
The entire town is scammed by the new Perfect Pup Institute but not Martha. She discovers that the partners who run it are using the RoboRover Brain Stopper and saves the day (and the dogs). As all of the Martha tales, this is told and illustrated with lots of humor and verve.
Perfectly Martha

Jesse Owens was a breakthrough athlete – an African American who captured the world stage (and four gold medals!) at the 11th Olympiad in Nazi Germany. In this book, readers will learn about his life through brief text and watercolor illustrations. Younger readers may enjoy Patricia and Fredrick McKissack’s picture book, Jesse Owens: Olympic Star.
A Picture Book of Jesse Owens

Pigsty

When Admiral Drake sends a penguin named Captain Cook to the Popper family, Mr. Popper’s dreams of seeing the world begin to come true. Humor abounds in this early Newbery Honor book as readers follow Mr. Popper and his penguins to Antarctica.
Mr. Popper’s Penguins

Poppleton

When Possum comes a-knockin’ at their door, each member of the family takes a turn stopping their daily routines to see who is interrupting them. But the clever offender — a long tailed possum with top hat and vest — stays out of sight. This funny, rhyming, and cumulative tale with a distinct southern lilt is sure to twist tongues and create a smile.
Possum Come a-Knockin’

When rude roosters continue to disturb the other farm animals, only Clarissa the cow and Sophie the pig take action to stop the raucous fowl. Their tale creates lots of laughs for readers.
Poultrygeist

What do the colors, sights, and spectacle of a powwow mean to a present-day boy? A contemporary powwow transforms Anthony Standing Rock from a modern kid in a t-shirt to a powerful dancer at this Crow gathering in Montana.
Powwow

Ramona, now starting 4th grade, gets a teacher who is a stickler for proper spelling. Ramona is propelled into writing a letter when she finds an error in an advertisement — all with the verve and humor readers expect of Ramona.
Ramona’s World

What better way to introduce children to things fantastic or real than through these 200 short poems? Engagingly illustrated, this classic book features a variety of rhymes both old and new.
Read-Aloud Rhymes for the Very Young

Bob and Joan’s white puppy, Sam, is bored, so she decides to join the kids when they board the school bus. The children try to hide Sam, but she wants to play. Sam reluctantly returns home with Joan and Bob, but only after deciding that puppies need school, too!
Sam Goes to School

This collection of spooky stories and poems by well known writers such as Ogden Nash, Jack Prelutsky, and Jane Yolen has been illustrated with wit and verve in Marc Brown’s signature style. The effect is to provide young readers with slight shivers along with chuckles.
Scared Silly! A Book for the Brave

Warmly evoking the universality of a child’s relationship with her grandmother, this book follows a girl’s journey to a small village in Palestine, where she comes to know her grandmother Sitti. Once back in the United States, the child recalls the sights, sounds, and culture of Palestine as well as the commonalities between the Arabic and English speaking worlds.
Sitti’s Secret

Skylark

Cutie LaRue is normally a very agreeable child. But at bedtime she becomes downright defiant. As hard as her parents try to make Cutie sleepy, well, nothing works. But a talking doll named Night Owl may just hold the key to the Dreamland Nightclub where Cutie can dance, play music, and dream happily all night long! The talented husband/wife team of Andrea and Brian Pinkney have collaborated again to present this jaunty, imaginative nighttime tale.
Sleeping Cutie

Sleeping Ugly

Ms. Brandt’s class gets an assignment to write about all of the U.S. presidents. Basic information about who can be the president and what the job really entails is followed by a one-page overview of each president. Several blank pages and a space to fill in information at the end of George W. Bush’s term will keep this book, which has the informal look of a child’s journal, current beyond this year’s election.
Smart About the Presidents

In this Caldecott Medal book, a boy and his mother come to know a Korean neighbor when their cats escape during the Los Angeles riots. Boldly colored paintings and textured collage illustrations help distance readers while evoking the tension of the time.
Smoky Night

Can a poem capture the excitement, exhilaration, or anguish of defeat when playing sports? The poems here do all that and more! It’s an easy-to-read collection that’s illustrated with just the right light touch.
Sports! Sports! Sports! A Poetry Collection

As this book shows, brain teasers are popular everywhere! The short tales, riddles, and more are from many different countries. Readers try to figure out how the solution was found. The answers are provided and some are even embedded in decorative black and white line drawings.
Stories to Solve: Folktales from Around the World

Alice McGill retells the tales she heard growing up in North Carolina with the verve and informality of a storyteller. Some are familiar, others are less well known, but all involve Bruh (Brer) Rabbit and his companions from the lore of the southern United States.
Sure as Sunrise: Tales of Bruh Rabbit and his Walkin’ Talkin’ Friends

Even though the ancient Greeks conceived the Olympics, it was a small Frenchman “with a shrill voice and a bushy mustache” who almost single-handedly brought the modern Olympics to life again. This revealing, clear, and handsome book provides an engaging and authoritative overview of the summer Olympics.
Swifter, Higher, Stronger: A Photographic History of the Summer Olympics

The fun begins when Tricky Fox makes a bet with his brother that he can trick a silly human into giving him a pig. “I’ll eat my hat if you can,” says his brother, and Tricky Fox sets off to win the bet. The endearingly antique pictures add to the merriment, especially when the conniving fox winks at readers, drawing them into his joke.
A Tale of Tricky Fox: A New England Trickster

This countdown to bedtime begins with “10 small toes all washed and warm” until one little girl is tucked snugly into bed by her loving dad. Richly hued illustrations, warmly detailed, combine with a straightforward text that holds up to multiple readings as well as careful examination.