My visit to the Border’s book store was an eye-opening experience. I have my new shopping list:

Wabi Sabi represents an age-old Japanese worldview. The intricate paper-cut artwork speaks for itself: the Japanese concept of beauty. In this picture book, Wabi Sabi is personified as a cat, seeking to discover the true meaning of her name. Along the way, a variety of surroundings reveals more about herself. While children may be delighted with a simple tale with an adorable cat character, themes of simplicity and beauty within the world of impermanence and imperfections are complex enough for older readers. The publisher’s web site comes with an educator’s guide.

This picture book illustrates a story of a boy who posed questions about his life. Through different situations, he discovers answers to: What is the best time to do things?…Who is the most important one?…What is the right thing to do? After reading the story, adolescents can start discussing these questions even if the character in this book may be just few years younger. These life questions are still significant for any ages. Also, the watercolor artwork is quite exquisite, not too childlike.

Leo Tolstoy is the original author of the short story, “The Three Questions,” and it makes a nice introduction to his other literary works.

DiTerlizzi created beautiful representations of Mary Howitt’s famous poem: “The Spider and the Fly.” The black-white artwork nicely complements with its dark tale. Although DiTerlizzi uses cinematic illustrations to achieve its childlike appeal, it is meaningful for older readers because they can interpret DiTerlizzi’s fly as a metaphor to their real life human experiences, especially vanity, flattery and the danger of date-rape.

I haven’t used these books with my students but I definitely will add them to my classroom library. J