Thumbs Up for Thumbelina

Thumbelina 
Retold by Brian Alderson
Illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline
Published by Candlewick Press
ISBN:978-0-7636-2079-0
Rating: 9/10

I was not too familar with the classic fairytale Thumbelina, so I opened the book with a fresh slate. Thumbelia came from a flower and was taken care of by a woman who could not have children. Because of her beauty and size, she is kidnapped by various creatures- toads, maybugs, mice, and a mole. She cared for a sick sparrow and in the end got rescued by it to be united with crystal fairies just like herself.

The story was simple, charming, and had beautiful detailed illustrations. For someone looking for a good version of this tale, Nat definitely recommends this one.

Running Away Comes to Life

The Runaway Bunny
by Margaret Wise Brown
Illustrated by Clement Hurd
Published by HarperFestival
ISBN: 987-0-694-01671-6
Rating 10/10

I still remember my mother reading this book before bedtime. I still own the oversize-book to this day.  It is a hold-hold classic in my opinion. The cute little bunny wants to try his own sense of independence and he does so by running away. However his mother counters each of his arguments by saying she will follow where him wherever he goes. So, he decides to stay!

The illustrations switch from sketchily-drawn and black and white when with the text, but then magnificently come to life with bright radiant colors. Those pages tell the story so well I understand Brown did not include any words on those pages. Beautifully drawn, beautifully painted images, and beautiful story. A+

Fine By the End of the Day

One Fine Day
By Nonny Hogrogian
Published by Aladdin Paperbacks
ISBN: 0-606-01196-X
Rating: 6/10

One Fine Day was not as "fine" as I expected it to be. I was immediately enticed by the warm colors and adorable fox on the cover, but as I kept reading I felt myself starting to get just as discouraged the fox. The fox found himself very thirsty after an adventure through the woods, and drank some milk he saw as he came out. Turns out the milk belonged to an old who then-in my opinion- aggressively chopped off his tail. In order to get his tail back, he had to get replacement milk which took him on a long discouraging journey bargaining with others. By the end of the story with the help of a nice old man, the fox accomplished his mission. So lesson learned: do not steal boys and girls.

The illustrations were what originally attracted me to the book. They looks as those someone freshly painted then on the pages. One can see the brush strokes in every character and background scenery. The images are simply and not super realistic, but that is what I like about it. I think children would enjoy looking at the pictures themselves thinking- "Hey! I can paint something like that!"

I did judge this book by its cover and even though it wasn't what I initially expected, it had a good moral lesson and beautiful pictures.

The Lonely Yet Lovely Firefly

The Very Lonely Firefly
Written and Illustrated by Eric Carle
Published by Philomel Books
ISBN: 0-339-22774-1
Rating: 10/10

The Very Lonely Firefly is a classic by Eric Carle. The story of the lonely firefly is told not only with words, but with beautiful illustrations as well. Carle is known for his specific artistic style. The pictures are so vivid and detailed, but with a jagged-cartoon-like quality. Seeing the journey of this firefly doesn't even need words- can be shown through the pictures alone. The illustrations of this book make you really feel for the firefly, and enjoy his excitement at the end when he unites with all the other fireflies.

A Bit Hit was a Hit!

A Big Hit
By Emily Hutchinson
Illustrated by Valeria Pertone
Published by Harcourt School Publishers
ISBN: 0-15-364088-X
Rating: 8/10

A Big Hit is a cute one. It is about four animal friends- a dog, pig, cat, and elephant- who are playing baseball together. This decodable book has a quick story-line that is easy to follow. Each character has a name and a specific role in the baseball game. There are high-frequency words, but mainly decodable ones with the short vowel sound /i/.

I liked this one because of the narrative aspect. Although the book is only eight pages, the reader gets to know the names and genders of the few characters. It is simple, but still personable and hits the vowels sounds that it needs to.

"Awing" Over Max

Max Cat
By Nancy Furstinger
Illustrated by Laura Logan

Published by Harcourt School Publishers 
ISBN: 0-15-364086-3
Rating: 10/10

This book is about an orange cat at named Max. The story follows him through his day and the little adventures he has. This story subtly utilizes words with the vowel sound /a/. Very detailed and colorful illustrations go right along with the text.

I thought this was a great example of a decodable book. Though the the sentence structure is very simple and straightforward, it has a clear narrative that makes reading this book more enjoyable than other decodables that I have seen. I love the illustrations and I believe they pull the reader into the story. It is a short, sweet, and adorable way to teach children learn the phonetics of  the vowel /a/ .

Sappy Sounds

Sam and the Sap
 Written by Lili Henderson
Illustrated by Fred Volke
Published  by Learning Page, Inc.
www.readinga-z.com
Rating: 5/10


Sam and the Sap is an online decodable book that focuses on the /s/ consonant sound. There is not really much to the story: a man and cute puppies are getting sap from a tree. It was not something I would enjoy reading, and I do not see children enjoying it either. However, it does its job working with phonetics!