Chloe and the Lion (2012) - Mac Barnett and Adam Rex

Let me start by saying that Mac Barnett is one of my favorite children’s authors and Adam Rex one of my favorite children’s illustrators. And while Chloe and the Lion is a fun, clever and intelligent children’s book, it simply does not work for a Storytime setting.

First, the book is 48 pages long, rather than the more standard 32. That wouldn’t necessarily make the book problematic, but the story is quite complex with lots of starts and stops in the form of Barnett and Rex appearing throughout the story (as clay figures), arguing over parts of the story. Most of the children we have in Storytime are on the younger side and would not understand the interaction of the creators; they’d only know that these scenes interrupt the story.

Also too many pages consist of multiple panels more appropriate to a graphic novel format. This makes the visual elements too small for large groups. The book contains very few opportunities (if any) for group participation. While Chloe and the Lion would make a great story for some one-on-one situations (or even better, for independent reading), it simply does not work for a Storytime situation.

Storytelling  2
Color Attractiveness  2
Size of Book  2
Text Size  1
Illustrations 2
Participation Potential  1
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 1.5

Boy + Bot (2012) - Ame Dyckman & Dan Yaccarino

Boy + Bot looks like a throwback to the 1950s with its robots and weird scientists, but it works well in modern times as well. It's a very cute story about understanding and helping others who are different from us, so for that, I give it high marks. The book is bright and colorful but it has several small pictures (or panels, for those of you who read comics/graphic novels), which would probably make it a difficult Storytime book. Still, it's probably worth a try. Good for Robot Storytimes or Friendship Storytimes.

Storytelling  4

Color Attractiveness  5
Book Size 3
Text Size  3
Illustrations  4
Participation Potential  3 
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 3.5

Moo Hoo (2012) - Candace Ryan & Mike Lowery

Moo Hoo is a fun, silly, clever and maybe just a little hard to pronounce, book of rhymes. When I first started reading it, I was envisioning dividing up the Storytime crowd into too groups, the Moos and the Hoos, both of which would shout out their word on cue. Before long, I decided that this probably wouldn't work. :( It probably would work, that is, until Kangaroo shows up and things get phonetically complicated. I'm not sure I could pull it off, but it's a very cute book.

Once again, the book is a little on the small side, so it would probably work better for smaller groups than large ones. And the tongue twisters are not easy! Still, it's a very cute book. I just might try it....

Storytelling  4

Color Attractiveness  3
Book Size 3
Text Size  4
Illustrations  4
Participation Potential  3 
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 3.5

Oh No, George! (2012) - Chris Haughton

Poor George... He tries so hard to do the right thing. This is a good book for kids, because it's sometimes hard for them to do the right thing, too.

Oh No, George! has a lot of purple and orange colors with some blues and greens thrown in here and there. It's a very attractive book with funky fonts, but a good story. The book is quirky enough to work for some kids, but others used to clear, bold lines may not fully appreciate the artwork. Some of the illustrations are small, but most are full-page-sized. So there are some slightly negative points, but the book's selling point is its charm.

Crowd participation (with a little instruction) is possible and recommended. A fun time!

Storytelling  4

Color Attractiveness  4
Book Size 4
Text Size  3
Illustrations  4
Participation Potential  4 
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 4