One swing. An obliging dad. The inevitable plea to go "Higher! Higher!" Add Leslie Patricelli’s wildly expressive illustrations, and an everyday pastime reaches new heights of humor and whimsy. How high can it go? Higher than a giraffe? Taller than a mountain? Is Earth the final frontier? The creator of a popular series of board books rises to the occasion with an ingenious picture book of very few words that expresses the giddy glee of being pushed in a swing.

    A single word of text per spread teaches readers “how to be a cat”—how to stretch, clean, pounce, feast—while the striking paper cuts illustrate the kitten’s attempts to imitate an adult cat’s mastery of each skill. At times the kitten triumphantly succeeds, and at other times the kitten struggles, in vignettes that range from whimsical to profound. A celebration of all things feline, How to Be a Cat also tells a universal story of mastering life skills, and of the sometimes tender, sometimes stern relationship between parent and child, teacher and pupil. Cat lovers of all ages will connect to this loving portrayal of a mentor-student relationship. Praise for How to Be a Cat STARRED REVIEWS "Purrrrfect for beginning readers and little artists with an eye for fine cut-paper compositions and craftsmanship." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review "A delightful picture book in every way. Beginning with the paw-print endpapers, youngsters will know that they are in for an adventure. The simplicity and flow of page design are beautifully done as viewers follow a kitten and his mother as she teaches him basic feline behavior." —School Library Journal, starred review "McClure's cut-paper spreads can be mesmerizing." —Publishers Weekly "McClure wonderfully captures the shape and movement of the feline form, and kids will also enjoy pointing out the blue and white butterflies and the black-capped chickadee that also appear on several pages." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books "Perfect for cat lovers of all ages, the book helps us reconnect with memories of our own jouney of growth and learning." —Cat Fancy

    Where could it have gone?This is the perfect Halloween book for the very youngest reader, and is just the right book to get kids and budding artists inspired to work on their own Halloween crafts.

    Hedgehog sniffs for mushrooms, Skunk nibbles at berries, Frog croaks, and Cricket sings. A full moon rises and Little Owl can't understand why anyone would want to miss it. Could the daytime be nearly as wonderful? Mama Owl begins to describe it to him, but as the sun comes up, Little Owl falls fast asleep.Putting a twist on the bedtime book, Little Owl's Night is sure to comfort any child with a curiosity about the night.

    Apples are red. Lemons are yellow. . . .Clever cutouts in the pages make a simple, original, and utterly beguiling introduction to color.Laura Vaccaro Seeger, whose The Hidden Alphabet dazzled critics and readers alike, introduces young children to color in this unique concept book with die cuts. The opening spread features a big, bright red lemon and the simple text, "Lemons are not RED." When the spread is turned an equally bright yellow lemon appears ("Lemons are YELLOW") across from a luscious red apple ("Apples are RED").And so it goes, from carrots that are not purple through reindeer that are not white, et al. The book ends with "The moon is not BLACK / The moon is SILVER / The night is BLACK / Good night! And the reader sees a tranquil night landscape and a house with the lights turned out.This title has Common Core connections.

    But the baby elephant knows just what to do: lead all the big animals down to the water, where they can drink and squirt and splosh and splash! With brilliant paintings that saturate the pages, Flora McDonnell refreshes the very concept of young picture books.

    Illustrations and simple rhyming text show how the guiding hands of a family are always there to love and nurture a child, from birth to the first day of school.

    Denise Fleming's knack for understanding the preschool set shines through in this gentle good-night story, illustrated with her signature pulp paintings.Take a colorful look at all the tired babies who are closing their eyes, and start a new bedtime ritual with your own sleepy little one.

    As he sets about the forest in search of hugs, Bobo, the lonely chimp, is obliged by all of the animals as they give hugs and snuggle with him from time to time, yet it never seems to be enough and so no one knows what to do to make him satisfied

    Her fun is interrupted when a crocodile decides to join her, followed by a flamingo, then a mouse and even a tiger! Poor Ellie’s bath is ruined. What can she do? She sucks all the water into her trunk, of course! Then she waits until all the uninvited animals have left before squirting it back. Finally she can enjoy her bath in peace! A beautifully designed, boldly illustrated picture book for the very young in which readers are encouraged to get involved in the story through tilting and shaking the book.

    Who likes to kiss? I do, I do! Even the shy do, Why not try, too? Everyone needs kisses - so what could be better than a book that is full of them? From kisses with lipstick to sleepy goodnight kisses, there's a kiss here for everyone. Find out whether worms kiss underground, with the soil all around, or whether fish kiss like this - splosh, splash, splish. And find out which kiss is the best kiss of all in this fabulous feel-good book that is full of wamth and humour.

    Again! Again, they squeal. That’s the rapturous joy Nicola Smee captures, in simple rhythmic text and charming pictures. One after the other, a group of barnyard friends climb aboard Mr. Horse for a ride. Faster, they beg…, faster! But will faster lead to disaster? No…--just a satisfying ending that toddlers will love!

    If only he could find a good resting place to hide from playful (and wide awake) Kitten!Opposites and hide-and-seek make this a fun story for nap time -- or anytime.

    They are reassured when he nobly saves the day in imaginary-play sessions as a cowboy or cop and his mustache looks good-guy great. But as time passes, their worst fears are confirmed when little Billy’s mustache starts to curl up at the ends in a suspiciously villainous fashion. Sure enough, “Billy’s disreputable mustache led him into a life of dreadful crime.” Plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor and cartoonish illustrations make this the perfect baby-shower gift for a mustachioed father-to-be.

    . .including the noisy ducklings! From the creator of A Book of Sleep and Snow Rabbit, Spring Rabbit comes a beautiful book of baby animals. Travel with the curious duck and visit babies around the world on their very first day of life.The Boston Globe calls Il Sung Na’s art “so joyous, so jubilantly colorful, it feels celebratory and poetic even when the story is simple and spare.”