Hannah showed me up in her last and final Caldecott post. She was absolutely right. My trash talk lacked a certain grace and Hannah in her wisdom called me on it. She gave us all an enlightening history in talking trash, and while you can chose to believe her retelling of our great leaders or scoff at it, the fact is that I fell short. Often when such missteps happen, it’s easy to see one’s entire opinion as a misstep. In this instance, my Caldecott choices might have been tainted, but lords and ladies of the court I am here to not only plead their case, but also to show you two more delectable contestants and to choose a victor for team Emily.

When we lost Maurice Sendak last year, the world lost a great visionary. Yes, he was crotchety, and yes, he probably didn’t actually like children, but he saw children as people and his books spoke to them, not at them. Where the Wild Things Are was first published in 1963, but it was still touching children’s lives when my brother came of storybook age in the early 1990’s  I seriously used to have this book memorized, and there are still parts I can recite. This book was definitely an outlet for our family and really spoke to my brother, who was constantly telling us he was going to run away to the forest. The drawings are the perfect mix of whimsical with a touch of fright, and show us how easy it is to say one thing, but even harder to actually live with those consequences.

As we have been having this Caldecott Hunger Games, I have noticed that the books that touch me the most are the ones that are written by the illustrator whose art garners the award. This story is no exception. The art and text fit together in a way that will forever affect children and their parents.

Another superb example of this melding of art and story is Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg. Much longer than some of it’s fellow Caldecott books, this magical book was one I poured over for hours as a child. The illustrations are so detailed and the story so imaginative. A board game that actually brought things to life? Incredible. We read this before we saw the movie and while the movie was a good time, it took away one of my favorite parts: Van Allsburg’s art. If you haven’t seen this book yet, please come by the store and just take five minutes and read it. So. Good.

And with that said, I have presented my five contestants. The first three were debuted here for those of you who didn’t see it. We will be making our final choices here at the store and presenting a winner on Facebook in a week. If you have any opinion you would like to share, please comment here, on our Twitter @lemuriabooks or on our Facebook page. Personally, I am rooting for Where the Wild Things Are, but we shall see!

It’s been a while since Hannah paraded her contestants around, making promises of Mirette’s hardhitting high-wire fire, Ox-cart man’s intimidating wife, and Sylvester’s pebble with it’s magic powers. Pish posh, I say. The Caldecott is about the fantastical, the mystical, the mysterious, the profound! Not ox and pebbles! I present, the contenders, or should I say the squashers, and the winners!

We’ll start with the 1992 winner Tuesday by David Wiesner. This was Wiesner’s first Caldecott win, but it wouldn’t be his last. Tuesday doesn’t rely on fancy words: this book is almost completely wordless. The beautiful illustrations of Tuesday were the first thing that drew me to Wiesner’s work. Using his brush strokes alone, Wiesner gives me the watercolored tools to mop up Mirette: Frogs. That’s right, frogs. Flying on lily pads. They come in the night, intriguing and terrorizing the characters within this book and amazing the reader. Mirette may be a high-wire show off, but these frogs show her up. Hannah: 0, Emily: 1.

Continuing with this sparse theme, we have my next prize-wining fighter: My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann. “My friend Rabbit means well. But whatever he does, wherever he goes, trouble follows.” And so begins the tale of an imaginative rabbit who, despite his best efforts, is always in trouble. And while trouble is bad when trying to be good, it’s perfect when trying to beat the competition. Look at this rabbit! He can lift a bear! Take that Ox-Cart Man. We don’t need no cart! Boo yah!

And Hannah, I finish with a 1-2-punch: I give you Flotsam by David Wiesner. This was Wiesner’s third Caldecott win and with it he became only 1 of 2 people who have won the award three times (Marcia Brown was the first). Flotsam tells the story of a camera that has been to unimaginable places. With the same beautiful watercolor style as he showed us in Tuesday, Wiesner blows his audience away with breath-taking scenes such as the one below. So which is better: Sylvester’s magic rock, or starfish with whole islands on their backs. Well, dear reader, I’ll let y’all be the judge of that.

As we have mentioned before, we have these amazing reps from most publishers whose books we sell. Here to comment on some of her favorite books is Sarah Nasif, my wonderfully amazing Random House Children’s Books rep. She will be joining us montly to help us spread the word about children’s books:

Hello Lemuria Bookstore and Oz Blog readers! I’m a book rep for Random House Children’s Books, a Mississippi resident (I live in Vicksburg), a wife and mom, and a regular customer at Lemuria and Oz. I also help run a book blog called Random Acts of Reading with my fellow reps. You can check us out here for author interviews, book buzz and all sorts of cool industry insider stuff. I’m thrilled that Emily has agreed to let me contribute, and I hope that I can help you discover some new favorites along the way!

Today, I want to share what I’ve been reading to my 7 month old daughter, Mia. As you can imagine there is no shortage of books in our house, but we tend to pick a few favorites and read them over and over. While I know the repetition is good for her, I try to switch it up every week or two for my own sake!

One board book that I have been reading to her since she was born and have not gotten tired of yet is A Book of Sleep by Il Sung Na. This sweet bedtime board book explores a variety of animals’ sleep habits and the illustrations are just gorgeous. It is also available in hardcover picture book format if your child has moved past the phase of trying to eat the book rather than read the book, which mine has not! Snow Rabbit Spring Rabbit is another favorite by this author, and it’s just out this month in board book format. Since we don’t get much snow in Mississippi, this book is a great way to introduce your little one to the winter season.

Sandra Boynton is a no brainer when it comes to baby shower gifts and we have a stack of her board books lining our shelves. What’s Wrong, Little Pookie is our new favorite – it makes me laugh every time I read it which sends Mia into fits of giggles. Little Pookie’s mom is trying to figure out what’s bothering him but she just can’t seem to guess right, and by the end Pookie has forgotten!

A fellow rep sent me a copy of one of her family favorites before Mia was born and it has quickly become one of ours. I am a Bunny by Ole Risom, illustrated by Richard Scarry is a classic about nature and the seasons. Its tall skinny size stands out fascinates Mia. She has just started turning the pages which makes her momma proud!