So, in my mind I had this plan that I was going to post a Perfect Picture Book (on time!) today.
In reality, I am spending my days helping out with my new granddaughter.
“Helping out” (in case you’re unfamiliar with the term) in addition to actually helping out with baby care and laundry and grocery shopping etc. involves a lot of gazing at the baby and looking at each other and saying, “Isn’t she perfect?” and “Can you believe how perfect she is?”
SO…. not a lot of non-baby related work getting done around here at the moment! 😊
So instead of sharing a new book on time, I am sharing an old book late 😊
I chose Little Tiger because Charlotte, having been born in the Year of the Tiger, is a little tiger, and because I love this whole series by Julie Abery – perfect little books for youngest readers!
Title: Little Tiger
Written By: Julie Abery
Illustrated By: Suzie Mason
Amicus Ink, March 12 2019, fiction
Suitable For Ages: 3-5
Themes/Topics: baby jungle adventure, mother/child love, language fun (rhyme)
Opening: “Little Tiger waking, shaking, in the morning sun.”
Brief Synopsis: a “day-in-the-life” adventure in which Little Tiger romps and plays and experiments… but mama is always close by to watch over and keep him safe.
Links To Resources: Special Resource straight from the author!!!
Hi Susanna.
Thank you so much for inviting Little Tiger to Blueberry Hill. We have been looking forward to visiting you on Perfect Picture Book Friday for such a long time!
We are so happy that you and your granddaughters loved our book sooo much! How about a little painting fun to go with the book.
Little Tiger handprints…
TIGER-ific!
Fun and easy to make, just don’t forget to have a bowl of soapy water to wash those paint-covered hands.
We hope that you enjoyed the Little Tiger craft time.
Thank you so much for taking time to stop by and share these wonderful activities with us, Julie!!!
Why I Like This Books: the story is sweet, engaging, and accessible to youngest readers/listeners. The rhyme is fun to read aloud, with perfect rhythm and fun internal rhyme as well as end-of-line-rhyme. The story lets us play and explore along with the baby animal, always feeling the safety of mama’s watchful eye and the warmth of her love. A lovely, gentle read, perfect for bedtime or any time!!!
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!
I know someone in your house probably snagged the last Poptart and you’re stuck eating All-Bran for breakfast. . .on a frigid Monday morning. . .in the snow!
But.
BUT!
I am about to cast a ray of sunshine into your freezing, snowy, All-Bran-y, Monday morning!
Yes!
It’s true!
Here comes sunshine and heart-warming happiness because I am going to SING YOU A SONG! 🎶🎵🎶
🎶How much are those Poptarts in the window, So sugary sweet and divine? I’m brave, but not brave enough to offer All-Bran to my sweet Valentine!🎶
No?
Ok, how about
🎶Oh, my darling, Oh, my darling, Oh, my darling, Valentine! I will give you all my Poptarts If you promise to be mine!🎶
Oh no, wait! I’ve got it!
🎶I’m a little Poptart filled with jam Some say I’m sweet and it’s true! I am! But my Valentiny also true – No one else is sweet as you!🎶
I don’t know what’s happening here.
Apparently someone (who is not a good singer) has Poptarts on the brain.
Who could that be?
But never mind, because GUESS WHAT?
It’s time to announce the WINNERS of
The6thAnnualValentinyWritingContest
~forchildren’swriters~
First of all, I want to thank EVERYONE who took the time and care to write an entry for this contest. You all did a fabulous job and provided great enjoyment for so many! As always, I was thrilled to see so many wonderful stories! It is amazing and inspiring, not to mention VERY entertaining! There is just so much talent out there amongst you all! The other judges and I are blown away anew each time!
Second, I’d also like to thank EVERYONE – writer, reader, or both – who took the time to go around and read as many entries as you could and leave supportive comments. This means so much to the writers who worked hard on their stories. It helps them see what they did well, as well as giving them the joy of knowing that their stories were read and enjoyed. I hope you all got as much delight and entertainment out of the reading as I did! Plus, we got to meet quite a few new people which was a wonderful added bonus! 🙂
Third, I want to say again how difficult it was too choose! There were so many amazing entries. Really. I could find at least something terrific about every single one. The sheer volume of entries meant that many good ones had to be cut. We chose 14 finalists, and around 35 Honorable Mentions which we also loved, and even with those 49 total there were over 200 entries we couldn’t list! So if yours didn’t make the final cut please don’t feel bad. You’re in good company! There was a huge amount of competition. Judging, no matter how hard we try to be objective, is always subjective at a certain point – we all have our own preferences for what makes a great story. And the fact that you didn’t make the final cut DOES NOT mean you didn’t write a great story. Everyone who plonked their butt in a chair and worked hard to write a story for this contest is a winner! You showed up. You did your best work. You practiced your craft. You wrote to specifications and a deadline. You bravely shared your writing with the world. And you have a brand new story that is now yours to expand beyond 214 words if you like and maybe submit at some point to a magazine or as a PB manuscript. So bravo to everyone who entered!
Because it was such a hard choice, and there were so many wonderful stories, before we get to the winners, my assistant judges and I would like to award bragging rights, recognition and a small prize to the following authors for the following merits:
1.ForHonorable Mention In The Competition As A Whole: (entries we truly wrestled with not including in the finalists!)
Elizabeth Volkmann for Class List
Melissa Trempe for The Most Terrible, Awful, Icky Valentine Ever
David McMullin for Brave Brave Brave (also funny 😊)
Laken Slate for The Brave Little Conversation Heart
M.R. Haqq for Soon
Mia Geiger for Peanut’s Brave Valentine’s Day
Ashlee Hashman for The Wildflower
Lindsey Hobson for U R Brave
Audrey Day-Williams for Legendary Valentine
Sara Ackerman for Arrrrr Is For Valentine
Amy Leskowski for A One-of-a-Kind, Just-in-Case, Not-at-All-Pink Valentine’s Day
Donna Kurtz for The Owl and the Kitty-Kat
2. For Great Kid Appeal: (not already mentioned in the finals or other categories)
Una Belle Townsend for Six Secret Valentines
Jan Suhr for The Lost Valentine
Kaylee Gwarjanski for Mission: Cancel Cupid Call
Gregory E. Bray for A Valentine’s Day Quest in the Land of Moore
Elizabeth Muster for W-R-I-T-E For Each Other
3. For Original POV:
Molly Ippolito for Cardamom’s Courage (POV of cardamom)
Rozana Rajkumari for Lemon-Tine (POV of a lemon)
4. For Humor:
Kelly Conroy for The Monster’s Valentine Buffet (dark 😊)
Catherine J Lee for The Valentine on My Shoe
Karyn Curtis for The Valentine’s Quest
Tracy Curran for The Wibbler (also great POV – jelly!)
5. ForWell-Written, Fun Story With Great Sibling Interaction:
Brenda Whitehead for Step-Brother Battle
Shannon Howarth Nelson for Super Brothers
Danielle S. Hammelef for Scaredy-Cat
6. ForBeautiful Writing:
Ciara N M Greenwalt for The Gift Tree
Sandhya Acharya for Sarla Asks A Question
Jyoti Rajan Gopal for A Cocoon of Love
Amy Flynn for Tilly’s Great Big Heart
7. For Best Short Valentiny Story:
P. J. Purtee for A Simple Valentine
8. For Sweet Valentiny:
Kelly Swemba for Brave For Gigi
Anne Bromley for Caleb’s Heart
Carmen Castillo Gilbert for Roses From Valentina
9. Best Story From A Young Writer:
Sophia Zafra for Bravery Is From The Heart
Congratulations to all of you for fantastic elements of your stories! You may all email me at susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com subject line Prize Winner to collect your award badge and prize, which is five dollars in a format that can be emailed for you to put toward something you’d like at a large online store (and I’m being cryptic because when I did this for Halloweensie I got a ton of problematic spam mail because of the way I worded the post, but hopefully you can figure it out. The store starts with the letter A 😊) I know it’s not much, but hopefully it will come in handy for something!
And now…
…the moment you’ve all been waiting for…
The announcement of the WINNERS OF THE 2021 VALENTINY CONTEST as voted on by you, our devoted readers!!!
rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat-rat-a-tat
DDDRRRUUUMMM RRROOOLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!
In First Place…
Winner of the whole shebang…
who gets first choice of all the prizes…
Sarah McDermott for Lemur in Love!!!
Congratulations, Sarah! We had such fun reading this aloud! Terrific job 😊
In Second Place
Sarah Meade for Jana’s Valentine Visit
Congratulations, Sarah! So believable! You get to pick your prize after Sarah.
In Third Place
Nancy Derey Riley for Percy’s Valentine
Congratulations, Nancy! What a perfectly rhymed and timely story! You get to pick your prize after Sarah and Sarah.
In Fourth Place…
Jessica Hinrichs for Valentine’s Gotcha Day
Congratulations, Jessica! So sweet! You get to pick your prize after Sarah, Sarah, and Nancy!
In Fifth Place…
Carrie Boone for The Ballad of Bad Bart
Congratulations, Carrie! What a Valentine bargain! You get to pick after Sarah, Sarah, Nancy, and Jessica!
In Sixth Place...
Nicole Loos Miller for Stella & Hank
Congratulations, Nicole! You must have a cat and a dog to write them so well! I’m sure you get the idea of how the prize picking goes by now 😊
In Seventh Place…
Paul Kurtz for Someone Special!
Congratulations, Paul! You made us laugh You get to pick next 😊
In Eighth Place…
Chambrae Griffith for Octopus Hugs
Congratulations, Chambrae! Happy ending for shark 😊 You get to pick after Paul 😊
In Ninth Place…
Janie Reinart for Untangled Valentines
Congratulations, Janie! So beautifully written! You get to pick after Chambrae!
In Tenth Place…
Anne Lipton for Most Valuable Valentine
Congratulations, Anne! You did a masterful job of turning history and racial justice into a Valentiny story! And in rhyme! You get to pick after Janie!
In Eleventh Place…
Katie Brandyberry for Valentine Delivery
Congratulations, Katie! We could just see the picture book your little mail truck would make! You get to pick after Anne 😊
In Twelfth Place…
Lauri C. Meyers for Charmadillo
Congratulations, Lauri! You had us at the title! And we laughed at the ending 😊 You get to pick your prize after Katie.
In Thirteenth Place…
Judy Sobanski for Brave Little Friends
Congratulations, Judy! Little Racoon was certainly very brave! 😊 You get to pick after Lauri!
In Fourteenth Place…
Samantha Haas for Valentine’s Day Rocks
Congratulations, Samantha! We loved Marjorie for her kindness and understanding, and Roger for bravely (and intelligently) coming up with valentines that worked for him!
All the winners should email me at susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com with the subject heading Prize Winner so we can work out details for you to receive your prizes! (The sooner the better!) And for your convenience, the whole prize list is included at the bottom of this post.
Congratulations again to all our winners – it was a stiff competition!! – and congratulations to EVERYONE who wrote and entered a story in the contest. You all deserve a huge round of applause and a gigantic chocolate heart… or lots of little chocolate hearts… or both… really, you can never have too much chocolate 😊 . (Or, can I interest you in a Poptart? Maybe a chocolate Poptart… 😊 )
Thank you to everyone who helped make this contest SO MUCH FUN, whether by writing an entry, reading people’s stories, leaving comments for the authors, and/or voting in the finals. It’s because of all of you that this contest was such a success, so many, many thanks from the bottom of my heart!
– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction) from Becky Scharnhorst, author of the forthcoming MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Philomel Books, July 6, 2021)
– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction, fewer than 800 words) from Rebecca Kraft Rector, author of SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED (Nancy Paulsen Books, February 16, 2021) (which means it’s coming out in the middle of our contest!😊) and the forthcoming LITTLE RED (Aladdin, Simon & Schuster, Spring 2022) and TRIA AND THE GREAT STAR RESCUE (Delacorte/Random House)
A Picture Book Manuscript Critique by gifted author and former Holiday Contest prize winner, Jenna Waldman, author of the forthcoming Larry’s Latkes (October 2021) (originally written for the Holiday Contest!) and Shark-bot Shalom (August 2021) She is on twitter at @SarafinaDesign
Author Jenna Waldman
– Either a signed copy of WHEN A TREE GROWSOR a Picture Book Manuscript Critique – winner’s choice! – from Cathy Ballou Mealey, author of WHEN A TREE GROWS (Sterling April 2019) and the forthcoming SLOTH AND SQUIRREL IN A PICKLE (Kids Can Press, May 4, 2021)
Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for birthday, holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazon, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, recommending them for school and library visits, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 😊
[For those trying to post, you must click on the Blog Post Title to get on the blog post page and access the comments]
Roses are red
Violets are blue
Valentinies rock
And so do YOU!
Like galloping hooves, our brave hearts are pounding with excitement and anticipation (or maybe trepidation!) because it’s time for. . .
The6thAnnualValentinyWritingContest
~forchildren’swriters~
The Contest: since writing for children is all about “big emotion for little people” (I forget who said that, but someone did so I put it in quotes!) and Valentines Day is all about emotion, write a Valentines story appropriate for children (children here defined as ages 12 and under) maximum 214 words in which someone feels brave!
They can be brave about asking someone to be their Valentine, of course, but they can also do something brave to get a Valentine (the person or the gift), or do something brave to help a friend. They could be brave about giving something up, or brave about asking someone they’re not sure they like to be their Valentine just to be nice. . . sky’s the limit! Think beyond the obvious!
Your story can be poetry or prose, sweet, funny, surprising or anything in between, but it will only count for the contest if it includes someone brave (can be the main character but doesn’t have to be) and is 214 words (get it? 2/14 for Valentines Day 😊
You can go under the word count but not over!
Title is not included in the word count.
You are welcome to enter more than one entry – just remember you’ll be competing against yourself 😊
No illustration notes please!
Post your story in the comment section below (preferred) or on your own blog between right now this very second and Sunday February 14th by 11:59 PM EDT. If you only post on your own blog, add your post-specific link to the form list at the bottom of the post. This post with all the entries in the comment section and the list of links for those who prefer to post on their own blogs will stay up all week for everyone to enjoy. If you have difficulty posting your entry to the comments, which unfortunately sometimes happens, you may email your entry to me and I’ll post it for you! [susanna[at]susannahill[dot]com
We discussed changing the entry posting. The majority voted to have all the entries in one place here in the comment section, so we’re going to give that a try. But there were some who wanted to continue blog-hopping, so I’m going to include a link list for them at the bottom of the post. For those who are willing to post in the comment section but also plan to post on their own blogs, you are most welcome to post the link to your blog in your posted entry here (see example below.) That way people can come visit you if they want to but can also read most of the entries in one place on my blog if they prefer. It is certainly easier for the judges to have as many entries as possible in one place. We’ll try it this way one time and see how it works. We can always go back to the old system 😊
(So a sample entry might look like this: ENTRY TITLE – word count Author Name (link to your own contest entry blog post if you have one and would like to share it) Amazing wonderful Valentiny Contest story.😊
It was almost Valentines Day and Dudley’s heart had sunk to somewhere near his big toenail. (etc etc amazing story continues)
I know how hard you all work on your entries and how anxious you are to be sure your entry is posted, but please try to be a little bit patient if you’re waiting for your entry to show up in the comments or on the list of entries. I try never to get up from my desk during contests but sometimes it’s unavoidable. 😊
The Judging: over the next several days, my lovely assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to 12 top choices which will be posted here and voted on for a winner on Thursday February 18th (or possibly a day or two later if the judges need extra time.) The winner will be announced Monday February 22nd depending on judging and voting time needed. The dates of the judging/voting/winner announcements are subject to finagling depending on how much time the judges actually end up needing!
Judging criteria will include:
Kid-appeal/Kid-friendliness – remember, this is a story for kids!
Creativity in using bravery and success in making us feel the bravery!
Valentine’s Day appropriateness – this is a VALENTINE story!
Quality of story – we will look for basic story elements and a true story arc
Quality of writing – use and flow of language, correctness of mechanics, excellence of rhyme and meter if you use it, PROOFREADING!
Originality – surprise us with something new and different! 😊
How well you followed the Submission Guidelines – agents and editors expect professionalism. This is a chance to practice making sure you read and follow specified guidelines. If you don’t follow agent and editor submission guidelines they won’t even read your submission.
The Prizes: Talk about a pounding heart! Just look at these fabulous prizes!
– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction) from Becky Scharnhorst, author of the forthcoming MY SCHOOL STINKS! (Philomel Books, July 6, 2021)
– Picture Book Manuscript Critique (non-rhyming, fiction, fewer than 800 words) from Rebecca Kraft Rector, author of SQUISH SQUASH SQUISHED (Nancy Paulsen Books, February 16, 2021) (which means it’s coming out in the middle of our contest!😊) and the forthcoming LITTLE RED (Aladdin, Simon & Schuster, Spring 2022) and TRIA AND THE GREAT STAR RESCUE (Delacorte/Random House)
A Picture Book Manuscript Critique by gifted author and former Holiday Contest prize winner, Jenna Waldman, author of the forthcoming Larry’s Latkes (October 2021) (originally written for the Holiday Contest!) and Shark-bot Shalom (August 2021) She is on twitter at @SarafinaDesign
Author Jenna Waldman
– Either a signed copy of WHEN A TREE GROWSOR a Picture Book Manuscript Critique – winner’s choice! – from Cathy Ballou Mealey, author of WHEN A TREE GROWS (Sterling April 2019) and the forthcoming SLOTH AND SQUIRREL IN A PICKLE (Kids Can Press, May 4, 2021)
Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for birthday, holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazon, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, recommending them for school and library visits, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 😊
Now! Put your heart into it and bravely post your entries!
I can’t wait to read your stories!!!
Eager Readers: Check out the comment section for all the fabulous entries, and the link list at the end to visit the blogs of the authors who wanted to post on their own home turf 😊
ENTRIES IN THE COMMENT SECTION: (all entries are linked)
I don’t know who has been monkeying with the time-space continuum (and I am sorry to say that is definite Naughty List behavior!!!), but somehow we’ve gotten into THIS week when I need us to still be in LAST week.
I’m going to have to put things back to normal so all my posts and contests etc. work out right, because what we’ve got here is a snowball rolling out of control that’s going to bowl us right over. (We are not even going to discuss that I’m still working my way through prize distribution for the Halloweensie Contest which should have been finished 3 weeks ago! 🙂 )
Just hang on a sec while I hitch this sleigh flown by 8 tiny reindeer, with menorah running lights, a New Year’s blowout horn, and a Solstice candy holding Kikombe cha Umoja on the dash, to 21 gigawatts of electricity and take us. . .
. . . Back to Last Week!
Ah, that’s better!
Lucky I’m good at such a variety of tasks, isn’t it? Not just anyone could have turned a fancy-schmancy variety holiday sleigh into a time machine and solved this knotty little problem!
No need to thank me. It’s the least I can do.
Now when this post goes up you’ll have more time to write your entries!
Because it’s time to put on your Elf Thinking Cap, fire up your writing implements, and write your way to fame and fortune in . . .
THE9THANNUALHOLIDAYCONTEST!!!
~forchildren’swriters~
The Contest: Write a children’s holiday story (children here defined as age 12 and under) about A Holiday TREAT!
Your treat can be any kind of treat – a delectable holiday food specialty – Grandma’s Sugar Cookie Reindeer, or the Brown Family Gingerbread House; an event or experience that is a treat – the town Holiday Parade, attending the Nutcracker Ballet, or getting to light a candle on the menorah; making a treat for someone else – baking peppermint crunch brownies for the residents of a local shelter, or doing something special for a favorite teacher or neighbor – sky’s the limit 🙂
Your story may be poetry or prose, silly or serious or sweet, religious or not, based on Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or whatever you celebrate, but is not to exceed 250 words (I know! So much freedom after the Halloweensie Contest 🙂 ) (It can be as short as you like (the judges will be grateful 🙂 , you are welcome and encouraged to write shorter, but no more than 250! Title not included in word count.) The field is wide open! Have fun! The more creative the better! No illustration notes please. (And yes, if you feel compelled to submit more than one entry you may, just remember you’re competing against yourself!)
Post: Your entry should be posted on your blog between 12:01 AM EST Monday December 9 and Wednesday December 11 at 11:59 PM EST, and your post-specific link should be added to the link list on the official holiday contest post which will go up on my blog on Monday December 9 and remain up for your reading pleasure until I post the finalists. There will be no regular posts (Tuesday Debuts, Perfect Picture Book, or Would You Read It) for the duration of the contest so the links will stay up for everyone to visit and enjoy. If you would like to enter but don’t have a blog you are welcome to paste your entry in the comment section of my December 9th post when it goes up. If you have trouble commenting, you can email me. (We’ll go over this part in more detail on the December 9th post! 🙂 )
The Judging: My lovely assistants and I will narrow down the entrants to approximately 10 finalists (depending on the number of entries – if we get a lower turnout we’ll post fewer finalists, a higher turnout possibly one or two more.) In the interest of finishing up the contest in a timely fashion so everyone can go about their holidays, we will do our best to post the finalists here by Monday December 16 for you to vote on for a winner. The vote will be closed on Wednesday December 18 at 5 PM EST. Whoever gets the most votes will be first and so on down to tenth place (or wherever we place to), and the winners will be announced on Thursday December 19.
Judging criteria will be as follows:
1. Kid-appeal! – These stories are intended for a young audience (ages 12 and under), so we’re looking for stories that children will enjoy and relate to.
2. Holiday Treat! – the rules state a Holiday Treat story, so it must be crystal clear that the story is about a treat of some kind that is specific to Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or whatever you celebrate. The story must center on the treat – the treat must not be just an offhand mention/reference in a story about something else.
3. Quality of story – entries must tell a story, including a main character of some kind and a true story arc even if it’s tiny 🙂 Entries must not be merely descriptions or mood pieces.
4. Quality of Writing: check your spelling, grammar, punctuation etc. If you’re going to rhyme, give us your best 🙂 Overall writing quality and use of language are also important.
5. Originality and creativity – because that is often what sets one story above another.
The Prizes!: The prize list is not quite complete. . . But I wanted to get the guidelines up so you guys would have as much time as possible to work on your stories! Stay tuned for an updated list at some point 🙂
Picture Book Manuscript Critique from Children’s Literary AgentMelissa Richeson of Apokedak Literary!!! Melissa will read and give a written critique of your picture book manuscript plus a 10 minute phone call to talk!!!
MG/YA First 1500 Words Critique from Children’s Literary AgentMelissa Richeson of Apokedak Literary!!! Melissa will read and give a written critique of the first 1500 words of your MG or YA manuscript!!!
Literary Agent Melissa Richeson
Melissa is currently looking to build her client list and is focusing on children’s book authors—picture books through young adult. She’s drawn to witty wording and whimsical design for picture books, humor and quick pacing for chapter books, charming mysteries or magic in middle grade, and fresh, character-driven stories in young adult. She’s not the best fit for horror, high fantasy, or graphic violence of any kind.
Please join me in thanking these very generous authors and other writing professionals for contributing their books and writing expertise as prizes by visiting their websites and blogs, considering their books and services for holiday or other gift purchases, rating and/or reviewing their books on GoodReads, Amazone, B&N, or anywhere else if you like them, and supporting them in any other way you can dream up! 🙂
So there you have it! Fire up those brain cells! Grab a cup of hot chocolate, plonk your tiny hiney into a comfy chair, and get to writing your potentially prize-winning Holiday Treat story!!! You have 10 full days! (Sorry it isn’t more – blame it on the joker who tinkered with the space-time continuum 🙂 – but look at the bright side – deadlines are great for creativity and productivity! Your house doesn’t need to be cleaned this week, your children can eat raisin bran for dinner for a few days, and let’s be honest – no one’s concentrating on getting homework done or practicing their trombone at this time of year anyway, so you’ll have plenty of time to write! 🙂 )
On your mark…
…get set…
…GO!
I am SO looking forward to getting to read all your stories!!!
It’s an extra special Perfect Picture Book Friday today, my friends!
Today we’re celebrating a writer who, like so many of us, shows up and does the work, writing stories, practicing and perfecting her craft day after day, month after month, year after year in whatever time she can find between her work as a preschool teacher, her family, and life in general. And in the kind of happy outcome that inspires us all, her hard work and perseverance are paying off!
I first got to know Julie Abery (bio and links at end of post) when she began entering my writing contests 5 or 6 years ago with one delightful story after another, several of them featuring the Teensy-Weensy Witch 🙂 In March 2015, she took my class and I had the privilege of working with her for a month while she wrote a wonderful story about a Paper Owl. She started a blog called Little Red Story Shed (doesn’t that just make you want to go there?!) and then in September of 2017 I was thrilled to see the announcement in PW that she had sold her first two books!!!
I am so happy to share them with you today, just three days after their book birthday!
Although board books and not technically picture books, sometimes it’s fun to share books and activities for youngest readers – the early preschool crowd 🙂 So let’s dive in and have a look at these delightful little books! 🙂
Title: Little Tiger / Little Panda
Written By: Julie Abery
Illustrated By: Suzie Mason
Amicus Ink, March 12 2019, fiction
Suitable For Ages: 3-5
Themes/Topics: Little Tiger: baby jungle adventure, mother/child love, language fun (rhyme); Little Panda: baby snow adventure, mother/child love, language fun (rhyme)
Opening:
Little Tiger:
“Little Tiger waking, shaking, in the morning sun.”
Little Panda:
“Little Panda winking, blinking, spies a snowy day.”
Brief Synopsis: Both stories are “day-in-the-life” adventures in which the little one romps and plays and experiments… but mama is always close by to watch over and keep them safe.
Links To Resources: Special Resources straight from the author!!!
Hi Susanna.
Thank you so much for inviting Little Tiger and Little Panda to Blueberry Hill. We have been looking forward to visiting you on Perfect Picture Book Friday for sucha long time!
We are so happy that you and your granddaughters loved our books sooo much! How about a little painting fun to go with the books.
Little Tiger and Little Panda handprints…
They are TIGER-ific!
Fun and easy to make, just don’t forget to have a bowl of soapy water to wash those paint-covered hands.
This is me learning how to fold the origami bookmark corner.
And this is what the finished article looks like.
How stu-PANDAS is that!
We hope that you enjoyed the Little Tiger and Little Panda craft time. And we are happy to announce that there will be two more books in the Little Animal Friends series publishing with Amicus Ink same time next year!
Thank you so much for taking time to stop by and share these wonderful activities with us, Julie!!!
Why I Like These Books: the stories are sweet, engaging, and accessible to youngest readers/listeners. The rhyme is fun to read aloud, with perfect rhythm and fun internal rhyme as well as end-of-line-rhyme (e.g. “Little Panda winking, blinking spies a snowy day. Little Panda stumbling, tumbling, bumbles out to play.”) Both stories let us play and explore along with baby animals, always feeling the safety of mama’s watchful eye and the warmth of her love. Lovely, gentle reads, perfect for bedtime or any time!!!
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!!! 🙂
Julie Abery is a children’s author and Pre-K teacher. Originally from England, she has spent half of her life living in Europe, bringing up her three (now grown up) children and experiencing new languages and cultures. She now calls Switzerland home.
Julie is looking forward to welcoming; her debut board books Little Tiger and Little Panda publishing in Spring 2019 with Amicus Ink with a further two in the Amicus Little Animal Friends series publishing in Spring 2020 ; a nonfiction picture book biography entitled Yusra Swims from Creative Editions (TBA); a true story Mr. Joao and Dindim the Penguin, Kids Can Press (Fall 2020) and nonfiction picture book Sakamoto and the Sugar-Ditch Kids from Kids Can Press (Spring 2021).
She is represented by Essie White of Storm Literary Agency.
Susanna Leonard Hill 
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