Not a Bean


Claudia Guadalupe Martinez - 2019
    It's a fascinating home and food source for a special kind of caterpillar!With Spanish vocabulary and a clever counting concept, this poetic story shares the life cycle of a Mexican jumping bean. This curious jumping insect is actually a seedpod from a shrub called yerba de la flecha, into which a caterpillar burrows, living inside the pod until it builds a cocoon and breaks out as a moth. Perfect for preschoolers and prereaders, this creative picture book explores the Mexican jumping bean's daily life and eventual transformation and escape from the pod.

A Isn't for Fox: An Isn't Alphabet


Wendy Ulmer - 2007
    Educator Wendy Ulmer applies that principle in her jaunty, out-of-the-box alphabet A isn't for Fox: An Isn't Alphabet. Running through the alphabet, beginning readers are given a letter and then told what the letter topic isn't. A isn't for box; it isn't for fox. A is for ants that crawl over your socks. Laura Knorr's colorful, engaging artwork perfectly captures the wit and whimsy behind the alphabet that isn't what it seems but is so much more!

Ballyhoo Bay


Judy Sierra - 2009
    Sun, sea, sand, and sky - what could be more fun? Until one gray day a billboard goes up, announcing a high-rise building and all kinds of stuff. No more sand or seashells or painting or fun. And absolutely no children and wildlife allowed. Mira Bella is not one to take this plan lightly. But despite Mira Bella's conviction, can art save Ballyhoo Bay? Mom's Choice Award winner and E.B. White Read Aloud Award recipient Judy Sierra has created a modern fable for the ages, celebrating art, nature, and community. Derek Anderson's vibrant and buoyant illustrations are as close as you can get to a day at the beach without actually being there. Come put your toes in the sand at Ballyhoo Beach!

Race from A to Z (Jon Scieszka's Trucktown)


Jon Scieszka - 2013
    Three favorite Trucktown stories rolled into one

Over the River: A Turkey's Tale


Derek Anderson - 2005
    But when a hungry boy and his dog start sniffing around, the turkeys have got to think fast before they become the main course! Acclaimed artist Derek Anderson's glorious autumn artwork adds heaps of holiday humor to Lydia Maria Child's classic Thanksgiving song. And readers of all ages will be wondering who gobbles up whom until the dessert finale.

What We Wear


Maya Ajmera - 2012
    Captions suggest context for the images; “Dressing up means celebrating who we are... and what we believe,” reads one. A smiling child from Papua New Guinea wears a feathered crown and necklace, while two children from Ethiopia are adorned with decorative beads and shells. Another spread shows children from Japan, the United Kingdom, the U.S., and Malawi dressed in sports uniforms. Although the book doesn’t include any specific information or details about the apparel featured, end pages suggest ways for readers to discover more about clothing worn around the world, both in the past and in the present. Ages 4–7.

Flashing Fire Engines


Tony Mitton - 1998
    As soon as there's a fire alarm, the engines start to roar. The firefighters jump aboard...it rumbles out the door." Jump aboard a bright red fire engine with a trio of friendly animal firefighters as sirens wail, lights flash, fire hoses squirt, and fires blaze -- in this story that blends action and rhyme with all the details kids want to know about one of their favorite machines. The mix of visual entertainment and lively wordplay ensures that young children will delight in the reading experience, as will the adults fortunate enough to read aloud these irresistible rhymes!

Flying


Donald Crews - 1986
    "A satisfying adventure for very young children."--Booklist.

Farfallina & Marcel


Holly Keller - 2002
    They did everything together -- until one day, everything started to change.This beautiful and touching story shows that even as life takes different turns, friendship endures.

America: A Patriotic Primer


Lynne Cheney - 2002
     A is for America, the land that we love. B is for the Birthday of this country of ours.... To choose the twenty-six people and ideas that comprise the book, Lynne Cheney has drawn on a lifetime of learning about the American past, and on the inspiration that comes from witnessing recent history firsthand. Illustrator Robin Preiss Glasser imbues Mrs. Cheney's words with childlike joy through her exuberant drawings. Together they have created a patriotic primer, a book that teaches history by celebrating the diversity, tenacity, and faith of the American people. This A to Z of America frames the story -- and the miracle -- of our country.

Let Me Fix You a Plate: A Tale of Two Kitchens


Elizabeth Lilly - 2021
    . .First my family drives through the mountains to stop at Mamaw and Papaw's house in rural West Virginia. We share blueberry jam and toast for breakfast the next morning, then munch cookies and cut bananas to make banana pudding with Mamaw. After the last bite of pudding, we get ready for the next part of the journey, down to Florida to visit Abuela and Abuelo for crispy tostones, fresh squeezed juice, and arepas with queso blanco.Elizabeth Lilly's tale of a joyous road trip, drawn from her own experience, is illustrated with quirky charm that captures all the warmth and love of her family's two distinct cultures.

Mama, I'll Give You the World


Roni Schotter - 2006
    Mama works hard and hardly ever smiles, but when she does, she is the prettiest flower in all the World. At the end of each day, she puts her tip money in a special envelopes for Luisa-- the envelope marked "college." She wants to give her daughter the world-- but Luisa has plans of her own. It's Mama's birthday and, for one night, she wants to make Mama smile... the way she smiles in an old photograph of her dancing at a place called Roseland. So Luisa transforms Walter's World of Beauty into Roseland, by decorating it with roses and collages of Mama's customers, who are also in on Luisa's secret. And it isn't long before everyone is happily dancing, especially Mama, who is the happiest of all.

Bear in Sunshine


Stella Blackstone - 2001
    Young readers are invited to anticipate Bear's fun activities according to each new day. The simple text promotes early language development.

Africa Amazing Africa: Country by Country


Atinuke - 2019
    The book divides Africa into five sections: South, East, West, Central and North, each with its own introduction. This is followed by a page per country, containing a delightful mix of friendly, informative text and colourful illustrations. The richest king, the tallest sand dunes and the biggest waterfall on the planet are all here, alongside drummers, cocoa growers, inventors, balancing stones, salt lakes, high-tech cities and nomads who use GPS! This is non-fiction at its most exciting, exhilarating and energetic, illustrated with passion and commitment by a great new talent, Mouni Feddag.

Ambitious Girl


Meena Harris - 2021
    When a young girl sees a strong woman on TV labeled as "too assertive" and "too ambitious," it sends her on a journey of discovery through past, present, and future about the challenges faced by women and girls and the ways in which they can reframe, redefine, and reclaim words meant to knock them down.As Ambitious Girl says:No "too that" or "too this"will stop what's inside us from flowering.