The mysterious Theodore lives in a dark, quiet cave and all that can be seen of him is his eyes.  One after another, a bird, a wolf, and a tiger all disturb Theodore. He is not really hungry, however, so he tells each of them, “I will not eat you.”  Theodore is finally becoming hungry when, with a, “raaaar,”a boy gallops up to the cave on a stick horse . Theodore bellows, “Don’t bother me, pesky boy, or I will eat you.” When the boy does not go away, the snout of Theodore the dragon finally emerges from the cave.  A run through the woods leads to a fall and laughter.  It’s hard to eat someone when you’re laughing.  Now Theodore’s cave is still quiet, but Theodore is no longer hiding in the dark – he’s outside playing.

A fun story celebrating imaginative play.

Edward is a very particular pig. Whether at home, outside, or at school, he always avoid anything messy.  This means he also misses out on jumping in leaves, playing kickball in the mud, science experiments and art.  One day while organizing an art shelf rather than painting, the shelf falls and paint is everywhere!!  At first devastated, he finally embraces his messiness and the next day participates in art, science, kickball, and leaf jumping.  After all, he can always clean up afterwards.  The rather bland story line makes this an additional purchase for most collections.

As the rest of Botsburg powers down for bedtime, Bitty Bot breaks all the bedtime rules with his power tools; “Banging bolts and welding wing.  Clanging cogs and tubes and springs.” When his rocket is complete, he zooms through space to touch down on the moon.  There he takes in the sights and joins an alien party.  His battery is finally running low and sets off from the moon in his rocket.  Will he reach home and bed before his systems shut down?

Cute characters, rhyming text and fun language make this a creative alternative the standard bedtime story.

Once upon a menacing time, after their mother’s disappearance, Hensel and Gretel chose to empower themselves by learning ninjutsu.  When their father is also dragged away, they set off through the dark woods leaving a breadcrumb trail.  Caught off guard at the fox’s corn bread house, Hensel is also plucked up and shoved into a pen.  Greta then squeezes down the flu with ninja like silence and speed to snatch her mother out of the stir-fry pan while Hensel picks the lock to escape the pen.  The book ends with their vow to rescue, protect, and defend until bird-napping comes to an end.

Santat’s illustrations clearly portray both expression and motion.  This is the third title by these authors to pair martial arts with a retelling of a classic fairy tale.   A fun addition to any collection.

Best in Snow contains breathtaking winter photographs.  The sparse text powerfully describes the winter snow cycle. Starting with a freeze, a breeze and a cloud, the snow then sails and settle, shapes and dusts. Once the storm is over and the sun shines, the air warms and then the snow softens and melts. Until…another freeze, another breeze, another cloud. Back papers describes in more detail the science behind each poetic phrase and contains a further reading list. Use to support a winter theme or in a science unit focused on the water cycle.

Starting at age 2 when he could finally reach the seat, a young boy celebrates the litany of vehicles he has mastered.  Rhyming poetic first person text reinforces the joy and accomplishment the boys feels with each year and each new vehicle. The boy’s wide eyed glee can be seen on each page, whether running a big backhoe at 3 years old or plowing snow at 6 years. In each picture, the boy is accompanied by a turtle, pig, and penguin. Finally, at age 7 the boy has “got a bedroom like a parking lot,” and the reader sees and understands the imaginative play behind the story.  The continuation of his love of vehicles year after year culminates with his statement that, “when I grow up…. with any luck, I’ll drive a truck.”  A sure hit with young vehicle lovers.

Plants are stationary, right? Plants Can’t Sit Still invites the reader to discover the many ways that plants move.  “Plants can creep.  They slither underground or crawl through tall grass searching for the things all plants need.” The descriptive language and bright pictures will intrigue young scientists and encourage them to explore the world around them.  For older students, focus on the descriptive verbs (easily identifiable with enlarged colored font) and personification.  The back matter provides more detailed information about the plants pictured in the book, a glossary, and a More Information section.

Starting with a description of the caterpillar’s body, this book continues with chapters on where to find caterpillars, their food, what they do, and a labeled diagram.  Simple text and colorful photos often with captions make this a good option for young readers.  Magnified images show the diversity and beauty of caterpillars.  Both academic and content vocabulary are bold in the text and defined in the glossary. Also contains a Table of Contents and an Index.

A good size for small hands to hold.

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.