Happy Book Birthday, Wake Up, Moon! by Lita Judge

 It's time to shout-out another book birthday! This picture book releases tomorrow and comes from one of my favorite picture book authors/illustrators. I'm expecting lots of energy and friendship. Telling by the cover, I'm also looking forward to snow-dreaming.

Let's dive in and see if this read takes us on an adventure!

    WAKE UP, MOON!

by Lita Judge

Atheneum Books

Picture Book

ages 4 to 8

An energetic squirrel isn’t ready to give up on winter fun and go to bed in this cozy picture book about animal friends who spend an unforgettable night romping in the snow!

The snowstorm is over. The stars are out. But one little squirrel is not in bed. He’s having far too much fun building snow animals and gliding and skating on glittering ice with his friends Squirrel, Owl, Fox, and Bear…until drowsy eyes and sleepy yawns begin to slow the animals’ steps. Could it finally be time for Squirrel to turn in for the night?

GOODREADS    /    AMAZON

MY TIDBITS

The excitement of snow beams from every page with a sense of friendship and fun.

As nighttime comes, the snow storm finally stops, and while everyone should be in bed, Squirrel wants to play out in the fresh white world under the stars. So, off Squirrel goes. Of course, it's no fun to play alone, so he does his best to get some friends to join him as they slide and glide all over the place.

The wonder of fresh snow under a starlit sky sets a beautiful scene, which comes across wonderfully in the illustrations. It's a dreamland and invites to fun. It's hard not to want to join Squirrel as he decides to head out and play. Surprisingly, this book isn't about how irritating Squirrel is by waking his friends up, though. Rather, the sleepy friends readily-ish join in. It keeps a positive attitude the whole way through. There is humor, especially in the illustrations, to mix with the abundant energy these friends have. And it rounds up nicely at the end to create a bedtime read, if desired.

The text is relatively short with only a few lines at most on each page. It makes a nice read-aloud or works for those readers who are pretty sure of their words. The atmosphere invites to dreams, and while I missed a page or so in the beginning to show the storm and falling night so as to make it clear how late it was, the atmosphere invites in and holds the enter way through. 

It's a lovely read for the wintery months and is sure to receive the word 'again'.

And here she is...

Lita Judge is the award-winning author and illustrator of many children’s books, including Flight School, Penguin Flies Home, Red Sled, Red Hat, Good Morning to Me!, Born in the Wild, Even the Smallest Will Grow, When You Need Wings, and her illustrated young adult novel, Mary’s Monster. She lives with her husband, two cats, and a parrot in New Hampshire. You can visit her online at LitaJudge.com.

Peppy and the Giant Snowball by M.D. Jones

 I'm snow dreaming with today's read, although our current temperatures aren't really supporting these thoughts. Our cold days don't usually get going until January...well, I don't think they get going much at all in our area. Growing up in Denver has given me a slightly different attitude about Winter than the Ozarks have to offer. But I can dream!

This read hits the shelves right before Halloween and should be great for the upcoming months. Let's see if it's as enjoyable as I hope it will be.

PEPPY AND THE GIANT SNOWBALL

by M.D. Jones

Illustrated by Jonathan Taylor

Empire Publishing

Picture Book

ages 4 to 8

COMING...

OCTOBER 30th!!!

Peppy races against a giant, ever growing snowball hoping to rescue his younger brother Bellybutton from danger. Will Peppy get to his brother in time? Peppy and the Giant Snowball tells the story of a brother's courageous act of love, encouraging young readers and listeners in the values of family and faith.

GOODREADS    /    PUBLISHER

MY TIDBITS

Outdoor fun meets family goodness and a snowy adventure with heart...and that with super, cute penguins, too.

Peppy can't wait to head outdoors with his siblings and play in the snow. They throw snowballs and have all sorts of fun. As the idea to form a huge snowball hits them, all jump in to do their part...until the ball begins to roll downhill. It's fun to watch, and the youngest of them, Bellybutton, decides to race the ball down the hill. But the snowball grows and grows and grows. If Peppy doesn't do something quick, Bellybutton's fun might turn into disaster.

This is a cute read, which is well suited for a bedtime adventure. While the penguins are adorable, and playing in the snow is inviting, it's the family warmth and goodness which makes these pages shine. The siblings get along very well, and it's hard not to want to head outdoors with them. The wholesome enjoyment of being together comes across clearly with natural flow and doesn't near preachiness. This goodness sets the stage for the later tension and allows listeners to worry about Bellybutton when the snowball situation gets out of hand. There's just enough danger to grab young readers' attentions and put them at the edge of their seat, while still never leaving what's appropriate for the age group or over-exciting them to make bedtime difficult. Instead, everything rounds off with the atmosphere of a warm hug and invites to pleasant dreams.

At the end, there are several short questions for those interested in opening up discussions or heading into a little, deeper thought.

And here he is...

M. D. Jones lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with his wife Andrea, and has four amazing kids. M. D. has been helping families for over thirty years, serving in churches and schools throughout the United States and around the globe. His hope in writing the Peppy adventures is to encourage children and families in the values of family and faith.

 https://www.facebook.com/markdjones6/

 https://www.instagram.com/markdanieljones/

Supermoon by Sue Lancaster

I have another read for star gazers and space fans. Instead of sheer facts, though, this one takes a fun, heroic twist. At least, that's what I'm expecting. I'm hoping to pulls the balance between excitement and information in a way which will draw readers in. 

Let's just see how it does!

SUPERMOON

by Sue Lancaster

Illustrated by Tincho Schmidt

Tielmour Press

Picture Book

48 pages

ages 4 to 8

COMING NOVEMBER 15th!!!

Meet Supermoon, the superhero of the night sky! With a Super Gravity Lasso, Super Shine-Reflector, and Super Shield Strength, Supermoon helps the Earth in amazing ways.

Supermoon isn't just any moon—it's a hero with extraordinary powers! With a flowing cape and a heart full of courage, Supermoon uses its Super Gravity Lasso to guide the tides, its Super Shine-Reflector to light up the night, and its Super Shield Strength to protect the Earth.

In Sue Lancaster's debut rhyming picture book, kids will join Supermoon on exciting adventures, discovering how the moon helps our planet. Lively illustrations by Tincho Schmidt bring Supermoon's heroic deeds to life, showing children the magic of the moon's influence.

Supermoon is a simple, engaging story that introduces young readers to the moon's important role. Perfect for bedtime or storytime, this book will spark kids' imaginations with its tale of a moon-turned-superhero.

Discover Supermoon's lunar superpowers and see how the Earth's nighttime hero makes the world a better place!

GOODREADS    /     PRE-ORDER AMAZON    /     PUBLISHER

MY TIDBITS

Space and science are anything but boring and drab in this fun adventure, which lets imagination take flight...while teaching a few facts along the way.

Supermoon is here to save the day! With the power to drive the tides, reflect light from the sun, and even act as a shield against meteors, which might hit the Earth and cause damage, this superhero promises more adventure than might first appear.

This book takes the moon, puts it in a cape, and brings it to life as a superhero. What might seem like a tiny bit over-the-top at first, turns out to be a steer into a fun row of escapades, where this hero helps the planet Earth and even saves the day. The illustrations let the amazingness of Supermoon come across with the same atmosphere one would expect from a superhero (cartoon) show. While this struck me as a bit odd, at first, it soon became clear that how clever it is. The reader is drawn into the light-tension action, while learning about the importance of our moon. The facts are pretty tightly woven into the adventure, but the basics still come across nicely...just not in usual, nonfiction style.

It's a bright, entertaining read and works well as a read-aloud or in more personal settings. It is thought for the younger audience and really doesn't dive deep into space information. And that's just fine. It sets the basis for knowledge in the future and leaves a positive view of the moon.

Bad Bot by Pierrette Dube

Halloween is only a few days away, and I thought it'd be fun to toss in a science fiction, spooky read. No ghosts in this read, but there is an evil robot. This one comes from an author from Quebec and has been translated into English for the first time. It's also illustrated, which I'm really looking forward to (I do enjoy pictures). This one hit the shelves a week or two ago, so it's hot off the press, too.

Let's see how chilling this read gets!

BAD BOT

by Pierrette Dube

Illustrator Vigg

Translated by David Warriner

Orca Book Publishers

Middle Grade Science Fiction / Thriller

144 pages

What happens when a smart toy gets a little too smart?

Victor is thrilled to get the toy he’s always wanted for Christmas. It’s a LenBot―a smart robot that can learn anything. For once, it’s a toy that lives up to the hype. The robot really does become Victor’s best friend. But before long the robot starts learning more than Victor has taught it and acting very strangely. Victor knows LenBot is smart, but a toy robot couldn't be cruel. It can’t kill…can it?

GOODREADS   /   AMAZON    /    B&N

MY TIDBITS

Just the right amount of creepy flows into this science fiction read to create more than a few swallow-worthy moments.

Victor has been wishing for a LenBot for forever and makes sure he's such a good kid that there's no way his parents can deny it as a Christmas present. And the work was worth it. The little robot lives up to Victor's expectations and then some. Not only does it allow him to really dig into programming, but the results are so amazing that he's determined to use it as his science project. His parents aren't exactly thrilled that he's more interested in working with the robot than playing outside or visiting with friends, and they do try to steer him toward these other thoughts. But these attempts might just cause more harm than good.

Reminding a teeny-tiny bit of the movie M3GAN, this read dives into a tale about a robot, who gains intelligence and turns bad, but the author manages to keep the fear factor in the lane of solid middle grade fiction. While it is pretty clear which direction the tale will go, the tension builds and holds until the last page. There are unexpected twists and turns, which add suspense, and there's just enough surprise to churn the plot ever so slightly. It creates a gripping read to the end with creepy moments the whole way through.

The writing is well set to the middle grade audience and works well for those, who might not be super avid readers. The print is on the larger side as is the spacing. There is just enough description to keep the story going but never goes into too much detail or character depth. Action drives this one. The sentences are kept relatively short and the vocabulary slides right into the middle of the age group. It's a shorter read with basic and fitting illustrations, and very short chapters. If it wasn't for the scarier side, I'd even recommend this one for the lower end of the age group. 

As to the thriller aspect, it will bother more sensitive readers but never hits true gore or fear. It seems like it might go there, but then, doesn't. This makes it great for younger thrill and chill seekers.

And here they are...

Pierrette Dubé grew to love children’s books at the same time as her own kids did. And soon she started writing her own. She has now written more than forty picture books and several short novels. Many of her books have won awards, including the Quebec Booksellers’ Award for Children’s Literature in 2015 for La petite truie, le vélo et la lune. The English edition of the book, The Little Pig, the Bicycle, and the Moon, was a Bank Street College of Education's Best Children’s Books of the Year selection in 2019. Bad Bot is her second middle-grade horror novel. She lives in Saint-Lambert, Québec.

Vigg is a self-taught author, illustrator and sculptor. Born in Ottawa, he grew up around the world in France, Morocco, the Ivory Coast, Haiti and Switzerland. His award-winning work is published in major newspapers, such as the Washington Post and the New York Times. He has written over twenty children’s books, including the autobiographical Ma maison-tête, the original French edition of Lost Inside My Head. Recently he has developed a practice in sculpture to explore the third dimension of his graphic universe. He lives and works in the village of Saint-Denis-sur-Richelieu in Québec.

David Warriner grew up in the UK and escaped to Quebec right after graduating from Oxford. A professional translator for two decades, David nurtures a healthy passion for Quebec fiction and has translated a range of fiction, nonfiction and children’s fiction titles by Quebec authors for British and Canadian publishers. He lives in Penticton, British Columbia.

Happy Book Birthday, Vernon Poche & The Ghosts of New Orleans by Paul Siefken!

This read hit the shelves two days ago, but I'm always willing to celebrate a few days. After all, releasing a book is a big deal. And this one sounds interesting. It circles around ghosts (fitting to Halloween!) but not in a creepy way, I don't think. I'm expecting a little dive into history with some cultural richness and heart.

Let's see if that's what these pages hold!

VERNON POCHE & THE GHOSTS OF NEW ORLEANS

A Novel

by Paul Siefken

Treehouse Publishing Group

Middle Grade Paranormal

325 pages

ages 8 to 12

Vernon Poche just wants to go home, but home isn't the same anymore. Hurricane Katrina changed all that. Could the ghosts who remain haunting the empty streets show him the way? Paul Siefken, President and CEO of Fred Rogers Productions is known as the very best in educational children's media on broadcast and digital platform. He now brings his talent to print form in this lovingly written and touching story of New Orleans historic people and culture - just for kids of course.

GOODREADS   /   AMAZON    /    B&N

MY TIDBITS

While revisiting the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans, this book takes an unique direction and focuses on the aftermath...and that with a ghostly twist.

After leaving New Orleans to flee Hurricane Katrina, Vernon and his father return to their, luckily, undamaged home as the father helps with the rebuilding process. This includes mixed feelings, and a little stress between Vernon and his father as both already try to deal with the emotional weight the storm has caused. While his father works, Vernon bikes around the area (despite warnings) and not only finds a friend, but runs into a ghost at his mother's grave. This opens up a whole new paranormal world, he never knew existed. 

While there have been several books brought out concerning Hurricane Katrina (although not as recently), this weaves through everything in a fresh direction. It begins with escaping the hurricane, but quickly shifts gears as Vernon and his father return to the area to work through the disaster. It was interesting to see the hopelessness and doubt as well as the determination to rebuild from different perspectives. Through Vernon's new friend, Alisha, the problem of lost jobs versus the desire to stay comes to light. All of these struggles came across understandably and offered a slightly different insight into the situation than I've seen before.

Then, there's the ghostly fun. The graveyards of New Orleans and the 'hauntings' of the French Quarter already come to mind when thinking of the city, and by sliding this aspect into the tale, the author adds a nice and needed dab of fantasy. Not only does it keep the themes from growing to heavy, but the paranormal aspect ignites the imagination, while sliding in some history and culture.  Plus, the lean toward music gave everything even more personality.

It's an enjoyable read and swirls in quite a bit of layers to keep in engaging until the end.