Tag Archive | animals

Six kawaii kitties on holiday – so cute! FALLING IN LOVE WITH A TRAVELING CAT, by Juno (Graphic Novel)

Jun26
Book cover of Falling in Love With a Traveling Cat, graphic novel by Juno. Six kitties standing on their short hind legs are moving to the left, ready for travel with backpacks, rolling suitcases, snack bag, camera on strap around one's neck, another with purse slung across its body. Most are tabby cats colored orange, tan, grey & white.

First, we plan.
Next, we pack.
Then, we go traveling!

Six soft, cute, often bemused Mofusand cats prepare to travel all over Japan, and their illustrator Juno invites us along for the fun.

Squished in the subway, relaxed on the plane, their first stop is the aquarium, where they talk to dolphins, enjoy the Baby Penguin Cafe, and walk with them in the parade.

On to the amusement park, with exciting rides and yummy snacks served by roller-skating kitty waitresses.

Ahh, relaxing outdoors, cooking over the campfire, napping in hammocks, whooshing on bicycles, and watching birds at a picnic.

Beach time! So many water activities and lovely frozen treats! [short-legged, long-bodied cats in bikinis = not your everyday swimsuit models]

Every prefecture of Japan is represented as the cats wear symbolic costumes like a white peach for Okayama and a deer from Nara.

These cats love eating, so they try food from every prefecture, too – curry soup from cold Hokkaido, Takoyaki octopus balls from Osaka, crunchy waffle cookies from Hyogo.

Relaxing at the hot springs is a great way to wrap up a vacation, as the kitties soak in hot tubs large and small, enjoy the sauna and massage – and evening banquet, of course!

Heading home with lots of souvenirs and treats and great memories, as well as the “Mofustagram” posts they sent along their journey.

Perhaps you’ve seen Mofusand cats with fried shrimp as headwear on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/mofu_sand/; this first Mofusand illustrated book was published in Japan in 2022, then recently brought to English-language audiences.

Where in Japan would you like to visit with these traveling cats?
**kmm

Book info: Falling in Love With a Traveling Cat / Juno; translated by Mari Marimoto. Kakadawa, 2022; Udon Entertainment, 2024. [artist site https://mofusand.co/blogs/news/who-is-juno-the-artist-behind-mofusand] [publisher site https://store.udonentertainment.com/products/falling-in-love-with-a-traveling-cat-mofusands-1st-illustration-book] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher via Publisher Spotlight.

Ice caps vanished, father not returned – her only hope against TERRA ELECTRICA: THE GUARDIANS OF THE NORTH! by Antonia Maxwell (MG fiction)

Jun18
Book cover of Terra Electrica: The Guardians of the North, by Antonia Maxwell. Atop a hill, a girl in summer clothes shoots magenta-colored lightning from her hands. Standing with her are a howling wolf and gigantic polar bear roaring at the Northern Lights above them. Two ravens fly to them through the magenta night sky, forest and high mountains in the distance.

Only she and her father survived the electrical sickness that killed everyone in their far-north village, where snow never ever comes now, Arctic animals long gone, polar ice caps melted away.

When he doesn’t return from weeks of hunting, 12-year-old Mani decides to search for her father, urged onward by the Polar animal spirits she meets after donning her late mother’s ancestral wooden mask.

The science man Leo is still alive, but his eyes show the Terra Electrica sickness. Somehow, Mani’s touch when holding a flashlight cures him!

Leo says they must travel north to The Ark where the other scientists are, to see if her father is there and figure out why Mani isn’t affected by the Terra Electrica. Maybe they can save the rest of humankind…

Their journey is long and dangerous, dragging their sled of supplies across muck that used to be iced-over, making a raft from driftwood and plastic bottles to cross a bay, encountering people who don’t trust Ark scientists or anyone coming from the Terra Electrica-affected zones.

Whenever she can, Mani goes back into the world of the mask, to hear wisdom from Ooshaka the polar bear and Crow and Eagle and Wolf, to seek her ancestors in the old land of ice, to listen for her mother’s spirit…

Oh! This large group also heading for The Ark says they have things to trade… things like weapons!?

Is her father really at The Ark?
What caused the Terra Electrica?
Can Ooshaka’s advice help Mani survive?

Mani’s perils due to extreme climate change remind us of the power we have in our present time to prevent future disaster.

How far north have you gone?
**kmm

Book info: Terra Electrica: The Guardians of the North / Antonia Maxwell. Neem Tree Press, 2024. [author site https://www.antoniamaxwell.com/about] [publisher site https://neemtreepress.com/book/terra-electrica-the-guardians-of-the-north/] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

Adventure! Villains! Hugs! INSCRUTABLE DOCTOR BAER & THE CASE OF THE TWO-HEADED STATUE, by Jerzy Drozd (graphic novel)

Jun17
Book cover of The Inscrutable Doctor Baer and the Case of the Two-Headed Monster, graphic novel by Jerzy Drozd. A suit-attired bear with a complex magic staff and book races to escape a huge malevolent creature spewing crimson gore, followed by a piglet in a hooded cloak and a giant tortoise.

Cursed objects,
their histories carefully chronicled,
their spirits welcome to stay safely here!

Pickles the pig and Taft the gigantic tortoise are sure that seeing the many strange and scary curiosities in Doctor Baer’s collection will prepare them for dangers they’ll face later as aspiring adventurers.

Magic protects all entrances to the Doctor’s always-night mansion, so when Taft gets stuck in the doorway, evil sorcerer Gallus rushes through the gap to steal the powerful Stone Guardian statue!

Pickles and Taft fight against the sorceror’s battlesteed Wilhemina, toppling the statue which breaks in four pieces, each snatched by an again-cursed being that flees the mansion with its prize!

The four wisps of elemental magic released from the Guardian attach themselves to Doctor Baer’s staff and assist the crew of adventurers as they race against Gallus and Wilhemina to find all four artefacts.

Can the map in Doctor Baer’s painstakingly curated volume of daemon knowledge locate the pieces?
Do a tiny pig, a gigantic tortoise, and a professorial bear have any chance against evil Gallus and powerful Wilhemina?
Will the world ever be safe if Gallus can reassemble the Stone Guardian?

A graphic novel filled with the power of friendship and magic (especially hug magic), more adventure than Doctor Baer ever imagined, and darn cute characters trying to overcome obstacles to help others!

Full disclosure: I backed this graphic novel on Kickstarter and liked the PDF so well that I purchased a print copy from Bookshop.org!

Who is your favorite comic critter?
**kmm

Book info: The Inscrutable Doctor Baer and the Case of the Two-Headed Monster / Jerzy Drozd, with color assistance from Aaron Polk, Sarah Pagliaro, Chloe Cordero, Steve Hamaker, Daniel Connor. Iron Circus Comics, 2024. [author site https://jdrozd.com/doctorbaer/] [publisher site https://store.ironcircus.com/products/the-inscrutable-doctor-baer-and-the-case-of-the-two-faced-statue] Personal copy; cover image courtesy of the publisher.

FISH FARTS and Other Amazing Ways Animals Adapt, by Joanne Settel and Natasha Donovan (kids’ Nonfiction)

Jun4
Book cover of Fish Farts and Other Amazing Ways Animals Adapt, by Joanne Settel; illustrated by Natasha Donovan. A large shiny fish swims between the title words, with bubbles trailing behind it.

Animals change over time to cope with their environment, to survive, to thrive.

Meet dozens of fascinating animals in these adaptation categories: curious communications, all-purpose poop, escaping the enemy, super strange insides, and creepy connections.

Hide and stink! Young Komodo dragons survive by rolling in pig poop so they aren’t eaten by huge adult Komodos who smell the air with their tongues as they hunt.

Escape! Green iguanas and other lizards can let their tail snap off when grabbed by a predator, then grow a new tail later.

Move along! Hummingbird flower mites hitch a ride to new nectar sources by jumping onto a hummingbird’s long beak at one flower, hiding out in its nostril, then leaping off when they sense the correct type of flower to find a new mate and avoid enemies.

Elephantnose fish use electricity to navigate through night waters in Africa and communicate with each other, one of 400 species of electric fish who’ve adapted to cloudy or muddy freshwater.

However, elephants communicate and are alerted to danger by sensing ground vibrations through their toes! Only in recent decades have scientists registered these sounds with frequencies too low for humans to hear.

Cooking the Enemy, Whale Poop for Lunch, Ant Shampoo! The chapter titles alone make it worth your while to pick up this book from your local library (https://search.worldcat.org/libraries) or favorite independent bookstore (https://www.indiebound.org/indie-store-finder).

This accurately and artistically illustrated 42 page book is better for browsing than for research since it has no bibliography or index. Words in color within the information-packed text point to its glossary at the end.

What’s your favorite unusual animal fact?
**kmm

Book info: Fish Farts and Other Amazing Ways Animals Adapt / Joanne Settel; illustrated by Natasha Donovan. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2024. [author site https://www.joannesettel.com/] [illustrator site https://www.natashadonovan.com/] [publisher site https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Fish-Farts/Joanne-Settel/9781665918831] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

Large, small – meet them all! ATLAS OF DOGS, by Dobiasova, Sekaninova, Sedlackova, and Kralik (MG Nonfiction)

Jun3
Book cover of Atlas of Dogs, by Ester Dobiasova, Jana Sedlackova, Stepanka Sekaninova; Illustrated by Marcel Kralik. As 3 happy children watch, 6 dogs run an agility course counter-clockwise around the title, including a Doberman pinscher, a Nordic hunting dog, a cattle dog, a Chow Chow, an Airedale terrier, and a Norwegian Dunker hound.

Samoyed, chow chow, English bulldog!
Schipperke? Munsterlander? Blue Gascony basset?

In this large illustrated atlas, dogs themselves tell us about their many different breeds: sighthounds; scenthounds; pointers and setters; terriers; sheepdogs and cattle dogs; retrievers, flushing dogs, and water dogs; spitz and primitive dogs; dachshunds; pinschers, schnauzers, molosser breeds, and Swiss mountain dogs; and companion dogs.

You’ll meet dogs whose breeds you know well – beagle, German shepherd, Great Dane – and many that you may never have encountered – komondor, Prague ratter, stabyhoun, vizsla.

Several breeds popular as pets, like spitz, dachshunds, and collies, have a scorecard of intelligence, obedience, activity level, guarding skill, barking level, best family type to live with, and ideal home so you can make a good fit between dog and pet owner – with shelter dogs named as always the best first choice.

Throughout the book are issues of “Dogs’ Post Daily” news highlighting outstanding dogs through history, like loyal Hachiko in Japan, the puppy Honey who ran for help when her master’s car rolled into a deep ravine, Greyfriars Bobby the night watchman, and Barry the St. Bernard mountain rescuer of the Alps.

Be sure to find the dog to human years (no, not 1 to 7) conversion chart, as well as sections on record-holding dogs, dog speech, and how to take care of dogs.

A wonderfully illustrated informational book from Albatros in the Czech Republic, who brought us the equally delightful Atlas of Cats (recommended here: https://booksyalove.com/?p=14643).

What’s your favorite breed of dog?
**kmm

Book info: Atlas of Dogs / Ester Dobiasova, Stepanka Sekaninova, Jana Sedlackova; illustrated by Marcel Kralik. Albatros, 2021. [Stepanka’s page https://www.albatrosmedia.eu/writer/stepanka-sekaninova/] [publisher site https://www.albatrosmedia.eu/book/atlas-of-dogs/] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher, via Publisher Spotlight.

Learning to pitch, becoming brave, PAINTING THE GAME that she and Dad love, by Patricia MacLachlan (MG fiction)

May27
Book cover of Painting the Game, by Patricia MacLachlan. A softly smiling young girl with dark braids wears a baseball cap and leans forward, pitcher's mitt on left hand, gripping a baseball behind her back with right hand. A trio of grinning goats looks on.

Summertime,
baseball time,
finally pitching time?

Lucy loves playing baseball with her school friends Tex and Robin, but in her family, Dad is the pitcher, currently on a Massachusetts minor league team and working for a chance to play in the majors.

After watching Dad and his catcher Edgar win for the Salem Red Sox, the 11 year old decides to practice pitching very early in the morning, before her artist mother is awake and out in her painting studio.

Dad, Edgar, and his dog Ruby stay over on a rare 2-day break, bringing new baseball gloves for the three friends, watching them play a summer league game, laughing together at how well Ruby can catch and throw a baseball with her mouth!

Does Lucy have enough courage now to pitch for her team?
What are Mom’s secret paintings about?
Will the major league scouts at Dad’s next game see his great knuckleball talent?

This pivotal summer for Lucy, family, and friends unspools in her measured sentences and deep thoughts, much like a novel-in-verse – a beautiful story of baseball, friendship, and determination.

The last book written by the author of Sarah, Plain and Tall, Lucy’s story was published after MacLachlan’s death in 2022, now available in paperback.

Have you ever watched a minor league baseball game?
**kmm

Book info: Painting the Game / Patricia MacLachlan. Margaret McElderry Books, hardcover 2024, paperback 2025. [author note https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Patricia-MacLachlan/38022587] [publisher site https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Painting-the-Game/Patricia-MacLachlan/9781534499959] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

Where does your PENCIL come from? by Hye-Eun Kim (picturebook)

May7
book cover of Pencil, by Hye-Eun Kim. Shows a large pencil sketching a many-colored forest, tree by tree.

A few leaves, many leaves, a whole tree!
Small trees, more trees, a whole forest!
Many animals, many birds…and a noisy machine…

This wordless picturebook traces the journey of a single pencil from sapling to forest tree to sawed log to factory to art supply store.

A young girl chooses that pencil, then draws marvelous trees extending from the tree stumps, a forest that the displaced animals want to visit!

Drawn in colored pencil and marker, first published in the illustrator’s native Korea and dedicated to her daughter: “May your small tree grow into a large forest.”

Includes helpful advice on how to read a silent book to others.

It’s Children’s Book Week! When you look for this charming book at your local library (https://search.worldcat.org/libraries) or independent bookstore (https://www.indiebound.org/indie-store-finder), check out the many art styles of today’s picturebooks.

If you chose just one colored pencil, what color would it be?
**kmm

Book info: Pencil / illustrated by Hye-Eun Kim. Toon Books, 2025. [publisher site https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/763419/pencil-by-hye-eun-kim/] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher, via Publisher Spotlight.

Always stylish, meet BAIT THE TOAD! by Kendra Powers (nonfiction)

May2
Book cover of Bait the Toad, by Kendra Powers. Photo of a large toad wearing a shiny black top-hat with red band, while sitting calmly on a large branch.

In his garden or on the road,
oh so dapper is Bait the Toad!

From his quiet beginnings on the banks of the Rio Grande River to rising TikTok star, Bait remains a humble toad.

His polymer clay hats range from seasonal to casual to fancy, each custom-made by his photographer/caretaker.

Of course, the natural world is his first love, and he’s become very fond of orchids, too.

Includes his style tips for toads and a reminder that “frogs and toads are entirely different – and while frogs must be kissed to become princes, toads are plenty royal on their own, thank you very much.”

This small-format book of Bait’s most charming photos is a great gift for amphibian lovers and a fun story-starter for kids – “what journey are Bait and the orange cat starting?”

What’s your favorite type of hat?
**kmm

Book info: Bait the Toad / Kendra Powers. Catalyst Press, 2023. [author/photographer interview https://www.catalystpress.org/post/author-q-a-kendra-powers] [publisher site https://www.catalystpress.org/bait-the-toad] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

Y is a year’s worth of funny poems: A WHALE OF A TIME, selected by Lou Peacock, art by Matt Hunt (Poetry picturebook) #AtoZ

Apr29
Book cover of A Whale of a Time: a Funny Poem For Each Day of the Year, selected by Lou Peacock, illustrated by Matt Hunt. Shows a large smiling blue whale swimming in sea with fish and submarine, spouting many objects up into the air: ghost, dinosaur, piano, robot, horse, rainbow, car, trophy, lion, kite, ladder and more.

Make every day more humorous as you spend a year with funny poems from around the world.

Some are very short:

even among the insects of this world,
some are good at singing,
some bad
by Kobayashi Issa, translated by R.H. Blyth (August 8)

Others are a bit longer, like Jack Prelutsky’s classic “The Turkey Shot Out of the Oven” on November 27th among a cluster of fall food feasting poems.

Every double-page spread features subject-related poems such as June 26-28’s poems “Spinach”, “I Eat My Peas With Honey”, and “Eat Your Veg”, with a vivid illustration connecting them.

And the poem titles themselves invite us to enjoy reading them – “Banananananananana” (August 2) and “Hippopotamouse” (Sept. 30) and “Jamaican Summers” (June 12) and “The Fork Tree” (Oct.7) and “Lunchbox Love Note” (on Feb. 14, of course)

Happy to reread some of my favorites, like “Eletelephony”, by Laura E. Richards (for Feb. 25) which begins
Once there was an elephant,
Who tried to use the telephant –
No! No! I mean an elephone
Who tried to use the telephone…

This vibrantly illustrated oversize volume includes an index of poets, an index of poems, and the ever-helpful index of first lines. Find related learning resources on the publisher’s page: https://nosycrow.us/product/a-whale-of-a-time/.

What’s your favorite funny poem?
**kmm

Book info: A Whale of a Time: a Funny Poem For Each Day of the Year / selected by Lou Peacock, illustrated by Matt Hunt. Nosy Crow, 2023. [editor site https://nosycrow.us/contributor/lou-peacock/] [illustrator site https://matthuntillustration.com/] [publisher site https://nosycrow.us/product/a-whale-of-a-time/] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher, via Publisher Spotlight.

W is WHERE WOLVES DON’T DIE, where a Native young man seeks safety and himself, by Anton Treuer (YA fiction) #AtoZ

Apr26
Book cover of Where Wolves Don't Die, by Anton Treuer. Shows red and black bear drawn in Ojibwe iconic style, title and author written on its body, mouth open in a snarl, claws swiping at the pair of wolves attacking its belly and back.

Noise, dirty snow, crowds,
prejudice, bully at school –
he longs to escape the city!

After Ezra defends his friend Nora against white bully Matt at their Minneapolis school, and then Matt’s house is set ablaze, the Native teen and his dad head quickly to his grandparents for winter break, on the First Nations rez in the Canadian forest where Ezra truly feels at home.

When Nora visits her grandma there, the Ojibwe teens decide to solve the mystery so Matt will leave them alone forever. Nora heads back to school, Dad goes back to teach at college, and the fifteen year old goes far into the woods with Grandpa Liam to run the winter trapline for the first time.

Lots of snow, lots of very hard work setting traps for lynx, marten, fox, and beaver. Checking and resetting the traps each day, offering tobacco in honor of each animal’s life taken. Staying alert for scavengers and predators that would steal their harvest. Doing homework every night, listening to Grandpa read aloud.

Why did Grandpa raise Dad up here on the trapline for so many years?
Will Rose discover who set the fire and trapped Matt’s uncle and dad inside?
Can Ezra forgive his dad for not keeping his mom away from the workplace that caused her cancer?

And in these remote woods is Chi, the biggest black bear, so large that a wolf pack won’t attack him as they would a normal black bear… may he stay sleeping as they finish trapline season!

A strong story of heritage, self-knowledge, friendship, love, and family history.

The first fiction book by Dr. Anton Treuer, professor of Ojibwe, whose Everything You Wanted to Know About Indians, But Were Afraid to Ask (Young People’s Edition) I recently recommended: https://booksyalove.com/?p=14672.

Today is Independent Bookstore Day, so visit https://www.indiebound.org/indie-store-finder to locate the one nearest you! Or use https://bookshop.org/ to have books shipped directly to you, with your favorite independent bookstore as the seller.

How far away would you go to escape an enemy?
**kmm

Book info: Where Wolves Don’t Die / Anton Treuer. Levine Querido, 2024. [author site https://antontreuer.com/] [publisher site https://www.levinequerido.com/where-wolves-dont-die] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.