Picture Board Book Review: Rainy Day by Janet Morgan Stoeke

So it is a rainy Wednesday and it is national read a book day. So I just made myself a large mug of vanilla chai tea with extra cream and have decided to catch up on some of my picture book reading. Today's theme is RAIN! 

It is raining out and the hen Minerva Louise is stuck out in it and must find herself some shelter.

I have never read the Minerva Louise books before but, after reading this little gem I'm going to seek out more of them! This was incredibly short. Like short short. Like this is the perfect book for the wee itty bitty ones. Despite the brevity of this book I had an honest out loud laugh. Minerva Louise decides to take shelter under a lamb and it had me laughing more than any board book has before...come to think of it this might be a first. Normally, I don't care for board books. They are designed for baby's and well...they can be boring. But not this one!

I LOVED this! It has such great illustrations that I went back twice (again only a few pages long) to look at them all over again. I also loved that little spark of humor that was conveid in such few words but with a perfectly matched illustration. This is perfect for a baby and mom and dad wont mind reading this one over and over again. This has gone straight to my favorites shelf and I will be seeking out more books by this author. 

A well deserved 5 out of 5 stars!

SOR Picture Book Review: The Duck in the Gun by Joy Cowley Illustrated by Edward Sorell

First off there are apparently at least two different versions of this book. By versions I mean the illustrations. The one I read was illustrated by Edward Sorell. The other version is illustrated by Robyn Belton. Second I had never heard of this book before but it was on the 1001 list so I had to check it out for SOR.

A general and his men are off to war. As they get ready to fire their gun (a cannon) at the town they discover a duck in the gun. The duck refuses to leave as it has a nest full of eggs it is sitting on in the gun. The general carrying a white flag visits the town to ask for the use of their gun. While both sides wait for the duck to leave the giant gun the men do work for the town and the general gets to know the prime minister's daughter.

Ok, why oh why has no one told me about this book before. No Seriously! Why!?! This book was AMAZING! The humor in it was great and I found myself laughing which had my husband asking me what was so funny. In the end, I ended up reading the story to my husband and son to their delight. I tried doing a french accent but failed miserably at it.

The ink drawings were so charming and reminded me so much of books I read in my childhood that were hand me downs from my sister. It also reminded me of some of the Saturday morning cartoons like the hunka cheese advert...if you grew up in the 70s and 80s you are probably singing it right now.

So now listen to me if you have not read this book GO NOW and read it! If you can't find a copy at your local library you can borrow an e-copy through openlibrary.org. I loved this book so much I'm now determined to find a permanent copy for my collection of children's books.

A solid 5 out of 5 stars!

SOR Picture Book Review: Pig's Eggs by Elizabeth Partridge Illustrated by Martha Weston

Another SOR book found on OpenLibrary.org. I had never heard of this book but found it when I searched for a book with pigs (cause uh, who doesn't love cute little pink piggies?!?).

Pig and Hen are the best of friends and spend most of their time together painting. One day Hen fails to show up and when Pig visits her he finds her sitting on a nest full of eggs. When Hen goes out to get to herself Lunch Pig is bored. But soon he finds a way to entertain himself by painting Hen's eggs. When the eggs hatch the chicks are as colorful as the shells that Pig painted.

Despite the Easter colored eggs this was not an Easter themed book (though it certainly can be used at that time of the year). The illustrations were gorgeous and remind me why watercolors are my favorite type of paintings in picture books. I love that both Hen and Pig have a healthy love of painting and that they bond and connect over it.

I loved that Hen showed she was a protective mother without it being over the top. I also love that in the end Hen and Pig make sure that the little colorful chicks are included in their love of painting. Older generations passing on a love of art and creativity is a positive theme.

4 out of 5 stars.

SOR Picture Book Review: Peppermint By Dorothy Grider Illustrated by Raymond Burns

Here it is my first SOR book review. For this one, I decided to pick something I've never heard of or read before. Thanks to OpenLibrary.org I found this cute little picture book.

Peppermint is a scrawny little cat who was born with her siblings inside of a candy shop. Each little kitten is given a sweet confectionary name and sold off one by one till all that is left is Peppermint. Poor Barabara has no cat and the school will be doing a cat show. When Mr. Dobby gives her Peppermint she is excited and can't wait to show Peppermint to her mother.

This was a cute book. I loved the illustrations but what was my favorite part was the price of the kittens... only .15 cents. That's right for .15 you could have your very own fluffy candy named kitten. You can't even get a piece of gum for .15 these days. Oh, and you have to love the candy shop owner being named Mr. Dobby (hello, fellow Potterheads). 

This is a classic book with the type of illustrations and story you would expect. It wasn't a masterpiece but it was still very enjoyable and I would read it again.

4 out of 5 stars

Summer of Reading!!

Welcome to the Summer of Reading aka SOR. I've decided to spend this summer devouring as many Children's books as I can get my hands on. That means about 3-7 books a day!! Old, new, never read before, always wanted to read, childhood favorites etc! 

While this will mostly be picture books there may also be some early readers and middle-grade books. I'm so excited and looking forward to this. Over two months of reading should guarantee that I'll find plenty of books to love and cherish forever. I'll be using Netgalley, Openlibrary.org, my local library, Amazon free books and books I already own to find books to read. 

Got any books you think I should read? Some childhood favorites or newer favorites? Are you an author or illustrator and have a review copy of your book you'd like me to review? Let me know in the comments or send me an email. Requests and suggestions in no way influence my reviews and I'm always honest about what I like or don't like about a book.

Books Read: 9

1. Peppermint- June 27, 2017
2. Pigg's Eggs- June 27, 2017
3. The Elephant and the Bad Baby June 27, 2017
4. The Duck in the Gun-  June 28, 2017
5. Benji & The 24 Pound Banana Squash - June 28, 2017 
6. Argyle Fox - June 28, 2017
7. Little Detectives at School- June 29, 2017
8. The Enormous Crocodile - June 29, 2017
9. When a Wolf is Hungry - June 30, 2017
10. Harry Potter and Sorcerers Stone- Read July 7, 2017