Richard Jones Archives - Tundra Book Group

September 15th marked Cloud Appreciation Day, an internationally celebrated day where people are encouraged to spend a few moments with their heads in the clouds, so we’ve collected some books to help get you there.

Cloud Babies
By Eoin Colfer
Illustrated by Chris Judge
40 Pages | Ages 5-9 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536231076 | Candlewick
Six-year-old Erin’s favorite game is spotting animals in the clouds with her mom and dad – everything from fluffy foxes and polar bears to little rabbits. Even when Erin falls very ill and has to spend a long time in the hospital, she still manages to find joy in spying “cloud babies” through the window with her new hospital friends. When the doctor tells Erin she can go home, she is so excited! But being back at school is not at all what she expected – so much has changed, and Erin must reconcile the safe realm she’s just left with a world outside that has become unfamiliar. With Mom and Dad’s love and wisdom, however, and with the help of her teacher and friends, Erin comes to see that by sharing her experience she can find happiness again in just being herself. Sensitively told and vibrantly brought to life, Cloud Babies brings recognition and comfort to children facing illness or hardship, as well as guidance to those who wish to offer support but may not know where to start.

In the Clouds
By Elly MacKay
44 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266964 | Tundra Books
A bored and curious little girl wishes for a bit of sunshine on a cloudy day. But a friendly bird soon whisks her off for an adventure in the sky, where she can contemplate questions both scientific and philosophical in nature: how do clouds float? Or carry the rain? Where do they go when they disappear? Are there clouds on other planets? Do they have memories? Have they ever seen a girl like her? This dreamy picture book from the inimitable Elly MacKay features her trademark stunning, light-infused spreads that beautifully capture the wondrousness of clouds and the power of nature to inspire and stimulate imaginations.

Kumo: The Bashful Cloud
By Kyo Maclear
Illustrated by Nathalie Dion
64 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267282 | Tundra Books
Kumo is a cloud whose only wish is to float unseen. When she’s assigned cloud duty for the day, she feels overwhelmed by self-doubt and her fear of being noticed. But after learning that closing your eyes isn’t a good solution to your troubles, Kumo pulls her fluff together and does her duties – drifting, releasing rain and providing shelter – meeting some new friends along the way and inspiring the imagination (and capturing the heart) of a small daydreamer like her. Kyo Maclear’s sweetly humorous and lyrical parable about shyness, vividly brought to life by Nathalie Dion’s ethereal illustrations, is an affirmation of the pleasures of community and the confidence that can arise from friendship and visibility.

Little Cloud
By Eric Carle
32 Pages | Ages 2-5 | Paperback
ISBN 9780698118300 | World Of Eric Carle
The clouds drift across the bright blue sky – all except one. Little Cloud trails behind. He is busy changing shapes to become a fluffy sheep, a zooming airplane, and even a clown with a funny hat. Eric Carle’s trademark collages will make every reader want to run outside and discover their very own little cloud.

Marshmallow Clouds: Two Poets at Play among Figures of Speech
By Ted Kooser and Connie Wanek
Illustrated by Richard Jones
72 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536203035 | Candlewick
A freewheeling romp through the world of imagery and metaphor, this quietly startling collection of thirty poems, framed by the four elements, is about art and reality, fact and fancy. Look around: what do you see? A clown balancing a pie in a tree, or an empty nest perched on a leafless branch? As poet Connie Wanek alludes to in her afterword – a lively dialogue with former US Poet Laureate Ted Kooser – sometimes the simplest sights and sounds “summon our imaginations” and cry out to be clothed in the alchemical language of poetry. This compendium of the fleeting and unexpected turns the everyday – turtles, trees, and tadpoles; cow pies, lazy afternoons, and pillowy white marshmallows – into poetic gold. A brilliant and timeless collaboration that evokes both the mystery and grandeur of the natural world and the cozy, mundane moments of daily life, this exquisitely illustrated collection is the go-to gift book of the season for poetry fans of all ages.

Misty the Cloud: A Very Stormy Day
By Dylan Dreyer
Illustrated by Rosie Butcher
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Paperback
ISBN 9780593180419 | Dragonfly Books
When Misty the Cloud wakes up feeling stormy, nothing seems to make her day better! But with help from friends and family, Misty accepts that sometimes she’s just going to be a little stormy – and it will always pass. A perfect story for young children learning to understand their emotions. From award-winning meteorologist Dylan Dreyer, Misty the Cloud: A Very Stormy Day is the first book in a sky-high series about how to deal with good days, bad days, and everything in between. With extra content featuring science experiments for kids to do at home!

Ploof
By Ben Clanton and Andy Chou Musser
56 Pages | Ages 2-5 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781774881927 | Tundra Books
Ploof is a puffy cloud who’s a little lonely – but now you’re here, and the fun can begin! Can you help Ploof overcome their shyness? Play pretend? Make Ploof laugh with your funny faces, find their hiding spot, give them a high five! Full of imaginative and interactive fun, each page of this perfect book for preschoolers offers a chance to play. By following cues to say hello, clap, blow, shake, wave or make a funny face, young readers will be delighted to see the effects of their actions on Ploof. They’ll learn social-emotional skills like empathy, encouragement and kindness through Ploof’s emotional journey – and, along the way, they’ll learn how to be a fantastic friend!

Tomie dePaola’s The Cloud Book
By Tomie dePaola
32 Pages | Ages 5-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823445486 | Holiday House
Tomie dePaola knows a lot about clouds. He also knows a lot about what people think of them. Some people see animals and pictures in clouds. The ancient Greeks believed that Hermes, the messenger of the gods, once stole the sun’s cattle, which were clouds. In this unique picture book, Tomie introduces some of the most common types of clouds, as well as the myths and legends inspired by their shapes. Simple, whimsical illustrations show the variations in shape and color that herald changes in the weather. This book will tell you many things about clouds we bet you didn’t know. Filled with his signature humor and gentle illustrations, Tomie dePaola’s approach to nonfiction is like no other.

When Cloud Became a Cloud
By Rob Hodgson
64 Pages | Ages 2-5 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780593224915 | Rise x Penguin Workshop
The lifecycle of our protagonist, Cloud, is delightfully and sparsely narrated in nine short chapters that follow the stages of the water cycle. Young readers will immediately fall for this wide-eyed puff, and welcome facts along with humor and personality as they bask in the accomplishment of breezing through each chapter.

Who Owns the Clouds?
By Mario Brassard
Illustrated by Gérard DuBois
100 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9781774880210 | Tundra Books
Even though Mila is no longer a child, she is overcome by memories – memories of a childhood halfway between reality and dreaming, and not knowing which is which. In her dreams, Mila and her family leave their bombed village to stand in line for weeks on end, suitcases in hand, hoping to move on to better lives. But the memories of her uncle’s disappearance, and the approach of looming clouds, keep blurring the lines between past and present, real and unreal. How can Mila move forward? Perhaps if the clouds can remind her of where she’s from, they can also show her where to go . . . Winner of a Governor General’s Award, Canada’s most prestigious literary prize, and the Bologna Ragazzi Award, this stunningly evocative book about experience, trauma and healing will stay with readers from beginning to end.

Hello, and thanks for joining us at Tundra Telegram, the column where we slice up the topics oozing into the public consciousness and recommend a few rocksteady book choices that will have you shelling out your hard-earned dollars.

Yesterday, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem opened in theatres across North America. With involvement from Seth Rogen and a stacked (and eclectic) voice cast that includes Jackie Chan, Ice Cube, Ayo Edebiri (from The Bear), Post Malone, Natasia Demetriou (from What We Do in the Shadows), and so many more, the movie had us wistfully remembering the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles of our youth, whether that be the indie comic book, the animated show, the concert tour (with an appearance on Oprah), or more. Forget Shredder – these Turtle Boys don’t cut their PR team any slack!

The movie also made us think of all the turtles in children’s literature – sure, they may not all be mutant or ninjas or even enjoy pizza that much. But they are turtles deserving of our attention, so please enjoy a recommended reading list of books about turtles for every age! (We’re including tortoises, too. We know they’re not the same, but … come on.)

PICTURE BOOKS

Like the Ninja Turtles, Rodney in Rodney Was a Tortoise by Nan Forler and Yong Ling Kang starts off as a child’s pet (in this case, Bernadette’s). But unlike the Ninja Turtles, Rodney does not become a mutant crime-fighter, and instead dies. When Rodney passes, no one seems to understand, and only the kindness and empathy of a friend Amar helps her manage her grief in this comforting and gently humorous picture book about bereavement.

Based on a true story (can TMNT say that?), Yoshi, Sea Turtle Genius by Lynne Cox and Richard Jones chronicles the life of a remarkable sea turtle who accomplished a feat second only to mastering the nunchuks: she swam farther than any other animal in recorded history – 23,000 miles! – to return to the beach where she first hatched, to lay her own eggs.

The Turtles are radical dudes, which may be why the turtle in Shannon McNeill’s Wheels, No Wheels swipes a skateboard when given the chance (joining a llama on a tractor and cat on a bike) and goes on a joyride in a very funny book about things that roll and things that do not.

Nearly as unlikely as a turtle on a skateboard is Turtle in a Tree by Neesha Hudson. Perhaps that’s why a bulldog insists it’s not a turtle in a tree, even though a greyhound swears it is. The ensuing argument – as controversial as which of the four ninja teens is best – teaches a lesson about differing perspectives.

We know the Ninja Turtles are “heroes in a half-shell,” but what if they had no shell at all? Enter The Box Turtle by Vanessa Roeder, in which a turtle born without a shell searches for some protection and settles on a sturdy cardboard box. But when another turtle points out that Terrance’s shell is a little unusual, Terrance questions his box until he finds the confidence to be who he is.

Fastest Tortoise in Town by Howard Calvert and Karen Obuhanych is a new take on the “Tortoise and the Hare” fable, and this time the tortoise (Barbara Hendricks) worries about the road race she entered on a whim. But Barbara’s friend and owner, Lorraine, inspires her to train a little bit more each day. Barbara soon realizes that by trying her best, she’s already won. (Unfortunately for the Ninja Turtles, Shredder isn’t defeated by effort alone.)

The Ninja Turtles are bandana-forward when it comes to fashions, but the turtles in Jon Klassen’s modern classic We Found a Hat are all about the chapeaus. In a three-act story, two turtles find a hat. The hat looks good on both of them, causing potential strife in this most turtle-centric of Klassen’s Hat Trilogy.

And we can’t discuss picture books and turtles without mentioning the grandaddy of them all: Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories by Dr. Seuss himself. Though the book contains three stories (only one of them featuring a turtle), the titular story features a tyrannical turtle (not at all like Leonardo) who gets his comeuppance via a burp.

CHAPTER BOOKS & MIDDLE GRADE

When it comes to chapter books and middle-grade novels, turtles are either literal turtles … or something more metaphorical. In The Magic Tree House: Time of the Turtle King by Mary Pope Osborne and AG Ford, you best believe they are literal turtles. Jack and Annie are whisked away in the magic tree house to the Galapagos Islands (a.k.a. Turtle Central), where they have to save a giant tortoise from an erupting volcano. (Don’t see too many of those in the New York sewers.)

Likewise, in The Boxcar Children: The Sea Turtle Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner and illustrated by Anthony VanArsdale, plucky orphans the Aldens spend spring break on a beach, trying to protect an endangered turtle species. But someone is digging up turtle eggs from their nests, so it’s up to the Boxcar Children to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Not to be outdone by Dr. Seuss and Jon Klassen, Roald Dahl also has a turtle book: Esio Trot. This Dahl deep cut is about a man (Mr. Hoppy) in love with his neighbor (Mrs Silver), who loves her tortoise, Alfie. One day, Mrs Silver asks Mr Hoppy how to make Alfie grow, so Mr Hoppy uses a magical spell and some cabbage leaves (as one does) as a sort of homemade radioactive ooze. (Fun fact: the title is an anagram of an animal. Guess which one!)

The sea turtles need saving again in Turtles of the Midnight Moon by María José Fitzgerald. Two girls – one from the coast of Honduras, the other from the bowels of New Jersey – become friends when they join forces (Ninja Turtle-style) to break up a turtle egg poaching ring. Soon, visiting Abby and local Barana are consumed by the mystery, chasing down suspects, gathering clues, and staking out the beach in the dead of night.

The ‘Turtle’ in Jennifer L. Holm’s Turtle in Paradise (now a graphic novel adapted by Savanna Ganucheau) is an eleven-year-old (not quite teenage) girl, who is shipped off to Florida to live with relatives during the Great Depression when her mother gets a housekeeping job that forbids kids. Surrounded by cousins and able to get into all sorts of adventures in the tropical heat, Turtle soon finds herself coming out of her proverbial shell.

Evan M. Wolkenstein’s Turtle Boy is about a boy, Will Levine, given said nickname as a taunt by classmates about his odd-looking chin. Will actually loves turtles, but it doesn’t lessen the pain of the insult. When his Rabbi requests Will spend time with a RJ, a boy in hospital with a terminal illness, Will is determined to rack up the hours for his bar mitzvah community service and get out as quickly as possible. But Will discovers RJ has a bucket list, and begins to help him check off the items, despite his personal discomfort in coming out of his shell. Prepare for a novel that features more tears than ninja stars.

YOUNG ADULT

Shockingly few YA novels are all about our terrapin friends, but John Green’s Turtles All the Way Down is a glaring exception. Rather than featuring turtles in any real way (though it does feature a pet tuatara), the book is a serious look at living with mental illness (in this case OCD and anxiety) as it follows Aza Holmes, caught up with her best friend Daisy in the mysterious disappearance of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett. They make contact with Pickett’s son Davis, but Aza is distracted from their task by her own circular and obsessive thoughts.

Cowabunga, friends! Be sure to check out these books that hit you like a bo staff to the face!

Tag: Richard Jones

Tundra Telegram: Books That Are Turtle-y Awesome