Book Finder

When a boy’s toy dinosaurs come to life, a whole new world is created in his bathtub. No words are needed as the adventure grows and then recedes when his mother brings him back to the real world. Black lines on crisp white pages effectively convey the child’s fantasy and his reality. Dinosaur names appear on the endpaper to the book.

Delightful dinosaurs strut, jaunt, and parade across the sturdy pages of this book to the rhythm of a gently rhyming text. Young children respond to the lively language and illustrations in which dinosaurs introduce new words and ideas.

Does Jesse travel back in time or is an imaginative jaunt when he boards a train with a Tyrannosaurus engineer? No matter; the imaginative journey of train- and dinosaur-obsessed Jesse is sure to delight.

Some dinosaurs have long necks, some have long tails. Some dinosaurs are large, some are quite small. All are introduced in broad, simple shapes and bright colors with a minimum of text to create a non-threatening introduction to a broadly appealing subject.

The large format of this book is perfect for the theatrical, sometimes spectacular, full color illustrations of the larger-than-life dinosaurs of yesteryear. The brief but informative text adds to the drama.

Told from a dog’s point of view and viewed from unusual artistic perspectives, these funny, rhythmic, and child-like poems bound through a year from January to December.

What will the inhabitants of Mousopolis do when invaded by Dogzilla, the larger-than-life (but harmless looking) pooch? Can they reclaim their town before it’s chewed to bits? Collages using photographs and paintings illustrate this zany parody of old horror films. Those who enjoy Dogzilla may also appreciate Kat Kong. The titles tell it all!

Newbery Award winner Virginia Hamilton describes how Lindy and her family suffer through a long drought. Then a mysterious boy comes and teaches them the secrets of finding water hidden in the earth.

Fables are short tales of animals with an explicit (though gentle) moral. Lobel has written original fables which are sure to delight young readers. Each tale is accompanied by a large illustration to create humor, character, place, and pleasure.

Full-color photographs on well-composed pages introduce a multicultural cast of kids. Each child expresses what he or she is thankful for — from family and friends to a pet mouse — in this handsome and useful book.

It’s September, which means it’s time for school to start! The alarm rings, but Sarah Jane Hartwell just burrows deeper into her covers, announcing that shes not going, wailing “I dont know anybody, and it will be hard, and … I just hate it, thats all.” Finally, Mr. Hartwell firmly orders her down to breakfast, puts her in the car and drops her off to join the children flooding through the school doors. But is Sarah who you expect her to be?

Even young monsters on Mars can have trouble adjusting to the first day of first grade. Not only does Horus miss the comforts of Martiangarten, but a know-it-all student harasses him. At his mother’s insistence, a very reluctant Horus returns the next day. Once there, he is able to forget his own problems when he helps a new and even more timid Martian. Characters are vividly colored and peculiarly shaped to create a comical but sympathetic school story of adjustment and emerging friendship.

While their mother vacations in Florida, Fosdyke’s siblings forage for food like typical foxes. Since the fowl on the farm have been warned, the results are disastrous. Meantime back at home, Fosdyke prepares tasty vegetarian dishes, which everyone ultimately enjoys together. Animated illustrations are perfectly suited to the fast, funny, and alliterative text; the letter F is well represented!