Richard Van CampReseñas

This is a baby board book talking about how a babies family views them. Beautiful images with collage medium. Would not use with elementary students as it is a simple board book, but very vivid example of poetry.

Early reader book about a baby coming into the world and the parent's point of view.

I liked this book, it was very cute! This book is supposed to be for parents I'm assuming to read for their babies. The format and set up of the book is evident in this. I wouldn't use this book in my classroom because of the early content of the book.

This is a poetry book about the many things babies bring into the world such as joy, happiness, and wonder. It is simple, yet beautiful with incredible illustrations to accompany the story.

This follow-up to A Blanket of Butterflies fleshes out the lives of the previously introduced Dene inhabitants of Fort Smith in Canada's Northwest Territories as it follows a new lead character. Curtis has returned to town after a stint in rehab and seeks to reestablish his family's tradition of healing the sick. To do that he will need to solicit help from Benny the Bank, the crime figure who played the heavy in the first book.

Where A Blanket of Butterflies left a little ambiguity as far as the spiritual aspects of the story, this one goes all in on the supernatural beings with whom Curtis is also seeking rapprochement. That tack doesn't work quite as well for me, but this is still a worthy entry with some powerful moments in what I hope will be a long series about this community.

A Japanese man travels to the Northwest Territories of Canada in search of some family heirlooms. When he finds that one item has fallen into the hands of a local crime figure, it seems the story is going to be a straight-up action piece, but it has something richer in store with an ending that touches on the beliefs of the Dene people and hit me right in all the feels.

Little You is a board book that reads to me like a poem of parental love for a precious child. The words are affirmations of the child’s value and how much they are loved. The illustrations use the same palate of colors throughout as they show scenes of idyllic childhood with a loving mother and father. Parents and child are noticeably Native American, but the words and pictures are not culturally coded. They contribute to the feeling of warm, safe love and belonging.

Darling

This book is a sweet book that talks about the joy that newborns bring to the world. This book talks about babies in an positive and empowering way. This book is primary targeted towards primary grade kids.

This is not what I expected, but pretty good anyway. For some reason I thought this would be a collection of stories--and it does have several modern examples of stories told within the First Nations community. Primarily, however, this is a book encouraging us all to collect stories from our elders and community, and to pass them on, to become storytellers ourselves. VanCamp has an entire section on storytelling tips, with each tip building on the previous one. He also promotes the importance of community, supporting each other.
I really appreciated VanCamp's sincerity in supporting and improving the lives of all people. I read this aloud to my son, and he calls it the "Miracle Storybook". It's true, there are stories of miracles happening in our lives, if we choose to become aware of them.
This is obviously a book written during the recent pandemic, with references to how we stay connected when we can't easily meet in person, and counteracting the feelings of isolation.
Some of the storytelling recordings made by VanCamp have been posted online. I took the time to listen to one, and think of how meaningful it is for a person's story to be made available for all their relatives, and the larger world community (online posting done with permission of the teller.)½

"A mother and father profess their love for their little one.

With Van Camp’s spare second-person verse on the left-hand page and Flett’s graphic art in various shades of red, orange, tan, gray, black and orange against a white background on the facing page, the spreads lovingly depict a young child growing from infancy to toddlerhood. The young tyke (gender unknown) is almost always pictured with one or both parents as the babe dances with mommy, rides with dad in a boat and explores the natural world. The text has the gentle cadence of a lullaby: “Little star / with little wings // Let’s all dance / let’s all sing.” Flett, who is of Cree Métis heritage, gives each character tawny skin, almond-shaped eyes and dark hair. This, combined with her sophisticated and simple style, allows her featured family to represent relatively broad branches of the human family. The art, with the look of cut-paper collage, uses curved forms and playful prints to flesh out the affectionate tableaux. Some of the image and verse pairs are quite sophisticated (such as the line “You are mighty / you are small” paired with the image of the small baby seated on the beach but casting a very long shadow) and may go over little ones’ heads, but the soothing rhythms of the language and the affection of the scenes are right on target.

A poetic and joyful celebration. (Board book. 3-18 mos.)" From Kirkus Reviews, www.kirkusreviews.com

Parents welcome their new baby into their lives.

Love the sentiments. But would be better in a picture book format.

diverse picture book (a board book for parents welcoming a new baby; families; parental love for their child)
* Prominently features diverse characters: beautiful illustrations depict medium-dark skinned families with straight black hair (could be identified as asian or First Nations or possibly Latinx). There are some spreads with just mom and baby, and other spreads with two parents--usually one with long hair that presents as female and one with short hair that could be interpreted as male or female, or somewhere else along the gender spectrum.
* this would not be my first choice for storytime, since the story is so quiet, but it could work for a baby storytime with pre-walkers. It's a more likely choice for a gift for two parents who are welcoming a new baby.

This was just a sweet hardcover book probably aged more towards young babies and toddlers, all around great story and an easy lullaby. Probably aged too young for elementary

This is such a cute and simple text that talks about how you are perfect and wonderfully made in who you are as a person. A great read for kindergarten-2nd-grade

This primary aged book is about two parents raising their kid and teaching them as much as they can. It brings to life the everyday challenges that show how much parents should be appreciated.

Dogrib author Richard Van Camp made his board-book debut with this sweet title, which offers a loving welcome to newborn babies, from their parents and from the world. The simple text, which opens with a chant - "Hey ya hey / Hey ya hey / Hey ya hey / Dear one / Cherished one / Loved one / You have made the world beautiful again" - is paired with photographs of a diverse array of babies. The narrative offers, not just a song of welcome, but a song of promise, imagining the great effect that the newcomer will have on his family, and on the world...

I enjoyed Welcome Song for Baby: A Lullaby for Newborns, which I think will make an engaging board book for infants. First published in 2007, it was apparently given to every baby in British Columbia as part of the 2008 "Books for BC Babies" initiative. As I mentioned in my review of Van Camp's Nighty-Night: A Bedtime Song for Babies, which was created as a follow-up to this one, babies gravitate toward photographs of other babies, something both of these titles provide. Although I do think the sing-song narrative of Nighty-Night makes it a superior book to use, when reading aloud to infants, the sentiments expressed in Welcome Song for Baby are lovely, and when paired with the attention-grabbing photographs, will no doubt keep the youngest children engaged. Recommended to readers looking for sweet and loving board books to welcome a new infant into the world.

A sing-song text is paired with photographs of a diverse range of babies in this cute board book from Dogrib author Richard Van Camp. The rhyming narrative bids nighty-night to a variety of things, from baby's feet and toes to the moon and trees outside. The book concludes by telling babies that they bring light and love and joy...

Published in 2011, Nighty-Night: A Bedtime Song for Babies was apparently meant to be a follow-up to Van Camp's initial board book, Welcome Song for Baby. I found it to be a cute little bedtime book for the smallest children. The text would make for a good read-aloud, having a song-like quality - "It's nighty-night for your feet and toes; / it's nighty-night for your eyes and nose. / It's nighty-night for your ears and lips, / so let me kiss your fingertips" - that tends to work for baby audiences. The photographs are also a win, as children at this age tend to gravitate to photos of other babies. Recommended to anyone seeking sweet bedtime board books, or who is looking for baby books created by First Nations/Native American authors and/or artists.

This book would be a sweet read for primary students. It is a very short book, about two parents and a baby. The parents express their love for the baby through the words they use. It has a rhyming pattern to it, and shows all the components that make the baby who they are and why they are loved. This book was helpful because it portrayed such a sweet family that loves their child and values their culture. I would use this book by having it in my library so students can enjoy a sweet and quick read, that might help them think about who they are and why they are loved.

This is a great read for primary readers. This is a great picture book about a small family and the different daily situations they face. The little child seems to spend a great deal of time with each parent, getting love and attention. This family shows that they love their child and love the life they all have together.

This book has few words in it and emphasizes how important the little kid is to the parents and their family as a whole.

Caught in the act of tormenting a raven, brothers Toby and Chris are confronted by one very large, angry man, who demands to know where they live and who their parents are. Taking this accuser home with them, the brothers are made to listen to his story about another individual, long ago, who was cruel to ravens. This man, who imagined he had no friends, and who therefore offered his friendship to no one, was eventually transformed into a raven himself, only then discovering that he had a place among his people. It was then, in raven form, that this Raven Man decided he could help the people, guiding them through dangerous situations, and occasionally assuming his human shape again, when most needed. Ashamed now of their behavior, the boys escort their guest to the door, realizing as he departs in a rush of wings that they had been entertaining the Raven Man himself as a guest...

Dogrib author Richard Van Camp and Plains Cree illustrator George Littlechild, who subsequently collaborated on What's the Most Beautiful Thing You Know About Horses?, made their debut as a team here, in A Man Called Raven. A powerful and moving book, one which pairs a perceptive and thought-provoking tale with gorgeously colorful folk-art illustrations, it addresses a number of important themes, from the correct way for humans to interact with animals, to the importance of community to both human and animal welfare. There are clear parallels between the story of Raven Man and that of the two boys. Both are isolated from their culture and community - the former by his own belief that he is unwanted, the latter by the fact (as stated in the narrative) that their family circumstances have kept them from living on the land, as their people would have traditionally done. It is only through reconnecting with their community, by realizing that they have a place, and a worth, that they are led to stop their destructive and cruel behavior. I thought that this was an interesting and ultimately true formulation, even for people who do not belong to a traditional culture. After all, it often seems as if bullying behavior, whether the target is animal or human, arises from a deep sense of unworthiness in the bully. I appreciated that the story here addressed what is very disturbing behavior in a constructive and thoughtful way, attempting to get to the root of the problem, in the psyche of the wrongdoer, rather than offering a simple "be nice" message. Recommended to more advanced picture-book readers looking for stories about the importance of treating our animal friends humanely, and with respect, as well as to those seeking children's books with a Native American/First Nations cultural context.

"Little you / little wonder / Little wish / gentle thunder / You are mighty / you are small / You are ours / after all." So begins this poetic Canadian board book, which pairs a simple but evocative text from Dogrib author Richard Van Camp with beautifully stylized artwork from Cree-Metis illustrator Julie Flett. Words and pictures both celebrate the wonder of this child, clearly the center of his parents' world...

Having enjoyed other books from both Van Camp and Flett, I approached Little You with every expectation of enjoying it, and I was not disappointed. The text works very well as a read-aloud, something that is particularly desirable in a board book such as this, aimed at very young children, and the illustrations are lovely - simple and stylized, but also expressive - working very well in conjunction with the text. Recommended to those in the market for a celebratory board book featuring rhyming text and gorgeous artwork, as well as to those seeking children's books created by Native/First Nations authors and artists.

"Amother and father profess their love for their little one.

With Van Camp’s spare second-person verse on the left-hand page and Flett’s graphic art in various shades of red, orange, tan, gray, black and orange against a white background on the facing page, the spreads lovingly depict a young child growing from infancy to toddlerhood. The young tyke (gender unknown) is almost always pictured with one or both parents as the babe dances with mommy, rides with dad in a boat and explores the natural world. The text has the gentle cadence of a lullaby: “Little star / with little wings // Let’s all dance / let’s all sing.” Flett, who is of Cree Métis heritage, gives each character tawny skin, almond-shaped eyes and dark hair. This, combined with her sophisticated and simple style, allows her featured family to represent relatively broad branches of the human family. The art, with the look of cut-paper collage, uses curved forms and playful prints to flesh out the affectionate tableaux. Some of the image and verse pairs are quite sophisticated (such as the line “You are mighty / you are small” paired with the image of the small baby seated on the beach but casting a very long shadow) and may go over little ones’ heads, but the soothing rhythms of the language and the affection of the scenes are right on target.

A poetic and joyful celebration. (Board book. 3-18 mos.)" From Kirkus Reviews, www.kirkusreviews.com