Fish is Fish


Leo Lionni - 1970
    When the tadpole, now a frog, returns to tell his friend of the extraordinary things he’s seen, the minnow, now a fish, tries to follow in his footsteps, but quickly finds that land is not what he expected. Friendship truly saves the day in this imaginative tale of a fish out of water.

Triangle


Mac Barnett - 2017
    He is going to play a sneaky trick on his friend, Square. Or so Triangle thinks. . . . With this first tale in a new trilogy, partners in crime Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen will have readers wondering just who they can trust in a richly imagined world of shapes. Visually stunning and full of wry humor, here is a perfectly paced treat that could come only from the minds of two of today's most irreverent—and talented—picture book creators.

Not a Stick


Antoinette Portis - 2007
    Whether it's conducting an orchestra, painting a masterpiece, or slaying a dragon—give a child a stick and let imagination take over and the magic begin.

The Seven Silly Eaters


Mary Ann Hoberman - 1997
    Each new addition to the household brings a new demand for a special meal. What’s a mother to do? “[A] highly comic rhyming romp that surprisingly (and nicely) twists into a birthday story.” —School Library Journal

There Was an Old Dragon Who Swallowed a Knight


Penny Parker Klostermann - 2015
    Now meet the old dragon who swallows pretty much an entire kingdom! Will he ever learn a little moderation?! This rollicking rhyme is full to bursting with sight gags, silly characters, and plenty of burps! Parents and kids alike will delight in Ben Mantle’s precisely funny illustrations and in Penny Parker Klostermann’s wacky rhymes.In days of yore, before a certain fly's ultimately fatal encounter with an Old Lady, there was an old dragon who felt rather peckish. "There was an old dragon who swallowed a knight. / I don't know why he swallowed the knight // It's not polite!" He follows the knight with the knight's steed ("that galloped around at a terrible speed"). Then a squire, a cook, a lady, a castle, and finally a moat are each swallowed in turn. But…"With all of that water, he started to bloat. / And that's when the dragon roared, and I quote: / ‘Okay, enough! I've had enough— / More than enough of this swallowing stuff!' " So realizing that eating all those things might have been "a tad impolite," the old dragon burps them all out in reverse except the knight (which is "ahhh…just right"). Klostermann's debut is a rollicking and warped Medieval take on the well-worn cumulative rhyme. Prolific British animator and illustrator Mantle's expressive and bright cartoon illustrations of the red, horned dragon (and the contents of his stomach) are a perfect match. The antics within the dragon's stomach—every image of the steed is accompanied by a little "clippity, clippity, clippity, clop" in teeny type—and his copious burping will leave 'em laughing. No matter how many swallowed-fly titles you own, this one belongs on your shelf too. KIrkus, May 1,2015

Lexie the Word Wrangler


Rebecca Van Slyke - 2017
    She watches over baby letters while they grow into words and ties shorter words together into longer ones; she herds words into sentences, hitches sentences together, and pens them all in to tell a story. But lately, something seems off at the ranch. First the "d" goes missing from her "bandana," leaving her with a "banana" to tie around her neck, and soon afterward every "S-T-A-R" in the sky turns into "R-A-T-S." There's no doubt about it there's a word rustler causing this ruckus, and Lexie plans to track him down.

Sleeping Cinderella and Other Princess Mix-Ups


Stephanie Clarkson - 2015
    Once upon a time, four fairy tale misses, tired of dwarves, witches, princes, and kisses,so bored and fed up, or just ready to flop, upped and left home for a fairy tale swap.The fairy tale world is turned upside-down when Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel and Snow White swap places in this hilariously clever new classic! Is the grass really greener in someone else's castle?

The Dangerous Alphabet


Neil Gaiman - 2008
    . .Two children, treasure map in hand, and their pet gazelle sneak past their father, out of their house, and into a world beneath the city, where monsters and pirates roam.Will they find the treasure? Will they make it out alive?The Dangerous Alphabet is a tale of adventure, piracy, danger, and heroism told in twenty-six alphabetical lines—although even the alphabet is not to be relied upon here. A delightfully dangerous journey from national bestselling author Neil Gaiman and the monstrously talented Gris Grimly, The Dangerous Alphabet is sure to captivate and chillyoung readers.

Pumpkin Eye


Denise Fleming - 2001
    A Halloween story with just the right amount of spookiness for preschoolersIt's Halloween night! The rising moon lights the way for trick-or-treaters and sets the mood for a spooky celebration where imagination rules.Award-winning author/artist Denise Fleming turns her talents to every child's favorite holiday.

Billions of Bricks


Kurt Cyrus - 2016
    Look at all the bricks!Grab a hard hat and all your tools, and get ready for a construction adventure in counting! This clever, rhyming picture book leads readers through a day in the life of a construction crew building with bricks. A brick may seem like just a simple block, but in groupings of ten, twenty, and more, it can create many impressive structures, from hotels to schools to skyscrapers. This is a terrific introduction to counting in quantities for children.A Christy Ottaviano Book

The Teacher from the Black Lagoon


Mike Thaler - 1989
    Green's class. In his nightmare, Mrs. Green is a monster with a tail and smoke coming out of her nostrils. He is so happy when he awakes to see the real Mrs. Green that he gives her a hug.

Dozens of Doughnuts


Carrie Finison - 2020
    But just before she takes the first bite, DING DONG! Her friend Woodrow (a woodchuck) drops by. LouAnn is happy to share her doughnuts, but as soon as she and Woodrow sit down to eat, DING DONG! Clyde (a raccoon) is at the door. One by one, LouAnn's friends come over--Topsy (an opossum) and then Moufette (a skunk) and then Chip and Chomp (chipmunks)--until it's one big party. LouAnn welcomes her surprise guests and makes batch after batch of doughnuts, always dividing them equally among her friends. But she makes one BIG miscalculation. Soon LouAnn's kitchen is bare, winter is near, and she's had nothing to eat at all!

One Big Pair of Underwear


Laura Gehl - 2014
    But look out—here comes a pack of twenty pigs ready to prove that sharing makes everything twice as fun! This seriously silly picture book with artwork by the New York Times bestselling illustrator of Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site irresistibly combines the concepts of counting and sharing.

Mary Had a Little Glam


Tammi Sauer - 2016
    From the kid who lives in a shoe (and dons some fab footwear, too) to Jack, who breaks his crown but gets a great new one, Mary's school friends look fantastic in their finery. But are they now too well dressed for recess? Not to worry—Mary always shows her flair for what to wear!

Jeremy Draws a Monster


Peter McCarty - 2009
    But then themonster wants lunch! As his creation takes over, Jeremy begins to wonder how he will ever get rid of themonstrous nuisance.He entertains his unwanted guest all day, but enough is enough. Jeremy finally draws him a bus ticket out of town!With a sure artistic touch and more than a dose of humor, Peter McCarty cleverly blurs the line between his own drawings and Jeremy’s, and in doing so subtly questions the line between reality and imagination.