A young Bangladeshi girl who helps support her family by working in a brickyard finds a way to make her dream of going to school and learning to read a reality.
Click here to read the Worlds of Words review.
This book has been included in WOW’s Kids Taking Action Booklist. For our current list, visit our Boolist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.
From first-time Mexican author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh comes the story of two cousins, one in America and one in Mexico, and how their daily lives are different yet similar. Charlie takes the subway to school; Carlitos rides his bike. Charlie plays in fallen leaves; Carlitos plays among the local cacti. Dear Primo covers the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of two very different childhoods, while also emphasizing how alike Charlie and Carlitos are at heart. Spanish words are scattered among the English text, providing a wonderful way to introduce the language and culture of Mexico to young children.Inspired by the ancient art of the Mixtecs and other cultures of Mexico, Tonatiuh incorporates their stylized forms into his own artwork.
Young Nasreen has not spoken a word to anyone since her parents disappeared. In despair, her grandmother risks everything to enroll Nasreen in a secret school for girls. Will a devoted teacher, a new friend, and the worlds she discovers in books be enough to draw Nasreen out of her shell of sadness? Based on a true story from Afghanistan, this inspiring book will touch readers deeply as it affirms both the life-changing power of education and the healing power of love.
The Commander has lost his mother and one of his legs in the Iran-Iraq war. Now he spends most of his time alone in his room where he recreates the conflict with an imaginary enemy and soldiers, trying to avenge his losses. His father urges him to take off his artificial leg when he is at home, to join his uncles and aunties who have arrived for dinner. But when he does, he finds out that they are all about to go off to meet his “new mother.” Back in his room the imaginary war continues, and he confronts an enemy soldier who is also missing a limb. A battle seems inevitable until The Commander offers the enemy his artificial leg.
See the reviews at WOW Review, Volume 2, Issue 4 & Volume 5, Issue 3.
Adam and his family live comfortably in a compound with other foreigners who work in the Middle East. When war breaks out and all foreigners try to escape, Adam runs away in an effort to save his dog, which has been left behind. Alone and without resources in the desert, Adam meets Walid, an abused camel boy who has run away from his cruel masters. Together they struggle to bridge wide gulfs between their cultures and languages in order to survive. Ultimately both boys learn about true friendship.
The Baghdad zoo was once home to more than six hundred magnificent animals. But after the war in Iraq began in 2003, the city faced widespread destruction. When U. S. Army Captain William Sumner was asked to check out the state of the zoo, he found that it, too, was devastated. Hundreds of animals were missing, and the few remaining were in desperate need of care. And so Captain Sumner accepted a new mission. Together with an international team of zoologists, veterinarians, conservationists, and dedicated animal lovers, Captain Sumner worked tirelessly to save the neglected—but tenacious—animals of Baghdad. Saving the Baghdad Zoo tells the poignant stories of these remarkable animals. Meet the abandoned lions who roamed an empty palace with no food or drink; the camel, Lumpy, who survived transport through sniper fire; the tigers, Riley and Hope, who traveled 7,000 miles from home; and many more. The Baghdad Zoo, open once again to the people of Iraq, has become an oasis of hope and safety in a city where both are precious gifts.
A lyrical, strikingly illustrated story celebrates the unifying power of soccer. In a dusty township in South Africa, Ajani and his friends have earned a brand-new, federation-size soccer ball. They kick. They dribble. They run. They score. These clever boys are football champions! But when a crew of bullies tries to steal their ball, will Ajani and his friends be able to beat them at their own game?
Edward wishes he could fly. But no matter how much he adjusts and re-adjusts the splurchler and turbo-twirler on his Skyhopper 2000, he can’t get off the ground. Imagine Edward’s thrill when he gets a coupon for not just one, but three wishes. Edward makes a wish that his Skyhopper could fly. And there it goes – Boing! Sproing! Z-z-ooom! – without him. Things really start to lurch out of control when his mother tells him to clean his room. Edward wishes that he didn’t have to! After a monster gobbles up the contents of his room until there’s nothing left to clean, Edward is determined to be more careful with his last wish. Wishes, like flying, should not be taken lightly. Will Edward ever figure out what he really wants to wish for?
A pika scurries across a rock pile high in the Rocky Mountians. He watches out for hungry hawks and weasels. Quickly, he nips leafy twigs off bushes and carries them to his rocky den. This hamster-size cousin of the rabbit is storing up food. He will build a “hay pile” as big as a bathtub. As summer changes to autumn and winter settles in, the pika feeds from his hay pile and tunnets through the snow. In the spring, he sings for a mate. Soon, pika pups are climbing on the rocks.
Stunning photographs catch the pike in the act of living naturally. A fact-filled text tells the story of how one of the world’s cutest animals can survive when life is pretty rocky.
“Hold on to the saddle, pony might prance, bucking and frisky, he’s roaming the ranch. GIDDY-UP!”A pony inspires a child to ride high on her father’s shoulders, a sailboat stirs two others to set off to sea in a cardboard box, and an airplane invites kids to soar like a bird.In 13 striking spreads, we see how children use the world around them as the inspiration for play. Vibrant photographs are juxtaposed with lively drawings to reveal the child’s own inventive interpretation. Short bursts of action-packed, rhythmic poetry encourage preschoolers to identify the patterning throughout the text and the sounds associated with each idea.While developing language skills, kids can join in the fun as they create their own imaginative play from what they see around them.