Book Finder

No matter how you look at it, this pumpkin is not a pumpkin: it smiles, it frowns. Of course, it’s a jack-o-lantern! Young children will view the orange gourd in parts and as a whole on open pages in this playful board book that of course concludes with a very expressive jack-o-lantern. 

How could the teeny-tiny bone found by the teeny-tiny woman make such an un-teeny-tiny noise from her teeny-tiny cupboard?  Can the teeny tiny woman be a teeny-tiny braver?  Find out while reading this short, repetitive, and totally engaging traditional tale just right for sharing aloud.

It’s no longer summer but not yet winter; it’s autumn and a time of change.  Handsome illustrations enliven fall colors that accompany a simple rhyming text for an appealing and satisfying look at the season.

A child converses with the changing world around her as she observes and explores the transition from late summer to autumn.  Simple illustrations accompany a rhythmic text on this jaunt through woods and a town

An oak tree grows because an acorn falls to the ground; a bird nests in that tree, and so begins an environmental cycle. Small die-cuts in richly hued illustrations glimpse the next in the progression that accompanies a simple, straightforward text.

Gianna Zales enjoys lots of things but doing a research project is not one of them. Achieving a balance between school work and family is presented through humorous, recognizable characters in a well-paced plot.

The “what I did on my summer vacation” will never be the same after reading what this young fellow did!  It all started when he found a message in a bottle which took him around the world from the Great Wall of China to India’s Taj Mahal. Locales both real and imagined are only noted in witty line and wash illustration.

Short poems and gentle illustrations present seasons almost as a journal. Each entry captures natural beauty and emotions that often accompany them. For example the March 13 entry: “politely/but tired of mittens/I asked winter to please tell the snow/thank you very much, but no”.

What do circles and die-cuts on a red page have to do with apples? Find out with a page turn to see apples followed by other shapes, bright colors, and cut-outs for a surprising, delightful, and highly imaginative jaunt in a simple yet surprisingly sophisticated presentation.

A mother bear teaches her cubs what they’ll need to know as they grow. Lyrical language and gentle illustrations follow the bears over a year.

Music can be magical as Bear discovers when music inspires him to dance – to glide across the wintery landscape. (Part of the Goose and Bear series)

“There were five of them. And they were waiting…” Though seasons change, each waiting toy is ultimately satisfied and all are surprised by the latest addition. Gentle illustrations and text capture the difficulty of waiting and the pleasure when it is over.

Two plush toys, Stingray and a buffalo named Lumphy, and Plastic, a red ball, want to play in the snow. And so they do! Lush illustrations and rich language come together in the toys’ first picture book adventure. (The characters were first introduced in longer novels; all are ideal as read-alouds for younger children.)

An entire community comes together to create and learn from a garden. Students with their teachers plant a variety of edible plants from tomatoes to radishes. They explore insect residents of the garden and more. Finally, everyone comes together to enjoy the harvest. Photographs and a conversational text document this pleasure of a garden project.

Lyrical language and handsome, realistic watercolors present water in its many forms, from liquid to snow. Water is also in things like mud and even apples. Additional information about the processes seen and further readings concludes this striking and informative look at water.

Even when it’s too early to plant, there’s a lot going on underground. When a grandmother and her grandchild do plant, they tend the garden until it’s harvested and even then there’s a great deal of activity down in the dirt. Richly colored illustrations show both on top and underneath the garden.

Two toddlers and their mothers spend a day at the beach. The children share activities that involve a seagull, a sandcastle, a crab, and a wave — until the moms dry them off and pack the kids and the car up. Loose pastel illustrations capture the airiness and adventure in the day’s simple pleasures.

It’s summer! A family of five (plus dog) pack up their van and head to the beach, unpack and begin their first day of vacation. Watercolors depict the exuberant family and are a fine complement to the staccato, rhyming text.

Twelve poems for each of the four seasons come together to provide a unique perspective of the seasons.

Katy and her baby brother Olly go out and about through four seasons beginning with spring when “The birds are busy/And so am I.” Realistically rumpled children engage in recognizable activities are presented in short poems and the artist’s signature illustrations for a charming collection that celebrates childhood and the seasons.

A grandmother and her grandson enjoy flying a kite on a windy spring day near their seaside home. Lush, textured illustrations show the landscape and animal inhabitants and the way wind plays with hats. Staccato rhymes chronicle the joy-filled day that ends with a shower.

Hoppy, a small gray rabbit, uses his five senses to find out if spring has arrived yet. When it does, he calls his rabbit friends to share it with him. A recap of the five senses and what they do (and how Hoppy used them) finishes this lively look at a new and colorful season.

As Maurice’s mother begins to hibernate, the bear cub impatiently goes out to find spring. Other animals — and readers — will recognize Maurice’s mistaken token of spring and enjoy the lush collage illustrations of the season when it finally arrives.