Book Review Contest Winners' Round-Up

So a whole bunch of last month's book review contest winners have obliged my request for reviews of the books they received from Kane/Miller Book Publishers. Below I'm posting links to reviews posted on winners' own blogs, and below that I'm putting up reviews sent directly to us. I hope that these reviews inspire you to check out their globe-spanning catalog of American, English-language editions of children's books originally published in other countries and add them to your children's collection.

Superha's review of Kali and the Rat Snake by Zai Whitaker (India)

Rachel's review of Who's Hiding? by Saturo Onishi (Japan)

Eliaday's review of The Zoo by Suzy Lee (South Korea)

Kim's review of The Story of Cherry the Pig by Utako Yamada (Japan)

Honglien123's review of The Mats by Francisco Arcellana (Philippines)

Kerri Aldrich's review of New Clothes for New Year's Day by Hyun-Joo Bae (South Korea)

Naomi on Naomi Kojima's Singing Shimiji Clams (Japan):
I was afraid this book might be too long to hold my three year old's attention, but it cracked her up. It's the story of a witch who buys some clams for her miso soup but has misgivings about cooking them and ends up having them sing for their supper, so to speak. She has a cranky cat who eventually learns to love the clams, too, and they take them back to the sea where everyone is happier. As someone who has a problem with choosing lobsters at restaurants, the theme was very familiar. We heartily enjoyed the story. Thanks, Rice Daddies and Kane Miller!

Christina on Yoon-duck Kwan's My Cat Copies Me (South Korea):
Hey, thanks to Kane/Miller Books for making us all winners. I received the book "My Cat Copies Me" by Yoon-duck Kwan, also the illustrator. It is a story about a little girl (though it could have been about a little boy since it was written in such an open, generic manner) and her kitty cat. It is a sweet story about the connection and bond between the child and her pet, they are friends and do everything together, they play, explore, hang out, and support each other. The illustrations are beautiful with a delicate, soft look to it. They are colorful and bright but not garishly so. I look forward to sharing this with my daughter when she is old enough to handle soft pages in a book.

Mommy de Gallo on Ho-Baek Lee's While We Were Out (South Korea):
We received our copy of "While We Were Out" by Ho Baek Lee. It came at a very nice time in our lives, as my daughter is starting to develop relationships with our own two pets. This simple story is about a pet (?) rabbit that explores the house while it's owners are out. Funny enough, all of the things the rabbit does in the home are things that my daughter also enjoys. The simple story, and lovely illustrations are just right to capture the imagination. This story has opened up my child's mind as to what exactly our cat and dog are up to when we leave the house? I know that they just lie around and sleep, but she is using her imagination to create stories about the games they are playing, and blaming them when her toys are misplaced. Thank you Rice Dadies for a great book!