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For me, the sight and smell of hyacinths in pink, purple and white  profusion that peopled and popped up in our living room at Easter, is a tradition that I continue for my husband and I, and for my now-grown children. And Margaret Wise Brown’s 1947 gift of a classic picture book read called The Golden Egg Book” is available now as a sturdy and portable board book. The story of newly discovered friendship enhanced beautifully by the softness of Leonard Weisgard’s iconic art of spring in bloom, only adds to the joy of this classic picture book. The emerging newness of nature is brought to delightful effect in Ms. Wise Brown’s classic original “Big Little Golden Book,” and now as a beautiful board book.

And so, as acclaimed picture book author, Tomie de Paola, reminded me today, April 17, is National Bat Appreciation Day! And today, it’s the picture book called “Rufus” by Tomi Ungerer. At night he hunts, and one propitious night, depending on how you look at things, he sees a drive-in movie (the book was written in 1980), and Rufus is gobsmacked by the COLORS. ” is a wonderful picture book to celebrate National Bat Appreciation Day, as it celebrates both Tomi and his creation named Rufus, who knows two important things: Rufus is not afraid to fly both high into the light of day, but knows when to come home.

So, here is my salute to my two brothers, Walt and Val, and also as I do this, the selection of this picture book is a homage to recently passed picture book author extraordinaire, Tomi Ungerer. And, in the words of critic Leonard Marcus, he critiques it quite succinctly: for children’s curiosity about the forces that govern the world, and their roles in that grand scheme, place they have not been before and he does the same for picture Shrouded in myth and mystery that young readers will find appealing, as they usually revel in the quirky and queer, Tomi has set the scene on the coast of Ireland. His use of varying shades of blue, gray and black here, lend a misty miasma of foreboding that only the encounter and experience with The Fog Man can dispel. The road to a child’s inner heart is sometimes hard to fathom or even find, but I think Tomi, as evidenced in his picture books, never forgot the way.

This 1989 Easter picture book classic is a perfect fit for families that would like the opportunity to share with their young readers, the events of Holy Week, beginning with the procession on Palm Sunday, through the successive solemn events that unfold, with their culmination, in the joy of Easter Sunday. In Easter, Jan uses his keen insights culled from a lifetime of observing humanity, and hones his craft into his own visual viewpoint of this remarkable and classically unique take on a religious week long journey at the heart of Christianity. And, Jan has as his instrument of telling, his trade mark black silhouetted figures outlining with their depth of profound poignancy and passion, a breathtaking look at the powerful pull of the journey taking the Christ from the hosannas of Palm Sunday, through seeming defeat and death, to glorious resurrection on Easter morning. Please enjoy this classic holiday picture book that bears sharing with a young reader, if you are looking for one allowing children, guided by their families, to share in the journey of Holy Week.