But when Sir Zack and Caspar are taken inside for bed, King Jack - alone on his throne - finds himself feeling a bit less brave . . . especially when he hears a thing approaching, a thing with four legs.A rollicking read-aloud with a charming surprise ending and Helen Oxenbury's spare, expressive illustrations, this kid-pleaser is a classic in the making.

    "Hello, Penguin!" he says. "What shall we play?" But Penguin says nothing. Even when Ben tickles its belly, sings a funny song, does a dizzy dance, stands on his head, sticks out his tongue, and resorts to increasingly rude and drastic measures, Penguin makes no response. What will it take for Penguin to say something — or for Ben to understand what Penguin has to say? Fresh, spare illustrations bring whimsy to this wonderful tale, in which a silent Penguin turns marvelously eloquent and a little boy finally gets his heart’s desire.

    The little boy, Traction Man, and his brave pet, Scrubbing Brush, are inseparable—until the boy’s father throws the “unhygenic” Scrubbing Brush in the trash and replaces it with a “real” toy, the battery-operated TurboDog. It bleeps, speaks, and squeaks—but is not very smart. So Traction Man, wearing his airtight Astro-suit and armed with a bottle of SuperStrong Germo, enters the trash bin and rescues Scrubbing Brush from the Evil Bin Things (pizza crusts, spaghetti, and potato peels with eyes and mouths that hiss “Stay with us”). The Battle of the Bin is not to be missed—nor is the ignominious demise of TurboDog! With this satisfying sequel, Mini Grey has scored another smashing victory for imaginative play.

    A big, black, beautiful mustache. Everybody likes Mo's mustache. Now Knot, Dot, Nib, Tutu, Bob, Bill, and Ben all have mustaches too. In fact, soon EVERYBODY has a mustache! Why is everyone copying Mo? And how will he (and his mustache) ever stand out?     A wonderfully silly book about style and individuality, sure to grow on readers who don't have facial hair -- and even those who do!

    A personal account from a goldfish on life in his bowl as other intruders crowd him.

    All is uneventful until they meet Scarface Claw, the toughest tom in town, and run for home. The story is told by a brilliant, cumulative rhyming text and terrific pictures.

    The costumes are cozy. They glow in the dark. And they have masks! There’s only one problem—Pug hates wearing his. So he decides to rip it up and stay home. But Halloween just isn’t any fun for Pig without Pug! Can Pug find a way to be a good friend and get back into the Halloween spirit?

    Fortunately for him, Pine the porcupine just happens to walk by with his lucky compass-and the two set off on an adventure to find the lost leaf, only to discover true friendship in the process.In a tale both silly and sweet, Pine & Boof: The Lucky Leaf tells the story of an unlikely friendship through highly original characters and vibrant illustrations that are impossible not to love.

    All is well...until an intruder arrives in her kingdom. Surely he will be banished soon. Or could he be here to stay? Princess Puffybottom is not amused.

    He wanted a different kind of pet — one that could run and catch, or chase string and climb trees, a soft furry pet to sleep on his bed at night. Definitely not Norman. But when he tries to trade Norman for a "good pet," things don’t go as he planned. Could it be that Norman is a better pet than he thought? With wry humor and lighthearted affection, author Kelly Bennett and illustrator Noah Z. Jones tell an unexpected — and positively fishy — tale about finding the good in something you didn’t knowyou wanted.

    The beetles are using their bug mobiles like bumper cars, the roaches are protesting for better housing (down with roach motels!), and the crickets are up late, partying. Can Captain Bob keep the peace and maintain law and order? This enthusiastic, goofy-sweet read-aloud is crawling with fun rhymes, lots of action, endearing bug-eyed characters, and a few lessons in manners, too!

    Sure, he may have paws and whiskers. And his quacks might sound more like…well, meows, but he lives among ducks, everyone he knows is a duck, and he’s happy.Then Quackers meets another duck who looks like him (& talks like him, too!)—but he calls himself a cat. So silly!Quackers loves being among his new friends the cats, but he also misses his duck friends, and so he finds a way to combine the best of both worlds. Part cat, part duck, all Quackers!

    He looked inside. Then he exclaimed,"Why, it's the greatest thing ever! Mouse will love this."Bear's friends aren't so sure of his newfound treasure, however. "That's not so great," says Monkey. "I've seen those before," says Owl. And by the time Bear finds Mouse, his own doubts have grown. But Mouse has the last say when he looks inside the little box. "It is the greatest thing ever," he tells his friend. "Thank you, Bear."Part mystery, part fable, this deceptively simple story of true friendship is perfect for the very youngest reader. It is sure to tug at your heart.Good Luck Bear is the 2008 winner of the Charlotte Zolotow Award.

    With irrepressible spirit, Penguin follows his dreams to flip, flap, fly! Even if he needs a little help with the technical parts, this penguin is ready to live on the wind.

    At first he's ecstatic that you, the reader, has arrived. But then he can't help letting you know that waiting for you took too long, was way too boring, and even became insulting. The bunny is ready to forgive everything if you will promise to stay. But hold on--he has to take a phone call. Wait! Come back !Where are you going? Underneath this book's silly, in-your-face humor are feelings true to every child who has had to wait for someone's attention.