Just for fun:
Squeak
5 stars
Author: Laura McGee Kvasnosky
Illustrator: Kate Harvey McGee
Have you ever had one of those mornings where something wakes you up really early? A little mouse is the one who is woke up by a breeze tickling an ear.
Then the wake up call snowballs across the valley. The last page brings a laugh.
The illustrations a bold and colorful. They carry the snowball effect very effectively.
Lift Your Light a Little Higher: The Story of Stephen Bishop: Slave-Explorer
4 stars
Author: Heather Henson
Illustrator: Bryan Collier
Caves have fascinated people for millennia. When Kentucky was first settled by white pioneers, Mammoth Cave was discovered. At fist it was mined to produce gunpowder. When sales dropped off, the cave was opened for touring.
At that time slaves were trained as tour guides. One of the most knowledgeable was Stephen Bishop. He explored and knew more about Mammoth Cave than even scholars did at that time. This book takes a look at him.
There is an informational section at the end of the book.
The illustrations are a combination of decoupage and watercolor. This makes them visually interesting as they tell the story of this interesting person.