Book Finder

Willy’s barbeque is about the best around, even attracting green, 3-eyed, barbeque-loving aliens! Laughs abound in the rhyming tale and swirling, understated illustrations and its surprise ending.

No visit to a beach is complete without finding shells. Those who visit the Northeast coast of the U.S. are sure to gain information and insight from a small but instructive, clearly illustrated book on seashells.

The children are distressed that it’s raining while visiting their grandfather. But Grandpa has the children don rain gear to “find colors for garden stew.” Vegetables collected, the family makes and eats a delicious stew. Joy-filled illustrations accompany the rhythmic text.

An unseen narrator asks a terrified rabbit to depict the not-so-big-bad wolf on a chalkboard. When it arrives, rabbit is no longer frightened but hugged by a child in a wolf suit. The rabbit’s reactions create humor as tension builds to a satisfying conclusion in simple illustrations.

Whether or not the primates introduced from 1 to 10 are familiar, readers are sure to appreciate meeting them in arresting portraits. A self-portrait of the illustrator other humans are accompanied by concluding text: “All primates. All one family. All my family … and yours!”

Ol’ Mama Squirrel scares off anyone or anything that tries to encroach on her tree home with a fierce “chook, chook, chook!” Onomatopoeic language and comic illustrations tell a recognizable tale about a small but heroic rodent.

At the behest of Pete, the pirate parrot, a group of grubby pirates clean themselves up for a little girl’s party. Polly, however, wants real pirates at her birthday celebration! Comic illustrations combine with straightforward text.

Benign-looking, cheerful creatures love playing with color as they lend red, blue, and yellow to make new colors for gray monsters. Energetic lines and lively language swirl and dance across the pages of this spirited homage to color and creativity.

While Mama Duck and her five ducklings left their pond for a trip to town, the ducklings fall into trouble. With help from the townspeople, the Duck family is reunited in this handsomely illustrated, touching story based on an actual event.

Look! Watch various animals in their own environment with a young dreamer. Here, expressive but realistic watercolor illustrations are truly worth a thousand words. They are accompanied by brief, repeating language just right for new readers.

Starting in space, an alien family bids adieu to their offspring (they look a lot like octopuses) who then head for earth landing in the ocean. When read the other way, he journeys home. The vertical format and strong design create a sophisticated literary and visual jaunt.

A child travels to visit her grandmother, “practically on the other side of the world” on a lime green train with orange doors. The scenes from urban to rural to imagined are depicted in delicate black and white line drawings narrated by a confident, perceptive child.

While at the library, Isabella imagines herself in the lead role of several children’s classics. The Yellow Brick Road she follows as Dorothy brings her back to reality where she checks out as Isabella. Textured illustrations and an overview of the works cited conclude the book.

There are things to do indoors and outside. But the inside goes outside and the reverse with cutouts on pages in this attractive wordless book. Simple lines and flat colors are appealing on brown paper, and encourage careful — and multiple — examinations.

If a whale is what you want to see — as does the boy in this expressive, delicately illustrated tale — then patience (plus an ocean) is needed. Images combine with poetic language to create a quiet, deeply satisfying book rich enough for multiple readings.

A mother humpback whale and her calf travel from the Caribbean Sea to the coast of New England and back over a year. Informative text is formatted to be read as a whole or in chunks and illustrated with luminous pastel illustrations. Additional information is included.

The animals of Sunny Acres farm try to befriend its newest arrival, but goat remains grumpy until he discovers a beautiful dandelion. They remain by goat as he grieves the flower’s loss and are revived when yellow dots appear on the hillside. Lush illustrations enhance the tale.

The frumpy Frazzle family is very forgetful. They forget most things including pants and umbrellas — until Aunt Rosemary comes to help them out. Watercolor illustrations appear slapdash but complement the laugh-filled, list-filled telling for a satisfying saga.

Whenever an emergency happens, there are vehicles staffed by trained people to help. Photographs and brief information are presented for both familiar and unique vehicles and situations. Additional material includes access to a digital book.

Lazlo is afraid of the dark but gets unexpected help from The Dark when his nightlight goes out. Illustrations enhance the tension as Lazlo slices through inky night to overcome his fear and find a replacement bulb. And the dark isn’t so frightening any longer.

Chu, a young panda, could hold his havoc-causing sneeze while at the library and even while dining but not at the circus. Expressive illustrations and few words are needed to highlight the chaos, its humorous results, and Chu’s continued warm place in his family.

Search and find each intricate photograph to identify toys and other familiar play objects. Ultimately, a space traveler and a princess come together in a toy room in this latest installment by Wick.

The oldest child narrates the family’s move from the city to build their own house on farm land. How the family works together planning and building while living in a tiny trailer pays homage to the author’s parents who are introduced in photographs and a note at the end.

Jesse wants a book from the floating library/bookstore that visits his town. Though he has worked and saved money, Jesse wonders if it will be sufficient. Art evokes the story’s 19th century setting, inspired by an article about early barges from the author’s hometown.