Book picks similar to
Samantha on a Roll by Linda Ashman


picture-books
picture-book
childrens
adventure

The Construction Crew


Lynn Meltzer - 2011
    Workers use all kinds of trucks and tools to get the job done. And just in time for a family to move in. The alliterative text complete with shout-out language that young children will love is just right for preschoolers.

Snowmen at Work


Caralyn Buehner - 2012
    While we humans sleep, the snowmen go sledding, play baseball, and drink cocoa. But now it's revealed that snowmen don't just play all night--they have jobs to do, just like the parents of human kids. Dentists replace missing coal from snowman smiles while pet store owners help pair snowkids with their very own snowpuppy or snowfish to love. The pizza man delivers frozen pizza, and factory workers make the coolest toys in town. This fourth book in the New York Times bestselling Snowmen series is a gleeful, goofy delight. Kids will love spotting the silly details in each illustration, and the hidden pictures too. (They can look on the back side of the book jacket for a key to all that's concealed within.)

Brief Thief


Michaël Escoffier - 2009
    He has no time to lose!Spying something that looks just right, he goes for it and finished his business. But what Leon hasn't counted on is that he'll begin to hear a little voice whose words will change just about everything!

Hats Are Not for Cats!


Jacqueline K. Rayner - 2019
    His patronizing tirade doesn’t convince this cat, however. Defiantly, she wears an assortment of hats, described in the gleeful rhyming text, and brings in other cats to join the protest. The silliness of both text and pictures offers a cheerful take on bossiness and managing conflict, with a win-win resolution.

See You Next Year


Andrew Larsen - 2015
    Year after year, everything is comfortingly predictable: the families they see, the rhythm of the days, the stars, the bonfires, and even the pattern the tractor makes as it rakes the sand on their beach. But this year, something is different: the girl, our narrator, meets a new friend who shows her how to dive under the waves and spot satellites in the night sky. When it’s time to go, she’s sad to part ways. But she knows she can look forward to seeing him next year. Illustrated in a restrained, retro palette, this story perfectly captures the timelessness of a summer holiday. The effect is nostalgic and almost hazy, as if seen in a dream, a memory, or through the shimmering air of a hot summer day.

Hooray for Books!


Brian Won - 2017
    As Turtle searches, his friends offer to share their own favorite stories, but other books just won't do. Or is it time for Turtle to try something different? A tribute to books, reading, and the joy of sharing stories with others from Brian Won, the author/illustrator of Hooray for Hat! and Hooray for Today!.

Inside Cat


Brendan Wenzel - 2021
    Told in rhyming text, Inside Cat views the world through many windows, watching the birds, squirrels, and people go by--but when the door opens it discovers a whole new view.

Nighttime Ninja


Barbara DaCosta - 2012
    Soon he reaches his ultimate goal...and gets a big surprise! Will the nighttime ninja complete his mission?With spare text and lush illustrations, Nighttime Ninja is a fun, adventure-filled story about the power of play and imagination.

Cats Are a Liquid


Rebecca Donnelly - 2019
    Inspired by an Ig Nobel Prize–winning investigation of how cats behave like liquids, it introduces some of the physical properties of liquids—they adapt to fit a container, they flow like fluids—and is just pure fun. Like its inspiration, it makes you laugh, then think. Back matter includes a brief introduction to the different physical states: solid, liquid, gas.

Baby's Got the Blues


Carol Diggory Shields - 2014
    Like floating down easy street. . . . But wait one guitar-pickin’ minute. That’s a lie! Babies can’t talk, can’t walk, can’t even really chew. It’s enough to make the baby in this story blue, blue, blue. So get ready for a sad tale of soggy diapers, mushy meals, and sleepin’ behind bars that may make you cry, too — but more likely will make you giggle! Jamming with illustrator Lauren Tobia, Carol Diggory Shields gives a tip of the fedora to B.B. King in an ode to babyhood that’ll have readers feeling anything but blue.

Mousetronaut: Based on a (Partially) True Story


Mark Edward Kelly - 2012
    The little mouse works as hard as the bigger mice to show readiness for the mission . . . and is chosen for the flight! While in space, the astronauts are busy with their mission when disaster strikes—and only the smallest member of the crew can save the day.

My Side of the Car


Kate Feiffer - 2011
    Not today! Today they are finally on their way, and nothing can stop them - not a broken arm or a lost dog or a surprise visit. Not even her dad’s observation: "Sadie, it’s raining." Because when Sadie looks out her window, not only is it not raining on her side of the car, the sun is shining and people are watering their lawns and wearing sunglasses. Even when the road on Dad’s side starts looking more like a river, Sadie can barely see a raindrop fall on her side of the car. This warmhearted tale of a child’s optimism and a father’s loving patience is guaranteed to tickle the funny bone, no matter the weather.

The Lion Inside


Rachel Bright - 2015
    A rhyming story about one little mouse trying to make himself heard and discovering along the way that even the smallest of us has the heart of a lion.

Round Is a Tortilla: A Book of Shapes


Roseanne Thong - 2013
    In this lively picture book, children discover a world of shapes all around them: Rectangles are ice-cream carts and stone metates, triangles are slices of watermelon and quesadillas. Many of the featured objects are Latino in origin, but all are universal in appeal. With rich, boisterous illustrations, a fun-to-read rhyming text, and an informative glossary, this playful concept book will reinforce the shapes found in every child's day!

5 Little Ducks


Denise Fleming - 2016
    Young readers won’t be able to resist counting—and quacking—along!