The One about the Blackbird by Melanie Florence illustrated by Matt James

Please begin here - listening (no visuals) to the famous Beatles Song - Blackbird.

This is a very special Canadian picture book exploring an intergenerational relationship between a grandfather and his grandson. This book is only 32 pages but over the pages we watch as a young boy moves through is teenage years and into adulthood. His grandfather plays Blackbird on his guitar and then he patiently teaches his grandson Jack how hold, then how to form chords, on a guitar.

Image Source: Matt James

"I can't do it. It's too hard,' he said, pushing the guitar back towards his grandfather. 'If it was easy, everyone would do it,' his grandfather said kindly. 'Keep trying'.

Jack does try. He learns more chords and keeps practicing until eventually he can play whole songs. 

"Jack went from playing the guitar in his living room to playing for crowds of people all over the world."

Even though he lives and works far away, Jack still comes back to visit his grandfather. At this point the story goes full circle. With advanced age and perhaps memory loss Jack's grandfather has trouble getting his fingers to work on his old guitar - the guitar that was once his but that has now travelled around the world.  When his grandfather struggles he reminds him:

"If it was easy, everyone would do it,' Jack told him. His grandfather nodded, like he had heard those words before."

The Teacher-Librarian in the school where I volunteer shared this book with her Grade Two students today. It was fun listening to the way these kids, born in 2019, had no idea about vinyl records - the Teacher-Librarian had an old record to show the kids - one child suggested it could be a frisbee and another, who had seen a record before, knew you should not run your fingers over the surface. I kept wishing the library had an old turntable so the children could gain an idea of how records work. It is odd to think these kids also possibly have no idea about CDs (or videos!).

Publisher blurb: A young boy learns to play guitar from his grandfather, and the one about the blackbird is their favorite song. Years later, the boy visits his grandfather, and while his grandfather doesn’t recognize him, now grown-up, he does still remember how to hold a guitar. A beautiful full circle moment ensues when the boy plays his grandfather their favorite song. The moving text and dynamic, gorgeous art celebrate the connection that music can create between two people and the joy that music, and the shared love of it, can bring at any age.

A hymn to intergenerational ties. Kirkus

Like the blackbird of that song, the boy, and later young man, learned to fly. He learned to take flight in song and in life, gathering knowledge at the feet of one who knew how. And when that knowledge wanes, as happens with time and age, that grandson helps his beloved grandfather hear the song again. Can Lit for Little Canadians

You can see more books illustrated by Matt James here. Matt James is a painter, author/illustrator, and musician whose books include Yellow Moon, Apple Moon by Pamela Porter (New Mexico Book Award); I Know Here by Laurel Croza (Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award); When the Moon Comes by Paul Harbridge (Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award); and I Know How to Draw an Owl by Hilary Horder Hippely. Matt’s illustrations for Northwest Passage, a tribute to the Stan Rogers song, won the Governor General’s Literary Award. The books Matt has written include Tadpoles, Nice Try, Charlie!, and his author-illustrator debut, The Funeral, which was named a New York Times and New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children’s Book. As a child, Matt James liked to trace comics and pretend that tennis racquets were guitars—now he lives in Toronto and behaves more like a grown-up.

Here is the web page for Melanie Florence. Melanie Florence is a Canadian author of Cree and Scottish heritage. She lives in Toronto. 

This book was purchased in Canada while we were travelling there for the 2026 IBBY Congress. Sadly here in Australia this book will probably be too beyond your library budget but perhaps you can persude your local public library to purchase a copy. 

IBBY 40th World Congress Ottawa, Canada 2026

IBBY Canada organised a fabulous four-day World Congress in August 2026 with keynotes, roundtables, panel sessions, workshops and poster sessions - this was my fourth IBBY Congress. I also attended two USBBY Conferences in the past. I always leave these events filled with admiration and awe of all the amazing work done by people from every corner of the world who work with children and reading and books. I so admire their passion and intelligence. (and their ability to switch between two or three or more languages).

Prior to the first day we were so privileged to hear about the IBBY Children in Crisis projects with: Patsy Aldana (former IBBY President, and former President of the IBBY Foundation and IBBY Trust),  Basarat Kazim (IBBY Pakistan), and Shereen Kreidieh  (IBBY Lebanon). I will talk about this session in more detail over the coming days.

Basarat Kazim (IBBY President) shared an inspirational short film - I asked her later if there might be a way to view and share this with a wider audience. This is not the film she shared but it is another showcasing her work in Pakistan. Basarat, in her role as president, delivered several inspirational speeches throughout the Congress especially around the theme "Listening to each other's voices".

OPENING CEREMONY 

During the opening ceremony we heard from Monica Ittusardjuat (Inuit) a Residential School survivor who grew up in a time when Inuit lived a subsistence way of life, moving camps and following animals where they were plentiful. Monica shared the story Lighting the Qulliq a wordless picture book showing a grandmother and granddaughter from long ago lighting a qulliq, an Inuit lamp that provides light and warmth to the Earth. It was a hugely emotional moment when she lit a qulliq on the podium.

In the second part of the Opening Ceremony we heard from Honourable Senator Kristopher Wells, PHD. Kristopher is an educator and champion of the 2SLGBTQI+ community who has used research and advocacy to help advance diversity, equity and human rights in his home province of Alberta, across Canada, and around the world. His focus was this year’s theme of Gender, Sex, and Sexuality in children’s literature. As part of the 40th IBBY World Congress, we were given the catalogue (included in our conference bags) and we were able to peruse the exhibition titled Reading with Pride: Stories for Everyone. Reading with Pride features over 300 2SLGBTQ+ children’s picture books, originally collected by Senator Wells and expanded through a call to Canadian publishers. I did spy some Australian titles in the book display such as 'Who's your real mum' by Bernadette Green and 'My shadow is Pink' by Scott Stuart. You can hear Kristopher talking about the collection here.

Here is the conference bag and its contents including the Reading with Pride catalogue

Extra sessions and Closing Ceremony:

Sydney Smith Hans Christian Andersen winner 2024

Jon Klassen winner of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2026

Michel Chikwanine 

David A Robertson

Here are the sessions I attended (I will share more details about many of these in further posts):

PP 02 INCLUSIVE CLASSROOMS AND LIBRARIES: BEST PRACTICES

Discovering Lifesaving Books Elena Perikleous Commissioner for the Protection of Children’s Rights, IBBY Cyprus 

Developing a Critical Analysis Framework for Picture Books About Children on the Move Tess Prendergast University of British Columbia, Canada 

An Expansion to the APALA Rubric to Evaluate AAPI Youth Literature (Asian American and Pacific Islander Youth Literature) Filipino Diasporic Texts in Focus Cheeno Marlo D. Sayuno University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the University of the Philippines Los Baños, Philippines 

An Exploration of Classic Children’s Literature through the Lens of Humanistic Education Nasser Yousefi Independent, Canada (texts: Pippi Longstocking, Pinocchio, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and The Little Prince).

 PP 04 LISTENING TO VOICES IN NON-FICTION

Listening to the Sea: Exploring the Fascinating World of Ocean Wildlife with Non-Fiction Picture Books Sabine Fuchs Independent Researcher, Austria 

Books Without Borders: Representing Migration in Non-Fiction for Young Readers Ana Margarida Ramos University of Aveiro, Portugal 

The Power of Voice: Analyzing Puerto Rican Representation in Children’s Biographies Aura E. Gonzalez Robles Universidad de Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico Ruth J. Saez Vega Universidad de Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico Adriana N. Sotomayor Pérez The Ohio State University, US

PP 06 IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCES: BELONGING AND IDENTITY

 

Transnational Narrative and Poetic Justice in Children’s Novels by Asian Diaspora Authors in the West Fengxia Tan Nanjing Normal University, China 

Shaping Identity through Memory in Iranian Diaspora Children’s Picture books Maryam Mohammadkhani Independent Researcher/Writer, Canada 

From Looked-At to Heard: Voice, Power, and Immigration Narratives in YA Fiction Aleksandra Strelcova IBBY Lithuania

PP 12 LISTENING TO MIGRANT AND REFUGEE VOICES  

Lonesome Child Refugees – Too Uncomfortable Narratives? Jaana Pesonen University of Helsinki, Finland 

Forgotten Border Crossings: Rethinking Childhood, Belonging, and Unbelonging for North Korean Defectors Yoo Kyung Sung University of New Mexico, USA 

  

 PP 23 REIMAGINING CITIZENSHIP 

Voicing Citizenship: Children’s Civic Agency in Schools, Museums, and Literature Justyna Deszcz-Tryhubczak University of Wrocław. Poland

The Plural Identity of Brazilian Children’s Literature Maria Carolina Nunes Gobbo University of São Paulo, Brazil

  

Between Critical Hope and Moral Ambiguity: Picture books Mediating Cross-Conflict Youth Dialogue Chang Li University of Padova, Italy

DINNER

Hans Christian Andersen Award Dinner - Michael Rosen and Cia Gao.  Michael Rosen gave a fabulous speech - I do hope it is republished by IBBY either on their web page or in Bookbird. 

EXHIBITIONS

The congress also presented an exhibition for the Hans Christian Andersen Award 2026 by some of the most distinguished voices in contemporary children’s literature, whose contributions have made a lasting international impact. Works by winners, author Michael Rosen (United Kingdom) and illustrator Cai Gao (China). Alongside them, the exhibition highlighted books by shortlisted authors: Ahmad Akbarpour (Iran), María José Ferrada (Chile), Timothée de Fombelle (France), Lee Geum-yi (Republic of Korea), and Pam Muñoz Ryan (United States). Along with the illustrators Beatrice Alemagna (Italy), Linda Bondestam (Finland), Gundega Muzikante (Latvia), Walid Taher (Egypt), and María Wernicke (Argentina). 

Other exhibitions - 2025 IBBY Collection for Young People with Disabilities: IBBY-UNESCO Collection of Remarkable Books in Indigenous and Endangered Languages; The IBBY Collection of 

Children’s Books from and about Palestine (A map for Falasteen); and 25 years of the Governor General's Literary Award Winners (Canada). The exhibitions were staged over three venues and so I sadly missed a couple - The Panda Awards and Folktales reimagined from UAEBBY.

Honour titles I have talked about here: Picasso and the Greatest Show on earth by Anna Fienberg (Australia); Simon sort of says (Canada); The eyes and the Impossible (translation to Dutch); Then and Now by Datsun Tran (Australia); Frindle Files (translation to Turkish); Not Nothing (USA); and Medusa (Translation to Greek). I also spied Silverborn by Jessica Townsend translated into Norwegian. 

On the Canadian Governor General's award stand I spied: The Probability of Everything (one of my top books); Stand on the sky; The Crazy man; Sweep the story of a girl and her monster; and Airborn (Kenneth Oppel).

Sessions I missed that I wish I had attended:

PP 11 WAR AND TRAUMA 

Listening to the Whispers: Giving Voice to Young People in the Midst of War Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch Independent Author, Canada

Kan Yama Kan: Building Libraries, Bridging Voices, and Healing Through Books Marwa Al Aqroubi UAEBBY, UAE  

Stories of Hope: Literature Workshops for War-Witnessing Children amid Ongoing Instability in Tehran Hooria Rezaei Ruhr-University Bochum, German

PP 10 MIGRANTS: WORDLESS PICTUREBOOKS AND THE LAMPEDUSA PROJECT 

A Very Powerful Silence Deborah Soria Silent Books—Final Destination Lampedusa IBBY Project, Italy 

Listening to Silence: Building Bridges to Understanding with the IBBY Silent Books Collection Jared S. Crossley The Ohio State University, USA Lisa Pinkerton The Ohio State University, USA

The Narrative Aesthetics and Cross-Cultural Characteristics of Wordless Picture books Qingzhi Zhu Nanjing Normal University, China

I wrote heaps of notes but here are two quotes which resonated with me:

Small Stories Connect the Vast World. 

Delicious and Nutritious Children's books are Food for the Soul.

Gander: The Town that Welcomed the World by Nikki Bergstresser illustrated by Reilly Fitzgerald

The musical Come from Away is based on the events in Gander in 2001. This production affected me so deeply when I first saw it in London that I went on to see it again here in Australia in Melbourne and last month again in Vancouver and now I have discovered there is a children's picture book about these events. I originally went to see this show after reading a detailed article in our Sydney Morning Herald back in 2019.

I rarely talk about books I have not seen, but Gander: The Town that Welcomed the World is not readily available here in Australia but I think it looks good. I have read a couple of reviews and seen some pages. IF it ever comes here, it is a book I would like to own. Gander is a new picture book published in June 2026.

Image from publisher page

Publisher blurb: On September 11, 2001, thousands of travellers were stranded far from home in a town called Gander, Newfoundland. They were strangers in a place most had never heard of before. Scared and confused, the travellers were not sure what to expect. Gander: The Town That Welcomed the World is a true story about a world that was hurting and a community that came together with kindness, compassion, and East Coast heart. With sparse text and painterly illustrations, Nikki Bergstresser and Reilly Fitzgerald thoughtfully capture and commemorate this 9/11 story for a new generation.

Many young children, particularly in Canada, may not be aware of the events of 9/11. Unless they were directly impacted by a relative who was there or by perhaps a parent who was pilot or a resident of Gander, most adults will not discuss the events of the day with them. But there is a way to speak to them about it with sensitivity, and Nikki Bergstresser's Gander: The Town That Welcomed the World would be a tasteful and enlightening way to do so. BC's Nikki Bergstresser packs a lot of depth in her words, conveying easily the exceptionality of this day with the natural response of these Ganderites and Newfoundlanders in general. Her words take us through those days by balancing the fears and confusion with action and kindness.  CanLit for Little Canadians

Meet the Canadian author David A Robertson

David Alexander Robertson (born 12 January 1977) is a Canadian author and public speaker from Winnipeg, Manitoba. He has published over 25 books across a variety of genres and is a two-time winner of the Governor General's Literary Award. He will be a keynote speaker at the 2026 IBBY Congress in Ottawa.  I thought I should explore some of his books or at least familiarise myself with them before I hope to read many in Canada and at the Congress.

About the Misewa Saga: Morgan and Eli are Indigenous children who discover a portal at their foster home to another world, Askī; there they discover talking animal beings who connect them to traditional ways, as well as help them deal with the challenges in the real world. A fantasy for readers aged ten and up, the Misewa Saga (“misewa” is Cree for “all that is”) series reflects stories of the sky and the constellations held within its great canvas.

Here are some of his children's titles. 

Ispík kákí péyakoyak | When We Were Alone (2020)

On the Trapline (2021)

Strangers (The Reckoner Trilogy, Book 1) (2017)

Monsters (The Reckoner Trilogy, Book 2) (2018)

Ghosts (The Reckoner Trilogy, Book 3) (2019)

The Barren Grounds (The Misewa Saga, Book One) (2020)

The Great Bear (The Misewa Saga, Book Two) (2021)

The Stone Child (The Misewa Saga, Book Three) (2022)

The Portal Keeper (The Misewa Saga Book Four) (2023)

The Sleeping Giant (The Miswea Saga, Book Five) (2025)

The World's End is the newest title in this series - Book Six

You will find a longer list here. And you can read more about his adult books and YA titles here. 

Blurb: A picture book that celebrates fathers and grandfathers. A boy and Moshom, his grandpa, travel to visit a place very special to Moshom – the trapline his family used when he grew up. The boy imagines life two generations ago, and what is different and what is similar to his life now. A beautiful introduction to Indigenous culture, as well as – more generally – family histories.

Here is my previous post - meet the illustrator Julie Flett.

Blurb: When a young girl helps tend to her grandmother's garden, she begins to notice things about her grandmother that make her curious. Why does her grandmother have long braided hair and wear beautifully coloured clothing? Why does she speak another language and spend so much time with her family? As she asks her grandmother about these things, she is told about life in a residential school a long time ago, where everything was taken away.

When I attended the USBBY Conference in Seattle I read this book which opened my eyes to the experience of children in Canada who were placed in residential schools. Here is a list of other books complied by David A Robertson on this topic.

This book has just been released. Here is the bookseller blurb: When I'm a moshom, a long, long time from now, I will watch my grandchildren dance and play hockey, and I will be the loudest one cheering. I will take them on the trapline and teach them how to fish. I will feed them Bannock and share stories about our community. I will tell them I love them, just like my moshom did. This heartwarming story thoughtfully explores the legacy of love, traditions and heritage passed down from generation to generation. Through the eyes of three siblings and their moshom (grandfather), readers are taken on a journey filled with cherished moments, from cheering at sports events to sharing traditional Cree knowledge and language. This picture book beautifully captures the bonds between grandparents and grandchildren, making it perfect for shared reading and an ideal gift for special occasions like birthdays, holidays or family celebrations.

Alice and Gert: An Ant and Grasshopper story by Helaine Becker illustrated by Dena Seiferling

The storyline is quiet, but it is sound and solid, and while the narrative speaks linearly, the whimsical illustrations round out the story with depth and nuance. The ant and the grasshopper are softly rendered and oh-so-subtly animated (most especially by the engaging luminosity in their big bug eyes), and insects never looked so cuddly. The soft, pale, earth-toned palette is as easy on the eyes as the gentle story is on the mind. Graceful, kind, and altogether soothing. Kirkus

Alice is the ant; Gert is the grasshopper. Alice is a worker. It is a hot summer, but she is preparing for the winter which is coming very soon. Gert is a dreamer and composer. She spends her days singing and relaxing and cannot understand why Alice is working so hard. Then of course winter arrives and this is where the story becomes a dilemma for the reader and for Alice. Gert has done nothing to prepare for the cold and lack of food over the coming months and so she might starve BUT Alice is kind and compassionate and is able to see Gert has actually helped in her own special way.

"Perhaps you should have planned better,' said Alice. 'Instead, you sang and danced through the long hard days of summer.' ... 'But ... your (songs) lightened my load, and now it's time for me to repay your kindness. I've collected enough food to last the winter - for both of us."

It is so important to share Aesop Fables with children in your library, classroom and home. AND there are so many fantastic versions to use with truly special illustrations. Dena Seiferling creates beautiful pages in this book:

Her illustrations are as classic as the fable, having used her pencil to create profound scenes that are steeped in atmosphere and characters evocative with feeling. From the dramatic Gert who never looks silly as she enjoys her creative pursuits to the tireless Alice who takes the time, amidst her work, to feel, Dena Seiferling makes us appreciate the depth of the story through her characters and the setting. Can Lit for Little Canadians

Here are a couple of other versions of The Ant and the Grasshopper:

Amy Lowry Poole

Jerry Pinkney

Ed Emberley

In the library where I volunteer each week the most recent book display showcased the Aesop Fables held in the collection. As I was reshelving these to make way for the new display (Yarn Yarns knitting in picture books) I stumbled upon Alice and Gert and on the cover I saw the name Dena Seiferling. Over the last eight years my field knowledge of international illustrators has grown exponentially thanks to this fantastic library where I am so privileged to work each week. I previously loved art by Dena Seiferling in these two books:

Night Lunch

King Mouse

Dena Seiferling is a Canadian illustrator and instructor at AuArts, Alberta. Her illustrations are characterised by a love for animals and nature, and she works with a variety of mediums including drawing with graphite and needle-felted sculpture. She has won the Best Illustrated Children’s Book of the Year Award from the New York Times and New York Public Library for Night Lunch, written by Eric Fan. She is the illustrator of King Mouse by Cary Fagan and illustrated for Joseph Coelho’s Ten-Word Tiny Tales.

Dean Seiferling's newest book is Things I learned from my Dog (due out this year). I am very keen to find this book from 2022:

Soup's On Around the World by Denyse Waissbluth illustrated by Chelsea O'Byrne

Delicious and nutritious. Kirkus

Bookseller blurb: Through vibrant illustrations and heartwarming text, Soup's On Around the World invites readers on a flavorful journey of soups across the globe, each with its own unique history and traditions! Every soup tells its own story, revealing fascinating stories such as: The popular Chinese dish, Wonton Soup, is over 1000 years old. In Finland, a unique Christmas dried fruit soup is served as a sweet dessert, topped with whipped cream. Bitter-leaf Soup, a traditional dish from West Africa, was first used to treat illnesses. French Onion Soup was possibly invented by a king!

The cover of this book caught my eye and then to my delight my friend told me there is another book in this series (Taste the World) about tea. Both of these books would be fabulous additions to your school library and especially perfect if you have a multicultural school population or if you school celebrates days such as Harmony Day. And for families here in Australia, it is Winter so that is the perfect time to snuggle up and read a book about soup.

Bookseller blurb: Let's go on an adventure to discover new cultures and friends through tea! In this fun and lyrical picture book for ages 4-8, kids will learn how tea is enjoyed in Thailand, Japan, Russia, Egypt, Pakistan, Hong Kong, Uruguay, South Sudan, India, and more countries! Did you know that po cha, the traditional tea in Tibet, is thick and salty like soup? Or that in Iran, tea is served with a rock? (A rock candy, that is!) Or that afternoon tea was dreamed up in England by a duchess who complained of being hungry between lunch and dinner? With vivid poetry, vibrant illustrations, and unique facts about different tea cultures, Teatime Around the World tells the delightful story of a beloved beverage.

Read the Kirkus review. In this video the author talks about creating her book Teatime around the World. Denyse Waissbluth and Chelsea O’Byrne both live in Vancouver, Canada.

Story Boat by Kyo Maclear illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh

Check out my previous post about Story Boat.

A colleague and I have been working on a video presentation entitled 

"The Refugee Experience through Picture Books".

We plan to share familiar and hopefully unfamiliar titles from Australia, UK, Canada, and USA. If you join IBBY Australia you will find this and other videos on a variety of topics. (The videos are fairly simple but I think over time we have shared some very useful content and book ideas).

Story Boat is a Canadian picture book. 

Here are a couple of other books on this topic you could share with the youngest children in your school library:

Mustafa

Amira's Suitcase

Welcome

Listen, Said the Donkey by Jean Little illustrated by Werner Zimmermann

Day Seven 12 Christmas Donkeys

Book review: After the visit of the Wise Men, there is, at last, room in the inn for Mary, Joseph, and

Baby. The animals, alone in the stable and missing Baby, begin to talk and share their stories. Gentle Donkey, who was rescued from a cruel master by Mary, tells how he repaid her kindness,

carrying her safely to Bethlehem and protecting Baby from the cold. Lamb’s story is next, told with the simplicity and enthusiasm of the very young. Camel has waited impatiently for his turn, frequently

interrupting the others. He brags about Melchior, his wealthy and wise master, and boasts about his own importance on the long and arduous journey following the star. Then Cat begins her story. She, too, belongs to Melchior, travelling in the folds of his robe. However, her account of the journey differs greatly from Camel’s. Finally, it is Dog’s turn. Dog, having escaped from an abusive mistress, has taken refuge in a dark corner of the stable. Only Baby knows he is there. Warned in a dream of impending danger, Mary, Joseph, and Baby, accompanied by Donkey and Cat, flee to Egypt. Timid little Dog, heedless of his own safety, distracts the pursuing soldiers, allowing the HolyFamily to get away unharmed. Dog himself is caught and returned to his cruel owner. Lamb goes back to his shepherd boy. Only a greatly changed and humbled Camel is left in the stable along with a tiny, very relieved (now that Cat is gone) mouse. “What was it you were all talking about?” asks the mouse. “Listen,” said the camel. “I have stories to tell you.”

This is a Canadian book. 

Anna May's Blue Cloak by Christiane Cicioli illustrated by Susan Pearson

When she was a young girl Anna May's Grandmother made her a beautiful blue cloak. The fabric on the cover makes it look so tactile - perhaps it is velvet. Anna May is young and so for now the cloak is a perfect fit over her dress. But over time Anna May grows.

"Soon the cloak, still beautiful, was too small. Her mother carefully folded it up and put it away in her wooden chest."

Years later Anna May became a mum to a baby girl. Anna May remembered the beautiful cloak. Now is the time for the cloak to be used for another garment. You can see her here using her grandmother's sewing machine - my own little Nan had one just like this.

Anna May uses the cloak fabric to make a dress for her daughter, but she also carefully puts the left-over pieces back into the wooden chest. Anna May's daughter loves her dress but over time it becomes too small. Many years later Anna May's daughter had a baby - a son. Luckily there was enough fabric left from the cloak to make him a handsome blue jacket. 

Have you worked out the pattern here. YES - and then Anna May's son becomes a father.

"Anna May wanted him to stay warm ... she remembered her blue cloak ... she took out the fabric that was left after making the dress and the jacket."

I wonder what she made? And what about the tiny fragments of fabric that are still left over?

I have a friend who is volunteering at one of our local charity shops. She mentioned the idea of following the journey of a piece of clothing could be a great idea for a picture book - she needs to see this book.

You could also use this book to talk about family relationships and the way we can show this using a family tree. If I was sharing this book with a class, I would bring in a collection of things made by my grandmother Amy - a set of beautiful doll clothes including silk pyjamas, casual shorts with a matching top, a lace dressing gown and brown corduroy trousers. 

Anna May's Cloak is a Canadian picture book. It was published in 2013 but it is still available. If you are reading this close to the time, I have penned this post I found one copy available from an online Australian book seller for a great price - but they only have one copy. 

Christiane Cicioli, born in Quebec, has lived both in Canada and the United States. One of the most enjoyable activities she has shared with her family and three now grown children has been to hear and recount the tales and customs of grandparents, great-grandparents, and other relatives of previous generations. Those inspirational moments have become the source of her writing. After working with children in elementary schools for many years, she is now a freelance writer and translator. Susan Pearson lives in Vancouver, BC, with her husband Ed. She creates images for children's books and teaches watercolor painting classes.

Companion books:

The Copper Tin Cup

My forever dress

Margot and the Moon Landing by AC Fitzpatrick illustrated by Erika Medina

Margot loves everything about space travel and the moon. She reads every book she can find on this topic and then she just has to SHARE everything she knows with EVERYONE. The problem is her mother has stopped listening and her teacher just seems to be quite frustrated and even angry with Margot.

Eventually, having no one listening to her, drives Margot herself crazy and she grabs her marker pens and writes furiously all over her bedroom walls. Sharing this book with your child this could be the page to stop. How will mum react? Turn the page and you will be surprised. Mum stops and takes the time to read what Margot has written. 

"Margot waited for something to happen but instead mum got very quiet. She read all the words and then read them again."

Margot tries to rub out the words, but mum stops her. She grabs a pot of paint and together they fill the wall with images of space travel and stars and then even better mum attaches two enormous sheets of paper to the walls and shows Margot that these are the places she can write anything she likes. 

Publisher blurb: Margot loves space. Astronauts, the stars, and especially the moon landing. So she can’t understand why all of her attempts to communicate her passion fall on disinterested ears. Her mom is patient but distracted; her classmates would rather play kickball; and her teacher just wants her to focus and pay attention in class. Even so, Margot wishes she never had to talk about anything but space ever again. When she wakes up one morning and discovers she can only recite Neil Armstrong’s famous speech from the moon landing, Margot realizes she has an even bigger problem. How can Margot get everyone to pay attention and—more importantly—to hear what she’s really trying to say? This powerful picture book debut plays with themes of listening and communication to highlight the importance of a space of one’s own, no matter what your passion may be. 

A charming picture book about both a child and her obsessions and frustration, anger, and repair. Kirkus

There are several valuable themes in this book, including listening, communication and forgiveness. The book’s contents cover Margot’s learning to express herself effectively and constructively, and there’s also the lesson for adults in children’s lives – to listen and allow kids to be heard and to meet where they’re at. Canadian Review of Materials (Read this review if you are concerned about the way Margot expresses her anger using strong language). 

You can probably guess why I bought this book. If you are talking about space or the moon landing or want to affirm those quirky kids in your class who obsess (in a good way) over a specific topic, then this book could be fun to share. It reminded me of the way the little girl in Agatha May and the Angler Fish by Nora Morrison knew everything about her own favourite fish. 

Here is the teacher's guide from Canadian publisher Annick Press. Erika Rodriguez Medina is originally from Mexico. She now lives in Canada. You can see some of her books here. 

If you have an older child aged 9+ who, like Margot, is fascinated by the Moon Landing they might enjoy this Australian middle grade novel. 

In the illustration I shared you can see Margot reading a book about Laika. Take a look at my blog post about this famous dog who was sent to space (warning very young children may be distressed to discover Laika did not make it back to earth). You should also visit or revisit this award-winning Picture book from Australia:

Stellarphant