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Title: Gilberto and the Wind Author & Illustrator: Mary Hall Ets Publisher: Puffin Books Age group: Preschool or 4-8 yrs Little Gilberto runs outside with a balloon hearing the wind call him you-ou-ou . But Wind snatches his balloon away and leaves it on top of a tree. Just like he takes away the clothes from the line or the umbrellas in the rain. Or sometimes Wind is so moody that he wouldn’t even help his kite go up high! But then we also read of all the good times, of how Gilberto and Wind play together with paper sailboats, bubbles and pinwheels. The book ends with a picture of Gilberto flat, with face to ground saying, Oh Wind! Where are you? Sh-sh-sh-sh , answers the Wind, and he stirs one dry leaf to show where he is. A small boy, a list of fun things, and the friendly breeze thrown in – what more to lift the spirits in a child? Sketches using just three colors, the illustrations more than “capture” the invisible friend for us. Personifying wind with all its tempe...

Title: A Tree is nice Author: Janice May Udry Illustration: Marc Simont Publisher: Scholastic Age Group: 4-8 Picture : Wikipedia A Tree is nice seems rather too plain for a title for children. Nothing fancy or funny. But its this quality that's held in all earnestness up until the end that also makes the book enjoyable, without laboring to interpret or analyze. The book is a Caldecott winner and this calls for dissecting the illustration. Color and black-and-whites alternate; ink drawings draped in gray, follow and precede beautiful watercolors. Especially the watercolors, they glorify the foliage in varying seasons with splurges of warm greens, sometimes with flaming reds and bright yellows in their midst. The book is 11x7 inches in size. This allows for generous detailing of the trunks and twisted branches in varying dimensions, in browns that remind us of barks of dark chocolate. Something about the book gives us that warmth - the thick dirty white paper with rawness resem...

Title: Earth Mother Author: Ellen Jackson Illustrator: Leo & Diane Dillon Publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers Age Group: 4-8 Picture: Mother Earth is Bhoodevi , bejeweled and fertile, in Hindu mythology. She is a young African woman in this book. Both epitomize Earth, like a mother - gentle, beautiful, giving. Earth Mother wakes up and walks across deserts and mesas, touching the lives of bugs, flowers and birds. Soon she meets Man. Man is preparing to catch a frog for breakfast. He thanks Mother for Frog. But he goes on to complain about the Mosquito that annoys him. Nonchalantly, Earth Mother moves on to savannas and plains, tending and caring for her creations on the way. She filled the water holes and sharpened the thornbushes. Her hand guided a sunbird to a blossom sweet with nectar. In the north, Earth Mother powdered the trees with snow. Tiny crystals gleamed in the air like diamond dust. The depth and beauty with which the writing evokes calmness and vigor, that ...

Title: Girl Wonder: A Baseball Story in Nine Innings Author: Deborah Hopkinson I llustrator: Terry Widener Age Group: 4-8 Publisher: Atheneum/Anne Schwartz Books Pictures : Amazon (front and back cover images) When the Independent's crusty old coach took one look at her long, blue skirt, he spit hard on the ground. "Go home missy. You're a girl - and this is baseball". Athletes and sports figures, and their stories are always inspiring. They are invariably people of determination and hard work. But if they are also people who have fought for change, then to say that their stories are empowering almost becomes an understatement. And I am caught up in such a predicament to describe this book. Alta Weiss was the first female pitcher in an all-men semipro baseball team in 1907 in Ohio. This book has been inspired by her life. The story itself is laid out as nine "innings", pointing to various time segments in her life. Baseball was in her blood, clearly demon...

TITLE: When Mommy was mad AUTHOR: Lynne Jonell ILLUSTRATOR: Petra Mathers AGE GROUP: 3-5 yrs PUBLISHER: G.P.Putnam's Sons Picture: fantasticfiction.co.uk Don't some of us, sometimes, hang up on an annoying telemarketer and carry over the frown to the innocent one demanding a snack? Or nod in affirmation to an interrogative from the little one while we are pensive or depressed. Or realize we just said yes to using the permanent marker while we were busy playing back in our head an incident from work! For a multitude of reasons, and sometimes not involving kids, we just don't seem to be our usual selves. And to make it worse, we are made to realize this by our own children. Picture books are wonderful when the child can relate to it. This book accomplishes that and more - it actually makes the parent and child exchange perspectives. While it can be difficult to see how parental moods impact children, it can also be important for children to see how it can be a struggle for ...

TITLE: Tacky and the winter games AUTHOR: Helen Lester ILLUSTRATOR: Lynn Munsinger AGE GROUP: 4-8 PUBLISHER: Sandpiper Picture: Amazon.com Penguins in training for the Olympics. Of course it has to be the winter Olympics! Add loads of wit. And we have an entertaining, educational and athletic package! Some of us are probably familiar with Tacky - Tacky the penguin . And this one belongs to the same series of books. It begins with Tacky's friends declaring T he winter games are coming, we must must must be in shape to win win win. And that's when the riot starts! The next few pages show fluffy creatures with sharp beaks jumping ropes in a row, lifting weights, and even doing sit-ups. But not Tacky. He is digging into his junk food and watching too much TV while his counterparts are loading up on 'training meals' and good sleep. Its soon time for the opening ceremony and the athletes walk in with their chests thrust out. The anthem is played (which by the way goes With o...

TITLE: Snowboard Twist AUTHOR: Jean Craigbead Geroge ILLUSTRATOR: Wendell Minor AGE GROUP: 4-8 yrs PUBLISHER: Katherine Tegen Books Picture: Author website. I picked up this book because, considering how books on sports and outdoor activities are relatively rare to find, one that involved snowboarding was hard to pass. The little one is taking lessons in ice skating and we do live just a few hours away from some generously snow covered ski slopes. These should qualify us I thought. I also succumbed to the seasonal temptation of a book sporting icy blues and whites, with evergreens all around. The more important rationale was to expose the little girl to adventure sports - to learn and enjoy the subtler details and experiences of such a sport while we safely resorted to accomplishing this through a picture book. At least for now:) Axel is on his way to Glory bowl in the Teton mountains with his dad Dag and his dog Grit. The place has just received heavy snowfall and it seems perfect to ...

Lullaby - Etymology From Middle English lullen, to lull + bye. First recorded circa 1560 , says an online resource. Some lullabies, I think, are intentionally devoid of logic. Some are intelligently crafted to educate. While some are soaked in love, some others are plain funny. But interestingly most lullabies carry meaningful particulars of the land and its culture. The books below are well enjoyed by my toddler and me, so much so that when read at times other than bedtime, he typically wants to at least lie down for a bit after our session. Title: Hush Little Baby Author & Illustrations: Sylvia Long Published by: Chronicle Books Disturbed by the materialistic attitude of the lyrics of the traditional American lullaby “Hush little baby” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hush,_Little_Baby), award-winning artist Sylvia Long has reworked it for a more nature-centric version. This one oozes warmth and lulls the listener and singer, in the same stillness of the night that Mama bunn...

Title: Baseball Saved Us Ages: 5+ Author: Ken Mochizuki; Illustrator: Dom Lee Published by: Lee & Low Books Baseball is an all American thing, the national sport and pastime. It is almost a cultural identity and its own epic is often burdened with American history in the background. Standing testimony to this is how a Japanese-American boy regains dignity and acceptance at the ballpark, post World War II. Written by Ken Mochizuki, whose parents were camp internees in Idaho during the world war, this book makes you cheer our little hero, while holding off that drop of tear that has already arrived. The voice is that of a Japanese boy, an American citizen who is pulled out of school one day by his mother. His family is sent with many more Japanese families to live in barracks in an internment camp established in the desert, in the middle of nowhere in 40s USA. A soldier with a gun stands on a tall tower at the camp monitoring the group every second, every day. With no basic ...

The multitude of books that carried the glossy sticker “Jazz collection” in the children’s section at the local library piqued my interest. I thought it might be interesting to read a couple of picture books about this musical form to my children. As we read them, we absorbed a distinct flavor, me more consciously than them. And soon I realized that this flavor was unfailingly delivered in every picture book that we later devoured. Title: Jazz Baby Ages: 0-2 Author: Carole Boston Weatherford; Illustrator: Laura Freeman Published by: Lee and Low Books Inc. It starts out with an assembly of ethnically diverse children ready to make music and dance. Some of them swing and sway, jiggle and wiggle, bounce and boogie while the rest are working the instruments. The verses are small and catchy. They mention the trumpet, drum, piano and bass – the simplest introductory presentation of the most important components of Jazz music. The last spread shows a tired group plopped on the fl...

We certainly can't prepare ourselves or the little ones enough, to let go and step out. Back to school or in the thick of it, we can always turn to books, picture books, for substantial help. OWL BABIES by Martin Waddell gives the much needed reassurance to toddlers and preschoolers. Mother owl is away. The babies wonder and worry. Mama swoops in asking What's all the fuss ? You knew I'd come back . The images of the petrified owlets later found flapping in joy is a sheer delight - thanks to Patrick Benson and his wonderful touches with crosshatching to rope in texture and depth. Read the more detailed review here: http://www.saffrontree.org/2006/12/soother.html. Published by Candlewick. THE KISSING HAND is similar in its intent to reassure. But incorporates a little ritual to get through the first few days of school. Or even moments of sadness on an ordinary day. Now, whenever you feel lonely and need a little loving from home, just press your hand to your cheek and th...

Title: The Other Side Author: Jacqueline Woodson Illustrator: E.B.Lewis Publisher: G.P.Putnam's Sons, NY Picture Courtesy - Amazon.com "There is no school on Monday, no mail on Monday. And do you know why?", began the teacher. I was at my daughter's kinder room when it was my turn to help out, and I overheard the teacher beginning to read a book on Martin Luther King. I could not take my eyes off of the little ones' faces, curious to know how they would absorb it all. They listened with intent. Silence ensued. And then they dispersed. I felt cheated when I could not comprehend what went through their minds. That afternoon I walked back home wondering how I could talk to my daughter on what Martin Luther stood for and how I could present the historical significance that surrounds him. The customary discomfort that preceded talks (with her) on "unhappy" truths, was again telling me that I was soon going to be guilty of adulterating the innocent mind. Ev...

TITLE: Rechenka's Eggs AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Patricia POLACCO PUBLIHSER: Philomel Books AGE GROUP: 4-8 years. While Patricia Polacco needs no introduction to those of you who have been enjoying her stories, rest of you book lovers deserve to experience the warmth that her books generously ooze out. And that is why I chose Rechenka's Eggs . From my Russian background my stories are kind of ethnic, primitive, Eastern European — that's one type of voice I write in , says Patricia. Set in Moskva in pre-revolutionary Russia, that is exactly the voice we hear in this book. Babushka (Russian for grandmother ) is a kind hearted old woman who spends the cold and dark winter days painting eggshells in her country home. She has a reputation for her beautifully designed eggs and she plans on taking them to a contest for the Spring Festival in the city. On a snowy day that winter, even as she is greeting a herd of caribous outside of her home, an injured goose separates from its f...

TITLE: Mrs.McCool and the Giant Cuhullin AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Jessica Souhami PUBLISHER: Henry Holt and Company AGES: Good for "Read Aloud" and "Read it Yourself". The joy of folktales is something that we recently discovered at our home. Stepping aside from classics and contemporary humor , we seem to embrace folktales, quite effortlessly. The book that I have with me is an Irish folklore, bearing a tale very similar to the ones that were orally passed on to me while I was growing up. The central characters in this tale are legendary giants Cuhullin and Finn McCool. Mrs. Oona McCool is the one with the brains and quite intuitively, also the one to save her husband oftentimes from Cuhullin. Now, Cuhullin has a magic finger that makes him strong and Finn has a magic thumb that bestows upon him, the power to foresee things. Finn uses his magic thumb and announces (in jitters of course) the impending arrival of Cuhullin. Mrs.McCool to the rescue! A simple story y...

MARCHING TO FREEDOM Author: Subhadra Sen Gupta Illustrator: Tapas Guha Publisher: Pratham Books, India Age Group: 11-14 years For today's children Gandhi is just a face on our currency note or a picture in a dull history book. But what he stood for is something that I feel all children should value —tolerance and non-violence. - Subhadra Sen Gupta Ample reason to write a book on Mahatma Gandhi for children. And today seems adequate enough to review this book from Pratham Books. The setting is the Sabarmati Ashram in the western state of Gujarat in India, which Gandhi and his followers called home during the Freedom Struggle in India. Dhani is a 9 year old boy being raised in the ashram by his Gandhian parents. Dhani also seems to be responsible for taking care of Binni, the goat, who is his incessant companion and whose milk seems to be a part of Gandhi's morning diet. Dhani is portrayed as a cheery little boy skipping around the ashram premises, inquisitive, eager to ...

Since there is motivation galore right now at Saffron Tree, it could not get easier for me to slouch down to write, combating the chaos generated in the room by my DH and his little associate. The book I am going to review is bilingual, meant for the 3+ age group, that I picked up during my trip to India last year. The two languages involved are Tamil (a South Indian language which is spoken in the state of Tamil Nadu, which also happens to be my native language) and English. It is published by Tulika . Tulika also has the equivalent of it in 6 other Indian languages. The title of the book is THE SEED, vidhai , written and illustrated by Deepa Balsavar,Tamil by Karkuzhali. Check out http://www.tulikabooks.com/bilingualbooks6.htm for your language. A small girl chances upon a tiny seed, puts it in a pot, waters it and takes care of it. The ecstasy from seeing it sprout soon morphs into heaps of anticipation. Will it have flowers? Will it have fruits? Will it grow tall? Will it stay ...

BABIES was published in 1963. The author is Gyo Fujikawa, who was raised in a Japanese household in California. This book is something that you and your baby can enjoy together. It can also help a toddler prepare for the arrival of another newborn in the house by walking him/her through the world of babies. I like the book because it exudes sweetness, it is warm and tender. Pictures of babies that make you smile, that make you appreciate how they make even the mundane things in life a pleasure. Inside, is a portrayal of everyday activities that babies do - crying, getting changed, eating, sleeping, drinking and the like. There are drawings of cheerful babies running around, naughty lilliputians preoccupied with mischief-making and the really cherubic ones busy with acts of goodness. There is neither a storyline nor a moral. However it succeeds in what, I think, it was intended to do - make babies relate to other babies and see their own world unravel before them. What the simple illus...

OWL BABIES By Martin Waddell , illustrated by Patrick Benson OWL BABIES is a picture book that deals with a very sensitive issue that every infant or toddler experiences early on. It is a book about the mental anguish that young ones undergo due to maternal separation and the constant reassurance they need - the belief and trust that every mother would unfailingly return to her young one. The book zooms into a simple yet critical incident in the lives of three owlets. The setting is a sober conversation among three siblings upon discovering their mommy's disappearance one night. Waiting is painful. They hope and pray that their mother is out, only to find food, that she is safe and that she would definitely come back to them. The mommy hooter returns. Her unexpected yet expected return makes the owlets ecstatic! I bought this book around the time my daughter started preschool (after staying at home for a good chunk of her early life) . I would always reassure her that I would pick ...

My first review being that of an Eric Carle work is no accident. I have been reading his books to my 2.5 year old since she was 10 months. The one that has impressed me the most is "The Very Hungry Caterpillar' (although my daughter might debate and settle for "Head to Toe"!). The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a picture board book. It can be read to a child as young as an year old. The author is also the illustrator. His art, although not the very common type, is interesting and colorful. The book is a simple story about the three weeks in the life of a mortal caterpillar, the three weeks between his conception from an egg to his culmination into a beautiful butterfly. The book begins with the caterpillar's entry into this world from a tiny egg on a Sunday morning. An apple does not seem to satisfy his hunger. He continues to eat many other fruits in increasing numbers on the following days of the week. Still hungry, the caterpillar chooses to climax his routine wit...