A Dollar’s Grand Dream, a fun money allegory that works on two levels

Kids love money. It’s not that they’re greedy Thurston Howell wannabe millionaires, rather, it’s more that they want to be lazy, do-nothing social media influencers who make dopey videos and get paid according to insane Markle-esque levels. A child’s curiosity about money and its power is natural. A Dollar’s Grand Dream felt familiar when I first looked at this illustrated book. Ah-this is similar to the book on pennies that I liked. While I disdain the fact that the penny, as a currency, is still a thing, the book itself was quite charming. This book follows that same template, but because it’s about a dollar, it has more weight, carries more interest, and is a better book because of it.

A Dollar’s Grand Dream is an illustrated book that brings the silly, but also cashes in on humor, a great story and our natural curiosity about money.
Money, puns, jokes and fun in an illustrated book on dollar bills

Super Small, Miniature Marvels of the Natural World is big poetic STEM     

STEM and poetry are two things that early elementary illustrated readers don’t see too much of. They see lots of illustrated books on cute topics that softly teach morals or lessons. In those books, there might be rhyming words or stanzas, but it’s not what educators would cast as poetry. The same can be said for the infrequency of non-fiction illustrated books in that there aren’t many of them. Super Small, Miniature Marvels of the Natural World seeks to bridge that gap, by doing so in an improbable combination.

Super Small is an illustrated book that threads the need of poetry, STEM and biology in a package that both entertains and educates at a high level.
A very smart book in a poetry, biology and STEM illustrated package

All Talk, a graphic novel on gang culture and a ‘good kid’ who dies young

All Talk is a mature graphic novel that you wish didn’t have to exist. It’s a graphic novel that’s laden with violence, occasional foul language and drug use that deftly illustrates the unspoken pressures that weigh down teens in urban areas that are prone to gangs. The story, in and of itself, is fascinating and a relatively simple one, albeit complex for those beings who are in its proximity. It’s the art in All Talk that takes this premise and magnifies it to something that makes readers think more about the story, even if they’re worlds away from where it might actually happen.

All Talk is a graphic novel for high school ages that unflinchingly looks at gangs, acting tough and the results that follow.
A mature graphic novel that serves as a modern allegory on gang culture

In the Tunnel, realistic fiction that breathes life into mglit

There is a reason that people read different types of genres. If you read stories that roughly revolve around the same characters or situations that you’re used to then your perspective will never expand or be challenged. Don’t misinterpret that sentence. By “challenge” I mean “to grow” or expand what you think that you know, and not to confront or bicker merely for the sake of argument. Granted, some books will certainly troll or bait folks into circular conflict, but literature like that is easy to spot. Into the Tunnel is realistic fiction that “challenges” mglit readers in just the right way.

In the Tunnel slow boils its way into your awareness with a realistic fiction story about family, war, oppression and the will to survive.
Branch on out and try mglit with a historical fiction, humanity vibe

The Witchling’s Wish will age well wherever it wants

There are some artists whose work just packs a punch or leaves a mark on you. It can be a telltale sign or a manner in which they communicate that makes the project that they’ve involved with a go-to event. Sarah Massini is an illustrator whose work does that for us, and we’ve only dealt with two of her books. The Girl and the Dinosaur was the first one that introduced us to her style and now The Witchling’s Wish cements her style as one that we need to keep an eye out for. To be clear, Massini has released many books which she has illustrated, and from their covers, they all seem to have that vibe for early elementary school readers.

The Witchling’s Wish is a lush illustrated book that paints a tale about friendships and how to get them started.
How did this release sneak past us……? It’s awesome.

Looking Up is an early chapter book laugh fest, with lots of heart

The laugh-per-page ratio to a Stephan Pastis book is incredibly high. His collections of Pearls Before Swine and the Trubble Town graphic novel series are hilarious, observational, intelligent and some of the best bang for the buck in a book that you can invest in. I say “invest in” because every Pastis book that we’ve received or purchased has never left our house and sticks like glue in our forever library. We had heard about the Timmy Failure book series but hadn’t read any of them. They are less cartoon-illustrated books and more in line with a chapter book for upper elementary through middle school. Looking Up is a book that falls into that category. It also produces multiple laughs per page, gets you thinking, grinning, trying to figure out some jokes, and in the end, tugs at the heartstrings more than you expect.

Looking Up has the absurd humor and fun that Stephan Pastis is known for, but combines more heart and feels than you’re expecting.
Another Pastis piece of perfection, but with more heart than you’re expecting

Barb and the Battle for Bailiwick nails the all-age graphic novel tone

The audience, it’s all about the audience and finding to whom it’s speaking. I’m teaching an AP Language class now and that’s a key trait that we’re discussing about certain texts. In Barb and the Battle for Bailiwick the audience for this graphic novel entry is crystal clear. If you’re eight-years-old and like to read, this is your jam. If you’re eight years old or older and a reluctant reader, because reading isn’t cool and you’re parents are content to let your brain turn to Minecraft mush, then this is your jam. If you’re looking for an action-packed all-age graphic novel that screams with enthusiasm, runs with energy, and has humor for days, then this is your jam.

Barb and the Battle for Bailiwick, the third book in this all-age graphic novel series, is the action and humor antidote for (reluctant) readers to avoid a bad time.
This is the sign your looking for, go no farther

Bitsy Bat, School Star is a two-tiered entertainingly illustrated book

In lower-elementary schools across the nation story time is nigh. The time of a school day when a parent comes into the classroom of pre-k through second-grade classes and reads one or two stories to kids is a precious time indeed. Bitsy Bat, School Star is an illustrated book that serves as comfort food to those older kids on that scale. It also does the trick of letting those on the younger end realize that people are different and that everyone’s a star in their own right.

Bitsy Bat, School Star is an illustrated book that serves as reassuring literary comfort food, but also as a very sublime autism primer.
An illustrated book doubling as an autism overview

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