Book Reviews

Recently, in one of my kids yoga classes, we played charades. The task was to express a word through yoga poses and to include a breathing exercise. A group of four kids ages 8-10, started walking in all directions staring at a pretend phone or holding one by their ears. One stopped in chair pose still doing the same phone gesture, not looking up. Another child laid down still looking at the screen. The riddle’s answer was PEOPLE. When the word came out I could hear an “Ah, yes!”. I was touched to see how these young kids perceive society...

This makes my heart sing today ! After a long work day, I like to sit down and look at beautifully illustrated books just like this one-Blue Rider by the talented author and illustrator Geraldo Valério, Groundwood Books (My Book of Birds). It calms me down and I find peace.⠀⠀This wordless title is part of our wordless book collection. ⠀With wordless books children become creative storytellers. Pre-and early readers build important literacy skills such as listening skills, vocabulary, comprehension and structure of stories. By using words of their very own, struggling readers gain confidence and motivation as they read this...

Authors: Jairo Buitrago & Rafael Yockteng Every time I travel to Vancouver, I pass by a neighborhood so stricken with poverty that I my heart screams inside. I always look out for the kids living there. I wonder if their imagination helps them to survive. If they have someone holding their hand when they need it. Walk with me. I have said these words many times to kids who were stuck in a situation. I have said it to myself when I needed my thoughts to get into motion. Walking away from a situation. Walking to get a new point...

For today’s review I chose a title that reminds me of the arrival of one of our furry family members. “They all saw a cat” by Brendan Wenzel is a funny, thoughtful and smart story about how perspective shapes what we see. Beautifully illustrated and imaginative, this picture book shows kids and adults that even when things stay the same, they can look very different depending on your point of view or the circumstances surrounding it. In the story the cat arrives, just like ours did: “The cat walked through the world with its whiskers, ears, and paws...”, a familiar...

For this week’s children’s book review, I chose a goodnight story perfect for our youngest readers. This title has a special place in my own heart as it reminds me of the days when I carried my daughter through the house saying goodnight to everything that was important to her, do you do that with your children? We walked around noticing the treasures of our home, big and small from the trees in our backyard, Max, the goldfish, photos of grandparents hanging on the wall, the stars, even spiders showing up in our 100 year old house by the woods… AS a...