W. Nikola-Lisa

Inspired by the Book of Hours tradition, but focusing on the monthly chores of tenant farmers while leaving out the daily Church feast days and saints' days. Manson's illustrations are whimsically reminiscent of woodcuts, but in full colour, and like illuminated manuscripts there are jokes and details to be found in addition to the main illustration. Nikola-Lisa gives each month a rhyming couplet to highlight the peasant work of the season:

Sheep are herded to wash and shear,
While swarming bees buzz ever near.

Each month has a double-spread picture, a paragraph giving additional detail on the tasks and aspects of daily life. An understated theme is the authority of the gentry and how much of a peasant's time, effort, and resources are expended on his master's chores before devoting any attention to his own family's.… (mer)

It's Halloween night in the city, and the narrator invites one and all to the hip-hop Halloween ball! Characters from famous fairy-tales, ranging from Jack (of Jack and the Beanstalk) to Puss-in-Boots, from Rapunzel to Goldilocks, are each invited to "Shake, shake, shake dem bones now," and join the pumpkin-headed MC in dance...

With a rhyming, rhythmic text from author W. Nikola-Lisa, and bright, colorful artwork from illustrator Mike Reed, Shake dem Halloween Bones would make an entertaining read-aloud selection at a Halloween-themed story-time. The inclusion of so many fairy-tale characters adds to the sense of fun, and is sure to please young child readers and listeners, who will enjoy meeting up again with names that many of them will already know. Recommended to anyone looking for more poetic, read-aloud tales for Halloween.… (mer)