Fox versus Fox by Corey Tabor - ESSENTIAL

Fox versus Fox by Corey Tabor. EARLY READER HarperCollins, 2024. $18. 9780063277939 

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

APPEALS TO: MANY 

An orange fox meets a white fox. They can do the same things in different ways. They are more alike than they think. 

Tabor's illustrations are so fun. The foxes have so much personality. When orange fox strapped on the homemade rocket I about laughed out loud - so glad it didn't explode in mid-air (but Fox isn't Wile E. Coyote I guess). A definite buy for your early reader crowd.  Do I see a nod to Mad Magazine Spy vs. Spy? AJ thought it was funny and liked that she sometimes draws her foxes that way, too! 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 9) 

The Friend Ship by Kay Yeh, illustrated by, Chuck Groenink - ESSENTIAL

The Friend Ship by Kay Yeh, illustrated by, Chuck Groenink. PICTURE BOOK. Disney 2024. $9. 9780316545655

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

AUDIENCE APPEAL: MANY

Hedgehog embarks on a quest to find the Friend ship. Along the way, he asks everyone he meets if they've seen it, and to his delight, new friends join his journey at every stop. Finally, upon arriving at an island, they meet Wise Elephant, who shows Hedgehog to realize that Friendship isn't a destination, but the journey itself.

I thought Yeh wrote such a cute story. I love how it teaches you that in order to find a friendship you have to make one by meeting people. You can’t just expect to find it but instead, you need others to help you and to guide you.

STUDENT REVIEWER: Aislyn A. 10th grade student

The Dream Catcher by Marcelo Verdad - OPTIONAL

The Dream Catcher by Marcelo Verdad.  PICTURE BOOK. Hachette, 2024. $19. 9780316330664

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

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SOME

Miguel's got his sights set on owning his own airplane - a pretty wild dream, but he's determined to make it happen. To fund his ambition, he crafts and sells handmade dream catchers, hoping to not only fill his "Plane Jar" but also help others catch their own dreams. Miguel shows that with hard work and determination, dreams can take flight, and that helping others achieve theirs is just as important as achieving your own.

I thought Verdad’s book was really cute. I didn’t love the illustrations but they’re okay. It had a cute storyline and plot!

The characters are Indigenous Mexican

STUDENT REVIEWER: Aislyn A. 10th grade student

Oddbird’s Chosen Family by Derek Desierto and Mike Burroughs - OPTIONAL

Oddbird’s Chosen Family by Derek Desierto, illustrated by Mike Burroughs. PICTURE BOOK. Macmillan, 2024. $19. 9781250864680

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

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SOME

Oddbird is a lonely bird who doesn't have a family, and it's pretty tough for him. His friend Jerry has an amazing family, and after hanging out with them, Oddbird feels sad because he wishes he had that too. But then, on his birthday, Jerry and his family show up and throw Oddbird a party! That's when Oddbird realizes that family isn't just about blood; it's about the people who care about you. And Jerry's family becomes his chosen family.

I didn’t love the story. I felt like it was a little boring. There’s nothing in the plot. I did like the illustrations.

STUDENT REVIEWER: Aislyn A. 10th grade student

Baby Loves Paleontology by Ruth Spiro and Irene Chan - OPTIONAL

Baby Loves Paleontology by Ruth Spiro, illustrated by Irene Chan. NON-FICTION BOARD BOOK. Charlesbridge, 2024. $9. 9781623543976

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SOME

An informational board book about paleontology.

Spiro includes really good information and Chan’s illustrations are very bright, fun, and playful. I did not feel that the information was age-appropriate for a board book geared to babies. It had too much information for a baby to understand. The baby is brown. 

Claire, 10th grade student 

A Mind of Her Own by Robyn McGrath and Liz Wong - ADVISABLE

A Mind of Her Own: The Story of Mystery Writer Agatha Christie by Robyn McGrath, illustrated by Liz Wong. BIOGRAPHY PICTURE BOOK. Simon and Schuster, 2024. $19. 9781665917933

BUYING ADVISORY: EL – ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SOME

A good picture book biography of Agatha Christie's life and how she used her creative imagination to inspire her writing. Also includes a look at what she went through to get her book published.

I thought McGrath was so good at explaining her life in a simple and easy to understand way for kids.Wong’s illustrations were so cute and funny hiding little mysteries on each page. I also liked that at the end the publisher included more in depth info about Christie’s life and mystery vocab words.

Claire 10th grade student 

Mushrooms know by Kallie George and Sara Gillingham - ADVISABLE

Mushrooms know: Wisdom from our friends the fungi by Kallie George, illustrated by Sara Gillingham. NON-FICTION PICTURE BOOK. Greystone Kids, 2024. $19. 97817784000773

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SEVERAL

Mushrooms have a lot to teach us – not just about mushrooms, but also about life.

I liked all of Gillingham’s drawings. All of her illustrations were very accurate and George included a lot of information. I learned a lot about mushrooms.

Aislyn, 10th grade student 

Miss MacDonald Has A Farm by Kalee Gwarjanski and Elizabet Vukovic - OPTIONAL

Miss MacDonald Has A Farm by Kalee Gwarjanski, illustrated by Elizabet Vukovic. PICTURE BOOK. Doubleday (Random House), 2024. $19. 9780593568163

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

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

A new adaptation of the Old MacDonald Had a Farm nursery rhyme in a new and fun way. This is a story of Miss MacDonald and her farm. She takes us through the gardening season and everything she has to do up and through harvest.

I loved this book's fun and watercolor-like illustrations. It has a good message about the hard work put into having a successful harvest. I also liked the bonus material at the end, a glossary, and a recipe. Miss MacDonald has brown skin.

Claire, 10th Grade Student  

Jumper: A Day in the Life of a Backyard Jumping Spider by Jessica Lanan - ADVISABLE

Jumper: A Day in the Life of a Backyard Jumping Spider by Jessica Lanan NON-FICTION, PICTURE BOOK Roaring Brook Press (Macmillan), 2023. $20. 9781250810366 

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

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

Jumping spiders are amazing, about the size of a bean, they spend their day protecting themselves from predators, listening with their hairy bodies, and seeing through their many eyes. 

Beautifully illustrated and full of interesting facts. The huge illustrations are appealing to even our youngest spider lovers (me), and aren't upsetting to those who don't love them so much (AJ).

 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 8)

Pokemon: Tales of Adventure by Scholastic - OPTIONAL

Pokemon: Tales of Adventure by Scholastic, 128 pages. CHAPTER BOOK Scholastic, 2023. $10. 9781338883428 

Content: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL, GIFT - OPTIONAL 

APPEALS TO: SOME 

4 different Pokemon adventures, where Ash and his friends find a new Pokemon, then Team Rocket or another nemesis discovers them and they battle. 

All the stories are standard for the TV series, in fact, AJ tells me they are adaptations of episodes. You really need background knowledge of the characters and their Pokemon - just saying all the names made a read-aloud tricky. AJ (Pokemon world expert) loved it, I (Pokemon novice) struggled. Buy as a gift for the right kid. Based on the Japanese game and TV Series. 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 8) 

Papa's Magical Water-Jug Clock by Jesus Trejo and Eliza Kinkz - ADVISABLE

Papa's Magical Water-Jug Clock by Jesus Trejo, illustrated by Eliza Kinkz PICTURE BOOK Minerva, Astra/Boyds Mill, 2023. $19. 9781662651045 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Jesus gets to help his dad on Saturdays. The family business is gardening and dad has a magical water-jug clock. Throughout the day they'll drink the water and when the water is done, the job is done. But, Jesus is helping today. So he shares the water with some cats and a dog and before long the big jug is empty - but the day isn't finished. Maybe it's not so magical after all. 

I thought the title was cumbersome, so I kept putting it further down my TBR pile. I should have read it first! What a delightful story! AJ liked it too. We love how Jesus is so innocent that he's giving away all the water, and, we loved his father's reactions. A great lesson was learned, that would be valuable for any family - it's better to have fun when you are working together, but it's important to be responsible. The characters are Hispanic. 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 8)

Greeking Out by Kenny Curtis, Julian Hughes and J. Espila - ADVISABLE

Greeking Out: Epic retellings of Classic Greek Myths by Kenny Curtis and Julian Hughes, illustrated by J. Espila, 191 pages. National Geographic (Disney), 2023. $20

Language: G (0 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (Fighting against mythical creatures with some blood in pictures but not a lot)

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Many of the myths of Greek Gods have been told however, this story is easy to read and exciting. We go from the beginning of the Titans and Olympians fighting and how they then become Gods. After we go into every story of the Gods and what made them special.

I have never been a mythology person, however, this book was so good at explaining the story and symbols in a fun way. The writing made sense and I didn't want to put the book down. I loved how it went in time and the order of the stories made it so I understood who everyone was and made it so I wasn't so lost.

All main characters had special amazing abilities.

Student Reviewer: Sarah- 9th Grade

A Brave Bear by Sean Taylor, illustrated by Emily Hughes - ADVISABLE

A Brave Bear by Sean Taylor, illustrated by Emily Hughes BOARD BOOK Candlewick, 2023, First Boardbook Edition, originally published 2016. $10. 9781536229639 

BUYING ADVISORY: PRE-K - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

It's a hot day, so the kid bear suggests that he and the dad bear go for a splash in the river. But getting to the river, the little one gets hurt, and now needs to show that he is brave. 

Oh! The story was precious, and the illustrations were wonderful. A darling read with a little one. AJ recommends it even to her 2nd-grade friends, it was that cute. I'm so happy to see a board book has given this older story new legs. 

Lisa Librarian and AJ Age 7

Catch That Chicken by Atinuke, illustrated by Angela Brooksbank - ADVISABLE

Catch That Chicken by Atinuke, illustrated by Angela Brooksbank. BOARD BOOK Candlewick, 2022. $9. 9781536228045 

BUYING ADVISORY: PRE-K - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Lami lives in a compound with several families and lots of chickens. She's the best at catching the chickens. But when she gets carried away with the chasing and does something dangerous, everyone has to tell her to slow down, and Lami must find another way to catch them. 

Brooksbank's illustrations are so much fun - we loved looking for Lami grabbing or chasing a chicken on every page. I'm glad AJ didn't ask why Lami needs to be so good at catching chickens, I'd hate to explain that to a pre-schooler. The story takes place in West Africa, and includes a West African expression. 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 7)

The Big Cheese by Janee Trasler - ADVISABLE

The Big Cheese (Figgy & Boone) by Janee Trasler EARLY READER Simon Spotlight ( Simon and Schuster, 2023 $18. 9781665914529 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Figgy is hungry but they are out of cheese. When truck drives by and spills a big roll of cheese, the two mice try to figure out how to take it home. 

A Ready-to-Read Graphics Level , The BIG Cheese is darling. Told mostly through the illustrations with lots of repeated words (especially the names Figgy and Boone) an early reader will love the story and feel super confident. AJ thought it was really funny and she recommends it to her friends.

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 7)

City Under the City by Dan Yaccarino - OPTIONAL

City Under the City by Dan Yaccarino. EARLY READER, GRAPHIC NOVEL Minedition (Astra/Boyds Mill), 2022. $19. 9781662650895 

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW 

Bix is the youngest in her family, and she likes to do things differently. Everyone in her city is helped, all the time, by the "eyes" who make their choices for them. Bix hates reading because she can't choose her own books. Until 1 day, Bix follows a small rat through a crack in a wall, where she discovers a city under the city - and it has a library! 

Dystopian? Orwellian? A little deep for the early reader this graphic novel seems to be intended for. AJ was thoroughly confused, we stuck it through to the end, but didn't find it appealing. 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 7)

Hello Hummingbirds by Hannah Rogge and Emily Dove - ADVISABLE

Hello Hummingbirds: Read and play in the tree! by Hannah Rogge, illustrated by Emily Dove. BOARD BOOK, INTERACTIVE Chronicle/Blue Apple, 2022. $13. 9781797210094 

BUYING ADVISORY: PRE-K - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

A hummingbird introduces the child to all the neat things about hummingbirds, how they move their wings, that they pollinate flowers, how small their nest is and other things. There are 2 little punched out hummingbirds on ribbons that the child can "fly" into the illustrations. The illustrations are colorful, mostly realistic (their eyes were cute and full of expression, not tiny and round like a hummingbird) So much fun, even AJ liked playing with it. The text is more suited as a read aloud. We loved the interactive play of Hello Hummingbirds 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 7)

Time After Time by Sarah Mlynowski and Christina Soontornvat - ADVISABLE

Time After Time (Best Wishes #3) by Sarah Mlynowski and Christina Soontornvat, 192 Pages. Scholastic Press, November 2023. $16. 

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence Rating: G. (repeated instances of vomit)

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Lucy's 5th grade class is going on a field trip to the Natural History Museum where her dad will be doing a presentation. with Lucy, on the museum's gem collection. But when he feels inspired to propose to his girlfriend - Lucy's school librarian - in front of everyone on the field trip, Lucy is embarrassed and upset. Arriving home (after running away from the museum and being picked up by the police) Lucy receives the bracelet and wishes for the most perfect day ever. The bracelet grants her wish by letting her have that Friday as a do-over, but, of course, making the perfect day isn't easy. 

The 3rd installment in the Best Wishes series was just as fun as the other two. I love Soontornvat's perspective, Lucy and her dad are Thai. AJ and I think it's so fun that the previous books' bracelet wearers have sent their stories on and are part of this one. We also love that the girls always learn a great lesson, about family, friendship, or themselves. We are excited to see where the bracelet heads next! 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 7) 

The Sister Switch by Sarah Mlynowski and Debbie Rigaud - ESSENTIAL

The Sister Switch (Best Wishes #2)by Sarah Mlynowski and Debbie Rigaud, 170 pages. Scholastic Press (Scholastic), 2023. $16 

Content: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ESSENTIAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH 

5th grader Addie Asante hates being the middle sister. Sophie, her big sister is bossy, and Camille, her little sister gets away with everything. So, when Addie is the next recipient of the bracelet, instead of reading the warnings about being careful about what you wish for, she quickly puts it on, and, not realizing it's a wishing bracelet wishes to not be in the middle anymore. Suddenly, Addie is in Sophie's body, attending her 7th grade classes, while her pre-k sister Camille gets to be Addie and Sophie is the baby sister. 

AJ and I are loving this series! The girls get in impossible situations, and we love watching Addie helpless as her little sister interacts with her friends - who don't know anything weird has happened. A terrific story about walking in someone else's shoes. We hope this becomes a nice long series. The Asante sisters are black. 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 7) 

Bibi by Jo Weaver - ADVISABLE

Bibi by Jo Weaver. PICTURE BOOK Peachtree. 2022. $19. 9781682635537 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Bibi is the oldest flamingo in the flock. She takes care of everyone - teaching them how to stand on one foot, showing the first-time parents where to build their nests, and welcoming the new chicks as they arrive. This year, the lake they live on is drying up, and it's a long way to the next one. While the adults fly to the volcano which shadows their new home, Bibi makes the long walk with the young who can't fly yet. Jo Weaver's realistic illustrations are the star of Bibi. 

 I loved that the old Flamingo was, well, a bit rough around the edges, even the cover shows her missing a good deal of feathers. AJ enjoyed the illustrations, too. She commented that they look like real flamingos. I loved how everyone loved her so much, and how much she was willing to sacrifice. The author explains in the after notes that "Bibi" is Swahili for "Grandmother." 

Lisa Librarian and AJ (age 7)