One of the greatest things about Village Books is tradition (almost 30 years worth!). And one of my favorite traditions is actually one that customers never see--the tradition of the “Verklempt Books of the Year.” Every year, I choose books to show to the staff that, well, made me a little verklempt. At my first staff meeting, I remember Jasmine, the children’s book buyer at the time, gushing about the book Criss Cross, which eventually won the Newbery. I was so glad to be a part of a place where the staff got openly weepy about books. This year, I’ve decided to let the secret out about the books that I chose to share with the staff.
For picture books, the hands-down winner is Otis by Loren Long. When I first saw this book, tears immediately sprang to my eyes. It’s such a sweet story and the art is breathtaking. The style is a definite departure from Long’s usual approach, but it works like magic. The muted tones and the wide open spaces serve to highlight our hero Otis. I was lucky enough to see a presentation showing the artistic changes that Long had made to get just the right feel for the book and, let me tell you, a lot of thought has gone into this book.
The runner-up is Imaginary Garden by Andrew Larsen, illustrated by Irene Luxbacher. In this story, Theo’s Grandpa is too old to be living in a big house anymore so he moves to a small apartment. Unfortunately, this means leaving his and Theo’s garden behind. So, instead of being bummed out about it, they create an imaginary garden with canvas and paints. The art in this one tells the great story as they put on gardening gear to go out on the balcony and paint more flowers on their garden. A wonderful tale about making do and the power of creativity.
For older readers, I was blown away by two books this year. The first is When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. The setting is amazing and the characters are realistic and and and and… Basically, Miranda and Sal are best friends until they aren’t. When Miranda starts receiving little notes that start coming true, her life sort of goes upside down. Combine that with her mother preparing to appear on the game show $20,000 Pyramid (which lends its category approach to the chapter titles) and Miranda’s reading of A Wrinkle in Time, this is a wonderful heart-squeezer of a book. When you finish it, you will want to open the front cover again and commence re-reading.
The second book is The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly. The star of this story, Callie Vee, is the girl who hates to be girly. She is much more interested in plants and dirt and the scientific method than cooking and needlepoint and dresses. Set against the backdrop of Darwin’s publication, this story is broader than just a typical tomboy tale. Add in a persnickety grandfather and the possible discovery of a new species and you’ve got a great book.
Even just by revisiting these books for this post, I’m getting a little verklempt. I need to go grab a tissue. Thanks for reading!
--Sarah
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