Dad's Bookshelf: January 2022
It’s the first Dad’s Bookshelf of 2022! Happy New Year, everybody! I think we’re kicking things off in a big way and that we’re off to a very good start for 2022. But all of the books on Dad’s Bookshelf this month actually have a 2021 publication date. And that means they’re eligible for the 2021 Dad Suggests Picture Book Awards being announced next week!
The three books on Dad’s Bookshelf to kick off the year are What is Love?, The Spectacular Suit, and The Secret of the Magic Pearl. They’re spectacular stories from three of our very favorite and trusted children’s book publishers - and you probably won’t be surprised to see that they touch on some of our favorite themes as well.
All three of these great books touch on the notion of being yourself, which always speaks to me as a dad quite a bit. What Is Love? shows how everyone has a different definition of love and happiness, The Spectacular Suit features a little girl who doesn’t want to wear a dress to her party, and The Secret of the Magic Pearl is a magical story about a little boy who wants to be a deep sea diver just like his dad.
I love sharing stories that encourage kids to chase their dreams and do what makes them happy, and all three of these books just so happen to be great allies in that fight. They also happen to be gorgeously illustrated and brilliantly produced (make sure to check under the dust jackets!) - making the final products all very handsome and special on the shelf.
I definitely think there’s something here for everyone to kick off the new year! Hopefully Dad’s Bookshelf will help you find a new story to love together this month. Let me know how it goes, and let me know which picture books you’ve been enjoying recently too!
Dad’s Bookshelf is a continuing, monthly series featuring the kids books we are most excited about each month. The series is named after the real life bookshelf we have in our home, where I keep all of my favorite picture books of all time. While the books we share on Dad’s Bookshelf are often new releases, it’s also not uncommon for us to be excited about an older book we just discovered.
Disclosure: The books in this month’s Dad’s Bookshelf were provided to us by their publishers, with no expectation of inclusion on this monthly article of the books we’re most excited about. All thoughts and opinions are our own. Some of the links in this article are affiliate links that will lead you to view the books on Bookshop.org and Amazon.
What Is Love?
Written by Mac Barnett and Illustrated by Carson Ellis
What is Love? follows a familiar formula of asking different characters for their definitions on the same thing. In fact, in that sense, it’s very similar to How Beautiful on last month’s Dad’s Bookshelf. In this case, instead of trying to define beauty, a young boy is trying to understand love.
The theme also reminds me of another favorite picture book called Love, Z, which follows a very similar plot of a robot trying to understand love. The major difference between these two books is that this one reads very much like a classic fable - as if it very easily could have been written hundreds of years ago. And I’m a big fan of the way Mac Barnett crafts new stories that immediately feel like modern classics.
Many of the characters in this book give beautiful and poetic descriptions of love, and the words and the illustrations come together in a wonderful way to show off all of these wonderful passions in the world. I’m a big believer in the importance of pursuing your passions to find meaning, and I think this book does a spectacular job supporting that philosophy.
The Secret of the Magic Pearl
Written by Elisa Sabatinelli and Illustrated by Iacapo Bruno
I honestly don’t know how to classify this book. It’s much longer than a picture book, and it’s organized in chapters, but it’s much shorter than your typical chapter book. It’s even somewhere in the middle of a chapter book and a picture book as far as the shape of the book goes too. And, most importantly, it has illustrations on every single page. I honestly think we need a brand new category for books like this, and I would buy a whole lot more of them if it became a trend.
But, classification aside, The Secret of the Magic Pearl is an absolutely delightful book. It has great characters and a very engaging writing style. The world-building is very effective and it pulled us in very quickly. There’s great subtle humor and even the names of the chapters would make us laugh.
The story follows a young boy who wants to be a deep-sea diver just like his dad, but the family is down on their luck because their business at the marina has been slow. But everything changes when he finds a legendary magic pearl on his first dive. However, the sea itself isn’t happy about losing the pearl!
My 9-year-old listened to this story very intently, and afterwards he said “that was a good story”. Trust me, that may sound like muted praise - but that’s not something he always does, and I know a ringing endorsement from my son when I see it!
The Spectacular Suit
Written by Kat Patrick and Illustrated by Hayley Wells
As I’ve said many times before, I’m a big sucker for stories about being yourself, and The Spectacular Suit is a very special one! Very much along the lines of Julian is a Mermaid or Mary Wears What She Wants, The Spectacular Suit follows a little girl named Frankie who wants to dress how she wants. In this case, her birthday party is coming up and she doesn’t want to wear a dress.
Instead, she has a very specific idea in mind for her outfit. She imagines a suit with lightning bolts and stars on it, and she even draws a picture. But there’s only one day left before the party, and Frankie thinks it’s best to let the idea stay in her head so she’s not disappointed. So she doesn’t show it to anyone.
But her family finds her drawing and works together to make Frankie’s dream come true on her birthday. They craft her her very own special blue lightning bolt suit, slick back her hair with wax, and give her some sunglasses. And the art does a wonderful job showing how this spectacular suit makes Frankie feel complete - like she’s floating through the sky and on top of the world.
What wonderful picture books have you discovered lately? Have you read any of these three yet? Let us know in the comments!
