Mr. Pig's Summer Reading Picks -- and a Giveaway!

It's here, it's here! Summer has arrived and the Cottagers — Kara LaReau, Jamie Michalak, Anika Denise, and moi — are ready to kick up our hooves, erm, feet and relax. Here's a list of books we're looking forward to packing in our beach bags.

And we have a special smorange treat for you — a GIVEAWAY!

Leave a comment below for a chance to win Adam Rex's new picture book, 
NOTHING RHYMES WITH ORANGE! 

Kara Recommends ...

JABARI JUMPS

by Gaia Cornwall

Set on a summer’s day at the pool, this gorgeous ode to bravery and trying new things is written and illustrated by FOC (Friend of the Cottage) Gaia Cornwall, and it’s already a favorite in our house!

ORPHAN ISLAND 

by Laurel Snyder

Every year on Orphan Island a new orphan arrives on a green boat and the oldest orphan leaves the island for good. A moving story about growing up and letting go by one of the masters of middle grade fiction, Laurel Snyder.

THE FRIEND SHIP

by Kat Yeh
Illustrated by Chuck Groenink

A solitary little hedgehog sets off in search of a rumored “Friend Ship,” and ends up meeting a menagerie of lonely animals along the way. A sweet story (and a fun read-aloud) by Kat Yeh, with lovely illustrations by Chuck Groenink.

JASMINE TOGUCHI, MOCHI QUEEN 

by Debbi Michiko Florence
Illustrated by Elizabet Vukovic

I had the pleasure of reading an advance copy of this chapter book, the first in a wonderful, funny new series starring eight-year-old Jasmine. In this story, Jasmine longs to do something first before her big sister, Sophie — and that something may or may not have something to do with pounding mochi rice!

Jamie Recommends ...

TIMMY FAILURE: THE BOOK YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE

by Stephan Pastis

My 10-year-old son is not a fan of any activity that requires sitting quietly. However, he took this book to his room and read it cover to cover. He wasn't supposed to have this private record of Timmy Failure's sensitive time as a detective, but my son is also not a fan of following rules. So he read it anyway — and fell off his bed laughing. 

Perfect for reluctant sitters and fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

NOTHING RHYMES WITH ORANGE

by Adam Rex

When a cast of fruit makes up a rhyming ditty about themselves, even the lowly Kumquat gets his own verse. But nothing rhymes with Orange. How will he ever join the fun? Find out in this totally smorange picture book about celebrating difference!

LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW TO ENTER TO WIN A COPY!

TOAD ON THE ROAD: A CAUTIONARY TALE

by Stephen Shaskan

This rhyming romp, with humorous illustrations and fun-to-say sound effects, is a can't-miss storytime hit! Toadally adorable. 

Anika Recommends ...

Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean's Most Fearless Scientist 

by Jess Keating

Illustrated by Marta Álvarez Miguéns

(Ages 4-8 years)

Critically acclaimed zoologist and author Jess Keating tells the life story of Eugenie Clark, a.k.a. the “Shark Lady,” who daringly dove the deep to study creatures many  considered “ugly" and “scary.” In devoting her life to proving them wrong, Clark broke gender barriers — charting a channel for future female scientists — while illuminating the true nature and majestic beauty of sharks.

Packed with fin-tastic shark facts in the back matter, this book is the perfect reading ramp-up to Discovery Channel’s Shark Week: starting on Sunday, July 23rd!

Shackles from the Deep: Tracing the Path of a Sunken Slave Ship, a Bitter Past, and a Rich Legacy
by Michael H. Cottman

(Ages 10 and up)

Continuing with a deep sea exploration theme, but for a slightly older reader, this is the riveting (formerly unknown) true story of a slave ship wrecked off the coast of Florida at the turn of the 18th Century, the Henrietta Marie. In what is part history lesson, part page-turning adventure, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Michael H. Cotter weaves the narrative in a deeply personal way, to deliver a fascinating and important story young readers will connect to. 

7 Ate 9: The Untold Story

by Tara Lazar
Illustrated by Ross MacDonald

(Ages 4-8)

Who doesn’t love a good detective story for a summer read? This one just happens to be a picture book starring digits (and a "Private I”)! Perfectly punny and delightful, this is one of the wittiest, most enjoyable picture books I’ve had the pleasure to read. Kids will giggle. Grown-ups will chuckle. A new classic perfect for any season, but particularly readable (and re-readable) during the carefree days of summer vacation.

Heartwood Hotel: A True Home 

by Kallie George 

Illustrated by Stephanie Graegin

(Pub date: 7/4/17; Ages 7-10)

We love reading chapter books aloud on summer nights in our house. Kallie George’s heartwarming first book in the Heartwood Hotel series is a perfect chapter-a-night read. Young readers will enjoy being be transported to the tiny woodland world where Mona the Mouse discovers the Heartwood Hotel while seeking shelter from a rainstorm. Mona is quickly welcomed into the fold—where a cast of characters, soft moss-lined beds, and a little adventure (and danger!) awaits. 

Loved to Pieces . . . with Laurel Snyder

Today we have one of our favorite authors visiting us. She wrote the swoon-worthy new picture book SWAN: THE LIFE AND DANCE OF ANNA PAVLOVA, illustrated by Julie Morstad, as well as many other acclaimed middle grade novels and picture books, including BIGGER THAN A BREAD BOX and PENNY DREADFUL. Please welcome . . .

Laurel Snyder!

Laurel is here to share her own favorite book from childhood. The one she's loved to pieces. Tell us about it, Laurel. . . .

"I’ve got a lot of books on the bottom shelf of my bookcase that qualify as 'Loved to Pieces.' I’m someone who rereads things yearly, and as an author, I base a lot of my own titles on beloved classics.  So picking just one book to talk about is a little difficult for me.

But at the end of the day, there’s one book I’ve memorized like no other, one book I refer to on a daily basis: Ballet Shoes, by Noel Streatfield.

 Ballet Shoes is a middle grade novel about three orphans who’ve been “collected” by an eccentric wealthy paleontologist, then essentially abandoned with his adult niece and her aging 'Nana,' in a big house in London. To support their family, Pauline, Petrova, and Posy take dance and theater classes, then become performers on the stage. As you do!  

Meanwhile, Garnie (the guardian-niece-person) takes in interesting boarders of all sorts, to help pay the bills. All these people live in the big house together—the three kids, Garnie, Nana, and the assorted random adults who pay rent, but also operate like family members.

Laurel Snyder with her loved-to-pieces, favorite book

I loved this book for so many reasons. I loved it because the girls were fiercely independent and highly capable—supporting their family, setting up bank accounts, and taking matters into their own hands. I loved it because it had that fawncy tone of faded British aristocracy—complete with plenty of tea-drinking and velvet frock-wearing. I loved it because the girls were performers, and at age eight, I wanted to be a ballerina myself. I loved it because the girls were so different from one another, though I wanted to be friends with each of them.  How I adored this book!


And our loved-to-pieces favorite new book -- Laurel's SWAN!

As an adult/author, this is a book that challenges me. I know that I wouldn’t make the same choices Streatfield made if I were writing Ballet Shoes today. To begin with, the premise is absolutely insane—an orphan book to beat all orphan books. G.U.M. (Great Uncle Matthew is the name of the paleontologist) literally finds Pauline floating in the ocean). Posy just coincidentally comes with a pair of toe-shoes, and then turns out to be a dance prodigy. It’s all so ridiculously convenient. 

Then, if you get past the premise, you have to deal with the  fact that G.U.M. utterly neglects the girls for about a decade, but is welcomed back with open arms when he finally turns up at the end, so that the whole big crazy mess gets tied up with a big bow, happily ever after. That sort of ending is something I generally loathe in a book, but somehow I don’t mind it in Ballet Shoes. 

In writing this little essay, I’ve put some thought into why that is, and I’m still a little baffled, to tell you the truth. As with all great books, there’s something that defies analysis here, something that breaks the rules. But this much I know—I’m willing to forgive the less believable elements in Ballet Shoes because of Pauline, Petrova, and Posy, because the girls themselves are so real, fully formed complex characters, unlikeable in moments, petulant and jealous and petty. But also loving, committed to each other, and grateful for all they have.  Like actual kids. 

Also, though the premise of the book feels impossible, the underlying theme—that a bunch of random people can come together under any circumstances, form a family, and then overcome whatever obstacles they face—is so inherently true. 

Then there’s the tone of the book, which feels, even now, bright and conversational. As a kid, I felt like it was speaking to me. I really did. 'I wonder,' (says Petrova in the final line of the book) …'if other girls had to be one of us, which of us they’d choose to be?'  

I remember lying on my blue bedspread, in my childhood room, closing the book as I finished it, letting it fall onto my chest, and pondering that question. I knew the answer, of course. (I was, am, and will always be a Pauline). But it was as though Petrova had asked me a question, and I owed it to her to spare a few minutes thinking about my answer.  Because she was my friend. (And thank goodness she still is!)



**************** 

Don't miss Laurel's breathtaking new book!  

SWAN
THE LIFE AND DANCE OF ANNA PAVLOVA
by Laurel Snyder, illustrated by Julie Morstad
Chronicle Books, 2015
ISBN 978-1452118901

Junior Library Guild Selection
ABC(ABA) Best Books for Young Readers

“Spare, poetic words sit as lightly as snowflakes.” —Wall Street Journal 

"A tender, delicate recounting.'' —Publishers Weekly

"Young ballet lovers will be smitten with the story." —Kirkus Reviews

"Exquisite." —The Horn Book Magazine 

Laurel Snyder is the author of five middle grade novels and six picture books, most recently SWAN, the Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova.  She lives in Atlanta, GA, and online at http://laurelsnyder.com Follow her @laurelsnyder on Twitter!


The Little Crooked Bookshelf

Swan, the Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova
by Laurel Snyder
illustrated by Julie Morstad

This week's bookshelf pick is from cottager Anika Denise

What it's all about...
Swan is a picture book biography of Anna Pavlova, one of the most famous and gifted prima ballerinas of all time.

Why it's on The Little Crooked Bookshelf...
Because it’s exquisite. The language is spare and delicate; the illustrations, jaw-droppingly gorgeous. Like a classic ballet, it builds steadily to the dramatic transformation of Anna into the Swan, then recedes gracefully through her later career and tragic early death.

Our favorite line(s)
Finally,
she steps into the stage alone. . .
and sprouts white wings, a swan.
She weaves the notes, the very air
into a story.
All those sitting see.
They stare—
Anna is a bird in flight,
a whim of wind and water.
Quiet feathers in a big loud world.
Anna is the swan.

Our favorite illustration...

From Swan, by Laurel Snyder, © 2015 by Julie Morstad

Why kids will love it...
Any child interested in dance or the arts will be drawn to Swan. But all children can take something from this tale of modest beginnings, rise, triumph and tragedy. The essence of Pavlova’s unique life and talent is captured here, and children will respond to the transcendent spirit of it.

Why grown-ups will love it...
While truly a lovely stand-alone read, it also begs further conversation about life in a Czar-ruled Russia, class struggles, hope, dreams, determination, artistic expression, and the role of art in society. Snyder writes a lovely author’s note at the end about the lasting impact Pavolva made on the ballet world. Parents, teachers and librarians can use Swan, and Snyder’s closing essay, to spark an inspiring discussion in young readers.