Grandma’s whole family is concerned as they start to notice that she is becoming more and more forgetful. After they find her wandering the neighborhood, they need to make an important decision on her behalf—that the time has come for her to move out of her house and into an assisted living community where she can have the best care possible.

    But there's a problem, he tells her. Though he knows his letters, he doesn't know many words. “Every story starts with a single word and every word starts with a single letter,” his sister explains patiently. “Why don't you start there, with a letter?” So the boy tries. He writes a letter. An easy letter. The letter I. And from that one skinny letter, the story grows, and the little boy discovers that all of us, including him, have what we need to write our own perfect story.This picture book from award-winning author Andrew Larsen playfully and imaginatively explores a young child's process of learning to express himself. It promotes the idea that stories are available for everyone to tell, whatever way we can, and will inspire pre-readers to try writing stories of their own. The lively, fun illustrations by Mike Lowery incorporate story panels with dialogue bubbles, adding visual texture. Also helpful, the boy's story is shown both as he actually writes it --- with just a few letters, some punctuation marks and typographical symbols --- and as he imagines it. Celebrating self-expression, self-discovery and imagination, this book would enhance an early language arts lesson on writing, particularly on the parts of a story. It beautifully highlights the exciting worlds that are opened up when children begin to read and write. In a sweet touch, the boy and his sister model a close and supportive sibling relationship.

    Benjamin collects stamps and Karl collects coins, and neither one will share with their little brother. So Max decides to start a collection of his own. He’s going to collect words. He starts with small words that he cuts out of newspapers and magazines, but soon his collection has spilled out into the hall. All the while, his brothers are watching. Benjamin brags that he has one thousand stamps. Karl is just a few coins short of five hundred. But a thousand stamps is really just a bunch of stamps, and a lot of coins is only a heap of money. A pile of words, however, can make a story.  Bright, bold pictures incorporating clever wordplay accompany this highly original tale about a younger brother’s ingenuity. Max's Words is a 2007 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

    Lucy's defining moment comes when Ralph truly needs help. Because she knows what she stands for, Lucy has the courage to make a good choice. This charming story empowers children to always do the right thing and be proud of themselves, even when they are faced with sticky situation.

    Mealtime should be a piece of cake, but this finicky eater eats like a bird. And that drives his mom bananas because he really should have three square meals a day. What will happen when he dines at the home of a friend whose mom is a real health nut? Maybe he'll discover that variety is the spice of life!Children might find these sayings puzzling at first. But Bloch's witty and wonderful images, which mix whimsical line drawings with photographs of inanimate objects, make everything clear-and will leave readers of all ages pleased as punch.

    Of course, his favorite is Miss Nancy Alison Delacourt Cooper, because she has four names just as he does. The only problem is Miss Nancy, who is 96, has "lost" her memory. Undaunted, Wilfred sets out to "find" Miss Nancy's memory for her. Full-color illustrations.

    When a shy brown puppy appears at her front gate, the old woman won’t name it, because it might not outlive her. Tender watercolors capture the charm of this heartwarming story of an old woman who doesn’t know she’s lonely until she meets a plucky puppy who needs a name—and someone to love. “Rylant and Brown together create with affection and lovingly humorous touches a glimpse of old age lived with relish.” —Booklist

    When Grandpa and Noah wake up, they take off singing and hardly stop: walking the dog, splashing through puddles, and eating French toast with cinnamon.But one summer Grandpa seems to have forgotten how to do the things they love. Does he even know who Noah is?Grandma steps in energetically, filling in as best she can. But it is Noah who finds the way back to something he can share with Grandpa. Something musical. Something that makes the morning beautiful again.This is a story about how love helps usfind even what we think is lost.

    It's never too early to start bringing up the smartest baby in the whole world. So thinks the expectant Mrs. Brains, who reads to the baby inside her tummy every night and plays music and language tapes to her baby during the day. And soon enough, Mr. and Mrs. Brains have their very own Baby Brains! He reads the paper, fixes the family car, and works as a doctor in the local hospital. Now even the space program is calling on him. Is there anything Baby Brains can't do?

    Full color.

    Julie Paschkis's poems and art sing in both languages, bringing out the beauty and playfulness of the animal world.

    This story, about how a young black soldier rescues a white soldier, opens young readers' eyes to the injustices of slavery and the senselessness of war. Highly charged emotionally, this masterful retelling of a true story is seen through the white soldier's eyes.

    But it soon becomes clear that this "tadpole" is not turning into an ordinary frog! It'll take a little help from friends and a lot of ingenuity to feed and shelter this unusual, ever-growing pet. The Mysterious Tadpole, with its giddy mix of fantasy, adventure, and high humor, is one of Steven Kellogg's most popular books. It was an ALA Notable, an IRA-CBC Children's Choice, and won the Irma Simonton Black Award. For its anniversary, Steven has reworked aspects of the story and has created entirely new artwork in the bright, bold colors that weren't reproducible twenty-five years ago. He discusses why he wanted to revise the book in a lively author's note.

    She loves the noise of the cobbled streets of Boston. But when her mother dies and her father moves them to the faraway prairies of Nebraska, Elsie hears only the silence, and she feels alone in the wide sea of grass. Her only comfort is her canary, Timmy Tune. But when Timmy flies out the window, Elsie is forced to run after him, into the tall grass of the prairie, where she's finally able to hear the voice of the prairie-beautiful and noisy- and she begins to feel at home. Jane Yolen and David Small create a remarkable, poetic, vividly rendered book about finding one's place in the world.

    Wright's class can't believe it. What will it be like without question marks, apostrophes, periods, and commas? Punctuation has never been as entertaining as it is in this wacky picture book.