Home is a Wish by Julia Kuo - ADVISABLE

Home is a Wish by Julia Kuo. PICTURE BOOK. Roaring Brook Press (Macmillan), 2025. $19. 9781250881328 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

A young Asian girl loves her home. Sometimes they leave, but they always come home. Then one day, they pack up all their belongings and fly on an airplane to somewhere new. The new apartment does not feel like home. Home is just a wish. Will she ever find her home again?

Home is a Wish is about moving and finding a new place to fit in, and how we carry home in our hearts. What is different becomes familiar. I enjoyed the sad, moody feelings that the beautiful illustrations created.

PGPowers 

Hello Daisy by Melanie Grenier - ADVISABLE

Hello Daisy by Melanie Grenier. BOARD BOOK. Owlkids Books Inc., 2025. $12. 9781771476829 

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: MANY

A happy, cheerful daisy greets the shining sun on a beautiful day. She greets the bee as it tickles her. She happily greets the wind and the clouds. All of a sudden, something falls on the daisy. Everything is dark, and she is scared, sad, and confused. She begins to cry. What has happened, and will anyone help her?

Hello Daisy! is a gentle, positive way to encourage young readers to respect our environment. I loved looking at things from the cute daisy's viewpoint. I also enjoyed the charming illustrations. 

PGPowers 

I Can Help On the Farm by David Hyde Costello - ADVISABLE

I Can Help On the Farm by David Hyde Costello. PICTURE BOOK. Farrar Straus Giroux (Macmillan), 2025. $15. 9780374391348 

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: MANY

 Cute baby duck is lost in the tall grass. Dog hears him and says that he can help and leads baby duck to his mother. But then dog is itchy. Chicken says that she can help, and she pick off all the fleas. Then Chicken needs help because she is cold. Many animals on the farm help each other in turn. Soon, baby duck is lost again. Who will help him now?

Costello's story shows the rippling effects of kindness. Young children will understand the need to help each other through his adorable artwork and simple text. 

PGPowers

I Am a Cloud by Tjitske Kamphuis - ADVISABLE

I Am a Cloud by Tjitske Kamphuis NON-FICTION PICTURE BOOK. Henry Holt (Macmillan), 2025, $19. 9781250360953 

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

 APPEALS TO: MANY

 A friendly cloud shows the reader all the different ways clouds change throughout the days and seasons. We learn about cumulus, wispy cirrus, and more. We learn how they pour rain or turn pink under the light of the sunrise. We learn to recognize the kind of cloud by their color and shape and their height above the earth. 

I'm a Cloud is a very simple yet beautiful text to teach children about clouds. The graphic and decorative artwork is mesmerizing. I felt the urge to go cloud gazing after reading this book. 

PGPowers 

Nightsong by Sally Soweol Han - ADVISABLE

Nightsong by Sally Soweol Han. PICTURE BOOK. Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2023. $19. 9781547615063

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Lewis and his mother get on a bus to go home after visiting with relatives in the big city. The Brummm of the engine lulls Lewis to sleep until he hears a big Pop!  Everyone gets off the bus.  While they are waiting for a new bus, Lewis hears interesting sounds in the dark countryside.  He begins to explore, as his mother reminds him not to go to far.  What sounds will Lewis find beyond the hedge?

Nightsong introduces young readers to the amazing sounds all around us.  Han's soft, grey illustrations create a cozy atmosphere which contrast with the bold color and sounds of each creature.

PGPowers

The Ogre Who Wasn't by Michael Morpurgo and Emily Gravett - ADVISABLE

The Ogre Who Wasn't by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by Emily Gravett. PICTURE BOOK. Two Hoots (Macmillan), 2023. $19. 9781035010264

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Once there was an ogre who lived in a shoe under Princess Clara's bed.  Clara had found him down by the pond. Clara was a strong-willed princess who liked running wild without shoes. She also loved collecting creepy-crawlies.  The castle staff was always upset with her, and her father the king was never home.  One unhappy day, Clara wished to the ogre that the mean people would go away, and that her father would come home.  How can the ogre who was really just a toad grant her wishes?

The Ogre Who Wasn't is a humorous light-hearted fairytale.  I wasn't thrilled with Princess Clara and her father being portrayed as undisciplined barefoot wild people who only cared about nature, but it made a funny tale.  Emily Gravett's illustrations are well done and delightful.

PGPowers

You Can Sit with Me by Rachel Tawil Kenyon and Tatiana Kamshilina - ADVISABLE

You Can Sit with Me by Rachel Tawil Kenyon, illustrated by Tatiana Kamshilina. PICTURE BOOK. Macmillan, 2025. $19. 9781250891143

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

A little girl describes all of the times and situations her new friend can sit with her.

A sweet message of being aware of others and inviting them to sit with you.

A. Snow, Librarian

The Biggest, Highest Wave written and illustrated by Kerry McQuaide - OPTIONAL

The Biggest, Highest Wave written and illustrated by Kerry McQuaide. PICTURE BOOK. Peter Pauper Press, Inc, 2025. $17. 9781441344885

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL (4-6) - OPTIONAL

  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW

Follow a young, nameless surfer as they chase the biggest, highest waves off the coast of Nazaré, Portugal, riding down towering walls of water in this rhyming picture book.

I didn’t love this one as much as I was hoping. While I appreciate the book’s message about perseverance and getting up after falling, the rhymes felt a bit uneven and didn’t fully capture the excitement of a surfing adventure for me. There is some informational material at the back of the book about the topography of the ocean in Portugal that explains why they get big waves, but not enough to justify a purchase for a classroom library.

Kiera, ELA teacher, #bookswithbeddes

Duck With No Luck by Gemma Merino - ADVISABLE

Duck With No Luck by Gemma Merino. PICTURE BOOK. Macmillan Children's Books, 2023. $15 9781529093698

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: MANY

Duck had many bad things happen to him, and he thought that he had no luck.  He decided to travel to see Wise Owl to find out why?  Duck took the wrong path.  On the way, he met Fox who's tummy hurt, Tree who couldn't grow leaves, and Swan who was lonely.  He agreed to ask Wise Owl about their problems as well.   Just when he thought he was lost, he luckily found Wise Owl.  She told him what the other creatures needed and  to go back the way he came and he would find his luck.  Will Duck help the others and find his own luck?

The Duck With No Luck humorously teaches the reader about the ups and downs of life, and to have a more positive attitude.  Very cute illustrations help us love the characters.

PGPowers

Dude, Be Nice by Sarah Scheerger, Brent & Jamie Camalich and Alex MacNaughton - OPTIONA:

Dude, Be Nice by Sarah Scheerger, Brent & Jamie Camalich, illustrated by Alex MacNaughton. PICTURE BOOK. Flamingo (Penguin), 2025. $19. 9780593350607

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: SOME

Dude, a big blue bear, wants to go out and do kind things.  His friend Fizz, a pink penguin, is worried because Dude, while nice, is not always careful about his “helping”. 

Based on the Dude.Be Nice social media. While trying to espouse being thoughtful while doing good works, the changes that Dude needs to make are not highlighted in the same measure that his mistakes are.  In fact, the final pages of the book actually show the bad plan again. Useful as a conversation starter about helping, but that point won’t come across as well if read alone.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

This Little Monster by Coral Byers and Alberta Torres - ADVISABLE

This Little Monster by Coral Byers, illustrated by Alberta Torres. PICTURE BOOK. Kane Miller, 2023. $13. 9781684645763

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Ten little monsters come one by one to join the Halloween festivities.

Based on the This Little Piggy rhyme, Torres’s illustrations are colorful and the little monsters are adorable in their costumes. The monsters are very small, more for Pre-K readers and so much fun to read along. The only thing I want to point out is that a child that small in a wheelchair would need either someone pushing them or an electric chair  - they would not be strong enough to manipulate the wheels. 

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

¡Tocamos! Mexican Folk Art Music Makers in English and Spanish written by Cynthia Welli, art by Avelino Pérez - ADVISABLE

¡Tocamos! Mexican Folk Art Music Makers in English and Spanish written by Cynthia Welli, art by Avelino Pérez. PICTURE BOOK. Cinco Puntos Press (Lee & Low Books), 2025. $20. 9781947627819

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-2) - ADVISABLE

  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

A flock of feathered friends come together to make some beautiful music with a variety of instruments. Follow along as you learn a whole new musical vocabulary with some beautiful Mexican folk art. 

I love the bright colors of the book, paired with the beautiful original wooden sculptures from the Mexican folk artist Avelino Pérez. The text is simple but effective. Overall, a very charming introduction to musical words in Spanish, and could be used as a little primer on Mexican culture.

Kiera, ELA teacher, #bookswithbeddes