Dahlia

Bibliography
McClintock, Barbara. 2002. Dahlia. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN: 9780374316785.

Plot Summary
Charlotte receives a doll as a gift from her Aunt Edme. Charlotte is not a typical girl who plays with dolls so she hates her new doll at first. But soon Charlotte realizes that her doll that she named, Dahlia, doesn’t mind digging in the dirt, climbing trees, and racing on the wagon with boys. Charlotte and Dahlia become very good friends.

Critical Analysis
Girls who like to pretend play will love Dahlia. Charlotte is a tom boyish girl who likes play her bear and does things that boys would usually do. She likes the way she is and does not want to change herself for her new doll. Charlotte’s new doll, Dahlia, is well dressed in linen, lace, and delicate silk ribbons. Charlotte takes her pretty doll on her adventurous day and soon Dahlia winds up looking just like Charlotte – dirty, untidy, and her hair tangled in knots. Charlotte’s Aunt Edme admits to her that she bought the doll as she thought the doll needed some sunshine, somebody to play with, and to be loved.

Little girls will love this story as they can identify with Charlotte who believes her toys are real and plays and treats them like real people. Bruno the bear and Dahlia, the doll have become Charlotte’s best friends and she treats them with love and plays with them just like she would with her real friends. The illustrations with pencil drawing and soft pastel colors are very detailed. Each and every page has beautiful pictures that show the expressions of the characters and fine details of the surroundings. Dahlia’s room has no toys and dolls instead they have bird nests, shells, mushrooms, plants, and even a little snake. These illustrations show that Charlotte is not a typical girl. The story has an old fashioned European era setting giving the story a classic look and feel.

Dahlia is a very sweet story with lovable characters.

Move Over, Rover!

Bibliography
Beaumont, Karen. 2006. Move Over, Rover! Illustrated by Jane Dyer. Harcourt, Inc. ISBN: 9780152019792.

Plot Summary
One fine day Rover is all alone and has nobody to play with. But suddenly it starts raining and all the animals who are trying to stay warm in the storm want to squeeze into Rover’s doghouse. Does Rover really want all this company now?

Critical Analysis
Move Over, Rover! is a very delightful read aloud book for young readers. The repetitive text is easily comprehendible by little children. Children usually like books where they know what phrases are going to be repeated so that they can say it aloud with the reader. As the children read the book they will be curious to know what happens next. Children will also enjoy the unexpected ending. The watercolor and acrylic illustrations are lively, colorful, and beautiful. The fall colors, the storm, the different animals have been illustrated very nicely in the book. The text and illustrations blend very smoothly to tell an enjoyable story.

This is book children will not put down and want to read over and over again. This book is an excellent choice for children's storytimes.

Review Excerpts
Children’s Literature – Kids will enjoy reading along the rhymes that accompany each animal’s entrance (2006).

School Library Journal - The marvelously textured watercolor-and-acrylic illustrations convey the feeling of a driving rain, the fur and feathers of the various creatures, and the joy of Rover when his house is once again his sole domain (Tamara E. Richman, 2006).

I Am Not Sleepy and I Will Not Go to Bed

Bibliography
Child, Lauren. 2001. I Am Not Sleepy And I will Not Go To Bed. Massachusetts: Candlewick Press. ISBN: 9780763615703

Plot Summary
Big brother, Charlie, has to put Lola to bed, which according to him is one of the hardest things his parents ask him to do sometime. Lola has crazy imaginations and finds excuses not to go to bed. First she sees tigers at the table waiting for their bedtime drink, then she sees a lion brushing his teeth, then she imagines a whale in the bathtub, she wants Charlie to talk to the two dogs, and finally she sees a hippopotamus in Charlie’s bed. Will she ever go to bed?

Critical Analysis
Lauren Child has written and illustrated a perfect bed time story. Children are sure to giggle as they read this book as they read the funny sequences between Charlie and Lola. The title is in bold letters and words like “NOT Sleepy” “Not…Bed” are even larger highlighting the strong and stubborn tone in Lola’s voice. The illustrations are very eye catching with a mixture of pencil drawing, crayon coloring, and real pictures. The large sized pictures enhance the story’s plot. The characters of imaginative, curios, stubborn, and playful Lola and a patient brother have been drawn and told very well.

Review Excerpts
Booklist – Young ones will enjoy this exuberant, hilarious spin on the bedtime story
(Gillian Engberg, 08/01/2001).

Kirkus Reviews – Charlie and Lola’s expressive body language and facial features will be easily recognized by all. An inventive, entertaining bedtime tale. (08/01/2001).

Los Gatos Black on Halloween

Bibliography
Montes, Maria. 2006. Los Gatos Black on Halloween. Illustrated by Yuyi Morales. New York: Henry Holt and Company, LLC.

Plot Summary
The story describes a scary Halloween night scene where things we dread become real. On halloween night monsters are having a ball in the haunted house. Black cats, witches, skeleton, wolf’s, ghosts, and even the dead rise from their tombs to attend the ball only to be scared by little kids that are trick-or-treating on Halloween.

Critical Analysis
This picture book’s illustrator, Yuyi Morales has rightfully been awarded the 2008 Pura Belpre Illustrator Award. The illustrations depict the spookiness of the dark Halloween night very well. The illustrations look very real and scary. The pictures have been drawn with utmost details like the glowing eyes of the black cats, the wicked eyes carved on the pumpkins, the broken neck of the old lady’s ghost, the pointed branches on the trees that look like hands and fingers etc. Although the illustrations draw the spookiness of Halloween very well, the realism can be frightening to little children.

The rhyming and poetic text makes this a great read aloud book. Children will enjoy the surprise ending where the Halloween characters are actually horrified by the children who come for treats on Halloween. The book is more appropriate for children who are able to understand the humor behind Halloween.

My Librarian is a Camel

Bibliography
Ruurs, Margriet. 2005. My Librarian is a Camel: How Books are Brought to Children Around the World. Pennsylvania: Boyd Mills Press. ISBN: 978159078930.

Plot Summary
The book is a photo essay of librarians and volunteers efforts to take books to children in remote areas of the world. Margaret Ruurs contacted librarians in 13 different countries and collected pictures and stories of how they deliver books to children that are enthusiastic to read. The book tells the story of these dedicated librarians who have become creative and have used camels, elephants, and boats to deliver books to needy children.

Critical Analysis
My Librarian is Camel by Margriet Ruurs is an inspiring book that shows the zeal of librarians to take books to the children that do not have easy access to books. In Australia books are delivered by solar-powered trucks. In Canada a Borrower-by-Mail program enables children in far north to receive books in mail. In Finland a book boat delivers books to children. In Kenya camels bring books to children in remote villages. The book is enriched with these and other amazing stories about mobile libraries around the world. The book also provides a small map and a little fact sheet about each country.

Children who take school and public library collections for granted will learn a lot about how books are made available to children in hard to reach places in the world. Students will appreciate the books they have and see how children in remote places eagerly wait to access these books.

The Tale of Peter Rabbit

Bibliography
Potter, Beatrix. 2002. The Tale of Peter Rabbit. London, England: Penguin Books Ltd. ISBN: 9780723247708

Plot Summary
Peter Rabbit is the naughtiest of the four siblings. One morning, Peter Rabbit ventures into Mr.McGregor’s garden inspite of his mother’s strict warning not to go there. Peter Rabbit is spotted by Mr.McGregor and is chased all over the garden. Peter Rabbit finally escapes, but he is frightened and tired from being chased by Mr.McGregor.

Critical Analysis
The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter is a remarkable classic. Each page has a neat illustration to go with the text which does the job of telling the story very nicely. The text is simple and easy to understand for beginner readers. The small sized book is comfortable to hold for little children. Children will relate to the story as they do things that their mother warns them against. Children will also learn the consequences of not listening to their mother, but at the same time the story is not trying to teach right or wrong behavior.

The story Peter Rabbit’s mother tells children about their father is a little odd and can raise many questions amongst children reading the book.

At the end of the story Peter Rabbit’s mother notices that Peter Rabbit has lost a second pair of shirt and shoe in a fortnight. This will allow the children to imagine what had happened when Peter Rabbit lost his things the first time. Children will also know that Peter Rabbit is always getting into trouble.

About this Blog

I am a Master of Library Science student at Texas Women's Unviersity (TWU). This blog is part of an required assignment in the Children's Literature course I am currently taking at TWU. I will be posting reviews on the children's books I read. This is a learning process for me and I am excited about this venture of online blogging. I hope you will find my work interesting.