Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast

 
“Good morning, Murray!” says the owner of a pup in David Ezra Stein’s thoroughly entertaining Don’t Worry, Murray (Balzer + Bray, June 2022). Readers never see the narrator, whose words make up the entirety of the dialogue in this rewarding story, your next best story-time read.

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“The house stood bright and full, brimming with warmth and the smell of freshly baked sweets. As dinner was served, there was a knock at the door.”
(Click spread to enlarge)

 
I’ve got a review over at the Horn Book of Jonathan Stutzman’s The Mouse Who Carried a House on His Back (Candlewick, August 2022), illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault.

That review is here, and below are some spreads from the book. It’s tricky to share spreads when it’s a book that feature die-cuts, but let’s hope you can find a copy of this one to see for yourself anyway.

[Note: Reading this review at their site may require a subscription to the Horn Book.]

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It may have been a ridiculously long time since I’ve done a regular 7-Imp feature with a student or unpublished illustrator (mea culpa), but today I’m going to do so again. It’s my pleasure to welcome Viola Ruzzier to 7-Imp. Viola, who recently completed college at a school in Canada, did not major in art or illustration (though her father, who is an award-winning illustrator, knows a thing or two about it). As you’ll read below, she studied science and embarked upon a book project that involves illustrated stories. It’s called Science Stories: A Little Volume for People Who Like Science and Stories. And it is, just as it sets out to be, informative and entertaining. (You will see in some of the pages below that Viola’s distinctive voice — particularly, her dry wit — is one of the best things about the book.)

I’m going to turn things over to her so that she can tell us more about this story collection. I thank her for visiting.

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If You’re a Kid Like Gavin: The True Story of a Young Trans Activist (Katherine Tegen Books, July 2022), illustrated by J Yang, is written by Gavin Grimm and Kyle Lukoff. You can read Gavin’s true story here at the ACLU’s site. As you’ll see there, in 2015 Gavin sued his school board for discriminating against him in violation of the Equal Protection Clause and Title IX of the U.S. Education Amendments of 1972. (You can read about the case here.) And he won. This celebratory picture book shares Gavin’s story but also serves as a rallying cry for children everywhere to stand up for equity, basic human dignity, and (specifically) the rights of trans students.

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If you haven’t seen Jacqueline Woodson’s newest picture book, be sure to find a copy of The World Belonged to Us (Nancy Paulsen Books, May 2022), illustrated by Leo Espinosa. It’s a story that captures childhood summer play on the streets of Brooklyn during the time Woodson herself was a child. It’s in past tense, as if Woodson herself is looking back. And it is a shot of joy.

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Hello, Imps! I’m going to continue with a theme this week — I posted mid-week about a new children’s graphic novel that I love — and share some spreads today from yet another graphic novel, Kathryn Ormsbee’s Growing Pangs (Random House, May 2022), illustrated by Molly Brooks and colored by Bex Glendining and Elise Schuenke. This is the story of Katie, who is a rising sixth grader. She’s homeschooled (I love the way this graphic novel takes on the stereotypes that homeschooled students often face), and she struggles with worry — OCD, to be precise. It’s good stuff, and I have a review over at the Horn Book, should you want to read more about it.

That is here, and below are some spreads.

Enjoy!

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“Trace the drops … a dot-to-dot that
makes a secret map.”
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Meg Fleming’s meditative Wondering Around (Beach Lane, May 2022), illustrated by Richard Jones, is an ode to wondering at, observing, and engaging with the natural world and features children who “wander on the outside … and wonder on the in.”

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It was my pleasure to contribute a piece to the Horn Book’s recent issue (the May/June 2022 issue) celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Newbery Award. I wrote about the Newbery and art, which involved me lugging home, multiple times, a trunk full of award-winning illustrated novels and picture books, all in the name of research. Lovely.

That article is here, or you can click the image above, a screenshot from their site.

 
How about a French picture book import? I’ve a review over at the Horn Book of Morgane de Cadier’s‘s Just to See (Blue Dot Kids Press, May 2022), illustrated by Florian Pigé and translated by Johanna McCalmont.

That review is here, and below are some spreads. [Note: Reading this review at their site may require a subscription to the Horn Book.]

Enjoy!

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Early sketch
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Final spread: “Anger comes from deep inside and bursts out. But then, it’s gone.
And then, I have room for a new feeling. One that feels much better.”
(Click spread to enlarge)

 
It’s a pleasure to welcome illustrator Rahele Jomepour Bell to 7-Imp today. She shares some early sketches from Angry Me (Groundwood, May 2022), Sandra V. Feder’s new picture book. “I get angry,” the book opens. A girl stares in the mirror, her body hunched and rage on her face. The book explores the girl’s sources of anger: when she feels that people are being mean, even when it’s all “a mistake”; when things don’t feel fair; when she’s fatigued or frustrated; when other children hurt her feelings; and when she’s sad. The second half of the book explores the ways in which she attempts to deal with the strong feeling: “When I get angry, I try to remember to use my words. … But sometimes, even my words come out sounding angry.”

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