A COUPLE OF BOYS Have the BEST WEEK EVER!

HARCOURT, INC. 2008

The holidays reminded me of the limitless joy kids often have when relegated to the care of their grandparents. The timing must have been right, because I heard a podcast about this, read short humor pieces, and heard a few personal stories in conversations. That's why I felt compelled to feature a throwback favorite, a Caldecott honor book from 2008. MARLA FRAZEE is the author/illustrator of A COUPLE OF BOYS Have the BEST WEEK EVER. Frazee has produced some most memorable picture books in her celebrated career, some of which I've featured HERE, HERE, and HERE.

This delightful offering was nearly true according to  back jacket flap copy from Frazee. With that note, the humor is even more of a treat. Some of it, I would have guessed. Grandmas tend to overfeed, grandpas are less carful than parents about filtering certain vocabulary, and a couple of boys of a certain age can be extremely creative in each others' company.

It's also true that summer nature camp may not be everything the could imagine, but that didn't eliminate their imaginations from producing an unforgettable week. Excess sugar. eager-to-please-elders, and a seacoast nearby provide ample images that blend cartoonish kids' antics and eyeballs with swirls of gorgeous seascapes.The fun narration is supplemented with speech bubble humor and delightful details in illustrations that kids will giggle about on every re-reading. 

An approach like this invites imitation, with young storytellers encouraged to depict times spent with friends and without parental presence. It could even provide practice in partners authoring/illustrating, each taking on one or the other perspective (adult or kids). It opens up discussion of point of view and alternate perspectives for older writers, too. This is a great throwback option, since I'm betting that these kids (who we've been told are real boys) will be talking about that summer week for years to come. Try it out now, pull it out during summer camp weeks, and any time when grandparents are offering to host the young ones for extended stays!

Whenever you choose to read (or reread) this picture book, prepare to smile!

Making the World We Wish For: ROOM ON OUR ROCK

I've been worried that my lifelong optimism and idealism are at risk. I leave you to draw your own conclusions about what might have triggered my drooping mood in recent years. Nevertheless, I cling to unflagging faith in young humans, and speak up about that optimism when adults of any age bemoan "today's kids". 
As the subtitle of this new picture book says, "There Are Two Sides to Every Story". Finding the welcoming, open-hearted, willing-to-share side of life comes more naturally to kids, but our future depends on people of EVERY age shifting attitudes and speaking up. In life, as in quality picture books, EVERY age can find inspiration and truth, if they are open to making connections with their own lives.

Kane Miller Books 2019

ROOM ON OUR ROCK is a perfect example of that, created by Kate and Jol Temple and Terri Rose Baynton. It is formatted in an unusual way, inviting readers (REQUIRING readers) to read it both forward and backward. Two separate and simple story lines are revealed in the identical text and images, relying on readers to start in the conventional way and read left to right pages, turning to the end, then REVERSE at the final cover and read to the front, from right to left. 
I wrote about REVERSO POEMS in an earlier post, HERE. These, too, reflect alternate points of view: conflicting characters, creator/craft, etc. 
In this book, though, the alternating approaches reflect much deeper differences.Central values.

The frames through which we view the world. Without reading in both directions, either message is diminished. The concluding/launching line directs readers:
"No room on this rock? Can it be true? Read back to front for another point of view."
The gull reminders are an added nudge to readers about when-where-how to proceed:

The other illustrations throughout take on entirely different emotional resonance as the point of view reverses. The degree and awareness of threat throughout the story also diminish or magnify depending on which point of view is promoted. 
Without giving too much away, this distinctly expressive seal colony and family-in-need either question their commonalities or embrace them. One story, without the other, feels valid. it is only when both are viewed in sequence, and even with repeated explorations, that readers (of any age) can identify the realities that formed various perspectives. 
Either way, the desperate seal pair are escaping undeniable dangers. Either way, the sanctuary rock has clearly been claimed as home by others, possibly long before the approach of strangers is evident. The difference in result is found not in circumstances but in attitude. 
Discussions this book will generate are worth having, at any age. 
Most especially, this book could launch a successful school year, allowing connections to ways sharing supplies and turn-taking and game participation and empathy and acceptance can reshape the experiences of a year spent growing and learning together. 
The book also offers an opening to science discussions of predator-prey, climate change, and how supply-demand in nature creates tensions that challenge investigators to find alternatives to either-or solutions.
It's a book that could launch a thousand discussions of the current refugee crisis in older classrooms, too, and among adults. I can see a role for this book in religious services of various denominations, echoing the questions of needs versus resources but reminding participants of that important frame-shifting process. Consideration of what ethical and spiritual commitments require is bound to arise.
Harking back to the assumption that picture books are meant for "little kids", ROOM ON OUR ROCK will be a delight for read-aloud times with even the youngest groups in preschools and library story times. Its wide double-page spreads mirror the expanse of the ocean, while its limited text and simple color palette allow focus on the characters and crisis. The reverse in directions of reading will be especially appealing to little eyes and hands who are still developing concepts of left-to-right and other concepts-of-print awareness. 
In other words, this is a book that fulfills its primary purpose: to entertain and absorb, to invite repeated readings and discussion. 
And, like the very best picture books, it is COMPLETE, COMPACT, and COMPELLING, offering something for every age and audience.

Thank you to Kane Miller Books for reaching out to offer a copy of this book for review, with no promise in return. I will be donating it to our local library.