Addressing his infant son about what it means to live on Earth, the author/illustrator offers a mix of planetary facts, quotations, bits of advice, and illustrations.
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"An ingenious, confident, and pretty cool exploration of literary delight. (Picture book. 5-12)"
A young girl reader helps a boy discover the imaginative art of stories in this insightful, intertextual ode to literary curiosity.
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"A vivid, accessible tale of the staggering price war exacts from those who had no voice in waging it. (Historical fiction. 9-14)"
Another child's-eye view of war from the author of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2006); here the child is working-class, the conflict, World War I.
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"A buoyant, delightfully Almond-ine coming-of-age novel about fish, fate and family; moonlight, madness and myth; runts, 'Rackanruwin' and, finally, redemption. (Fiction. 8-12)"
In British novelist Almond's latest, the trouble starts when Ernie Potts decides to turn his house on Fish Quay Lane into a loud, stinky fish-canning factory, and his nephew Stan has to quit school to work.
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"A story of self-empowerment told with wry humor and purpose. (Fable. 8-12)"
Barnaby Brocket has been defying the laws of gravity since the day he was born. Now, at the ripe old age of 8, his life continues to be ruled by this fact: If he's not held down by outside forces, he floats.
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"Floyd's stubbornness and the smorgasbord-filled tree remain funny through repeated readings, offering kids the special glee of knowing more than the protagonist. (Picture book. 3-6)"
Everything but the kitchen sink gets tossed up a tree to help Floyd retrieve his kite—oops, there goes the kitchen sink too!
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"Children will intuit, absorb and appreciate this soothing book's heart—the fast, offbeat friendship that makes it so singular and appealing. (Picture book. 2-6)"
Jeffers revisits Lost and Found (2006), his sweet, muted story of friendship between a penguin and a boy, and he finds equal success with the same mild characters, understated humor, washes of watercolor and succinct, soft narration.
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"Heartbreaking, witty and filled with hope, this will perhaps rings most true with children whose parents have recently suffered a loss. (Picture book. 4-8)"
"Once there was a girl, much like any other," curious and full of wonder; able to explore and discover because the man was there.
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"Sophisticated readers may giggle over the mystery and mock trial, and adults may admire the undeniably hip artwork, but the story's message is a bit convoluted, mixing themes of forgiveness, eco-consciousness and teamwork. (Picture book. 6-9)"
"There was a time in the forest / when everything was not as it should have been."
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"The space theme as well as the simple watercolor-and-pencil illustrations will please every young, imaginative adventurer. (Picture book. 3-6)"
A boy (who bears a striking resemblance to the boy in Lost and Found, 2005 and How to Catch a Star, 2004) finds an airplane in his closet.
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"Dish this out to eager readers, with a grain of salt, and watch them snap it up. (Picture book. 6-8)"
In a cautionary tale about the perils of unbridled bibliophagy, once young Henry discovers that the more books he eats the smarter he gets, he proceeds to gorge—and not only racks up humongous library fines, but ends up with both stomach and brains aboil with undigested content.
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"Readers who (inexplicably) find David Lawrence's Pickle and Penguin (2004) just too weird may settle in more comfortably with this—slightly—less offbeat friendship tale. (Picture book. 6-8)"
A lad finds a penguin on his doorstep and resolutely sets out to return it in this briefly told import.
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