Room on the Broom review

 

The witch and her cat are happily flying through the sky on a broomstick when the wind picks up and blows away the witch's hat, then her bow, and then her wand! Luckily, three helpful animals find the missing items, and all they want in return is a ride on the broom. But is there room on the broom for so many friends? And when disaster strikes, will they be able to save the witch from a hungry dragon?(goodreads summary)


Halloween is right around the corner and this amusing story caught my eye the other day. A friendly witch rides her broomstick cheerfully around the forest with her cat. Along the way, she looses several items and one-by-one are found and returned by several new animal friends. Each one asks if they can have a ride on her broom. Their adventure takes a turn as the broomstick snaps and the witch is confronted by a hungry dragon after tumbling to the ground. The rhyming text flows nicely making for an easy read-aloud.  The illustrations are colorful and with so many characters, each one could be read in different voices adding to the entertaining storyline.  It also depicts kindness and friendship with friends helping other friends in need. I think this is a "just right book" for ages 3 - 7.~

Title: Room on the Broom
Author: Julia Donaldson, illustrated by Axel Scheffler
Genre: picture book
Pub. Date: 2001, Puffin Books
Hardcover, 32 pgs.

Bear Can't Sleep review

It's winter, and all the animals in the forest are getting ready for the cold weather.  Fox is gathering wood for fires, and Owl  & Squirrel are making jam. But Bear is having trouble falling asleep. He howls & growls & scares the other animals. Patch the Hare isn't scared; he thinks Bear might be hungry & decides to offer him some food. But then Patch learns what the real problem is & he comes up with a clever way to help Bear get some much-needed rest!


The forest animals are hard at work preparing themselves for winter's arrival. They suddenly hear a very tired, grumpy old Bear who is having trouble falling asleep. With his howls and growls, he lets them know he wants to be left alone. All the animals are scared of him except Patch the Rabbit! He thinks Bear is just hungry and bravely takes him some food. When Patch realizes it is not hunger that is keeping him awake, the good friend in him helps save the day by giving him something special that will help him settle in for a long winter nap.

The sweetest character in this story was Patch, who not only shows his bravery but also expresses a genuine concern for Bears well-being. While the other animals were scared of him, Patch was determined there was something he could do to help. When he discovers the main reason Bear cannot fall asleep, Patch's heartfelt gift turned a grumpy bear into a teddy bear.  The story will also teach kids about being kind and thoughtful to others when his persistence pays off in the end.  The large pictures are bold with eye pleasing fall colors making this another cute story to add to the autumn reading collection. I think this is a "just right book" for ages 3-7.~ 

Title: Bear Can't Sleep!
Author: Marni McGee, illustrated by Sean Julian
Pub. date:  September 2015, Tiger Tales
Genre: picture book, fall season
Hardcover, 24 pgs.

Fall is Not Easy review

Fall is a tough time of year for a lot of us. Kids have to go back to school, teachers and football players have to go back to work, and parents have to look for new places to hide holiday presents. But perhaps fall is hardest of all on trees. After all, they have to change their entire appearance every year! (goodreads summary)




One tree is having a difficult time adjusting to the changes that fall can bring. Winter, Spring and Summer are easy but when Fall arrives something is just not right! He tries hard to make his leaves turn brilliant and bright but strange things keep happening instead. No matter how hard he tries, his colors are not what they are suppose to be.

This was a fun rhyming story that offers a wonderful introduction and discussion about the change of seasons for young children. There will be plenty of silly laughter when kids see the leaves are turning crazy colors and shapes.  For example, a tree with polka dots or stripes?  The text is short, simple and easy for a quick read-aloud. Giving kids a blank tree worksheet afterwards would allow them the opportunity to express their own individual creativity with colors and shapes, instead of the usual fall colored trees they tend to make now.  It is definitely a good choice for those fall-themed and seasonal change centers or crafting story hour. It is a cute story with surprise pages and I think this is a "just right book" for ages 4-6.~

Title:  Fall is Not Easy
Author:  Marty Kelley
Pub. date: September 1998, Zino Press
Genre: picture book
Hardcover, 30 pgs.

My Leaf Book review

When the seasons change, a young girl visits the arboretum to collect fallen leaves and make a book with them. (goodreads summary)






Here is one more fun book for the Autumn season before that last final leaf falls to the ground.  A cheerful little girl goes exploring at an Arboretum and finds many leaves of colors, shapes and sizes to place in her leaf book. She uses a tree guide as a reference to match them up before gluing and describing each one on her page. 

Young readers will enjoy learning about the many different types of trees and leaves after reading this charming and informative book.  Kids are familiar with the usual oak and maple leaf but what I liked was that it mentioned other different types of tree leaves such as the ginkgo, sweet gum and sassafras. If these are not in your specific area, here is an opportunity for learning where these trees are located.  The short and simple text is a quick and easy read aloud for little ones. The pages also stand out with bright and bold Autumn colors. Side notes on the opposite pages give added facts about leaves as well.  This is the perfect book for fall story time and a great companion before a nature walk, picking up leaves along the way and doing many fun projects afterwards. You don't just have to be limited to a leaf book. The back of the book suggests leaf crayon rubbings and prints. When my kids were little, we would make colorful wreaths by gluing leaves and acorns on paper plates.   They sure grew up fast on me!  I think this is a "just right book" for ages 3-6.~

Title:  My Leaf Book
Author: Monica Wellington
Pub. Date: September 2015, Dial Books
Genre: picture book
Hardcover, 32 pgs.