More Dung! A Beetle Tale by Frank Weber - ESSENTIAL

More Dung! A Beetle Tale by Frank Weber. PICTURE BOOK. Disney, 2024. $19. 9781368100083

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

AUDIENCE APPEAL: MANY

The dung beetle knows to go stand in a certain spot each day, where the gods (an elephant) gift him with a load of dung for his eating pleasure. When a lounging leopard points out a nearby farm would supply him with even more dung, he sets off in pursuit – eventually becoming too greedy.

Very clever and highly interesting look at greed – without being pedantic. Or maybe it is just a simple dung beetle story – nah!

Cindy, MS Library Teacher

Bedtime Blitz by Matthew Van Fleet - ADVISABLE

Bedtime Blitz by Matthew Van Fleet. BOARD BOOK. Simon and Schuster, 2024. $25. 9781665958295

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: MANY

Our animal friends have played hard all day and now we need to help them get ready for bed.

You may be thinking that $25 is pretty pricey for a board book. But Van Fleet has given us five very sturdy and highly entertaining pull tabs to help all of our friends get ready for bed. The items that move are behind a plastic window, so little hands can’t grab them and rip them off, either.

Cindy, MS Library Teacher

 

Bye-Bye Pacifier by Bernadette Ford and Sam Williams - OPTIONAL

Bye-Bye Pacifier by Bernadette Ford and Sam Williams. BOARD BOOK. Boxer Books (Union Square), 2024. $9. 9781915801333

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SOME

Piggy wants to show Ducky how much fun he is having playing together, but his pacifier gets in the way of his smile.  After he drops his second pacifier to the ground, Piggy is worried, but decides to play without it anyway – learning how little he really needs it.

Piggy and Ducky are very cute and so is the story.  However, it is pedantic in tone – I’d have to see being used with actual toddlers who still use pacifiers to know whether it is effective or not. While it might be good for a one-off, it is not a re-readable for a personal collection.

Cindy, MS Library Teacher

Touch and Trace: ABC by Sasha Morton - OPTIONAL

Touch and Trace: ABC by Sasha Morton. BOARD BOOK. Boxer Books (Union Square), 2024. $9. 9781915801487

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SOME

Bright illustrations accompany each feelable letter of the alphabet in Morton’s board book.

It is too bad that the illustrations don’t also have a touchable element – even an outline, which would have made this more accessible for children with low or no sight.

Cindy, MS Library Teacher

How to Love a Grandma by Jean Reagan and Lee Wildish - ADVISABLE

How to Love a Grandma by Jean Reagan, illustrated by Lee Wildish. PICTURE BOOK. Alfred A Knopf (Random), 2023. $11. 9780593708903

BUYING ADVISORY:  EL - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL:  SEVERAL

All the many ways you can show love to your grandma are highlighted in Reagan’s cute book. You can show love through hugs, sharing and helping to name a few.

I like that the grandmas depicted are a range of ages, races, and ethnicities. The illustrations are fun, colorful and engaging.

Reviewer: A. Snow

Pickle Words: Crunchy, Punchy Pickles and Poetry by April Pulley Sayre and Jialiei Sun - ADVISABLE

Pickle Words: Crunchy, Punchy Pickles and Poetry by April Pulley Sayre, illustrated by Jialiei Sun. PICTURE BOOK. Charlesbridge, 2024. $18. 9781623543624

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SEVERAL

With a mix of pickle poetry and pickle facts, four different families from different cultures make different pickles. In the end, they come together to share what they have made. Sprinkled throughout are facts about the pickling process, different kinds of vegetables that can be pickled, and how they taste.

This is a bright, fun book with collage style illustrations. It is fun to celebrate something as simple as the pickle.

The people depicted are from a variety of ethnicities.

Reviewer: A. Snow, Librarian

Tiny Jenny-Little Fairy, Big Trouble by Briony May Smith - ADVISABLE

Tiny Jenny: Little Fairy, Big Trouble by Briony May Smith. PICTURE BOOK. Anne Schwartz Books (Random), 2024. $19. 9780593650479

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: MANY

Tiny Jenny is a wing-less fairy born to a family of wrens. Tiny Jenny grows up trying to be like her wren siblings. She doesn't understand why she is so different. An owl tells Jenny that she is actually a fairy. Tiny Jenny goes in search of fairies to try to belong.

Tiny Jenny-Little Fairy, Big Trouble was a delightful book! It has absolutely stunning pictures with an interesting story line. I love it when I can't predict how a book will end! Would make a great read aloud for younger grades.

Tracie, Elementary School Librarian 

The Best Worst Campout Ever by Joe Cepeda - ADVISABLE

The Best Worst Campout Ever by Joe Cepeda. 35 pages. EARLY READER. Holiday House, 2023. $15. 9780823453948

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

An elementary aged boy and his father are starting their summer with a camping trip. When they find out that their campground is full, they need to find another place to camp. The site they find is not what they expected. Will their trip be ruined if it doesn't go exactly as planned?

Part of the I Like to Read Comics series. It is laid out like a graphic novel. The bright pictures and comic book layout will definitely keep a young reader's attention. The father and son are presumably white.

Tracie, Elementary School LIbrarian 

Words Are Magic! by Zaila Avant-garde and Felicia Whaley

Words Are Magic! (Step into Reading) by Zaila Avant-garde, illustrated by Felicia Whaley. 32 pages. EARLY READER. (leveled readers). Random House Books for Young Readers, 2024. $6. 9780593571675

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: MANY

This leveled reader was written by a winner of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. A young girl loves words! She thinks they are magic! There are so many things you can do with words. You can sing them, shout them, draw them, and even build with them.

This is a Step 1 leveled reader. The sentences are repetitive and great for early readers. I liked that this book was written by a National Spelling Bee winner. You could tell that the girl in the book loved words and playing with them. It shows young kids how fun word play can be. The young girl protagonist is African American.

Reviewer: A. Criswell, English Language Arts teacher

Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell - ADVISABLE

Impossible Creatures (Impossible Creatures #1) by Katherine Rundell, 334 pages. Knopf Books (Random House), 2024. $20.

Language: PG (4 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE

APPEAL TO: MANY

When his dad has to go on a work trip, Christopher ends up visiting his grandfather in Scotland until his father returns. Christopher is finally entrusted with the family legacy from his mother’s side and is immediately called upon to fulfill his duties. The invisible islands keeping every mythical creature safe from humankind is losing magic, and Mal needs Christopher’s help to save it all.

Heartfelt in every way—from laughter to tears—readers are caught up in the magical quest to save the Archipelago with Christopher and Mal. No obstacle will stand in their way as they push forward to their goal one step at a time. Also, the illustrations are beautifully done, bringing both familiar and unfamiliar mythical creatures to life.

Christopher is British, Mal is described as having “olive” skin, and Irian is described as having “brown” skin. The mature content rating is for alcohol use. The violence rating is for blood, assault, fantasy violence, and murder.

Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen 

The Totally Not Boring Book of Feelings by Jolie Taylor - ADVISABLE

The Totally Not Boring Book of Feelings by Jolie Taylor, 128 pages. POETRY. Shadow Mountain Publishing, 2024. $23.

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Part illustrated poetry and part rhyming graphic novel, this fun collection of poems is all about emotions. Taylor addresses everything from sadness and anger to adventurous and sentimental with scenarios involving sibling conflicts, dragons, monkeys, piles of garbage, and more!

Every page brings a new surprise and elicits complementing emotions from the readers out of empathy and enjoyment. I love that all of the text rhymes, including in the intro, outro, and even the bio blurbs at the back of the book.

Characters of various skin types are depicted.

Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

The Great Outdoors by Yuli Yav and Bee - ADVISABLE

The Great Outdoors by Yuli Yav, illustrated by Laura Bee. BOARD BOOK. Little Simon, 2024. $8. 9781665956697

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SEVERAL

A young family and their dog take a hike in the forest.

I loved the action and sound words such as crunchy, whistling, stretch, flow, and climb. I envision the reader encouraging the listening toddler to mimic the actions and noises described in the book as they read together. The mom is white, the dad, little girl and baby are brown.

Reviewer: A. Snow, Librarian