"Brown Like Me" Book Reviews

The Little Red Hen

2011-10-12T20:43:00.000-07:00

The Little Red Hen
by Jerry Pinkney

This is a wonderful rendition of the classic story of The Little Red Hen. As I was reading along to the kids, we talked about how hard working and diligent the hen was and how lazy the other animals were. As with most versions of this story, the kids chimed in with "Not I" as the animals refused to help the hen. However, they were excited to see that the farmer in the story was "brown like them." This is, of course, a great story to teach about diligence! We enjoyed it!!!

In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall

2011-08-12T16:54:00.000-07:00

In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall
Illustrated by Javaka Steptoe

This is a collection of poems celebrating African American fathers and the influence that they have over their families. The poems are coupled with the artwork of Javaka Steptoe. This would made a nice gift for dad.

Peeny Butter Fudge

2011-07-26T22:53:00.000-07:00

Peeny Butter Fudge
by Toni Morrison & Slade Morrison
illustrated by Joe Cepeda

While mom heads out, Nana is left with the children and a schedule and instructions to follow. However, this fun-loving grandmother doesn't quite adhere to the instructions, but her and the kids sure have a great time. Just before the mother returns, Nana and the kids make a batch of peeny butter fudge, a secret family recipe. Mother returns and sees the huge mess that Nana and the kids made. However, before she can begin to reprimand, she catches a whiff of the delicious peeny butter fudge and remembers making it herself as a child. Want to make peeny butter fudge? There is a recipe in the back of the book!

My kids LOVED this book. They thought Nana was so much fun! We even followed the recipe and made our own batch of peeny butter fudge.

Rhyme Time Valentine

2011-02-05T20:15:00.000-08:00

Rhyme Time Valentine
by Nancy Poydar

Ruby loves Valentines Day and her favorite color is red! For Valentines Day she decides to make rhyming valentines for her classmates. However, with a whip and dip of the wind, her red, hand-made, heart-shaped valentines flutter away. After being quite upset about the valentines, Ruby is very excited when she notices passerby's catching her valentines as the swish through the wind. My kids really enjoyed this book and were excited to make their own heart-shaped valentines!

FYI, the book does use the word "dumb." We do not use this word in our home. So I thought I would forewarn you in case you do the same. As I read the book to the kids, I simply skipped over it and used another more appropriate word in its place.

Fish School

2011-01-03T15:39:00.000-08:00

Fish School
by Nancy Poydar

Charlie got a goldfish for his birthday and he vowed to teach Wishy everything he learned! Attempting to follow through with his promise, Charlie secretly hides Wishy in his backpack and takes him on the school field trip to the aquarium! After he misplaces his backpack, Charlie and his classmates stick together like a school of fish and search for Wishy together!

This is a really cute book! My kids LOVED it! In fact, the proclaimed that they wanted to get another fish and name him Wishy. However, fish tend to have a short life span in our house, so I really do not see a Wishy in our near future!

Pinata in a Pine Tree

2010-12-20T15:26:00.000-08:00

Pinata in a Pine Tree
by Pat Mora
illustrated by Magaly Morales

A Pinata in a Pine Tree is a Latino Twelve Days of Christmas book. I think the kid's favorite part of the book was my attempt at singing the song with all of the Spanish words! My favorite part was when the kids chimed in and we all belted out "On the ___ day of Christmas me amiga game to me...a pinata in a pine tree."

N is for Navidad

2010-12-19T15:24:00.000-08:00

N is for Navidad
by Susan Middleton Elya & Merry Banks
illustrated by Joe Cepeda

Celebrate Christmas Latino style with this festive Spanish alphabet book! With each letter of the alphabet you are introduced to another Christmas tradition as well as another Spanish word! My kids and I loved all of the colorful pages and it was fun for them to learn some new Spanish words!

The Night Before Christmas

2010-12-15T10:51:00.000-08:00

The Night Before Christmas
by Rachel Isadora

This is a wonderfully unique version of the beloved holiday story, The Night Before Christmas. It takes place in an African village where everyone is excited about the arrival of Santa and his reindeer. This is a captivating book, full of bright, vibrant colors. My kids were enthralled with each turn of the page! They loved seeing a Santa that looked like them!

Messy Bessy's Holidays

2010-12-06T13:12:00.000-08:00

Messy Bessy's Holidays
by Patricia & Fredrick McKissack
illustrated by Dana Regan

This is a rookie reader book about a girl named Bessy and how she bakes holiday cookies to celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. After cleaning up her mess, she gives the cookies to her neighbors who celebrate the different holidays! There is even a sugar cookie recipe at the end of the book so that you and your little one can make holiday cookies as well!

Sweets and Treats

2010-10-31T13:28:00.000-07:00

Sweets And Treats

by Toni Trent Parker
photos by Earl Anderson

This is a rhyming Halloween book that features photos of kids in different costumes. While there are no scary costumes, there is a reference to ghosts and witches:

"Ghosts and witches don't scare me.

I'm a firefighter-brave as can be."

Flower Garden

2010-10-25T10:13:00.000-07:00

Flower Garden
by Eve Bunting
illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt

A little girl makes a birthday surprise for her mother. She and her father buy soil and colorful plants to make a beautiful garden box for their window! So cute...after the story the kids told me that they wanted to make me a window garden box for my birthday! To bad my birthday is quite a ways away!!!

A Trip to the Hospital

2010-10-23T16:32:00.000-07:00

A Trip to the Hospital
By Kim Watson
Illustrated by Mark Salisbury
Created by Bill Cosby

We are Little Bill fans and of course this book was a hit with my boys. Little Bill is playing cowboys with his friend Fushia when he falls and breaks his arm. He goes to the hospital to see the doctor. A bit afraid, Little Bill is brave and lets the doctor look at his arm and take an x-ray. After getting a cast on his arm, Little Bill announces that he now wants to be both a doctor and a cowboy. This is a great book if you have a little one who is fearful of doctors.

A Father Like That

2010-10-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

A Father Like That
by Charlotte Zolotow
illustrated by LeUyen Pham

In this story a young boy wishes that he had a father. In fact, he tells him mom exactly what his father would be like it he did have one. The book is filled with all of the great ideas this young boy has about what his gather would be like and what they would do together. In the end, his mother acknowledges that she likes the kind of father that he is talking about. However, if he never comes, she encourages him to remember so that when he grows up, he can be a father like that himself.

Shades of Black

2010-10-05T14:13:00.000-07:00

Shades of Black:
A Celebration of Our Children
by Sandra L. Pinkney
photos by Myles C. Pinkney

My kids really enjoyed this book. They loved seeing other children that look like them. The book instills a sense of pride in the beauty of all African-American children. I love the metaphors used to describe all of the differences in skin color, hair texture, and eye color:

"I am the midnight blue in a licorice stick"

"My hair is the soft puffs in a cotton ball"

"My eyes are"..."the shimmering glow of ebony in an onyx"

This is a wonderful book and the photographs are very vibrant and beautiful! We loved seeing all of the shades of black!!!

The Baby on the Way

2010-09-30T21:15:00.000-07:00

The Baby on the Way
by Karen English
illustrated by Sean Qualls

Ever wonder about your birth story? Well, this little boy casually asked his grandmother if she was ever a baby. She explained that yes, she was once "the baby on the way." Curious about what that meant, the little boy inquired and the grandmother began explaining the story of her birth. After the story, the little boy wonders if anyone will ever ask him if he was ever a baby. She assures him that he will be asked and continues by telling him of his birth story so that he will be able to one day tell of story of him being "the baby on the way." This was a cute story and my kids did enjoy it.

However, they enjoyed what happened afterward even more! They wanted to know their birth stories. Sad to say, I didn't remember all the details and I was fearful that I would get the birth stories mixed up. So, I got out my old journals and read each of my kid's birth stories to them. They absolutely LOVED hearing about how they were "the baby [babies] on the way!!"

How a Seed Grows

2010-09-26T20:29:00.000-07:00

How a Seed Grows
by Helene J. Jordan
illustrated by Loretta Krupinski

We loved this book! It was so informative and I love how it guides you through the process of growing a seed. We actually used this book to grow a few seeds of our own. You can read more about our little seed growing project over on my main blog.

Ellington Was Not a Street

2010-09-25T08:55:00.000-07:00

Ellington Was Not a Street
by Ntozake Shange
illustrated by Kadir Nelson

Poet Ntozake Shange recounts her childhood memories of the many great African Americans who gather in her home. Such world changers include Paul Robeson, W.E.B. DuBois, Dizzy Gillespie, and Duke Ellington. While these great men will forever live in history, she remembers when these men were not a memory, but when they were alive and were often company in her own home. I liked this book. My daughter really liked the drawing of the little girl! They had questions about who many of the men were who were mentioned in the book. I am excited to teach them about their history so that Ellington will be more than a street name to them as well!!!

Julius

2010-09-22T22:42:00.000-07:00

Julius
by Angela Johnson
illustrated by Dav Pilkey

Julius is a pig that came to live with Maya. While Maya's parents were not happy with having a pig in their home, Maya couldn't be more thrilled. While this seems like a silly little story, there really is some deeper meaning to it. Julius was often rude and Maya had to teach him manners. In fact, both Maya and Julius learned from one another and were able to share what they had learned. This is a neat book to use to reinforce the concept of sharing and teaching one another. My kids enjoyed this book and of course talked about what it would be like to have a pig of their own!!!

Across the Alley

2010-09-17T20:19:00.000-07:00

Across the Alley
by Richard Michelson
illustrated by E.B. Lewis

I began reading this book to my kids and after a few pages I stopped. It is about two boys who live across the alley from one another. They were great friends, though they never played with one another aside from tossing a ball across the alley from their bedroom windows. Willie was black and played baseball. Abe was Jewish and played the violin.

I stopped reading the book because I didn't like the stereotypes that were presented in the book, specifically by Abe's grandfather. However, I silently read further in the book and decided to proceed in reading it to my kids. I was pleased to see that the stereotypes were broken and in fact, Willie turned out to be quite the violin player and Abe turned out to be a quite a baseball pitcher.

Black is Brown is Tan

2010-09-10T09:04:00.000-07:00

Black is Brown is Tan
by Arnold Adoff
illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully

This book is about a bi-racial family. It is written in a poetic style and it highlights the families various activities. It also highlights some of the differences between the mom and dad. However, despite the differences, the emphasis is, "this is the way it is for us this is the way we are."

My daughter really liked this book. While I appreciate the message, I, however, did not care for the poetic style.

Ten, Nine, Eight

2010-08-31T08:26:00.000-07:00

Ten, Nine, Eight
by Molly Bang

This is a sweet little counting book about a young girl getting ready for bed...from "10 small toes all washed and warm" all the way to "1 big girl all ready for bed." My kids and I enjoyed reading this book!

A Lunch With Punch

2010-08-29T17:45:00.000-07:00

A Lunch With Punch
by Jo S. Kittinger
Illustrated by Jack Medoff

This is a Rookie Reader book about a little boy who helps pack his lunch. However, once he gets to school he realizes that his friend forgot his lunch, so he decides to share. This is a fun little easy reader book!

Goggles!

2010-08-26T13:39:00.000-07:00

Goggles!
by Ezra Jack Keats

Peter and Archie were playing in the alley when they found a pair of goggles. Very excited about their discovery, they were startled when some "big boys" appeared, demanding the goggles. Follow along as Peter, Archie, and Willie (Peter's dog) are able to bravely outsmart the big boys and keep their new found treasure!

My Pop Pop and Me

2010-08-23T21:01:00.000-07:00

My Pop Pop and Me
by Irene Smalls
illustrated by Cathy Ann Johnson

This is a sweet story about a boy and his grandfather. The boy and his grandfather, who happens to be a chef, spend time together baking a lemon cake. With descriptive rhymes, you follow along as the two sniff, peel, pish, mash, plop, pound, clack, dip, slurp, scrape, and swipe in the kitchen. Finally, they have prepared a delicious Lemon Bar Cake! As an added bonus, the recipe appears in the back of the book!!!

My Brother Charlie

2010-08-18T16:05:00.000-07:00

My Brother Charlie
by Holly Robinson Peete & Ryan Elizabeth Peete
illustrated by Shane W. Evans

My Brother Charlie is about a young boy diagnosed with autism. It is told from the viewpoint of Charlie's twin sister, Callie. She describes some of the challenges that her brother faces as well as some of the difficulties in understanding him. However, she also talks about many of the triumphs and joys. She feels blessed to be Charlie's sister and each day she counts her "Charlie Blessings."

This is a great book and would be very helpful to families who are touched by autism. If provides insight and understanding in a way that a child can process. The book is written by Holly Robinson Peete, author, actress, and national autism spokesperson along with her daughter Ryan. It is based on their own personal experiences with their son and brother RJ, who has autism.