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.

    Full of vibrant and playful illustrations and hilariously absurd logic, kids will want to read it again and again.Could there be anything worse for Giraffe? Maybe being sat on by a skunk or smooshed by two hapless hippos, or worst of all—cornered by a hungry lion? No one seems to notice that Giraffe is not standing around just to be sat upon. Will he be able to find his voice and make his friends realize who he really is?

    “Feed us! Feed us!” the little ones chant, and Mama calms them as only a mother can—before she frantically flies away to gather more delectable worms. Readers can count with Mama Bird as she zooms back and forth across the pages, going from seven hungry babies to none…until one by one the babies wake up again…hungry!

    Fish wants to help his friend Ms. Clam when she loses's her pearl, but though he's fast as a sailfish, as smart as dolphin, and as strong as a shark, Mr. Fish has a secret: he's scared of the dark!Very young children will swim along with Mr. Fish as he journeys deep into the ocean to new and mysterious places. They will discover, as Mr. Fish does, the power of friendship to light the way through the big-big dark.

    . . "Hey, I may be a squirrel, but my name is Taco! And I don't eat nuts and tree bark—blech—I prefer tacos!" The natural predator of squirrels is . . . "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Who is writing this book? I do not like where this is going." This hilarious send-up of a children's nature primer teaches kids that the most important story is the one you write yourself.

    . . takes a nap Dog can Sit. He can Stay. He can even Dance. But when he's in charge, can he keep the cats in line? All one, two, three, four, five of them? Illustrated by Caldecott winner, Dan Santat, and packed full of slapstick silliness and utterly earnest charm, Dog will quickly wiggle his way into preschoolers' hearts.

    He appears to have everything he needs, but one day he signs that he is sad and needs a friend. His keepers bring him a tiny cat called Beauty and the two of them become inseparable.

    But foxes are sneaky, and it proves more difficult than she thought.Nilah Magruder's debut picture book charmingly tells the story of what it means to not give up and how sometimes what you're looking for is closer than you think.

    He loves to carve boats out of the driftwood he finds on the beach nearby. He makes:big boatslong boatsshort boats andtall boats,each one more beautiful than the last, and sends them out to sea. If they don't come back, he knows they've found their way to his papa, whom he misses very much. In this stunning debut, author/illustrator Jessixa Bagley explores the subtle and deep emotions associated with loss in a heartwarming tale that is sure to stay with the reader long after the book is closed.A Neal Porter Book

    In fact, the only thing Bear loves more than cleaning is taking care of his small stuffed friend, Ursa.Then Bear sees a sticky spiderweb . . . and where there's a web there is certainly a spider! The messy guest must be found, but what Bear and Ursa finally discover might just be an unlikely friend.Opposites attract in this adorable story, where new friends come in all shapes and sizes.

    To be your favorite animal. 2. To get to the delicious salad at the end of the book.But when he gets to the salad, he discovers that there's a carrot in it. And Escargot hates carrots. But when he finally tries one—with a little help from you!—he discovers that it's not so bad after all

    She wears them to the dentist, to the supermarket, and most importantly, to her super-special dress-up birthday party. Her dads have decorated everything for the party and Harriet has her most favorite costume all picked out for the big day. There’s just one thing missing—party hats!But when Harriet dons her special penguin errand-running costume and sets out to find the perfect ones, she finds something else instead—real penguins! Harriet gets carried away with the flock. She may look like a penguin, but she’s not so sure she belongs in the arctic. Can Harriet manage her way back to her dad's (and the party hats!) in time for her special day?

    "Not me!" says Froggy, and together they leapfrog to the bus stop -- flop flop flop. Froggy's exuberant antics, complete with sound effects, will delight his many fans and reassure them that school can be fun."This is a great read-aloud with sounds and words that encourage active participation....A charming story to calm those pre-school jitters." -- School Library JournalJonathan London is the author of many books for children, including I See the Moon and the Moon Sees Me, Like Butter on Pancakes and four other books about Froggy.

    Full-color illustrations.

     B is for Boots stowed in our bunker gear. From A to Z, volunteer firefighter and fine artist Chris Demarest presents a day-in-the-life of firefighters whose job it is to answer the call to put out fires and save property and lives. In a simple, informative text and with glowing realistic illustrations that thoroughly envelop the reader, the danger of fire and the courageous job firefighters do every day are brought to life for readers everywhere.