Take Away the A: An Alphabeast of a Book / Michael Escoffier; illustrated by Kris Di Giacomo

This is a reboot of the traditional alphabet picture book.  Each letter A to Z is accompanied by word pairs, one word with the stated letter, the other without.  For example, “without the A the beast is the best, without the T, boats carry boas”.  It’s very clever, but I think would only be appreciated by a rather advanced child who knew a thing or two about spelling. Or it could be used as a teaching tool.  The drawings are quirky, and illustrate the word pairs wonderfully well.  This may be one of those picture books that appeals more to the adult than the child, but give it a try and let me know your experiences! 

Cock-a-Moo Moo / Juliet Dallas-Conté

Do we really need another book about farm animals mixing up their signature sounds?  Well, clearly, yes.   There are never enough! This picture book has wonderfully color-saturated illustrations and a text that will make young children laugh.  When the rooster saves the chicken-coop from a marauding fox, no one cares that he says “cock-a-moo-moo”.

Old MacDonald Had a Woodshop /  Lisa Shulman
 

This is a clever new twist on the classic children’s song.  This time Old MacDonald is a woodworking sheep and she and her barnyard friends employ a variety of tools to fashion a surprise for the barnyard babes.  The onomatopoetic sounds make this story a pleasure to share—the saw goes zttt, zttt, the drill goes rurr, rurr, the hammer goes tap, tap, and the paintbrush goes swish, swash.  What fun!

The Book with No Pictures  / B.J. Novak
 

This is one of those books that kids love and adults may scratch their heads over.  There truly are no pictures in this readaloud, just colorfully designed text that the adult reader is obligated to read.  The silliness of the text and the apparent reluctance of the adult narrator to read the silly text is what makes children howl with laughter. 

Press Here / Herve Tullet

This book is “plugged in”.  In an age of electronics, handhelds, computer games, and Wii, this book holds its own.  Kids love it.  Press this dot, look what happens, shake the book, oh my!  Blow real hard!  Clap louder!  This book never disappoints during storytime.  If you haven’t tried it out, get a hold of a copy.  It’s pretty inspired.  And it’s completely analog!

Baby Bear Sees Blue / Ashley Wolff

This picture book reminded me of Blueberries for Sal, and then I read that author/illustrator Ashley Wolff was inspired by the mother-daughter/cub relationship in that classic tale when creating Baby Bear Sees Blue.  The illustrations here are absolutely stunning.  What better vehicle to introduce colors to a toddler than with the vibrant illustrations of this generously proportioned picture book?  The technique is lino-cuts colored with watercolor washes, and some pages almost have an arts-and-crafts feel like a William Morris print with grasses, oak leaves, wildflowers, and berries.  This is picture book illustration at its best. 

Olivia and the Fairy Princesses / Ian Falconer

In a library where every book with princesses clad head to toe in pink sails right out the door, I will be curious to see how Ian Falconer’s new Olivia picture book will market itself.  It certainly has the right cover—Olivia (albeit with a grimace) in a pink pleated skirt with polka dot wings, and a jeweled tiara and starred wand.  It’s what’s inside that might not fit the mold of stereotypical princess books.  “Why is it always a pink princess?  Why not an Indian princess or a princess from Thailand or an African princess or a princess from China?  There are alternatives… Why do they all want to be the same?”  Why indeed, it seems like Disney has identified this same phenomenon and tried to expand the typical notion of princess, but probably with limited success.  In the meantime, Olivia will continue on her crusade of breaking stereotypes in children’s picture book literature.

Otto Runs for President / Rosemary Wells

It’s election time at Barkadelphia School and whoever collects fifty paw prints can run for president of the school.  The race is initially between a popular cheerleading poodle and a tough football playing bulldog who excels in all sports.  Then Otto decides he wants to run.  This clever picture book with adorable animal characters that only Rosemary Wells can create, is full of the real drama behind an election— backers with deep pockets (Charles’s Dad and Tiffany’s mother), smear campaigns, false promises, and a candidate who is the underdog (quite literally) who runs an honest campaign. 

Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site / Sherri Duskey Rinker / illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld

This is a little like Good Night, Moon meets Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel.  Anthropomorphic trucks and construction vehicles are ending a busy day and getting ready for sleepy-time, complete with teddy bear and blankie.  The verse is hypnotic, the illustrations, done in oil pastel, are boldly rendered and wonderfully detailed.  This will be a favorite at bedtime for many.  Watch the book trailer here.

There seems to be an insatiable need for pirate picture books, and this recent publication (2008) fits the bill nicely.  The story in verse tells of a pirate band whose preferred booty is socks.  Dirty Joe meets his match with Stinky Annie, whose preferred plunder is something else from the underwear drawer.  As silly as it all is, it will delight the children.  Jack E. Davis’s illustrations are wonderful, and the moral of the story will ring true for anyone who has an older sister.  Great tie-in for Talk Like a Pirate Day, September 19th.

Here’s a story about mother-child love, told in a simple way with elephants.  Baby elephant is out on a walk with mama elephant and every time she wants to ask a question, she pulls mama elephant’s tail, “tweak, tweak”.   Baby elephant learns about his world and about herself by looking at the animals around her—a butterfly, a crocodile, a monkey, etc.  This book with its repetitive narrative device will certainly become a favorite with the very young.  The illustrations are brightly rendered and comical. 

This is a nicely illustrated counting book set in the savanna of Tanzania.  Native Massai in colorful tribal dress go on safari and encounter wild animals.  The rhyming text counts up to ten, the numbers given in Swahili at the bottom corner of the page.  Additional pages at the end of the book give supplemental information on Tanzania, the animals, and provide a pronunciation guide to names and numbers.

Wow! America! / Robet Neubecker
  

This book is wow! just like the title says.  Its oversized almost poster-like illustrations take you on a red, white, and blue star-spangled tour of these United States of America.  On double and sometimes triple-page spreads in this seemingly larger-than-life book we visit such places as Niagara Falls, the California Sequoias, the Mississippi, Washington DC, the Grand Canyon, and more.  You can almost hear Woody Guthrie’s  “This Land is Your Land” playing in the background as you enjoy turning the pages of this book. 

Summer Beat / Betsy Franco; illustrated by Charlotte Middleton
  

The summer season is full of sounds—that is if you get outside and away from the roaring air conditioning units in your back yard.  This book celebrates the old-fashioned sounds of summer—the clackity-clack of a skateboard on the sidewalk, the shhhh shhhh,  shhh shhh of the water sprinkler, the bizzle-bzzz of a bumble bee.  The simple concept and the big bold illustrations wonderfully celebrate the orchestra of sounds that is summer.   

Bridget’s Beret / Tom Lichtenheld
  

This new picture book follows young Bridget as she develops her artistic talent.  She thinks her talent is tied to her trusty beret, but after it goes missing, sailing off through the air like a kite, she eventually realizes that her talent blooms without the hat.  Her creative streak is reawakened with the design of some signs for a lemonade stand.  And her designs just keep getting more and more creative (think Warhol’s soup cans, Van Gogh’s starry night, and Whistler’s mother).  This book will strike the right chord with parents who want to develop artistic appreciation in their kids.

Spork / Kyo Maclear; illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault
  

This quirky book is centered on a spork-- neither spoon or fork, just where does he fit in?  One morning a “messy thing” arrives and Spork finds his raison d’etre and sets things right.  Put the moral of the story aside, and the book with its idiosyncratic illustrations is just as enjoyable.

Pete the Cat:  I Love My White Shoes / Eric Litwin; illustrated by James Dean
    

You can’t really know what’s so special about this book until you read it aloud to children, or better yet—use the downloadable song version with electric guitar accompaniment.  Magic!!!  It’s such a simple concept—a cat with shoes treads in blueberries, strawberries, mud, etc., turning his pristine white tennis shoes all colors of the rainbow.  The chorus “ I love my white shoes…” is something that will stay with you the whole day!  Kids love the repetition, the memorable tune, and shouting “Goodness no!”  Who knew a picture book could be such fun?

The Easter Egg / Jan Brett
  

Jan Brett’s picture books are all like Easter eggs, Faberge Easter eggs— intricate, layered, ornate, and exquisitely detailed.  Her latest gift to the world of children’s picture books is actually called The Easter Egg and each page is an intricately rendered work of art.  Just look at the bark on her birch trees or the fur on a rabbit’s ear, for example.  The detail is unparalleled. 

The story of The Easter Egg is a contest in which each rabbit must create the most stunning egg, the winner chosen by the Easter Rabbit himself.  A young rabbit named Hoppi is filled with ambition and inspiration, but is sidetracked from his mission.  However, at the end of the story there is a surprise winner to the contest for the most special egg. 

You will treasure this book for years to come as it is sure to become a family keepsake.

Thank you, World / Alice B. McGinity; illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin

This wonderful picture book is the perfect readaloud for Earth Day (or any related celebration of the world and its cultural and natural riches).  Each two-page spread is divided into eight squares, each of which represents a different part of the world: the US, Mexico, Mali, Saudi Arabia, Bolivia, France, India, and China.  The children from these different parts of the world are illustrated reveling under blue skies and playing on green grass.  Cultural differences are sensitively shown—on the page marked “Thank you, trees,” American boys play in a treehouse, an Asian girl gazes at a bonsai tree, and a Bolivian child swings from a hammock tied to an interestingly shaped tree trunk.  The pictures are  the strength of this slim book, and one could spend a long time appreciating their fine colors and detail.  Lots of "teachable moments" here!

My spring robin / Anne Rockwell; illustrated by Harlow & Lizzy Rockwell
  

This book is the perfect  readaloud to welcome spring. A little girl searches for a robin, the ultimate harbinger of the season.   The simple bold illustrations in this delightful picture book are steeped in the colors of spring, from the purple, yellow and white crocuses, to the yellow cloud of forsythia, to the delicate pink and white blooms of the magnolia.  This is a true celebration of the season. 

A frog in the bog / Karma Wilson; illustrated by Joan Rankin
  

This fun book will remind you of I Know an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly.  Except in this story it’s a frog on a log in a bog.  The frog eats one tiny tick (ick!), two fleas (Dear me!), three flies (Oh, my!), four slugs (Ew, ugh!), and five slimy snails.  The illustrations, including an endoscopic view of the frog’s stomach will delight the reader as much as the humorous rhyming verse.  And look out for that log!

The Leprechaun’s Gold / by Pamela Duncan Edwards; illustrated by Henry Cole

There aren’t many St. Patrick’s Day picture books that are really worth sharing, but this one by beloved children's author Pamela Duncan Edwards and illustrator Henry Cole is exceptional.  Old Pat is a kind-hearted harpist living in old Ireland.  When a contest is announced by the king to find the best harpist in the kingdom, he and Young Tom set out to the royal palace to try their luck.  Young Tom plays for silver, Old Pat plays for friends.  When Young Tom tries to sabotage Old Pat’s chances at competing in the contest, leprechaun magic intervenes and assures that the best man wins.  The pictures are a real strength in this picture book and children will happily hunt for the lucky four-leaf clovers that are hidden throughout.

In Like a Lion Out Like a Lamb / Marion Dane Bauer; illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully

The changeable weather that characterizes March even in the capital of Georgia is the subject of this new picture book (2011) told in verse.  Emily Arnold McCully, much decorated illustrator of such books as Mirette on the Highwire (winner of the 1993 Caldecott Medal) and Picnic (see the Weston Woods animated version—it is priceless) provides the illustrations. 

The lion storms into the house with mud on his feet, but shortly thereafter a lamb arrives on a soft flower-scented breeze and an allergy-induced A-a-a-a-choo! 

The simple verse and the whimsical, vibrantly-colored illustrations will make this picturebook a keepsake and one to pull out every spring.

The Missing Mitten Mystery / Steven Kellogg

This is a nice little winter-themed story by master illustrator and colorist Steven Kellogg.  Snow is not simply white, and his artist’s brush catches every blue and green hue and shadow of a winter landscape, contrasted against yellow-tinged skies.  Annie loses her mitten, which takes her on a prolonged hunt to find it.  Her imagination starts to percolate as she imagines the mitten serving as a cozy nest to a winter bird or a mouse’s sleeping bag, or growing into a mitten tree (the picture of the mature tree hanging heavy with "ripe" mittens is a sight to behold!).  When the mitten is eventually found, it is in an unexpected place, and creates a happy and warm ending for the story.

The Hat / Jan Brett

Readers will no doubt be most familiar with Jan Brett’s The Mitten.  The Hat could be seen as a companion piece, and it has all the detail and beauty of the more widely-read title.  A hedgehog blunders into a knit sock that falls from the washing line.  His sharp quills keep it sticking fast, try as he may to remove it.  The snowy landscapes and wonderfully rendered barnyard animals and Jan Brett's decorated page "frames" will delight both child and adult!

The Inside-Outside Book of Paris (also London - New York - Washington) / Roxie Munro

If you’re travelling with your child to Paris, London, New York, or Washington, don’t miss preparing your little one for the experience with one of Roxie Munro’s illustrated masterpieces The Inside-Outside Book of Paris (or insert other city name here).  Her illustrations don’t only include the typical “postcard views” of the city she’s profiling.  In the Paris volume, for example, she has a view of the Louvre and the Seine as seen through the old railroad clock in the Musee d’Orsay, the interior of the Shakespeare and Co. Bookshop, the museum-like metro platform at Louvre-Rivoli, a close-up of a mouth-watering patisserie counter, and a bateau-mouche as it glides under one of Paris’s low-hanging iron bridges. Her ink and watercolor drawings are realistic yet cartoon-like in the style of a graphic novel (she’s done many iconic covers for the New Yorker in a style that should be familiar).  Pick up one of Roxie Munro’s Inside-Outside titles and travel to one of the destinations she’s profiled.

One, two, buckle my shoe /  Jane Cabrera
 

This simple counting book, based on a favorite nursery rhyme, is a pleasure to share with three to four year olds.  The almost naïve illustrations are bright and eye-catching.  Children will love reciting the rhymes and looking for four mischievous chicks which the artist hides on every page.

Applesauce Season / Eden Ross Lipson; illustrated by Mordicai Gerstein

This is a great picture book to pull out at the beginning of autumn and it will appeal to city-dwellers as well as country folk. You don’t have to go to an orchard to experience the joys of the apple harvest--making up a batch of applesauce in your kitchen brings home all the colors and smells of the experience and is a great family bonding experience as this book will relate.

Applesauce Season is fun and instructive, and the eye-popping illustrations by Caldecott-winning illustrator Mordicai Gerstein will enchant. I read this at preschool storytime and had to make applesauce at home several days later. My applesauce turned out pretty darn well, too!

Oliver Finds His Way / Phyllis Root

I guess this is every parent’s nightmare, but what little child hasn’t walked off at least once and gotten a little bit lost?  Oliver is a bear in a smart red jacket.  He is playing in his yard in sight of his parents when a dancing wind-blown yellow leaf catches his eye and he begins to chase it.  Soon he finds himself lost and begins to cry.  But crying doesn’t solve his problem, so he draws upon his ursine instinct and lets out a suitable roar.  Lo and behold his parents hear his roar and answer back, so that he follows their calls and soon again is in familiar territory and in the safe arms of his parents.  I thought this was a touching story, but also one that can teach a lesson.  The illustrations are magnificent and almost have the look of antique color plates from a Grimm's fairy tale book.  Whether or not you need this as a didactic book, it is a pleasure to read and enjoy.

It’s a Book / Lane Smith

Lane Smith, illustrator (and frequent collaborator with Jon Szieszka) communicates a clever message with this little tome.  It’s not clear whether this book is for adults or children, maybe both.  Cartoon characters, almost like Mo Willems in their simplicity—a mouse, a monkey, and a jackass (a male donkey!) inhabit the pages.  Monkey has a book, JA asks “Can it text? blog? scroll?  wi-fi?, tweet?...”  Monkey answers, “No, it’s a book!”  There’s a YouTube video version of this picture book, but watching it on a screen sort of defeats the purpose of It’s a Book. 
 

Hiding Hoover / Elise Broach; illustrated by Laura Huliska-Beith

The kids want a pet, but Dad is not cool with the idea.  But one rainy day they find a friendly dragon in their backyard.  They tempt him with crackers and quickly decide that he would make a wonderful pet, but what to do about Dad?  The kids come up with clever ways to hide Hoover, their new fire-breathing pet, but how long can they keep him a secret?  The illustrations alone will keep the kids entertained.
 

The Great Pig Search / Eileen Christelow

The brightly rendered illustrations in this book will captivate any child’s attention, but it’s the story of the runaway pigs that will cause this story to be asked for again and again.  Bert and Ethel are still looking for their pigs (see Eileen Christelow’s The Great Pig Escape).  In this book they travel to a town in Florida after a mysterious postcard with the single word “oink!” appears in their mailbox.  Kids will have fun finding the pigs in every picture in a sort of Where’s Waldo escapade. 

Jake Starts School / Michael Wright

This humorous brightly-illustrated picture book in verse follows Jake on his first day of school.  Jake has a few first-day jitters and absolutely refuses to let go of his parents when they reach Mrs. Moore’s class in Room Number 1.  The solution is to try to get through the school day attached as one giant three-person blob.  It’s hard to finger paint or seesaw or feed the classroom pet when you’re clinging to your parents.  By the end of the day Mrs. Moore finds a way to make Jake unhinge from his parents and Jake ends up having a very good year in Room Number 1.

Zoomer / Ned Young
  

Dad’s on single-parent duty and is trying to get Hooper, Cooper, and Zoomer off to school.  Zoomer is not having it, and has many more important things to undertake, including breaking the world’s largest bubble record, building sand castles out of dog food, performing magic tricks, and launching rocket ships.  And there’s a reason that Zoomer is dead set against going to school, but you’ll have to read the book to find out why.  This funny book with great illustrations is not to be missed.

That Cat Can’t Stay / Thad Krasnesky; illustrated by David Parkins
  

This is a great book told in verse about a dad living in house full of cat lovers, when he himself is not partial to felines.  Mom and the kids keep picking up strays and pulling on his heart strings to have them stay.  Dad always relents, but not before reciting his argument against cats, “I don’t like cats.  They scratch my knees.  They carry fleas.  They make me sneeze.  They’re always getting stuck in trees…”  Kids will love his repetitive litany as the house fills with cats, and might be surprised at the ending when Dad brings his own pet home from the pound.  You’ll be reading this one again and again. 

Old Pig / Margaret Wild; illustrated by Ron Brooks
  

Death is not a topic frequently taken up by writers of picture books, but Old Pig takes up the topic in a tender way.  Old Pig and Granddaughter have lived together for a long time.  When Old Pig starts to feel tired and begins to put her affairs in order, Granddaughter fears the end.  They celebrate their shared life and reminisce and say their goodbyes. 

This is a beautiful book, wonderfully told, and may help a child in a similar situation deal with feelings they’ve not dealt with before.

Once I Ate a Pie / Patrica MacLachlan and Emily MacLachlan Charest; illustrated by Katy Schneider

You really don’t have to be a dog lover to appreciate this book, but it helps!  Fifteen dogs with very different personalities introduce themselves through free-verse poems.  The paintings by artist Katy Schneider are perfect companion pieces to the poems, capturing as they do the humorous and unique characters of each of the canines.  Introduce yourself to Mr. Beefy who steals tubs of butter off the table when nobody’s looking, Gus the shepherd dog who always wants to keep people in a herd, and Louis whose bark is way bigger than his bite.  Meet these and other dogs in this delightful collection of poems. 

Why?  / Richard Torrey

There’s that age when every question begins with “Why?”—Why do feet stink?  Why does all the good-for-you food taste bad?  Why does everyone think I ask too many questions? Why, why, why?  This humorous book, a picture book that has the feeling of David Shannon’s No, David!, has wonderful bold illustrations that fill the page.  It’s funny, it’s touching—it’s one of those books that perfectly captures the essence of what it means to be a child. 

Shark vs. Train / Chris Barton; illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld

This is on the New York Times bestseller list for children, so you know it’s got to be something special.  And it doesn’t disappoint.  It’s one of those author-illustrator collaborations that is a marriage made in heaven.  It sort of has the whimsy and nostalgia of Marla Frazee’s Caldecott Honor book A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever.

Two boys rummage through their toy chest and pull out a plastic shark and a toy train.  The rest of the book, until the boys are called to lunch, is a fantasy of imaginative play with the anthropomorphic shark and train engaging in various contests.  You can almost hear the boys’ playful chatter as they grip their toys while the shark and train shoot baskets, transform into rides at a carnival, play hide-and-seek, or sword fight on a tight rope.

Full of humor and fun, this will appeal to kids, but also may serve as a trip down memory lane for many adults, to a simpler playtime before Gameboys.