So, I’m meeting Jon Klassen today….again.
I met him at Hicklebee’s last year for Extra Yarn,
and over the summer at the SCBWI LA conference.
I love his books.
And I’m glad to be hearing him talk again.
So today I’m doing one of the books he illustrated.
Check it out!
Title: House Held Up By Trees
Published by: Candlewick Press, 2012
Written by: Ted Kooser
Illustrated by: Jon Klassen
In one word: Hopeful. (ok, you may not think so, but from the POV of the house?)
In one sentence: A little house, around which trees are NOT allowed to grow, gets embraced by them in its later life.
Favorite pages:
Likes:
- the sentences are long and poetic
- the main character is a house
- the illustrations are from so many different angles
- Love the textured look of the illustrations too!
- the story is unique and simple and, no pun intending, sort of uplifting 🙂
- it just seems magical, but in a kind of magic-that-could-really-happen-way
Learns:
- there are many ways to illustrate a house
- A house can be a main character as long as interesting things are going on around it
- Go with your story, even if the two main characters are a house and some trees.
- So much can be added through illustrations (I like the red chairs in this one…)
ok, maybe tomorrow I’ll do his new book,
“This is not my hat”
I should right?
Well, if not tomorrow, at least before Friday.
What did everyone else read today?
Let’s look at the bookshelf now:
p.s. Email me your address people,(yeah, everyone who’s been reading along!)
so you can get the rockstar postcard print!
Donna and Marcie, options for your little notebooks are coming tomorrow!
Enthusiastically yours!
Kathy Ellen and Singe Singe
You have inspired me to sit down today and read I WANT MY HAT BACK by Jon Klassen. This book cracks me up. The voices of the bear and other animals are so hilarious. Especially when they are guilt-ridden. I love how the bear is so polite and always says “Thank you anyway” when the animals cannot help him. I also love how he offers to help the turtle climb the rock. And then I LOVE LOVE LOVE the moment when he realizes “I HAVE SEEN MY HAT” and runs passed all of the animals to get back to the theiving rabbit. And then the classic stare down between Bear and Rabbit. Soooo funny!
I blogged awhile back about this book. I know some people were not thrilled with the ending. But it evokes for me a Grimm-like quality.
All Picture Books should be fun to read aloud…and this one certainly is!
Has anyone read the sequel THIS IS NOT MY HAT?
I love I want my hat back.
I have a video of Jon reading it when he came to Hicklebee’s.
The stare down is AWESOME!
“This is not my hat” is coming tomorrow!
Great book, Kathy! I don’t know many of his works…so I’m glad you are spotlighting them.
By the way…congrats to the winners! Just taking part in your challenge is a great prize, Kathy. 🙂
Today I read “The Very Fairy Princess: Here Comes the Flower Girl”. I was the VERY lucky winner of Emma Walton Hamilton’s Just Write for Kids picture book writing course that was one of the prizes in Julie Hedlund’s 12×12 Cornucopia of Prizes…and so I thought I would read some of the picture books she has done with her mom, Julie Andrews. It’s a book that will appeal to any little girl who has a princess heart. The illustrations are engaging. The mc loves to spread happiness and ‘sparkle’…she learns about compromise and what makes others happy as she helps celebrate her aunt’s wedding day.
I’ve already printed out the lesson one materials…I plan to start the course this weekend!
Sounds good…I really like fun princess books.
Hope you are having fun with the course too!
I would if I could find the time to read the materials. 🙂 I’m off the next two days…I plan to do the week 1 lessons. 🙂
I read OTTO THE BOOK BEAR by Katie Cleminson (2011) today. Otto lives in a book but when his family moves, he’s left behind. He leaves the book and the house and strikes out on his own. Life is hard for a tiny book bear in the big city. I won’t say anymore so you can see how Otto manages yourself.
At 312 words, this book is short and sweet. The illos are simple and often funny, adding in detail where the text is sparse.
I like this book a lot.
I also like “House Held Up By Trees” although I’ve only ever seen bits of it and even more today. Thanks, Kathy. I need to see it in full one of these days.
I like Katie Cleminson..she has a good one called The magic box I think…I’ve heard of Otto. You’re making me want to read it!
(goes over to library website and sees if they have it…)
I really liked HOUSE HELD UP BY TREES when I read it to my children. I liked how soft the book wass. So many books today are loud, not that I am complaining, because I love to get loud when I read, but this book was a great change of pace from what we were used to.
Today we read THE LITTLE OLD LADY WHO WAS NOT AFRAID OF ANYTHING by Linda Williams. My boys loved this book. The repeated text allowed them to contribute to the reading of the story. Lots of fun!
I love repeated text in picture books.
I love the pace of House held up by Trees too. Glad you enjoyed reading it.
Today I re-read a book that I have loved for years, KNOTS ON A COUNTING ROPE by Bill Martin Jr, and John Archambault, illustrated by Ted Rand (who did the wonderful illustrations for the book I read yesterday). This book ranks as one of my favorite picture books of all time. It is written as a simple fireside dialogue between a boy and his grandson, Native Americans in what looks to be possibly Arizona (Sedona kind of terrain). Although a seemingly simple conversation, it has great depth, as the boy asks “Tell me the story again, Grandfather. Tell me who I am.” As the Grandfather tells the story, we learn of all that the boy has faced in his young life, being born during a storm, being weak as a child — and growing up blind. We also learn that the boy has deep-down strength. It is moving, and inspiring to read. As I read it, I literally could hear the low, aging voice of the Grandfather, and the young, eager voice of the Boy. This one will be a Perfect Picture Book pick for me in November. Watch for it!
I like this book a lot…I think I owned it once?
I think I have to get in on the Perfect Picture Book thing…it sounds amazing!
Definitely join us for Perfect Picture Book Friday — it’s a great way to share books and activities. You’ll love it!
My son & I reread “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” by Judith Viorst as an example of a journal-like book because my son is learning in writing to journal about his day and feelings. (We homeschool.) This is considered a classic pb, published in 1972. What makes these books timeless? I hope I can write a timeless pb!
That book is SO timeless.
I think it’s the theme.
We ALL HAVE BAD DAYS.
And we like to complain about it, too 🙂
Hope your son’s journal is going along well!
I had to keep one as a kid and didn’t like doing it (my mom kind of told me what I should write) but now i keep one RELIGIOUSLY…and I did write a lot of other stuff when I was a kid too, so I guess it was good.
It was fun to find out how I felt about things when I was 6!
Today I read “Just Like My Dad” – http://melissawrites.com.au/2012/10/31-picture-books-just-like-my-dad/ 🙂
Awesome!
HOUSE HELD UP BY TREES is such a beauty, isn’t it? My brother gave it to me for my birthday.
I actually read THIS IS NOT MY HAT for my book! It is my FAVORITE picture book of the year. I laughed out loud throughout it. I love how Jon can portray the expressiveness of the fish with minor adjustments. (Those first few spreads with the big fish are priceless. The dude’s got skill.) And I love how the text contradicts what’s happening in the illustrations. And I love his use of white space (or lack thereof) to reveal the ending. Heck, I just love the simple beauty of the illustrations.
Yep. I’m crazy about that book.
You are crazy about this book, aren’t you? 🙂
And picture books for your birthday! JEALOUS!
I need to start asking for those.
I LOVE THE BIG FISH too.
You’ll see tomorrow!
I. Am. It’s true. 🙂 (And I loved your post.)
Hi Kathy!
My computer is still hit and miss. My book for today was Prudence and Moxie by author Deborah Noyes and illustrated by Anna Laura Cantone. Prudence and Moxie are best friends but very different. Prudence is quiet and shy. Moxie is loud and quick to take a dare. Prudence doesn’t understand why Moxie refuses to visit her horse, Thunder, until she realizes her brave friend is scared of horses. This story is about friendships, being different, and working together to overcome a fear. Very cute!
Donna L Martin
http://www.donnalmartin.com
http://www.donasdays.blogspot.com