4 LESSONS IN PICTURES FOR BACK TO SCHOOL
It’s that time of year again! Eliot Schrefer recommends four new picture books that will help kids say “goodbye” to summer and “hello” to teacher.
MONKEY: NOT READY FOR KINDERGARTEN Written and illustrated by Marc Brown Knopf 32 pp., for ages 3-7
Monkey’s worried he’ll never be ready for kindergarten. “What if they have peas for snacks? / What if they don’t have red crayons?” The first day of school is well-trod ground in picture books, but Brown smartly sets his in the time leading up to it — it isn’t until the cheerful last spread that we finally see Monkey (and yes, Monkey is a monkey!) greeting his teacher. The illustrations are done in a beautiful, calm palette with sketch lines still visible beneath. There are no fits of tears or high drama, and kids will be comforted by Monkey’s shy hopefulness and the kind patience of his parents. The book’s lesson is one any of us can use: It’s fine to worry about the first day. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have to go.
THIS IS MY HOME, THIS IS MY SCHOOL Written and illustrated by Jonathan Bean Farrar, Straus and Giroux 48 pp., for ages 3-6, on sale Oct. 27
It’s clear from the start that this is no ordinary back-to-school tale. We open on a rural scene of a house isolated in fields and trees, then the next page is a hand-drawn academic calendar next to a handwriting worksheet. A young version of the author narrates a day out of his homeschooled life directly to readers, from his classroom (a love seat near a wood-burning stove) to the “crabby cafeteria lady” (Mom at the end of a long day). Jonathan Bean’s frenzied watercolor art bleeds out of its lines and portrays the loving chaos of the author’s home-schooled years. Homes come in many shapes and forms, so do schools — and sometimes they’re one and the same.
COUNTING LIONS Written by Katie Cotton, illustrated by Stephen Walton Candlewick 32 pp., all ages, on sale Oct. 13
Why not give children who are still figuring out their numbers something stunning to look at? Stephen Walton’s photo-realistic black-and-white images, set on pure white stock, capture enigmatic moments in the lives of animals across the world. Katie Cotton’s text, in striking orange, poetically narrates what life in the wild is like for each animal. “Nine macaws / perch straightbodied and chat about their day. Different squawks say what and who and when.” Let this gorgeous large-format book spend some time on the coffee table, or in an older child’s room — additional text at the end provides plenty of information for school reports about conservation. It’s a profound and transfixing look at the endangered animal residents of our world.
ALPHABET SCHOOL Written and illustrated by Stephen T. Johnson Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books 32 pp., for ages 4-8
As in his Alphabet City, Stephen Johnson again finds the shapes of letters in everyday scenes — only this time he has gone to school. His beautiful paintings capture an “S” made from the orange twist of a recess slide, or a “C” in the golden arc of a classroom globe’s frame. Kids will enjoy seeing the familiar as unfamiliar all over again, and parents will appreciate the readaloud question “Where is the letter?” with each new page. There’s no story, and the art is so dignified that the static images are a little snoozy. But parents experienced with bedtime know a little snooziness is no drawback. Make this the last one to read before lights out.