Betsy Bird's Blog, page 49

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Math Books for Kids

I no longer serve on the Mathical Book Prize committee (“an annual award for fiction and nonfiction books that inspire children of all ages to see math in the world around them”) and that is okay. It’s okay because I have retained my love and respect for children’s books capable of taking subject matter that many authors, and some illustrators, fear, turning it into something to be enjoyed. If you were to compare this year’s list with the first that I ever did on this site (2016) you’d see h...

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Picture Book Reprints

Every picture book author has or will experience the sad day when one of their books goes out of print. Like a candle, it will do so softly and without fanfare. And yet… and yet… there are rare moments when a book is brought back to life by a publisher. But why? They know that a reprinted picture book can win no awards. They know that the likelihood that it will earn great gobs of cash is unlikely. No, my friends. The brave publishers that bring such books back do so for one reason and one r...

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Caldenotts

I thought of it just a little too late. You see, each year I write up my “Caldenotts”. These are books that, due to the current state of the rules regarding books that are eligible for the Caldecott Award and Honors, will never see that particular shiny sticker grace their book jackets. That’s okay. I think a lot of us know that these books usually are celebrated, if anywhere, on the New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated lists. Personally, I like to celebrate them as well, ...

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Funny Picture Books

There’s no one way, but there sure as heck is a wrong way. Ever read a picture book trying to be funny and you can just, somehow, feel it trying to make a kid laugh? Kids are one of the toughest audiences a performer can ever face. If they don’t like something, they often aren’t going to be polite about it. They are more than willing to tell you to your face when a joke lands flat or fails to take off in the first place. Today we celebrate the books willing to take that risk and potentially ...

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Rhyming Picture Books

The fun thing about this rhyming list is that I don’t have to limit it to fiction alone. It’s one of the rare lists I produce that can contain nonfiction, picture books, and board books all together. This seems as good a time as any to mention that if you’re a day-by-day 31 Days, 31 Books reader (and bless you if you are) you’re going to see a little bit if repetition at the beginning of today’s list. But here’s a tip about how I put these lists together: No book is allowed to show up on mor...

31 Days, 31 Books: 2023 Rhyming Picture Books

The fun thing about this rhyming list is that I don’t have to limit it to fiction alone. It’s one of the rare lists I produce that can contain nonfiction, picture books, and board books all together. This seems as good a time as any to mention that if you’re a day-by-day 31 Days, 31 Books reader (and bless you if you are) you’re going to see a little bit if repetition at the beginning of today’s list. But here’s a tip about how I put these lists together: No book is allowed to show up on mor...

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Transcendent Holiday Picture Books

Initially this was a list that would appear later in the month, but last year someone appealed to me and asked if I could do it a bit earlier. The thinking, I believe, was that if people would like to purchase some of the holidays that are appearing this month, it would behoove me to produce this list sooner rather than later. I couldn’t help but agree! Of course, this list goes far beyond Christmas and Hanukkah this year. Looking at it I can see Three Kings Day, Ramadan, Halloween, Yom Kipp...

31 Days, 31 Books: 2023 Transcendent Holiday Picture Books

Initially this was a list that would appear later in the month, but last year someone appealed to me and asked if I could do it a bit earlier. The thinking, I believe, was that if people would like to purchase some of the holidays that are appearing this month, it would behoove me to produce this list sooner rather than later. I couldn’t help but agree! Of course, this list goes far beyond Christmas and Hanukkah this year. Looking at it I can see Three Kings Day, Ramadan, Halloween, Yom Kipp...

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: The Mushroom Man by Ethel Pochocki, ill. Barry Moser

Do you know the mushroom man, the mushroom man, the mushroom man? Well you’re about to! Here’s a question for you: Is a piece of cultural entertainment a “Christmas” title if the holiday only makes a brief cameo appearance? Is the film Meet Me In St. Louis a Christmas film just because it includes the song “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”? Likewise, is The Mushroom Man, now being re-released by Tilbury House on this, its thirtieth anniversary, a Christmas book? Maybe yes. Maybe no. W...

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2023 Simple Picture Book Texts

This is only my second year working this particular list into the mix. Initially I added it because I noticed on my library 101 Great Books for Kids committee that we adults had an interesting tendency to favor the more complicated picture books. This makes sense. We are adults. We like picture books that utilize clever wordplay or will be fun for US to read out loud. That’s why I am pleased to announce that today’s list is for the simplest of picture books. Not books for kids first learning to ...