Submitted by county youth coordinator Janis!
What Can You Do with a Rebozo? ¿Que Puedes hacer con un Rebozo? by Carmen Tafolla. What can you use to dress up, play hide and seek, carry a baby, and dance? In this playful celebration of a vibrant culture, a young Mexican American girl explains all the things she can do with a rebozo, a traditional Mexican shawl. The lively rhyme and illustrations celebrate a warm cultural icon that, with a little imagination, can be used in many different ways. With imagination you can do almost anything with the rebozo! This bilingual book is a real gem!
Rhyming
Banjo Granny
Submitted by Chad from Charlotte Hall!
Banjo Granny by Sarah Martin Busse and Jacqueline Briggs Martin, illustrated by Barry Root. This book is dedicated to “grannies everywhere…and to grandbabies everywhere.” It is a sort of tall tale. Granny, our banjo pickin’ hero, encounters a number of obstacles on her way to visit her grandson, Owen (who loves bluegrass music). These obstacles are in the form of natural barriers, such as a river, a desert, and a mountain. Granny overcomes them with the aid of her banjo and, of course, her love for her grandson. The river, desert, and mountain are personified as Granny invites them to listen to the song of her grandson “who goes wiggly, jiggly, all-around giggly, and tip over tumble for bluegrass music.” We catch glimpses of Owen when visiting birds inform him of the progress of his granny. When Granny and Owen are united in person, they sing “wop-a-doosy, lap-a-daisy doo!” The book includes lyrics and music to “Owen’s Song,” in the bluegrass style.
Falling for Rapunzel
Submitted by Sue C. from Leonardtown!
Falling For Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox and illustrated by Lydia Monks. When a Prince spies Rapunzel high in a tower he thinks he can rescue this girl of his dreams the traditional way. But Rapunzel isn’t traditional, and she mishears him, and throws down everything but what the prince asks for, until the end. Rapunzel finally does throw down something that makes the prince happy. “I’m glad I finally heard him right!” thinks Rapunzel at the surprise ending to this funny tale of happily ever after.
The Gruffalo
Submitted by Jill from Leonardtown!
The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson. When Mouse goes walking in the Deep Dark Woods, he runs into Fox, Owl, and Snake… and they all want to eat him! Clever Mouse scares them off by warning them about the terrible Grufflalo, a monster who has “terrible tusks, and terrible claws, and terrible teeth in his terrible jaws.” When they hear that a Gruffalo’s favorite foods are “roasted fox,” “owl ice cream,” and “scrambled snake,” the predators scamper away. Mouse laughs at their foolishness: “Silly old snake! Doesn’t he know? There’s no such thing as a Gruffalo!”…Or is there? How will Mouse save himself when a Gruffalo really does appear, complete with purple spikes, a warty nose , and an appetite for mouse on bread?
Blueberry Girl
Although Mother’s Day has passed, and Father’s Day is still a fair ways away, I couldn’t resist blogging about Blueberry Girl, the newest book by the fabulous Neil Gaiman, beautifully illustrated by Charles Vess, which is ideal to share with a special daughter. It’s a poem Gaiman wrote for his friend musician Tori Amos, when she was pregnant with her daughter. It’s a prayer to the powers that be to bless a baby girl as she grows in the world. To save her from nightmares at three, bad husbands at thirty, from dull days at forty, false friends at fifteen. “Her joys must be high as her sorrows are deep,” Gaiman writes — a lovely sentiment for every “blueberry girl.”
Hug Time
Hug Time is an adorable story by Patrick McDonnell, creator of the “Mutts” comic strip series. Jules is a kitten who is so filled with love, he wants to give the whole world a hug, so he makes a Hug To-Do List and sets off. He hugs his friends, and all the birds in the park. He gets on a boat to find a whale to hug. He travels to Africa to hug an elephant. He explores the rain forest and discovers a new species (which he promptly hugs). He hugs a tiger, a panda, even a wombat (hooray)! He even goes to the north pole to hug a polar bear. While we may not be able to hug the world, we can start spreading the love by hugging those closest to us.