GUEST COLUMN: November marks Picture Book Month

November is Picture Book Month. Share a picture book with someone you love. Some fun picture book facts include that way back in the 12th century the Japanese combined words and pictures on scrolls to be read by children, creating the first picture books.

Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” has been translated into 62 different languages to be enjoyed by children around the world. Picture book illustrators are often very prolific. Quentin Blake has illustrated over 300 books and one of my favorites is “Zagazoo.”

Barbara Cooney has 110 titles to her name with “Miss Rumphius” probably her best known – and Maurice Sendak has more than 60 while Ed Young has more than 80.

Here are some additional new and old titles that are great to share with young or just the young at heart.

“Blueberries for Sal” by Robert McCloskey is a classic title about summer and a young girl discovering the delights of picking blueberries. “Muncha, Muncha, Muncha” by Denise Fleming is a wonderful title about a gardener and rabbits.

Local author Mary Casanova has two titles about river otters and the fun they can have both day and night in “Utterly Otterly Night” and “Utterly Otterly Day.” Both are wonderful to read and exclaim over the pictures by Ard Hoyt.

Have fun and lots of laughs with “We Don’t Eat Our Classmates” by Ryan Higgins. Penelope the T. Rex is so excited for her first day of school but encounters a few difficulties with making friends. “Crash, Splash or Moo!” by Bob Shea has plenty of action and decision making. Can you figure out what will happen on the next page?

Potatoes and eggplants… mortal enemies or can they be friends? “Potato Pants!” by Laurie Keller is silly, delightful fun for all. Discover the hottest thing in the potato world, and the eggplant world. Laugh and giggle as you pick your favorite pants.

Learn and laugh all at the same time? Sure, with “What Do They Do With All That Poo?” by Jane Kurtz is a seriously funny look at how zoos deal with all the messes that the animals make. Great illustrations and fascinating facts make for a great book to read together.

New readers will want to share “Baby Monkey, Private Eye” by Brian Selznick and David Serlin with a special adult. This is a great choice for youngsters to practice their reading aloud as this book is much better shared.

Let’s end with “Armstrong: The Adventurous Journey of a Mouse to the Moon” by Torben Kuhlmann. This is another great book to share and learn about the “other” Armstrong who journeyed to the moon as well.

Storytime on Thursday, Nov. 15 at 10:30 a.m., will focus on stories, rhymes and activities about “Thanksgiving.” All young children are welcome to come and enjoy stories and activities for about 30 minutes followed by about 30 minutes of free play with the early learning toys that are only available after storytime.

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