What Little Boys are Made of

Author & Illustrator:   Robert Neubecker
Publisher:  Balzer + Bray
Publication Year:   2012
Location: Knox County Public Library- Lawson McGhee

Awards:   Bank Street College Best Children's Books, Kirkus Best Books,

Summary:  Neubecker builds on the traditional phrases in the classic nursery rhyme. Neubeker's ideas: moons and stars and rockets to Mars (I want that rainbow patchwork rocket!), snakes and rats and big jungle cats, vines and rocks and razor-tooth crocs, sticks and stones and skulls and bones, Ships and sails and oceans and whales....and the surprises keep on coming! Spreads of  sweet small images with lots of white spaces are alternated with gorgeous, vivid, two-page spreads that almost jump off the page! My son would have adored the dragon spread when he was younger! A must for anyone who loves a boy, is having a boy, or was a boy!

Classroom Ideas: The rhymes are perfect and the build-up on the well-known song will appeal to all young readers.

What's the Time, Mr. Wolf?

Author & Illustrator:   Debi Gliori
Publisher:  Walker & Co.
Publication Year:  2012
Location: Knox County Public Library- Powell

Awards:   Horn book & Kirkus starred reviews, Kirkus Best Book

Summary:  With allusions to well-known nursery rhymes (he's woken by four and twenty blackbirds), this book tells the story of Mr. Wolf's day. In each hour of the day something annoying happens, but at the end, there's a big surprise party for Mr. Wolf to end his birthday. Both the illustrations and the text refer back to the nursery rhyme and kids will have such fun identifying all the different tales.

Classroom Ideas: This could easily be used with younger students in a study of nursery rhymes, or with older kids when talking about time. Just about every kind of time piece is pictured here in some way, from a pocket watch to a sun dial.