Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
Evergreen by Matthew Cordell (Feiwel & Friends, February 2023) features a highly loveable but timid and scared squirrel sent on a journey to take Granny Oak an acorn full of soup. With this “Little Red Riding Hood”-esque story and Matthew Cordell’s striking ink and watercolor illustrations, Evergreen becomes a truly delightful story to read as
Just One Flake by Travis Jonker (Abrams, October 2023) is a short and cute picture book featuring one kid who desperately wants to catch a snowflake on his tongue — just one! It’s finally snowing. But catching a snowflake on his tongue turns out to be more difficult than he expected. My daughter was so
Meesha Makes Friends by Tom Percival (Bloomsbury, 2021) is a delightful picture book with a play on the word “makes” in the story. Meesha feels very shy, and does not always understand social clues of those around her. In order to not feel lonely, she makes things out of cardboard and other materials to be
In Mortimer’s Christmas Manger by Karma Wilson (illustrated by Jane Chapman; Margaret K. McElderry, 2007), a sweet mouse is looking for a home other than the dark and dirty hole in the wall. He finds the family’s nativity scene and moves in there. Eventually, he overhears the family talking and realizes that true meaning of
Bing! Bang! Chugga! Beep! by Bill Martin Jr. and Michael Sampson (illustrated by Nathalie Beauvois; Brown Books Kids, 2023) is a bright and noisy car picture book with a bouncing rhyme scheme following the “This Old Man” tune. The common refrain of “Bing! Bang! Chugga! Beep!” adds to the simple couplets to make it simply
In The Night the Lights Went Out On Christmas by Ellis Paul (illustrated by Scott Brundage; Albert Whitman, 2015), a neighborhood of families have a yearly Christmas lights competition, with larger holiday displays each year. One year, however, the surge from the holiday lights causes all the world’s power to go out, and the stars
Miss Lina’s Ballerinas by Grace Maccarone (illustrated by Christine Davenier; Feiwel and Friends, 2010) is a cute ballerina picture book about a new girl joining a crew of eight dancers, making the “four lines of two” no longer an option for this tight-knit dance group that does everything together. Their steps are all out of
The Caldecott-winning illustrations of The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg (Houghton Mifflin, 1985) are only part of the magic of this Christmas story. One Christmas Eve, a young boy lies awake, listening for Santa’s sleigh bells. But he doesn’t hear bells: he hears a train. And there it is outside the door, waiting to take him
In The 12 Sleighs of Christmas by Sherri Duskey Rinker (illustrated by Jake Parker; Chronicle Books, 2017), the elves take on a design challenge when they discover that Santa’s sleigh needs repairs. The elves scramble to get something made that will work for him on Christmas Eve. In the next few days, the “sleighs” they
Aliya’s Secret: A Story of Ramadan by Farida Zaman (OwlKids Books, October 2023) is a window into the world of one girl excited about Ramadan and eager to celebrate with a daily fast, just as her parents fast. When her parents discourage her from fasting all day, she decides to fast in secret, but it
In the picture book The Words We Share by Jack Wong (Annick Press, 2023), the child narrator, Angie, tells how she is the one that helps her father with basics of communication in their Canadian community because he is not comfortable or fluent in English. Angie finds she can help the entire community, and to
In the picture book Sensitive by Sara Levine and illustrated by Meherdokht Amini (Carlrhoda Books, October 2023), an unnamed girl hears complaints against her about her being too sensitive, “thin skinned,” and over-reactive. In the illustrations, which are done in a variety of media, these words from others slip through her “thin skin” and crowd
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