Primary (ages 6-9)

Material appropriate for primary age groups

Big Wolf and Little Wolf, Such a Beautiful Orange!

This is the third and last book in the Big Wolf series. Once again Olivier Tallec’s illustrations, which are bold in perspective and full of feeling, deepen the story. Departing from the previous two books, this story takes place in a city, albeit one with a park and a tree on a hill.Big Wolf and Little Wolf have gone on an adventure. Little Wolf sees an orange and goes after it, but he doesn’t return. Big Wolf plunges into the urban jungle in search of Little Wolf. He finds the orange, but not his friend. Fear and loneliness overtake him, but he perseveres. Finally, he comes into a clearing of light, where he finds Little Wolf near where he lost him. Big Wolf has gone full circle and, as these things go, everything has changed. Big Wolf has undertaken an interior journey, gone through the metaphorical forest, and come out fuller and richer and more himself. This is a deep story about true friendship and how it helps to make us who we are.Nadine Brun-Cosme is the author of over twenty juvenile novels and picture books. She lives in France. Her book Big Wolf and Little Wolf is a 2010 Batchelder Honor book.Olivier Tallec was born in Brittany, France, in 1970. After graduating from the Ecole Supérieure d’Art Graphic in Paris, he worked in advertising as a graphic designer, after which he devoted himself to illustration. Since then he has illustrated more than sixty books, seven of which have been published by Enchanted Lion Books.

Bananas in My Ears

From the chaos of breakfast to the calm of bedtime, this whimsical collection, pairing two former British Laureates, is full of delightful moments. Explore the pleasures of acting silly and the pains of feeling ill, the camaraderie of siblings and strange goings-on at the beach. . . . All this and a trip on a flying bed, too!

Carolina’s Gift: A Story of Peru

Today is a very important day! It is market day, and Carolina and her mother are going to the plaza to find a birthday gift for Carolina’s abuelita, or grandmother. But there are so many things to see and so many gifts to choose from! Would Abuelita like a pretty hat? No, these hats are not for Abuelita. Would Abuelita like a bird that chirps and sings? No, a bird might keep Abuelita up when she is trying to sleep at night. Finally, Carolina finds the perfect gift! Won’t Abuelita be surprised?

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 1

Out of the Way! Out of the Way!

A young boy spots a baby tree growing in the middle of a dusty path in his village. He carefully places rocks around it as the local mango seller rushes past shouting, ?Out of the way! Out of the way!” As the tree grows bigger, people and animals traverse the path until it becomes a lane, flowing like a river around the tree and getting out of its way. Over time, the lane becomes a road, and a young man crossing the road with his children remembers the baby tree from long ago. By the time he is an old man, the tree has become a giant. The city traffic continues to rattle past, noisier and busier than ever, but sometimes the great tree works its magic, and people just stop, and listen. In this simple, lyrical story, a wide-spreading tree and a busy road grow simultaneously, even as time passes and the footsteps of people and animals give way to speeding cars, buses and trucks.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 1

My Name Is Jorge: On Both Sides of the River

A collection of 27 insightful poems that illuminates the migrant experience from the point of view of a grade school child from Mexico. Jorge doesn’t want to be called George. He thinks the name sounds strange. “What an ugly sound!/Like a sneeze!” His struggles to fit in result in a friendship with a boy named Tim; a tentative coming to terms with American society; and some degree of sadness when, upon his grandmother’s death, his family must cross the river again.

This book has been included in WOW’s Language and Learning: Children’s and Young Adult Fiction Booklist. For our current list, visit our Booklist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.