Me. . . Jane by Patrick McDonnell

I love biography picture books in theory, but I find many of them pretty lousy. They’re either so text-heavy that they can hardly be considered for the picture book crowd or the illustrations are terrible or they are mega-cheesy.

Me. . .Jane, however, is fantastic. It’s garnered numerous starred reviews from the professional review sources and I think it deserves every one of them.

The story details Jane Goodall’s early life and fascination with animals (particularly chimps). The text is very brief and to the point – it’s short enough that I can read it to Ella without her losing interest.

And the illustrations. Oh, they are so sweet and friendly and beautiful. The images themselves are as noteworthy as the topic and when the two are combined, it’s a killer duo.

This one is worth picking up.

Advance F&G picked up at TLA