Alma, first introduced in Alma and How She Got Her Name, is back! She plays with her cousins, snuggles with her mother, and more as she names her relatives. In Alma Head to Toe / Alma de pies a cabeza, she introduces all of her from her head to her soft heart. Both engaging books are in Spanish and English, sure to charm even the youngest reader.
Alma and Her Family / Alma y su familia
Experience each season with graceful haikus and soft illustrations with colors that reflect the changes. Lift the flap and see the small animals as they, too, experience summer, fall, winter, and spring.
Peek-a-Boo Haiku
Leo and his mother meet Yu and her mom for a summer day of play in the park, which ends with a picnic. In another picture book by the same author (this one illustrated in a similar style by Rosalind Beardshaw), Lola’s Nana-Bibi Comes to Visit (opens in a new window), Lola and her parents prepare for a visit from Lola’s grandmother. Together the family shares everyday pleasures from cooking to hair braiding. Leo and Lola remind us that there is joy in commonplace activities.
Leo at the Park
A kind crocodile roars to help animals from a small mouse to a huge rhino when they’re chased by a fierce enemy. They in turn help it when the croc is threatened the critters come together to help it. Humorous, textured illustrations on horizontal pages highlight the croc’s tale.
Kind Crocodile
A bright frog face with big googly eyes invites young readers in to witness its transformation from egg to tadpole to full grown frog. Die-cuts are used throughout to enhance the simple drama of the frog’s growth.
Frog
A duck loses track of other ducks when it leaves the pond. Readers follow duck’s search in simple line drawings and brief language on open, small pages. Duck? No duck … until the happy reunion!
Ducks!
Bruno Builder can bake bread, write a story, heal animals and more just by flipping the bottom portion of each split page. Dora Dentist and Vic Veterinarian can do the same things when the top half is changed. Child-like illustrations in a playful format encourage exploration of words and jobs all while chuckling.
Bruno Builder Bakes Bread
A young girl explores Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, recording her thoughts, scientific facts, questions, and experiences in a nature journal decorated by her paintings of the native plants and animals. This book is a great way to introduce kids to scientific journals and the importance of close observation.
Same Same
“Brown sugar baby, dark eyes spark bright with glee … Pie of my eye, stay right here with me.” This lyrical first book in the Brown Sugar Baby series is a celebration of the powerful love and protective, comforting instincts of a mother for her child.
Brown Sugar Baby
There are all kinds of babies in the world. They can be big, small, short, or tall. Rhythmic language and simple illustrations with clean lines and bright colors on each page ends with a mirror — a surprise baby to conclude this charming book.
Sometimes Babies
Lift an acorn to discover a squirrel peeking out of a hole and more. Small hands will delight in the crinkling noise when soft flaps are lifted to see what forest surprise is hidden beneath. Find more surprises in this companion book about ocean inhabitants, Peekaboo Ocean (opens in a new window).
Peekaboo Forest
Cheery illustrations in a sturdy format present a mouse and companions as they explore various concepts, each appropriate and engaging for young children. The clever use of die-cuts and a bit of story creates playful books that are worth revisiting. See also: Little Mouse Learns Numbers (opens in a new window), Little Mouse Learns Shapes (opens in a new window), and Little Mouse Learns Colors (opens in a new window).
Little Mouse Learns Opposites
Enzo, often with friends, uses different materials to create art and even visits a museum to see more. Simple language in both English and Spanish are enhanced by gentle, childlike illustrations. In another similarly formatted and sturdy book, Enzo es un enfermero / Enzo Is a Nurse (opens in a new window), Enzo performs the duties of a nurse.
Enzo y su arte / Enzo and His Art
This board book features photographs of adorable babies and toddlers experiencing the Diwali holiday in wide-eyed wonder, surrounded by the gentle love and affirmation of adults. The text does an excellent job balancing universal experiences with culturally specific ones. The book presents an age-appropriate view of the holiday from morning until night. (School Library Journal)
Diwali Lights
Sturdy, split pages encourage children to play and laugh as new critters are created. Young readers will want to count everything from smiles to whiskers with each turn of a whole or half page.
1 Smile 10 Toes: A Mix and Match Book
Amid 99 small illustrations of various objects ranging from airplanes to cakes to potatoes, readers are asked to find the one that is different. Even older readers will find the search for the outlier fun and challenging. Happily, for adults, there is a key on the final spread.
99 Tomatoes and One Potato
The sun is up and so is the baby along with the dog, the teddy and finally, mama and papa. When the moon is up, everyone is sleepy except for the baby; that is until the baby falls asleep. Families with young children will appreciate the humor and the simple, playful illustrations.
I’m Up!
Drip, a drop of water, travels over earth and air to introduce young readers to the water cycle. Simple illustrations with a die-cut add interest while complementing the simple text.
Drip
Each bird makes its own sound as the day begins. Bold, colorful images and straightforward language encourage joining the bird song from chirps to warbles.
Chirp!
Noodles are a universally loved food, from Ash Reshteh in Iran to Zaru Soba in Japan. In this board book shaped to mimic bowls, young children will discover 26 different varieties as they eat their way through the alphabet. With each new letter, a new dish is introduced identifying its country of origin and name written in both English and the country’s native language.
Noodles, Please! (A to Z Foods of the World)
Every day, everywhere, babies are born. They’re kissed and dressed and rocked and fed — and completely adored by the families that love them. With rhyming text and charming illustrations, this board book is an exuberant celebration of playing, sleeping, crawling, and, of course, very noisy babies doing all the wonderful things babies do best.
Everywhere Babies
Introduce very young children to our National Parks with this colorful board book. Explore the nation’s beautiful national parks from Acadia to Yosemite, and the Grand Canyon to the Grand Tetons. (Part of the All Aboard geography series for tbabies and toddlers.)
All Aboard! National Parks: A Wildlife Primer
Rhythmic text and illustrations with universal appeal show a toddler spending the day with its mommies. From hide-and-seek to dress-up, then bath time and a kiss goodnight, there’s no limit to what a loving family can do together. Share the loving bond between same-sex parents and their children in this hearttwearming story of family. See also Daddy, Papa, and Me (opens in a new window) by the same creators.
Mommy, Mama, and Me
Love is baking a special cake. Love is lending a helping hand. Love is reading one more book. In this exuberant board book, many different families are shown in happy activity, from an early-morning wake-up to a kiss before bed. Whether a child has two moms, two dads, one parent, or one of each, this simple preschool read-aloud demonstrates that what’s most important in each family’s life is the love the family members share.