Joseph Had A Little Overcoat by Simms Taback

Taback, Simms. 1999. Joseph Had A Little Overcoat. Ill. by Simms Taback. New York: Viking. ISBN o670878553

This Caldecott-winning picture book features Joseph, who has an overcoat which gets worn and old. He finds a way (again and again) to make the old, worn overcoat useful in a new way. The overcoat becomes, among other things, a vest, a scarf, a button, and finally, when nothing else can be made, Joseph makes "something" from "nothing" and turns his overcoat's journey into a story.

This is an engineered book with cutouts on various pages to show the new form of the original overcoat. Children will enjoy turning the pages to see what the coat becomes, but they will also enjoy seeing how Taback works the back side of the cutout into his illustrations.

The simply told story is based on a Yiddish folk song, and the text is fairly sparse but follows a somewhat predictable pattern ("Joseph had a little handkerchief. It got old and worn. So he made a button out of it") that will help struggling readers navigate the text more easily.

One of the best things about this picture book are the folk art-style illustrations which complement the story well. The bright colors and detailed drawings make this book a pleasure to read over and over again (and my children asked for it over and over again). This multicultural book explores the themes of frugality and making-do with an overall tone of joyousness. When I went to write this response, I had to search for the book because my own children had commandeered it (it was in the car, next to my son's prized McDonald's toy). They love the simple, easy-to-read text and the little surprises in the illustrations (like the mouse hole with little mouse eyes).

AWARDS & REVIEWS:

Caldecott Medal Book, 2000
"Vibrant rich colors, playful details, and skillfully-placed die cuts contribute to the books raucous merriment that takes this Yiddish folk song far beyond the simple words." Barbara Kiefer, chair of the Caldecott Award Committee

CONNECTIONS:

My kids pulled out the book Something from Nothing by Phoebe Gilman and did an informal compare/contrast of the language and illustrations that give the same story a much different feeling in the two books.
Another series which shares the same theme of frugality and making do is The Boxcar Children (particularly the first couple in the series). For older readers, Little House on the Prairie also shares the same theme.
During a read aloud of this book, students could use simple, cut out props (maybe even cut them themselves as each page of the story is read?) to make the reading more interactive.
Also this book would be a good one to use for choral reading or group reading.

A Caldecott Celebration by Leonard S. Marcus

Marcus, Leonard S. 2008. A Caldecott Celebration: Seven Artists and Their Paths to the Caldecott Medal. New York: Walker & Company. ISBN 0802797032

As the title implies, this book provides an insight into seven different Caldecott-winning authors (one from each decade of the award's history) and their journey in creating a Caldecott-worthy picture book. It is filled with interesting stories and facts about the award winning illustrators, and also contains quotes from their Caldecott acceptance speech. For example, William Steig (author/illustrator of Sylvester and the Magic Pebble) didn't start illustrating books for children until he was almost sixty years old. Chris Van Allsburg (author/illustrator of Jumanji) asked his wife to pose for his sketches of the wild monkeys, because he couldn't find photographs with monkeys in all the poses he needed.

Along with the back-story of each author's process, the book is also filled with photos of the illustrators, as well as early sketches they made as the stories began to take shape on the page. This book gives an informative and fascinating look at a few of the illustrators who helped shape children's literature through the years. Again, as the title suggests, it is truly a celebration of quality illustrations for children.

AWARDS & REVIEWS:
— 1999 ALA Notable Book
— starred reviews in School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist

CONNECTIONS:
--Have different groups read different books featured in this book, and then have them pair their reading with the section on their book. Have them present to the class on the process that the author went through. What was most interesting? What surprised them? How can seeing this process help them with their own writing?
--Look at the organization of this non-fiction text (along with others) to help students understand how different text structures can help (or hinder) our comprehension of the text.
--Related readings from the same author include Funny Business: Conversations with Writers of Comedy and Pass It Down: Five Picture Book Families Make Their Mark.
--Have students write a letter to their favorite Caldecott-award winning author, telling them what they like about the illustrations or asking any questions they might still have.

The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog by Mo Willems

Willems, Mo. 2004. The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog. Ill. by Mo Willems. New York: Hyperion Books for Children. ISBN 078681869

A funny picture book starring Pigeon (from Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! among other titles) and a clever little duckling who knows that persistence pays off. When Pigeon finds a delicious hot dog he wants nothing more than to enjoy eating it--all by himself. But Duckling keeps interrupting his meal with questions!

Willems writes this book with his trademark wry humor, using only the dialogue between the two characters (and the colorful, simple illustrations) to tell the story. Although the vocabulary is generally simple, there are some words that will stretch the young reader. For example, while Duckling takes notes, Pigeon describes the experience of eating a hot dog in this way: "They are a taste sensation. Each morsel is a joy! A celebration in a bun!" The interplay between the two characters is both fun and funny.

The illustrations add to the telling of this story as much, if not more, than the dialogue does. The deceptively simple drawings of Pigeon effectively convey his emotions, including his delight with the hot dog and his annoyance with the interfering Duckling.

Awards and Review Excerpts:
Booklist Online said: "Preschoolers who recognized themselves in the tantrum-throwing pigeon of the previous title will also see themselves in the calm, shrewd duckling that knows just how to get his way." Click here for full review.
Golden Archer Award for Primary, 2008

Connections:
--Because this book is written strictly in dialogue, it makes a perfect book for a student to read out loud with a partner, with one person reading the part of Duckling and one reading the part of Pigeon.
--Try other Mo Willems books: any of the Elephant and Piggie series (Today I Will Fly, My Friend is Sad, There is a Bird on Your Head!, etc.), Knuffle Bunny, Knuffle Bunny Too, etc.
--Compare the illustrations of Pigeon and Duckling with another illustrator who animates animals (like Rosemary Wells in Morris's Disappearing Bag). How do the illustrators show emotions in animals?
--Have students write their own glowing description of their favorite food. How would they describe it to someone who had never tasted it before?
--With older students, use this book as an example for a writing minilesson about effectively using dialogue to move a story forward.

Simply Wild About Books

One of my favorite books to read to my kids is Judy Sierra's fun rhyming book Wild About Books (illustrated by Marc Brown), featuring a librarian who takes books (and a love of reading) to the animals in the zoo. That's where the phrase "simply wild about books" comes from, and it rings true to me.

Although I like children's literature, my true love is young adult fiction, since I used to be a high school English teacher. Although I've been out of the classroom for five years now, I still find myself thinking of the kind of kid who might find a certain book enjoyable.