1. Hey, hey, hey, it’s May! Breathe in that fresh air. Revel in the flowers and make like a butterfly. Or perhaps you’re up for a lovely picnic?

UK artist Jenny Miriam’s charming digital illustrations celebrate the joys of nature, the sweet adorableness of small animals, and the fun of working and playing together.

Now based in Bristol, Jenny grew up in “the mysterious and magical county of Cornwall,” where she found joy and inspiration in the natural world, from the strange sea life in rock pools to the beautiful wildflowers that grew from seeds carried across the Mediterranean.

After earning a BA in Graphic & Packaging Design and an MA in Multimedia, Jenny worked as a digital and print designer for 18 years. She was always most at home with illustrative work, and today enjoys creating with painty textures and Procreate on her iPad.

I do like that she often features lots of food in her pictures, and has done illustrated recipes and children’s picture books. How cute is that mouse holding a strawberry?

Her client list includes Papyrus, HarperCollins, Scholastic, Little Tiger Press, Cartoon Network, and Warner Brothers.

For more, visit Jenny Miriam’s Official Website, Instagram and Etsy Shop.

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2. New Picture Book Alert: Today is official pub day for The Wolf Effect: A Wilderness Revival Story by Rosanne Parry and Jennifer Thermes (Greenwillow Books, 2024).

From award-winning author Rosanne Parry and acclaimed illustrator Jennifer Thermes, The Wolf Effect is an interactive, educational, narrative nonfiction picture book chronicling the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone National Park and the trophic cascade effect they caused. Featuring a blend of poetry, sidebars, and backmatter, as well as reader-friendly comic panels, this picture book explores wolves, food chains, habitats, animal behavior, the environment, the history of Yellowstone Park, the impact of human behavior on the natural world, and how bringing wolves back to the park ultimately rejuvenated its ecosystems.

The Wolf Effect is an accessible and rewarding picture book that will appeal to parents, librarians, environmental activists, and animal lovers of all ages. Features extensive backmatter, including a glossary, resources, an illustrated guide to the animals featured in the book, and notes from the author and artist.

Doesn’t this sound fascinating? Though I haven’t read any of Rosanne’s other books, I am a big Jennifer Thermes fan. I like the idea of presenting facts via poetry, sidebars and comic panels along with a main narrative, and I’ve always enjoyed Jennifer’s maps and drawing style. Can’t wait to see this one!

Congratulations Rosanne and Jennifer!

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3. Tea for Three: You know I can’t resist a nice tea towel, and the best ones are made in the UK. Oh, the variety!

Here’s a trio from Ulster Weavers. They’re all 100% cotton, machine washable, and have a loop for hanging. I own several UW towels and can attest to their high quality.

How cute is this Raining Cats and Dogs one?

Love the rich colors of The Farm Shop:

And of course this Afternoon Tea towel caught my eye. Victoria Sponge or Battenberg Cake anyone?

Your kitchen deserves one of these. To see lots more, visit this Bees Knees British Imports page. Such a dangerous place to shop. 😀

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4. Ceramics Fix: Check out these charming vintage plates by Kelly of The Storybook Rabbit. Based in New South Wales, Australia, Kelly is known for her love of bunnies. 🙂 Each of her plates features hand painted lettering and accents with transfer decals of Kelly’s own drawings.

I like the idea of repurposing retro items and giving them new lives. Kelly’s plates come in different sizes and shapes and are for decoration only.

See the complete plate collection + Kelly’s limited edition laser cut jewelry at her Official Website, Facebook, Instagram and Etsy Shop.

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5. Another New Picture Book Alert: The Magic Box: A Book of Opposites by Charles Ghigna and Jacqueline East (Schiffer Kids, 2024), was just released April 28:

Emerging readers learn all about opposites with an adorable panda in this picture book from award-winning children’s author Charles Ghigna—Father Goose®—and illustrator Jacqueline East.

Pandora the panda goes on a journey of imagination and curiosity when she discovers a magic box. What is this box? What should she do with it? 

Pick it UP? 
Put it DOWN? 

Join Pandora to explore the highs and lows, the ins and outs, and the many other opposites that are near, far, and everywhere you are! Basic words, short sentences, and lots of repetition make The Magic Box an ideal first reading book for emerging readers ages four to eight.

Okay, how adorable is Pandora the Panda? Looks like a really fun way to learn opposites. Snatch a copy for your favorite little munchkin soon. Hug me, please.

Congrats Pa Goose and Jacqueline!

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6. Travel Bug: If you’re in the mood for a little armchair traveling — especially if you love New York — check out Clare Caulfield’s fabulous prints.

Based in Yorkshire, England, Clare is inspired by her travels to some of the world’s greatest cities. Her distinctive illustrative style is a blend of painting, pen-and-ink line work and various printmaking techniques, which enables her to capture the life and vibrancy of the places she loves to visit.

You can feel the energy and spontaneity in her captivating, quirky depictions of time-worn historic buildings and city streets. It’s a fresh way of appreciating architectural details and rethinking some of the iconic landmarks in Paris, Rome, Sydney, Venice, and New York, which seems to be a particular favorite.

Visit Clare’s Official Website for more; don’t miss this great UK Handmade interview where she discusses in detail her printmaking techniques. To purchase originals, various types of signed and unsigned prints in different sizes, and art cards, visit her Website Shop or her Etsy Shop.

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7. Hooray for Wordsworth the Poet! Basil and Cornelius are celebrating Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month by reading the latest book in the series about their whiskered poetry- loving Hawaiian friend Wordsworth. Check out Wordsworth the Haiku Teacher by Frances H. Kakugawa and Scott Goto (Watermark Publishing, 2023):

In the fifth installment of this award-winning children’s series, Wordsworth the Poet needs help with his school assignment: teach the traditional art of haiku to his classmates! But how does a student become a teacher? Who better to ask than another poet and former teacher?

Author Frances H. Kakugawa weaves herself into Wordsworth’s latest adventure as his pen pal, giving the little mouse the confidence to teach his friends the simple structure of haiku poetry—three lines of five, seven and five syllables each. “Capture an image so others can see and feel and taste it, too,” Wordsworth encourages his new students.

With beautiful illustrations by Scott Goto, Wordsworth the Haiku Teacher makes the art of haiku engaging and introduces writing concepts such as simile, metaphor and personification in easy-to-understand terms.

Cornelius remembers when Frances visited Alphabet Soup eleven (!) years ago to discuss the series, which celebrates the power and wonder of poetry, the enduring value of friendship, and the primacy of the imagination. Each story encourages kids to try writing their own poems, making this series a perfect choice for language arts/writing units. Best of all, it’s set in Hawaii!! 🙂

Thanks to this talented mouse for showing us the way. Wordsworth marches on!

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8. Cuteness Overload: Speaking of mice, can’t resist these adorable handmade needle felted critters by Nadine of Rabbit Foot Craft.

Each mousie is made to order from high quality 100% merino wool, is freestanding and about 3.8″ tall. They have flexible paws and their tiny fingers and tail also move and bend, allowing you to pose them as you wish. These are strictly collectible items and not suitable for children. Nadine’s mice ship from Portugal with processing time about 1-2 weeks + delivery.

Would you look at those wee slippers on this angel mouse?

Love the satchel and distinguished air of this gentleman traveler.

In case you’re not into mice, Nadine does make cats too. Miao!!!

Visit the Rabbit Foot Craft Etsy Shop to see all the cuties.

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9. Chew on These: I know, I know. We’re at #9 and you’re famished!! Have you forgotten to feed us, you ask? Of course not. Just testing your resolve. Stop the fake fainting. Here’s the foodie/kitchen stuff.

We all know life’s too short not to have fun. Genuine Fred always brings it with novelty items to make us smile.

Wanna take the drudgery out of routine kitchen tasks? Consider this Neat and Novel set of Book Kitchen Sponges. These strong, absorbent 3-layer sponges are safe on cookware, dishes, appliances, etc., and have a non-scratch scrubby bottom layer. Now you can turn the page on those dirty dishes and start a new chapter! 🙂

Not into novels, then what about ramen? Top Scrub is a hardworking, durable sponge made of natural hemp and PP scrubber wrapped around an absorbent poly sponge. Perfect gift for a college student, right? No more noodling around, get to work!

Now that your kitchen is sparkling clean, why not make a list of what snacks you’d like to buy? That’s where Roll O’ Notes Fruit Cocktail comes in. These perforated sticky notes will help you keep track of important stuff. Each tube contains 33 feet of notes; in addition to Fruit Cocktail, they also come in Sushi, Baked Beans, and Ramen. Roll on, baby, roll on!

Since you’ve made it to the end of this Roundup, you deserve a treat. How about chocolate? Here you go:

Please don’t make the mistake of eating these, though — you’d be chewing for a LONG time. These Sweet Mistakes scented erasers take the art of correction to a deliciously new level. They come in sets of four, are made of BPA-free TPU rubber and are packed in a giftable chocolate box. Wonderful desk accessory, don’t you think? And calorie free. 🙂

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Our Swoon Tune this month is in celebration of Bob Dylan’s 83rd birthday on May 24. Released in July 1965, “Like a Rolling Stone” is still considered one of the most influential compositions in postwar popular music.

Clocking in at 6-1/2 minutes, it completed the transformation of Dylan’s image from folk singer to rock star, and was revolutionary in its combination of musical elements (electric guitar licks, organ chords, Dylan’s young and cynically jeering voice — an amalgamation of blues, impressionism, allegory).

Dylan wrote the song after a grueling tour in England, which left him drained, disillusioned with the public’s expectations of him, and ready to quit the music business. He poured out his frustrations in 10 pages of verse that later acquired musical form. Since he’d never written anything like it before, he considered it a breakthrough, changing his perception of where his career could go.

When inducting Dylan in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, Bruce Springsteen said:

The first time I heard Bob Dylan, I was in the car with my mother listening to WMCA, and on came that snare shot that sounded like somebody’d kicked open the door to your mind … The way that Elvis freed your body, Dylan freed your mind, and showed us that because the music was physical did not mean it was anti-intellect. He had the vision and talent to make a pop song so that it contained the whole world. He invented a new way a pop singer could sound, broke through the limitations of what a recording could achieve, and he changed the face of rock’n’roll for ever and ever.

In this video, Dylan performs the song live for the first time at the Newport Folk Festival, just five days after it was released. It famously angered folk purists who felt betrayed Dylan had “gone electric.” Truly an incredible moment in pop music history.

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HAPPY TUESDAY

HAPPY WEEK

DANCE AROUND A MAYPOLE IN WILD ABANDON

PICK SOME FLOWERS

BE KIND

GIVE SOMEONE A HUG

THINK BLUE

BE TRUE

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