Back To School #Giveaway From Prestel (ARV $54.85)

I am thrilled to be able to work with Prestel on a back-to-school giveaway of engaging books for kids. I know it has been a rollercoaster and learning experience this year for children, parents and teachers but these charming picture books are a great way to keep kids engaged and learning whether at home or school this fall. 

As a preschool teacher, part time Director and parent, I have the opportunity to talk to many and can tell you that everyone is feeling the same. Whether at school or at home education is being reimagined with changes being thrown constantly. I pray every day for the future of our children in this crazy uncertain time. 

Books and music were always my safe place. A place to escape to when the world seemed a little unstable and thankfully Prestel has wonderful books for kids. They are well made, beautiful sizes, great illustrations are reluctant reader friendly and engaging.

 

How to Spot an Artist by Danielle Krysa (9/1/2020; ISBN: 9783791374406; Hardcover $16.95; Ages 5+) is a vividly illustrated, funny, and endlessly encouraging picture book “about being an artist, even when someone tells you not to be." 

The 411:

I love this book so much. It reminded me of my daughter who has been doing art since the age of 2 in fact, she is doing art right now. I read it out loud to her and she said, "Wait, I feel completely judged. Are they talking about me?" She finished up with that is so me! She draws on everything and everything so I can spot an artist a mile away. This year I got myself an artist sketchbook to try to learn. I am a work in progress but better than when I started. What I loved so much about this book is the layout and the message. I loved how they describe what an artist is. Someone who uses glitter, glue, blah, blah, blah. Danielle Krysa fit every type of artist in there.  Artists are their own worst critics and they really don't need someone telling them they are doing their art wrong. In the book that person is called an art bully. The art bully is destroyed when you create everything and anything so keep creating. The last page made me tear up a little, not even gonna lie. Very cute book!
 

With over 200,000 Instagram followers, Danielle Krysa has helped a lot of people overcome the fear that they "aren't creative," and in How to Spot an Aritist, Krysa wants to reach readers as kids before their inner critics arrived on the scene, using her characteristic playfulness, lively illustrations, and humor to help kids overcome negativity about their artistic endeavors--and to help them redefine what being an artist means. Every page delivers encouragement to the kid who thinks artists all live in cities, or that art has to look like something familiar, or that painting and drawing are the only way to make art. In a world that drastically undervalues creative freedom, Krysa's whimsical paintings and collages joyfully proclaim that art is essential and that artists are everywhere. Additionally, a page at the back of the book includes ideas for art projects--because who wants fewer art projects? Nobody!

 

School by Britta Teckentrup (9/15/2020; ISBN: 9783791374420; Hardcover $19.95; Ages 8+) takes readers inside a busy school to follow different students through their day--in class, during free time, at lunch, and through swimming lessons.

The 411:

I love the way this book looks. It reminded me of books I read when I was a younger. The book introduces us to various students in school Some are having problems at home, some are bullied, some are insecure. We never know what someone is going through we should always be kind. Kindness costs nothing and people are basically doing the best they can. I always told myself it isn't my best, it is the best "that" person can do so be accepting and know they can't do any better right now. It makes it easier to deal with things you don't understand.  I found the book thoughtful and feel like readers will so someone they know in many of these faces. They may even see themselves. 

 

We come across a variety of faces and expressions that reflect the enormous range of emotions and experiences that each school day brings. There are arguments and hurt feelings, encouraging hugs and deeply felt smiles. The gentle text explores issues that we've all encountered--bullying and loneliness as well as friendship and achievement. While the school in this book could exist anywhere, young readers will recognize themselves in this beautifully and compassionately wrought story by bestselling author Britta Teckentrup, whose warm and wonderfully detailed illustrations are a marvelous portal to feelings, facts, and fun.

 

This Thing Called Life by Christian Borstlap (10/6/2020; ISBN: 9783791374437; Hardcover $17.95; Ages 5+) shows the many shapes and forms life takes all around us, from the smallest specks of life to the largest creatures.

The 411:

I found this book most interesting. After reading it my daughter and I researched more about the Huntertwasser House. It is so cool! I love how the Author and Illustrator Christian Borstlap used the black and white and colored illustrations to showcase what was being written about on each page. There is so much to see on each two page spread that your eyes dance all over the page before focusing on the highlighted subject.  Kids will enjoy having this book read to them as well as a search and seek kind of game after the book. My class enjoyed looking for Tokyo the parrot on each page. 

 

What is life? It's constantly moving, growing, reproducing, and dying. It's happening now, all the time, and it's everywhere around us. From little helicopter seed pods that float through the air to blue whales in the ocean, the world is filled with all different types of odd and familiar kinds of life. This whimsical picture book helps young readers see the connections between all living things. Author and illustrator Christian Borstlap's furry, feathery, smooth, and spiky creatures crawl, eat, growl, fly, and interact with one another. While most of his creations are imaginary animals, they all depict real things that organisms must do to survive and thrive. Bold and quirky illustrations tug at kids' imaginations and help demonstrate complex concepts that can be hard to put into words. The book leaves lots of room for discussion and for new discoveries with each reading.

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Disclaimer: I received complimentary products for the purpose of this review. No monetary compensation was offered.