Everything You Need for a Treehouse

A lyrical, glorious ode to treehouses and the imaginative, adventurous children who dream them up.  We can’t even begin to tell you how beautiful this book is, inside and out.  It epitomizes the best aspects of childhood — its unfettered creativity, wild imagination, ingenious resourcefulness and inexhaustible magic.  This book is tremendous, and is the type to keep on giving with each read.  If you buy one book this spring...this should most definitely be it.

Everything You Need for a Treehouse was written by Carter Higgins, illustrated by Emily Hughes  and published by Chronicle Books.  It’ll be out soon on April 10.

shaking things up: 14 young women who changed the world

“Every choice we make can be a celebration of the world we want.” — Francis Moore Lappé

“Never be limited by other people’s limited imaginations.” — Mae Jemison

“There’s a moment when you have to choose whether to be silent or to stand up.” — Malala Yousafzai

Our world wouldn’t be what it is today without these 14 women who did extraordinary things at a young age, like Maya Lin who won a competition for her design of the Vietnam Memorial but who had to defend her vision before Congress due to her young age, gender and ethnicity.  Pura Belpré was the first Latina librarian to work in the New York Public Library and the first to reach out to Spanish-speaking communities.  When she saw a great need for children’s books in Spanish, she wrote them herself— many books.  Her Perez y Martina was the first Spanish book for children put out in mainstream publishing.  She also translated many children’s books into Spanish.

Susan Hood’s poetic biographies of these revolutionary women are accompanied by portraits, each illustrated by a different female artist — making it a categorically unique, inspiring and powerful book.  Included are a timeline, a moving author’s note and an abundance of resources for further reading.

Shaking Things Up: 14 Young Women Who Changed the World was written by Susan Hood and illustrated by Shadra Strickland, Hadley Hooper, Lisa Brown, Emily Winfield Martin, Sara Palacios, Erin K. Robinson, Sophie Blackall, Melissa Sweet, Oge Mora, Isabel Roxas, Julie Morstad , LeUyen Pham and Selina Alko.  Published by HarperCollins.

Alma

Little Alma is curious to know the story of her long name — Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela, to be exact!  Her father sits her down to tell her the long, rich history behind each and every part of that long name of hers.  She learns about the smart, strong-minded women that she’s named after, and their their special qualities, as well as her artistic grandfather who taught his children “to see and love” their people.  Our favorite member of Alma’s family is Candela, not only for her fiery name, but for how she “always stood up for what was right.”

It’s an absolutely beautiful book for kids who are curious about their own names.  They’ll realize that their names were intentionally chosen just for them and that there is significance, love and history behind them.  And, like Alma, they’re writing their own story day by day.  This story spoke to our hearts and is definitely one of our favorites published this year.

Alma and How She Got Her Name was written and illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal and published by Candlewick Press .  It’ll be out soon on April 10 and is available for pre-order now.

Look at the Weather

“We all share the same air and the same sun.  The wind, rain, and clouds know no borders.  They move around the globe, bringing weather fair and foul.”

An exploration of weather, its characteristics, its wide range of moods and temperaments, how we relate to it, how it makes us feel, our beliefs and attitudes about it and how it shapes our days.

Britta’s illustrations in the book are undeniably exquisite with her distinctive textures, layers and deft use of color that we’ve fallen in love with over the past few years.  One of the unique qualities of her work is its ability to produce an emotional response in the reader and this book is no exception.  Her thought-provoking words and wondrous art will not only teach, but inspire awe in readers.  Can’t say enough about this extraordinary book.

Look at the Weather was written and illustrated by Britta Teckentrup, translated and adapted by Shelley Tanaka and published by Owlkids.

Wee Alphas: 26 A to Z Postcards, from Angelfish to Zebra

I knew there was something missing — forgot to post this photo in yesterday’s Wee Society giveaway post.  This is what the back of the Wee Alpha postcards look like.  As you can see, they make learning the alphabet and letter-sound correspondence incredibly fun.  Not to mention the dose of rich, descriptive language each postcard offers as well as an enjoyable writing experience.

Little ones who are learning their alphabet aren’t necessarily going to be able to read the postcards on their own, but it’s a great joint writing experience with their parents.  Parents can read the postcards aloud, kids can dictate what they want written and even them just watching their response being written down is a valuable lesson.  Kids need countless experiences and interactions with text and writing, even if they’re just observing and not actively performing the task themselves, in order to learn how to read.  Just one way to promote literacy, and a pretty terrific one at that. 😉