Book Finder

Bear is in bed when he hears the first knock. The parade of animal friends begins with Justin (as in “Justin the neighborhood and thought I’d stop by!”). Everyone has gathered to wish Bear a Happy Hibernation! Comic illustrations and dialogue in conversation bubbles combine to tell a funny tale with lots of wordplay and friendship.

The hole in the log in the lake holds a frog with a hair on its head, a fly on top of that, with a gnat on the fly. Shared as a call-and-response or as a song (the music is included), readers will appreciate the humor of the oblivious frog and what becomes of it.

Lyrical language and evocative images combine for a gentle portrait of evening as “Darkness tumbles into the air.” After all„ “Night is mischievous! It chases blue, white, pink, and green away …” But only until “day breathes into the leaves … and yellow rises …”

Listen! From wakeup to bedtime, there are sounds all around: “soft and gentle,/loud and clear,/oh so many sound/to hear!” Likely sounds that may be heard in familiar places while doing familiar things are presented in lively language and bright, semiabstract illustration.

Five penguins await snow while avoiding a seal that is chasing them. When the seal catches up with the penguins, it shouts “you’re it!” so the game of chase continues. Expressive illustrations and a familiar rhyme make an appealing tale with just a touch of tension.

This handsomely illustrated collection of accessible poems invites young and old alike to, “read, let’s write, let’s explore galore!”  Whether enjoying the magic in a library or an imaginary canyon, a variety of poems celebrate the sheer pleasure of words and writing to create “bookjoy, wordjoy”!

People collect lots of different things: bugs, art, marbles and more. But Jerome collects words that he heard, saw, or read. When Jerome’s word collection goes flying out of his albums, he learns that words are even more powerful when creatively put together and shared. The pleasure in language is evident in the narrative as well as line and wash illustrations.

What would happen if the “S” in the word moose comes loose? And the “E” breaks free? Follow the madcap sequence as the cow, goat and other animals share their ideas. Comical line drawings and wacky scenes play with words for laugh-out-loud silliness.

The third brother was a different kind of dinosaur. Rather than a more typical stegosaurus, he was a stegothesaurus who knew lots of words and loved to use them. Then he met an equally loquacious allosaurus and learned how this meat-eater acquired his words! Words and wordplay and simple, silly illustrations will delight both non-dinosaur and dinosaur aficionados.

The hippy-hoppy toad’s rhyming adventure begins and ends calmly with the toad “in the middle of a road/on a teeter-totter twig”. Lots of things happen to the small critter in between in this animated and humorously illustrated tale of a positively engaging amphibian. 

Lila’s inventive play doesn’t stop as she and her mother prepare to visit Lila’s grandfather, depicted on alternating pages. What is seen as a table on one page becomes Lila fighting a fearsome sea monster on the next. Lively language and animated illustrations depict Lila’s adventures  soon joined by her granddad!

If your finger is placed on the small blue dot, say “oh.”  If it’s on a big blue dot, say “OH!”  Imagine what happens when there is a series of blue dots! Blue, red, and yellow lines and dots dance across white pages encouraging sounds and gleeful play in this inventive participatory book.

The words are familiar but Grimly’s illustrations present a slightly irreverent, distinctive farmer and his loyal animals. The bear, however, who chases them all away from their barn, is an uninvited guest. The author’s signature illustrations and a nostalgic note at the end create a memorable tale.

Large pages are used to present animals from around the world. Lyrical language and lush mixed media illustrations generate wonder and appreciation for a host of animals from habitats in the sea, land, and air.

They’re all gone now but a group of dinosaurs comes back to life even if only while reading funny epitaphs. Equally comic illustrations and a smattering of factual information are included on the pages of this clever collection.

Tongues get ready to be twisted by Runny Babbit and lots of silly Spoonerisms! Fans of the original Runny Babbit (opens in a new window) won’t be disappointed in this collection of short poems about everyday topics with initial letters of familiar words reversed. Silverstein’s signature black/white line drawings illustrate the collection.

The teacher asks her students what a compound word is. They know that it is two little words put together to make a new word. Now their homework is to come up with more. Where the children find compound words, throughout the day and all around, is presented in cartoon art in panels to illuminate meaning.

A young mouse’s bed is used to launch an imaginative trip to exotic places with a bit of this and a dash of that shared by the grownup rodent. Simple, colorful illustrations depict the silly adventures that culminate with a kiss goodnight.

A little old lady complains to a wise old man that her house is “a squash and a squeeze.” She follows his advice is to bring her hen, pig, goat, and cow into her cozy abode with chaotic results. When the animals leave, however, the house becomes incredibly spacious! Humor abounds in rhyme and comic illustrations in this fresh take on an old tale.

When a concerned Mama calls the doctor about her sleepy little monkey, the doctor prescribed rhythmic movement from head to toe!  Rhyming, rhythmic language describe lively activities demonstrated by a colorful little monkey who claps, stomps, shakes, and more in this engaging, playful jaunt. 

Poetry comes in many forms; some rhymes, some doesn’t. Inspiration comes from many places, too. “Poems tall or short or wide — /All are infinite inside…” of each of us. Slightly abstract illustrations of children together or admiring the world around them completes this thoughtful look at language and poetry.

Spritely, translucent watercolors jaunt across the pages of a poem by romantic poet, John Keats. The nonsensical adventure begins: “There was a naughty Boy,/A naughty boy was he,/he would not stop at home,/He could not quiet b—“ and ends with the boy still a’wondering.  This poem was written by — and about — Keats in a letter to his sister as he traveled, now illustrated and presented for others to delight in its fancy.

A poem about the well-known Great White begins this handsomely illustrated collection of poems each about a different sea-dwelling shark. Readers will meet the Wobbegong, a nurse shark, the goblin shark, and more. Different poetic forms combine with splendid illustrations that evoke the depths of the creatures’ habitats.

“A poem is a small but powerful thing…” Alexander writes in his preface, which is followed by a range of original poems that celebrate, echo, and sometimes emulate a range of well-known poets. Each poem is illustrated by vibrant images on each double page spread. A brief sketch about each eminent poet concludes this attractive volume.