Book picks similar to
Love Was Inside by Andrew Joyner


picture-books
picture-book
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The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles


Michelle Cuevas - 2016
    It is his task to open any bottles found at sea and make sure that the messages are delivered. He loves his job, though he has always wished that, someday, one of the letters would be addressed to him. One day he opens a party invitation—but there’s no name attached. As he devotes himself to the mystery of the intended recipient, he ends up finding something even more special: the possibility of new friends.

Red: A Crayon's Story


Michael Hall - 2015
    Red will appeal to fans of Lois Ehlert, Eric Carle, and The Day the Crayons Quit, and makes a great gift for readers of any age!Red has a bright red label, but he is, in fact, blue. His teacher tries to help him be red (let's draw strawberries!), his mother tries to help him be red by sending him out on a playdate with a yellow classmate (go draw a nice orange!), and the scissors try to help him be red by snipping his label so that he has room to breathe. But Red is miserable. He just can't be red, no matter how hard he tries! Finally, a brand-new friend offers a brand-new perspective, and Red discovers what readers have known all along. He's blue! This funny, heartwarming, colorful picture book about finding the courage to be true to your inner self can be read on multiple levels, and it offers something for everyone!

Imagine That: A Hoot & Olive Story


Jonathan D. Voss - 2019
     Olive is a little girl with a big, bright imagination. Hoot is her stuffed-animal owl…and her best friend. The two love adventures of all sorts. But on the rainiest of days, there is only one thing to do: stay inside and imagine a whole new world.Just as they’re about to begin their adventure, Hoot makes a shocking discovery—his imagination is broken! Like the best of best friends, Olive comes up with some ideas to help him. But nothing is working: not the head unscrambler, the earmuffs, or the hypnosis. Just as the two are about to give up, Olive remembers the secret ingredient to imagination, and they give it one more try.Fans of Winnie-the-Pooh and Christopher Robin, George and Martha, and Frog and Toad are certain to fall in love with the next adventure in the Hoot & Olive series.

My Dog Is as Smelly as Dirty Socks: And Other Funny Family Portraits


Hanoch Piven - 2007
    For example, her baby brother is "so "noisy he's as loud as a whistle, a horn, and even a fire truck! that she creates a picture of him with whistles for eyes, a horn mouth, and holding a fire truck. After the girl has described everyone in her family (including herself, in great detail), she asks, "What does "your "special family look like?" encouraging readers to create their own portraits. With a list of objects at the end of the book to use as a guide, this is the ideal choice for budding artists everywhere.Here's a wonderful exploration of simile and metaphor for young readers. And don't miss the companion book "My Best Friend is as Sharp as a Pencil"!"

Can I Be Your Dog?


Troy Cummings - 2018
    Arfy writes to every person on Butternut Street about what a great pet he'd make. His letters to prospective owners share that he's house broken! He has his own squeaky bone! He can learn to live with cats! But, no one wants him. Won't anyone open their heart--and home--to a lonesome dog?

My No No No Day


Rebecca Patterson - 2012
    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!

The Day I Lost My Superpowers


Michaël Escoffier - 2013
    A part of this magic is that with just a little imagination, we all might be found to possess true superpowers!This isn't the first or last book where a child delightedly discovers her own superpowers. But it may be just about the driest, funniest, and sweetest, where the discovery is handled with humor and charm.One of the book's true pleasures is that it's a girl who discovers her own extraordinary abilities, and when her powers fail, as they must, she discovers them in her mom. All of which leads to a lovely intimacy between the two.

Fraidyzoo


Thyra Heder - 2013
    She’s afraid to go back to the zoo; the only trouble is, she can’t remember why. As an ingenious solution to help her remember, her mom, dad, and sister construct homemade costumes and act out zoo animals—in alphabetical order, no less! The costumes and scenes grow increasingly elaborate and breathtakingly creative. An umbrella and bubble wrap magically transform into a jellyfish, bath towels and a can of soda become a parrot, and many, many more. At the end of the day, Little T has conquered her fear and no longer feels like a "fraidyzoo." In this charming, witty picture book debut, Thyra Heder honors the bravery it takes to face your fears, and the loving people who help you do so.

Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too?


Eric Carle - 1991
    Bright collage illustrations and simple text reinforce the theme that everyone has a mother, and every mother loves her child.Meet the little joey bouncing in mother kangaroo’s pouch. Watch little cubs prance around mother lion. Swim with a baby dolphin calf in the deep blue sea. Eric Carle’s classic, colorful collages of baby animals and their mothers will delight and comfort young readers.Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too? is a warm and approachable book to use in the classroom, to cuddle up reading with a little one, and to give as a baby shower or Mother's Day gift.

School's First Day of School


Adam Rex - 2016
    . . the school.

The Wonderful Things You Will Be


Emily Winfield Martin - 2015
    . . now and forever!   From brave and bold to creative and clever, Emily Winfield Martin's rhythmic rhyme expresses all the loving things that parents think of when they look at their children. With beautiful, and sometimes humorous, illustrations, and a clever gatefold with kids in costumes, this is a book grown-ups will love reading over and over to kids—both young and old. A great gift for any occasion, but a special stand-out for baby showers, birthdays, and graduation. The Wonderful Things You Will Be has a loving and truthful message that will endure for lifetimes.

I Like Myself!


Karen Beaumont - 2004
    Messy hair? Beaver breath? So what! Here's a little girl who knows what really matters.At once silly and serious, Karen Beaumont's joyous rhyming text and David Catrow's wild illustrations unite in a book that is sassy, soulful--and straight from the heart.About the Author:KAREN BEAUMONT's picture books include Being Friends, illustrated by Joy Allen, and Louella Mae, She's Run Away!, illustrated by Rosanne Litzinger. She lives in Capitola, California.DAVID CATROW is a political cartoonist and the illustrator of many popular books for children, including the Book Sense 76 Top Ten selection Don't Take Your Snake for a Stroll by Karin Ireland. He lives in Springfield, Ohio.

The Most Magnificent Thing


Ashley Spires - 2013
    She is going to make the most MAGNIFICENT thing! She knows just how it will look. She knows just how it will work. All she has to do is make it, and she makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!? But making her magnificent thing is anything but easy, and the girl tries and fails, repeatedly. Eventually, the girl gets really, really mad. She is so mad, in fact, that she quits. But after her dog convinces her to take a walk, she comes back to her project with renewed enthusiasm and manages to get it just right.

City Dog, Country Frog


Mo Willems - 2010
    “You’ll do,” Frog says, and together they play Country Frog games. In summer, they meet again and play City Dog games. Through the seasons, whenever City Dog visits the country he runs straight for Country Frog’s rock. In winter, things change for City Dog and Country Frog. Come spring, friendship blooms again, a little different this time.Mo Willems’ spare, poignant text and Jon J. Muth’s expressive watercolors team up to tell a story that will resonate with readers of all ages.

One


Kathryn Otoshi - 2008
    Red’s a hothead who likes to pick on Blue. Yellow, Orange, Green, and Purple don’t like what they see, but what can they do? When no one speaks up, things get out of hand—until One comes along and shows all the colors how to stand up, stand together, and count. As budding young readers learn about numbers, counting, and primary and secondary colors, they also learn about accepting each other's differences and how it sometimes just takes one voice to make everyone count.