The Man With the Violin by Kathy Stinson and Dusan Petricic

Perhaps some of you might remember when a very famous violinist participated in a social study for the Washington Post? Joshua Bell, one of the best violinists in the world performed one of the hardest violin pieces ever in a DC transit system entryway for a day, and barely anyone stopped to listen, except a handful of people. Most of them were kids! This picture book is a retelling of that story. 

A very short youtube clip can be seen HERE of Bell and his violin piece. Something fun to do after you read The Man With the Violin by Kathy Stinson and Dusan Petricic would be to listen to the piece and see how the illustrator interpreted the scratchy scales and melodramatic, flowing parts of the song. The illustrations caught my eye as I was browsing through this book at the library, and I didn't even know it was a true story until we read it in full.

I remember reading about this years ago in the news, and thought what a fun tribute to the sweet children who wanted to listen to this beautiful art coming from Bell's bow. The theme being that children, although can not articulately tell high art from play doh, they do know when art is inspiring them to keep looking, keep listening, or keep 'figuring'. This is a great title and one I think can be used well in the class or at home for exploring how art makes more art!

Perfect Summer Read: Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran

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As lovers of children's literature, we all have our favorite authors, and our favorite illustrators. I happen to love Kate DiCamillo and will read anything she writes. I will also beg the library to get any book Melissa Sweet 'decorates' the pages of. My all time favorite illustrator, though, is Barbara Cooney.

I'm not much of a collector. Sure I have a stash of yarn, and a large glass jar of washi tape, but aside from those two collections, I mostly just amass classic children's picture books. In recent years I've slowed that down, because I have a bookshelf full (and once something comes in, something else has to go out!), but have really just started honing in on a few of my very favorites. Barbara Cooney's books have found that precious real estate, and I try to collect a few every year. If I find one at the thrift store I don't currently own, I feel like I've struck gold. If, over the past year I didn't really find any, I'll order a few off amazon. Usually they're a penny a piece plus shipping, but if I can't find any for a reasonable price, I'll just buy them on prime for regular price. I think I've only had to do that once.

Roxaboxen might just be my favorite Cooney work. I think this is because not only do her illustrations shine, reflecting the simple nostalgia that a well-worn childhood exudes, but because the story that Alice McLerran wrote feels so personal and universal, and it matches the author's story so well.

The story of Roxaboxen is based on a true place. A dusty corner in the South West, it was a mound of dirt just waiting to be explored by the local children of the small town. At all different ages, the children played together to create a world that they dominated in the form of a town, a jail, a backdrop for large weeks-long games, stores, and homes. A place where children could be children, unfettered by rules, they created their own devices from the objects found in 'Roxaboxen', like old wooden crates, broken glass, stones, sticks, and spindly bushes.

It reminds me of my own childhood 'hideout'. My neighbor friends and I had a magical childhood filled with freedom, bikes roaming the neighborhood, and sack lunches; hours spent outside playing. The setting of Roxaboxen is perhaps 50 years before that, based on how the children are dressing, and the outline of faint houses found within the illustrations, but the story is nonetheless relevant to now. Kids need places where they can play, make up their own rules, create their own toys, and figure out how life works with one another, manipulating a place all for themselves.

It's such a beautiful story of childhood. It's perfect summer reading. Once you're done, go out and play!

Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade by Melissa Sweet

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I often get book recommendations on my facebook page, and I'm so grateful for the opportunity to find another great children's book at my local library. This recommendation, Balloons Over Broadway, is from our very own Maria. She knows my son loves and is drawn to anything 'mechanical' in nature, and this book captured his attention and imagination. Thanks, Maria! This book did not disappoint. 

I knew I'd love this book from the cover because true-stories always inspire me, and there aren't that many by way of children's titles. When I opened up the hard cover, I was immediately in love. Ever since I was a kid I have had a love with multimedia illustrations. This book is chock-full of them, and the artwork meshes wonderfully with the subject matter. I hope the artist, Melissa Sweet, gets another Caldecott Honor or Medal for this brilliant piece of work. 

Balloons Over Broadway is the true story of a puppeteer named Tony Sarg who created simple machines to finish chores, marionettes to give children and adults alike joy and wonder, and finally, puppets with mechanical underbellies including cogs, gears, and pulleys. He became well known for his artistry and was given an opportunity of a lifetime: to create a "Wondertown" for Macy's department store in New York City. The book doesn't mention if the infamous Macy's Christmas window displays were already in demand, or if Sarg was the first creator of the magical scenes, but his Wondertown was decked out with puppets and storybook characters that mechanically moved. 

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To let Sweet tell us the story in her own words, "[But] Macy's had an even bigger job in store for Tony. Many of the people working at Macy's were immigrants, and as the holidays approached, they missed their own holiday traditions of music and dancing in the streets. Macy's agreed to put on a parade for their employees, and they hired Tony to help." 

The story continues of Tony's trial and error with balloon size and material, filler, and mechanical workings, finally settling on the floats we know today in the annual Macy's Parade! Within the story are photographs of metal tools, toys, fabric scraps, buttons; illustrations on graph paper as Tony worked out the math, puppet stills, (like above), and bits and bops that make books like this so darn interesting to look through. Well done, Ms. Sweet. Balloons Over Broadway is simply fantastic.

The Inside Outside Book of Libraries by Roxie Munro

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It should be no secret that voracious readers love their local library. This book, The Inside-Outside Book of Libraries by Roxie Munro shows the child different libraries around the United States. This non-fiction, picture book is a collection of various types of libraries, what state and city they are in, and gives a description of why that library is a necessity to its patrons. 

I really enjoyed reading this to my children. I learned a lot about a few of the libraries I'd never heard of before, including the Andrew Heiskell Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, which is in New York City. This spread included a passage in brail, which my children enjoyed learning about.  

I also loved seeing a tool library (yes, you read that right!) called The Tool Lending Library in California. My husband and I had thought of this idea a few years ago and wanted it to be a home/garden co-op, but other than a few members, it never got off the ground. I now know there are actually these types of places in existence, where you can borrow any type of tool for 3 days before returning it. 

The illustrations in this book, by Julie Cummins, are detailed and muted in color. There are two two-page spreads describing and showing each library. The first spread is about the outside of the library, while the second is what the library looks like on the inside (hence the title). As an avid library enthusiast, I am a fan of any kind of library: small and specialized or large and unique. I would happily recommend this book to others, especially in mid-April, when National Library Week is celebrated. Happy reading!