Board Books: Outside Books

An order of board books arrived at my library - here are some cute ones about the outdoors and animals

Spend the day at the beach having fun - lots of vocabulary here.

Learn about animals with fun slides and tabs

What's in the garden? Learn with these vocabulary words.

An introduction to camping in this charming board book. I love the illustrations here. More vocabulary words here along with tips and tricks. 

Cute animals friends with cutouts. These illustrations are adorable. And there's a mirror at the end of the book

Animals need medicine - this chunky board book shares how vets help animals. Again, the vocabulary is great. There is a mix of photographs and illustrations.

An alphabet all about the Earth - gorgeous illustrations. This book is a great conversation starter.

Review: Butt or Face

 

Using a cheeky guessing game format, Butt or Face? is a hilarious nonfiction picture book that teaches fascinating facts about animals! Are YOU ready to play?

Move over, Jeopardy, Family Feud, and The Price Is Right—this book will be your new favorite laugh-until-your-stomach-hurts family game! In Butt or Face, weird animals are introduced with a close-up photo. Kids must guess: are they seeing seeing...um...err... the bottom or the top? (summary from the publisher)

My Thoughts: This book is super entertaining and of course it's meant to be shared. Of course there's lots of laughter while you're guessing and then afterwards, you can read the factual information about the animal. The photos are great, forcing you to make so very hard choices. This would be fun sharing during a school visit - but expect lots of laughter.

Highly recommended - this book is MUST have for your school and public libraries. 

* book sent for review

Teen Summer Reading Program (4): We Are Stronger Together

Here is the final week of the summer reading program posts.

I talked about craft ideas for the week 1 and week 2. I talked about food programs for week 3.

And this week I'm talking about book ideas.

It's harder to buy books for this theme for teens. There are a lot more books for kids around kindness, community, and friendship...

There are a lot of older YA titles about friendship but I'm looking for new titles to add to the collection. 

Animals:

What else could you add to this list?

Interview with Katherine Battersby

 Today, I'm excited to be chatting with Katherine Battersby, the author and illustrator of Cranky Chicken!

About Katherine:

Katherine is a fan girl of comics, ice cream, tea and travel. In her spare time she is the president of the Cranky Club and can be found grumbling about bananas, loud music and exclamation marks. She is also the critically acclaimed author and illustrator of eleven picture books and one chapter book, including Cranky Chicken, Trouble and the popular Squish Rabbit series, which have been published around the world. Her books have been reviewed in The New York Times, have received starred Kirkus reviews and have been shortlisted for numerous awards. She is regularly booked to speak in schools, libraries and at festivals and she is a passionate advocate for literacy and the arts.

About the Cranky Chicken:

Cranky Chicken is, well, cranky. With one cranky eyebrow, cranky eyes, and even cranky, scratchy feet. But then one day, Cranky meets a very friendly worm named Speedy who wants nothing more than to be friends. Young readers will love seeing the mismatched friendship grow over the course of three charming and laugh-out-loud short adventures as Chicken and Speedy become BFFs (Best Feathered Friends) and Speedy shows Chicken how to look on the bright side. 

My Thoughts:

I loved Cranky Chicken. Because...he's cranky. But he's also trying. Sort of. He meets a new friend who doesn't give up on him. This book is all about friendship, emotions, and being yourself.  I loved the bookish humor. It's funny and sweet and so much fun. I would love more from this BFF duo!

The interview:

I really enjoyed getting to know more about Cranky Chicken and Katherine. Hope you do too!

What was your inspiration for CRANKY CHICKEN?

 

So … I’m actually scared of chickens. Embarrassing, maybe, but I know something others don’t - ALL chickens are cranky chickens. I was chased by a lot of chickens in my youth. But then, one day during one of my author talks I met this tiny girl who was the biggest fan of chickens. She told me, “They’re not scary - they’re hilarious!” I couldn’t stop thinking about her, so I decided to spend some more time drawing chickens. CRANKY CHICKEN is what emerged. It turns out we were both right - chickens are cranky AND hilarious.

The story itself is inspired by the ridiculous antics my best friend and I used to get up to as kids. She was an extrovert who was an only child, so she was always turning up on my doorstep just like Worm – full of excitement and ready to play. I, on the other hand, was an introvert who was part of a big blended family. I never had any time to myself, so I could be a bit of a cranky chicken. Even now, we often laugh at how different and yet similar we are. Chicken and Worm are a lot like that, too.

 

 

What makes you cranky and what makes you happy?

 

Cranky Chicken and I have a lot in common, so we share a lot of our cranks and joys. I seem to have a very sensitive nose and tastebuds, so a lot of things that make me cranky are food related. Bananas and papaya and tinned fish and pickled things all make me cranky. Also road rage, windy days, sand in my shoes, people not waiting their turn, mansplaining, loud music, too bright lights and ill-fitting underwear. I am a very specific person, so apparently I like things just so. But there is so much that brings me joy. Sunshiny days, the sound of my daughter’s voice, everything perfectly lined up on my desk, dog smiles, an organized pantry, a favorite song on the radio, the smell of my childhood home, a perfectly timed joke and getting into my made bed at the end of the day.

 

 

What's your favorite song to sing?

 

I LOVE to sing. Not publicly, not even in Karaoke, but at home (or in the car). Music calls to me in the same way that books do. Which is a way of saying I have a lot of beloved songs - songs that came into my life at the perfect time and intertwined with my heart in some way. But if I’m to name just one I think it would have to be Fake Plastic Trees by Radiohead. I love crooning songs that are nostalgic and emotive and even a little melancholy. My daughter is three and she always requests I sing certain songs. Current favorites on her rotation are Rocket Man by Elton John and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds by the Beatles (only I replace Lucy’s name with hers!). Singing brings me so much joy.

 

 

What scares you?

 

So I’ve already confessed my fear of chickens. But I do have another fear which also inspired another book of mine (I’m starting to sense a theme, here…). I grew up in Australia but moved to Canada about eight years ago and it’s only once I was here that I discovered I’m terrified of bears. Bears are not really something I’d given much thought to, living in Australia. But my Canadian partner loves to hike, so bears were suddenly something I had to seriously consider. That said, we live in the city, so you’d think bears wouldn’t have to be on my radar too much. But as soon as Canadians hear I’m scared bears they love to tell me stories of all the times a bear has wandered into their city. Then one day I woke to the news that a bear had been discovered up a tree just blocks from where I live, in the heart of downtown Ottawa. I started to feel like I could just open my front door and run into a bear. This inspired my picture book, Trouble, where a suburban squirrel is scandalized when a bear moves into the house next door. Writing a picture book about a ridiculous version of your fears is a good way to laugh at yourself.

 

 

What's your favorite friendship activity?

 

What a lovely question! I believe it’s still the exact same thing I used to love to do with friends when I was a kid, which is to read the same book together. My school girlfriends and I used to all get the same novel and then read it page by page together, so we could discuss it as we went. There is nothing quite like being inside the heart of a character and their emotions and getting to talk all about it with your favorite people. I don’t get to do it quite like that anymore, but I love handing a novel or picture book that I’ve loved to a friend so I can discuss it with them.

 Thanks for chatting Katherine!

Board Books (15) Nature

We just bought a bunch of new board books for our library.

I've been talking about a few favorites. Today I'm talking about nature and animals

A funny story with lots of different animals showcased. I loved the sloth moments. Lots of movement and family moments.

So much to explore in this book. And lots of great information with great photographs. This one is perfect for next year's summer reading ocean theme!

These lift the flaps make it tough for a library book but this book is great. Lots of wildlife in different seasons to explore plus nighttime. 

Lots of information and vocabulary words in this alphabet book. I love the bright colors too. A great series of books!

Board Books: (14) Farms

We just bought a bunch of new board books for our library.

I'll be talking about a few favorites over the next couple weeks

Today I'm talking about farm and fall books:

Farm:

Lots of zooming around the area for this little orange truck. This is a thicker lift the flap book but also small in dimensions. So many animals to see in this charming book. 

This is a super cute book but maybe not the best for libraries with felt pieces and lift the flaps. I love how much there is to see and the bright colors. This would make a great gift.

This is a large touch and feel board book that talks about animals found on the farm. 

A very sweet story.

Another larger board book - with big lift the flaps. 

Lots of farm and animal knowledge in this one. 

Thicker flaps on this Disney book about saying good night to animals on the farm. Another sweet animal story.

Textures and lots of vocabulary this is touch and feel farm book. The questions are great and can spark up lots of conversation.

Lots of pictures - this one talks about farm chores. And it goes through the seasons. Love the illustrations and the flaps here.

Fall:

A great start to learning about apple (even I learned things.) 

Love the bright illustrations and the facts. 

A short but sweet celebration of fall and fall activities. This is a touch and feel book with various textures. Love the illustrations in this one. 

Christmas in July: Christmas Animal Books (2)

 

It's Christmas in July here at YA Book Nerd.

Because of the pandemic, last year's Christmas book order at the library took longer to come in.  So I didn't get the chance to take them home and read them first like usual. And thus didn't get my picture book Christmas fix. But now I've gotten a chance to read them and wanted to share some of my favorites. Stay tuned all month long for new to me picture books.

 

When a family leaves their home for the holidays, a frog jumps at the chance to make it his home. But he's not alone. Other animals arrive looking for a cozy place to stay.

This is a funny and charming story with playful animals and a smart little girl. I loved that this book started with a photograph and a what if...

Milo and his family attend the Christmas parade every year - mostly for the food. But not Milo. He loves the parade and the floats and everything Christmas. He's determined to be in the parade next year and works super hard to make it happen.

A funny story about opossums, teamwork, and a big dream.

Mistletoe loves Christmas and wants to share her joy with her best friend. Unfortunately Norwell doesn't like the cold. He likes to be in front of the fire. But Mistletoe has an idea...

A cute story about friendship, giving, and being together. 

Board Books (10): Animal Books

 We just bought a bunch of new board books for our library.

I'll be talking about a few favorites over the next couple months

This week, it's all about animal books - which are perfect for this year's summer reading theme of Tails and Tales

I'm a sucker for Momo books and this one is super cute. Lots of bright colors and things to find in these photographs.

A great introduction to many different pets and a little bit on how to take care of them. I love this series for their bright colors, their information, their sidebar questions, and their inclusivity. 

* there's one on Rainforest Animals too, which is also wonderful. 

Doggies can be noisy, especially when there are 10 of them! A loud but cute counting book.

A Pete the Cat version of  Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - cute and perfect for just before bedtime.

Lots of information in this very attractive book - might not be best for public libraries with the lift-the-flaps. Great for gifting/personal libraries.

I love this book - lots of great photographs and not very wordy. I wish it was a little big bigger in size. 

* If you like this one, there are lots of other Busy animal books. 

Animal babies and their mothers. I love the photographs and the names of the baby animal and the adult animal. Lots of sweet moments here...