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FROM APPLE TREES TO CIDER, PLEASE!

Name: FROM APPLE TREES TO CIDER, PLEASE!
Author: Felicia Sanzari Chernesky
ISBN: 978-0-8075-6513-1

by Felicia Sanzari Chernesky ; illustrated by Julia Patton ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2015

Mouths will water for apple cider, and a trip to the local orchard is surely in order.

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This visit to an apple farm is lots of fun for both the redheaded tyke who narrates and readers, who will learn how apple cider is made.

With her mother, the little girl picks a mixture of apples (the trees are nicely labeled) to take to the mill to be pressed for cider. First the apples are washed and checked for worms, then they ride a conveyor belt to the shredder. The apple mush is then put in the press and the crank is turned. A turn of the tap fills the jug with fresh apple cider. But their trip isn’t over yet: the little girl convinces her mom to stay for a festival at the orchard, where there are apple treats of all kinds. Chernesky uses some wonky structures and line breaks to suit the rhyme scheme, though the rollicking rhythm doesn’t falter: “Wow! Our wagon’s apple full. / Mom, let’s roll! I’ll help you pull... // …past dappled leaves and through the loud / and happy apple-picking crowd.” Patton’s illustrations appear to be digital, and they are busy and full of fall colors. In addition to the redheaded pair, the pictures also show a dark-haired, light-brown–skinned dad with his two sons and daughter.

Mouths will water for apple cider, and a trip to the local orchard is surely in order. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-8075-6513-1

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Whitman

Review Posted Online: June 28, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2015

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
SUN ABOVE AND BLOOMS BELOW
by Felicia Sanzari Chernesky ; illustrated by Susan Swan

- BOOK REVIEW
CHEERS FOR A DOZEN EARS
by Felicia Sanzari Chernesky ; illustrated by Susan Swan

- BOOK REVIEW
PICK A CIRCLE, GATHER SQUARES
by Felicia Sanzari Chernesky ; illustrated by Susan Swan

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
A PERFECT PLACE TO PLAY
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Jim Valeri

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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THE CRAYONS GO BACK TO SCHOOL

by Drew Daywalt ; illustrated by Oliver Jeffers ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 16, 2023

Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings.

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The Crayons head back to class in this latest series entry.

Daywalt’s expository text lays out the basics as various Crayons wave goodbye to the beach, choose a first-day outfit, greet old friends, and make new ones. As in previous outings, the perennially droll illustrations and hand-lettered Crayon-speak drive the humor. The ever wrapperless Peach, opining, “What am I going to wear?” surveys three options: top hat and tails, a chef’s toque and apron, and a Santa suit. New friends Chunky Toddler Crayon (who’s missing a bite-sized bit of their blue point) and Husky Toddler Crayon speculate excitedly on their common last name: “I wonder if we’re related!” White Crayon, all but disappearing against the page’s copious white space, sits cross-legged reading a copy of H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man. And Yellow and Orange, notable for their previous existential argument about the color of the sun, find agreement in science class: Jupiter, clearly, is yellow AND orange. Everybody’s excited about art class—“Even if they make a mess. Actually…ESPECIALLY if they make a mess!” Here, a spread of crayoned doodles of butterflies, hearts, and stars is followed by one with fulsome scribbles. Fans of previous outings will spot cameos from Glow in the Dark and yellow-caped Esteban (the Crayon formerly known as Pea Green). (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings. (Picture book. 4-6)