Crab Cake: Turning the Tide Together


Andrea Tsurumi - 2019
    Feed your craving for a hilarious, heart-warming story with Crab Cake. Humorous, intricate illustrations are perfect to engage readers aged 3-7 while teaching gentle lessons of civic engagement and rallying together as a community. Under the sea, fish do what fish do: Seahorse hides, Pufferfish puffs up, Parrotfish crunches coral, and Crab . . . bakes cakes?      Scallop swims, Dolphin blows bubbles, and . . . Crab bakes cakes.      And so life goes on, until one night when everything changes with a splash!      In the face of total disaster, can Crab's small, brave act help the community come together and carry on?

Missing Math: A Number Mystery


Loreen Leedy - 2008
    The animals can’t count, use the phone, or even find out what time it is. Rulers, money, and computers have all become completely useless. . . . Can the town’s detective solve this numerical mystery? Will he ever bring the numbers back home again? Loreen Leedy’s clever rhyming text PLUS her amusing digitally painted illustrations EQUALS proof that we need math each and every day.

A Busy Creature's Day Eating!


Mo Willems - 2018
    An alphabetical smorgasbord by Mo WillemsApples! Berries! Cereal! Is there anything this Busy Creature can't crunch?Mo Willems tells an alphabetical tale of hunger, hubris, regret, and redemption as a Busy Creature hilariously chomps and chews its way from A to P and then to Z

School for Bandits


Hannah Shaw - 2011
    But he doesn't act normal at all. He's disturbingly well behaved, clean and tidy, shockingly polite, and he even brushes his teeth!  Mr. and Mrs. Raccoon are worried—how will Ralph ever become a great raccoon bandit like Grandpa Cutlass or Uncle Whiskers?  It's time Ralph learned some bad manners . . . at Bandit School.Ralph has no chance of winning the "Best Bandit in School" competition—he's not very bandit-like at all. But sometimes good manners can be useful, and Ralph just might surprise everyone--including himself.

Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle


Claire A. Nivola - 2012
    As an adult, she dives even deeper. Whether she's designing submersibles, swimming with the whales, or taking deep-water walks, Sylvia Earle has dedicated her life to learning more about what she calls "the blue heart of the planet." With stunningly detailed pictures of the wonders of the sea, Life in the Ocean tells the story of Sylvia's growing passion and how her ocean exploration and advocacy have made her known around the world. This picture book biography also includes an informative author's note that will motivate young environmentalists.Life in the Ocean is one of The Washington Post's Best Kids Books of 2012

Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years


Stacy McAnulty - 2017
    Beloved children's book author Stacy McAnulty helps Earth tell her story, and award-winning illustrator David Litchfield brings the words to life. The book includes back matter with even more interesting tidbits.

Hibernation Station


Michelle Meadows - 2010
    Young readers will be soothed and delighted as this story introduces them to different types of hibernating animals. The creatures on the train are preparing to snuggle into sleep, although with a passenger list that includes chipmunks, bears, snakes, hedgehogs, groundhogs, frogs, turtles, mice, bats, and more, there’s a lot of noise! Will the hibernating critters ever get to sleep? Take a trip to Hibernation Station to find out!

The Burgess Animal Book for Children


Thornton W. Burgess - 1922
    During their "classroom" chats, she not only teaches Peter about Arctic Hare and Antelope Jack but also tells him about such creatures as Flying Squirrel, Mountain Beaver, Pocket Gopher, Grasshopper Mouse, Silvery Bat, Mule Deer, and Grizzly Bear.Told with all the warmth and whimsy of Burgess's stories, this engaging book acquaints youngsters with many forms of wildlife and the animals' relationships with one another. The charming collection of entertaining tales is sure to transport today's young readers to the same captivating world of nature that delighted generations of children before them.

Letting Swift River Go


Jane Yolen - 1992
    Relates Sally Jane's experience of changing times in rural America, as she lives through the drowning of the Swift River towns in western Massachusetts to form the Quabbin Reservoir.

Mapping Sam


Joyce Hesselberth - 2018
    But they can also show us what we can’t see, what we can only imagine, or how to build something. In Joyce Hesselberth’s Mapping Sam, Sam the cat puts her family to bed, and then—when all is quiet—heads out to explore her neighborhood.As Sam follows her customary path, wandering farther and farther away from home, readers encounter different kinds of maps illuminating different points of view and the various spots Sam visits. Finally, when Sam reaches her favorite place and confirms that all is well, she heads back home, climbs onto a cozy bed, and falls asleep.

The Very Busy Spider


Eric Carle - 1985
    A perfect gift to share with the child or grandchild in your life.Early one morning a little spider spins her web on a fence post. One by one, the animals of the nearby farm try to distract her, yet the busy little spider keeps diligently at her work. When she is done, she is able to show everyone that not only is her creation quite beautiful, it is also quite useful!This multi-sensory board book allows children to feel the pictures as well as see them, and is the perfect size for little hands. With its rhythmic text, The Very Busy Spider becomes an experience to touch, to see, and to hear.A beautifully executed work for the very young that satisfies the needs of both visually handicapped and sighted children without losing its artistic integrity.--The Horn Book, starred reviewBoth sighted and blind children will follow the action with ease . . . Visually and verbally, this is a winner.--Booklist, starred review.

The Rain Came Down


David Shannon - 2000
    It made the chickens squawk. The cat yowled at the chickens, and the dog barked at the cat. And still, the rain came down."The barking dog wakes the baby, the dog barks louder, and a policeman comes. His police car blocks traffic, and a woman in a taxi yells, so the taxi driver honks his horn. The truck driver in front of him gets mad and starts honking back. The beauty parlor owner comes out to look, and she bumps into the barber, and they begin to argue. A painter bonks the barber on the head with a can of paint, and then the baker opens up his umbrella and pokes the pizza man. On and on and on until suddenly . . . . . . the rain stops!The sun comes out, everything shimmers, and all of the bickering townspeople make amends–even the arguing children, who get free ice cream cones.

Water in the Park: A Book About Water and the Times of the Day


Emily Jenkins - 2013
    From the first orange glow on the water in the pond, to the last humans and animals running home from an evening rain shower, here is a day-in-the-life of a city park, and the playground within it. A rhythmic text and sweet, accessible images will immerse parents, toddlers, and young children in the summer season and the community within a park. Seasoned picture book readers may notice Emily Jenkins's classic inspirations for this book: Alvin Tresselt's Caldecott Medal-winning White Snow, Bright Snow, illustrated by Roger Duvoisin, and Charlotte Zolotow's The Park Book, illustrated by H. A. Rey.

Camp Tiger


Susan Choi - 2019
    This year, the boy is going into first grade, and his mother is encouraging him to do things on his own, just like his older brother. And the most different thing of all . . . this year, a tiger comes to the woods.

Brave Irene


William Steig - 1986
    Her mother, Mrs. Bobbin, isn't feeling so well and can't possibly deliver the beautiful ball gown she's made for the duchess to wear that very evening. So plucky Irene volunteers to get the gown to the palace on time, in spite of the fierce snowstorm that's brewing-- quite an errand for a little girl. But where there's a will, there's a way, as Irene proves in the danger-fraught adventure that follows. She must defy the wiles of the wicked wind, her most formidable opponent, and overcome many obstacles before she completes her mission. Surely, this winning heroine will inspire every child to cheer her on."Brave Irene" is a 1986 New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year.