Looking for a rollicking account of the old Red Riding Hood story? Look no farther than Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion by Alex T. Smith!
Little Red is on a mission to Auntie Rosie’s house to bring her some medicine for her outbreak of spots. Along the way, she encounters playful African animals of every sort. The bad guy, a lion in this case, sees Little Red and hatches a very naughty plan in which he will end up eating Little Red AND Auntie Rosie (for dessert).
Well, Little Red can spot this rather poor actor from a mile away and decides to teach that naughty lion a lesson! In the end, he promises to never ever eat another auntie or any children…but, what about daddy?
Bold colors and cartoon-like art are full of energy. Kids will laugh out loud at Little Red’s ability to thwart that naughty lion at every turn with wit and humor. She’s one tough Little Red! Add this one to your collection!

Snail loves his bucket! It has everything he needs and he never, ever, ever, has to leave – no matter how many times Ladybug asks. Until…one day, the farmer picks up his bucket, Snail is dumped out and the adventure begins!

He tastes so many amazing new foods, like pea pods and beets and, best of all, strawberries! He meets new friends, like Gopher and Rabbit. But, disaster strikes and his day becomes terrible (for a few minutes) when he bites a REALLY hot pepper. But, Ladybug and Rabbit save the day – finding Snail’s bucket home, which is now filled with strawberries. Life is good!

This book is a great one for those readers who are ready for a little more that the average picture book. It’s a bit longer, with word bubbles and cartoon-like illustrations. Hopefully, this is the beginning of many adventures for Snail and his friends. Recommended

What a lovely book! The sweet adventures of Lucy and her friends are told in three stories – “The Snack”, “The Treasure Hunt” and “The Hatchlings”. Friendship, fun and a few surprises are detailed in simple language with beautiful accompanying illustrations.

There is a labeled map of their home, reminiscent of Pooh’s Hundred
Acre Woods. Young readers will enjoy referring to it as they move through the three stories, each with a mild conflict that is resolved in a delightful manner. Highly Recommended!

Megafast Motorcycles starts with a general description of what the term “megafast motorcycle” means and then moves on to a two page spread detailing a variety of motorcycles that fit within that term. Sidebars, located on the right side of each spread gives information like power, spead, engine size, price, et cetera that can be compared to other motorcycles in the book.

The photos are edgy and some are blurred to give the impression of speed, which can also be a distraction. There is a glossary, index and table of contents, which are helpful.

Middle grade readers might enjoy this book, but I would make it an additional purchase. Only your real gearheads will care about the torque and engine size of any given bike. Look for books with a wider potential audience.

Heidi Heckelbeck is a young witch, who sometimes gets into sticky situations with her magic. In this book, Heidi wishes for good weather for her class field trip, but the day is ruined when the storm rolls in before they leave. She is so frustrated that she wishes she wasn’t a witch.
How she fixes this problem, with some help from her Aunt Trudy (also a witch), makes for a sweet story that is perfect for readers ready for the next step past picture books. The accompanying illustrations are well-done and appropriate to the story. Recommended!

Any books about cars are hot ticket items for the k-2 crowd and this particular title will fly off the shelf. It is written is very clear short sentences, with additional boxes of text for added information. The photos are crisp, with a mixture of close ups and wider angle shots.

The necessary nonfiction pieces: table of contents, glossary, index and labeled diagrams are all there. Teachers will appreciate the nonfiction elements as they are teaching.

This book is highly recommended!

Bob and Flo and their friend, Sam, decide to play a rousing game of hide-and-seek. It took Bob a few tries to figure out what the ‘hiding’ part of the game entailed, but his friends were patient as he tried again and again.

This is a great book for the preschool/kindergarten crowds who are figuring out how to play together. They will recognize the kitchen area and blocks and relate to the penguins’ activities.

The illustrations are well done and the expressions (or lack of) on the penguins’ faces work well in the story.

Additional selection/

This book is part of the I See Ocean Animals series. it has all the necessary parts that make up a great nonfiction book – Table of contents, glossary, index and more. There is a large photo on one side of each two page spread with two to three simple sentences on the the other side. There is the occasional question for deeper thinking. All in all, this is a solid addition to the library. Recommended.

This book is part of the Survivors series, which are stories of bravery and survival at different times in history.

This particular story centers around Lily LeGrand, a Cajun girl in the mid 1800’s. She is a strong, feisty character, who overcomes the weakness of her deformed foot to save the rich plantation owner’s sons. Two of the boys are very unkind to her, but the third boy, Paul treats her as a friend and comes to her aid when the others torment her. As a result of his chivalry, his two brothers drag him into the alligator and snake infested swamp, planning to leave him there to teach him a lesson. Not only is his life in jeopardy, but his brothers become lost and are nearly killed by an alligator.

Cajuns are treated poorly in this time and place and they see little use in forming a search party for the lost plantation owner’s sons. But, Lily knows that Paul is a good person and strikes out alone to save him. In the process, she saves the others as well, gaining their respect and apologies.

This is a fast-paced story that will entertain young readers, while they are immersed in the lives of kids who lived over 150 years ago. Recommended.

A pun-filled book that begins with a rainy day recess show-and-tell is sure to make students gasp and giggle as they turn the pages.

Some of the puns might be a little over the readers’ heads (“that’s cheesy…Limburger” or”that’s gross…144 items”). But overall, it’s a humorous take on some come comments that might otherwise get one in trouble.

The illustrations fit the text nicely. They are clear and well-defined. Use this book when you are teaching a unit on humorous writing.