a bus called heaven by Bob Graham

As a city planner with a grassroots leaning, this book is the type I want my daughter to remember from her childhood. A bus is abandoned in the neighborhood, and people turn it into a sort of community center. It hosts parties and meetings and other rendezvous. But it's blocking the sidewalk and gets towed away. They get it back and park it in the vacant lot behind their house.

Cat and Fish illustrated by Neil Curtis and written by Joan Grant

Cat and Fish are unlikely friends. This book describes how their relationship begins in sweet words and stunningly beautiful images. I wish I had created these images. I've held on to this gorgeous book from the library for far too long.

Crazy Hair by Gaiman and McKean

My daughter worried this one would be too scary too. It depends on your perspective. The artwork combines images of real hair with drawings, and I dig it. The words are a sort of rhyme poem. The story is ... unusual. Unusual enough that I both want to blog about it, but also don't want to give it away.

Frog Belly Rat Bone by Timothy Basil Ering

Initially, I was drawn to the art, and my daughter was turned off by it. She was afraid the story would be scary. When she finally let me read it to her, she told me she had looked at it on her own and realized that it isn't scary. The artwork is dark and weird. The words displayed in odd lettering. It is the story of a little boy seeking treasures in Cementland. I am always a little sensitive about cities being depicted as bleek, but sometimes they are. I agree with the book about the goodness of friendship and plants.

Wild Berries by Julie Flett

This is another just beautiful book where the artwork takes my breath away. A little boy and his grandma pick berries in the forest. Some words are also provided in the Cree language.

Molly Who Flew Away by Valeri Gorbachev

For us, this books has a few winning points: friends, fun, yellow balloon.... It's just a good fit for us. We like it.

Billy's Bucket by Kes Gray

Billy requests the unusual gift of a bucket. At first his parents don't take him seriously. But eventually they agree to get him one. The bucket turns out to have magical powers, and of course the parents don't take it seriously at first... until it becomes a crisis.

I don't know what to think about stories where parents are dismissive of their kids. Parenting is hard work, and we all need to be respectful of each other. If my daughter told me not to borrow her bucket... well, first I would ask her to say it in a nicer way. Then I would probably respect that request.  There's a nuance to this issue that I'm struggling to get my mind around. But I do like the ecological subtext of this story -- I won't tell you what it is and give it away.