Book Review: Frosty the Snowman

In many parts of the US, it is still winter. And prime snowman building season. Frosty the Snowman, illustrated by Wade Zahares with a musical CD by Kenny Loggins is honestly just year-round fun.

I'm lucky enough to know Wade and to have seen some of these amazing pastel paintings in person - note: they are BIG! He has a very unique approach to perspective and high-contrast color palettes that make his work instantly recognizable. Frosty glows almost as much as a real, crisp winter day - magically.

This is my absolute favorite spread in the book. It's a stellar point of view and captures that chase with all the fun intended. The Kenny Loggins version is upbeat but not frenetic - and there are a few other bonus tracks that you'll find your kids popping in on their own. You can find links to many videos of Kenny performing on the Facebook page, here.

Double Picture Book Review: Wild and Part-time Princess

Since I've been away so long, I thought I'd kick my return off with a DOUBLE picture book review!

Two of my favorite picture books that I bought recently are Wild by Emily Hughes and Part-time Princess, written by Deborah Underwood and illustrated by Cambria Evans. The subjects couldn't be further apart, but both are empowering and joyous stories for little ones to read again and again.

Emily Hughes has a blog FULL of amazing work, and her website has this fabulous illustrated story you can NOT miss. I just can't wait to see what she makes next.

Wild is lush and decorative and beautifully designed from cover to cover. The story of a little wild girl who (briefly) returns to civilization packs a strong punch. How often do you see a green haired, sharp toothed little girl as a main character? I won't say more. Just go read it.

Part-time Princess is the FIRST princess book I purchased. My daughter became pink and princess obsessed at about 2.5yo. Rather than ban all princess items out of my own concerns, I was lucky enough to find this lovely book about a brave, fierce princess who enjoys getting dressed up AND getting muddy.

 There are lots of details to surprise you on re-reads and this spread in the tub is catches me every time for it's bold composition and humor. My son just pointed out that the bubbles on her head form a crown, so smart! Cambria Evans also has a wonderful blog, even if it's no longer active - still fun to pore over.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wishing everyone a very sweet and cozy Valentine's Day!

I'm looking forward to jumping back into my book reviews on this blog - I'm still reading, but I've been focusing very hard on new goals, a new website, and new books. See you back here soon! xoxoxo