With very spare, incredibly lively language, this is an entertaining read-aloud, with two amazing and oh-so-adorable characters at its heart. When a greyhound meets a groundhog, wordplay and crazy antics ensue. The two animals, much like kids, work themselves into a frenzy as they whirl around and around one another. ("Around, round hound. Around, greyhound.") The pace picks up ("Around and around and astound and astound"), until they ultimately wear themselves out. Jenkins s masterful text is deceptively simple. NPR on "Toys Meet Snow" by Emily Jenkins Appelhans, whose career up to now has been in animated films such as "Coraline, " is a revelation. "Booklist, " Starred, on "Sparky!, " illustrated by Chris Appelhans Appelhans makes an auspicious picture book debut with strikingly beautiful watercolor and pencil illustrations. His style, reminiscent of Jon Klassen s, incorporates a muted color palette, but with a slightly softer, rounder quality, while also weaving in visual deadpan humor. "The Horn Book""

    But luckily, his mama is always there to catch him when he comes home. As the leaps get bigger, the frog gets braver—and before he knows it, he’s soaring out to the moon and beyond! Brought to life with touching text from New York Times bestselling author Lauren Thompson and vibrant watercolor illustrations from Matthew Cordell, this loveable little frog will hurdle his way into your heart. Come leap along, and see what it’s like to shoot for the stars...and always have a landing pad ready to catch you.

    Red Hen paints the barn red and White Duck paints the fence white. Then Blue Goose and Yellow Chick pour their paint together to make green for the grass and trees. By the time Farmer Gray comes back, the whole farm is full of color--what a wonderful surprise! Incorporating primary and secondary colors, as well as animals, this is a simple and engaging way for young children to learn basic concepts.

    How does Big Bear cuddle? Safe and fluffy. Kitty is trying out all different kinds of cuddles, but which is his favorite? The soft, warm snuggle of his baby brother. Full color.

    But not Minerva Louise! To her a snowy day--like everything else--is an adventure. But this chilly, chipper hen needs something to keep her warm. What she finds--and how she finds it--will keep young readers cackling.Minerva Louise expresses a range of emotions from pleasure to curiosity. . . . A great choice for storytime.--School Library Journal, starred reviewAn ALA Notable BookA School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

    But when will the radiant butterfly appear again? Petr Horácek uses his trademark saturated hues and simple shapes to create an enticing view of the world of colors — and a peekaboo look at the slow-paced life abuzz in the backyard garden.

    The perfect read-aloud for fans of Snappsy the Alligator and Interrupting Chicken.Step one: fill the bathStep two: put the cat in the bathStep three: put shampoo on the catStep four: rinse the catStep five: dry the catSeems simple, right? One problem: the cat has no intention of doing ANY of these things! Watch as the steps keep changing, the cat keeps escaping, the girl keeps eating cookies and the mess keeps escalating. Soon it's not just the cat who needs a bath--it's the whole house!This spoof on an instruction manual features an increasingly bewildered human, a nonchalant cat and a know-it-all narrator . . . who really doesn't know it all. How DO you give a cat a bath? Read on to find out!

    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.

    With its bright watercolor illustrations and one sentence of text per page, toddlers will love following Cookie through the days of the week--and seeing all the trouble he causes around the house!

    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.)

    He's set in his ways, and used to his normal routine in the house that he rules--or thinks he rules, anyway! Yup, he's got everything down to a science, including how to manipulate the house dog. That is until a new kitty named Poe comes along and starts messing up everything! Can Poe get Pepper to accept him as part of the family?This hilarious story reinvents the age-old new sibling topic with a furry twist, taking an emotionally heavy subject and masking it with humor--all while reinforcing the days of the week! Frann Preston-Gannon, the 2011 Maurice Sendak Fellowship Award Winner, makes a stunning US picture book debut with her unique, eye-catching artwork and clever use of text.

    Rooster is spreading the word: Hurry! Hurry! All the animals rush to the barn--and arrive just in time to greet the tiniest member of the farm family, hatching out of his egg. Eve Bunting's simple energetic text and Jeff Mack's colorful art come together in a joyful book that's perfect for preschoolers.

    But are they cuter than a piglet in a sweater? A basket of baby chicks? An elephant calf taking a bath? Of course! Sweet, funny, irreverent, but above all, cute, this keepsake-size book is perfect for both gift-giving and cuddly story times.

    He attacks. From socks to strings to many a fish, attacking, for Max, is most de-lish. But how many of these things can he actually catch? Well, let’s just say it’s no even match.

    "Bark, George," says George's mother, and George goes: "Meow," which definitely isn't right, because George is a dog.And so is his mother, who repeats, "Bark, George." And George goes, "Quack, quack."What's going on with George? Find out in this hilarious new picture book from Jules Feiffer.