Tales of Bunjitsu Bunny by John Himmelman
  Run, don't walk, to your nearest library and get ALL the Bunjitsu Bunny books. Technically, they might be called 'transitional fiction' as they are easy to read, and do not require hours of sustained attention. Each chapter is its own story - just right for those working on reading skills.
  Make sure you read all the way to the end of the book. There you will find "The Bunjitsu Code" and it is a great list of good character qualities everyone should strive to reach. Curious? Here are a few elements:
  "I promise to:
*Help those who need me.
*Study the world.
[and my favorite one ...]
*Try things that are hard for me to do."

The other titles out as of today - I love them all!
Ages 6-10, and their parents
Melody

My Grandfather's Coat by Jim Aylesworth  (2014)

  I do love new books, and new tellings of old stories! This story is based on a traditional Yiddish folk song, and has been told before, but the ending on this is delightfully new. Both the author and illustrator share their family coming-to-America stories at the end of the book.

  Read Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback for the Caldecott Medal winning version first published in 1977.

New picture book biographies

I do love picture book biographies. Short stories, interesting information, fun illustrations - what is not to love? Here are a few that I just read and wanted to share.


Noah Webster & His Words by Jeri Chase Ferris

Noah did not want to be a farmer, he wanted to go to school. He borrowed money from his father so that he could go to school. When he graduated, he found a job as a teacher, and immediately saw a need for American school books.

The book introduces a few big words, with definitions following, just like Webster's masterpiece - the Webster Dictionary.



Just Behave, Pablo Picasso!  by Jonah Winter

 Picasso was incredible precocious, and could complete a painting while other painter twice his age were still working on a sketch. Picasso went on to develop his own style, which at first people liked, but then as he continued to change, he was pressured to paint what people liked - pretty pink paintings. Picasso painted what he wanted, and cubism was the result.

This is an encouraging book for those who see the world differently, and want to follow their own path.

Those Rebels, John & Tom by Barbara Kerley          

 

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were such opposites, and this book helps us understand the personality differences in a clearly stated manner. Then we get to see how they used their own strengths to help found our United States of America. This is a great story from history, as well as an advisory for today's children and adults - look for strengths in yourself and those you work with.              For another look at both the friendship and feuding between these two men, read Worst of Friends: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and the True Story of an American Feud by Suzanne Tripp Jurmain continues this story, as the two did not remain focused on the good qualities in their differences, but had a complete falling out that lasted many years. Read both - compare and contrast, as both are excellent stories.

Sports, picture book, and biography, all rolled into one

Fifty Cents and a Dream: Young Booker T. Washington by Jabari Asim

   Imagine a time when blacks were not allowed to learn to read. Imagine longing to be able to do so. Pick up this book, and experience the drive and desire that led Booker T. Washington to travel to another city and work hard so that he might learn to read.

  Illustrations are a water color and collage, and match the words nicely.

  American History, biography - mid 1800's

A Nation's Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis

by Matt De la Peña

The year is 1938, the place, Yankee Stadium. Joe Louis will

be fighting Hitler's man of the "master race", Max Schmeling.

All of America is listening, as the son of a black sharecropper

steps into the ring. This picture book catches a historic moment,

and makes it easy to visualize, to see why it was so important.

American history, biography, - 1930's

 

Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Johnson  by Charles R. Smith Jr.

  Before Joe Louis could fight his epic battle, Jack Johnson had to win his; Jack continually pushed for the right for a black man to fight a white man. Before Jack Johnson, this did not happen. But Jack was tenacious.

  Easy, rhyming text carries this important story along with an almost mythical quality. Great notes at the end of the book with more information about what happened next.

  American history, biography, - 1910 

Happy new books!

Just Ducks!   by Nicola Davies
  Picture books that tell us a little bit more about our wonderful world are my favorites. This is just that!  A little girl can hear the quack, quack, quacking of ducks from her bedroom window. She sees them in the park, too. Smaller text information boxes of one or two sentences allow the reader to learn just a bit more.
  Great for kids who like ducks, ages 2-8. Good beginning science.

Auntie Yang's Great Soybean Picnic  by Ginnie Lo
  Family stories ... I love reading family stories. I also think that family stories are a great way to 'meet' people of different cultures, people we might not have met in our neighborhoods.
  This is the story of Chinese American cousins, their homes in Indiana and Illinois, and the delight of their parents when it was discovered that soybeans grow in America, too.
  For all ages, this picture book will probably be best for school age children.

Mousetronaut - based on a (partially) true story  by Astronaut Mark Kelly
  The title gives it away - this is a somewhat true story, and the astronaut author tells us in the 'Afterword' just what part of the story IS true.
  Children interested in space will enjoy this story.


  These three picture books help children (and their adults) to see more of the world, learn more of the world than can be done in a classroom. Picture books immerse the reader, with words and art, into experiences both real and imaginary. A really great picture book may even change the way we think about the world around us. And really good ones, like these three, allow us to easily learn about our world in a way that might make us more curious, more willing to ask questions, and for some of us that might include looking for more information.
  Happy reading!
Melody

Fathers and birds - a few fine books

Because I Am Your Daddy  by Sherry North

  "Because I am your daddy, I would do anything for you." This last line in the book says it all. This daddy would take his daughter surfing, if he was a surfer, or fly her to school, if he was a pilot. The illustrations have a very retro feel to them, and do not overpower the simply stated text.

Preschool - 2nd grade

The Fathers are coming home  by Margaret Wise Brown

"It is nighttime and the fathers are coming home." begins this lovely book. We expect the story to be about human fathers, so it is a surprise to see father fish on the next page we turn to. Bug father, rabbit father, pig father and more fill the pages until, finally, the boy's father, a sailor, comes home.

Preschool

My Father Knows the Names of Things  by Jane Yolen

I love reading everything Jane Yolen has written, and this book is extra special. Here is a father who is naming things for his child - exactly what parents should do every day. This naming begins with simple things, dog and cat. As children get older we expand that naming, to dalmation, terrier, persian, and siamese.

Read this book as a reminder to you and your child, of all the naming you can do together.

Preschool through 2nd

An Egret's Day  by Jane Yolen

See, I told you I like Jane Yolen! This is her latest poetry book, and her son did the photography for the book. The poetry is great and there is an added bonus of egret information on each page, separate from the poetry.

Poetry and nature study rolled into one! Don't miss this book.

Great for preschoolers learning to play with and enjoy language, through upper elementary who are learning to write poetry and studying birds.

Mouse and Mole: Fine Feathered Friends  by Wong Herbert Lee

Pikes Peak Library District has this as a 'D' Level reader - solid 2nd/3rd grade reading.

I picked this as another bird book that is fun to read. Mole loves to birdwatch, and Mouse goes, too, though she singing and frightening the birds. The four chapters tell about how the two friends struggle and work to watch birds, then write and draw about their experiences.

Friendship and birdwatching, two fine things to read about!

Two weather stories

Stormy Weather by Debi Gliori


This is a bedtime story that includes the sentiment of a parent keeping a child safe, no matter what the weather. Rain, snow, wind and storms – you as a child are safe with me. The illustrations are exceptional. Animal parents protect their children, reading them bedtime stories, tucking them into a nice little bed, or holding them in their wings/arms. Pay attention to the end papers in this book, too, for a little more of the story.

Ages 3-6

I love these illustrations!  Melody

Groundhog Weather School by Joan Holub

Learn about famous prognosticators, or in this case, hognosticators, as we learn about groundhogs and groundhog day. Lots of text in this book make it better for school age, 6-8.