Mike Ornstein
Mike Ornstein
Children's Book Author
About
Mike Ornstein is a children's book author, living in Westchester County, NY with his wife, kids and their cool dog, Norman. He works at a public high school and loves it! Before that, he worked in the Mental Health field with children and adults for over twenty five years. Mike would describe himself as kind of a goofball who loves to laugh and joke around with people. He’s always thinking of fun ideas for his next story. Mike loves animals, nature, music, baseball and softball - especially when his kids are playing!
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Books
In the Press
Snowflakes on Our Tongues
Read this when snow is in the forecast and kids can head outside, tongues hanging out.
There are animal shenanigans on Pumpernickel Farm whenever it snows.
The animals of Pumpernickel Farm (and perhaps their tan-skinned, brown-bearded farmer?) have a peculiar habit whenever flakes start to fall. “We are the cows and we like to say Moo! / We stay warm in the winter with a thicker hairdo. / When the snow comes down, / we like to have some fun. / So we open up our mouths / and stick out our tongues.” A page turn shows the cows doing just that: “Snowflakes on our tongues! / Moo! Snowflakes on our tongues! / When the farmer isn’t looking, we catch snowflakes on our tongues!” This jaunty refrain repeats for each of the animals that follows—horse, piglets, sheep, chickens—differing only in the animals’ sounds, which little listeners will love to provide. Indeed, this is prime storytime fodder. The jazzy rhythm of the verses makes it perfect for a read-aloud, and the gloriously silly illustrations will give children the giggles, from the animals’ personal spaces to their gleeful jumps and leaps with tongues extended. A final page looks at how real-life animals on the farm adapt to the chilly winter weather and provides a few more facts about snow and snowflakes.
Read this when snow is in the forecast and kids can head outside, tongues hanging out. (Picture book. 3-7)
- Kirkus Reviews
Kindergarrrten Bus
The details will keep readers glued to the pages: Instead of stairs, the bus has a plank to walk, the windows are round like portholes, the steering wheel is that from a ship, and a jolly roger (the silhouette of a teddy bear head) flies from the roof.
X marks the school: “The treasure of all treasures!”
-Kirkus Reviews
Kirkus Reviews included Kindergarrrten Bus their "9 Great Back to School Book List"
Kindergarrrten Bus by Mike Ornstein is a perfect first day of school jitters kind of book. The afterword’s by pirate Ornstein is a note with modern sentiments for the parrrents to help your child.
Kevin Barry has created somewhat goofy, but totally adorable illustrations. They complement the equally goofy and adorable pirrrate text. You will find yourself “RRRRRing” and telling others it is “time to walk the plank!” But first, some reading of a great new book that is sure to become a favorite of your child.
-Cannonball Read
With its over-the-top cartooning and abundance of crowd-pleasing “arrr” sounds, this clever comedy may be powerful enough to defuse the worry of an entire classroom of reluctant school-goers.
-Publishers Weekly
Could Mike Ornstein actually be a pirate? I’m thinking yes! His ease with Pirate-ese makes this dialogue-rich story a comical treasure that will have kids “Harrr, harrr, harrr-ing” at every twist and turn in the book—and lucky for them, there’s a whole loot of those. Scrumptious words like “blubberin’, hornswogglin’, landlubbers,” and “blue-footed booby bird” as well as a liberal sprinkling of rrrrs make this book a joyful read-aloud that kids will clamor to participate in. Nuggets of reassurance about “rrrespect,” admitting fears and worries, and enjoying school are pure gold...
Kindergarrrten Bus is a rip-roarin’ yarn with a heart of gold that will get kids and grown-ups laughing and talking about feelings, fears, and the fact that everyone gets scared sometimes. A go-to book for fun story times and moments when a little more encouragement is needed, Kindergarrrten Bus would be a favorite on home and classroom bookshelves.
-Celebrate Picture Books
The Daddy Longlegs Blues
Bounce with The Daddy as he plays his fiddle. He’s eight long legs with a dot in the middle.” The poem, a mix of fact (both zoological and musical) and fancy, depicts a harvestman, or daddy longlegs, as a funky creature playing the blues, with a number of insects keeping time and accompanying him with the beat. ... A glossary of blues terms, definitions of the instruments played and a short description of the harvestman and the history of the blues is appended. The jazzy poem will be fun for sharing. (Picture book. 5-8)
-Kirkus Reviews
The hero of this light, rhythmic science/music primer, an itinerant eight-legged musician (who is not a spider, the back matter explains, but rather a harvestman, from the order Opiliones), really does have a right to sing the blues: “His daddy was a wanderer/ and his momma was, too./ He hatched from an egg/ his momma laid in a crack/ just before she got squashed/ in the back of a shack.” First-time author Ornstein's rhymes establish a hip vibe, with just enough winks to the audience to add humor without undercutting the message (“Come dance as The Daddy gives his drums a beat./ He has eight long legs but he ain't got feet”).
-Publishers Weekly
Animation & Read Alouds
Contact me
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