Another book surprise

Well, I just can't contain myself. I have to tell you about another serendipitous find at the local library. As I was browsing last week for "B" books, I saw Bats at the Library by Brian Lies. Bat starts with B. We love libraries. Illustrations look cute. Let's check it out.

Turns out I picked another winner. Before we even had a chance to read it, My Sweetie and I spotted it on a display at a bookstore on our date night. I thought to myself, "hmmm...maybe it's actually a decent book."

When I finally sat down to read it to the kids we had a blast. The story is a funny one about some mischievous bats who discover an open window at the library and let themselves in. They make all kinds of silly fun, such as photocopying themselves and "swimming" in the water fountain. What captivated the Big 3, however, were the scenes of the little bats imagining themselves in all the stories they read. Mr. Lies puts a clever twist on many classic stories - like a literary inside joke. There is Alice talking to the Cheshire Bat; a familiar scene from McClosky's Make Way for Bat-lings, and many more. If you look carefully, you might even spot a Hobbit hole!

To top it all off, the paintings are done in chiaroscuro style (sharply contrasting light and dark,) which is a good tie-in to some Renaissance art we'll study later this year.

I tend to know more about older children's books - I own children's bibliographies like The Book Tree and Honey for a Child's Heart. It's harder for me sometimes to determine if a more recently published book is one we want to spend our time on. But with Bats at the Library, I think we found a keeper.

Apparently our batty friends have had a previous adventure in Bats at the Beach. We'll have to track that one down and check it out. You can discover both books for yourself at the author's website. Happy Reading!