Baby eats one and puts five in the basket, but Mama doesn't notice. As Mama and Baby wend their way through the stalls, cheeky Baby collects five oranges, four biscuits, three ears of sweet corn, two pieces of coconut . . . until Mama notices that her basket is getting very heavy! Poor Baby, she thinks, he must be very hungry by now! Rhythmic language, visual humor, and a bounty of delectable food make this a tale that is sure to whet little appetites for story time.

    . . SNAP! This novelty board book, with fun text and colorful illustrations, features adorable lions, tigers, and bears, as well as the snappy title reptile and other favorite creatures. Kids will happily lift the flap on each big animal “mouth” to discover what sound it makes. For a grand finale, all the animals appear together peering out from behind two gatefolds, so children can sneak a peek and say all the sounds again!

    Brown loves hats and can’t leave the house without wearing just the right one. But on this day, every time he opens the door to leave, the situation changes, and Mr. Brown must change his hat accordingly. At last, wearing every hat he owns, Mr. Brown is on his way. When he finally arrives at his destination, we find that it’s Mr. Brown’s birthday, and his friends have just the right hat for that as well.

    That is until the fun concludes with a quiet, cozy and delicious nap for all!

    But pretending to be something he is not never works out. What if he just tried to be himself?In the end, Willy is still a gorilla -- and that's something everyone can appreciate! Still a Gorilla! is a funny, wacky, rhyming picture book that teaches the importance of being yourself.

    Unfortunately, a hapless toad is trying to make its way across the very same road. Talk about bad timing. Is there any hope of avoiding toad-al disaster? Maybe. See what a sharp-witted and caring boy can do to save the day. Storyteller Jane Yolen has written a deceptively simple tale that's fun, exciting, and perfect for reading aloud again and again. Illustrator Karen Lee Schmidt has created an irresistible creature--and everyone who meets this toad will root for a happy ending!

    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.

    For the child who understands what round means, that's an easy one --- the apple is round. Until you turn to the next spread. There you'll see that the same question is asked, “Which one is round? What do you think?” But this time, the apple has been eaten down to its (unround) core, and the armadillo is asleep, curled into a (round) ball. Surprise! Though the objects being featured are the same, the answer to the question has now changed. This interactive concept book, written and illustrated by Mineko Mamada, contains six such pairs, illustrated with appealing, unfussy colored drawings. For each pair, children are asked to compare them based on their shape, size, height, speed or color. As with the apple and the armadillo, at first the answer to the question seems obvious, but then a turn of the page provides an unexpected twist. Young children get drawn in, first to figure out the easier answer, then to laugh when they discover the new way of looking at things. This is a unique, innovative approach to the popular concept of comparatives. It's a terrific tool for promoting school readiness with preschoolers in areas such as observation, critical thinking and creativity. But with its playful spirit, young children will just see it as a lot of fun!

    A muddy country road is no match for this little pick up--that is, until he gets stuck while pushing a dump truck out of the muck. Luckily, Blue has made a pack of farm animal friends along his route. And they're willing to whatever it takes to get their pal back on the road. Filled with truck sounds and animals noises, here is a rollicking homage to the power of friendship and the rewards of helping others.

    Rotten luck. Can't go! My truck is stuck. Tug and tow. Two engines roar. But the truck won't go. Not one inch more. Does anyone know how to make my stuck truck go? In this lyrical read-aloud, young drivers are introduced to the ins and outs of hauling, beeping, and repairing -- get ready for a fun ride!

    Winter is hereand it's time to put on your gloves and mittens and scarf and hat and...Only award-winning poet Karla Kuskin and illustrator Fumi Kosaka could make bundling up for the snow so much fun!

    It's the perfect day for the beach. And once they've put on their swimsuits and packed a picnic lunch, they're off! But with Sam, Pam, Will and Jill, nothing is as easy as it seems. Will they actually make it to the beach?

    The titles in Eileen Christelow's books all carry the Five Little Monkeys theme, and all will delight children with their antics.

    . . There's a big whale in the water and it's not budging! The boy tries everything to get the whale to leave. Nothing seems to work. Not fetch. Not tag. Not even offering his allowance. What's a boy to do? Luckily, he comes up with the perfect solution: he decides to chill out on a spray of water over the whale's spout. This colorful whale of a tale from the talented Joyce Wan is sure to inspire giggles from little guppies!

    Oh wait, puppy, wait, please, please, please, please.... In page after page of tail-wagging fun, Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Spike Lee and his wife, Beacon Award-winning producer Tonya Lewis Lee, take a close-up look at what happens when a couple of high-energy toddlers meet their match in an adventurous pup who has no plans of letting up. Irresistible illustrations by Coretta Scott King Award winner Kadir Nelson unleash countless memorable moments of toddlerhood, and puppyhood, which families with four-legged friends will enjoy over and over again. A Children's Book-of-the-Month Club Main Selection A Black Expressions Book Club Featured Selection