Caldecott Contenders
In case you didn't know, the Caldecott award is given each year to the best picture book of the year. I dipped into that list this week and found one I missed from last year and two that look good for this year's award. The one from last year is called "The Farmer and the Clown" by Marla Frazee. It's a wordless picture book and I don't understand how I missed this one. But ok. I have it now and it's really great. It's about a farmer who lives and works out on a barren plain. The perspective on these pictures is so broad it gives this very visceral sense of loneliness. The facial expressions on the farmer (at first) lead to you believe he is a crotchety old man but as the story progress, you start thinking differently. As he's working out in the fields one day, a train goes past in the distance. Something falls off the train and the farmer goes to investigate. He finds a small clown and without a lot of options, he brings the ...