A Plethora of Picture Books

BUILD DOGS BUILD: A TALL TAIL by James Horvath. Harper, 2014.

Dog construction crew
Works hard to build something nice
For the neighborhood.

CLARK THE SHARK DARES TO SHARE by Bruce Hale with illustrations by Guy Grancis. Harper, 2014.

Can Clark learn to share
With all of his friends at school?
Sharing is hard work.

YELLOW IS MY COLOR STAR by Judy Horacek. Beach Lane, 2014.

Which color would be
Your favorite of them all?
That's your color star.

JUNKYARD by Mike Austin. Beach Lane, 2014.

Junkyard needs cleaning.
Maybe it can even be
A great new playground?

LOVE IS REAL by Janet Lawler with illustrations by Anna Brown. Harper, 2014.

Mamas and babies know
Love is real, especially
In the family.

TULIP LOVES REX by Alyssa Capucilli with illustrations by Sarah Massini. Katherine Tegen/Harper, 2014.

Tulip loves to dance
As it turns out, so does Rex.
Tulip and Rex: friends.

Henny

HENNY by Elizabeth Rose Stanton. Simon and Schuster, 2014.

Henny is a chicken born with arms instead of wings. Is this a blessing or a curse? Young readers will adore this book and will pore over the illustrations for the details about Henny's own unique nature.

Brimsby's Hats

BRIMSBY'S HATS by Andrew Prahin. Simon & Schuster, 2014.

Brimsby makes wonderful hats. He loves his work, and he loves spending time with his best friend. But when he is best friend decides to go off and be a sea captain, Brimsby is lonely. He does not feel like working. And then he sees the birds.

Malcolm Little

MALCOLM LITTLE: THE BOY WHO GREW UP TO BE MALCOLM X by Ilyasah Shabazz with illustrations by A G Ford. Atheneum, 2013.


What was Malcolm X like as a child? His daughter, Ilyasah, gives readers insight into the childhood of the famous leader in this picture book.

Courage Has No Color

COURAGE HAS NO COLOR: THE STORY OF THE TRIPLE NICKELS AMERICA'S FIRST BLACK PARATROOPERS by Tanya Lee Stone. Candlewick, 2013.

Stone dives into a little known piece of history with her nonfiction book about the first African American paratroopers, the Triple Nickels as they were known at the time. Though the paratroopers made history, their story has not been told in such incredible detail. Lots of archival photos, newspaper clipping, and other primary resources disclose what it was like for these history makers to achieve the status of being the "first" and yet not being utilized by the military which still had de facto segregation when it came to African American soldiers. History teachers will find this an invaluable book to share with students.

The President Has Been Shot

THE PRESIDENT HAS BEEN SHOT! THE ASSASSINATION OF JOHN F. KENNEDY by James L. Swanson. Scholastic, 2013.

Details, photographs, and other elements combine to provide readers the historical background, information, and opinions on the events leading up to and following the assassination of President Kennedy. Compelling narrative makes readers feel as if they were there in the 60s when the unthinkable happened.

The Bronte Sisters

THE BRONTE SISTERS: THE BRIEF LIVES OF CHARLOTTE, EMILY AND ANNE by Catherine Reef. Clarion, 2013.


The Bronte Sisters, whose first books were published under pen names because women were not seen as fit to be authors, experienced much in their young lives: much loss, much love, much success, much failure. Their lives and their deaths are chronicled here by Reef who draws readers in to the time and place with careful detail and meticulous detail.

Breakfast on Mars

BREAKFAST ON MARS: YOUR FAVORITE AUTHORS TAKE A STAB AT TEH DREADED ESSAY ASSIGNMENT edited by Rerbecca Stern and Brad Wolfe. Roaring Brook, 2013.

38 essays comprise this collection of authors riffing on a topic. Some essays are memoirs, some are humorous, some are short and sweet and very pointed. Teachers should consider using some of these essays as mentor texts for their writing assignments. Here is proof that the 5 paragraph essay is indeed DEAD.

Hank Zipser is back (and back in time)

BOOKMARKS ARE PEOPLE TOO by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver. Grosset and Dunlap, 2014.


Hank Zipser's back
In second grade this time, and
Up to his old tricks.

Myth-taken?

29 MYTHS ON THE SWINSTER PHARMACY by Lemony Snicket. Illustrated by Lisa Brown. McSweeney's McMullen's, 2014.

From the fertile and frenetic mind of Daniel Handler, aka Lemony Snicket, comes this mystery which centers on the Swinster Pharmacy. To be sure, there are strange things happening: the building is a perfect square, people are moved to speak in hushed tones when they pass by the building. There is more, 27 more to be exact. The form and format of the text is sure to attract readers who love to puzzle over text (and illustration) for clues to solving the mystery of this edifice.

The Boy on the Wooden Box

THE BOY ON THE WOODEN BOX: HOW THE IMPOSSIBLE BECAME POSSIBLE ON SCHINDLER'S LIST by Leon Leyson with Marilyn Harran and Elizabeth Leyson. Atheneum, 2013.


Leon Leyson was one of them: one of the many saved by the generosity of Oskar Schindler. This memoir takes readers back to the time of the Holocaust, a tme when simply being Jewish could mean death. Leon and his family certainly faced extermination without the assistance of Schindler and others who put their lives at risk to save others. Leyson's first person account makes this read immediate and powerful.

Patti Cake and her new Doll

PATTI CAKE AND HER NEW DOLL by Patricia Reilly Giff with illustrations by Laura J. Bryant. Orchard/Scholastic, 2014.


Patti Cake's new doll,
On-Sale, gets all smudged. What can
Patti Cake do now?

You Can't Have Too Many Friends

YOU CAN'T HAVE TOO MANY FRIENDS by Mordecai Gerstein. Holiday House, 2014.

When King borrows Duck's
Jellybeans but never gives
Them back Duck must act.

Tugboat

TUGBOAT by Michael Garland. Holiday House, 2014.

Little boats can do
Great things. Follow the tugboat
And discover how.

Poppy the Pirate Dog's New Shipmate

POPPY THE PIRATE DOG'S NEW SHIPMATE by Liz Kessler with illustrations by Mike Phillips. Candlewick, 2014.

Poppy the dog hates
George the new cat but Poppy
Comes to his rescue.

Doggie Duties

FETCH WITH RUFF RUFFMAN: DOGGIE DUTIES by Jeff Michalak. Candlewick, 2014.

Ruff, Chet, and Blossom
Have a big problem: broken
Toilet. Who can help?

Clara and Dave

CLARA AND DAVE: THE TRUE STORY OF YOUNG CLARA BARTON by Patricia Polacco. Scholastic.

Young Clara Barton
Becomes a famous nurse thanks
To her brother Dave.

Hi, Koo!

HI, KOO! A YEAR OF SEASONS by Jon Muth. Scholastic, 2014.

Koo the panda bear
Cavorts through all the seasons
Celebrating life.

A Bunny in the Ballet

A BUNNY IN THE BALLET by Robert Beck. Orchard/Scholastic, 2014.

Can a bunny dance
n a prestigious ballet?
Desiree just might.

The End (Almost)

THE END (ALMOST) by Jim Benton. Scholastic, 2014.

Donut wants to stay
Even after story's end.
Read it again please.

Rockabilly Goats Gruff

THE ROCKABILLY GOATS GRUFF by Jeff Crosby. Holiday House, 2014.

Rockabilly goats
Outsmart a troll and live to
Play music again.

Monster Truck Mania with Hot Rod Hamster

HOT ROD HAMSTER: MONSTER TRUCK MANIA by Cynthia Lord with illustrations by Derek Anderson. Scholastic, 2014.

Hot Rod Hamster loves
The monster truck show. He comes
To a driver's aid.

The Good-Pie Party

THE GOOD-PIE PARTY by Liz Garton Scanlon with illustrations by Kady MacDonald Denton. Arthur A Levine/Scholastic, 2014.

Posy is moving
And does not want to leave friends.
Good-pie not good-bye.

Sophie sleeps over

SOPHIE SLEEPS OVER by Marisabina Russo. Roaring Brook, 2014.


Her first sleepover:
Exciting times for Sophie
But Olive's there, too.

My Humongous Hamster

MY HUMONGOUS HAMSTER by Lorna Freytag. Holt, 2014.

Humongous hamster
Could be fun but might be a
Problem too sometimes.

Beekle, the Unimaginary Friend

BEEKLE THE UNIMAGINARY FRIEND by Dan Santat. Little Brown, 2014.

Imagination
Can bring you a new friend like
Beekle, my best friend.

Tea with Grandpa

TEA WITH GRANDPA by Barry Saltzberg. Roaring Brook, 2014.

Tea with Grandpa means
Singing, dancing, roaring, more.
Every single day.

How to wash a wooly mammoth

HOW TO WSH A WOOLY MAMMOTH by Michelle Robinson with illustrations by Kate Hindley. Holt, 2014.

Washing a mammoth
Can be tough work with all the
Scrubbing and drying.

It's Okay to Make Mistakes

IT'S OKAY TO MAKE MISTAKES by Todd Parr by Little Brown, 2014.

It's okay to try
And fail at many things long
As you try again.

Dog Vs. Cat

DOG VS. CAT by Chris Gall. Little Brown, 2014.

Pets disagree on
Everything except baby
So they join forces.