Category: story comparisons
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Learning to Love Books
The cover art for Madeline Finn and the Library Dog by Lisa Papp (2016) previews what’s inside the book. This is a gentle story about a child who struggles with reading. Madeline wants to read, but she doesn’t like to read because it’s difficult. She wants to earn stars for reading like her peers do.…
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Stone Soup Served Three Ways
Stone Soup by Ann McGovern (1968) has illustrations copyrighted in 1986 by Winslow Pinney Pels. (That’s a cute reversal of numbers: 68 and 86) The cover shows only a little old lady and a young adult. The younger one is barefoot. One foot is wearing a bandage. This story begins with a young man walking…
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The House that Jack Built – Illustration Matters
In The House That Jack Built (1954, 1982), every character is smiling, except a few chickens, the rat, and the dog. I’m referring to a Little Golden Book Classic. This book is a happy-go-lucky rendition of that familiar story in the public domain. With blueprints in hand, Jack builds a small house. As he stands on a ladder to…
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Let’s Support Human Creativity
Rosa Bonheur wants to be an artist. Tomie dePaola wants to be an artist. Allen Say wants to be an artist. Each one embraces their aloneness and pursues a path that is different from their peers. In The Art Lesson, Tommy wants to be an artist when he grows up, so he “drew and drew…
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Rabbits Learn to Share
If You Plant a Seed by Kadin Nelson (2015) is a beautiful book illustrated with lovely paintings. The cover is a close-up of a rabbit and a mouse that radiates light and color. It appears they’ve collaborated to plant something. They gaze at a young seedling that’s emerging from rich brown soil. We can infer…
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Where – or Who – is Mom?
I came across The Overeager Egg by Milja Praagman (2022) at the bookstore and took a peek. The overeager egg is one that tumbles out of its nest, hits a rock, and partially hatches. When it sees other creatures it asks, “Are you my mommy?” A swan at the end of the story has found…
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Walls
The Wall by Eve Bunting (1990) is an emotionally powerful story. A young child and his father search for a name on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. “The wall is black and shiny as a mirror. In it I can see Dad and me. I can see the bare trees behind us and the dark, flying…
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Flood Disasters
How does an author appeal to a young reader when the topic is about the volatile earth? Two picture books that came my way took care to soften the brutal reality of such trauma. Selvakumar Knew Better by Virginia Kroll (2006) tells the story of the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004 by featuring a family’s…
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Deja Vu All Over Again
The Good~Bye Book by Judith Viorst and illustrated by Kay Chorao (1988) gave me a sense of déjà vu. It reminded me of Don’t Forget to Come Back by Robie H. Harris and illustrated by Harry Bliss (2004). And for the third time, I find two books that are similar, but not the same. Both…
Books Too 