Lauri Fortino's Blog, page 3
July 1, 2024
Interview Alert: Jami Gigot (+ a Giveaway!)
Please welcome kidlit friend Jami Gigot to Frog on a Blog! Jami is an author, an illustrator, and a Texture Supervisor at LucasFilm’s Industrial Light & Magic. I recently featured a Happy Book Birthday post for Jami’s brand-new picture book The World In Our Backyard, which was published in May. I also interviewed Jami way back in 2015 when her book Mae and the Moon came out with Ripple Grove Press shortly after my book did.
I’m excited to welcome Jami back during the month of July, which ...
June 23, 2024
Nature as a Nurturer by Kerry Aradhya
I’m excited to welcome author Kerry Aradhya to Frog on a Blog! Her debut picture book, Ernő Rubik and His Magic Cube, which is a biography of Hungarian architect and inventor Erno Rubik, the creator of the iconic Rubik’s Cube, just published this month by Peachtree. As you may know, the focus of my blog changed this year to feature animal and nature-themed picture books almost exclusively, so when Kerry reached out to say that nature played a pivotal role in Rubik’s creative process, I was i...
June 20, 2024
Three “Pawsitively” Perfect Picture Books For National Foster A Pet Month (My View Book Review)
Title: Bless Our Pets: Poems of Gratitude for Our Animal Friends
Author: Fourteen authors, including Lee Bennett Hopkins
Illustrator: Lita Judge
Publisher/Year: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers/2024
Topic/Theme: Pets, human/animal companionship, poetry anthology, expression of gratitude
Favorite Line: If I could pick a pet to pet, the pet I’d pick is you. (from “A Letter to My Guinea Pig” by Darren Sardelli)
Title: The Writer
Author: Davide Cali
Illustrator: M...
May 30, 2024
Happy Book Birthday to MOON CHOO-CHOO by Mona Voelkel!
Title: Moon Choo-Choo: A Tale of Imagination and Sibling Adventure
Author: Mona Voelkel
Illustrator: Nancy Kincade
Publisher: Arigna Press
Release Date: May 30, 2024 (National Creativity Day)
Format: Paperback, Hardcover, and eBook
Summary: Everybody, time to play. What should we pretend today?
Destination: The Moon
Engine, Engine, Number 3
Shooting through the galaxy.
If our train gets lost in space,
Stars will help us find our place.
Where will imaginat...
May 27, 2024
Interview Alert: Jackie Morera
Please welcome debut picture book author Jackie Morera to Frog on a Blog! You may know that today is Memorial Day, the perfect day to talk to Jackie about Abuelo’s Flower Shop because her lovely book, which officially comes out on June 4, 2024, from Beaming Books, highlights grief and sadness and how people remember loved ones they have lost. Abuelo’s Flower Shop is also multigenerational, starring a young girl and her grandfather, and bilingual, featuring a mix of English and Spanish text.
...May 23, 2024
Interview Alert: Jana Locke
Happy World Turtle Day! It’s the perfect day to welcome Jana Locke, a picture book author and self-proclaimed passionate public servant, to Frog on a Blog to share her book Vote for Turtle. It might be a presidential election year, but Jana’s adorable book features something a whole lot more fun, especially for kids: voting for state symbols (and, of course, turtles). Vote for Turtle is a great first introduction to civic participation, democracy, and politics, as well as to how kids can mak...
May 21, 2024
Happy Book Birthday to THE WORLD IN OUR BACKYARD by Jami Gigot!
Title: The World In Our Backyard
Author: Jami Gigot
Illustrator: Jami Gigot
Publisher: Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
Release Date: May 21, 2024
Format: Hardcover and eBook
Summary: As children play together, a sandbox becomes a desert, sidewalk chalk drawings become an art gallery, and everything that can be dreamed up is within reach. From forests to hike and mountains to climb, oceans to sail and castles to build, creative little ones don’t have to look any farther...
May 12, 2024
Happy Book Birthday to THE TRUTH ABOUT STEPMOMS by Renee Bolla!
Title: The Truth About Stepmoms
Author: Renee Bolla
Illustrator: Jack Button
Publisher: RNB Press
Release Date: May 12, 2024
Format: Hardcover and eBook
Summary: Join the adventure of a stepdaughter and stepmother as they discover the true magic of family in The Truth About Stepmoms.
The story follows a young girl’s humorous yet heartfelt investigation as she
attempts to uncover the truth about her new stepmom, Via. But to her surprise,
she discovers that Via does not chan...
May 7, 2024
Happy Book Birthday to SUMMER: A SOLSTICE STORY by Kelsey E. Gross!
Title: Summer: A Solstice Story
Author: Kelsey E. Gross
Illustrator: Renata Liwska
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Release Date: May 7, 2024
Format: Hardcover
Summary: It’s early morning, and the forest seems silent, but life is all around. As the sun shines through the pines, one by one, the animals wake. Owl, Squirrel, Raccoon, Bear, Sparrow, Rabbit, Woodpecker, and Deer gather to celebrate summer and offer loving wishes as they send their young into the world....
April 26, 2024
Research, Not Just for Non-Fiction by Bridgitte Rodguez
Please welcome artist and picture book author Bridgitte Rodguez to Frog on a Blog! Bridgitte’s beautiful book A Walk Through the Redwoods, which published last fall from Reycraft Books, is overflowing with lovely imagery in both text and illustrations (by Natalia Bruno). It features an abundance of plant and animal life, as well as tons of factual information. On her website, Bridgitte says, “I write stories intended to create an experience for the reader. I want my readers, be they young or...
