Charming and whimsical
346792
This is a very sweet book. I read this to my son when he was 4-6. We are neither dancers nor musicians and we both loved this book. Charming fairy tale that is not too sweet. I will def check out the authors other work.
3153100
This really is a lovely little book to enjoy with the children. The author is a very talented illustrator and the simple message this book gives to you is complemented really well by the quirky and funny pictures. I'd recommend anybody gives this book a chance, I certainly wasn't disappointed.
4411692
Wonderful whimsical illustrations!  Clever little ditties about what children (and adults) love!  I can't wait to give this to my friend's children for Christmas, but I will enjoy reading it a few more times first!  Nice work Mr. Briley!
3928909
Gerry Thomas has written a fast-paced, uplifting, charming story of magical make-believe.  The magical umbrellas are charming as they come to life,  play in the rain and run a race for the children. The colors are bright and enhance the story. Melissa and her umbrella have a fantastic day playing in the rain until the sun comes up and dries the rain. Ms. Thomas' surprise ending is exactly perfect for the story. I read it to my preschooler grandson and he absolutely loved it and wanted it read again. It has joined his bookshelf. Congratulations Ms. Thomas on a book well done. This is a hard-cover book that will be read many times.
4816691
This is a great, whimsical little tale with illustrations that are humorous and imaginative. Children will be enchanted by it.
1763354
Whimsical, charming and full of curiousity, the Crooked House is a delightful story of a little girl who senses she is different and is uncomfortable at the thought. The illustrations are a bit like Dr Suess books and I found myself wanting to peek ahead to see the next one!
I love the way Anne weaves the story in beautiful rhyme and tells the tale of sweet Kerrie. The author writes this story in such a way that the "crookedness" which Kerrie feels can be felt by everyone who hears it. We all have crooked places which pain our hearts- and "The Crooked House"  is written to allow all who open it's pages the possibility to make peace with and even celebrate the crooked places of life.
1297669
I love this book because I think the illustrations are wonderful.  Adults and children alike enjoy the charming pictures.  I find myself admiring the artwork as often, if not more, then I read the stories to the kids.  I find this book to be a cozy and charming treat that helps me relax just by looking at the adorable illustrations.  A must have for any Brambly Hedge fan because it offers great "one stop shopping" to get a Brambly Hedge fix!
2156202
What a delightful and entertaining fantasy that mixes whimsey with history.  Skilley, a street cat in Fleet Street decided to become resident mouser in the famous establishmment, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese.  Skilley has a secret.  He doesn't eat mice; he eats cheese.  Soon he and a mouse named Pip have a working relationship that makes the animals and the humans happy.  Unfortunately, another street cat, a nasty one at that, moves in and not only are the mice at risk but so is Skilley and the wounded Raven from the Tower whom the bad cat has injured.
A series of adventures and misadventures move the story to its final resolution.  A resolution that involves such famous people as Queen Victoria and Charles Dickens.  This is a charming tale that would be enjoyable for both young readers and older readers who still enjoy a good tale.
4735520
This is a charming, sweet, and clever fantasy of what happens to an hour when we set our clocks forward and skip an hour of time.  Maya's illustrations are wild and fun, and she nicely captures the spirit of despair and happiness in the adventures of our traveling hour of time.  Ms. Pearson and her young collaborator, Ms. Keegan, must have had some fun in creating this clever addition to a child's library.  The children in my life have had fun reading it.
4652495
"Sunshine Picklelime" is a terrific title for this charming novella, not just as the name of its brightly sweet heroine, but as the moral of her tartly-sweet story. It is charming in its characters and locale, a tightly knit community of neighbors of many nationalities, races, and religions (explained by a computer company that has opened across the mountain); it features many recognizable and reassuring features of classic children's literature--barns, tree houses, and beaches; but it confronts some serious challenges to blissful innocence, such as a parental discord, loss, and even death. Making it contemporary are several references to e-mail and laptops, plus the clever triumph over evil-doers by uploading a video to local media's web sites. But tech-y bits aside, the book is a how-to manual in psychic survival for preadolescents navigating today's world. Uplifting without being preachy, it provides lessons in making chocolate truffles, planting and composting an organic garden, drawing to large-scale using a grid, and, most important and centrally, how to deal with grief. It is a perfect read/gift for anyone--of whatever age--dealing with the loss of a pet or friend or parents' marriage.
4746191
This is a charming and unique book.  I'm not aware of children's books that use fly fishing to tell an animal story.  "The Flying Mouse" will be enjoyed by children as well as by the adults in their lives.  Charlotte Otten combines childhood fantasy with an adult's view of nature. The language is musical and the illustrations are magical.
4428072
Lovely art makes a simple whimsical story come alive. I appreciated the positive depiction of immigrants, especially the Sikh newsstand owner.
4273659
What a delightful and magical little book The Mouse in the Manor House is. Sam Garland's seemingly effortless flexibility with wordplay and his front of the classroom wit have produced a whimsical tale that will please both child and adult alike. In fact, this is a fantastic book choice for an adult to read to a child of any age. More than just a set of matched rhymes, Garland invests in each line leveraging artistry, innuendo and just plain good humor into his well crafted prose. The illustrations, provided by Dan Long are perfectly matched to the content and well placed. They show great detail and demonstrate the artist's talent without being overly possessive on the page so as not to distract from the reader's personal comprehension.
I will be looking forward to the next work Sam Garland releases.
578541
Philip C. Stead's charming story about a zookeeper and his animal companions is matched beautifully with the elegant pencil drawings and woodblock printings by his wife, Erin. E. Stead.  From the very start the reader is drawn in by a warm two-page spread that depicts Amos' bedroom.  The action that moves the viewer's eye towards the right- Amos stretching as his day begins and his armoire opened invitingly-  is complemented by a series of strong vertical lines. There are the wide yellow stripes of the wallpaper and the thin green stripes on his pajamas.  The effect is a sense of being enveloped, or better yet, being hugged.  It is a feeling appropriate in a story about mutual affection, genuine kindness, and true friendship.

Amos McGee is an older gentleman (in the truest sense of the term) who lives in a little house sandwiched between two high-rise apartment buildings (a nod to Virginia Lee Burton's The Little House, I presume).  Each morning after a bit of oatmeal and tea, Amos heads out in a fresh-pressed uniform to begin his workday at the City Zoo.  It is clear from the first glimpse that this zoo is atypical: outside the gate, sitting high in a branch of a tree on the sidewalk, sits a monkey as comfortable as can be; inside the gate we can see a giraffe frolicking on the wide lawn.  It doesn't appear that these animals reside in the usual enclosures.  Indeed, the animals seem to enjoy a life more akin to a fancy retirement community.  We discover that Amos spends his days playing chess with the elephant, running races with the tortoise, sitting quietly with the shy penguin, soothing the rhino's runny nose, and reading bedtime tales to the owl.  It only makes sense that when Amos comes down with a bad cold and cannot make it to work, his animal friends hop on the bus and take care of him in the same gentle, loving way.

Besides the artfully understated beauty of the story and the characters, A Sick Day for Amos McGee stands out from almost all other picture books I've seen this year for the absolute genius in its visual storytelling.  Erin E. Stead does not merely illustrate.  She breathes life into an already delightful story while adding many more layers of expression.
Stead's attention to the smallest details is what allows the reader/viewer to experience this book many times over and still discover surprises each time: from the miniature bus stop for the mouse to the tie-wearing bird; from the sweet absurdity of Amos' bunny slippers to the depiction of a penguin donning floaties.  Even Stead's use of woodblock printing to add texture and a bit of color is thoughtful and well-used.  It is apparent throughout the work that each pencil line, each color choice, each wrinkle in Amos' face or in the folds of the tortoises' knees, was deliberate and made with a careful eye and a loving hand.  Stead has achieved elegance with an organic heart.  There is nothing stuffy or too-precise about her lines.  Rather, her remarkable drawing skills clearly allow her to bring an incredible warmth and individual personality to each character.  The slightly retro feel of Amos' surroundings (his antique stove and pocket watch, the 1950's-esque bus, the lack of any modern technology) combined with the use of white space give the book a pleasant stillness and leisureliness.

Some books come into existence and it seems as if they have (or should have) always existed.  They possess something timeless and fundamental.  Perhaps they float in that creative ether, just waiting for the perfect author and artist to bring them to life.  A Sick Day for Amos McGee is just such a book.
569833
The adorably whimsical illustrations of "A Bit of a Do" are utterly charming.  The expressions on the faces of the kitchen's characters are very funny!  Check out the cover for an example.

Some of the language from the rhyme, however, left me scratching my head just a bit.  Cans are referred to as tins, potato chips as crisps, and the phrase "quieten things down" is included.  It seems the author is British.  Not that there's anything wrong with that, it just struck me as remarkable that we can speak the same language and have such different ways of communicating the basic ideas covered by this very short poem.  (The Tesco brand is English, and that line of the poem won't make any sense if you don't know that.) If you're American, and you're planning to read this book to your child, be prepared to explain the meanings. It will be good practice for them when they get to school.
2067453
This is a book that I found incredibly charming, and more than a bit funny. There are very few words of text, no dialogue or story description, so the illustrations really speak for themselves. A marvelous choice for dog lovers.

For starters, it really makes me laugh that one dog has another dog as a pet. What exactly are the differences between these two dogs where one walks upright, wearing clothing while the other is content to walk on a leash on all fours, like a ... well, dog? But that's how the book goes, so I will embrace the premise.

When Great Aunt Betty sends Archie a sewing machine, he turns an appraising eye at his pet and decides to stitch up a simple coat. On their walk later, Archie's handiwork catches the eye of another dog walker. This duo really makes me laugh because the woman-dog and the dog on her leash both look like pugs, but she's wearing an outfit and the small one is on a leash.

In any case, Archie makes an outfit for her dog, and the news of his abilities spread. Before long, Archie's phone is ringing off the hook with requests, until all the dogs in town and their owners are wearing his smart designs. A green plaid suit for his Pug friend, plaid kilts for the Scottish Terriers, and a ruffled flouncy pink dress for the Poodle. Archie produces clever, inventive outfits precisely designed for their personalities.

These illustrations are so perfect. She does a brilliant job of making the upright dogs look so evolved. The way Archie casually answers the telephone with one paw tucked into into his dark gray trousers; how he slumps down in his easy chair for a nap after a long day, with one arm trailing down to the floor.

I just realized all the dog pairs are the same breed, except for Archie and his dog. Does that mean the upright dogs are the parents and the leashed dogs are the children? But that doesn't explain why Archie and his dog don't match. Maybe I'm reading too much into that.
568807
A whimsical tale of friendship with vibrant characters that will appeal to both children and adults. The illustrations are stunning, and perfectly capture the journey of the protagonists. Looking forward to the next book in the series!