Sonya's Chickens by Phoebe Wall

Sonya loves her chickens. She has three and she has raised them from tiny chicks. She makes sure they have enough water, fresh straw, and lots of delicious corn. It is not a surprise that one day Sonya finds the perfect gift - a smooth, warm, brown egg. But ...

"One chilly night, Sonya woke to a ruckus of squawking and shuffle-y bump noises from outside. ... The floor of the coop was frosted with feathers, and Sonya cried out as she counted not three, but two frightened chickens cowering in the rafters above. The third was nowhere to be seen."

Sonya is desperately upset but her father offers some beautiful wisdom. Yes this does seem very unfair but now let's think about the fox. That fox also works hard to feed his babies. 

"He didn't care that it was our chicken he took. He just saw it as a chance to feed his family. I know you feel sad, but you wouldn't want those baby foxes to go hungry, would you?"

Sonya's Chickens was published in 2015 and it won an Ezra Jack Keats award for a new illustrator. I was very surprised to discover it is not out of print. Here are some details of the paperback edition. 

Here is my Pinterest collection of picture books about chickens. You can see more books illustrated by Phoebe Wahl here. Here is a video of Sonya's Chickens. I would share Sonya's chickens with slightly older children aged 7+ and you should make sure you leave time for discussion and questions. 

Bookseller blurb: When Sonya discovers the answers, she learns some important truths about the interconnectedness of nature and the true joys and sorrows of caring for another creature.

A reassuring story about death in the natural world, thoughtfully designed and illustrated. Kirkus Star review

Companion book:

Fox: A Circle of life story

Telephone of the Tree by Alison McGhee

"You know what she told them? To stop it. To go away. 

That she was waiting for Kiri to come home."

Early in this story there are fragments or tiny hints that Kiri will not come home. Ayla thinks about the significant events from their past together such as drawing trees in their second grade class when Mr Nesbitt said to draw 'what you want to be when you are thirty' and both Ayla and Kiri draw trees. A telephone appears in Ayla's tree. Ayla has no intention of using it, after all it is not connected to anything, but others want to use the telephone and one of these is a little boy with the nickname Gentleman. He is mourning the loss of his pet lizard named Sweetheart. The death of this beloved pet is another tiny story hint about the absence of Kiri. Then the pizza guy uses the phone to call his dad. Then another person comes - a dad with his tiny baby who wants to talk to his wife.

"The pizza guy told me about this telephone. He comes here and talks to his dad when he needs to."

The trees in this street are all markers of life and death. Ayla can name each tree and match it with a birth or the end of a life. Then she sees a new tiny birch tree has been planted and her anger flares.

Reading this book needs to be gentle quiet experience - you already know the outcome or the destination, so it is important not to race to get there but rather to slow down and let the story gently unfold. And yes, even though I knew Kiri was not coming back I cried when Ayla finally allowed herself to revisit the awful events that led to death of her friend. 

Raw and sad but lit with occasional glints of humor and ending, as it should, on a rising note. Kirkus Star review

Publisher blurb: Ayla and her best friend Kiri have always been tree people. They each have their own special tree, and neighbors and family know that they are most likely to be found within the branches. But after an accident on their street, Kiri has gone somewhere so far away that Ayla can only wait and wait in her birch, longing to be able to talk with Kiri again. Then a mysterious, old-fashioned telephone appears one morning, nestled in the limbs of Ayla's birch tree. Where did it come from? she wonders. And why are people showing up to use this phone to call their loved ones? Especially loved ones who have passed on. All Ayla wants is for Kiri to come home. Until that day comes, she will keep Kiri's things safe. She'll keep her nightmares to herself. And she will not make a call on that telephone.

I was so interested to read Alison was inspired to write this book after reading about a telephone in Japan outside the town of Otsuchi. It is an old fashioned disconnected rotary dial telephone that people from all over use to call deceased loved ones.

"The image of the phone and the reason for its existence was so powerful to me that I knew, right away, I wanted to create a book inspired by it."

Thanks to the person who commented and alerted me to this picture book.  You can read more here. 

Here is the author web page

Companion books:

Love that Dog

I recognised the author's name when I spied this book in Melbourne last month. I read Snap (published in 1999) decades ago and then re-read it for this blog in 2015. I have also included covers of other books by Alison McGhee. I think Maybe a Fox covers similar themes to Telephone of the tree. Alison McGhee is also the author of the junior novel series Bink and Golly and picture books like Countdown to Kindergarten, Someday illustrated by Peter Reynolds and Always illustrated by Pascal Lemaitre.

Snap

Maybe a Fox bookseller blurb: Sylvie and Jules, Jules and Sylvie. Better than just sisters, better than best friends. Jules’ favourite thing is collecting rocks, and Sylvie’s is running – fast. But Sylvie is too fast, and when she runs to the most dangerous part of the river one snowy morning to throw in a wish rock, she is so fast that no one sees what happens when she disappears. At that very moment, in another part of the woods, a shadow fox is born: half of the spirit world, half of the animal world. She, too, is fast, and she senses danger. When Jules goes to throw one last wish rock into the river for her lost sister, the human and shadow worlds collide with unexpected consequences. Written in alternate voices – one Jules, the other the fox – this searingly beautiful tale tells of one small family’s moment of heartbreak as it unfolds into something epic, mythic, shimmering and, most of all, hopeful.

Wolf and Bear by Kate Rolfe

You could begin by reading my recent post about picture books that explore the topic of depression. This is a topic I am still pondering. 

If you have read Listen, Hippo! by Gabriel Evans this book - Wolf and Bear - has a similar story line. 

"Sometimes a great heaviness would fall over Bear and the shadows of the mountain would draw him away."

Wolf tries so hard to reach her friend. She brings gifts and has lots of suggestions of games they could play together Then it starts to snow and Wolf invites Bear to skate or skid or slide. But Bear just says no and NO!

Wolf is sad that she cannot reach her friend and so she climbs up the mountain and sings her sorrow to the moon. Bear hears this beautiful sound and so he follows the sound back into the light and back into the arms of his friend. He still does not want to romp and play but ...

"we could sit together and I could listen to you sing ... So that is what they do. Whenever a bright moon rises over the horizon, Bear slips out of the shadow to hear Wolf's song... and she sings it just for (her friend) Bear."

So, this is a book about sadness or depression. It does not offer an easy solution and I was impressed that Bear is 'allowed' to be depressed again from time to time. There is no sense in this book the Bear is wrong or that Bear needs to be fixed. Wolf is just a wonderful friend who wants to bring back their connection but for now sitting together enjoying a sweet song is enough. 

A complex tale containing challenging ideas, but also a rewarding read that reinforces the importance of all forms of creativity in our lives. Just Imagine

Altogether, Wolf and Bear, a picture book of empathy and friendship, around sorrow and darkness, love and understanding, is quite wonderful. Bookwagon loves and recommends this beautiful, beautiful book.

There’s an authenticity about Bear’s experience (and Wolf’s reaction to it) that draws us deep into this story and makes it easy to engage, but fundamental issues about mental health, wellbeing and relationships are also being explored in ways that prompt reflection, discussion and growth. Books for Keeps

You can read more about the way Kate Rolfe creates her art here. 

This book was short listed for the Waterstones Children's book prize 2024. It is the twentieth year of this award. Here is the full set of picture book titles. I have already talked about The Secret Elephant and The Seach for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish:

Companion books to read after Wolf and Bear:

The Rabbit Listened

Listen, Hippo!

Listen, Hippo! by Gabriel Evans

"Billy was having a bad day. ... Billy wished there was someone he could talk to."

He tells his friend Hippo that he is feeling sad and that his brain is whirling like a pinwheel but Hippo is not listening properly. Hippo sees himself as the master of fun. He suggests dressing up, dancing, climbing a tree, sailing on the high seas or perhaps a magic carpet ride will help or a party with cake!

No no no. Billy just wants someone to listen. Finally, Hippo stops all this activity and he notices Billy is sad. He makes two mugs of hot chocolate with extra marshmallows and the pair of friends sit down on the comfy couch and Billy is able to talk. 

Here is an audio interview with Gabriel Evans. This interview is with Good Reading Magazine. Joy Lawn talks to Gabriel for her blog Paperbark Words. You can see more books by Gabriel Evans who lives in Western Australia on his own web page. 

Listen, Hippo is a special book that you could share side by side with your young reading companion. I think that would work better than sharing this book with a big group of children in a library. Then perhaps you might stop and listen to your own child and ask if they have feelings or fears that they need to share. I also suggest making a delicious hot chocolate to sip while you are reading. Oh, and I do hope you love the final page (no spoilers) - it certainly made me smile. 

Companion books:

The Rabbit Listened

Other books by Gabriel Evans - pop each title into my side bar for more details or click his name at the bottom of this post or read this post which I penned after meet Gabriel at Gleebooks here in Sydney.

Meet me at the Moon Tree by Shivaun Plozza

This is a highly emotional story that follows the journey of grief taken by a family after their father dies quite suddenly. Each member of the family handles their grief in a different way but the main journey, for the reader, is through the eyes of the younger daughter Carina. She and her father shared a very special bond over science. Dad was a science high school teacher. Carina's father has told her a wonderful story about seeds that were taken in to space.

"On the thirty-first of January 1971, an astronaut named Stuart Roosa flew into space aboard the Apollo 14. They were headed for the moon, but Colonel Roosa wasn't going moonwalking ... his mission was to carry hundreds of tree seeds - loblolly pine, sycamore, sweet gum, redwood and Douglas fir - into space for an experiment. Scientists wanted to know if zero gravity made trees grow differently."

Carina calls these trees Moon Trees. She and her father had a plan to hunt for them all over the world. 

Mum, Carina, brother Jack and Gramps have now moved from the city to the aptly named very small town of Forrest in Victoria.  This is actually a real town with around 200 people. 

Mum is grieving but for her this means keeping busy and not talking and not showing any emotion. The house is in need of huge repairs and mum works all day and all night and it feels to Carina that her mum no longer loves her.

Jack is just angry - he does not communicate either. Instead he snips and snarls at Carina and at times he is just despicably mean to her. 

Gramps is trying to get on with life. He is optimistic that things will get better. He plans and builds a new garden, enjoys his coffee, makes friends in the town and tries to help Carina as she navigates this terrible time.

Carina is sad and confused and lost but she holds onto the hope that she can find moon tree. She is sure finding the tree will give her way to connect again with her dad. Carina does find the tree with the help of a friendly cockatoo and she also makes a new friend - a girl called Betty. This was one of those books where I just wanted to HUG the friend and thank her for her kindness and quiet wisdom. Every child who is suffering like Carina needs a beautiful friend like Betty.

Ways to identify a Moon Tree:

• Extra twisty branches
• Leaves that glimmer silver in the moonlight
• A feeling of being very ancient and very special
• Golden sap that sparkles with stardust

Meet me at the Moon Tree will be published by University of Queensland Press in July, 2023. I really like the cover by Verónica Fabregat Sebastiá. You can see other books by Shivaun Plozza on her web site.  I expect to see this book listed as a CBCA Younger Readers Notable for the 2024 award. Huge thanks to Beachside Bookshop for my advance copy (note sadly this wonderful independent bookshop is due to close at the end of June). 

Companion reads:

Catch a falling Star

A dog called Homeless

Bird

Wishtree

Mikki and me and the Out of tune tree

The Heart and Mind of Frances Pauley

No Longer Alone by Joseph Coelho illustrated by Robyn Wilson-Owen

There are three little girls on the cover of this book - can you tell which one feels alone? Can you guess why she feels this way? 

This book is a gentle exploration of loss and grief. It was published in 2019 and I think it should be added to all Primary school library collections. The library I visit each week have shelved this with parent reference books but I do think it could be added to your general collection. 

Mum has obviously died but this is not stated anywhere in the story we just know the little girl narrator is acting differently, she is sad and confused. Others do observe her new behavious this but they don't seem to understand. Finally her beautiful father sits down with the little girl and we see all the family photos on the wall behind their lounge and as readers we begin to understand what may have happened.

"Dad says ... 'Try to be the old you, the get-up-an-go you. The loud-and-active you, the happy you, the you, you used to be.'"

"I tell him how I don't feel myself right now, how I feel different, like someone else. I tell him all the things that are worrying me, upsetting me, making me feel alone. And he listens ... like the sun listens to leaves, like the ocean listens to raindrops, like the stars listen to the glide of their plants. And right NOW starts to feel different."

Bookseller blurb: A new picture book from award-winning performance poet, Joseph Coelho. This touching picture book subtly deals with big emotions such as loss, with an uplifting and hopeful message about being yourself and the importance of family and talking about worries. Told through the voice of a little girl who is labelled as quiet and shy, No Longer Alone follows her tumult of emotions as she navigates the world around her. But when she finally shares her feelings and tells her Dad all the things that are worrying her, she no longer feels so alone. Joseph's warm, authentic voice offers an insightful take on the way children feel and how they perceive the world and it's perfectly complimented by gorgeous artwork from talented new illustrator, Robyn Wilson-Owen.

Now take at the UK cover for this book - which one do you prefer?

I have talked about another book by Joseph Coelho:

My Beautiful Voice

Big and Small and In-between by Carter Higgins illustrated by Daniel Miyares

 

I have coveted this 2022 book since I first saw it many months ago, so when one of our best Sydney bookshops (Gleebooks) announced their 20% sale prior to moving to new premises I was able to grab this book for less than $30. 

There was a competition recently for the best end papers. Big and small and in-between could certainly be a strong contender. These end papers are different front and back, the front ones have a sunrise hue and the back ones night is falling. These pages are filled with the big and small objects from the book such as a chipped tea cup, a key, shells, coins, a cassette tape, dice, a whistle, a feather and a skipping ripe. 

Publisher blurb: This lovely, lyrical book collects the world by size. Divided into three chapters with three specially paper-engineered separations, every page encapsulates one precious moment that perfectly represents both a size and an experience. A beautiful, giftable meditation on what it means to be a kid - and what it means to be a human. This book has a beautiful blend of lyrical text and interpretive illustrations. The big, small and in-between things all lend themselves to deep conversations.

The three chapters in this book are big, in-between and small. Let's Talk Picture books explains the paper folds:

But perhaps the most exciting part of the book's design is the different paper folds we see on the section headers. Decreasing in intricacy and size as they go, they perfectly build up to the bonus surprise chapter and gatefold at the end of the book. The impact of the gatefold is amazing after all that!

I love all the pages in this book but especially these:

BIG - the trophy you got for the jump-rope contest because your feet remembered the pattern.

In-Between - the leftover balloons that are losing their oomph but not all the way droopy.

SMALL Things - the PLIP of a raindrop and the PUDDLE where it falls for a butterfly to sip.

I would be tempted to share this book very slowly with a class of older students (Grades 4-6) and only reveal one page each day. This book might not survive multiple library borrowers because of the paper engineering but it is one you could gift to a teacher or a special friend or perhaps it might be a gift to celebrate the arrival of a new baby. 

Truly a book that soothes the worries and congratulates the soul for being here and celebrates the amazing thing we are living - together - called a life.  These are magical moments that connect us.  These are sad and happy things we all share because we are human beings living side by side on this planet.  What an amazing celebration of being alive and here today. A Book and a Hug

Here are some other books illustrated by Daniel Miyares:

I previously talked about Bring me a Rock!

This book made me cry - a list

There was a post on Twitter this week asking for Middle Grade novels that made readers cry - realistic not fantasy - driven by a character. Of course the first books I thought of were the classic Bridge to Terabithia and my personal favourite Sarah, Plain and Tall. I also thought of a very old novel from 1996 called Secret Friends by Elizabeth Laird. I re-read this book today and I found it still so powerful and sad. I used to recommend Secret Friends to mature readers in my school library when someone asked for a sad book. 

Not all of the books on the list below made me cry (and I do cry fairly easily) but they all certainly packed an emotional punch.

Here are some of the suggestions mentioned on Twitter with links to my past blog posts:

Wishtree by Katherine Applegate

Lenny's Book of everything by Karen Foxlee

The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman

The Honest Truth by Dan Gemeinhart

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

One for the Murphy's by Lyn Mullay Hunt

The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart

Cloud Boy by Marcia Williams

The Line Tender by Kate Allen

Sweep by Jonathan Auxier

Nest by Esther Ehrlich

The War that saved my Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Pax by Sara Pennypacker

Julia and the shark by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D Schmidt

October October by Katya Balen

Raymie Nightingale, Louisiana's way home, Beverly Right Here by Kate DiCamillo

The Thing about Jellyfish by Ali Benjamin

When the sky falls by Phil Earle

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

Mrs Bixby's Last Day by John David Anderson

No Ballet Shoes in Syria by Catherine Bruton

The truth as told to Mason Buttle by Leslie Connor

A game of Fox and Squirrels by Jenn Reese

Where the red fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Patterson

All Rise for the Honorable Perry T Cook by Leslie Connor

Rabbit, Soldier, Angel, Thief by Katrina Nannestad

The Heart and Mind of Frances Pauley by April Stevens

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk

So. B. It. by Sarah Weeks

Caterpillar Summer by Gillian McDunn

Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

A dog called Homeless by Sarah Lean

Sun and Spoon by Kevin Henkes

Waiting for Normal by Leslie Connor

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt

Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo

Wonder by RJ Palacio

The Star outside my Window by Onjali Q Rauf

Because of Mr Terupt by Rob Buyea

And here are some books suggested on Twitter that I need to look for (it's a long list):

The Shape of Thunder by Jasmine Warga

Starfish by Lisa Flipps

Where the Heart is by Jo Knowles (Young Adult title)

Lemon Drop Falls by Heather Clark

One by Sarah Crossman (Young Adult Verse Novel)

My Jasper June by Laurel Snyder

Dear Student by Elly Swartz

Seven Clues to Home by Gae Polisner

A kind of spark by Elle McNicoll

Lolo's Light by Liz Garton Scanlon

Train I ride by Paul Mosier

The Unforgettable Guinevere St Claire by Amy Makechnie

Sorry for your Loss by Joanne Levy

Jennifer Chan is not alone by Tae Keller

Swing Sideways by Nancy Turner Steveson

Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D Schmidt (Young Adult title)

Forever, or a long time by Caela Carter

Fighting Words by Kim Bradley

Carry me home by Janet Fox

Zia erases the World by Bree Barton

A street dog named Pup by Gill Lewis

Maxi's Secrets by Lynn Plourde

The Space we're in by Katya Balen

The Bluest Sky by Christina Diaz Gonzalez

The Soup Movement by Ben Davis

Speechless by Adam P Schmitt

The Lonely heart of Maybelle Lane by Kate O'Chaughnessy

See you at Harry's by Jo Knowles

Manatee Summer by Evan Griffith

I can make this promise by Christine Day

The Deepest Breath by Meg Grehan

Breathing underwater by Sarah Allen

A many feathered thing by Lisa Gerlits

The Valley of lost secrets by Lesley Parr

Hazel Bly and the Deep Blue Sea by Ashley Herring Blake

Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World by Ashley Herring Blake

Okay for now by Gary D. Schmidt

My sister Lives on the Mantle Piece by Annabel Pitcher (Young Adult title)

Planet Earth is Blue by Nicole Panteleakos

Ethan I was before by Ali Standish

Saving Marty by Paul Griffin

Maybe a Fox by Kathi Appelt

Red White and Whole by Rajani LaRocca

The Moon within by Aida Salazar (Verse Novel)

Mary Underwater by Shannon Doleski

Gabe in the after by Shannon Doleski