For moms everywhere

Every mother says it: “No, honey, you don’t need to get me anything for Mother’s Day. Just being your mom is enough.”

Which is true. But it may also be true that mothers who say that have already gotten their share of gifts: wilted flowers plucked from the yard, breakfast in bed that’s not so much cooked as vulcanized, toy trucks and Legos.

Even if you’ve already uprooted a yard’s worth of dandelions for a bouquet, consider adding this to your Mother’s Day festivities: Offer to read a book with Mom. Trust me – she’ll appreciate it.

If she loves flowers, try:

“The Plant Hunters” by Anita Silvey. Ages 9 and up. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. $19.99.

This glorious nonfiction book is packed with tales of intrepid plant fanatics who risked life and limb to find new and useful species. There are enough botanical tidbits to satisfy gardeners, and enough tigers, leeches, piranhas and poison to thrill everyone else.

If you’ve just had a bad day, try:

“My No, No, No Day!” by Rebecca Patterson. Ages 2-5. Viking. $16.99.

There are plenty of books about willful, tantrum-prone youngsters. (Olivia the pig, I’m talking about you.) Rebecca Patterson’s book is simple and refreshing. Bella is having a bad day, and there’s nothing adorable about it, although there is plenty of humor in the art and the way Bella speaks in EXTRA-BOLD CAPITAL LETTERS. When the bad day finally ends, her mother handles it with patience and kindness (and perhaps a sigh of relief).

If she loves your homemade cards and drawings, try:

“The Obstinate Pen” by Frank W. Dormer. Ages 4 and up. Henry Holt and Co. $16.99.

From the author of the beloved monster book “Socksquatch” comes a new story of a pen with a mind of its own. Young readers will giggle at the pen’s cheerful insults, but older ones also will appreciate the book

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Girls and gorillas

 “Giants Beware!” Raphael Rosado and Jorge Aguirre, ages 7 and up, First Second, $14.99.

“The One and Only Ivan,” Katherine Applegate, ages 8-12, HarperCollins, $16.99

The heroine of one book is a wooden-sword-waving, pint-sized girl; the hero of another is a majestic silverback gorilla who both colors with crayons and, occasionally, eats them.

Unlikely as it seems, both protagonists – Claudette the giant-slayer and Ivan the lonely ape – have a lot in common. They share a sense of humor, a sense of justice, tremendous love for their friends, and the ability to take a fresh look at what exactly they’re fighting for.

For the restless Claudette, the adventure begins with a quest to find and slay a “baby-feet-eating” giant, and she drags along a pair of sidekicks, her timid brother Gaston and her “aspiring princess” friend, Marie. The cheerful graphic novel takes traditional fairy-tale elements, from a wicked witch to a river king, and bends them into surprising shapes. Claudette doesn’t get the battle she’s looking for – in fact, she is bold enough to seek a different sort of adventure once she finally meets her giant – but young readers will find her an excellent heroine nevertheless.

“The One and Only Ivan” isn’t short on humor, either, but the story – told in a spare prose that sometimes borders on poetry – is far more poignant. Ivan, inspired by a real-life gorilla who lived in an Atlanta mall, is reluctant to think of any possibilities beyond his life as it is – until a baby elephant arrives. When she asks Ivan if she’ll “die in this domain” like her predecessor, something clicks. He promises to save her. “And it’s not a domain,” he adds. “It’s a cage.”

Using his skills as an artist – yes, Ivan draws and paints – and his new resolve, the gorilla finds a way to keep his promise. It’s an odd but moving story about love and art, leavened with a generous helping of jokes about bananas, chimps and poop-throwing.     

Books of a feather

How interesting can they be? They’re just ducks.

Shades of green

“What are you doing?” I asked my daughter and her friend, who were standing, suspiciously quiet, at the window.

Best of books, worst of friends

 I GET REPORTS several times a week about who is friends with whom in Grade 3. It’s a crucial part of life, affecting playground activities, lunchroom seating and chess partnerships.

So, for grade-schoolers, perhaps friendship is exactly the right window into a key piece of America’s past: the Revolution and the early days of the new American republic. In “Worst of Friends,” a surprisingly funny and heartfelt look at Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, the two great men really do squabble like kids – they’re stubborn, serious, convinced they’re each right.

What they’re arguing about, of course, is more than standard playground fare – they’re wrangling about freedom, power and how their fledgling country should balance one against the other.

Suzanne Tripp Jurmain’s book (ages 5-8, Dutton, $16.99) doesn’t shy away from the big ideas, like the arguments of the Republican and Federalist parties, but it really shines when it explores the quirks of Adams and Jefferson and their rocky friendship.

And I don’t want to give it all away – but, yes, the two best and worst of friends do find a happy ending.

“Worst of Friends,” as it happens, is one of a flood of books that arrived in time for Presidents Day. I’m not sure this odd hybrid of a holiday inspires much in the way of book-shopping – but if it does put young readers in a presidential frame of mind, there’s one more real standout to look for in the store or library: “So You Want to Be President?” by Judith St. George, with Caldecott Medal-winning illustrations by David Small (2012 edition, ages 5-8, Philomel, $17.99). First published in 2000, it has just been updated for the second time.

Whatever edition you choose, it’s a fascinating introduction to the men who’ve held the office, and packed with stunning artwork, from Woodrow Wilson cutting a rug to Richard Nixon bowling a strike.

Life is no fairytale for this cyborg Cinderella

You know you’ve entered a brave new world when Cinderella leaves behind not a glass slipper, but an entire foot.

Fairy tales are a fertile garden, and children’s authors have a long history of taking those venerable traditions and running away with them. “Cinder,” (Feiwel & Friends, $17.99) Marissa Meyer’s young-adult debut, is a long way from the pastel-toned, Disney-fied Cinderella story of old.

Set in New Beijing, on an Earth wracked by plague and threatened by – no kidding – psychic moon-dwellers, the book crackles with action from the first page, a winning mix of teenage moodiness, high technology and adventure.

In this version, Cinder has a mysterious past, a robot with a not-quite-standard personality chip as a sidekick, and a magical chariot that runs on old-fashioned gasoline.

It sounds improbable, and a few of the plot twists are not too surprising – but somehow it all works, even when poor, star-crossed Cinder, initially denied a chance to attend the ball because she’s an unloved cyborg, sneaks in anyway and loses her robotic foot at the palace.

Set up as the opening book of a series, “Cinder” doesn’t really end – it just takes a breath. The next books in the series continue the moon-versus-Earth intrigue and the human-cyborg romance – and are inspired by the stories of Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and Snow White.

No word, however, on whether those leading ladies are robots, cyborgs, psychics or just boring old princesses.

Democracy, with a side of hairballs

 In the universe of Bad Kitty, stray-cat policy is a major political issue, debates are on-air hissy fits, and if a political ad happens to imply that your opponent is actually a “big, stupid, sloppy dog,” well, that’s just the way the system works.

In the real world, as Super Tuesday looms, perhaps the smartest explanation of presidential politics – and most passionate defense of democracy – is in a little illustrated chapter book for children about a very poorly behaved cat who tries to fashion herself into “the purrfect candidate.”

The author is Nick Bruel, whose series of “Bad Kitty” picture and chapter books have made a major star of the kitty with a voracious appetite for both food and mayhem. In “Bad Kitty for President,” the black-and-white conniption fit waiting to happen becomes outraged by the stray cats lurking nearby and decides to run for president of the Neighborhood Cat Club. What ensues is a cartoon-laden exploration of how elections work, from voter registration to attack ads, fundraising to debates, all delivered in Bruel’s distinctively goofy style.

“The process alone was where all the humor was – just the complication and the absurdity and frankly some of the wonderfulness of it,” Bruel said during a break from working on his next Bad Kitty book. His favorite part? The Bad Kitty attack ads implying that opponent Big Kitty may not be entirely feline, “Paid for by the Coalition to Make Sure That Dogs Are Not Secretly Elected to Be President of the Neighborhood Cat Club.” And then there’s the debate, in which Big Kitty can do nothing but ponder french fries and Bad Kitty has a yowling, screeching meltdown.

It took intensive research to put together the book, which, despite its cartoon-kitty format, really does explain the details of registration, delegates and, seriously, campaign finance. And though it was finished some time ago, it eerily echoes the ups and downs and “oops” moments of the current primary season – “because these things are in every election,” Bruel said. “We as Americans – we’re already in a process where people are saying, ‘This is the ugliest election I’ve ever had to follow! I’ve never seen a candidate have such a breakdown in a debate!’ – and so on and so forth. And you know what? This is what it was like in 2008 and in 2004 and 2000 – this is every single election. And it follows the same process from election to election. There’s always these sort of classic moments of goofiness.”

As a leader, Bad Kitty leaves something to be desired. Struggling to compare her to a human politician, Bruel discards American presidents and looks to the world stage: “Maybe Kitty would be most like Berlusconi. Or like Khrushchev, who was banging his shoe in the middle of the U.N. That might be kind of a Bad Kitty moment.”

As a character, though, Bad Kitty’s origins are closer to home. Her look is modeled on Zou-zou, a cat he had when he was a boy, and her character is modeled on “every cat I have ever known,” Bruel said. “As I like to describe cats, it doesn’t matter how sweet they are, it doesn’t matter how loving they are, it doesn’t matter how much they like to rub up against your leg or sleep in your lap – they all have a dark side.”

Bad Kitty expresses her dark side not through words – in the books, she never speaks – but through wild-kitty behavior and outrageous facial expressions. Bruel began as a cartoonist, and “cartoonists practice evoking emotion with a sparsity of line, if they can.”

Bad Kitty is all untamed emotion, and her silent commentary on Bruel’s words in each of his books has reached an audience he hadn’t expected.

“I get an email, at this point, probably once a month, from a parent or a teacher of a child who is in the autism spectrum … and they tell me how much their kids, who were very reluctant readers, who were not prone to going at books, found Bad Kitty and have been just completely delighted,” he said. These young readers, who struggle to understand subtler social cues, seem “to be responding to the extremes of Kitty’s expressions.”

Kitty may have wild mood swings, but Bruel comes off as quiet and genial, the kind of guy who volunteers at nursery schools and treasures classroom visits.

He’s not shy, though, or afraid of taking flak for his book. “I’m sure people will see politics in it where there aren’t any. And that’s fine. We take our politics very seriously in this country, I think sometimes to our own detriment.”

In the glossary at the end of “Bad Kitty for President,” Bruel decided not to go in alphabetical order, but to list “democracy” last, so it would be the final word of the book. “As complicated as the whole process may be – and it is – as absurd as the whole process may be – and it is – I really wanted kids to realize that, think of it what you may, it is necessary for our future as a community. And being uninvolved is simply not an option,” he said. “That is what democracy means.”

Looking back at the holidays

Hanukkah and Christmas have come and gone, but some special times are worth holding on to for a little longer. Even after the days have passed, you can revel in the holiday feeling by sharing one of these books with a young reader.

“Chanukah Lights” by Michael J. Rosen and Robert Sabuda. Ages 5 and up. Candlewick Press, $34.99. Rosen and Sabuda make abundant use of all the 3-D possibilities a pop-up book presents in this gentle exploration of Hanukkah. Readers follow the light of menorah candles, one by one, through a series of homes until they reach the final, towering spread.

“The Story of Christmas” From the King James Bible, illustrated by Pamela Dalton. Ages 4 to 8. Chronicle Books. $17.99. The breathtakingly elaborate paper cut-out art of Pamela Dalton is a perfect match for the stately language of the King James Bible. The Pennsylvania-German folk-art illustrations bring new life to the familiar verses.

“The Money We’ll Save” by Brock Cole. Ages 4 to 8. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. $16.99. Obviously, the smart way to save money on Christmas dinner is to raise the turkey yourself. At least that’s what Pa thinks. But raising a hungry, scrappy, messy bird in a 19th century New York City tenement is a recipe for disaster – until the family finds a way out of the foul situation. The humor is never forced, and the illustrations are as charmingly ramshackle as the turkey’s pen.

“Franklin and Winston: A Christmas That Changed the World” by Douglas Wood, illustrated by Barry Moser. Ages 6 to 12. Candlewick Press. $16.99. The holiday Winston Churchill and Franklin Delano Roosevelt spent together, cementing their friendship and their countries’ alliance during World War II, is brought to life in this anecdote-filled, accessible history.

Hide and seek

“A Dog Is a Dog” by Stephen Shaskan. Ages 2-6. Chronicle Books. $14.99.

There’s nothing more straightforward than a big-eyed puppy dog – right?

Stephen Shaskan’s playful floppy-eared pooch in “A Dog Is a Dog” wears sunglasses when he lounges in a kiddie pool and a striped scarf when he skates. But is he hiding behind more than a pair of shades? Shaskan’s bold, printlike illustrations tell a very silly story of deception and secret identities, wrapped around a text with enough bounce to hold up to repeated readings. “A dog is a dog, if it’s skinny or fat. A dog is a dog, unless it’s a” – well, you’ll have to fill in that blank, and then guess how many turnabouts still await.

“Over and Under the Snow” by Kate Messner, illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal. Ages 4-8. Chronicle Books. $16.99.

There’s a different sort of hide-and-seek at work in “Over and Under the Snow,” a nonfiction book with appealing winter-palette illustrations that show – sometimes obviously, sometimes subtly – how different animals wait out the season. A young explorer, on a ski trip through the woods, learns about “a whole secret kingdom” under the snow and ice. Deer mice, chipmunks and voles huddle under snowy blankets, and bears and frogs snooze, while the occasional flash of color – a red fox, stunning against the icy background – pounces in search of a meal.

There is real science underlying the story, including notes at the end that offer more details about how different creatures cope with the cold.

But it’s also a poetic and lovely book, a peek at the beauty of the wild and the wonder of being outdoors – no TV, no computer, no iPod, just the feather-soft snow and all the surprises it hides.

The greatest adventure

The greatest adventure in the world is childhood – and by any measure, Allen Say and Ed Young have had extraordinary adventures.

Now, after decades of telling other stories, the two author-illustrators have dived into their own histories to produce beautiful memoirs combining art and memory in a dreamlike way.

Say’s “Drawing From Memory” (ages 10 and up, Scholastic Press, $17.99) is a portrait – quite literally, as it is filled with sketches by him and of him – of a young artist finding his (unconventional) way. But that description is much too dry. What young person wouldn’t be enchanted by a story about a 12-year-old boy, living all alone in Tokyo, who persuades a famous cartoonist to take him as a pupil – and ends up as a character in the great man’s drawings? A  combination of memoir and graphic novel, “Drawing From Memory” is also a tribute to the mentor who saw something in the shy boy with big dreams.

As self-effacing as Say is in this book, it’s impossible to miss the talent and drive his beloved teacher must have seen behind his mild exterior. The book ends as Say is about to jump into his next adventure: leaving behind the world he knows, at age 16, to come to America.

Young’s “The House Baba Built” (6 and up, Little, Brown, $17.99) is also a tribute to a father figure – Young’s own father, who was the family’s calm center in the turbulent 1930s and ’40s when China was at war.

What Young’s Baba built in Shanghai was not just a house – it was a refuge with a bomb-proof hallway, and it ended up packed with family and friends seeking a safe place to wait out the war.

For Young, it was a magical place, too, in the way so many childhood homes are. It was where he learned to draw, raised silkworms and played hide-and-seek. His memoir – written with the assistance of Libby Koponen – is filled with collage art that reflects his overlapping memories.

At the end of the book, he includes photos of the house – still standing – and it seems smaller and shabbier than his memories. Its chief architect and builder, though, seems all the bigger. As Baba wrote to his children, “life is not rich unless you partake life with your fellow man” – and in this house, clearly, he did.