A Plumfield Kids book review by Greta Masarik, age 13: Jenny by David Weitzman is a wonderful, fascinating book about the first mass-produced plane, the JN4D. The Jenny is a plane that every American and English pilot, including Amelia Earhart, learned to fly in.
Tag: picture books
Dahlia
A Plumfield Kids book review by Greta Masarik, age 13: Unlike some picture books about dolls, Dahlia is different. Where most books take the point of view of a girl who loves dolls, this book is from the point of view of a girl who strongly dislikes them.
A House Is a House for Me
I’m teaching literature this year in a program for homeschool kids. The most challenging group is the fourteen six-and-seven-year-olds. Reading levels in the group are so varied that I’m focusing on excellent picture books, and they are loving it. More than half of these kids were in last year’s five-year-old class, so I can’t rerun…
Lois Lenski’s “Small” and “Little” Books
I remember . . . The silence of the imposing building gives me chills. Maybe kids don’t really belong here. But look! In this room, everything is just the right size for me. Shelves are loaded with books, but I can reach all but the very top. Oh, my! Kid-sized tables with little round stools…
Pharaoh’s Boat
In September, we interviewed David Weitzman about this and others of his marvelous books. You can listen to that interview here. I seem to have vague memories of my brother James loving famed author and illustrator David Macaulay when we were growing up. Since my oldest was a baby, he has reminded me of James…
Little Old Bear
“Once upon a time there was a little old Teddy bear. He was so old that he had lost his fur and his eyes and he was not the handsome little bear he had once been. “The children he had played with had grown up and gone away, and so he lay in a dusty…
Patsy and the Pup
Patsy’s mother thinks almost five years old is too young to take care of a puppy. But one day, a sweet pup follows Patsy all the way home. Patsy hopes she can keep him. Unfortunately, the mailman knows the pup belongs to old Mrs. Murphy in the pink cottage on the hill. Mother sends Patsy…
Down Down the Mountain
“Never in their lives had Hetty or Hank had a pair of shoes . . . They each wanted a beautiful shining pair that sang, ‘Creaky–squeaky–creaky–squeaky,’ every time they walked.” It’s fun going barefoot in the summer, but in the winter snow, their feet get blue with cold. When they ask their mammy for shoes,…
We Were Tired of Living in a House
This delightful picture book had me laughing on the first page, before I read a single word! Who hasn’t seen this exact look on the face of a child who has absolutely “had it?” “So we packed a bag with sweaters and socks and scarves and mittens and woolen caps.” The cat and dog follow…
The Flying Hockey Stick
I have been a big fan of Jolly Roger Bradfield since reading Pickle-Chiffon Pie in 2017. That book and its sequel, The Pickle-Chiffon Pie Olympics (a Purple House Press exclusive), made me laugh myself silly. First, because of how funny they were and then, all over again, because of how hard my babies were laughing….
Benjamin Dilley’s Thirsty Camel
Benjamin Dilley’s Thirsty Camel is the fifth Jolly Roger Bradfield book I have read. And, like Giants, Pickle-Chiffon, Olympics, and Hockey Stick it has the same delightful illustration and the same child-pleasing storytelling. This one, however, has a slightly different tone and feel; equally lovely, but less laugh-out-loud funny, and more child-like. While the others…
Birdwatchers and Bird Feeders
Ever since I reviewed Who Lives In This Meadow? and After The Sun Goes Down, I have been watching the Purple House Press website, eagerly waiting for Bird Watchers and Bird Feeders by Glenn Blough to be available for purchase. I sincerely enjoyed the first two books, but I knew this one was going to…
Hanna’s Cold Winter
Hanna’s Cold Winter by Trish Marx has the most perfectly written cadence for reading aloud! I read this lovely 32-page picture book as part of Morning Basket with my fifteen, thirteen, and eleven-year-olds. I wasn’t worried at all about whether or not they would find it “too young” because I knew the story was stimulating…
More Frances the Badger Books by Russell Hoban
Bread and Jam for Frances is my favorite Frances the Badger book, but that may be because it was the first one I read. I love all the little songs she makes up about food. A Birthday for Frances, Best Friends for Frances, and A Bargain for Frances complete the Frances series. All six Frances…
Let’s Learn About Mushrooms
This book is a charming example of how to teach science to children with stories, pictures, and hands-on activities rather than textbooks. I know mushrooms are fungi, but I’ve never done much mushroom study, so they really are rather mysterious to me. One thing I appreciate about books like this is that they provide enough…