The Song Of Delphine

Poor Delphine is all alone. She has no family and no friends, and as a servant in Queen Theodora’s palace, her life is full of work. Fortunately, Delphine loves to sing, and if her spirits are down, songs bring her comfort and cheer. When young Princess Beatrice comes to live at the palace, Delphine is excited at first, but the unkind princess only makes Delphine’s life more miserable.

Me, Too!

There are many reasons why Annie is best friends with Lillemor, who is from Sweden. “They’re the same age ? They like the same colors ? They like doing the same things ? They can both speak another language. Okay, so Annie made hers up, but she is pretty sure it still counts.” Annie and Lillemor like each other so much they play together every day. But then Lilianne, a new girl from France, arrives. Annie can’t stand that Lillemor has become friends with Lilianne, and that Lilianne seems to have more things in common with Lillemor than Annie does — even their names, which both begin with “Lil”! Has Annie lost her best friend forever? This funny, honest picture book by Annika Dunklee perfectly captures the rhythms of youngsters’ friendships and emotions, while also reminding them that there’s always room for new people in their lives.

Emmanuel’s Dream

Born in Ghana, West Africa, with one deformed leg, he was dismissed by most people—but not by his mother, who taught him to reach for his dreams. As a boy, Emmanuel hopped to school more than two miles each way, learned to play soccer, left home at age thirteen to provide for his family, and, eventually, became a cyclist. He rode an astonishing four hundred miles across Ghana in 2001, spreading his powerful message: disability is not inability.

The Book Of Jonah

Two-time Caldecott illustrator Peter Spier’s visual retelling of a favorite Bible story is back in print! In a tale full of action, adventure, and strife, Jonah is asked by God to tell the people of Nineveh to mend their wicked ways. Fleeing from this enormous task, Jonah sets sail and is thrown overboard and swallowed by a great fish. What follows is Jonah’s journey to acceptance of God’s love and grace. A reference section at the end of the book shares historical and geographical notes about the story, including details about the ship Jonah might have sailed on and a fascinating discussion of the ancient city of Nineveh and the location of its ruins in present-day Iraq.

Mystery of the Giant Masks of Sanxingdui

Young Min, her brother Wei, and Father Ping, the chief, face a flood then help their fellow villagers decide what to do about invaders who are approaching their Bronze Age village in China during an important festival. Includes facts about bronze-making and the archaeological finds at Sanxingdui and Jinsha, as well as archival photographs.

Why Mosquitoes Buzz In People’s Ears: A West African Tale

In this astonishingly beautiful and imaginatively illustrated picture book, Mosquito tells Iguana a tall tale that sets off a chain reaction that ends in jungle disaster. Iguana is so upset at being told such nonsense that he plugs his ears. So, of course, when Python says good morning, Iguana doesn’t hear and ignores him altogether. Python suspects Iguana is plotting mischief against him, so he hides in a rabbit hole – which terrifies Rabbit. And so this amusing African legend goes, until finally the chain of mishaps reaches Mother Owl, who reacts by refusing to hoot and wake in the sun.

Lindbergh

These are dark times for a small mouse. A new invention—the mechanical mousetrap—has caused all of the mice but one to flee to America, the land of the free. But with cats guarding the steamships, trans-Atlantic crossings are no longer safe. In the bleakest of places the one remaining mouse has a brilliant idea. He must learn to fly!

Shackleton’s Journey

William Grill weaves a detailed visual narrative of Shackleton’s journey to Antarctica. Grill’s beautiful use of colored pencils and vibrant hues effortlessly evokes the adventure and excitement that surrounded the expedition. His impeccably researched drawings, rich with detail, fastidiously reproduce the minutiae of the expedition.