The art in Rilla Alexander’s 2022 picture book The New Rooster is a visual joy. The colors are bright and bold, and Alexander’s compositions seem […]
The Longest Letsgoboy
I’ve tried to read The Longest Letsgoboy, a 2021 picture book by Derick Wilder (illustrated by Catia Chien) several times. I have always failed, and […]
25 Greatest?
Slate magazine recently published an article titled “The 25 Greatest Picture Books of the Past 25 Years.“ This is one of those listicles that is […]
Picking Berries
I live in northwest Washington, very close to the raspberry capital of the United States: Lynden, Washington. Raspberries are so central to the regional economy […]
Recently I Got To See
There’s a great old theater in my town (the Mount Baker Theatre, built in 1927) that hosts a lot of traveling shows. I’ve seen Mary […]
From Fifi to George
The Journey That Saved Curious George: The True Wartime Escape of Marget and H. A. Rey by Louise Borden (2005) is a strange and interesting […]
Hello Dog/Hello Human
Hello Dog/Hello Human (2025) is technically kind of a gimmicky book, but it is a good, sensible gimmick and it works. It works because it […]
The Flying Circus
I picked up Patrizia Levi‘s 2024 picture book The Flying Circus for one reason: it was new. I had heard nothing about it, and didn’t […]
Meeting Miss Rumphius
Miss Rumphius is a 1982 picture book, written and illustrated by Barbara Cooney. Cooney won Caldecott Medals in 1980 (for Ox-Cart Man) and in 1959 […]
Hanukkah Pajamakkahs
I recently read Hanukkah Pajamakkahs, a 2024 picture book by Dara Henry. I picked it up because I’ve been intentionally casting my picture book net […]