The Sniffles for Bear by Bonny Becker and Kady Denton- ESSENTIAL

The Sniffles for Bear by Bonny Becker, Kady MacDonald Denton (Illustrator). PICTURE BOOK. Candlewick Press, 2019, $8. 9780763665395

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

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Bear is sick… very sick!   He has a terrible cold. His best friend Mouse soon arrives to help in any way he can.  Since Mouse is cheerful and helpful Bear determines that Mouse simply doesn’t understand the gravity of the situation.  “I am quite ill.”  Bear states.  “I grow weaker by the moment.”  Mouse attempts to read Bear a story, sing him a song, and play his tiny banjo but Bear finds this “intolerable” and “disgraceful”.  Bear asks Mouse to help him make a will.  He feels this may be the end.  Read to find out if Mouse’s efforts heal his best friend and to find an exciting and unexpected turn of events between these two friends!

The Sniffles for Bear is a wonderful story of friendship and service.  Even though Bear is impatient and at times unkind to Mouse, this never deters Mouse from finding ways to help his friend. The Sniffles for Bear would make the perfect gift for someone who is ill and will help to cheer anyone suffering or having a bad day.  The illustrations in The Sniffles for Bear are fantastic!  Little details like a box of tissue or Mouse almost falling off a stool will delight readers of all ages.  Phrases like, “Cub in.” (Come in.) and “Dat was just the ting.” (That was just the thing.) will have young ones giggling throughout this great picture book.!

Reviewer: SL

The Reasons for Seasons by Gail Gibbons-ADVISABLE

The Reasons for Seasons by Gail Gibbons. PICTURE BOOK. Holiday House, 2019. $19. 9780823442720

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

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

The Reasons for Seasons is an educational picture book that explains how the position of the Earth in relation to the sun causes seasons.  Illustrations explain why there is winter in the Southern Hemisphere at the same time the Northern Hemisphere is enjoying summer.  The Reasons for Seasons begins by explaining the earth in relation to the sun.  Each season is then explored focusing on all of the wonders associated with that particular season.  “Spring is the season when some birds that have been away for the winter return again.” In summer “flowers and plants grow under the warm sun.  Many animals are busy raising new families.” September 21st begins the season of autumn.  “The leaves of some trees turn to beautiful colors and fall to the ground.”  The first day of winter is the shortest day of the year.

The Reasons for Seasons helps to make teaching and learning about the four seasons exciting and thought provoking.  Many questions one might have about the seasons are easily answered in this picture book.  The explanations are very detailed and easy to understand.  The illustrations are bordered and descriptive.  The Reasons for Seasons can be used in a unit on seasons as well as on the earth and sun rotation.

Reviewer: SL

Oliver and His Egg by Paul Schmid- ADVISABLE

Oliver and His Egg by Paul Schmid. BOARD BOOK.  Disney Press, 2020. $8. 9781368045421

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Oliver happened upon an egg shaped rock one day.  Although it was a rock, Oliver’s imagination grew wild! It was his dinosaur egg and he was going to take care of it until it hatched.  He carried the rock/egg with him everywhere he went.  He imagined great adventures with his future dinosaur friend.  In the near future they would enjoy donuts and sail the sea! They would even discover new worlds… just the two of them.  That is until a startling realization was discovered!  Oliver and His Egg has a fun twist in the end that will keep children asking to read it again and again!

The illustrations in Oliver and His Egg are simple yet inviting.  Oliver’s egg is an actual photo intermixed with the rest of the illustrations in pencil sketched drawings.  The last page is a fold out for little fingers to enjoy opening over and over. 

Reviewer: SL

No One Likes a Fart by Zoe Foster Blake and Adam Nickel - OPTIONAL

No One Likes a Fart by Zoe Foster Blake, illustrated by AdamNickel. PICTURE BOOK. Penguin, 2019. $10. 9781524791896

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

When Fart escapes, he sets off on a lonely quest to find a place to belong. But everyone he encounters accuses him of being smelly.  It isn’t until he meets a super stinky burp that he finds someone to share his days.

I wanted this to be a stellar tale like Everyone Poops or The Gas We Pass, but personifying a fart is good for a laugh, but not for longevity.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

The Awesome, Impossible, Unstoppable Gadget by Kevin Kelly and Rebecca Kelly - OPTIONAL

The Awesome, Impossible, Unstoppable Gadget by Kevin Kelly and Rebecca Kelly. PICTURE BOOK. Imprint Books (Macmillan), 2019. $18. 9781250195111

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Written as a letter to her mom, a green character explains how much she is enjoying Camp C.R.E.A.T.E. Everyone is creating for a competition and the narrator decides to work alone. At the last minute she realizes the other campers’ creation doesn’t have an off button but luckily her own creation can undo things. 

I think the neon colors will increase the circulation of this book, but the story just doesn’t hold a lot of charm. The main character decides not to work with others and that decision ends up making them the hero. I was expecting a different message about teamwork and was disappointed how this turned out. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Hap-Pea All Year by Keith Baker- ESSENTIAL

Hap-Pea All Year by Keith Baker. BOARD BOOK.  Little Simon, 2019. $8. 9781534456570

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

“Hap-pea January! Let’s get going. Grab your mittens, hooray, it’s snowing!” From the very first page, readers will delight in this perfectly rhymed and beautifully detailed board book.  Each month of the year is illustrated in bold colors with snowmen, umbrellas, wind, and rain detailing each page.  From the tiny bicycles in May to the cute crossing guard in September, readers will find hours of fun looking at and enjoying each month of the year.  The final page represents every season of the year and wishes all readers a “Hap-pea… hap-pea… YEAR!”

Hap-Pea All Year is an exciting board book celebrating not only the months of the year, but also the four seasons.   Hours can be spent simply looking at the detailed and intricate illustrations.  The colors are very bright and exciting.  The wording perfectly represents each month.  We thoroughly enjoyed this board book!

Reviewer: SL

I Will Always Be Your Bunny by Frances Gilbert, Julianna Swaney- ESSENTIAL

I Will Always Be Your Bunny: Love from the Velveteen Rabbit by Frances Gilbert, illustrated by Julianna Swaney. PICTURE BOOK.  Random House Children's Books, 2019. $9. 9781984893413

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

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

I Will Always Be Your Bunny: Love from the Velveteen Rabbit is a perfect celebration of love and friendship.  This little picture book is filled with comfort, love and friendship.  “If the world feels like a muddle, come on over for a cuddle.”  Each page is beautifully written and illustrated to exemplify how much the Velveteen Rabbit brings joy to children everywhere. “However good or bad you feel, I promise you our love is Real.” Whether you grew up listening to and reading The Velveteen Rabbit or this is your first introduction to this warm and loving stuffed animal, you will be touched and reminded of how wonderful it feels to be completely loved.  I Will Always Be Your Bunny: Love from the Velveteen Rabbit  is a perfect way to tell those you love that you will always be there for them and your relationship will always be Real.

We loved the tenderness and messages in I Will Always Be Your Bunny: Love from the Velveteen Rabbit.  Although it is a simple and small picture book, the message is loud and clear.  The illustrations align beautifully with the story.  The rhyming is perfectly measured and executed. Children from around the globe are represented. A must have in every home and classroom!

Reviewer: SL

Only You Can Be You! by Nathan and Sally Clarkson - NO

Only You Can Be You! by Nathan and Sally Clarkson, illustrated by Tim Warnes. PICTURE BOOK. Thomas Nelson (Harper Collins Christian Publishing), 2019. $17. 9781400211432

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - NO 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

This book covers all the different ways that you may be different from others and others may be different from you. It suggests that all of those differences are okay and were intended by “The Maker of everything.” 

The religious bend of this book makes it awkward for a school setting but other than that it is a pretty predictable celebration of differences. The pictures are cutesy and the point clique, but the message that differences are okay is always a welcome one. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Finding Treasure: A Collection of Collections by Michelle Schaub - ADVISABLE

Finding Treasure: A Collection of Collections by Michelle Schaub, illustrated by Carmen Saldana. PICTURE BOOK/POETRY. Charlesbridge, 2019. $17. 9781580898751

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

In class the narrator’s teacher gives her the assignment to bring in something she collects. While trying to figure out what she collects, she writes poems about the things her friends and family collect. In the end she realizes that the thing she collects is poetry. 

This is a lovely collection of poems. I like the twist at the end about poems being a thing to collect. I don’t know that a lot of young readers are drawn to poetry, but this is a great introduction to the form and could be a model for writing in a classroom.  

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Make a Nature Scultpure by Emily Kington - ADVISABLE

Make a Nature Scultpure by Emily Kington. DIY BOOK. Hungry Tomato (Lerner Publishing), 2020. 9781541555259

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

This book contains ten sculpture projects that can be done with materials found outside. All of the instructions include a photograph of each step and the final product. The projects are not glamorous or complicated, but rather simple ways to interact with nature. 

I think the lack of glamour and showiness of these projects makes them accessible and doable but also not very appealing. I think the best this book can hope for is to spark the desire to get outside and get your hands dirty. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

The Promise Basket by Bill Richardson - ADVISABLE

The Promise Basket by Bill Richardson, illustrated by Slavka Kolesar. PICTURE BOOK. Groundwood Books (House of Anansi Press), 2019. $18. 9781773060897

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

A young mom doesn’t have enough money to buy presents but she finds a promise basket and fills it with stones she carefully picked and wrote a poem to go with it about her love being an unbreakable promise. She continues this tradition until her own child has a child and her child also assumes the tradition. 

This is a beautiful reminder about what is important in life. The pace is a little slow and the illustrations will appeal to adults more than children. This would be a good book to read around Christmas as a reminder of how presents can often take over gratitude and compassion. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Albert’s Quiet Quest by Isabelle Arsenault - ESSENTIAL

Albert’s Quiet Quest by Isabelle Arsenault. PICTURE BOOK. Random House, 2019. $18. 9780553536560

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Albert just wants to read in quiet but his friends keep playing near him and trying to involve him in their games. Albert is trying to imagine himself on a beach but the constant interruptions won’t allow him. When Albert finally snaps and yells at his friends, they quiet down and join him with their own books. 

This is a beautiful book about the need for isolation and also the need for friends. I like that the main character makes some good choices and some bad choices and how everyone adapts and also apologizes, but ultimately extends kindness and camaraderie to each other.   

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher