book reviews

friday feast: trick-or-treat by debbie leppanen and tad carpenter

~ jama ~ 14 Comments

trickcover

Boooooooo-yah!

So nice of you to wear your monster mask for today’s post. Like me, you’re probably already feeling that Fall chill in the air, especially at night. The leaves will start turning in the blink of your good eye, the winds will howl, and come October, you’ll have an actual excuse to wear your green scaly costume in public. 🙂

While you’re gnawing on that leg bone in anticipation, thought I’d share three poems from Trick-or-Treat: A Happy Haunter’s Halloween by Debbie Leppanen and Tad Carpenter (Beach Lane, 2013).

This mixed bag of 15 rhymes is perfect for munchkins and short grown-ups who like their scariness served up with a good side of humor. A group of trick-or-treaters and iconic Halloween regulars (skeletons, mummies, ghouls, witches, black cats, monsters) are all out on the prowl for a spooktacularly good time. We follow them to a dark alley, a graveyard, a Halloween party, and into the homes of mummies and vampires. One of my favorite poems, “Mummy Dearest,” mentions eerie edibles:

She fixes my breakfast: worms on toast.
I like the juicy ones the most.

She tears my clothes all to shreds.
(On the bus, it sure turns heads.)

She packs me spider eggs for lunch.
Mmm . . . the way they snap and crunch!

*picks spider legs from teeth*

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soup of the day special edition: ben clanton dishes on the table sets itself

~ jama ~ 23 Comments

Ahoy there!*

The Alphabet Soup table is all set to welcome story-scribbler, picture-squiggler, fun-socks-wearer Ben Clanton, whose second self-illustrated picture book, The Table Sets Itself (Walker BFYR, 2013), is officially hitting shelves today! WooHoo!

Until I read this charming, whimsical story, I thought I was the only one who had a meaningful relationship with cutlery. I loved reading about how Izzy and her friends Dish, Fork, Knife, Spoon, Cup, and Napkin finally get the chance to set the table themselves. But because they soon tire of being in the same spots day after day, they decide to switch places. Uh-oh.

Is this front endpaper cool or what?

This leads to a few small disasters and a big ooh-la-la adventure for the runaway Dish and Spoon, whose absence turns Izzy into a complete mess because no other plate or spoon will do. How will she get them to return to the table? Generous sprinkles of punny jokes and visual humor (I bet you never knew a cup could lift a cow) make for a rollicking read aloud, and did I mention macaroni and cheese is instrumental in setting things right again?

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chatting with susan fillion about pizza in pienza

~ jama ~ 13 Comments

Buon Giorno!

You’re just in time to enjoy a soul-warming slice of Susan Fillion’s homemade pizza. There’s nothing like a perfect chewy-crisp crust topped with a little crushed tomato, melty mozzarella, black olives and fresh basil, just begging you to take a bite. Delizioso!

Also delicious is Susan’s charming new bilingual picture book, Pizza in Pienza (David R. Godine, 2013), which is about two of her favorite things — pizza, of course, and Pienza, a small town in Tuscany where Pope Pius II was born (he rebuilt Pienza to be an “ideal Renaissance town”).

Susan’s story features a young Italian girl, a resident of Pienza, who is crazy about pizza — so much so, that she decides to find out everything she can about it. She asks her grandmother to teach her how to make it, she scopes out Giovanni, the local pizzaiolo, and she also reads all about the history of pizza at the library. Did you know pizza (as we know it today) most likely originated in Naples, Italy?

An artist and museum educator at the Baltimore Museum of Art, Susan has filled this book with beautiful rustic, folkloric paintings rendered in warm Tuscan browns, crimsons, golds, olives, and blues. I love how her humorous touches (Mona Lisa holding a slice of pizza) gives us a fresh taste of antiquity, blending past and present on a timeless canvas of Italian village life.

Hungry readers will appreciate the added layer of flavor afforded by the Italian translations on every page — two savory bites for the price of one! End matter includes an Author’s Note, Pronunciation Guide, and Susan’s recipe for Pizza Margherita. And did I mention the cool pizza sauce endpapers? Squisito!

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rainbow pasta from allergies, away!

~ jama ~ 25 Comments

Recently, Mr. Cornelius and I finally made one of the recipes from the Park Sisters’ new cookbook, Allergies, Away!: Creative Eats and Mouthwatering Treats for Kids Allergic to Nuts, Dairy, and Eggs (St. Martin’s Griffin, 2013).

We wanted to whet your appetite for their upcoming visit next month and share a few details about their mouthwatering, kid-friendly collection of 70+ recipes — dishes your entire family can enjoy making and eating, whether they have food allergies or not.

Credit: Teddy Wolff/WP Express</em

If you remember when Frances and Ginger stopped by to tell us about their beautifully written, heartfelt memoir (Chocolate Chocolate: The True Story of Two Sisters, Tons of Treats, and the Little Shop That Could, 2011), you know that they own Washington, D.C.’s, premier chocolate boutique. Imagine how disheartening it must have been when they discovered that Ginger’s one-year-old son, Justin, had severe food allergies, making it too risky for him to even visit their shop!

When Ginger was pregnant, everyone assumed her child would be the proverbial “kid in a candy store.” Though Justin had to stay far away from chocolate covered peanuts, he did grow up eating a nice variety of tasty, nutritious meals and snacks, thanks to the conscientious, resourceful efforts of his mother and aunt.

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peeking into molly’s organic farm by carol l. malnor and trina l. hunner

~ jama ~ 18 Comments

Miao! Who’s that peeking through the cauliflower leaves?

Meet Molly, a homeless orange tabby who wanders into a small community farm one Spring day and instantly captures everyone’s hearts.

Based on a true story, Molly’s Organic Farm (Dawn Publications, 2012), introduces young readers to the seasonal workings of an organic farm through Molly’s eyes. Curious and mischievous, she explores this wondrous world of giant cornstalks and row upon row of leafy vegetables, watching, hunting, and playing among the busy birds, bugs and critters who live there, some beneficial to the plants, others harmful.

The basic principles of organic farming and the marvelous interplay of nature are seamlessly interwoven with Molly’s activities, all gorgeously brought to life with Trina Hunner’s stunning illustrations. We learn about composting, companion planting, crop rotation, beneficial bugs and animal helpers, the importance of buying locally and the wonderful sense of community that’s established among those who share an interest in growing and eating healthy foods in a way that is gentle on the environment.

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