Picture Book Reviews!

Posted on May 25, 2023 at 6:23 am by Gene Ambaum

At The Drop of a Cat by Élise Fontenaille and Violeta López (illustrator). Translated from French by Karin Snelson & Emilie Robert Wong. Enchanted Lion, 2023. 9781592703821.

The narrator of this book loves his grandfather Luis, who takes care of him on Wednesdays and Sundays. Luis’s house is surrounded by an incredible garden, and the narrator is just learning to read and write. Luis speaks the language of birds and everyone is jealous of his green thumb. (I’m envious of everything about this book, it’s so great!)

As Night Falls: Creatures That Go Wild After Dark by Donna Jo Napoli and illustrated by Felicita Sala. Random House Studio, 2023. 9780593374290.

As kids fall asleep, nature goes wild, from glowing dinoflagellates to fish to spiders and bats and more. The bat illustrations are particularly fabulous, especially if you’re not a fan of spiders. At one point the story becomes an homage to There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly, and then it gets super playful. Just beautiful.

You Can’t Kill Snow White by Beatrice Alemagna. Enchanted Lion, 2022. 9781592703814. 96pp.

This retelling of Snow White from the queen’s point of view is an oversized picture book for adults. I don’t love all of the illustrations — some of them seem, by design, too much to take — but I can’t stop looking at them. And the book’s design, particularly the way it opens, is amazing.