Do you live in Brooklyn? Do you have a child in your life who is somewhere between 12 inches and four feet tall? Then participate in Summer Reading 2011 at your favorite Brooklyn Public Library branch and get a “Growth Chart” featuring my illustrations for Read It, Don’t Eat It! 
BOOK REVIEW: ‘Read It’ Delights Young Children
by Sheila Dembowski
"You are holding a book. What should you do with it? Open it, and you will find out." These are opening lines found in the inside front cover of Read It, Don't Eat It! by Ian Schoenherr.
In this delightful picture book the reader is given reminders, some gentle and some more obvious, of the importance of taking good care of the books we read. This is a great read-aloud for younger children as they begin their journey with reading. It also could be used by older siblings to read and discuss with younger brothers and sisters the rules of proper book care etiquette.
The book introduces us to a variety of animal characters, from a bunny and a bear, to a monkey and a pig, all of whom provide simple, direct and sometimes humorous examples of what to do and not to do to a book. The easy reading text and colorful illustrations allows the reader to read the book within minutes or to take each page and expand the discussion to talk in more detail of what could happen.
As a school librarian, I try to focus on lessons with primary students about the importance of taking of books for several reasons, most importantly, the personal responsibility every person takes upon themselves when they borrow something that belongs to others.
It was once said, "Books, like friends, should be few and well-chosen. Like friends, too, we should return to them again and again - for like true friends, they will never fail us...."
Sheila Dembowski is a school media specialist at Easton and Riverside elementary schools. She can be reached at sdembowski@dce.k12.wi.us.
Anyone attending the Not-a-Dinner and (Mostly) Silent Auction held during Book Expo America (BEA) this coming Tuesday, May 25th, at The Edison Ballroom in Manhattan? I must admit my love for Ian Schoenherr. Cat & Mouse was my favorite picture book of 2008 due to the combination of beloved nursery rhymes, the striking layout incorporating the movement of text amidst ample white space, and of course the expressive illustrations (obvious cat owner). Plus he lives just a few subway stops away from my library!Read more!
So I was quite excited to read his next book, Read It, Don't Eat It, which has quickly become one of my preferred titles to share during early elementary class visits....
The Read to Me LA skills of print motivation and print awareness are perfectly illustrated in this simple text. For the very youngest listener this book explains in rhyme and bright colors what a book is and how to take care of it.
This pleasant work shows young children how to treat books. Lively animals dressed as children demonstrate what not to do - turn down, tear, sneeze on, or deface pages. They also tell what to do - read the stories and then turn the books back into the library so others can enjoy them. White backgrounds highlight the appealing characters and the simple text conveys the message without being preachy.
I think this book would be especially valuable to teachers or librarians, but as a parent, I love reading this to my kids so they'll know even better how to respect property. (And wouldn't this be a terrific book to donate to your local town or school library?)
This pleasant work shows young children how to treat books. Lively animals dressed as children demonstrate what not to do - turn down, tear, sneeze on, or deface pages. They also tell what to do - read the stories and then turn the books back into the library so others can enjoy them. White backgrounds highlight the appealing characters and the simple text conveys the message without being preachy.
I hope you're hungry!
...Simple, direct and knowingly funny, this book is worthy of a permanent spot on the desks of youth librarians everywhere.
In a picture book sure to make every librarian's heart sing, Schoenherr has created a simple rhyming primer on how to take good care of a library book....
Ian Schoenherr's another one of those authors I always mean to review and then never do. Generally he tends to write picture books involving two characters. Pip and Squeak. Cat and Mouse. You get the picture. His newest title Read It, Don't Eat It! walks a delicate line. I sit hunched in perpetual wariness whenever I see a book that looks like it might be pandering to the librarian community. But what sets Schoenherr's latest from the usual gee-aren't-librarians-great stock is that it's actually a book we can use and read aloud to classes with fantastic results! Basically he's written a list of don'ts for books. Don't eat it. Don't chew on it. Don't get it wet. That sort of thing. I may have to rotate my standard readaloud stock for classes once we get this one in. Even young classes would find it easy to follow.
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