Week 4:

Nightsong VS Flo & Wendell!

Nightsong:

Age range: Probably around 4-8 yrs old.

Summary:

Sense is the song you sing out into the world,
and the song the world sings back to you.

With these words, Chiro's mother sends him off into the night for the first time alone. It's an adventure, but how will he find his way? And how will he find his way home? As the young bat discovers, navigating the world around him is easy as long as he uses his good sense.

Review:

I enjoyed this book. 

More than anything, Nightsong makes you think about that moment when you will have to let your child take that first step into this beautiful, yet dangerous world, all on their own. The illustrations were nice, but I do wish they were done with the same detail as the cover illustration. That cover alone makes me want to buy it! The night scenes were done in a beautiful scribble-like manner that truly gives the reader empathy for this young bat’s struggle to use his navigation sense for the first time. This book has tenderness and tension wrapped up in one big black ball of night sky moss.

I think you’ll enjoy it too.

Flo & Wendell:

Age range: Probably around 3-6 yrs old.

Summary:

Meet Flo. She’s a sophisticated big sister who’s part of a very artistic family. She likes playing with paint and wearing sweaters her mother knits. Flo also likes teasing her little brother, Wendell. They play hide-and-seek, but Flo doesn’t look very hard. They play dress up, too, but Wendell always gets the bad costumes. Their parents wish they would get along, and they do try…sometimes.

Review:

I can now honestly say, do not judge a book by its cover. The cover for this book DID NOT grab my attention in a good way. However, once I began reading I found myself thoroughly engaged. Oddly enough, this book’s greatness comes from a combination of choices that I’m usually not very fond of when they are done individually. Sloppy illustration painting. Photos mixed with illustrations. Photos of dogs mixed with illustrations. Sigh. Somehow though, when these choices were all put together they actually worked, and they even made me laugh. The story is very simple, and it’s nice that way. It lets you enjoy the visuals with the humor in the text. This book really did surprise me.

The Winner:

Congratulations to Flo & Wendell! We will see you in November!

Nightsong had some good qualities, but Flo & Wendell made me laugh, and in the end I think kids will enjoy this book the most.

See you next week!