Latest and Greatest From Penguin!

(Me and Harlan Coben - check out his first picture book below!)

This past Thursday I had the opportunity to go to my son’s four year old nursery class and talk to the children about how books become books. From basic art and text to a folded and gathered copy and finally bound and ready for purchase, the children had a great time comparing a book in a flimsy state to a final hardcover copy. I showed them some up and coming picture books and easy readers and now I will share them with you too. Happy Reading!

New Board Books:

   

Corduroy’s Colors, Corduroy’s Numbers

I love that this series incorporates the concept being taught in a sentence. Whether Corduroy is playing in green grass or counting three pigs, it helps a child understand in context what they learning. There are so many objects on each page to help build vocabulary skills, from different flowers and fruits in the garden in Corduroy’s Colors to the many different farm animals in Corduroy’s Numbers.

New Non-Fiction:

 

Astrid Lindgren – Johanna Hurwitz

The newest addition to the Women of Our Time Series, Lindgren is most famous (to me) for being the author of the Pippi Longstocking series. I loved learning that the character started off as someone Lindgren made up in stories she told her daughter and after she was home bound after breaking her ankle she decided to write the stories down and send them to a publisher. What a fortuitous mishap for young children everywhere!

 

The Buzz on Insects – Gina Shaw

This Level 3 reader dives into the world of six legged, two antennae bugs that fill our world (for better or for worse). The photos of ants, caterpillars, ladybugs and others are vivid and beautiful (if also a little gross) and science terms are explained in the glossary on the last page.

 

The Moon – James Buckley Jr.

Ever wonder if the moon is really made of cheese or a man lives there? This Level 4 reader goes through the history of studying the moon from Galileo to Neil Armstrong and all the details discovered along the way.

 

Curious About Fossils – Kate Waters

Sometimes all you need is a picture of giant sloth poop to get kids excited about a science topic like fossils. In this book, you will learn about famous fossil collectors, dinosaurs, how fossils are handled and so much more. This book is perfect for dinosaur lovers who want to go beyond the types of dinosaurs that roamed the earth and a glossary in the back explains key concepts.  


Curious About Snow – Gina Shaw

Snowflakes have different shapes but they all have six sides. Billions of snowflakes fall in every snowstorm. An avalanche is a moving mass of snow that slides down a mountain. Want to learn more fun facts? Pick up a copy of this book, filled with amazing photos of snowflakes you did not know you needed to see.

 

Baby Orca - Mary Batten and Chris Rallis

I first learned about Orcas from the Disney show Octonauts. Baby Orcas are also known as killer whales and are the top predators in the ocean - even sharks are scared of them! Orcas come to life in this easy to read book that takes one on a journey from baby Orca to mother with beautiful photos and illustrations.

Easy Reader Fiction:

 

Get a Hit Mo – David A. Adler

A baseball book for reluctant sports fans in early elementary school, this book teaches the importance of perseverance and never giving up. Trying your best can end in a home run! This is a level 2 reader, perfect for children starting to read on their own.

Picture Books:

 

The Huey’s in What’s the Opposite? – Oliver Jeffers

Oliver Jeffers is a master at making concept books exciting for adults to read to their children. Of course the opposite of up is down, but every parent wants to share that the opposite of half full is half empty (with the exact same glass of juice). The illustrations of the lovable Hueys make this a fun read for all, and there is no better way to entertain a child than through entertaining their adult. This book is also available in board book format.

 

The Magical Fantastical Fridge – Harlan Coben

Every good mom displays her children’s artwork on their fridge, right? What better way for a boy to get out of setting the table for dinner than to “fall” right into his own drawings on the fridge and then has to use his imagination to get himself out. This books is definitely a fresh interpretation on the age old adage, “There’s no place like home”. While the illustrations aren’t really my style, they are loud and fun for an older child (kindergarten – first grade) who can understand the concept. Adult fans of Coben will be excited to expose one of their favorite authors with their children and prep them for his YA novel Shelter.

 

Snappsy the Alligator (did not ask to be in this book) – Julie Falatko

There is something hilarious about a protagonist talking back to the narration in a book. Poor Snappsy feels he needs to defend his actions and decisions and is pressured to make his story “less boring” even though he does not want to be a part of a story, he just wants to have a regular day. This is definitely a story parents will not mind reading over and over with their children.

 

Ten Kisses for Sophie – Rosemary Wells

Sophie fans rejoice! Sophie is back, this time helping her mother make chocolate kisses for dessert for a party. Sophie gets nervous there will not be enough for everyone but she luckily has the best grandmother to come and save the day! Your youngest readers will understand Sophie’s angst about maybe not getting the dessert they have been awaiting for days and learn a great lesson giving to others.

 

A Recipe for Bedtime – Peter Bently

Does this sound like a familiar night routine to you? Undress baby -> bath time -> pajamas -> milk -> bed -> kiss goodnight -> leave room -> come back to room -> sing baby to sleep. If this resonates with you, this is your new bedtime story for your little one. You are sure to love the illustrations and the rhyming text and any parent of a baby or toddler can relate to this book.

 

The Importance of Being 3 – Lindsay Ward

My two and half year old is convinced this book was written just for her. After all, she is about to be three and she is learning to draw letter and shapes, play independently in the playground and make friends. Throwing tantrums and spills are still guaranteed in three year old life, but the new adventures for a growing toddler are exciting and endless and this is a sure to be appreciated gift for any child turning three.

Little Bitty Friends – Elizabeth McPike

Simple rhyming text connects little children with the little critters in nature. Ants, baby rabbits, baby turtles, caterpillars and more all interact with young ones on the pages. This adorable story is an easy way to instill an early love of the great outdoors to the young ones in your life.

 

Super Jumbo – Fred Koehler

Being a super hero is not always easy, but someone has to look out for the neighborhood! Even though he always means to do the right thing, sometimes Super Jumbo’s helping hands go a little awry. There is no better book to inspire children to be the most super version of themselves than this adorable tale of a baby elephant wanting to better the world. This is an absolutely delightful book to read and share with children at home, at story time and in school settings.  

Middle Grade Fiction:

 

Jack and Louisa (Book 2) – Andrew Keenan-Bolger and Kate Wetherhead

Theater nerds rejoice - Jack and Louisa are back! (If you missed their first book, it is a must read for any fan of Broadway.) Act 2 takes us on a trip to the Big Apple and on a new adventure in how serious school plays really are. This is such a fun, fast-paced read whether you are a guy or a doll you will love the next installment of these two friends’ theater adventure.

Cottage Door Press

An amazing new publishing company has emerged, focusing on babies and toddlers and I would like to proudly introduce to you the world of Cottage Door Press. Each book they create focuses on one or more skills and developmental milestones of our youngest readers which they highlight on the back of each book, known as the Early Bird Learning Guide. The company focuses on books for children ages 0-4 and really hones in on what those children are learning and strengthening every day. With six different categories of books you are sure to find something appropriate for your little ones (and you may love every book offered so much you just might want to collect them all). Here are a few titles for each type of series:

  

I: Babies Love Series

These Lift-The-Flap books are perfect for baby’s first year. Titles in the series include Things That Go, Animals and First Words. They have sturdy pages and flaps (definitely not a rip-the-flap kind of book!) and I personally love that the text is full sentences and real content, not just words to teach vocabulary.

   

II: I Can Do It Books

These books are perfect for the toddler learning to do things on his own. They are all relatable, brightly illustrated and encourage children to grow.

Good Night Octopus goes through a typical nighttime routine, cleaning up toys, bath time, pajamas, story time and a kiss goodnight.

The Peas Say Please focuses on table manners. It has an engaging rhyming scheme and is filled with relatable pictures including a booster seat, sippy cup and bib.

Everybody Potties is a great book for introducing toilet training. It brings up knowing and understanding the feeling of having to go, making on a toilet, flushing and washing up afterwards. (I personally noticed there is no mention of wiping but that gives the reader the opportunity to share that with that child as they read together.)

  

III: Sing and Smile Stories

These books with familiar texts will get your toddlers singing and dancing, enhancing vocabulary skills in the most engaging way. They are also designed with a cut out handle so they are easy for young ones to hold and carry with them everywhere.

In the book Wheels on the Bus the circus is coming to town! The book is interactive and encourages children to move like the characters on the page or make fun noises. It is the perfect sing-along read-aloud.

In Old MacDonald Had a Band the farm is filled with animals’ sounds and musical instruments making this the noisiest farm in town! The text is fun and encourages musical expression. Also a perfect read-aloud.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star is sure to be your child’s new favorite bedtime story. Fairy tale themed illustrations accompany this sweet nighttime lullaby.

   

IV: Look, Look Baby – Point and Match

A baby’s first I Spy book that teaches matching, pointing and other early math skills. Titles in this series include Zoom! Zoom! (Things that go), Whiskers and Tails (Animals) and Sunny Day (Things found outdoors). Every book builds vocabulary and is essentially a game that informally teaches numbers, colors, shapes and anything else you spot on the pages. There are suggestions on how to use the books on the inside cover and the really bright two page spreads are extremely inviting to young eyes. I strongly suggest this series, it is so much fun and takes story time with your child to a new level.

     

V: Tabbed Board Books

These books have a unique border making them more appealing on a bookshelf. Books in this series are:

ABC Animal Party – a story incorporating the alphabet and animals. It is a cute story about the animals preparing a surprise party for their friend and the alphabet on the last page has a picture of each animal that corresponds to the letters (except for K and X. I understand X can be hard but Kangaroo, Koala? There are animals that start with the letter K!)

Big Day for Baby maps out a typical day in a toddler’s life including waking up, getting dressed, eating, playing and bedtime routine. The last page spread highlights vocabulary and common pictures that babies and toddlers can surely identify.

123 Count With Me – count from one to ten with these adorable animals! I love the playful rhyming scheme in the text but no matter how many times I read this book, I always cringe at the “mousies” because the word is “mice”!

 

VI: Padded Board Books

These softer (but still sturdy!) board books are perfect for cuddling up and reading as a family.

Grandma Wishes – almost prayer-like, a grandmother wishes on a star that her baby grows up to be happy, healthy and a good person. If you know a grandmother, this book MUST be shared with her!

My Little Beast – every parent lives through these moments. Your child does something to set you off – a toy in the toilet, a new box of cereal spilled on the floor, coloring on the walls… (Is this just my kids?) This book is an adorable reminder that no matter how “beastly” the act, parents never stop loving their children and never cease to remind their children about that simple fact. I personally do not love the title (I don’t think it is particularly nice to refer to a child as a “beast”) but the pictures are cute and the text really resonates with many families.

The Moon Sees You and Me reiterates to children the idea that whether you are close by or far away there is always a sense of security between a parent and a child. This book sends a really positive and loving message to young ones.

In addition to these series, they also sell book and toy gift sets and button sound books. I really love the books that Cottage Door Press has to offer and I am excited for future titles to add to my toddler’s personal library. You can purchase Cottage Door Press Books on their website, Amazon, Kohl’s and other fine retailers. 

Hello, World!

    

Sometimes I wish I was a world traveler and had cool photo albums filled with pictures of famous landmarks and renowned art pieces from all of my explorations that I could share with my family and friends. Until the Fontainebleau hotel in Miami becomes a landmark, something tells me it will be a while before I have a more sophisticated photo album. Until then, my children have to learn about the world from television, books and their imagination.

My children love the television show Little Einsteins on Disney Junior which has exposed them to classical music and many recognized works of art and iconic cities around the world. They often ask if they can go to these places and see the Eiffel Tower in France or Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. While I feel bad telling them that we are not leaving the East Coast any time soon, a new board book series brings those cities and their cultures to life in my living room (when the television is off).

In this four book series, Hello, World highlights the best attractions and iconic features each city has to offer. It is also a concept series so you will practice your opposites in London, your numbers in San Francisco, your shapes in Paris and your colors in New York. Every parent who has been to any of these places (or lives in one of these cities) will be able to talk about the sites featured on a more personal level. I showed my children pictures of Buckingham Palace I took when I was there and held it up next to the picture in the book (they LOVED that!)

Each page of every book has something exciting to talk about with your child and truly captures the essence of each city. In the heart of New York City you can spot more than just colors while taxi cabs are flying through the streets and dogs are being walked in the park. On a sunny day in San Francisco you can count the people hopping on and off trolleys and watching the boats float by. Every must see site in Paris is mentioned in this book about shapes and children will love the changing of the guards and tea parties starting and ending in the London book of opposites.

The illustrations are bright, inviting and truly captivate the feeling of each city. I emailed the author/illustrator Ashley Evanson and asked her why she chose these four specific locations and she told me that “Each one is overflowing with its own unique culture, art, customs and life. I loved studying the history of all these cities and wanted to teach my own kids about it, too”. You will love sharing these books with your toddlers and they will love learning new concepts while experiencing another part of the world.  

Great New Board Books!

When you have more than one child, it can be hard to find the perfect book that will attract your complete audience. In my own home, I felt that it was a constant struggle to satisfy an 18 month old and a 3 year old at bedtime, as some books were too long and some books were “for babies”. While the older my children get this seems to become easier, I found a really good answer to this dilemma with the new book Hey Baby, Look! by Kate Shannon.

Hey Baby, Look! is an interactive board book sturdy enough for a curious 3 month old with questions and instructions to entertain a 3 year old. Each two-page spread is formatted the same; text on the left and four pictures on the right. Each line in the text correlates to at least one picture on the right. It is a game, it builds vocabulary and it promotes concentration and excitement when a child points to the correct answer on each page. It is simply and brightly illustrated and is sure to be a new staple in my Mother Goose Story Hour. It is definitely long, which is great for a toddler, but one can always stop and start again from any point if you find your child getting restless. It touches upon clothing, animals, food, things that go, the alphabet and other basic pictures children learn to recognize from the youngest age. If you are looking to expand your child’s library, this is definitely worth adding to your collection!

Some great new board books from Orca Publishing are coming your way soon! You don't want to miss these titles!

 

Up Hamster, Down Hamster – Kass Reich

If you haven’t read Kass Reich’s Hamsters Holding Hands it is time to do so (it is an adorable counting book). Reich brings to life typical opposites using adorable hamsters to illustrate each one. This book is sure to be a staple when teaching the concept of opposites to the youngest children. It is absolutely adorable and you will have no problem reading it over and over again.

So Many Babies – Lorna Crozier

I have never met a baby or toddler that did not love looking at pictures of animals. The only thing cuter than the animals are their babies – and here is a beautifully illustrated board book about baby animals in their natural habitats. While the book is great for babies, it is definitely a conversation starter at a toddler story time, as children who are 3 to 5 years old understand that different animals live in different places and they will have a blast identifying jungles, ponds, forests and mountains. The book ends with a human baby to perfectly sum up that everyone starts off as a baby and each of them are beautiful in their own way. This is definitely a great gift for any young animal lover!

 

A Carnival of Cats – Charles Ghigna

Everyone has a cat lover in their life and this is your next gift to that person. This circus of cats parading on each page is an adorable guessing game for the cat enthusiast. This book is also a great way to introduce differences in animals that are the same, a lesson most toddlers start to learn. While these are all cats, some are black and some are grey with different colored eyes and different shaped tails. So too, some children are tall and some are short, some have brown eyes and some have blue, but just as all the cats come together to put on a great show, so too children can all coexist and play together happily.