Color Blocked by Ashley Sorenson, illus. David Miles
Source: Hardcopy courtesy of Raincoast Books. Thank you!
Publication: April 4, 2017 by Familius
Book Description:
The color is blocked! Readers must rub, turn, and tap the pages to straighten out pipes, unplug corks, and keep the color flowing. But watch out – the color might run faster than you can keep up! Along the way, readers will learn primary colors, how mixing colors can make secondary colors, and why you should never, ever, put too much trust in a narrator.
If you ever use stories such as Press Here, Please, Open This Book!, A Perfectly Messed-Up Story, Tap the Magic Tree, or any kind of delightful, interactive picture book for a read aloud and/or storytime, then you might want to add Color Blocked to your list! This picture book, written by Ashley Sorenson and vibrantly illustrated by David Miles, is another fun, perfect-for-read-aloud picture book to add to your repertoire. Color Blocked works well as the storytelling approach is appropriately straightforward, allowing for the hands-on aspects of the story to really take center stage.
Readers are immediately taken into a colourful world when everything goes black and white! ‘Uh-oh. Color’s blocked!’; readers are then asked to ‘gently shake this book from side to side to unclog the pipe’. From there, we’re taken on a fun, hands-on journey (along with a committed turtle as our guide), as we try to unclog and untwist pipes- all the while learning about creating colours from mixing different shades. Color Blocked will work very well as a read aloud pick as the storytelling approach is appropriately straightforward, allowing for the hands-on aspects of the story to really take center stage. A truly fun book that I think will go over very well for preschool-age storytimes and up, Color Blocked is an unpretentious, enjoyable reading experience that begs to be shared and experienced with and by young readers.
Give Me Back My Book! by Travis Foster & Ethan Long
Source: Hardcopy courtesy of Raincoast Books. Thank you!
Publication: September 5, 2017 by Chronicle Books
Book Description:
This book is full of wonderful WORDS and beautiful PICTURES! And it’s EXCITING! And it’s FUNNY! It might be the BEST BOOK EVER-if we could decide whose book it is. Redd and Bloo explore the way a book is made and accidentally build a friendship, too, in this tale told only in dialogue. Travis Foster and Ethan Long offer a hilarious story about the joy of reading, which brings people together in unexpected ways, proving that each book truly belongs to . . . the people who love it.
If you are already familiar with Ethan Long’s zany and jolly approach to storytelling (Fright Club, Pig Has a Plan and numerous other popular titles!), then you might already be aware of the kind of story you might be getting here with Give Me Back My Book! Co-authored with illustrator Travis Foster, Give Me Back My Book! is a conversational-based picture book with a wacky, farcical edge.
Friends Redd and Bloo experience a bump in the relationship when Bloo discovers that Redd might have just taken his favourite green book. Alas, Redd, in a truly stubborn fashion that exasperates Bloo tremendously, refuses to give back the green book- until it is snatched away from them both by a sly, hat-wearing worm named Bookworm. Redd and Bloo then must come together to ‘bait’ Bookworm: by creating the most fascinating, captivating new book to make Bookworm return the stolen green book. Give Me Back My Book! relies, as Mo Willems’ Elephant & Piggie titles do, on speech bubbles/character dialogue to carry the entire story. While this format can be tricky, it actually works well here as the back-and-forth is pretty straightforward, clearly delineated- not to mention that the bright and funny illustrations more than perfectly highlight the key moments of the story! I have had the opportunity to read this story multiple times now, and I find that it grows on me more and more each time I read it. I think for an older, willing, and receptive storytime audience (Kindergarten-age, perhaps and above) might especially appreciate the farcical nature of the story; but it’s also wholly enjoyable as a story experienced in pairs or smaller groups! Altogether, a totally entertaining read from the team of Foster and Long that fans of authors such as Ed Vere, Mo Willems, Ame Dyckman, or Jan Thomas might flock to.
I received copies of these titles courtesy of Raincoast Books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions and comments are my own.
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