At Christmastime, the flower blooms and flourishes, the quite exquisite red stars lighting up the countryside.This Mexican legend tells how the poinsettia came to be, through a little girl's unselfish gift to the Christ Child. Beloved Newbery honor-winning author and Caldecott honor-winning illustrator Tomie dePaola has embraced the legend using his own special feeling for Christmas. His glorious paintings capture not only the brilliant colors of Mexico and its art, but also the excitement of the children preparing for Christmas and the hope of Lucida, who comes to see what makes a gift truly beautiful.

    She sides with the birds, and observing them informs her about her own family.Amelia Bedelia Is for the Birds is a Level One I Can Read book, which means it's perfect for children learning to sound out words and sentences.

    Her passion for the natural world lay behind the creation of her famous series of little books. A particular source of inspiration was the English Lake District where she lived for the last thirty years of her life as a farmer and land conservationist, working with the National Trust.As a child Beatrix Potter had known a charming old Scottish country washerwoman called Kitty MacDonald. In The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle the heroine, Lucie, meets a similar small, round, twinkly-eyed washerwoman; but this one has prickles under her cap and does the laundry for some surprising customers.

    Under the stars the bear finds his way step by step through the snowy forest, making friends along his route. Then the bear discovers a place in the woods that glows magically with something he and his friends could never have imagined -- their first Christmas. Robert Kinerk's inspired story and Jim LaMarche's glimmering illustrations combine in a picture book that captures the joy and spirit of Christmas. Come along with bear and his friends and see the magical light of Bear's First Christmas.

    Baby Bear is back in this cozy, counting-themed companion to the celebrated Baby Bear Sees Blue.Fall has arrived in Baby Bear's forest, and the woods are teeming with animals busily preparing for winter.How many animals?Count along from one to ten with Baby Bear as he and Mama hustle home to their cozy den; just in time for the season's first snowfall.

    The sun has set, and sleepyheads all across the land are tucked into their cozy beds.Rabbit is snoozing in the weeds, and Duck is snuggled in the reeds.Bear is nestled in his cave, and Otter is rocking on a wave.But there's one little sleepyhead who's not in his bed.Where, oh where, could he be?This sweet, snuggly, and silly bedtime book with irresistible illustrations is sure to prepare little ones for a cozy night's sleep.

    Snow had fallen and the streets glittered. Maria's favorite cousins were coming over and she got to help make the tamales for Christmas dinner. It was almost too good to be true when her mother left the kitchen for a moment and Maria got to try on her beautiful diamond ring . . .This is the story of a treasure thought to be lost in a batch of tamales; of a desperate and funny attempt by Maria and her cousins to eat their way out of trouble; and the warm way a family pulls together to make it a perfect Christmas after all.

    She is unashamedly, irrefutably, irrepressibly wild. That is, until she is snared by some very strange animals that look oddly like her, but they don't talk right, eat right, or play correctly. She's puzzled by their behavior and their insistence on living in these strange concrete structures: there's no green here, no animals, no trees, no rivers. Now she lives in the comfort of civilization. But will civilization get comfortable with her?In her debut picture book, Hughes brings an uncanny humor to her painterly illustrations. Her work is awash with color, atmosphere, and a stunning visual splendor that will enchant children while indulging their wilder tendencies. Wild is a twenty-first-century answer to Maurice Sendak's children's classic—it has the same inventiveness, groundbreaking art, and unmissable quirkiness.Emily Hughes is a talented young illustrator. Her book Nana Shaped Like a Banana won second prize in the 2012 Macmillan Children's Book Awards.

    Over the ice, through the water, past Arctic animals and even a human…where is he going? What does he want?

    Gloria is too small to throw or catch a ball. Besides, Albert is Frances's friend. But when Albert has a no-girls baseball game, Frances sets out to prove to Albert a thing or two about friendship—and a thing or two about what girls can do. Along the way, Frances discovers that sisters can indeed be friends . . . maybe even best friends.Now reillustrated in lovely soft pastels by original artist Lillian Hoban, this satisfying story of friendship is sure to have the many fans of this irresponsible badger cheering once again.

    But one cold winter’s night Percy discovers that his little friends need more than food, and he must think of a way to help them find a warm place to sleep for the night. Percy’s hut is nice and warm, but he discovers that if you invite one animal in you’ll have to invite them all in. With Percy's small hut—they are certainly going to be squashed!

    When the tadpole, now a frog, returns to tell his friend of the extraordinary things he’s seen, the minnow, now a fish, tries to follow in his footsteps, but quickly finds that land is not what he expected. Friendship truly saves the day in this imaginative tale of a fish out of water.

    . . but at night, he dreamed of being a detective. When a kitty goes missing, could it be time for Shark's dreams to finally come true?

    Turns out, trying something new isn't always easy, but sometimes, it's the hardest work that leads to the greatest reward.

    When they can't find Christopher Robin, Pooh and his friends undertake a perilous search for him, and learn they're smarter, braver, and more loyal than they ever dreamed they'd be.