Hi Everyone!

Time for another week’s round-up of fantastic picture books!

As you can tell by the age of the last few books I’ve reviewed, I am calling on my personal library for choices during this time when visits to the bookstore and local public library are impossible.  Luckily, I have so many gems! 😊

With Spring in the air, and Easter this weekend, it seems like a perfect time for a perfect picture book about eggs!  This book is an amazing example of how much story you can convey with only 125 words!

Title: Except If

Written & Illustrated By: Jim Averbeck

Atheneum Books For Young Readers, January 2011, fiction

Suitable For Ages: 2-8

Themes/Topics: imagination, potential, unexpected outcomes

Opening: “An egg is not a baby bird
but it will become one
except if
it becomes a baby snake.”

Brief Synopsis: From the Amazon book description: “In this young, clever, and whimsical picture book in the spirit of Not a Box and First the Egg, an egg is not just an egg, but a symbol of the potential a child’s imagination holds. As each image melds smoothly, but unexpectedly, into the next, readers are invited to stretch the limits of their imagination.”

 

Links To Resources: Chick Hatching Activity including video, craft, song, snack idea, and more! And to make it even more fun, you could let kids put whatever they want inside the egg – frog, turtle, snake, dinosaur, etc…!

Why I Like This Book: I love this book because the first time I read it it stretched my imagination!  I turned the pages wondering where would the author go next? How could he keep the surprises going? As a writer, it’s a great example of giving your imagination free rein and letting it take you to unexpected places, as well as how much story you can tell in very few words.  As a reader (child or adult 😊), it gives just enough hints to make you think you might know what comes next…only to discover it’s something else!  For teachers, it’s a great model of how you could encourage students to explore their own concepts/ideas in a story form in an unexpected way.  The book is deceptively simple, a fun read for youngest readers, but just as intriguing for older ones!

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 🙂

For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.

PPBF folks, please add your titles and post-specific links (and any other info you feel like filling out 🙂 ) to the form below so we can all come see what fabulous picture books you’ve chosen to share this week!

 

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!!!  Happy Passover and Happy Easter to those who celebrate! 🙂