WWRW: Twitter Style

I've got a lot of books and a little time, so I'm going to review these titles in 140 characters or less. Give or take.

Pioneer Girl: A Novel by Bich Ming Ngyuen

Tries too hard.  Vietnamese American girl with a connection to Rose Wilder Lane travels the country to do research and hooks up with a few guys along the way.  #disappointed #adultbook

Slob by Ellen Potter

Fat kid who gained all of his weight since #spoiler his parents' double murder.  Adopted by 911 dispatcher.  Tries to find the killer with a long shot science project.  #icried #teensandup

One for the Murphys by Lynda Mulally Hunt

Girl enters foster care because her mom's boyfriend nearly beat her to death.  Did her mom really hold her down while he beat her?  #toodark  #icried #makeyourkidsreadhappierstuff #teensandup

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool

Best written book of this post.  Autistic kid before autism had a name in a prep school in ME befriends KS kid whose mom just died.  WWII.  Bootleggers.  Fiction that borders on fantasy.  #middleschoolandup  #awesome @vanderpool wrote #newbery #moonovermanifest

We Have a Baby by Cathryn Falwell

Please read this book slowly, thoughtfully, and in a gentle voice.  Jill and I love this one. #greatnewbabybook #breastfeeding #agesonetothree

An InLinkz Link-up

WWRW: Best Books about New Babies

Welcome to What We're Reading Wednesday.  Your No-Rules Link-up for the middle of the week. (Well, it would be nice if your post included mention of a book, and a link-back.) Your online book club.  Your easy-peasy post for Hump Day on the week of 7 Posts in 7 Days.

Read a book? Blog about it, link-up.  It's that simple.

Scroll to the bottom for the link-up, or go more slowly and take a gander at what I've been using to avoid housework lately.

A few weeks ago, I lamented the lack of good new sibling storybooks.  By "good" I mean stories that do not use jealousy as a major plot point.

The combox and the Facebook page bloomed with wonderful recommendations from readers and bloggers. Here is a complete list of what was recommended as well as my short reviews of the ones I have read.  I have starred the ones I haven't read.  And if I haven't read them, it's because the library doesn't have them.

Baby on the Way (Sears Children Library) by Dr. Sears is an informative about pregnancy.  Mom eats more, sleeps more, uses the word "uterus,"  a little bit about labor, most of the info was about the mom. Jill was fascinated by the drawing of the newborn with a cord and clip still attached.

*What Baby Needs (Sears Children Library) by Dr. Sears I'm guessing it's more of the same, but with more of a focus on the baby.

Eloise Wilkin Stories (Little Golden Book Treasury) by Eloise Wilkin (Includes Baby Dear)  Since Baby Dear is out of print, this is the easiest way to get a copy.  Baby Dear is the main character's new doll baby, which her daddy gave her "on a very special day," the day that her mother brought home her new baby sister.  Each page shows the mother caring for the new baby, and the daughter caring for the doll baby.

We have big plans for a similar doll baby purchase when Jill's very special day comes. I'm leaning towards the American Girl Itty Bitty Baby.  We've never had one of those in the house before.  I'm not joking either.

The Baby Sister (Goodnight) by Tomie dePaola is arguably Jill's favorite of the bunch. This autobiographical tale from Mr. dePaola's childhood includes such characters as his Italian grandmother, his Irish grandmother, and his new baby sister, Maureen. Jill really likes Maureen and exclaims "She's so cute!" every time she sees her picture. She also says, "Let's get that baby!" because of her continued catalog mentality. Unfortunately, chances of her getting a dark-haired sibling are slim.

The New Baby (Usborne First Experiences) by Anne Civardi, illustrated by Stephen Cartwright is a solid work on the topic.  Getting ready for baby, grandparents coming to babysit during a hospital birth, the happy chaos/exhaustion that follows.  This book only shows breastfeeding.  Also, like everything illustrated by Stephen Cartwright, there is a tiny yellow duck hidden on every page, which always surprises and delights Jill.

There's Going to Be a Baby by John Burmingham and Helen Oxenbury is in my opinion the most beautifully illustrated book in this list.  In There's Going to Be a Baby, the expectant mother is always dressed in lovely frocks and kitten heels.  Gosh, she's gorgeous.

Slightly out of focus, but you see what I mean.
They don't even make maternity clothes like this lady has.

Some of the wordless sequences with the older-sibling-to-be were fantastical to the point of not-making-sense to Jill, so we skimmed most of those.  Now, that I think about it, I do not remember any mention or picture of a father figure, but it wasn't obvious when we read it.

Waiting for Baby (My New Baby) by Harriet Ziefert is a short story about a boy who does everything he can to encourage his sibling to arrive.  I know exactly how he feels. The mother in this book looks a lot more like me than the mother in the Oxenbury book above.

This is a newer version of the book Jill is holding below.

I'm a Big Sister/I'm a Big Brother by Joanna Cole is another solid new sibling tale.  The girl in it takes great pride in being helpful (holding the baby with mommy's permission, etc.) as well as pointing out the things that she can do that the new baby cannot, like eat pizza.  Many thanks again to Catherine at Catholic Mom Apologia for doubling our new baby library with this gift!

My New Baby by Rachel Fuller is a large board book with very few pages.  It's extremely basic, and would be perfect for a very young child.  My New Baby also shows the new baby nursing.

Rosie's Babies by Martin Waddell  We are big-time Martin Waddell fans over here. Can't You Sleep, Little Bear? and Owl Babies have been in our bedtime repertoire for at least a decade.  In Rosie's Babies, Rosie's mom takes care of the new brother, while Rosie takes care of her two stuffed animals.  When baby brother is finally asleep, Rosie gets some one-on-one time with her mother.  It's not exactly about sibling jealousy, but Rosie's Babies does point out the juggling attention act that takes place when a new sibling comes along.

Welcome, Little Baby by Aliki is about a new baby, not a new sibling.  With pretty images and simple prose, Welcome, Little Baby is a sweet book about newborns, appropriate for the very young (under 2) child.

The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman is not a book about new babies, or new siblings, exactly.  It is the story of a couple with one picky eater child, and then they are blessed with six more children in succession, each one is different and each one has a different food preference.  The storyline is far-fetched,  (I doubt anyone could live off of pink lemonade.) but the rhymes and the pictures are so captivating that I was neither annoyed nor frustrated (rhyming books are not usually my thing).  I love the realistic images of a house with a large family, and the poor overworked mother who finally gets recognized and cherished in the end.

My apologies for the grainy image.  It was the only picture I could find.

*Baby Margaret Mary: My Journey to Birth by Gale Crush  Anne at Annery at Home recommends this one.  She wrote, "I really, truly love this book because it gives a way for siblings to be included on the baby's journey to birth. Baby Margaret Mary writes a letter each week telling what she's been up to, and it includes a verse from the bible each week as well. It's not necessarily a "getting ready for baby" book in the traditional sense, but it helps young ones visualize what is happening in utero, so when the baby shows up at the end of the journey, it's kind of like, "oh there you are, we've been waiting for you!"  This book will probably find a way into Jill's Easter basket or become one of her Mary birthday presents.

*Welcome With Love by Jenni Overend is by far the most detailed children's book about childbirth on this list.  Welcome With Love is specifically about a home-birth.  I cannot find a copy to review, but I did find a very in-depth review with photos of some of the more intimate pictures here.

*Angel in the Waters by Regina Doman is about a baby's development in utero.  The baby also has a relationship with her guardian angel.  My mother had this book on her nightstand back in the 90s, but I did not read it, or I don't remember doing so.  It's illustrated by Charlotte's CPF (close personal friend) Ben Hatke, so I might have to invest in this one too.

If I've missed anything or you have more and better suggestions, please, share your knowledge with me.

That pretty much sums up what Jill and I have (or haven't, remember I haven't read the starred ones) been reading.  I already told you what Patrick and Edmund were reading here.

So now it's your turn!

An InLinkz Link-up

What We're Reading Wednesday: Picture Books

I read about twenty thousand picture books a week to Jill.  Well, maybe I am exaggerating a little.  My library account shows that I have nearly 60 items checked out at this time.  Plus, I recently resurrected my vast collection of every Little Golden Book ever written to occupy lap time with Jill, because she is not going "night-night" (our word for nursing) anymore. Huzzah!  I am the only one who loathes the word, "weaning?"

Anywho, I read lots of picture books, many of which are perfectly lovely and delightful, but I am not really inspired to blog about most of them.  Here is one exception.

I am trying to teach Jill that there are other colors besides "peent." (pink)  Picture books about colors are ubiquitous but Edward Gibbs' I Spy with My Little Eye has to be hands down my favorite.  This oversized picture book combines color education with Jill's all-time favorite subject, ANIMALS!  Plus, every page has a hole in it, peeking at the next page, incorporating the next pages's illustation in a very cool way.  The end of the book has another hole for you to peek out of.  Jill uses it all the time and giggles like mad.  I love everything about this book, the illustrations, the colors, the peeky holes.  If you have a toddler, you will both enjoy this book.

I was asked a few weeks ago what Easter books would I recommend for the toddler set.  Honestly, I didn't know of anything besides the The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes by DuBose Heyward, and I'm not a huge fan of that book anyway.  So, I started investigating and I've found two books about Easter that Jill and I really like.

Rechenka's Eggs by Patricia Polacco is the story of Babushka, wounded goose she finds in the snow, and the magnificent painted eggs she brings to the fair in Moskva each year.  While not specifically about the Paschal mystery, the illustrations show wonderful reproductions of the icons that Babuska has in her home.

For me, the most important thing about a picture book is the pictures.  Jill doesn't let me read all of the text everytime anyway.  Patricia Polacco's books have FABULOUS pictures.

Just look at that close up of Babushka.  See how the rich watercolor clothing contrasts with the detailed pencil drawn skin.  Yes, that's a mole next to her nose.  Can you just feel her soft wrinkly hands?  This is Art.

I was first introduced to Patricia Polacco when Edmund's tutor recommended her autobiographical story, Thank You Mr. Falker, because like Edmund, Ms. Polacco is dyslexic too.

I am puzzled by one thing in Rechenka's Eggs though.  If you follow me on Pinterest, you might have noticed that I pinned Hearthsong's Ukrainian Egg Making Kit to make my own psyanky eggs this year.  My kit has arrived and I got every book from the library on the topic to educate myself.  According to my research, one does not "paint" the eggs as Babushka does in the story, but like the creation of an icon, one "writes" the eggs.  By coating the egg in beeswax designs and repeatedly dyeing it in stronger and stronger colors, you (and hopefully I) can make eggs that look like these.

The Jesus Garden:  An Easter Legend by Antoinette Bosco is published by some of great ladies over at the Daughters of St. Paul. The Jesus Garden is the story of the cross and the resurrection.  On Easter Sunday, Jesus appears in the garden and transforms some of the trees and flowers because of how they grieved for him during his Passion.  It's a neat story about the garden, and gives religious meanings to plants that I had not known about.  Jill just wants to look at the bunnies and squirrels, but maybe when she's older she'll let me read the whole thing to her.

Do you know of any eggsellent (sorry, I just couldn't help myself) children's books for/about Easter?  Share with us in the comments!

Last Year's Advent Post Recycled

Last year, I wrote a lengthy post about our Christmas books, secular and religious.

Rather than re-write that bad boy, I'm just going to link to it, again and again, and add a little post-script.

That's Not My Donkey by Fiona Watts never went in the tub or to the basement.  It stayed in action the whole year through.  Ask Baby J, "What does the donkey say?"  and she will reply, "Who-Hee."  It's a work in progress, but she looooves that book.

Also, I wrote about this book in my poetry post here, but I cannot say enough about Stopping By the Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost, illustrated by Susan Jeffers.  If you add one book to your winter library, this is the one to get.

In other news, my dear friends at the public library are probably muttering my name under the breath with other words that are not very nice because I went requested nearly every book that the other Jessica, at Shower of Roses has in her sidebar and in her St. Nicholas post that I didn't already own.  All or nothing.  The War Game book looks very promising.  I have to go clean off the holds shelf now or they may revoke my card.