You Wouldn't Want to... revels in the darker side of life in ancient times. The reader is on center stage as he or she gets a tour through life as a slave, warrior, explorer -- even a mummy! Hilarious illustrations, captions, and sidebars leave no doubt that you simply wouldn't want to be there.Cruising through space sounds pretty cool. Right? But what if an explosion leaves you short on oxygen, and Mission Control says you might not have enough electricity to make it back to Earth alive? Failure is not an option when you're stranded in outer space!

    You've never seen I Spy like this!

    But he wasn't counting on the Forest Police! It's a madcap chase of cops and robbers in this LEGO City 8x8!Book Details: Format: Paperback Publication Date: 1/1/2012 Pages: 24 Reading Level: Age 4 and Up

    Jennifer Morris’s emotive, diverting characters provide the perfect complement to Leannah’s words, leading us through the crowded streets of an urban day in the company of two pairs of siblings (one of color). We see what they see: the hulking dude with tattoos and chains assisting an elderly lady onto the bus; the Goth teenager with piercings and purple Mohawk returning a lost wallet to its owner; and the myriad interactions of daily existence, most of them well intended. Most People is a courageous, constructive response to the dystopian world of the news media.Fountas Pinnell Level M

    Today I'm starting to plan my party." So what if the Big Day's not exactly around the corner? This little girl is planning her party "now." She has to, if she wants to have the best birthday party ever. She'll have the tallest birthday cake in the world, plus camels, elephants, a ferris wheel (of course), and a castle . . . with a moat. Kids will laugh out loud at the girl's wild plans, and love the oh-so-sweet ending, which involves a modest but fun party. Jennifer LaRue Huget and LeUyen Pham brilliantly capture what it feels like to be the Birthday Girl a feeling many children will relate to.

    Wicked witch gone missing from her candied cottage? Hansel and Gretel claim it was self-defense. Did Humpty Dumpty really just fall off that wall, or was he pushed? Here are five fairy-tale stories with a twist, all told from the point of view of a streetwise police officer called Binky, who just happens to be a toad in a suit and a fedora. When Snow White doesn't make it to the beauty pageant, Officer Binky is the first to find the apple core lying by her bed. When an awful giant mysteriously crashes to the ground, upsetting the whole town, Binky discovers exactly who is responsible. Author David Levinthal and illustrator John Nickle retell these classic stories in the style of a 1940s noir detective novel—for kids!

    When one young penguin realizes his hair is all the wrong colors, how far will he go to stop the stares?Spike the Penguin wishes he wasn’t different. Even though his parents tell him his bright red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple mohawk is beautiful, he still wants to hide his head under his flippers. Determined to find a way to be like everyone else, the sad little guy sets out on an Antarctic adventure!Diving deep into the ocean to seek a solution, Spike tries out seashell hats, squid-ink dye jobs, and a seal hair salon. But when no one can make him look just right, he fears he’ll never be happy… until his friends share something unexpected.Can this little penguin learn to appreciate his perfectly awesome plumage?Spike, The Penguin With Rainbow Hair is a heartwarming children’s picture book written in playful rhyme that shares a great message about self acceptance.

    Do they really care about nutrients and mattresses, or are they hiding something? Luckily, one fearless grown-up will risk his neck and his dignity to find out. Disguised as everything from a chocolate milk scuba diver to a giant nose, this counterspy uncovers the disturbing truth. And what he learns will shock you like nothing before. Startling suckface emergencies! Dangerous digit gangs! Powerful sumo cells! Those are just some of the secrets revealed in this book by Caldecott medalist David Wisniewski. But don′t let anyone catch you reading it-especially grown-ups. Who knows what could happen if they knew that you knew?

    The author has written a clear, no-nonsense history of figs. But the publisher is sure she meant pigs. After all, what’s the difference between two measly letters? What results is a hilarious illustrated history of pigs, from the earliest times (“Pigs were presented as ‘medals’ to the winners of the first Olympics”) to the present day (“There is nothing better than enjoying a cup of tea or glass of milk with one of those famous Pig Newtons”). The author, needless to say, is not happy about this “little mix-up” and makes her feelings very clearly known—by scrawling all over the book! With sticky notes from the publisher, angry scribbles from the author, wrinkles, and pages askew, Under a Pig Tree is a playful peek into a book in “midproduction” and a humorous look at the consequences of small mistakes, by industry pro Margie Palatini and up-and-coming talent Chuck Groenink.

    Guaranteed.   Let award-winning comedy troupe Kasper Hauser transport you into the sublime universe that is SkyMaul, where Banana-ganizers and Reality-Canceling Headphones coexist with Crack Pipe Chess Sets and Llamacycles. More than just a catalog parody, SkyMaul explodes with razor-sharp wit, boundless creativity, and a keen eye for the absurd. This smart, edgy satire will earn your laughter again and again.

    But he's never satisfied: Something is missing.In his first book, actor and musician John Lithgow introduces a memorable character, a fickle yet lovable child prodigy who brings the sounds and rhythms of an orchestra to sprawling visual life. With a double gatefold showing the entire orchestra, this is the ultimate book for the music lover in all of us.Deedle-ee Doodle-eeDoom-pety CLANG!

    Waves of urban migration drew Lizzie’s attention to rising financial inequality. One day she had an idea: create a game that shows the unfairness of the landlord-tenant relationship. But game players seemed to have the most fun pretending to be wealthy landowners. Enter Charles Darrow, a marketer and salesman with a vision for transforming Lizzie’s game into an exciting staple of American family entertainment. Features back matter that includes "Monopoly Math" word problems and equations. Excellent STEM connections and resources.This title has Common Core connections.A Christy Ottaviano Book

    If you had reindeer hair, it could help you stay afloat in water. And if you had a porcupine's hair, no bully would ever bother you again! WHAT IF YOU HAD ANIMAL HAIR? is a follow-up to the adorable WHAT IF YOU HAD ANIMAL TEETH? Each spread will feature a photographic image of the animal and its hair on the left and an illustration of a child with that animal's hair on the right. As in ANIMAL TEETH, the illustrations will be humorous and will accompany informative text.

    Lighthearted verse turns Moby-Dick into a simple nursery song. Outrageous color makes even gloomy Hamlet seem like fun. Riotous images transform Jane Eyre’s ordeal into a whirlwind adventure. The Metamorphosis, Remembrance of Things Past, Don Quixote, and others have all been delivered from dense duty to delightful ditty in Scott Nash’s collection of hallowed classics, featuring notes about the original texts at the end.

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