Jake doesn’t want to give his mother a hug when he gets to school. All the other kids will think he’s a baby. But when Jake gets home, he finds that his mom has given his hug to his dad, who’s given it to the cat, who’s given it to a witch, and so on . . . Will Jake ever get his hug back? James Mayhew’s gentle story and Sue Hellard’s charming illustrations make this a perfect bedtime story for parents and children to share.
Primary (ages 6-9)
Material appropriate for primary age groups
The Little Word Catcher
Elise wonders why her grandmother’s words keep escaping her — do they fly off to play tricks on her? Elise’s grandmother used to know many marvelous words, but now she seems to be losing them all the time. Can Elise help her by catching them, like butterflies in a net? This award-winning picture book offers a gentle exploration of the effects of Alzheimer’s on the relationships in a family, and the special bond it creates between a grandmother and her granddaughter. Eventually, Elise comes to believe that her grandmother has used up all her words and has passed them on to her, as a gift. Winner of the 2007 Governor General’s Award for Children’s Literature Illustration (French language).
Grandfather’s Story Cloth
Chersheng’s grandfather is beginning to forget things: little things like turning off the water faucet and big things like Chersheng’s name. Sometimes he even forgets that he is in America now. Chersheng feels sad and helpless when he learns that Grandfather has Alzheimer’s Disease, but then Chersheng’s mother presents him with a story cloth stitched by Grandfather himself, embroidered in the Hmong tradition. Through the story cloth, Grandfather’s memories of his life in Laos come alive. And inspired by Grandfather’s tales about his life before the war forced him to immigrate to America, Chersheng comes up with a plan to capture his family’s new life with his own art project. This way, they can all remember that their love is stronger than Alzheimer’s Disease, no matter in which country they live. This volume is an English-Hmong edition.
The Snow Show
Tune into The Snow Show to see Chef Kelvin and his trusty sous-chefs, Snow White and Jack Frost, investigate evaporation, condensation, and precipitation—all while cooking up the lightest, fluffiest batch of snow ever to fall from the sky. The critics agree: This is one snowy science-filled cooking extravaganza that’ll make kids wish every day were a snow day! Includes an author’s note with additional information about snow, suggested reading, and a link to the author’s website, which features an exciting animation of snow-crystal formation and a free activity kit.
Pigling: A Cinderella Story: A Korean Tale
Cinderella has many different versions throughout the world, and this book is from Korea.
After Pigling’s mother dies, her widowed father remarries a wicked woman who has her own daughter. Her stepmother and stepsister make her life miserable. Pigling’s stepmother gives her three impossible tasks to complete, but with the help from magical creatures, she is able to complete the tasks. On her way to the festival, when a nobleman passes by and notices her, she is frighten and runs away. The nobleman finds the sandal that Pigling had lost. When he finds the girl whose foot the sandal fits, he proposes marriage on the spot.
This book is written in graphic format.
Dancing to Freedom: The True Story of Mao’s Last Dancer
In a poor village in northern China, a small boy named Li Cunxin was given the chance of a lifetime. Selected by Chairman Mao’s officials from among millions of children to become a dancer, Li’s new life began as he left his family behind.
At the Beijing Dance Academy, days were long and difficult. Li’s hard work was rewarded when he was chosen yet again, this time to travel to America.
From there his career took flight, and he danced in cities around the world—never forgetting his family, who urged him to follow his dreams.
Don’t Kiss The Frog!: Princess Stories With Attitude
See ya later, Cinderella! Keep up, Snow White! There’s a new crop of princesses in town, and these girls don’t wait for a prince to come to the rescue. Whether it’s slaying dragons or having less grace and more good sense, the heroines in these six stories put unexpected spice into traditional fairy-tale conventions. With sassy artwork and typography to match, this book is THE read-aloud or read-alone for any girl who likes her “happily ever after” with a twist.
Zen Ties
Summer has arrived — and so has Koo, Stillwater’s young nephew. And when Stillwater encourages Koo, and his friends Addy, Michael and Karl to help a grouchy old neighbor in need, their efforts are rewarded in unexpected ways.
Scaredy Squirrel at the Beach
Chee-Lin: A Giraffe’s Journey
Eighty years before Columbus, China sent ships to explore the world. The Chinese discovered many marvelous things, but one discovery stood out above the others: the chee-lin. This chee-lin was just a giraffe, but to the Chinese it was an omen of good fortune so rare that it had appeared only once before—at the birth of Confucius. In a storybook in which each page evokes the richness of far away places and long-ago days, James Rumford traces the chee-lin’s journey from Africa to Bengal to China, weaving a tale not just of a giraffe but of the people he meets along the way.
