The Red Lemon by Bob Staake

"Over the hills and along the blue sea, 'The lemons are ready!' shouts Farmer McPhee."

The farmer loves his lemons. The people love these lemons. They make sherbet, drinks, cookies, cakes, muffins and shakes. But one day a rogue lemon appears - it is red!

"Who'd squeeze this red thing in their afternoon tea? Who'd buy a red lemon from Farmer McPhee?"

Famer McPhee throws the red lemon over to a nearby island but as you your reading companion or library group might predict lemons (no matter what colour) contain seeds and so if the conditions are right then ...

Does this book have a deeper message about acceptance of difference; trust; risk taking; perfection, consumerism (look closely at all the advertising banners) - probably, but it will also just be a fun book to read to your young preschooler. You could also talk about the way something that was discarded turned into something special and there is a whole discussion you could have with older students about the fate of the original orchard or island. Here are a few discussion questions. It would be fantastic to copy the double page spread of the futuristic red lemon town to read all the advertising signs. The one that says McPhee Memorial Building might give you a slight chill. Hopefully if you can find this book you will agree it is one of those picture books that will work equally well with young children and your older primary group.

"The Red Lemon" tells the tale of jolly Farmer McPhee, a perfectionist who one day finds a red lemon, a freak of nature, in his pristine orchard. He hurls the offending fruit onto a nearby deserted island. Little does McPhee know that he has just planted the seed that, long after his own orchard has gone to weed, will be the foundation for the thriving tourist destination Red Lemon Island. We see the island 200 years in the future, complete with its own Air Red airline and Bitter End discothèque. Bob Staake

A quirky city has evolved with an economy based on these fabulously sweet red lemons, attracting people from all over the world. Kirkus

Here is the publisher blurb: In this thought-provoking tale reminiscent of Seuss, Farmer McPhee finds a red lemon in his orchard and cries, "It's red as a stop sign! It's red as a rose! I can't have red lemons where yellow fruit grows! Imagine a world where lemonade's red? Where once-yellow cupcakes are crimson instead?" As he tosses the red lemon across the water, he can't imagine that it will land on a small island, sprout a seed, and someday bring forth an orchard of lemon trees...where people will travel to from all over, to try the red lemons that are "six times as sweet!"

Here are some more books about lemons. 

Companion book:

And if you want to talk about planting things try to find this vintage book:

The Lollipop Tree

Here is another Bob Staake book I really loved:

The Book of Gold

I did a search for other books by Bob Staake and now I have added his name to my library borrowing list for next week.

The Snow Lion by Jim Helmore illustrated by Richard Jones

"Where did you come from?' Caro asked. 

'Oh, here and there,' said the lion."

Caro and her mum have moved. The new house is white - very white. In fact, it is so white that when the lion stands beside the wall he disappears. On that first glorious day the new friends enjoy many games of hide and seek. Caro sees other kids playing outside - boys playing with a kite. She is too shy to wave to them but later the lion suggests a visit to the park (the slide there is great fun) and when she gets there, she meets the kite boy. His name is Bobby. With encouragement from the lion Caro gradually gains courage and is able to make a new friend. They even share a chocolate cake! But there is a twist. Mum decides to paint all the walls in their white house in bright colours. What will happen to the snow lion? Can Caro survive without her wonderful friend? Does he really need to go? Wait until you see the final page!

A well-crafted tale about healthy adaptation to new environs merges with superb artwork. Kirkus Star review

What makes this book extra special is the way in which the text and illustrations work together. The darkness of the opening pages as Caro and her mother arrive in the night and then the stark whiteness of the house in the first days help to convey the feelings of the characters so well. When the lion arrives he stands out on a page of warm orange. The Snow Lion himself although kindly and reassuring has a quiet dignity and authority about him too; a little like a wise and thoughtful parent. Book Bag

One of our large book chain stores has pulled all the 'old' books off their children's books shelves. You probably know I love to think about the extra details on book price stickers. The Snow Lion has 'languished' on their shelves since July 2018. I do wonder why. It is a paperback book, and the full price was only AUS$15. I was lucky of course to pick this up for 50% off. This is a very special book to share with a young child. The story has a gentle 'message' about making new friends and courage and the illustrations are truly special. 

The best books always use every opportunity to add to their story. Take a look at the title page from The Snow Lion - so much of the story can be anticipated here.

Here is an interview with Jim Helmore about his book and you can also see other pages. Here is his web page. I am also a fan of his Stripy Horse series. His first book was Letterbox Lil - a collaboration with his wife Karen Wall. And here is the web page for Richard Jones. I am very keen to see his new book - Quiet. The Iron Robin looks good too. 

I have already talked about and read many other books illustrated by Richard Jones:

Little Bear

Whale in a Fishbowl

The Seed of Doubt

Bird Builds a Nest

The Blue Balloon by Mick Inkpen

Here is a list of things you need to know :

• The Blue Balloon is not a new book (first published in 1989)
• The Blue Balloon is near the top of my favourite picture books of all time!
• The Blue Balloon review is number 700 for my little blog and today is the 7th day of the 7th month I am such a fan of number sequences like this
• The Blue Balloon is a book for all ages.  It is a book to treasure and read over and over again.
• If The Blue Balloon is a book you have not yet discovered rush out right now and grab a copy - you will not be disappointed.
• The Blue Balloon is the first book which features the cute dog Kipper - he went on to star in a whole series of books nearly all of which you can find in our school library.

"One day after my birthday party Kipper found a soggy blue balloon in the garden." This is the opening sentence.  Perhaps this balloon is nothing too special but the next sentence tells us "the balloons at my party were red and white." And so a day of pure balloon fun begins.  Featuring flaps and fold outs this balloon is subjected to all sorts of rough treatment but it always survives and as an added delight changes in the most marvellous and truly magical ways.

I am so happy The Blue Balloon emerged on the top of my reading pile in time to celebrate review number 700.

You might also like to read my review of another Mick Inkpen gem - Nothing.

The lion the the little red bird by Elisa Kleven

This is not a word I use very often but The Lion and the Little Red Bird is quite simply a beautiful book. I picked it up in a splendid bookshop in New York called  McNally Jackson  because last year one of the new teachers in my school mentioned Elisa Kleven.  We have several of her books in our school library.  You can see many her titles here.

Elisa has a very decorative style of illustrating.  Her pictures almost sparkle with tiny flowers and and water droplets. On the back cover of this book on review says “readers will want to feel the pages.”

If you need a special book to talk about colours or friendship or the wonders of art then grab this lovely book. The ending surprised me and I hope it might surprise you too!

Here is the full quote from Kirkus Reviews

"A little red bird meets a lion and wonders why the end of his tail is a different color each day. The lion can't understand the bird's chirping questions, but he likes her cheerful company, and so they wander amiably together through fields and hills and splash in a mountain lake. One night, the gentle lion rescues the bird from a storm and brings her into his warm cave, which is decorated with paintings of the places they've seen together--paintings that the lion has made using the end of his tail as a brush. This joyous tale about the wordless discoveries of friendship is illustrated with mixed-media collages so richly colored and textured that readers will want to feel the pages. "

Press Here by Herve Tullet

This is my picture book of the year so far for 2011. The idea here is so simple it made me wonder why no one has done this before.

Here is the perfect interactive picture book with no electronic gadgets needed not even any batteries or electricity. I read this gem to Year 2 students and Year 6 and all were equally enthralled especially by the page where you tilt the book to the left and all the dots 'move' across.

I first heard about this book when it was reviewed on the radio this week by Kate Colley of Bloomin' books. She said Press Here is a very difficult book to describe on radio and I agree. The illustrations are so simple but the thought behind this creation is the work of a genius. You could enjoy this book with a pre school child and with an art student it is just so amazing.

If you know how to press, rub, shake, tilt, blow or clap you will easily be able to 'read' this wonderful book. Herve Tullet has a beautiful web site and other wonderful books including an intriguing colouring book.

You can see this book in action here - it is interesting that I thought you needed to press all the yellow dots at the same time.