My one gripe with this book is that I find the character of the substitute librarian completely unbelievable, because I can’t imagine any librarian taking his attitude. Still, I know many other adults who do hold such ideas, and who often pass such attitudes to young readers, though perhaps more subtly than does the character in the book. The story tells of a boy visiting a book mobile only to be confronted by a librarian who tells him all the books he wants to read aren’t for him, trying to channel him into his own narrow idea of what is appropriate reading for him. The boy accepts what is offered him, but then subverts the efforts of the narrow-minded librarian by reading under a nearby tree where other patrons are reading (a girl, a robot, a cat, etc), and trading books with the girl who’s reading the book he wanted to read in the first place. When a dinosaur shows up and scares the librarian into giving him the book he wants, regardless of his own opinions, the young boy learns to find his own voice and insist on getting what he wants. The story takes things to the extreme to make the point about those more subtle attitudes.

The bright, cheerful, silly illustrations will draw readers in to read about the message of perseverance and believing in oneself to tackle a big job. It tells of a butterfly lost on in the ocean partway through his seasonal migration. Much of the book is a conversation between him and whale giving him a pep talk. When he finds out he’s got 200 miles to go things seem daunting, and he comes up with all sorts of excuses and protests, but the whale convinces him to believe in himself and keep trying, and eventually he finds his friends, just it time to learn about going dormant for the winter.

I love the illustrations! They are sweet and fanciful, and very suited to the bedtime story this is. It tells of a child who cannot sleep, but finds a dangling star that invites him to the moon to play with a little rabbit who can’t sleep either. They keep wondering if they are the only ones who can’t sleep, but every time they cast their star line down, they real in another animal who can’t sleep, until the whole gang discovers that the stars aren’t sleepy either. After a fun night of playing among the stars they worry about little rabbit being alone again when they leave, so they create constellations to remind her of her friends, crab, big bear, little bear, fox, and rabbit before being sent off to sleep once more. I confess, as an adult reader, I was a bit disappointed in the simplicity of the plot, I wanted more to happen, but I don’t think the young children who are the target audience will care. They enjoy a story more through their hearts than their heads.

The Lester-Munsinger duo have teamed up again to share the story of shy Mousetta, who is so shy she walks backward and hides within her parents’ clothes or wherever else she can, feeling mousey next to her cool, gorgeous, awesome field mates. The only way she can work up the courage to attend a workshop that promises to make her feel more outgoing is to wear a bucket on her head. At the workshop she is joined by Lampshade Head, Wastebasket Head, and Blankey Head, but before instruction can begin an emergency alarm warns of foxes in the area, and even the instructor takes cover, hiding in a garbage bin. Realizing that someone better do something if they’re not to end up as fox food, Mousetta tries three times to get enough oomph into her voice to get the others to join hands and charge the foxes.
Scared by the aliens with strange heads and backwards feet, the foxes flee, and Mousetta discovers that her equally shy classmates were none other than the mice she envied, who apparently also feel shy at times. Mousetta is finally comfortable enough in her own fur to lead the parade in celebration of her team’s triumph over the foxes.

The illustrations are sweet in a slightly vintage sort of way that suits the story where the main character is a ferry. This little ferry finds herself jealous of the other boats at which her passengers marvel: the rough and fearless tugboat, the speedy speedboat, and the carefree and graceful sailboat. She knew her strengths (being patient and quiet and careful), but no one ever cheers for those things, so she decides to try to be more like the boats she envies. She’s sad when her attempts don’t prove successful, but in the end, she find her strengths allow her to succeed where her flashier friends fail. When fire on a nearby island threaten the animals, quiet and patient and careful are just the things that are needed