Nana in the City is a sweet picture book with simple words and lovely, colorful illustrations that perfectly portray autumn in the city. I have to admit, I sympathize with the little boy in this story. I think cities are scary too. They are loud, crowded, and I never seem to know where I am. But as his Nana shows him around (after making him a cape), he begins to develop an appreciation for everything a city has to offer.

This is a city picture book that even us country bumpkins can enjoy!

Scrounged From: Our local library

Format: Hardcover
Author/Illustrator: Lauren Castillo
Pages: 40
Content Advisory: None

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Swirl by Swirl uses bold, detailed illustrations and simple, poetic text to show us a variety of swirls and spirals in nature, and some of the places they are found. From ferns and flower petals to octopus arms and waves, this pattern shows up over and over again, and different descriptive and action words accompany it on each page.

This would make a great introduction (or follow-up) to Blockhead: The Life of Fibonacci (see our review here), which covers this topic with more of a focus on the math, as well as on Fibonacci himself.

This book does bring up Fibonacci in the informational page at the end, but overall it focuses more on the beauty, ubiquity, and different forms of the spiral pattern rather than the math behind it (not to imply that these things are mutually exclusive).

Scrounged From: Our local library

Format: Hardcover
Author: Joyce Sidman
Illustrator: Beth Krommes
Pages: 40
Content Advisory: None

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Shelter is a gentle fable (originally published in French) that contains beautiful and absorbing artwork, full of earth tones and winter blues. In a forest neighborhood, a storm is coming. The animals get ready, but when a pair of strangers show up asking for shelter from the cold, they receive very mixed reactions -- but as the storm worsens, one family finds themselves needing shelter too. 

Different people will probably take different messages from this story (some reviewers see a possible "climate change" statement here since the visitors are polar bears), but for me the takeaway is that the best way to receive is through giving, and that compassion can breed more compassion. 

I thought the story was well told. Sometimes, the more important the message, the easier it can be for storytellers to communicate in heavy-handed ways, but I believe that was mostly avoided here, because the story can stand on its own. I assume the heart of this story is related to the current global refugee crisis, and if that's the case then this is a timely story indeed.

(Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.)

Scrounged From: NetGalley

Format: Kindle
Author: Celine Claire
Illustrator: Qin Leng
Pages: 42
Content Advisory: None

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The Elephant Keeper is a very thorough picture book with beautiful illustrations of Zambian landscapes, people, and of course elephants. This book is based on a true story about a boy named Aaron who finds an orphaned elephant struggling for its life in the pool of his workplace one morning. After rescuing it, he becomes invested in what happens to it, but also has to wrestle with his own fears as he has been taught that elephants are very dangerous creatures.

This book constructs a detailed narrative that follows Aaron to an elephant orphanage where he continues to observe and care for baby Zambezi (named after the river). The story is interspersed with occasional informational sections with photos and facts about elephants and their environments, as well as the organizations and systems in place to help orphaned elephants. 

There is a lot of information here, and this is an element of conservation I did not know much about, so I appreciate the opportunity to read this story and especially to get a glimpse into the daily lives of these "elephant keepers."

(Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.)

Scrounged From: NetGalley

Format: Kindle
Author: Margriet Ruurs
Illustrator: Pedro Covo
Pages: 48
Content Advisory: An injured elephant that comes to the orphanage dies, but the subject is handled gently.

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My introduction to Margarita Engle came through her poetic picture books like The Sky Painter (see my review here) and Drum Dream Girl, so when I saw she had written a memoir too, I immediately added it to my reading list. 

Enchanted Air is the first memoir I've read in verse form, which was different in that it's a quicker read than the nearly 200 pages would indicate, and leaves out some details and aspects that would "flesh out" a narrative written in regular prose. But an advantage to this form is that each line and word carries a lot of meaning. Recurring themes such as flight and air are easier to spot and relate to each other, and so many events, images, and feelings can be distilled into each poem. Even though it's quicker to read, I often wanted to dwell on a section for a few minutes, making sure I didn't miss too much imagery for the sake of the narrative.

The book follows Engle's first fourteen years of life, focusing on her trying to reconcile the two halves of her identity: American (like her father) and Cuban (like her mother). Though the family lives in California and visits Cuba yearly, Engle feels like a different person in each place. Cuba is beautiful and freeing to her, and it feels magical every time they fly across the water to reach it. 

But then the Cuban Missile Crisis happens, and everything changes. Engle feels estranged from a large piece of her identity, and fearful at the way she hears people talk about Cuba and Cubans. This is a segment of history I did not know much about, so reading it through the eyes of a child was especially powerful.

I really enjoyed this easy-to-read but sometimes heavy memoir that captures the hopes and imagination of childhood, combined with Engle's particular fears and questions about the world and the future. Engle adds a note at the end describing some of what has played out since, including the revival of Cuban relations under President Obama.

Scrounged From: Our local library

Format: Hardcover
Author: Margarita Engle
Pages: 192
Content Advisory: During her junior high years, Engle references many things she sees going on around her -- smoking, drinking, a few different kinds of drugs, teen pregnancy, etc. -- though not explicitly. She also describes very clearly the anxiety and terror she felt during the Missile Crisis.

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