picture books | Daddy Mojo

Footprints Across the Planet is a soft picture book on life and impact

Did you hear about the dinosaur footprints in Texas that were exposed during a drought? I love that story because A. I love all things dinosaur and B. It reminds us that there are extraordinary things that might be just beyond our eyesight. Maybe it’s something that takes a little effort or it could be the everyday things that we simply may not appreciate as much as it deserves. Footprints Across the Planet is a picture book by Jennifer Swanson. Swanson is an author who writes non-fiction books for children, with this one being on the picture end of the teeter-totter.

Footprints Across the Planet is a picture book about the impact things make, softly demonstrated by animals and metaphors.

Jump on in, the pictures are great

The Power of Yet, picture book fun-with something to say

I spent most of the 2022 school year in a classroom where “Yet” was in large poster board letters on the wall. Then surrounding that word were several short statements encouraging students like “I can’t do that”, which led directly to that large word. The Power of Yet is a picture book by Maryann Cocca-Leffler for pre-K through second graders that primes them to the power of that simple, three-letter word.

The Power of Yet is picture book greatness that teaches young kids about positive thinking, without being preachy

Making storytime great for pre-k and K kids

Tilda Tries Again, fabulous art and guilt-free fun on never giving up

There a couple of ‘feelings’ books that are out there for the illustrated book audience, and they all aren’t created equal. If you’re new to the emotional book game or simply want to dig into some books that place an equal balance on entertaining, as well as the message then you need to read the series by Tom Percival. Tilda Tries Again is in the Big, Bright Feelings book series. It’s an oversized illustrated book that deals with emotions that any kid experiences.

Tilda Tries Again by Tom Percival is a brilliantly illustrated, succinctly worded and a go-to for elementary kids who need to know it’s normal to try again.

This art and the words are more than the sum of its parts

All Welcome Here, a back to school primer that works in any year

2020 is a year that will be remembered for many different things. Absolutely every aspect of life has been disrupted to some degree. Have you been to the store and seen all of the candy that’s being marketed with Minions: The Rise of Gru on them? While that film will see daylight in the summer of 2021, there’s a fat chance that all of that candy will be around then. Books are something else that’s been put off or feel displaced during these COVID times. In theory, All Welcome Here by James Preller with illustrations by Mary GranPre could be like that, but let’s re-examine our classrooms for this back to school tale.

During any other school year this would be a normal go-to-school book