Momo's favourite books Post Number 2000

 2000

Momotimetoread is celebrating. I have reached 2000 posts. Here are some lists to help you discover some of the treasures I have explored over the last twelve years. Apologies in advance that I might mention books that are now "out of print".  My last milestone celebration was for 300 posts and 30,000 hits and now I have 2000 posts and over 570,000 hits. Have I missed one of your favourites? Have I mentioned a book you had forgotten? I love to receive comments. Colour titles link to each book.

Published in 2020 (Highlights)

If you come to earth by Sophie Blackall

Skunk and Badger by Amy Timberlake illustrated by Jon Klassen

Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park

Blackbird Girls by Anne Blankman

The Silver Arrow by Lev Grossman

The House of Light by Julia Green

New Australian favourites

We are Wolves by Katrina Nannestad

The Biscuit Maker by Sue Lawson illustrated by Liz Anelli

I saw Pete and Pete saw me by Maggie Hutchins illustrated by Evie Barrow

How to make a bird by Meg McKinlay illustrated by Matt Ottley

Eloise and the bucket of stars by Janeen Brian

The Republic of Birds by Jessica Miller

Sometimes Cake by Edwina

Finding Francois by Gus Gordon

Ellie's Dragon by Bob Graham

Verse Novel - favourites

Love that dog by Sharon Creech (take a look to see a comment by Sharon herself!)

May B by Caroline Starr Rose

The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossman

Sister Heart by Sally Morgan

Motormouth by Sherryl Clark

Out of the dust by Karen Hesse

Picture book - favourites - 

small selection

Shelter by Celine Claire illustrated by Qin Leng

The Suitcase by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros

A friend like Ed by Karen Wagner illustrated by Janet Pedersen

Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall

Come on Rain by Karen Hesse illustrated by Jon J Muth

Spoon by Amy Krouse Rosenthal illustrated by Scott Magoon

Australian children's Picture books every child should hear

Fox by Margaret Wild illustrated by Ron Brooks

Mallee sky by Jodi Toering illustrated by Tannya Harricks

Sonam and the Silence by Eddie Ayres illustrated by Ronak Taher

Herman and Rosie by Gus Gordon

The Bunyip of Berkeley's Creek by Jenny Wagner illustrated by Ron Brooks

Sebastian lives in a hat by Thelma Catterwell illustrated by Kerry Argent

Miss Lily's fabulous pink feather boa by Margaret Wild illustrated by Kerry Argent

Felix and Alexander by Terry Denton

Our School Fete by Louise Pfanner illustrated by Kim Gamble

Puffling by Margaret Wild illustrated by Julie Vivas

Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge by Margaret Wild illustrated by Julie Vivas

Special Australian children's Picture books (out of print)

The Greatest Treasure of Charlemagne the King by Nadia Wheatley illustrated by Deborah Klein 

Space Travellers by Margaret Wild illustrated by Gregory Rogers

Jandy Malone and the Night O'Clock Tiger by Barbara Bolton

The Wonder thing by Libby Hathorn illustrated by Peter Gouldthorpe

The Bush Jumper by Jean Chapman illustrated by Ali Beck

The Mouse with the too long tail by Bani McSpedden illustrated by Greg McAlpine

The Sea-Breeze Hotel by Marcia Vaughan illustrated by Patricia Mullins

Pog by Lyn Lee illustrated by Kim Gamble

Picture books for older children

The Colour of Home by Mary Hoffman

Let the Celebrations begin by Margaret Wild illustrated by Julie Vivas

The Minstrel and the Dragon Pup by Rosemary Sutcliff illustrated by Emma Chichester Clark

War and Peas by Michael Foreman

Stepping stones by Margriet Ruurs illustrated by Nazir Ali Badrby

Ruby's wish by Shirim Yim Bridges illustrated by Sophie Blackall

Mr Maxwell's Mouse by Frank and Devin Asch

The Moon's revenge by Joan Aiken illustrated by Alan Lee

Early chapter books

Houndsley and Catina series by James Howe illustrated by Marie Louise Gay

Mr Putter series by Cynthia Rylant illustrated by Arthur Howard

Flubby series by JE Morris

Dixie O'Day series by Shirley Hughes and Clara Vulliamy

High Rise Private eye series by Cynthia Rylant

Detective Gordon series by Ulf Nilsson

Care of Henry by Anne Fine and Choosing Crumble by Michael Rosen illustrated by Tony Ross

Fairy Bread by Ursula Dubosarsky illustrated by Mitch Vane

Middle Grade novels - a selection of favourites

View from the 32nd Floor by Emma Cameron

The Night bus Hero by Onjai Q Rauf

The Unadoptables by Hana Tooke

No ballet shoes in Syria by Catherine Bruton

Detention by Tristan Bancks

How High the moon by Karyn Parsons

Front Desk by Kelly Yang

Saving Winslow by Sharon Creech

The Witch's Boy by Kelly Barnhill

Beautiful Blue World by Suzanne LaFleur and the sequel Threads of Blue

Lenny's book of Everything by Karen Foxlee

The Wonderling by Mira Bartok

The Curious World of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly

Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell

Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L Holm

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

Waiting for Normal by Leslie Connor

Savvy by Ingrid Law

The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Applet

Christmas top picks

Truffle's Christmas by Anna Currey

The Silver Christmas tree by Pat Hutchins

The Polar Express by Chris van Allsburg

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by Susan Wojeichowski illustrated by PJ Lynch

Wombat divine by Mem Fox illustrated by Kerry Argent

Max's Christmas by Rosemary Wells

The Christmas Caravan by Jennifer Beck

Obscure but worth finding (most are out of print)

Mayfly Day by Jeanne Willis illustrated by Tony Ross

Ratbags and Rascals by Robin Klein

The Mice Next Door by Anthony Knowles illustrated by Susan Edwards

Farfallina and Marcel by Holly Keller

The Night fairy by Laura Schlitz illustrated by Angela Barrett

The story of a seagull and the cat who taught her to fly by Luis Sepulveda

Walter by Barbara Wersba illustrated by Donna Diamond

Left Shoe and the Foundling by Annie O'Dowd and sequels

Meannie and the Min Min by Pamela Shrapnel illustrated by Terry Denton

Varjak Paw by SF Said

The Big Bazoohley by Peter Carey illustrated by Stephen Michael King

Billy's bucket by Kes Gray

Out of print and precious

Sorry Miss Folio by Jo Furtado illustrated by Frederick Joos

The Amazing Adventures of Chilly Billy by Peter Mayle illustrated by Arthur Robins

The Astonishing Madame Majolica by Erilys Hunter

Snow White in New York by Fiona French 

Pete and Roland by Bob Graham

The Tishkin silk series by Glenda Millard

Felix and Alexander by Terry Denton

Ice Flowers by Jutta Goetze illustrated by Patricia Mullins

The Vegetable Thieves by Inga Moore

Billy Twitters and his Blue Whale Problem by Mac Barnett illustrated by Adam Rex

Duck for Danger by Ann Grocott

Jandy Malone and the Nine O'clock Tiger by Barbara Bolton

Mike's Magic seeds by Alexander McCall Smith

O'Diddy by Jocelyn Stevenson

1 is for One by Nadia Wheatley

World War I and World War II 

Goodnight Mister Tom by Michelle Magorian

The Little Riders by Margaretha Shemin

What about me? by Gertie Evenhuis

Christmas in the Trenches by John McCutecheon illustrated by Henri Sorensen

The War that saved my Life by Kimberley Brubacker

Anna at War by Helen Peters

Captain Rosalie by Timothee de Frombelle

The Goose Road by Rowena House

A few essential Picture Book additions for every school library (Primary)

The Black book of Colours by Menena Cotton illustrated by Rosana Faria

Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson

Mustafa by Marie-Lousie Gay

Whale in a fishbowl by Troy Howell and Richard Jones

The Hug machine by Scott Campbell

Truman by Jean Reidy illustrated by Lucy Ruth Cummins

Six Dinner Sid by Inga Moore

The Secret Sky garden by Linda Sarah illustrated by Fiona Lumbers

On the night of the shooting star by Amy Hest illustrated by Jenni Desmond

Sonam and the Silence by Eddie Ayres illustrated by Ronak Taher

I like bees, I don't like honey by Sam Bishop illustrated by Fiona Lumbers

Series 

Cogheart by Peter Bunzl and three sequels

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown and sequel The Wild Robot escapes

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate and sequel The one and only Bob

Endling Book One The Last by Katherine Applegate and sequels

Boot by Shane Hegarty illustrated by Ben Mantle and Boot the Rusty Rescue

Fire Girl by Matt Ralphs and sequel Fire Witch

The legend of Podkin One ear by Kieran Larwood and sequels

Heartwood Hotel by Kallie George (4 books)

Beetle Boy by MJ Leonard and sequels

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson and sequels (Young Adult title)

The Thickety by JA White and sequels (Young Adult title)

Children's books all adults 

should read too

Momo by Michael Ende

The Eleventh trade by Alyssa Hollingsworth

Pax by Sara Pennypacker illustrated by Jon Klassen

Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed

Toby Alone by Timothee de Frombelle

Wishtree by Katherine Applegate illustrated by Charles Santoso

Where the river runs gold by Sita Brahmachari

The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman

No time like Showtime by Michael Hoeye

Someone is trying to blackmail theatre owner Fluster Varmint. Tucka Merslin wants to own the theatre and she has teamed up with the shifty Corpius Crounce, also known as Magner Wooliun, expecting he can make this happen and make it happen fast. First of all, though, she needs the famous actress, Nurella Pinch, declared dead. Hermux is employed by Fluster, under the pretence of installing alarm clocks in the theatre dressing rooms, but really he is supposed to solve the blackmail mystery and Fluster has also asked him to design the set for the next big show - The Silver Jubilee Spectactular. As you might expect there are also many other interesting and shifty characters you will meet along the way.

How wonderful to spend an afternoon in the company of Hermux Tantamoq and his friends. No time like Showtime is the third book in the Hermux Tatamoq adventure series and it did not disappoint. The action just races along and I continue to enjoy the delicious food (donuts), character names and plot twists. In this instalment Terfle has a staring role too. I adore little Terfle.

" ... a great choice for families to share" Kirkus

I know that the Hermux Tantamoq Adventures were popular upon publication, I have no idea why they didn't stay popular beyond that. To me they are up there with Roald Dahl, Eva Ibbotson, the Redwall books... they're wonderfully clever and entertaining. Kelly Book Stuff

At the start of the first book from the series, Time stops for no Mouse, when Linka Perflinger enters the clock shop owned by Hermux Tantamoq. it is easy to see straight away that Hermux is in love.  Michael Hoeye keeps his readers in suspense through the whole series waiting for Hermux to find enough courage to declare his love for Linka. And of course we all hope Linka will reciprocate his love.

"They looked at each other for a long time, not saying a word. Linka's fur gave off the nicest smell. ... Linka closed her eyes. He leaned forward. She leaned forward. Their noses were almost touching. It seemed that his dream was about to come true. Just then a taxi gave a long, rude honk. Hermux's dream of romance evaporated." (page 30)

At times it feels as though Michael Hoeye was working from little models. His descriptions of the shop and theatre are just perfect.

"He registered the sales counter with its three heights to accommodate Hermux's customers who came in a variety of sizes. The neat glass cases were filled with watches and wooden shelves crowded with clocks lined the walls"

The fashion descriptions these books are also something I also thoroughly enjoy:

Brinx Lotelle - action film director: He "was a rugged-looking mouse. He wore threadbare jeans and a motorcycle jacket. He had a handsome, narrow face and extremely short, clipped whiskers. His ears were shaved. One of them was tattooed and it looked like the other one was pierced with a ring."

Hermux: He "got up early and dressed carefully for his first day in court. He wore a bright yellow shirt, his orange daisy necktie, his pink-and-red plaid vest and his blue corduroy suit with brass buttons."

The next book on my huge reading pile is the final one in the series - Time to smell the Roses. I have every hope Hermux and Linka will finally be united in love. It is so sad that all of these books are now out of print but I do suggest you try to find the whole series. I found my copies in a well stocked school library:

Time Stops for No Mouse

The Sands of Time

The Song of the Nightingale by Tanya Landman illustrated by Laura Carlin

Blurb: "The painter calls all the animals together and opens up her paintbox. She paints crocodiles green and elephants grey; lions yellow and whales blue. At last, when the sun does down and the paints are used up, she is finished. But then a little bird flies out of the forest's shadows. What colour will it be?"

Image Source: ebird

The language in this book is lyrical and rich. Teachers often ask for books that use different language conventions such as metaphor and alliteration. The Song of the Nightingale contains some wonderful examples.

"By night the moon lay on a quilt of velvet black, draped over snowcapped poles."

"As the morning went on she slicked stripes on zebras and painted pentagons on giraffes. She popped penguins into sharp suits, and furnished flamingos with feathers of delicate pink."

To the painter the animals look so dull when compared with the golden sun, the bright blue sky, the deep green ocean and the flaming red deserts. So all of the animals are summoned. They form a line and the painter "opened her paintbox."

The Song of the Nightingale is an example of a pourquoi story. What does that mean I can hear you say? Pourquoi means why in French. 

A pourquoi story, also known as an origin story, pourquoi tale, is a fictional narrative that explains why something is the way it is, for example why a snake has no legs, or why a tiger has stripes. Many legends and folk tales are pourquoi stories. Here is a list you could explore.

In this book Tanya Landman and Laura Carlin look at the way or the why the nightingale can sing so beautifully. You can hear the song here. The voice of the nightingale is liquid gold and gold is a colour. Before we arrive at that moment in the story, though, we need to explore how and why all the animals got their colours. I especially love the page that looks at the colour bottom of the mandrill.

Image source: Animals.net

Read an interview with Laura and Tanya on the Walker Books Picture Book Party blog.

Here is an idea I have not seen before. The front and back covers of this book match the back and front end papers. The back end paper is the front cover and the front end paper is the back cover. 

This is a rich text and a book filled with visual delights. I think it should be an essential purchase for all school library collections.

Here are some other books illustrated by Laura Carlin and books written by Tanya Landman. I was excited to discover I had talked about Mary's Penny by Tanya Landman previously on this blog. Tanya won the Carnegie Medal in 2015 for her Young Adult book Buffalo Soldier.

Here is the original cover for Flotsam and Jetsam:

David McKee nominated for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Award

 

Over the next few weeks I plan to highlight various authors and illustrators from around the world who have been nominated by various IBBY sections as contenders for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Award. Sixty-two candidates from 33 countries have been nominated for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Award. Our Australian nominees are Margaret Wild and Tohby Riddle.

David McKee has been nominated by IBBY UK. Their previous nominations for the illustration award include Helen Oxenbury, Jay Ray, Chris Riddell, and John Burningham.

David McKee was born in Devon and studied at Plymouth Art College. In the early part of his career, McKee regularly drew and sold humorous drawings to magazines and newspapers such as The Times Educational Supplement, Punch and the Reader’s Digest. David McKee has written and illustrated over 50 picture books for Andersen Press and has penned a number of children’s classics including King Rollo, Mr Benn, Not Now Bernard and Elmer the Patchwork Elephant. David loves to paint and now lives in the South of France but regularly visits the UK.  David McKee is one of the best known illustrators of picture books, having created acknowledged modern classics such as Not Now, Bernard, Elmer the Patchwork Elephant, and Mr Benn, Gladiator. His books are published in many languages throughout the world, and many of them have been adapted for television. He was born in Devon and now divides his time between the South of France and London. Love Reading 4Kids

David McKee is especially famous for his Elmer books (there are 39 titles) which are for younger children but they often also contain some deeper wisdom. I am a huge fan of Elmer but I also love to read other books by David McKee to our senior primary classes such as these:

There is one book I read EVERY year in my school library to Grade One and Grade Two - Sorry Miss Folio by Jo Furtado. In this story the little boy borrows a book from the public library and then he keeps it for the whole year making up the most wonderful tall tales to explain why he is not able to return the book when he visits the library each month. Over the year we watch the librarian, Miss Folio, becoming more and more exasperated. You have probably guessed that the book the boy borrows is one by David McKee. It is a book about King Rollo.

Things I learned from Elmer:

Elmer

It's okay to be different - let's celebrate - we live in a wonderful community and 

everyone should show kindness towards one another

Problem solving and team work save the day and everyone can enjoy the river and a good splash. I

t's so important to realise other people may see the world in a different way.

Jokes are fun but it is important to be able to laugh at yourself.

Elmer on Stilts

Team work and problem solving save the day again and even though 

we don't need stilts anymore everyone can use them for fun. Laughter brings us together.

Elmer shows his friends that cold is all relative. His wisdom gives his friends a quiet lesson which helps to stop their grumbling. His friends discover snow is fun!