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WEBSITE: www.henrycole.net
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LAST VOLUME: SATA 270
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Publishers Weekly vol. 270 no. 50 Dec. 11, 2023, review of Albert’s ABCs: A Sibling Story. p. 64.
Kirkus Reviews June 15, 2023, , “Deedy, Carmen Agra: CARINA FELINA.”. p. NA.
Kirkus Reviews June 1, 2022, , “Cole, Henry: FOREVER HOME.”. p. NA.
Kirkus Reviews Feb. 15, 2022, , “Cole, Henry: ADVENTURE AWAITS.”. p. NA.
Kirkus Reviews June 1, 2021, , “Cole, Henry: PRINCIPAL TATE IS RUNNING LATE!”. p. NA.
Kirkus Reviews Apr. 1, 2021, , “Cole, Henry: HOMER ON THE CASE.”. p. NA.
Kirkus Reviews Jan. 15, 2020, , “Cole, Henry: ONE LITTLE BAG.”.
Kirkus Reviews Nov. 15, 2019, , “Cole, Henry: NESTING.”.
Kirkus Reviews May 1, 2019, , “Cole, Henry: SPOT & DOT.”.
Kirkus Reviews Aug. 1, 2018, , “Cole, Henry: TRY A LITTLE KINDNESS.”.
Kirkus Reviews Dec. 1, 2017, , “Cole, Henry: ANOTHER QUEST FOR CELESTE.”.
Kirkus Reviews Mar. 15, 2017, , “Cole, Henry: BAYBERRY ISLAND.”.
Booklist vol. 113 no. 2 Sept. 15, 2016, Hunter, Sarah. , “A Teeny Tiny Halloween.”. p. 57.
Kirkus Reviews June 1, 2016, , “Perl, Erica S.: FEROCIOUS FLUFFITY.”.
Booklist vol. 112 no. 13 Mar. 1, 2016, Cooper, Ilene. , “Spot, the Cat.”. p. 92.
Kirkus Reviews Feb. 1, 2016, , “Cole, Henry: THE SOMEWHAT TRUE ADVENTURES OF SAMMY SHINE.”.
Kirkus Reviews Jan. 1, 2016, , “Upton, Elizabeth: MAXI THE LITTLE TAXI.”.
Kirkus Reviews Oct. 15, 2015, , “Cole, Henry: BRAMBLEHEART.”.
No bio.
Four Questions for Henry Cole
By Antonia Saxon | Apr 07, 2020
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Henry Cole’s quiet environmental campaign started in 1970, on the very first Earth Day. Instead of tossing the brown paper lunch bag he’d brought his sandwich to school in, he folded the bag up and brought it home. He packed his lunch in it again the next day, and every day after that, too, until he graduated from high school three years later. One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey imagines an even longer paper-bag journey, from pine forest and paper factory through school lunchtimes, college, a courtship, a wedding (it holds flower petals), the birth of a child, and a friendship with a grandfather, until it lands at last among the trees where the story began. A testimony to the untested strength of an object most people take for granted, Cole’s wordless story also conjures up a lost era of mid-century small-town life. Cole spoke with PW about his paper bag quest, using memories to make drawings, and discovering that art has the power to move people.
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So the bag really held together for three years?
Yes! I carried it to school with my sandwiches in it and it went on and on. It wasn’t a habit… it became a quest to have this bag, this terrific thing, survive. It was repaired many times. All my friends knew about it. When I went to college I willed the bag to my friend Susan and she carried it, too. It was not really worthy of the name at that point. It was more like a holy relic. You had to carry it like a baby bird. If you had an apple in it, it might as well have been a bowling ball, or a cannonball.
Years and years later I was teaching in a school outside of D.C. and I told a colleague about it, and she said, “That would be such a great story!” That stuck with me, the way she lit up. So I sent it to Dianne Hess at Scholastic and we turned it into a picture book. She helped develop it into a much richer story. And the design! You turn over those first spreads and then comes the title page. I love that! That was the eminent Marijka Kostiw. She did the design for Unspoken, too. Pure genius.
There are some retro references in the illustrations, but the nostalgia element isn’t all that important, right?
Wrong! The nostalgia starts right from the beginning, which is the old grocery store in Purcellville, Virginia [where Cole grew up]. It had a screen door that slammed, it had a spring at the bottom. It’s not there anymore. It’s just like anything you draw; you’re going to summon up something in your memory of what that thing is. It’s a multigenerational story, so I couldn’t start it, you know, a year ago. I had to go way back.
An illustration from One Little Bag.
You’ve done several wordless books [Spot and Dot, 2019; Unspoken, 2016]. Was this book always going to be wordless, too?
Yes. I don’t want to be categorized as all wordless, though! The book I’m working on one now is almost all words. It’s about words.
I like the idea of the kids having their own words, their own internal dialogue. When I visit schools, I don’t read; librarians are much better at that. My program is about creative process. That’s my favorite thing to do. There’s nothing better in this world than hearing kids laugh. It’s the best sound there is, you know, when they can’t stand it they’re laughing so hard, when they’re groaning at the end and they say they don’t want to go… I’ve had 20-some years of that, and I’m missing it right now.
I was supposed to give a talk at the Texas Library Association conference in mid-April, and I’m not going to get to do that, and I’m disappointed. I’m so proud of this book.
If you talk to kids about the creative process, they’re learning what it looks like and how to know it when they’re in it. When did you first become aware that your art was something special?
I remember a really great eighth-grade French teacher. She was only there for a year. She was something else—vivacious, a really cool, likeable teacher—and she gave us this assignment. We had to make a French-English dictionary, and I made mine an illustrated dictionary. The expression on her face when she saw mine, when she looked at the pages, and the way she laughed at the pictures, I can still see it! You can hear somebody say, “Oh, you’re such a great artist,” but it’s another thing to see somebody react like that. Those little things are important and life-changing.
One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey by Henry Cole. Scholastic Press, $18.99 Apr. 7 ISBN 978-1-338-59929-9
QUOTED: "I was born on a farm, without a lot of money. Nothing was thrown away easily. I had a compost pile — this was when organic gardening was just a hippie thing — and we reused stuff. There were glass containers and jars. I didn’t throw anything away, not even a paper bag, if I didn’t have to. In school, after lunch I’d keep my used paper bag, and it became a thing — Henry’s folding up his bag and putting it in his pocket. He’s going to use it again."
Henry Cole Talks with Roger
by Roger Sutton
Apr 16, 2020 | Filed in Articles & Opinion
Talks with Roger is a sponsored supplement to our free monthly e-newsletter, Notes from the Horn Book. To receive Notes, sign up here.
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Back in high school, Henry Cole carried his lunch in the same paper bag for three years. Fifty years later, that bag became a picture book, One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey.
Roger Sutton: My first question is inspired by One Little Bag’s art note, which says that the book was printed on "woodfree paper." What is that?
Henry Cole: I don't know what that means. I'm going to see the designer this weekend at ALA, so I'll ask about that. Maybe bamboo or something. The paper feels good!
RS: It does.
HC: It’s nice. But no trees were harmed in making this book.
RS: The very first Earth Day happened when we were both in high school — we are around the same age — and I see that it gave you both a paper bag and inspiration for this book.
HC: It sure did, a long time ago.
RS: What do you think possessed you to keep that same paper bag going all through high school?
HC: I was born on a farm, without a lot of money. Nothing was thrown away easily. I had a compost pile — this was when organic gardening was just a hippie thing — and we reused stuff. There were glass containers and jars. I didn’t throw anything away, not even a paper bag, if I didn’t have to. In school, after lunch I’d keep my used paper bag, and it became a thing — Henry’s folding up his bag and putting it in his pocket. He’s going to use it again. People wrote their homework assignments and phone numbers and such on the bag.
RS: You were committed. It would be kind of hard to back out.
HC: I was committed. I was committable.
RS: So what brought it to mind as a book?
HC: I taught science and math at a school outside of DC for years. I remember — this was twenty-five, thirty years ago — mentioning that bag to a fifth-grade teacher who was a great friend. Her response was so immediate, and it really stuck: “Oh my gosh, that would be a great book.” It hadn’t occurred to me before, but since then it’s been mulling in my head for a long time. My wonderful editor at Scholastic, Dianne Hess, helped devise a stronger story, so it wasn’t just me carrying a bag back and forth across the field from school.
I have a forestry degree from Virginia Tech. I also worked for Union Camp in South Carolina and Georgia — this huge paper plant. So, it’s been in my head for a long time, the process of what it takes to make a sheet of paper or a paper bag. And then to put it all together: there was this paper bag that I carried as a kid; I studied forestry, and I know every tree in the Eastern United States (I got an A+ on my dendro exam!); teaching science for seventeen years. Weaving all of those things together — this book had to come out eventually, it just had to. The cover illustration is of Mac’s Market in Purcellville, Virginia — a little grocery store in the middle of the town near where I grew up, with a lady with a white apron cutting up meat in the back and a screen door in the front.
RS: Here we had Danny’s — that was the supermarket down the street. There aren’t places like that anymore.
HC: Yes, everything’s big. But this was very little. It had wooden floors that creaked. Can you imagine a grocery store with creaky wooden floors?
RS: And not on purpose. An intentionally rustic building today…
HC: Yeah, I watch HGTV.
RS: What are the particular challenges of telling a story without words?
HC: I like the idea of a wordless book in that, as a reader, you’re making up your own story, your own words in your head as you go along. It’s fun to share a wordless book with a kid, and to have them tell the story.
RS: Back when I was a children’s librarian, I always felt a little awkward sharing a wordless book at story hour. What do you do? When do you turn the page? What’s your cue?
HC: Right, in a group setting it would be harder.
RS: Did you have any experience of that when Unspoken, also wordless, came out? Were you sharing it with groups of children?
HC: No, I haven’t done that. But I’ve heard so many teachers and librarians tell me about how they’ve used it. After they’ve gone over the story with the kids in a classroom, they’ll pick a spread or a page from the book and say something like, “Okay, I’m going to give you twenty minutes to write a paragraph, and it has to have three adjectives and two adverbs.” It’s a hugely helpful tool, and then they’ll send me their writing samples. They’re really amazing — it’s like giving kids a canvas and saying, “Here, paint with words.”
RS: And it can also be surprising. When you ask kids what was this book about? you might not get the answer you thought you would. Does creating a wordless book require a particular type of artistic clarity?
HC: It does, since there are no words to guide you through the pictures. You have to have a pretty clear thought in your head about where the pictures are going, in order to get from start to finish. There are no little helpful word markers along the way.
RS: And this book was wordless from the get-go?
HC: Yes.
RS: Do you have any ecological solutions for what we can do about recycling or not throwing things away? I’m looking at my desk, and it’s a mess of coffee cups and printouts. It’s very shameful.
HC: Reuse. Use less. Those are the only things I can think of. There are just so many people, and everybody wants convenience. I would be very worried if I was a child these days. I’m worried for them.
RS: Let’s see if we can find something more chipper to end this on.
HC: Like a wood chipper, you mean?
RS: So cheerful, you are. In your book, this bag does find a happy ending. It returns to the earth from whence it came. But you don’t know what happened to your bag, is that right?
HC: No. Oh my gosh, no, and that has really stressed me out. After high school I left the bag to my friend Susan — she was a year behind me — and she carried it around. It was pretty worn out at that point. She lives in the house where she grew up, and she has ransacked that house, but she can’t find it. I hope it at least went into a paper recycling bin. But I would’ve loved to have found it. I wanted to take a picture of it and put it on the back flap.
RS: I like what you say about the feeling of an old paper bag. It’s true — it does become almost feltlike, clothlike.
HC: It was so soft and worn. I’m thinking of my mom before she passed away. She had a stroke and couldn’t speak, but I was holding her hand and said, “Mom, if you know I love you, squeeze my hand.” She squeezed my hand, and it felt like that paper bag, with that same worn, smooth, soft feeling. It had contour to it, and it felt the same. That just came to me now, looking out at the water.
My mom was an elementary librarian. This would have been back in the early 1970s or so. I remember she would bring copies of The Horn Book home sometimes. She was reading them like homework for her. That logo is so seared in my head. And the covers — they had these great covers.
RS: On beautiful paper, too.
HC: There's something very, very wonderfully nostalgic about the connection. Right now I can't believe I'm being interviewed for The Horn Book, after all these years, knowing about it for so long.
QUOTED: "I like the idea of different species communicating. For example, I wonder what the different birds on my bird feeder say to each other. 'Quit shoving! Move over! You take all the peanuts!' When I thought of a homing pigeon learning to read because of the daily newspaper under his feet, and then thought of a parrot learning to speak human—one thing led to another. Imagination took over."
Author Interview: Henry Cole on Homer on the Case
Find out more about homing pigeon Homer and his crime-solving animal friends in Homer on the Case with celebrated author and illustrator Henry Cole! We asked Henry about the inspiration and writing process for his action-packed new middle grade mystery featuring birds, friendship, and plenty of adventure, and he’s sharing all about it here!
BeFunky-collage (7)
Q: What inspired you to write Homer on the Case?
A: I like the idea of different species communicating. For example, I wonder what the different birds on my bird feeder say to each other. “Quit shoving!†“Move over!†“You take all the peanuts!†When I thought of a homing pigeon learning to read because of the daily newspaper under his feet, and then thought of a parrot learning to speak human …one thing led to another. Imagination took over.
Q: You’ve worked on nearly 150 books for children. What makes Homer on the Case different from your past projects? What makes it similar?
A: I’ve really enjoyed working on my chapter book projects: one can really try to get into the mind and spirit of the characters. I’m lucky because I can also draw the illustrations, which add personality and expression to those characters. Homer on the Case takes place in a city, unlike my usual stories, and although humans play a big part, it’s the animal characters that move the story around.
Q: You’re an author and illustrator. When you come up with ideas for stories, do you usually think of the story in text or drawings first?
A: I’ve been asked that many times, and I think the best reply is “bothâ€! While I’m imagining and outlining a story in my head or on paper, I can’t help but picture the setting and the characters and how they look and act during different parts of the story. I’m a constant doodler. I doodle all the time. I’ll doodle ideas for a story and those doodles can be very helpful for a book dummy.
Q: How did you choose a homing pigeon for the main character?
A: I think pigeons and doves have an expression that some other birds don’t have; they have a more sensitive and thoughtful look. And I liked the idea that homing pigeons are so skillfully able to always return home. Home is often a theme in my stories, and something very important to me.
Q: You really brought the setting of Keeler Park to life. Was Keeler Park inspired by a real place?
A: Well, yes, sort of. Years and years ago I had some time on my hands as I was waiting for an appointment with an editor. It was late summer. I sat on a bench in a small park near the publisher and watched the city go about its business, people and pigeons mostly. There was a scent to the air of sycamores, and a tranquil feel of the park, nestled among tall buildings. When I was writing about Keeler Park in the story, I was imagining myself on that bench that day.
Q: Grandad keeps a photo of Otto’s grandmother inside his gold pocket watch. Do you have a special keepsake that reminds you of a loved one?
A: Several! Many! A wooden stool my grandfather made, my 3rd grade lunchbox (my mom wrote my name on it) that looks like a barn (I grew up on a farm), a string of brass bells my aunt gave me, two little ceramic pigs that sat on the kitchen window sill of the my childhood home….many more! Don’t get me started!
Q: Communication is an important aspect to this story. How did you come up with the idea to incorporate the challenge of the birds in the story trying to communicate with their humans?
A: I wish I spoke a hundred languages. If I could start over, I’d take every language course I could. Right now I’m barely fluent in English! Years ago, I lived in Egypt for a while, and the best part of my experience there was the joy in learning to communicate with people who didn’t speak English, and the only Arabic I knew was “thank youâ€! I was learning to read and speak and write as an adult. It was a challenge, but with great rewards. I made so many friends that way, learning to communicate. I loved it. I was hoping to get that joy across as Homer and Lulu communicate with their human friends.
Q: If you could choose to be any animal, what would it be?
A: Probably something really useful and cared for, like a police service dog or a therapy animal. I’d like to say something wonderful like a bobcat or a chickadee, but wildlife these days have it rough: they have to contend not only with natural predators and disease, but also with human interference and reduced habitat. I don’t think I’d last long as a chickadee. I’d be in the talons of a sharp-shinned hawk within an hour!
Q: What’s your favorite type of bird, and why?
A: Really?!?! Are you asking for only ONE type of bird?? That’s tough. If I HAD to limit myself, I’d say the American robin, because the song of a male robin singing in early spring has to be one of the best sounds on the planet. And I love hole nesters (woodpeckers, nuthatches, etc.) because I love the idea of nesting in a hole in a tree while the wind gently blows. I’d say “no†to any bird that has to exist in cold water to survive (northern ducks, grebes, gannets etc.) because I hate being cold and wet.
Q: Did any real or fictional detectives inspire Homer?
A: No…Homer is an original, at least in my mind.
Q: Which chapter did you enjoy writing most? Did any of your favorite scenes not make it into the final version of the book?
A: I enjoyed the last chapter the most. I love happy endings! I love the idea of Snaps being out in the sun and lounging in the warm mud. I love the idea of Otto and Charlotte getting credit for something courageous. I like having the characters coming together.
Q: What do you think happens next for Homer and his fellow detectives?
A: Hmmm. I think a dog is involved. Maybe a dog that is just a teensy weensy bit sinister…
Q: What do you hope young readers take away from this story?
A: Collaboration. Adventure. Independence. Caring.
Q: What’s next for you?
A: Currently working on four picture books. Looking forward to a post-Covid world where I can visit schools again…in person!
March 24th, 2021
Henry Cole (illustrator)
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Henry Cole
Born 1955
Purcellville, Virginia
Nationality American
Education Virginia Tech (1978?-1982)
Occupation Illustrator
Years active 1998-
Henry Cole (born 1955) is an American author and illustrator of children's books. He has illustrated several books for many authors including Julie Andrews Edwards, Lester Laminack, Erica Perl, Margie Palatini, Alyssa Capucilli, Harvey Fierstein, and Pamela Duncan Edwards.
Background
Henry Cole, born 1955 near Purcellville, Virginia, United States, most often uses a cartoon-like style with vivid colors and primarily works in acrylics and colored pencils.
Cole grew up on a dairy farm in Virginia. He enjoyed art as a child and frequently made birthday cards for friends or signs for school functions[1] He later went on to study Forestry at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He never received formal art training, but his mother was an illustrator who gave him advice throughout his career.[2]
Work
Before Cole was an illustrator, he taught science at The Langley School in Virginia from 1984 to 1999.[3] He frequently used art to illustrate a concept during his classes.[3] As an elementary school teacher, Cole often had the opportunity to hear visiting authors and illustrators speak, and thought that he might be interested in pursuing book illustration as a career.[4]
Cole has collaborated with many authors as well as celebrities such as Julie Andrews and Harvey Fierstein. The Sissy Duckling (2002), written by Fierstein, was a Lambada Literary Award Finalist in 2002[3] Some of Cole's most famous works are Moosestache (1999) written by Margie Palatini, Mooseletoe (2000) written by Margie Palatini, Big Chickens (2008) written by Leslie Helakoski, and Honk! The Story of a Prima Swanerina (2000) written by Pamela Duncan Edwards, which has recently been made into an animated video by Disney.
Some criticism has been received for And Tango Makes Three (2005), for which Cole was the illustrator. The book is about the true story of two male penguins that raised a chick together in the Central Park Zoo in New York City. Afraid that the book promotes homosexuality, many schools have categorized this book as nonfiction rather than juvenile fiction.[3] The Library of Congress, however, continues to categorize this work as juvenile fiction. Cole's illustrations for this work and several others have been recognized for their realistic nature which is in contrast to his usual trend of cartoon-like illustrations.[3] In a review of And Tango Makes Three, Booklist contributor Jennifer Mattson states that "Cole's pictures complement the perfectly cadenced text".[5]
Cole's many books are well reviewed. Booklist's review of Katy Duck is a Caterpillar (2009), written by Alyssa Satin Capucilli states that, "The...comedic color drawings translate Katy's longing and disappointment and will easily appeal to young children".[6] Cole has also received praise for his illustrations in Tubby the Tuba (2006), written by Paul Tripp. Children's book reviewer Carolyn Phelan for Booklist states, "Cole's colorful retro-style artwork endows the instrument-characters great emotional expressiveness. He uses the large format to good advantage, creating scenes that are varied in their effects and show up well from a distance".[6] Cole's usual whimsical, cartoon-like style with vivid colors and limited white space not only helps to enhance the story by adding character elements; it also draws young readers in.
In addition to illustrating for other writers, Cole has also written and authored fifteen children's books. I Took a Walk (1998) and On the Way to the Beach (2003) both depict things one might find while walking through nature. A Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote that On the Way to the Beach had "marvelously detailed and accurate illustrations [that] give readers a peek into the natural world".[3] In an additional review for On the Way to the Beach Carolyn Phelan for Booklist states that, "Parents looking for an early introduction to nature study will find this an informative offering with a playful approach".[6] On Meadowview Street (2007) is about a girl named Caroline who decides to stop mowing her lawn and let it grow into a field of wildflowers. A Publishers Weekly critic described the illustrations as "beautifully portrayed in meticulously detailed, velvety acrylics".[3] Jennifer Mattson from Booklist stated, "The jab at soulless suburbia and its faux-bucolic trappings may be most appreciated by adults, but the crucial message ... will speak strongly to today’s ecologically aware children. And it's all done without stridency".[6] All of the books end with a spread containing panels of wildlife seen in the book. Released in early 2010, A Nest for Celeste is Cole's latest foray into writing, and was received with great acclaim. About a mouse looking for a place she can call home, the book also teaches about the work of naturalist John James Audubon as Celeste makes friends with his young apprentice. Amazon.com featured it as a Best Book of the Month in March[7] and the Publishers Weekly starred review stated that "Evocative illustrations, compelling characters, and thoughtful reflections on the nature of home combine to powerful effect."[7]
One notable title, "Unspoken," (2012) has received numerous awards:: NY Times Best Picture Books, ALA Notable Book, Chicago Public Library Best of the Best, 2012 Upstanders Award, Virginia Jefferson Cup Award, Jr. Library Guild Selection, Parents Choice Gold Award, SLJ Best Book, Publishers Weekly Best Books, White Ravens of 2013, Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books, NCTE Notable Books in Language Arts, and Pennsylvania Keystone to Reading Award.
In an interview with HarperCollins, Cole stated "Your own book is your own baby. I think it's more fulfilling to both write and illustrate a book. However, it can be more fun and stimulating to collaborate with another person and create something jointly".[2]
Personal
As a child, Cole grew up on a dairy farm and enjoyed being outdoors. His love for the outdoors is what eventually led him to study science. He has said that he spent a "lifetime" observing things in nature such as birds and leaves which has made art easier. He has also stated that he hopes to do more environmental books in the future.[2] Cole is also inspired by artists Norman Rockwell, Paul Klee, John Singer Sargent, and N.C. Wyeth.[8]
Publications
Written and illustrated by Cole
Jack's Garden, 1998
I Took a Walk, 1998
On the Way to the Beach, 2003
On Meadowview Street, 2007
Trudy, 2009
A Nest for Celeste, 2010
Littlest Evergreen, 2011
Unspoken, 2012
Big Bug, 2014
Brambleheart, 2016
Somewhat True Adventures of Sammy Shine, 2016
Spot, the Cat, 2016
Eddie the Bully, 2016
Another quest for Celeste, 2018
One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey, 2018
Try A Little Kindness, 2018
Spot and Dot, 2019
Nesting,2020
Principal Tate is Running Late!,2021
Homer on the Case, 2021
Building, 2022
Forever Home, 2022
Adventure Awaits, 2022
Illustrated by Cole
Moosetache Margie Palatini
Zipping, Zapping, Zooming Bats by Ann Earle (1995)
Four Famished Foxes and Fosdyke by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1995)
Dinorella: A Prehistoric Fairy Tale by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1997)
Warthogs in the Kitchen by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1998)
Livingstone Mouse by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1998)
Barefoot: Escape on the Underground Railroad by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1998)
Some Smug Slug by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1998)
Wacky Wedding: A Book of Alphabet Antics by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1999)
Ed and Fred Flea by Pamela Duncan Edwards (1999)
Little Bo by Julie Andrews Edwards (1997)
Who Bop? By Jonathan London (2000)
Roar! A Noisy Counting Book by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2000)
Bravo, Livingstone Mouse! by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2000)
Little Dogs Say “Rough!” by Rick Walton (2000)
Honk! The Story of a Prima Swanerina by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2000)
Mooseltoe by Margie Palatini (2000)
All American Puppies #6: Bake-off Burglar by Susan Saunders (2001)
All American Puppies #5: Puppysaurus by Susan Saunders (2001)
All American Puppies #4: Uptown Poodle, Downtown Pups by Susan Saunders (2001)
All American Puppies #3: Camp Barkalot by Susan Saunders (2001)
All American Puppies #2: On the Scent of Trouble by Susan Saunders (2001)
All American Puppies #1: New Pup on the Block by Susan Saunders (2001)
Warthogs Paint by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2001)
Wake-Up Kisses by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2001)
Slop Goes the Soup: A Noisy Warthog Word Book by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2001)
Boston Tea Party by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2001)
Warthogs in a Box: Counting, Colors, Sounds by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2002)
Fright Night Flight by Laura Krauss Melmed (2002)
Can You Make a Piggy Giggle? by Linda Ashman (2002)
Muldoon by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2002)
Little Bo in France by Julie Andrews Edwards (2002)
The Sissy Duckling by Harvey Fierstein (2002)
The Wright Brothers by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2003)
Why Do Kittens Purr? by Marion Dane Bauer (2003)
Rosie's Roses by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2003)
City Chicken by Arthur Dorros (2003)
Naughty Little Monkeys by Jim Aylesworth (2003)
Bad Boys by Margie Palatini (2003)
The Worrywarts by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2003)
Gigi and Lulu's Gigantic Fight by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2004)
The Leprechaun's Gold by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2004)
Santa's Stuck by Rhonda Gowler Greene (2004)
Moosekitos by Margie Palatini (2004)
Victor Vito and Freddie Vasco: Two Polar Bears on a Mission to Save the Klondike by Laurie Berkner (2004)
Clara Caterpillar by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2004)
And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnall (2005)
Ms. Bitsy Bat's Kindergarten by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2005)
Z is for Zookeeper by Marie and Roland Smith (2005)
Tubby the Tuba by Paul Tripp (2006)
Bad Boys Get Cookie! by Margie Palatini (2006)
Big Chickens by Leslie Helakoski (mother of Connor Helakoski) (2006)
Shiver Me Letters: A Pirate ABC by June Sobel (2006)
Oink? by Margie Palatini (2006)
Katy Duck, Big Sister: A Book About Sharing by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2007)
Katy Duck by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2007)
The Old House by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2007)
Chaucer's First Winter by Stephen Krensky (2008)
Jack and Jill's Treehouse by Pamela Duncan Edwards (2008)
Rubber-legged Ducky by John Keller (2008)
Katy Duck, Center Stage by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2008)
Katy Duck, Dance Star by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2008)
Twelve Days of Christmas in Virginia by Sue Corbet (2009)
Mouse Was Mad by Linda Urban (2009)
Chicken Butt! by Erica S. Perl (2009)
Bad Boys Get Henpecked by Margie Palatini (2009)
Katy Duck is a Caterpillar by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2009)
Big Chickens Go To Town by Leslie Helakoski (2010)
Big Chickens Fly the Coop by Leslie Helakoski (2010)
Katy Duck Goes to Dance Class by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2010)
One Pup's Up by Marsha Wilson Chall (2010)[9]
Little Bo in Italy by Julie Andrews Edwards (2010)
Chicken Butt's Back by Erica S. Perl (2011)
Three Hens and a Peacock by Lester Laminack (2011)
Starring Katy Duck by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2011)
I Know a Wee Piggy by Kim Norman (2012)
Who's Who by Ken Geist (2012)
Surfer Chick by Kristy Dempsey (2012)
Little Bo in London by Julie Andrews Edwards (2012)
Katy Duck Makes a Friend by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2012)
Katy Duck Meets the Babysitter by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2012)
Katy Duck and the Tip Top Tap Shoes by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2013)
Katy Duck, Flower Girl by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2013)
Bogart and Vinnie by Audrey Vernick (2013)
Nelly May Has Her Say by Cynthia DeFelice (2013)
Prairie Chicken Little by Jackie Mims Hopkins (2013)
Katy Duck and the Secret Valentine by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2014)
Katy Duck Goes to Work by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2014)
Katy Duck's Happy Halloween by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2014)
Maxi the Taxi by Elizabeth Upton (2016)
Ralph and the Rocket Ship by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2016)
Ferocious Fluffity by Erica Perl (2016)
Teeny Tiny Halloween by Lauren Wohl (2016)
Emmett and the Bright Blue Cape by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (2017)
Three Hens, A Peacock and The Enormous Egg by Lester L. Laminack (2023)
Carina Felina by Carmen Agra Deedy (2023)
QUOTED: "A slight concept quickly proves page-turning in the experienced hands of Cole."
Albert's ABCs: A Sibling Story
Henry Cole. Peachtree, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-68263-653-4
In simple words and phrases that stand in for the Roman alphabet's 26 letters, Cole {Carina Felina) runs readers through a crocodilian duo's ups and downs. It all kicks off on the verso with A, older kid "Albert," playing with building blocks. On the recto, B, apparent younger sibling "Baxter," turns red-faced "Crying" in a crib. Albert's big googly eyes, alert snout, and tense green physique express a rich and wholly relatable psychology: Could the cause be "Diaper?" Yes, and it's an "Easy Fix" for caregiver "Grandma," who arrives with supplies in tow. Albert becomes increasingly "Irritated" during "Lunch," sinking into the respite of Baxter's "Nap"--"Oh... Peace. Quiet," When the baby later "Stumbles" into Albert's block tower, though, the older croc rises to the occasion, expressing genuine concern, and joining Grandma in proffering a smoochy, all-better "X." Emotional equilibrium restored, the sibs share a little floor time before Baxter returns to the crib to "Zzzzz," and Albert regards the snoozer with a mixture of affection and relief. A slight concept quickly proves page-turning in the experienced hands of Cole, whose fluid, digitally rendered vignettes are little gems of comedy and character. Ages 2-5. (Mar.)
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"Albert's ABCs: A Sibling Story." Publishers Weekly, vol. 270, no. 50, 11 Dec. 2023, p. 64. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A777789762/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=2644217c. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
Deedy, Carmen Agra CARINA FELINA Scholastic (Children's None) $19.99 8, 1 ISBN: 9781338749168
A selfish cat whom readers will love to hate swallows anyone who questions her behavior.
The trouble starts when Pepe the parrot attempts to woo Carina Felina with home-baked Cuban crackers and coffee. When the cat devours the crackers, leaving only one for Pepe, the outraged parrot demands an explanation. "I do what I like and I eat what I wish," Carina replies with what will become the book's refrain. "Step out of my way, or be my next dish!" After Pepe declares he is not afraid of her, she swallows him and proceeds to roam the Caribbean town, gobbling whomever she pleases and growing larger with every meal until a pair of land crabs hatch a plan to save their friends. Carina's escalating audacity will have children eagerly turning the pages to find out whom the cat will eat next and when someone will put an end to her rampage. Each encounter introduces an italicized Spanish word, immediately defined, and by the end, Carina's belly is full of people and animals children can name in Spanish and English. The colorful illustrations provide sufficient detail to stimulate the imagination without overwhelming and include enough nods to typical characteristics of a Hispanic Caribbean town to make the setting familiar to readers from such a background. Human characters are brown-skinned. In the backmatter, Deedy explains that many cultures around the world have their own version of the story. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A delightful Cuban-inflected retelling of a classic folktale. (glossary of Spanish words with pronunciations, recipe for galletas cubanas) (Picture book. 3-8)
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"Deedy, Carmen Agra: CARINA FELINA." Kirkus Reviews, 15 June 2023, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A752722985/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=2d7c8e37. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "an exquisitely rendered, touching story of companionship and belonging."
Cole, Henry FOREVER HOME Scholastic (Children's None) $18.99 7, 19 ISBN: 978-1-338-78404-6
In this wordless tale, a lonely dog and a child yearning for a pet find solace and purpose together.
Alone on a stoop, an abandoned dog sits in front of a locked door and a nearby "for sale" sign. The dog sadly roams the neighborhood, searching for a new home. Meanwhile, a child pesters their parents with pleas for a dog. The child shows them photos and a bright red leash and collar, the only color amid full-bleed black-and-white spreads. The parents visit the child's room, exasperated with its unkempt state. Undeterred, the child takes the leash for walks around town, even in the pouring rain, the crimson hue of the leash radiating hope amid the gloomy gray. On one such walk, the two main characters meet, and, in hopes of convincing their parents to let the dog come live with them, the child is motivated to help with chores and tidy their room. The pair are joyfully reunited at the dog shelter, embarking on new adventures and grateful to be together. Cole excels at creating expressive background characters and realistic details with precise ink crosshatches and linework that reward closer inspection. The child is light-skinned with spiky black hair. One parent is light-skinned; the other is dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An exquisitely rendered, touching story of companionship and belonging. (author's note) (Picture book. 3-8)
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"Cole, Henry: FOREVER HOME." Kirkus Reviews, 1 June 2022, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A705355998/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=cdcedf74. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "an engaging romp from start to finish."
Cole, Henry ADVENTURE AWAITS Little Simon/Simon & Schuster (Children's None) $9.99 5, 10 ISBN: 978-1-66590-290-8
A dog and a cat separately awaken to a day full of promise and an interesting world to explore.
Indoors, a gray dog arises from a purple cushion. Elsewhere, a striped, orange tabby leaves its green cushion, performing a quintessentially catlike stretch. Each creature heads outdoors. The dog pauses to check out a butterfly and a bee, then a squirrel sitting on a fence. The cat's fancy is caught by a red watering can, then by two blue jays looking on with wary interest. The dog chases the squirrel, and the cat chases the birds up the same large tree with spreading, leafy branches. Stymied, the two pets gaze at a hollow in the trunk that, frightfully, appears occupied. It is! The occupant--an owl--peers after the cat and dog as they flee. Back home, they return to the safety of their cozy cushions. Readers will enjoy the surprising twist ending, and the sight of a raccoon peering through the glass-paned door promises new adventures. Beautifully crafted, this tale leaves space for children to fill in the story and to practice reading others' emotions and intentions. Are the dog and cat friends? What are they looking for? Do they find it? Did the owl scare them (or vice versa)? Consisting mostly of verbs, the text guides and hints but lets children--like the animal characters--make their own discoveries. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An engaging romp from start to finish. (Board book. 1-4)
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"Cole, Henry: ADVENTURE AWAITS." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Feb. 2022, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A693214848/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=5575cdb0. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "a sweet message for school communities."
Cole, Henry PRINCIPAL TATE IS RUNNING LATE! Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins (Children's None) $17.99 7, 6 ISBN: 978-0-06-302574-5
What will happen to Hardy Elementary school when reliable Principal Tate runs late?
Principal Tate, a large white hen, holds everything together at school, cheering the students and making sure things run smoothly. But this morning, as the buses pull up and the school day starts, Principal Tate is missing. (Readers saw her under the hood of her car at the side of the road after the title page.) All sorts of small animals enter the school for their day, and problems enter with them: Someone is being teased; someone else is throwing up. There are visitors and parents waiting for Principal Tate; there’s a fire drill planned, and here comes the school board for their meeting! Before things descend into chaos, the staff and students spring into action, solving problems by sharing art, song, books, and food and by making phone calls. By the time the hero—bus driver Mr. Morales (a brown terrier)—shows up with Principal Tate, the school has proven that “it’s a place of community, / working so beautifully, together in unity.” The rhyming text feels a bit forced, and while the pileup of urgent situations is both a bit arbitrary and over-the-top, it builds momentum and suspense to keep the pages turning. The artwork is busy with few contrasting colors, requiring some extra focus to identify the all-animal characters mentioned in the text. Emotions and relationships are visualized and engaging. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A sweet message for school communities. (Picture book. 4-8)
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"Cole, Henry: PRINCIPAL TATE IS RUNNING LATE!" Kirkus Reviews, 1 June 2021, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A667031379/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=061aa61b. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "engaging conceit" "Who doesn’t love smart, friendly birds on a secret mission?"
Cole, Henry HOMER ON THE CASE Peachtree (Children's None) $16.99 4, 1 ISBN: 978-1-68263-254-3
Homer the homing pigeon and Lulu, an Amazon parrot, collaborate to defeat a wily, sewer-dwelling alligator with a taste for bling.
The engaging conceit is that Homer long ago taught himself to read. Channeling his favorite cartoon detective, Dick Tracy, he’s determined to discover why rats and cats are stealing valuables from people in the park. With the help of his wild pigeon friends, he observes that the shiny stash is being taken into the storm sewers. Since he’s a pigeon of some talent, he’s convinced he and Lulu can explore the tunnels, solve the mystery of where the stolen items are being taken, and safely get away. They discover a huge, bejeweled alligator being served by a cast of minions. But how to relate this remarkable story to Otto, Homer’s owner, and Charlotte, Lulu’s human friend? Homer uses his ability to read words and Lulu, her skill in speaking them to communicate the necessary information. Each chapter begins with a panel of attractive pencil illustrations that record the highlights to follow. In them, Otto presents White, and Charlotte has darker skin. The birds’ exploits are surprisingly believable and enjoyable to follow in Homer’s first-person narration. The humans are appropriately less developed. Why Snaps the alligator loves jewels and how the rats and cats came to serve her are barely explored, leaving this potential adversary rather flat.
Who doesn’t love smart, friendly birds on a secret mission? (Fantasy. 8-11)
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"Cole, Henry: HOMER ON THE CASE." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Apr. 2021, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A656696480/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=79dd0867. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "beautifully effective as both nostalgia trip and lesson in conservation."
Cole, Henry ONE LITTLE BAG Scholastic (Children's Informational) $18.99 4, 7 ISBN: 978-1-338-35997-8
This wordless picture book traces one brown paper bag's journey: from timber and manufacturing through the hands of a small, white boy and his single father to those of the next generation.
The skilled black-ink drawings lend a look of pleasant harmony to all the characters that populate the pages, from woodland creatures to humans of various ages and gender and racial presentations. Meticulous attention to composition, textures, and period detail--starting around the 1960s--makes each page a delight. The common feature of each scene is a brown paper bag, which the protagonist's father decorates with a red heart on his son's first day of school--the book's only pops of color. After its first use for the boy's lunch, the bag becomes a never-ending vessel-of-all-trades. As the boy grows up, the bag serves as, among other things, a de facto lampshade over a flashlight to quell nightmares; a bag for automotive tools; receptacle for an engagement ring when the protagonist, now a young man, proposes to his girlfriend, a black woman; a petal container for the wedding's flower girl; and a collection bag when the protagonist's child gathers seashells with grandpa. Because there are no words, children are left to draw their own conclusions from an eventual drawing of the grandfather's empty chair. (Is he wintering in some warm place? The planting of a pine seedling, its roots protected by that paper bag, offers an alternative interpretation.) The subtitle will disappoint those who equate "amazing" with narratives outside a common, middle-class, heteronormative life. However, the bag's durability is amazing--and, according to the author's fascinating note, not impossible.
Beautifully effective as both nostalgia trip and lesson in conservation. (Picture book. 3-7)
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"Cole, Henry: ONE LITTLE BAG." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Jan. 2020. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A611140206/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=2a4626d2. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "beautiful, informative, and appropriate to the audience."
Cole, Henry NESTING Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins (Children's Fiction) $17.99 3, 3 ISBN: 978-0-06-288592-0
Robin's-egg blue highlights this account of an American robin family's year.
Cole uses thin black lines and crosshatching to limn the tree, the tree branch from which a male robin sings in early spring, the responding female, and the nest they build. The first pages are entirely black and white; the first hint of color appears as a blue-washed sky behind the tree as the birds begin their nest; two page turns reveal the familiarly colored egg, its bright color contrasting arrestingly with its black-and-white surroundings. Then there are two, three, four eggs and the mother robin's patient incubation. After the nestlings hatch, a 12-panel spread shows the adult birds flying back and forth with insects and worms for the babies. First a storm and then a hungry snake provide suspense, but the parents shelter and defend their chicks successfully. Eventually the young robins fledge. "Soon they grow strong and can feed themselves. Their wings take them anywhere they want to go." Cole varies the design from vignettes and panels to full- and double-page spreads. Sometimes viewers are close up; at other times they see the scenes from a distance. The relatively simple text, expressed in short sentences, is very accessible, and the natural history, ending with fall berries and the overwintering family, is accurate. Aimed at a younger audience than Eileen Christolow's Robins (2017), this conveys essential information without the other title's anthropomorphism.
Beautiful, informative, and appropriate to the audience. (author's note) (Informational picture book. 3-7)
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"Cole, Henry: NESTING." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Nov. 2019. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A605549443/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=50e41d2c. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "an extraordinary search-and-find that delivers the hum and intrigue found in a city's multitudes."
Cole, Henry SPOT & DOT Little Simon/Simon & Schuster (Children's Fiction) $17.99 8, 13 ISBN: 978-1-5344-2555-2
A cat trails a runaway dog on a gleeful sprint through a bustling city.
Just as Spot (the cat) sees a new neighbor kid pinning up a "Lost Dog" poster, the feline also notices that very dog (Dot) pawing through trash down the street. When Dot takes off, Spot decides to follow. Keeping up with them in Cole's staggeringly detailed urban scenes couldn't be more breathlessly fun--or more challenging. Squinting eyes inevitably settle on myriad vignettes embedded within the double-page, full-bleed, black-and-white spreads of exacting ink crosshatches and linework. Life happens everywhere (in apartment windows, at the bakery, on the street, inside the library, at the dog park, in the flea market). People and animals wave, sneer, smile, pull, lift, doze, fetch, paint, read,
and wag and flick tails within these wonderfully congested urban scenes. Interpreting quotidian moments as a voyeur feels immensely pleasurable, and inevitably readers will dawdle and dream about each tiny circumstance--but then remember Spot and Dot and get back to work looking for the oval markings on the creatures' flanks that distinguish them from all the other cats and dogs. So many cats and dogs! When they both return home, there's palpable relief on their owners' faces and in readers' hearts.
An extraordinary search-and-find that delivers the hum and intrigue found in a city's multitudes and also the singular feeling of returning to one's individual place in the world. (Picture book. 4-10)
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"Cole, Henry: SPOT & DOT." Kirkus Reviews, 1 May 2019. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A583840566/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=8def660b. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "The story will hopefully create similar compassion in readers--or it might just make them giggle."
Cole, Henry TRY A LITTLE KINDNESS Scholastic (Children's Fiction) $17.99 10, 9 ISBN: 978-1-338-25641-3
Kids are encouraged to engage in small but mighty acts of kindness throughout the day.
"A smile to greet the morning / A hug to greet each day / A 'thank you' and a 'yes, please' / Are things that you should say." Vignettes depicting various scenarios and glossed with bold red statements of ways to be kind make up the majority of the work, but similar snatches of narratorial verse are also mixed in to hold the moments together. Standard advice applies: "Write thank-you notes!" or "Share your toy." Other suggestions, such as "Hold the door for a friend," or "Tell someone they are special," seem perfectly polite on the surface, but Cole's watercolor art conceals some devious possibilities within that both provoke thought and help to keep the book from feeling too syrupy. A cat holding the bird-cage door open, for instance, might not be as kind as one might think. But the art is full of unlikely groupings (a wolf helps three pigs build a brick house), and readers can only hope differences have been set aside for the sake of neighborliness (and enjoyment in spotting them). In a world where kindness and empathy are lacking, this string of actionable advice is enough to get the wheels turning.
The story will hopefully create similar compassion in readers--or it might just make them giggle. (Picture book. 3-6)
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"Cole, Henry: TRY A LITTLE KINDNESS." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Aug. 2018. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A548137852/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=544731af. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "Earnest animal fantasy with exceptionally designed illustrations but uncomfortably set in a time and place undeserving of a rosy glow."
Cole, Henry ANOTHER QUEST FOR CELESTE Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins (Children's Fiction) $16.99 2, 6 ISBN: 978-0-06-265812-8
A timid mouse goes on an inadvertent journey.
Cornered by a house cat, Celeste (A Nest for Celeste, 2010) spends the night nestled in a wagon laden with cotton. In the morning, the wagon departs with Celeste aboard, and her home disappears behind her. Her voyage is episodic, featuring new friends, myriad hiding places (a sewing box; a barrel of cornmeal), and dangers (a steamboat that sinks, fur trappers, a season that gets cold). The shy little rodent travels up the Mississippi River from "a long way south," landing someplace with "brilliant fall colors and icicles and snowdrifts." Other animals protect her, and then she's adopted by a white boy named Abe (Lincoln, the author's note confirms), who's portrayed almost romantically as particularly kind, thoughtful, and hungry for education. Descriptions of nature are lush; Cole's black-and-white pencil drawings touch almost every spread, soft and gentle, evocative, sometimes covering entire pages. Unfortunately, the piece ignores an underlying ugliness: in the early 1800s in Mississippi, Celeste's cozy, "safe" original home--a plantation--almost certainly would have been a site of slavery, and the story's only obviously black human--a friendly cook on the steamboat--might have been enslaved.
Earnest animal fantasy with exceptionally designed illustrations but uncomfortably set in a time and place undeserving of a rosy glow. (author's note) (Animal fantasy. 6-10)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
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"Cole, Henry: ANOTHER QUEST FOR CELESTE." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Dec. 2017. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A516024498/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=777423a3. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "animal fantasy adventure with a gentle feel."
Cole, Henry BAYBERRY ISLAND Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins (Children's Fiction) $16.99 5, 2 ISBN: 978-0-06-224551-9
Three woodland animals take a journey to bring a baby dragon back to his home.When Twig, a chipmunk, left home with his adopted baby dragon and found a ship-in-a-bottle that could be reassembled outside the bottle (Brambleheart: A Story About Finding Treasure and the Unexpected Magic of Friendship, 2016), he set off bravely for parts unknown. Now Twig, his best friend, Lily (a rabbit), and their enemy-inexplicably-turned-friend, Basil (a weasel), are sailing down a river, trying to bring baby dragon Char back to his home--with no hint where that may be. Fragile Char's susceptible to hunger and cold; he understands when the animals talk
to him, but he doesn't reply, not even when he revives after eating fish that Lily catches by weaving a net. The adventure goes from river to open ocean to island. They find Char's family and an old enemy finds them, clarifying (grimly) an emotionally confusing event from Brambleheart. Dangers are all overcome, either with ingenuity and teamwork or with help in the form of a beaver, a sea turtle, or an adult dragon appearing exactly when needed. Cole's pencil drawings appear on almost every spread, earnest, immediate, and expressive. They help with storytelling, as when readers can discern that a mysterious, ship-blocking wall is a beaver dam several pages before the text says so. Animal fantasy adventure with a gentle feel. (Fantasy. 6-10)
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"Cole, Henry: BAYBERRY ISLAND." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Mar. 2017. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A485105190/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=308749bc. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
A Teeny Tiny Halloween. By Lauren L. Wohl, Illus. by Henry Cole. Sept. 2016.32p. Persnickety, $15.95 (9781943978021). PreS-Gr. 1.
Living in the middle of a forest full of huge trees is a little house occupied by a small lady with a gigantic problem--her house is about to be buried by leaves. She calls out, but her voice is "teeny tiny" and no one hears. Even banging her pots and pans and cookie sheets together doesn't do the trick. But all those cooking implements give her an idea: Who can resist the aroma of baking cookies? There's no smell too small for a gang of trick-or-treaters to notice, and when they discover the small-house-sized pile of leaves, they start digging until they find the door and receive the perfect Halloween treat. Wohl's singsongy text presses the phrase teeny tiny to its limit, but the repetition might be a hit with group storytimes. Cole's warm illustrations in a seasonally rusty palette, full of tawny oak leaves and looming tree trunks, nicely evoke both the coziness of the woman's little house and the vague but gentle eeriness of the woods. A fine choice for a Halloween read-aloud.--Sarah Hunter
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association
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Hunter, Sarah. "A Teeny Tiny Halloween." Booklist, vol. 113, no. 2, 15 Sept. 2016, p. 57. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A464980959/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=0b989255. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
Perl, Erica S. FEROCIOUS FLUFFITY Abrams (Children's Picture Books) $16.95 7, 19 ISBN: 978-1-4197-2182-3
A pet hamster comes to Room 2-D: So cute! So fluffy! So...toothy."Look--don't touch," warns Mr. Drake, the teacher (a bespectacled black man who manages to look both groovy and stodgy). "Though the children nodded yes, / Did they mean it? Take a guess." And no sooner is tiny, big-eyed Fluffity lifted out of her cage for a general pass-around than she suddenly displays impressively sharklike teeth. She proceeds to (bloodlessly) nip and harry the entire frantic class out of the room, into the hall, and down to the library. Not even the teacher is immune, for as soon as he catches up, "Quick as lightning, Fluffity / Opened wide... // ...and bit his knee / (Hanging on tenaciously)." The discovery that Fluffity likes to fetch tossed pencils and other small items at last allows peace to be restored--at least until the arrival of the next classroom pet: Jake the (large) snake. Cue a final view of one panic-stricken rodent. Cole places the bitty biter into quarters that are much too confined, but in keeping with the rollicking rhyme, his cartoon students are comically popeyed as well as being diverse in hair and skin tone. Perl makes the lesson explicit: "Get to know your pet before / Opening her cage's door," and be sure to provide enough opportunities for exercise.Another crowd pleaser from the creators of Chicken Butt! (2009). (Picture book. 6-8)
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"Perl, Erica S.: FEROCIOUS FLUFFITY." Kirkus Reviews, 1 June 2016. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A454177209/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=51f6052d. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "Cole's pencil-and-ink crosshatch artwork is an intricate marvel."
Spot, the Cat. By Henry Cole. Illus. by the author. Mar. 2016. 32p. Simon & Schuster/Little Simon, $17.99 (9781481442251). K-Gr. 2.
Spot the cat? If you can! Frankly, Spot is not that easy to find in this wordless picture book by veteran Cole. And that's what makes this so frustratingly fun. The book begins with a one-spotted cat looking at a bird outside the living room window while his young owner reads. Turn the page and the spread shows an incredibly detailed street of brownstones and shops, with people, plants, and pets peeking out of windows as dog owners and bikers bustle by. The rest of the story is simple: Spot gets caught up in city life, moving from park to museum to train station. When the boy realizes Spot is missing, he prints out fliers and heads out to find him, but is usually a step or two behind. Cole's pencil-and-ink crosshatch artwork is an intricate marvel, and even after readers have found Spot, there are plenty of other stories to see in these pages, or kids can use the goings-on as a jumping off place for stories of their own. One caveat: the flap copy says that Spot can be found on each page, but this isn't true on pages featuring the boy, unless you count the cat's face on the fliers. As for that detailed first spread? Well, we are still looking. Darn cat.--Ilene Cooper
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association
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Cooper, Ilene. "Spot, the Cat." Booklist, vol. 112, no. 13, 1 Mar. 2016, p. 92. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A447443712/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=a35ee92e. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "This amusing tale will serve well as an early chapter book or read-aloud."
Cole, Henry THE SOMEWHAT TRUE ADVENTURES OF SAMMY SHINE Peachtree (Children's Fiction) $16.95 4, 1 ISBN: 978-1-56145-866-0
Sammy, a clever pet mouse, lives a contented life until his owner's brother kidnaps him to serve as pilot for a remote-controlled plane. Then his adventures begin. The plane gets away from the boy and crashes into distant woods, where Sammy encounters a community of mice, including a helpful young female, Phoebe. After his damaged plane--his only means to get back home--goes missing, he sets out to find Goggles, a raccoon rumored to have great ideas but who can only be reached after a long journey. Along the way, Sammy's joined by a crow that can't fly, a newt, a shrew, and finally, Phoebe. Their quest is threatened by an evil weasel and his wily band of rats. Characters are only thinly developed, and the story is just mildly suspenseful. It is so brief (despite page count) the potential dangers simply don't get expanded upon enough to feel truly threatening. But the illustrations lift this effort above the pack. Cole's soft, delicately shaded black-and-white artwork appears on nearly every spread, with numerous double-page spreads. The realistic woodland scenes populated with slightly anthropomorphized creatures beg for closer study. Although no one will doubt the eventual outcome, since Sammy is way too cute to fail, this amusing tale will serve well as an early chapter book or read-aloud. (Fantasy. 7-10)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Kirkus Media LLC
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"Cole, Henry: THE SOMEWHAT TRUE ADVENTURES OF SAMMY SHINE." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Feb. 2016. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A441734995/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=b3da8a0e. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
Upton, Elizabeth MAXI THE LITTLE TAXI Scholastic (Children's Picture Books) $17.99 3, 29 ISBN: 978-0-545-79860-0
Maxi the taxi can't wait to start driving through the streets of a big city. Earnest to the core, shiny yellow Maxi, with bright eyes for windows and a smile stretched out wide across his front, is thrilled to start his first day of work. His tiny tires bounce across the pavement as he ZOOOMs and ZIPs all over town. Unfortunately, he also splashes in every puddle that he sees. Ice cream drips make him sticky, and pigeon droppings make him icky. Then a snobby "taxi gal" pulls up next to him to whisper words of unsolicited advice: "You'd better wash up Mr. Gooey-Goo, / or no one will want to ride with you!" Maxi realizes she is right. But how does he get clean in this big, dirty city? Luckily a young tot has just the answer--a car wash! Maxi is emotionally equivalent to a young tot himself; children will recognize themselves as he gets dirty, exhibits wide-eyed wonder, quivers into tears when things don't go right, and worries about the car wash. Cole infuses Maxi with plenty of personality but falls short on diversity. The background crowd is a mix of ethnicities, but nobody who actively interacts with Maxi is unequivocally a character of color. A bouncy read-aloud with an adorable taxi full of dash and spirit. (Picture book. 3-5)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Kirkus Media LLC
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"Upton, Elizabeth: MAXI THE LITTLE TAXI." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Jan. 2016. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A438646663/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=72bc1911. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.
QUOTED: "Nestled in a small trim size, this is an appealing and accessible genre blend."
Cole, Henry BRAMBLEHEART Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins (Children's Fiction) $16.99 2, 9 ISBN: 978-0-06-224546-5
A young chipmunk finds his path. Twig lives with other rodents and small mammals on the Hill, which is made of discarded metal, plastic, and rubber. But this isn't dystopic pollution--narrative descriptions are romantically pastoral, with golden sunlight, sweet-smelling earth, bird song, and bees in honeysuckle. Twig's problem is school: he doesn't merit being named master of any specialty (such as Weaver, Smelter, or Carver) at the upcoming Naming Ceremony and will be forced to work as a scorned, lowly Errand Runner. Venturing farther afield than he's ever been--down a river he's never seen--Twig finds an egg that hatches into a dragon in front of his eyes. Animal-fantasy purists will be as surprised as Twig himself. Sneaking the dragon home, Twig faces issues of integrity. The dragon's fiery breath welds metal for Twig's school projects, which is cheating; encaging a dragon is wrong. Freeing it, on the other hand, might free Twig, too. Twig's friend Lily, a rabbit, stays by his side, and an enemy inexplicably turns friend. Textual platitudes are dull stuff but easy to skim over. What's special are Cole's black-and-white pencil drawings, earnest yet emotionally sharp. Many are full-bleed pages; some convey information that the text doesn't, such as the fact that the Burrow of Confinement (the Hill's prison) is an abandoned front-load washing machine. Nestled in a small trim size, this is an appealing and accessible genre blend. (Fantasy. 6-10)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2015 Kirkus Media LLC
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"Cole, Henry: BRAMBLEHEART." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Oct. 2015. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A431379168/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=b588c551. Accessed 3 Apr. 2024.