Tag Archives: picture book

Monster Hands

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written by Karen Kane and Jonaz McMillan; illustrated by Dion MBD

Milo reads some bedtime stories and makes the mistake of reading one about a monster under the bed. Now, he’s POSITIVE there’s a monster under his bed! He knows what to do. He reaches out to Mel, his friend across the street. Placing their flashlights under their hands, they sign to each other. Milo explains his dilemma about the monster under his bead and Mel gives advice and suggestions. Finally, they team up to make hand shadow monsters together to scare away any would-be monster that might be lurking under Milo’s bed. Phew! Such a relief! The story ends with Milo and Mel sharing a signed hug, because monster hands can also give hugs.

This sweet story incorporates ASL in a very natural way as part of the story as Milo and Mel work out how to chase away those monsters. Children will enjoy a story about a situation that might be all too familiar to them – seriously, who hasn’t had a monster under their bed at one time or another? The illustrations are bold and seamlessly incorporate signs along the way. Add this to your collection as it will be a hit. Highly recommended.

Finding Mr. Trunks

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written by Annemarie Riley Guertin and illustrated by Andrea Alemanno

Mr. Trunks is at the airport with his person, Libby, and her family when disaster strikes. Libby drops him! She doesn’t realize it and rushes off with her family, leaving Mr. Trunks behind. Luckily, a baby picks him up and he boards a plane to Italy with the baby’s family, who realizes that Mr. Trunks has tagged along with their family by mistake. With the help of social media and the kind family he is traveling with, Mr. Trunks finds his way back to Libby. He had a lovely trip along the way, which was followed by many interested folks. #FindingMrTrunks

This lovely picture book shows that social media has a positive side where people connect to bring Mr. Trunks and Libby back together again. And, Baby’s Mom does a great job of chronicling his adventures along the way. Characters are mix of human and anthropomorphic animals. engaged in typical travel fun. Recommended.

Leena Mo, CEO

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Written by Deena Shakir and illustrated by Nez Riaz

Leena had to shovel snow and she really didn’t like that job. So, She dreamed, brainstormed, investigated and eventually built a duck-like robot to do the job for her. Her neighbors noticed how great her new snow removal device, aka Helmy (Arabic for “my dream”) and the orders started pouring in. Leena asks her two friends to join her business – Olivia (a robotics whiz) and Lily (a successful lemonade stand entrepreneur). Leena’s only remaining problem was Helmy parts procurement. How would she pay for them? Her nice neighbor, Miss Irma, offered to invest in Leena’s venture. Her business was ready to go! The girls got right to work with production, They sold all the Helmys they produced and business grew. Leena was a CEO! The story ends with a tv interview, which a man and his granddaughter watch in Leena’s mom’s hometown in Iraq. That little girl saw her future dreams in Leena’s story. Anything is possible!

This is an inspiring STEM related story that will resonate with young girls, who may not even realize that their interest in one area might turn into something even bigger. Characters are culturally diverse and the community seems to be positive and supportive of the young CEO. The illustrations are colorful and complement the storyline. Buy this for your library and share it with your young scientists. What if a child read this and said “I can do this, too!”? How cool would that be?

Pedro and the Monster Eaters = Pedro y los devoradores de monstruos

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written by Xequina María Berbér and illustrated by C. Rod. Unalt

Pedro is a young boy that comes from a family of artists that creates papier maché art pieces – from pinatas to giant puppets called mojigangas that are used in parades and festivals in Mexico. His family is very busy, because their artwork is so beautiful. So, Pedro learns the aspects of the art from an early age. One night, he becomes very sick and has a high fever. He has some terrible dreams in which the mojigangas chase after him. In his nightmares, colorful creatures called alebrijes rescue him by gobbling up the scary puppets. He awakens and is determined to create these monster-eating creatures in papier maché. Soon, people from all around are buying his colorful art pieces and he become world renowned for his beautiful work.

This story is loosely based on the life of Mexican folk artist Pedro Linares, who created beautifully painted fantastical creatures in papier maché. The book is written in English and Spanish and illustrated with colorful otherworldly creatures that spring from Pedro’s imagination. Text and illustrations work very well together to convey Pedro’s story. An author’s note at the end gives more information about Pedro Linares and is a great starting point for more thorough research about an artist in a medium about which there is typically little information.

Purchase this book for your library for a variety of reasons – the subject matter, dual language presentation and the beautiful illustrations. Students will be curious to explore more about the artist and the medium after such a wonderful introduction.

Ethan and the Strays by John Sullivan

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Ethan spots three stray kittens on his way to school one morning. He is immediately captivated by them and starts visiting them every day on his way home. Though his brother insists their dad would never let them get a cat, he helps Ethan learn more about stray cats and how they survive. The book also teaches about a local vet’s trap, neuter, return process to prevent more kittens from ending up on the streets. 

Kids will immediately connect with Ethan’s obsession with the adorable strays and will be inspired by his quest to make sure they are okay. Hatem Aly’s illustrations will further enthrall kids as they see the kittens run, eat, and play. This is a great book for any animal lover.

Dear Little One

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written by Nina Laden and illustrated by Melissa Castrillon

A young girl and her small white dog set out on a trek and along the way are gently encouraged by Mother Nature to appreciate and nurture their world. This lovely book has a beautifully lyrical text accompanied by stunningly detailed artwork. The message is simple and the illustrations fit it so well. Us the book for Earth Day (or any day) and share it with children as a reminder to really look around and observe the breathtaking beauty of their natural world. Highly recommended

Bilingüe, superhéroe: Bilingual, Superhero

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written by Jorge Argument and illustrated by Elizabeth Gómez

Gerónimo Pérez, aka “Bilingual”, embraces his effortless ability to switch back and forth between English and Spanish. He says “…I can change from English to Spanish, easy as pie, so smooth, so cool, so beautiful, suuuuper sweet.” This is his superpower and he uses it for good, as a superhero should. When his grandma or mother need help with translation of a doctor’s instructions or the bus driver’s announcement of a route, Bilingual is there to help. At school, this superhero acts as the intermediary between his English speaking teacher and Spanish speaking classmates, which helps everyone immensely. He is happy with his ability to speak, sing and dream in both languages. What a wonderful superpower to have!

Gerónimo, like many children of non-English speakers, is often called upon to translate for the adults around him. This is such a valuable ability and one that should be celebrated. Students like Gerónimo are often summoned and are willing to translate for their classmates and teachers, which is so appreciated (I speak from experience). This book celebrates this gift and superpower in a way that shows Gerónimo’s intuitive use of both languages at times when it is most needed. His pride in his “bilingual-ness” is well-deserved and all students with this ability should see this book and recognize those unique gifts.

Text is written in both English and Spanish with accompanying illustrations, vibrantly painted and filling the pages with exhilaration, while conveying the impact of the words. The parrots in each illustration appear to denote the English and Spanish parts of Gerónimo in a playful way and seem to remind us that they are part of his daily life. The text is accessible and lyrical. Younger readers will enjoy the story, which would be a great read-aloud or partner read for those students that don’t read both languages.

This book is a wonderful ode to bilingual speakers, especially children, and should be shared with kids whether they can speak two languages or not. To see this superpower exhibited in a story will empower bilingual speakers and give monolingual readers a peek into their lives. It’s a lovely book.

Sam’s Super Seats

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by Keah Brown and illustrated by Sharee Miller

Sam is excited – her mom is taking her school clothes shopping at the mall with her two best friends, Sarah and Sydney. She starts the morning with her dad, singing and brushing her teeth and then saying four things that she likes about herself that day. Her mom joins in the fun and they end up downstairs where we meet Sam’s couch, Misty, names after famed African American ballerina, Misty Copeland. Sam often rests on Misty, because she has cerebral palsy and her legs get tired at times. Her other favorite seat is Laney, the jokester back seat of her mom’s car. She and her friends giggle and chat in the back seat as they head to the mall, where they try on some amazing school outfits, including Sam’s cute adaptive clothing. They take a break on a new bench called Maya and then are on their way back to Sam’s house and a final fashion show. Sam is really excited for school to start now!

Colorfully drawn illustrations enhance a story that embraces and celebrates differently abled children. Characters are diverse. Sam and her parents are Black, Sarah is Asian and Sydney is a red-haired white girl. This is a sweet story that normalizes differences. It’s a winner!

Frog Can Hop

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written by Laura Gehl and illustrated by Fred Blunt

Frog can do many things – hop, shop, bop and chop. Pig can….flop. But, Frog suddenly flops and Pig takes over and hops, shops, mops, bops and pops. He pops a little too much popcorn and Frog jumps in to hop mop, and flop with him. They can do it all together!

Simple, repetitive sentences and engaging illustrations make this short reader a perfect book for a young student. There is an added word box in the front and questions in the back to increase depth of understanding. Put this in your library for kids that love “Elephant and Piggie”. They’ll thank you!

Night Market Rescue

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written by Charlotte Cheng and illustrated by Amber Red

GoGo, a stray dog, is resting near the bustling night market when his nose leads him to some delicious snacks. As he wanders through the crowds, he notices a little girl that looks sad and alone. He leads her through the market, sharing its vibrant scents and sights. Eventually, she breaks away from him to run into her parents’ arms, who tearfully hug her. GoGo thinks his friend is now gone. But, no! They call him over and he now has a family and a home!

This vibrantly illustrated book is a wonderful glimpse at the lively hustle and bustle of a night market. Text is spare and the illustrations serve to fill out the story beautifully. And, who doesn’t love a story where the girl and the dog become best friends forever?