Author: TQ Townsend

Not all picture books are for children. Joke books for grownups are a lot of fun, but some authors use “children’s books” to fight political and cultural battles. While I support the rights of authors to publish anything they like so long as no laws are broken, I don’t approve of using children or children’s literature as political props, and grownups should think twice before pushing these books — and a bunch of adult burdens — onto children.

I asked you to share what it was like for you when you found out that Darth Vader was Luke Skywalker’s father, and you did NOT disappoint! The fact that so many strangers were able to share similar experiences is proof of the staying power of Star Wars as a great story — mediocre modern additions aside. This is a perfect test to find out if a story counts as “great literature” — can people come together and talk about how it affected them? Do they share the story down the generations? Can we laugh, reminisce, debate, and fall in love with the story all over again?

This was so much fun and I hope to do it more with all of you in the future.

Double feature! In this fireside fairy tale, I share the (relatively) modern first printed versions of The Three Little Pigs, which started out as a tale about Pixies. Later on, it’s a wolf who goes after the pigs, but the cleverest of the three definitely comes off better in the end.

Writer Jenna Schroeder and illustrator Yamerpro (aka Mandy Ecenbarger) were given the task of transforming the popular card game Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza. Their collaboration has resulted in the first book in a series of graphic novels — The Case of the Missing Hat!

This book is colorful, fun, and accessible. Fans of the game will enjoy how the simple characters were transformed into a well-rounded and dynamic group of friends. But at the same time, no familiarity with the game is required to enjoy this book, which has the same delightfully zany sense of humor as Saturday Morning Cartoons.

As with all of the books featured on this show, this is NOT a paid review. All books discussed on the Children’s Literature Podcast are chosen because they are high quality and have a lot to offer children, not because we have been paid. Hosts T.Q. Townsend and Chloë Townsend give Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza and the Case of the Missing Hat a VERY enthusiastic endorsement and recommend it for ALL ages! This is a great family read and is good for bookworms as well as those who are struggling to read!

To learn more about Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza (the game AND the book) visit: https://dolphinhat.com/
Author Jenna Schroeder can be found at https://www.jennaaschroeder.com/
Illustrator Yamerpro can be found at https://yamerpro.com/

Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman perfectly expresses how little children feel sometimes — I want my mom, and I want to go home. But it also has a sweet and subtle message about how the modern world can exist with nature if only we remember to show a little compassion to the little birds in our lives.

Happy Mother’s Day! I hope you moms out there are enjoying a nice day off in which you don’t have to go hunting for worms for your brood.