Baby Goes to Market by Atinuke and Angela Brooksbank

image source: Indiebound

Baby Goes to Market by Atinuke and Angela Brooksbank (2017) #ownvoices
by Mary K

While Mama shops at the market, Baby, riding on her back, is given treats to eat by vendors. He is given bananas, oranges, biscuits, coconut and corn in decreasing numbers and after eating one, puts the extras in the basket on Mama's head.  Only when they are ready to leave (Mama thinks Baby must be hungry!) does she notice the extra food. Atinuke's (of the Anna Hibiscus books) cumulative text will keep listeners entertained and anticipating what happens next. Brooksbank's vibrant mixed-media illustrations are filled with detail and eye-catching color that will invite multiple readings. We don't often see books that count down or introduce subtraction, making this a rare treat! Baby Goes to Market is perfect for counting or food themed storytimes for both toddlers and preschoolers. 

Themes/topics: counting, fruit, food, friends, markets, shopping, mothers, babies

Sample text from two spreads:

Market is very crowded. Baby is very hot. Baby is so hot that Mr. Femi, the orange seller, gives Baby five juicy oranges. 

Baby grins. Baby grins. Baby sucks one orange...

and puts four oranges in the basket. Mama does not notice. She is busy buying homemade palm oil. 

Bob, NOT Bob! by Liz Garton Scanlon & Audrey Vernick illustrated by Matthew Cordell

image source: Amazon.com

By Mary K.

Bob, Not Bob! by Liz Garton Scanlon & Audrey Vernick illustrated by Matthew Cordell (2017)

The cover and title page instruct those reading this sweet, silly tale out loud to read it “as though you have the worst cold ever” and therein lies the joke. When Louie catches a cold, all he really wants is his Mom. But how to you let Mom know you need her when your nose is all stuffed up and saying her name sounds like “Bob?” Oh, and it just so happens their pet dog’s name is...you guessed it! Bob. Through several days of illness Louie gets more and more frustrated as he calls for him mom and instead of the snuggle he wants his dog comes running. This leaves everyone confused until, finally, his Mom just decides to lay down with Louie (and Bob). There are a few smaller vignettes in the illustrations that may make the book a bit more difficult to share with large groups, but smaller storytime crowds, especially older preschoolers and young elementary school students who’ve experienced feeling just like Louie, will enjoy this relatable tale. While the reader will really need to ham it up and make the effort to sound stuffy, the payoff in laughter and engaged listeners will be well worth it.

Themes/topics: family, illness, mothers, dogs, pets

Sample text from two spreads:

"The next day, Little Louie was even sicker. His lips chapped and his eyes gunked. As for his nose, you can’t even imagine. So he just lay there getting hot and sweaty, which sounded like “Hotten Smetty.” “Who’s Hotten Smetty?” asked his sister. “No. Not SMETTY, SMEDDY! And HODD!” Tessa didn’t know who Smeddy was. Hodd either.

Mom would understand. “BOB!” called Little Louie. His dog, Bob, came running. And slobbering. “NO! BOB! NOT BOB!” Tessa looked at him like he was cuckoo. So did Bob"

Max Speed

Max Speed by Stephen Shaskan (2016)

One of the cutest little daredevils you’ve ever seen, Max Speed gets his room clean just in time for adventure. Hopping into his zippy red roadsters, he zooms along facing various road blocks with ingenuity and aplomb. With tons of action words, and repeating phrases like, “Had Max met his match?” and “Just in time,” this one is a storytime win. Great fun-Highly recommended!

Themes/topics: Superheros, problem solving, adventure, sharks, imagination, mothers

Sample text from four spreads,

Max feel gently down into…/

SHARK-INFESTED WATERS!

[speech bubble] ‘GREAT GADZOOKS!’

Had Max met his match? /

Just in time, Max spoke his super-secret shark language, “Sharky-shark-shark. Shark, shark-shark, sharky-shark. Shark, shark?” /

The sharks showed Max the way to the super-secret underground cave.