libscote's Reviews (6.4k)

I wasn't sure what to expect with this one at first. I think I'm more into the illustrations than the story. I'd love to know how Winston selected which dictionary entries to highlight. And his drawing of puddle? Stunning. It looks like it's drooping over words at one point, a 3D effect on a 2D page.

A beautifully illustrated story about going through the process of grief. 

I didn't know a lot about Walt Whitman, and this book gives an overview of his life, mostly during the Civil War, and how it intersected with Abraham Lincoln. The art is beautiful. I found it a little slow and I'm not sure kids will enjoy it as much as I wish they would. 

Alice is an unschooled child who has moved ten times in her ten years. As her parents fix the houses they live in, the college her mother works for sells them at profit and moves them to a more dilapidated building. This particular building (which Alice's mother swears will be the last one) is next door to a condemned building that draws Alice's eye. Not only could it be a project for her, but it has spirits living in it! And they need help becoming settled ones. Alice is determined to help them do it.

As an adult, I struggled a bit with whether the house Alice and her family was living in could really be considered livable (but I also have read "Eviction" by Matthew Desmond and I am aware that the threshold for that is lower than I think.) I also had some questions about unschooling that I think more research would answer for me. It's a good story overall.

Emily Carroll's art is fantastic as usual. The story is compelling and you feel the creeping sense of dread. The ending is a bit ambiguous, and I did go back and forth about that for a while in my head. Still, it's always worth exploring an Emily Carroll adventure.

I think the general tone of the book was fine. I just thought it was a little interesting/weird to look at when the authors chose to use "violated" versus "raped" like they were two different things that ended up in children being born. I'd love to know the author's reasoning for each choice.

The art in this one is STUN-NING. You feel Jun's inability to communicate on every page, and how much joy lunch brings her. A joy.

The ILLUSTRATIONS in this one! I love the pastel quality, the way the playground looks, how Gretchen and Vern are drawn and the way swinging is drawn and described. So fun!

I don't know if this French translation really worked for me. My brain seemed to not be able to let myself into the logic of a story where a reflection can change. I'm sure there are kids who will love it though!

Rene wants to have a fancy cafe in the woods, but the clientele is a little different. Can she and the waiter, Glumfoot, work together to make the cafe successful? I like this story about working together to find a solution.