Carina Felina, why you so mean-a?

 

A hilarious rollicking tale about Carina Felina who is quite full of herself. She learns her lesson, at the end, after eating up so many creatures. How they get out of her is a hoot. The reader learns a few Spanish words along the way. For lovers of THE GINGERBREAD MAN.

Eve Bunting, classic, prolific, and she will be missed

 I have always been amazed by the body of work that Eve Bunting has contributed to children's literature. This Irish woman who transplanted to California and became an author passed away on October 1, 2023 at the age of 94. My top two favorites by her are THE WEDNESDAY SURPRISE and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR DUCK.  

We miss you Eve Bunting. Thanks for all of your stories.

There are several key factors to her writing that I see: 

*compassion *humor *a reverence for the ordinary moments  *respect for nature *the willingness to tackle very tough subjects *offering solutions *everything presents a story!

*Eve was assigned a different illustrator for each of her books. Miraculously, each match fits perfectly. 

This is a tribute to her. I found 5 books that I had not yet read by her in Infosoup. The Memory String The tension between a young girl and her stepmother dissipates when her stepmother is respectful of her memory string. Yard Sale It is sad when a family is undergoing a forced downsizing. But this book points out that a home is not about the stuff. The home is about the people in it. Tweak Tweak Elephant and her baby take a stroll. Baby is very curious. The summary statement is sweet, "A little elephant can walk through the jungle and across the grasslands holding her mother's tail. She can ask questions and learn. She can grow to be a big, strong, smart, beautiful elephant." Sing A Song of Piglets: A Calendar in Verse This is a beautiful tribute to the pleasures of each month in the year. Example: August, "Sing a song of reading, lying in the shade. Chapter Three, you read to me! And pass the lemonade." Christmas Cricket Cricket brings his joyful noise to the place he has hidden himself in in a Christmas tree.  

Imagination as defiant!

A picture book that defies everything…I love it. 

A sheep and a wolf being friends? A sheep and a wolf

who work together to build three prototypes for flying?

On the third try, a flying dragon that works? Yes to all!!!