We're more than a week into this month, and there are many things to catch our attention. After all, it's the month for gratitude and gatherings, for baking and decorating, for travel and "nesting" at home. It's also PICTURE BOOK MONTH, and all of the above busy-ness calls to mind many titles that lend themselves to special sharing experiences.
I'll celebrate this picture book month by featuring TWO titles by one very special author, Cynthia Schumerth, who brings memories and everyday inspiration to her work. Each picture book she's written offers layers of beauty, entertainment, science, curiosity, and lively language.
SLEEPING BEAR PRESS, 2023
EVERY LITTLE SEED is illustrated by Elisa Paganelli with, as the cover shows, a wealth of natural and ever-changing natural life. That lovely script travels throughout the text, alongside more familiar font that leads readers through the story of a young girl who explores nature on every level. The rhymed text names and offers details about various plants and the seeds from which they grow, while the flowing cursive font echoes a truth:
"The secret of a plant lives in every little seed."
That signature line is preceded by another circle-of-life reference -
"Grandpa told Mom and Mom told me..."
Three seasons unfurl, from early spring planning and planting, through summer's care and watchful protection from threats, and into fall as flowers fade and harvest time arrives- even harvesting seeds for the following year. Back matter is kid-friendly and offers inviting activities and expansion of the topic. Some pages label garden tools, others label invasive insects and show kid-safe techniques for combatting them. Page after page brings new discoveries and prompts curiosity.
You can listen to Cynthia talk about EVERY LITTLE SEED in this recent video.
Now Cynthia has a new picture book that investigates the marvelous outdoors during a moonlit meander WHEN NIGHT COMES CALLING. It, too, is written in read-aloud-friendly-rhyme, describing a moonlight sibling stroll to see what they can see. 
SLEEPING BEAR PRESS, 2025
The older sister is knowledgeable and enthusiastic, captured perfectly by illustrator Sheryl Murray. Her expansive, evocative spreads incorporate "image-bubbles" as if they are sprawling speech bubbles, featuring visual inserts of the many things she points out-- planets, Northern lights, and so much more. Somehow the informative and wide-ranging observations flow seamlessly through the rhymed text without missing a beat.
When they move from the expansive skyscape into a woodland, the perspectives and big-eyed smiles avoid any sense of worry or fear that have often been associated with going "into the woods". The creatures found there, using all the senses, are named accurately and lovingly, until the young brother begins to weary. The piggy-back ride home across luminous landscape adds "bedtime book" to the many ways in which this story appeals. It, too, has back matter to offer further facts about those insert images of critters and sky-features.
Those who try to write picture books are offered many valuable tidbits of advice from the best of writers and editors: Avoid rhyme- it rarely works well; build tension; focus on character change; "quiet" books don't sell well. This latest work from Schumerth shows clearly that such advice needs an addendum-
Don't try to rhyme unless you can do it perfectly!
Tension is needed unless the story itself is utterly compelling.
Quiet books need to be very special, offer extra value.
Relationships, when revealed well, can take the place of character change.
These books do all that and more. They are winners because of the science/STEM components, lovely language, masterful and moody illustrations (one book featuring sunlight effects and the other moonlight accents, by two separate illustrators) and characters who invite readers to "come along" through text and images.
SLEEPING BEAR PRESS
If you are intrigued about what's next, see the news below. Cynthia's next book moves into that rollicking romp category. You'll just need to wait a bit, but have no doubt, you won't be disappointed! And you can celebrate this November PICTURE BOOK MONTH with a big bowl of POPCORN while reading an earlier book from Cynthia, LET'S POP! POP! POPCORN!
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