"Even if it doesn't send kids straight off to dreamland, it will keep them looking; snuggled close with a grown-up, that's not all bad. (Picture book. 2-5)"
Rhyming text and detailed, fantastic art invite readers to follow along with little monster's bedtime reading.
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"Young wrestlers will find all the action and moves they are seeking within these pages, and the dinosaurs and rhymes are an added, entertaining bonus. (Picture book. 5-9)"
Wheeler, that rhyming dino-sports enthusiast, is back, this time with a survey of wrestling styles.
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"Complete with its own ugly pie recipe, this yummy read-aloud will have readers itching to visit loved ones, play outside and make their own delectable dessert. (Picture book. 3-6)"
Craving some ugly pie, brown Ol' Bear traipses across the countryside, visiting friends.
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"Siegel's tinted charcoal-and-pencil illustrations are charming and fun, and the energetic design is as movin' and groovin' as a Madcap Monster Ball should be. (Picture book. 4-8)"
"It is midnight, / and the moonlight's / shining down upon the moors / while the rascals / in the castle / jangle chains and rattle doors."
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"There's many a tale featuring dinosaurs playing, being pets and even dancing, but here's an activity far better suited to their red-in-tooth-and-claw natures. (Picture book. 6-8)"
It's prehistoric pandemonium on ice as the toothy Meat-Eaters (in red jerseys) and the tough Veggiesaurs (in green) face off in a wild championship game.
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"The story starts on the cover, and cat fans will beg to start again each time the book is closed. (Picture book. 2-7)"
"On an island / in the ocean / near the land of Singapore, / midst a storm of great proportion, / fifteen cats were washed ashore."
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With mountainous dignity, mammoths lumber across wide prehistoric landscapes as Wheeler traces their ancient annual round in verse: "Come colder days, those mammoth herds / migrated south, just like the birds. / Their menu had to be improved, / so mammoths packed their trunks and moved."
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"Luckily, this is one ride readers will look forward to taking over and over, allowing them to extract every bit of fun from the trip. (Picture book. 3-7)"
Plenty of wordplay and a rollicking rhythm turn a predictable plot into a practically perfect read-aloud.
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"Though this makes a fine addition to a successful easy-reader series, it will also work well with fairy-tale studies in early elementary classrooms. (Easy reader. 6-8)"
Fitch the wolf and Chip the pig return for a third easy-reader adventure together, this time with a humorous fractured fairy-tale twist.
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"Huliska-Beith's illustrations in acrylic, cloth, and paper are bright and wacky in this sweet collaboration. (Picture book. 2-6)"
Maximum rhythm and maximum rhyme spin this story of sticky peril for an eclectic group of animals forced to learn the value of teamwork.
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"Chock full of visual jokes and wonderfully clever turns of phrase, this is a genuine howl from first scene to last. (Picture book. 7-10)"
H.M.S. Pinafore meets Treasure Island when Siegel puts his all-canine cast on stage for a rousing musical tale played out in cartoon panels.
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"Fans of Sally Ann Crockett, Angelica Longrider ('Swamp Angel'), and other female members of the tall-tale pantheon will definitely be looking up to Annie. (Picture book. 7-9)"
The tale's tall, even if its hero isn't, in this rhymed account of a diminutive trail guide's awesome exploit.
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"The series continues with the second entry, Fitch and Chip: When Pigs Fly, and Fitch and Chip seem poised to continue their friendship with additional volumes. (Easy reader. 6-8)"
Chip is a confident, friendly little pig (the middle child in a large family) and Fitch is a nervous, shy young wolf who lives alone with his grandmother.
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"The figures in this original tale seem ready to spring off the pages, and the text, laced with creaks and cracks, is a natural for reading aloud. (Picture book. 7-9)"
Wheeler and Goembel follow up their inspired Sailor Moo (2002) with another sidesplitting animal story, this one with a folkloric, Southern flavor.
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"Bates's (Do Like a Duck Does, 2002, etc.) watercolors, with their touches of waxy tactility, move with surety and character between tension and sweet resolution. (Picture book. 3-7)"
The circumstances are fraught with trepidation as a few citizens of the forest, at opposite ends of the food chain, meet one another in the dark of the night.
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"But most inspired are the luxurious watercolors from Ansley (Wool Gathering, 2001), with their midnight blues, regal purples, and turkey-skinned pinks depicting Turk in his football gear and assorted buyers in their most comic animation. (Picture book. 4-7)"
It's difficult to explain why Runt, the aptly named young gobbler in Wheeler's tale, cares for the well-being of his hale and hearty older brother, Turk, as in turkey, real and metaphorical.
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"The naturalistic accuracy of Goembel's illustration adds to the humor of this most unusual situation, especially in the end, when a closing cameo zeroes in on Moo, Angus, and their calf Half-'n'-Half, enjoying ice-cream cones on the Jersey shore. (Picture book. 3-7)"
A land-locked cow follows her dream—and finds lasting happiness—in Wheeler's (Sixteen Cows, p. 348, etc.) humorous outing.
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"If only every family reunion were guaranteed to be this much fun. (Picture book/poetry. 4-10)"
This collection of poems is a hysterical spoof on reunions and the odd characters and behaviors that are at the heart of every family.
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"A rousing little number, best read not right before bed, for the proceedings are spirited and the dancing cows inspire some serious high stepping. (Picture book. 3-7)"
Verse with all the spunk of dueling banjos and honeyed watercolors are a pleasingly combustible combination in this rollicking romance.
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