers determined the book to be Ransom Riggs’ “Library of Souls,” the third and presumably—but not definitively—final installment of his young adult series, “Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children.” The book released Sept. 22, and it follows the exploits of Jacob Portman, a Florida teen who discovers he has the peculiar ability to see, communicate with and control creatures that prey on children with other peculiar abilities. Torn between the life he knows and the world that needs him, Jacob endeavors to save peculiardom.

“She said as ‘normals,’ we’d never understand, but she asked us to tell her boss that, ‘bird willing,’ she’d be at work on Monday,” said Sgt. Murphy.

When approached for comment, Smithers waited until she finished the book on Saturday to return our call, at which point she gave the book “11-teen hundred stars.” “That might sound hyperbolic,” she continued, “But it’s just that good.”

“At first I thought there were a few problems—things I initially dismissed as typos—but now I’m pretty sure they’re secret messages,” she continued. “On page 355, for example, the word ‘soul’ is spelled ‘suul’—TWICE. That’s one too many times to be a typo.”

“What does it mean?” asked Smithers. “Did I miss a reference to ‘suul’ elsewhere in the book? Is it similar to but different from ‘soul’? I just don’t know.”

Smithers determined the only way to get to the bottom of this mystery is to read the book again and look for more signs. If there’s still no resolution, she’s going to email Emma—a character in the book whose gmail address is included in the concluding pages—in hopes of putting the issue to bed once and for all. From there, Smithers plans to write some fan fiction, tentatively titled, “I Ain’t No Hollowgast Girl.”

She’s also looking forward to the Tim Burton-directed film debut of the first book, due in theaters Mar. 2016.

“Mostly I just want to know whether or not I’ve been pronouncing ‘ymbryne’ correctly. I mean, Riggs includes a phonetic breakdown at the end of this book, but I won’t really know until the movie comes out,” said Smithers.

When reminded that the Hollywood adaptations of Harry Potter apparently mispronounce “Voldemort,” as author J.K. Rowling revealed earlier this fall, Smithers insisted that Riggs “would never allow that.”

In regards to the scare her two-day disappearance caused family and friends, Smithers shrugged it off as “normals doing what normals do.”

“I don’t see what the big deal is,” Smithers continued. “Hasn’t anyone ever gotten lost in a good book before?”