Lisa McCourt and Cyd Moore beautifully weave a reassuring tale of the love and affection of a parent. The imaginative son turns himself into a meat-eating dinosaur, a swamp creature and much, much more before being satisfied with the fact that no matter how stinky he is or how slimy of a creature he could possibly be, he is loved and nothing will change that.

    Williams' Caldecott Honor Book cry out for more more more! The stars of three little love stories - toddlers with nicknames like "Little Pumpkin" - run giggling until they are scooped up by adoring adults to be swung around, kissed, and finally tucked into bed. Quirky watercolor drawings and colorful text feature multiethnic families, and young readers will rejoice in seeing the center of all the attention: the wiggly, chubby, irresistible toddlers.

    One swing. An obliging dad. The inevitable plea to go "Higher! Higher!" Add Leslie Patricelli’s wildly expressive illustrations, and an everyday pastime reaches new heights of humor and whimsy. How high can it go? Higher than a giraffe? Taller than a mountain? Is Earth the final frontier? The creator of a popular series of board books rises to the occasion with an ingenious picture book of very few words that expresses the giddy glee of being pushed in a swing.

    Jingle music. Lights ablaze.How long till that special date?Llama Llama has to wait.If there's one thing Llama Llama doesn't like, it's waiting. He and Mama Llama rush around, shopping for presents, baking cookies, decorating the tree . . . but how long is it until Christmas? Will it ever come? Finally, Llama Llama just can't wait any more! It takes a cuddle from Mama Llama to remind him that "Gifts are nice, but there's another: The true gift is, we have each other."

    Anytime. Anything. Anywhere.Drawing is what Ramon does. It¹s what makes him happy. But in one split second, all that changes. A single reckless remark by Ramon's older brother, Leon, turns Ramon's carefree sketches into joyless struggles. Luckily for Ramon, though, his little sister, Marisol, sees the world differently. She opens his eyes to something a lot more valuable than getting things just "right." Combining the spareness of fable with the potency of parable, Peter Reynolds shines a bright beam of light on the need to kindle and tend our creative flames with care.

    . . . And here, from two of the most gifted picture-book creators of our time, is a celebration of baby fingers, baby toes, and the joy they—and the babies they belong to—bring to everyone, everywhere, all over the world! This is a gorgeously simple picture book for very young children, and once you finish the rhythmic, rhyming text, all you’ll want to do is go back to the beginning . . . and read it again! The luminous watercolor illustrations of these roly-poly little ones from a variety of backgrounds are adorable, quirky, and true to life, right down to the wrinkles, dimples, and pudges in their completely squishable arms, legs, and tummies.

    She hates her breakfast egg, she won't share, she has a hurting foot, her supper is too hot, and her bath is too cold. And then it's no, no, no to bedtime. But at last a yawn, a story, and a kiss from mother end the day, with the promise of a cheerful tomorrow.Every parent, teacher, and caregiver will respond to this hilariously accurate portrait of one toddler with a case of the Terrible Twos!

    With tempting offers from a dragonfly, the man in the moon, and even the wind itself, she will find it difficult to choose. But Flora would do anything to get rid of Crispin, wouldn’t she?Jeanne Birdsall’s utterly charming picture book takes flight in Matt Phelan’s twisting, twirling watercolors, brimming with wit and whimsy.

    Even more unusual? Out of the hat pops a baby penguin. But not just one baby penguin . . . or even two. But a third, and a fourth, and on and on!At first the mama penguin is happy for the company. Until she realizes that taking care of a family is very hard, very tiring work, and what she could really use is just a moment alone. Yet as newcomer Melissa Guion reminds us in her adorable debut picture book, alone time is all well and good, but, it's together time that's best of all.Perfect for any mama penguin with a family, or classroom, full of mischievous little ones.

    In bouncy rhyming text, a hungry child tells about helping her mother make bee-bim bop: shopping, preparing ingredients, setting the table, and finally sitting down with her family to enjoy a favorite meal. The energy and enthusiasm of the young narrator are conveyed in the whimsical illustrations, which bring details from the artist’s childhood in Korea to his depiction of a modern Korean American family. Even young readers who aren’t familiar with the dish will recognize the pride that comes from helping Mama, the fun of mixing ingredients together in a bowl, and the pleasure of sharing delicious food. Includes author’s own recipe.

    Whenever trouble comes nosing around, she springs into action with a determined "Chook, chook, chook!” and scares trouble away. Her bravery is put to the test, however, when a really big threat wanders into town and onto her tree. But no matter what, Mama’s not about to back down!

    But when she overhears her parents talking about how much they all miss her, she decides that she should go back home. After all a being a big sister means she has lots of grown up things to do!

    She likes painting and loves the way artists like Pablo Picasso mixed things up.Emily's life is a little mixed up right now. Her dad doesn't live at home anymore, and it feels like everything around her is changing.“When Picasso was sad for a while,” says Emily, “he only painted in blue. And now I am in my blue period.”It might last quite some time.A Neal Porter Book

    Home may be on the road or the sea, in the realm of myth, or in the artist's own studio. A meditation on the concept of home.

    Even the playdates with Mom's friends despite their little crawling creatures who pull Louie's ears aren't all that bad. But then things get weird: cold food on the floor, no room in the bed, and lots of new stuff coming into the house in pairs: two small beds, two little sweaters, two seats in the stroller. Does that bode double trouble ahead, or could there be a happier surprise in store for Louie?