This book starts with a high energy anecdote about the player’s prowess on the court. It then goes back to the beginning of his life and career, moving through the years. A timeline and ‘Fast Facts’ throughout the book add to the information presented in just 32 pages. Nonfiction elements such as table of contents, index and glossary are included.
This will be a hit with the avid sports fans in your library.

Kids can learn about farms, their residents and their ‘food chain’. Dr. Temple Grandin, an important farm animal advocate is highlighted and one of the six projects showcases one of her important contributions (Cow Hug Machine) to animal welfare.
Materials lists and clear directions with photos make this a fun and educational book for children wishing to know more about farms. A great addition to your library!

Significant, but overlooked, pilots of World War II are showcased in this important book by Shannon Baker Moore. We learn about women who were ahead of their times, wanting to do more than society was ready for them to do. American women fought battles here on our soil to gain acceptance for their passion for flying and their relevance to the war effort. In addition to American pilots, the author describes Soviet and British females who took to the sky. Their work was hard and they fought prejudice along the way, but these strong women wanted nothing more than to be in the air with the ground below them, doing their part for their countries. A chapter on female pioneers before the war years gives the reader a starting point for the women that followed.
Historical photos, a timeline and additional resources enrich the material presented in the book. My only complaint is the that the sidebars and text boxes scattered throughout are in a pale color and the white text tends to blend in too much. They also make the pages rather drab, since most of the photos are black and white. A more colorful choice might have enlivened the appearance of the pages. A recommended choice.

Ragdoll Cats is part of Cats: Set 2 by Abdo for the K-2 crowd. The book gives a description of the cat and its personality, as well as their grooming needs. Text is accompanied by large photos that are well-done and clear. The book has a table of contents, glossary, index and code that can be used to access videos, games and fun (printables and links to feline organizations).
My only complaint is that the two pictures that include humans are only young girls. Boys like cats, too! Pet books tend to be big sellers in the library and this one, even though it is specific to a particular breed, should be popular.

Dr. Seuss is a slim, easy-to-read biography that imparts the necessary facts about a great author/illustrator in just 24 pages. While a few of the pictures are very loosely related to the text (ex. a picture of what must be the current Springfield, Illinois, the associated text says he was born there in 1904. I doubt the high rises were built at that time), the text and most of the pictures give the reader a pretty good idea of the special man that he was.
There is a nice “Quick Stats” page as well as a “Key Dates” page, which bullets his life clearly. Non-fiction features are present: Table of contents, glossary, index.
Buy if you need to update your Seuss biography.

This is a book to share between kids and adults. There is a note to adult helpers at the beginning, discussing the possible need for adult help while encouraging the child to do as much as possible independently. The book has a nice introduction to woodworking techniques and tools. Then, it describes five projects with varying degrees of difficulty (noted). Each project has a materials list, concise instructions and photos to illustrate the steps.
Typical non-fiction elements are present: Table of contents, glossary, index and websites for further consideration.
This is part of a series introducing the industrial arts to elementary students and should be a big hit in your library. It’s all about the hands-on experiences! This will be a great addition.

What a gem! This book will fly off the shelf when students find it!
Written in an accessible language, each fact encompasses a two page spread, with pictures, human/dinosaur size comparison and sidebar “Dino File” with diet, height, weight and pronunciation guide. A dinosaur timeline and activity round out this wonderful book. Included also are non-fiction features like table of contents, glossary (for bolded words within the text), and index.
Buy this book as well as others in the series and you will have a collection of books that you will never see – they will be constantly checked out! Highly recommended.

This is a great book for budding origami enthusiasts. It starts off with materials needed, tips and tricks, and some basic folds and bases, which it refers back to when the reader moves into the projects. The individual projects appear to be organized from easy to more difficult as the book progresses. There is a table of contents and glossary.
It is part of series that should provide hours of creative entertainment for the younger set.

June and her dog Sammy are best friends, which is helped by their ability to communicate with each other! June lives with her mom, dad and teenage sister. June would really like a best friend that is human, though, and she is excited when a new girl moves in across the street. Unfortunately, the mean girl at school, April, gets to Mae first, which makes it difficult for June.
June’s grandma sends her a Wonder Wheel with instructions to spin it each day and follow the directions. Those directions lead to some interesting moments with her classmates and help to encourage a friendship between June and Mae.
This book is appropriate for newly minted chapter book readers. The ending leads one to believe there might be more.

Sadie is one unlucky girl. And in a town like Fortune Falls, luck means everything. This town is loaded with superstition and magic. If you step on a crack, your mother really does break her back. And, don’t even think of breaking a mirror – you will probably die! Sadie must turn her unlucky life around soon or she will be sent away with the other “Unluckies” in order to protect the other folks in town. Unfortunately, luck is hard to find, even with the help of her friend, Cooper. But, through a series of events that include a black cat and some people that care about her very much, Sadie turns around her luck in the nick of time.
there are dark elements to the story, including Sadie’s guilt over her dad’s death and her mom’s worry about their future, which looks pretty bleak. But, the ending makes up for it.
A fine read for those students that enjoy a bit of magic and a strong female main character.

Inge Maria arrives on a boat to the island of Bornholm in Sweden to live with her grandmother in 1911. Her mother has died and brave Inge has left everything she knew (color, laughter, music, art, the city and her mother) to come to a seemingly stern grandma on a rather gray, cold island inhabited by people who live by a rather austere code of conduct and just don’t seem to have fun.
Inge tries to fit in, but mischief follows her wherever she goes, beginning with her arrival, when a goat chews off one of her braids. There are incidents at school (a terrible place, where girls cannot play the fun games at recess with the boys and music is not allowed) and with friends, but slowly Inge begins to realize that her grandma is also grieving the loss of Inge’s mother (her daughter) and they begin to share a bond of mutual loss.
Change occurs and Inge and her grandma grow closer and Inge’s penchant for mischief brings the island’s residents some new fun, laughter and love. A classmate, who is also experiencing some difficulties in life, becomes a part of Inge’s life and new family.
This is a gentle story set in a time long ago, but the pacing of the story makes the reader want to know what will happen next to Inge in her new life with grandma. This is a wonderful book that is reminiscent of Ann of Green Gables.

Basketball Time! is an introduction to the game, court and vocabulary. Accompanying pictures of boys and girls of different ethnicity add to the currency of the book, showing that everyone can enjoy this fun game.
Good examples of nonfiction elements – table of contents, index, picture glossary and a nice labeled diagram of a basketball court.
Simple sentences and the occasional question to encourage discussion.
This would be a nice, simple introduction for the younger readers.

Take three friends, a cute boy, a slightly goofy stepsister and a hypnotist and they all add up to a breathless, crazy sleepover. Will Meghan, Paige, Anna Marie and Veronica be able to fix everything – even Meghan’s missing left eyebrow? What about the mascot from the rival school and the chicks in the bathtub? Things can’t be any more exciting than this…or can they?
This is a fun, fairly benign tween story about a sleepover that goes wonky with a tiny bit of romance to spice it up. The characters are believable and their antics would make any parent giggle and shudder at the same time. A fast read – recommended.

Looking for a rollicking account of the old Red Riding Hood story? Look no farther than Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion by Alex T. Smith!
Little Red is on a mission to Auntie Rosie’s house to bring her some medicine for her outbreak of spots. Along the way, she encounters playful African animals of every sort. The bad guy, a lion in this case, sees Little Red and hatches a very naughty plan in which he will end up eating Little Red AND Auntie Rosie (for dessert).
Well, Little Red can spot this rather poor actor from a mile away and decides to teach that naughty lion a lesson! In the end, he promises to never ever eat another auntie or any children…but, what about daddy?
Bold colors and cartoon-like art are full of energy. Kids will laugh out loud at Little Red’s ability to thwart that naughty lion at every turn with wit and humor. She’s one tough Little Red! Add this one to your collection!

Snail loves his bucket! It has everything he needs and he never, ever, ever, has to leave – no matter how many times Ladybug asks. Until…one day, the farmer picks up his bucket, Snail is dumped out and the adventure begins!

He tastes so many amazing new foods, like pea pods and beets and, best of all, strawberries! He meets new friends, like Gopher and Rabbit. But, disaster strikes and his day becomes terrible (for a few minutes) when he bites a REALLY hot pepper. But, Ladybug and Rabbit save the day – finding Snail’s bucket home, which is now filled with strawberries. Life is good!

This book is a great one for those readers who are ready for a little more that the average picture book. It’s a bit longer, with word bubbles and cartoon-like illustrations. Hopefully, this is the beginning of many adventures for Snail and his friends. Recommended

What a lovely book! The sweet adventures of Lucy and her friends are told in three stories – “The Snack”, “The Treasure Hunt” and “The Hatchlings”. Friendship, fun and a few surprises are detailed in simple language with beautiful accompanying illustrations.

There is a labeled map of their home, reminiscent of Pooh’s Hundred
Acre Woods. Young readers will enjoy referring to it as they move through the three stories, each with a mild conflict that is resolved in a delightful manner. Highly Recommended!

Megafast Motorcycles starts with a general description of what the term “megafast motorcycle” means and then moves on to a two page spread detailing a variety of motorcycles that fit within that term. Sidebars, located on the right side of each spread gives information like power, spead, engine size, price, et cetera that can be compared to other motorcycles in the book.

The photos are edgy and some are blurred to give the impression of speed, which can also be a distraction. There is a glossary, index and table of contents, which are helpful.

Middle grade readers might enjoy this book, but I would make it an additional purchase. Only your real gearheads will care about the torque and engine size of any given bike. Look for books with a wider potential audience.

Heidi Heckelbeck is a young witch, who sometimes gets into sticky situations with her magic. In this book, Heidi wishes for good weather for her class field trip, but the day is ruined when the storm rolls in before they leave. She is so frustrated that she wishes she wasn’t a witch.
How she fixes this problem, with some help from her Aunt Trudy (also a witch), makes for a sweet story that is perfect for readers ready for the next step past picture books. The accompanying illustrations are well-done and appropriate to the story. Recommended!

Any books about cars are hot ticket items for the k-2 crowd and this particular title will fly off the shelf. It is written is very clear short sentences, with additional boxes of text for added information. The photos are crisp, with a mixture of close ups and wider angle shots.

The necessary nonfiction pieces: table of contents, glossary, index and labeled diagrams are all there. Teachers will appreciate the nonfiction elements as they are teaching.

This book is highly recommended!

Bob and Flo and their friend, Sam, decide to play a rousing game of hide-and-seek. It took Bob a few tries to figure out what the ‘hiding’ part of the game entailed, but his friends were patient as he tried again and again.

This is a great book for the preschool/kindergarten crowds who are figuring out how to play together. They will recognize the kitchen area and blocks and relate to the penguins’ activities.

The illustrations are well done and the expressions (or lack of) on the penguins’ faces work well in the story.

Additional selection/

This book is part of the I See Ocean Animals series. it has all the necessary parts that make up a great nonfiction book – Table of contents, glossary, index and more. There is a large photo on one side of each two page spread with two to three simple sentences on the the other side. There is the occasional question for deeper thinking. All in all, this is a solid addition to the library. Recommended.

This book is part of the Survivors series, which are stories of bravery and survival at different times in history.

This particular story centers around Lily LeGrand, a Cajun girl in the mid 1800’s. She is a strong, feisty character, who overcomes the weakness of her deformed foot to save the rich plantation owner’s sons. Two of the boys are very unkind to her, but the third boy, Paul treats her as a friend and comes to her aid when the others torment her. As a result of his chivalry, his two brothers drag him into the alligator and snake infested swamp, planning to leave him there to teach him a lesson. Not only is his life in jeopardy, but his brothers become lost and are nearly killed by an alligator.

Cajuns are treated poorly in this time and place and they see little use in forming a search party for the lost plantation owner’s sons. But, Lily knows that Paul is a good person and strikes out alone to save him. In the process, she saves the others as well, gaining their respect and apologies.

This is a fast-paced story that will entertain young readers, while they are immersed in the lives of kids who lived over 150 years ago. Recommended.

A pun-filled book that begins with a rainy day recess show-and-tell is sure to make students gasp and giggle as they turn the pages.

Some of the puns might be a little over the readers’ heads (“that’s cheesy…Limburger” or”that’s gross…144 items”). But overall, it’s a humorous take on some come comments that might otherwise get one in trouble.

The illustrations fit the text nicely. They are clear and well-defined. Use this book when you are teaching a unit on humorous writing.

A Newbery Honor poet partners with a Caldecott artist to produce an illustrated poem written as an invocation – this is truly a powerful combination.
This is a book that needs to be examined and studied several times through. Each time, new details are discovered that further illustrate the short, but dramatic, poem and add depth to the simple and effective words.
The tone is quiet and contemplative. The illustrations are very well-done and can lead to a conversation about the method of scratchboard art, with its intricate details and mostly black and white colors.
This is a quiet, flowing book which should be savored and enjoyed fully – don’t hurry through it!

Fuddles has a perfect life until Puddles (you can guess the reason for his name), the puppy, enters his life. Fuddles is no longer the king of his domain – there is a messy, loud canine there to ruin his day. But, Fuddles changes his opinion of Puddles after a near-disaster with the neighbor dog.

Pictures convey the absolute disgust and disdain that Fuddles has for Puddles. The text is accessible and children will laugh out loud at the cat’s inability to escape the puppy’s slobbery kisses and adoration!