Overground Railroad


Lesa Cline-Ransome - 2020
    Stop by stop, the perceptive young narrator tells her journey in poems, leaving behind the cotton fields and distant Blue Ridge mountains.Each leg of the trip brings new revelations as scenes out the window of folks working in fields give way to the Delaware River, the curtain that separates the colored car is removed, and glimpses of the freedom and opportunity the family hopes to find come into view. As they travel, Ruth Ellen reads from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, reflecting on how her journey mirrors her own-- until finally the train arrives at its last stop, New York's Penn Station, and the family heads out into a night filled with bright lights, glimmering stars, and new possiblity.James Ransome's mixed-media illustrations are full of bold color and texture, bringing Ruth Ellen's journey to life, from sprawling cotton fields to cramped train cars, the wary glances of other passengers and the dark forest through which Frederick Douglass traveled towards freedom. Overground Railroad is, as Lesa notes, a story "of people who were running from and running to at the same time," and it's a story that will stay with readers long after the final pages.A Junior Library Guild SelectionPraise for Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome's Before She Was Harriet , a Coretta Scott King Honor Book and winner of the Christopher Award* "Ransome's lavishly detailed and expansive double-page spreads situate young readers in each time and place as the text takes them further into the past."--Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review* "a powerful reminder of how all children carry within them the potential for greatness."--Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

A Dog Named Doug


Karma Wilson - 2018
    Doug is a dog that loves to dig. But when Doug digs he doesn’t just dig holes in the backyard.He digs…ditches the size of tractors! He digs…tunnels through gold mines! He even digs his way into…the White House!But not even the Secret Service can stop this digging doggy, because when Doug digs, oh boy, does Doug DIG!

Ready, Set, Sail!


Meg Fleming - 2018
    And after a long day of sailing, they gather and tell tales of all the things they've seen!

Charlie Chooses


Lou Peacock - 2020
    It doesn't matter if the choice is between flavors of ice cream, pairs of underwear, or whether to sleep with the lights on or off—the options are always overwhelming. In fact, it’s easier when Charlie doesn’t choose at all. However, with Charlie’s birthday fast approaching, he is determined to choose the absolute best gift for himself: a dog! And when a furry friend chooses him instead, making decisions suddenly becomes a little bit easier.

Don't Blink!


Tom Booth - 2017
    Think you can win a staring contest against an elephant? What about a gorilla, a cheetah, a fox, or an alligator? What about all them AND a bunch of their other animal friends at the same time? You're about to find out!Whatever you do DON'T BLINK!

Twenty-One Elephants and Still Standing


April Jones Prince - 2005
    But some wondered just how much weight the new bridge could hold. Was it truly safe?One man seized the opportunity to show people in Brooklyn, New York and the world that the Brooklyn Bridge was in fact strong enough to hold even the heaviest of passengers. P. T. Barnum, creator of “The Greatest Show on Earth,” would present a show too big for the Big Top and too wondrous to forget.

Owls Are Good at Keeping Secrets: An Unusual Alphabet


Sara O'Leary - 2018
    Kids will love to see their own quirks reflected in these adorably rendered creatures, and perhaps will be comforted to know that—just like them—narwhals can be perfectly happy all on their own and quail also get tired of being told to be quiet.

The Magician's Hat


Malcolm Mitchell - 2015
    Instead, David knows the magical power of books, which can explore dreams and develop creativity. Bring your imagination and look inside The Magician's Hat

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 Midnight Ride of Paul Revere


Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - 1861
    Illustrator Christoper Bing adds luminous paintings, historically rich engravings, and other enrichments to Longfellow's poem, tying the fiction into the fact of what really happened on that April night.

Pete the Cat: Construction Destruction


James Dean - 2015
    In the end, Pete learns that to make something special, you have to dream big.Your child will enjoy this story of Pete the Cat's construction destruction leading to an all-new playground!

Please Please the Bees


Gerald Kelley - 2017
    Every morning the bees leave a jar of honey on his doorstep, and every day he has honey for breakfast and honey in his tea. It’s an important part of his day. But all that changes when the bees go on strike. Now it’s up to Benedict to listen to the bees, and he realizes there’s a lot more he could be doing to help them. So he fixes up the hive and learns to be a better beekeeper. Will the bees be pleased?

How Sweet the Sound: The Story of Amazing Grace


Carole Boston Weatherford - 2018
    In his darkest hour he fell to his knees and prayed—and somehow the battered ship survived the storm.Grateful, he changed his ways and became a minister, yet he still owned a slave ship. But in time, empathy touched his heart. A changed man, he used his powerful words to help end slavery in England.Those words became the hymn “Amazing Grace.”

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.

Fireboat: The Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey


Maira Kalman - 2002
    Harvey fireboat was the largest, fastest, shiniest fireboatof its time, but by 1995, the city didn't need old fireboats anymore. So the Harvey retired, until a group of friends decided to save it from the scrap heap. Then, one sunny September day in 2001, something so horrible happened that the whole world shook. And a call came from the fire department, asking if the Harvey could battle the roaring flames. In this inspiring true story, Maira Kalman brings a New York City icon to life and proves that old heroes never die.