In the Heart by Ann Turner & Illus by Salley Mavor

It seems a bit... pointless to be writing blog posts about children's books when there is so much turmoil and upheaval. (Las Vegas and Puerto Rico break my heart!) But there is a measure of comfort in the simplistic view of the world held in children's books--a reminder of a time when all the havoc of grown ups was something for them to deal with while I just got on being a kid. 

Sometime in the past few decades, the grown up has turned into me. And all the havoc of the world seems somehow my responsibility--something I should be doing something about. Yet, there is so very, very little we can do. 

So I continue to write blog posts about kids books. I rhapsodize about coziness, beautiful illustrations, lovely words, and tiny books. 

It may be like an ostrich, but we all have to make the world bearable for ourselves and those around us. So I continue to take pictures of books and talk about how delightful they are. Because that is what makes me happy. And if you are here, reading this post, kids books must make you happy in some shape or form. I like to think this is my way of making the world more beautiful. But whether it is or not, I do know that writing about kids books makes life more bearable for me. 

And now, back to this lovely fall book--

This book is so cozy! I mean it features felt characters after all... 

Isn't this tiny woolen world charming? I love how textural felt is as a medium! 

Salley Mavor is an incredible woolen artist. I sometimes think crafted and then photographed illustrations are hokey, but these illustrations are marvelous!

The heart of the day is the sun:

a warm blanket on my eyes and nose and feet,

a gold hat for my head.

This book explores all the different "hearts" there are in this child's world. 

The heart of the house is my kitchen:

orange cat by my seat, 

a muffin warms my hand, 

talk like clouds of steam. 

I want to be in that kitchen right now. Do you see the woolen plates?! Must. Have. 

The heart of the yard.

The heart of the town is my school. 

The heart of bedtime is my story:

your knees my chair,

your words in my hair,

pictures for dreams. 

Oh the security and warmth of these words and this scene! 

The pictures themselves are worth staring at for hours, but the words are so lovely and warm that they work together seamlessly to make this a treasure of a book! 

Thunder Cake by Patricia Polacco

Patricia Polacco. How amazing is she? Her books are so heartwarming and deep. And her illustrations! It took me awhile to warm up to them and the colors and style she used, but now I can't imagine not loving them. 

Those goat ears...!

Storm approaching!

This is the story of a grandmother normalizing the thunder for her terrified little granddaughter.

Patricia Polacco has a small paragraph on the title page saying she used to visit her Babushka in Michigan and the storms in the Michigan sky seemed more-so than anywhere else. This book is how her grandmother helped her overcome her fear of thunderstorms.

"Child, you come out from under that bed. It's only thunder you're hearing," my grandma said.

Grandmas are good at hugging.

Grandma pulls out the recipe for Thunder Cake. 

As the storm rumbles closer and the little girl counts the seconds between the lightning and the thunder, to see how far away the storm is, the grandmother keeps her hopping, collecting everything they need for Thunder Cake. 

The little girl isn't feeling brave, but her grandmother ignores her bursts of fear and talks soothingly of the next thing they will need to get.

Once everything has been collected from around the farm, they settle into the kitchen to bake and churn the butter for the frosting. 

They pop the cake in the oven and spread the cloth on the table. I love that they make things pretty before the cake.

Her grandmother compliments her on her bravery.

"I'm not brave, Grandma," I said. "I was under the bed! Remember?"

"But you got out from under it," she answered. "and 

you got  eggs from mean old Nellie Peck Hen, 

you got mild from old Kick Cow,

you went through Tangleweed Woods to the dry shed,

you climbed the trellis in the barnyard.

From where I sit, only a very brave person could have done all them things."

I love how her grandmother builds her up. How she gave her the opportunity to do brave things with her grandmother safely beside her. 

Such a great book about a grandmother's love, overcoming our fears, and discovering our bravery in doing everyday things.