Theres a superhero in our house

Military supports many heroic professions other than the soldier. Moms can be superheroes and transformers. They even make heroes of their children.
The kids will be in awe to find what mom is capable of and look up to one of the roles. Like they wouldnt already.

The illustrations in the book were rendered on a Fabriano artistico paper

with Winsor & Newton watercolours.

I work in a class. Who am I?

Kids learn a lot about the many professions of people but not so much about the one used to teach. Many kids love to role play as a teacher for the authority.
This book does the job of shadowing a teacher for a week to see all that she does for children helping them learn and play. The sentences on the opposite pages rhyme.
As kids on teachers day in India, some of us would get to be in their shoes for that day and see what it takes to teach a class.
I was wondering if there is a Barbie teacher.

And then I wondered if there is a Barbie Artist.

Too fashionable.

A mix of both is the art teacher.

Author Patricia Hubbell

The man who painted acres

All I knew about Diego before starting this book is from the movie Frida.

This book has about 30 poems and a picture to go with almost each of them.

This format of biography works well but I have my doubts about how much of it will kids understand when it comes to Diego’s relationships. A memoir look at his work of say just his childhood or his love for his country and people might have been better.

The illustrations made using mixed media have the dreamlandish wash look. Two of the faces with side pose superposed on a 2D face give it the dual 3D look as well as the side pose. It reminds me of an essay ‘Eye Shadows’ in ‘Possibility: Essays against Despair’ where the author calls it the flounder look.

I learnt of Mexican cubism and the flower festival through his works that have been printed in the book.

Aztec idols- clay puppies. One of his wife served his favourite in a soup.

Picture strong

The story of how Ollie the slug makes it to the team with no apparent skills is endearing with the pictures of creepy crawlies with limbs one too many required for the game. the text does not come in the way of pictures. The colours stand out well. And when the rain turns the ground muddy, the field is full of it with all players in the same colour. There are some pages where the page is split into pictures which paces the story.

The pictures in this book were made on an illustration board with Acrylic, ink and pen.

How the world lives?

Simply Sarah series has a bunch of likeable characters. Sarah, cute with her curious mind, her family and friends. This book is the fourth in that.
`Eating Enchiladas' is the story of Sarah who learns all about a culture different from her upbringing. And for this, she does not hop on a plane to another country. A sleepover at her friend's house and her `idea mind' looking for ways to do things differently.
The author makes it fun learning how people live, eat, wear in other countries.
The ink and wash illustrations add life to the pictures. The thin book has lots going on in it. In such a small book, the author introduces the reader to many other characters - Grandma, Mr Grundy who form the extended family of life lived in apartments.
I just noticed that Grandma has a cat sitting in her chair. I recognize it as Patches from `Patches and scratches' from the number 3 book of the series.

Who is joining the band?

Simply Sarah series has a bunch of likeable characters. Sarah, cute with her curious mind, her family and friends.
This book is the third in that.
The family is about to get big with an addition of a new member. Only one of the friends is adamant about who it can be and few others against an addition of anything on four legs. Leave it to Sarah to find a problem and then solve it. Sarah's strategy is 'friend is king'. She enlists the whole community to make her friend happy with a pet.
The author has done it again in portraying activity buzz in such a small book. The ink and wash illustrations add life to the pictures.

What crayons are made of?

A dennys orange crayon in patio stones overflows pushed by an imperfect cone of emptiness Phx sun squeezes other crayons blue and green

Crayon that follows ASTM


If you ahave lot of rayons lying around HomeSpun Magic author Jerry Baker suggests melting them down to make envelope sealers or candles by mixing it with paraffin.

How skloot writes
Why brushing your teeth makes oj taste bad
Recreating dreams
Finding your element
How to get published
lessons for authors

Charmless prose

With a name like Ian Fleming, one wonders if its possible to review it fairly. Its like an authors second book that needs to live up to the previous work.
The style is dense prose.
The book would have been better with more dialogue.
A car that can do so many things is fun and might actually stay in a kids mind for years to come.
I do remember fondly a car that could talk from a TV show and a story of a chair that could fly (cant tell if its from the Enid Blyton The Wishing Chair). For that, it must have been a fun story then. This story has that appeal of magic but the prose is charmless.
The part where Mr Pott gives his kids the crack pot whistling sweets makes for a great short story.
Other bloggers after reading the book have made the skeleton in the cave with paper plates and made the fooj(fudge)recipe. A paper plate skeleton and a recipe. It might be fun for kids to take part in such activities. Also while reading the book, putting themselves in these unfamiliar situations, might improve and inspire their imagination.

Movie
Jam puff

fairies in acorn cups

Another Midsummer nights dream reader

Bottoms dream

The politics in school elections

True politicians shape public thought, they don't go looking for it. This is one of the many things smart Kevin knows.
Kevin Spencer not only knows the book of true politicians, but writes it as he goes along his pre election life. In the journey, he questions his motives for standing for the election that he prepares for with all his virtues.
At the beginning, Kevin seemed obnoxious with oh-I-have-done-so-many-things-for-others but eventually comes out a winner by observing the world around and truly thinking of the community.
The book balances the crazy teen who can use a school situation to glean purpose. A message delivered non-pedantic in an election setting where everyone has been a participant as a contestant, supporter or the powerful voter. You begin to appreciate the mock elections and what a contest can bring out of youth.
Candygram I once stood for a class leader. 

The message wins over

I have never been a Paperboy/girl. But I read that one writer (Pete Jordan in the city of Bikes) used his savings as a Paperboy to buy his coveted bike.
The writing style of this book - small paras which I encountered only once before in a tragic book by an author who had lost both her parents. That style was scary in that book but it works well here to show the punctuated,logical thinking of the 11 year old boy based on the author Vince Vawter.

Grand Daddy. Grand Daddy. which way did my father go? Holding a spider to answer this question. When we were kids we had a similar game, but the grand pa didn't have  a say. We used to hold these tender stalks of flowers and say Grand Pa. Grand Pa whats your name and then just pluck its head.
Author reading from Paperboy

Ms Fix-it

Anna can sing Gumdrops song endlessly to calm her younger sister Kaylee adopted by her parents from the other end of the world. The focus of the family is on getting toddler Kaylee to thrive. The book is titled ‘ The Year of the Baby’ in the Chinese fashion of naming a year after Chinese Zodiac signs. While at this, she also has to face being the eldest kid in the house. Not to mention coming up with a hypothesis and testing it for the science fair project. She and her friends get creative in drawing from their life experiences in solving their problems.

I got worried for Anna when she would toss away what seemed like a potential project. Few pages left, how is she going to find the project?

No mean girls.

The illustrator has Chinese letters on a baby’s bib. The simple sketches are likeable.

I havent read the prequel ‘The Year of the Book’.

Books mentiond

Because of Winn Dixie
Dinosaur Alphabet
Little blue and little yellow

Roundoff

Men of letters

Mutatis mutandis

Homo Ludens

Have you ever tried to read letters by writers where most of them seem so hard to relate to. But here is a book of letters, Here and Now, from contemporary writers Paul Aster and Jim Coetzee.
They are in awe of Federer like DFW.
They agree that its hard for new games to emerge.
Deed poll

Paul's wife Lydia's short fiction won Booker
Hotels with typewriters?
Weltanschauung

Essays the magical word

The Task of the Translator by Walter Benjamin
The task of the translator on the nature of art as in Kenyon Review.
Van Gogh bridge in the rain in Hiroshige style.
Rumpus article

View of Delft
on Author
Excerpt
The Memory Palace of Isabella with writeups on museum content.