What There Is Before There Is Anything There

Every night when his parents turn off the light, strange creatures descend from the black space where the ceiling used to be . . . First comes one, then another, and then more and more. They stand all around him, staring, not saying a word. And then, worst of all, comes the dark, shapeless one that tells him, “I am what’s there before there is anything there . . .”

Salsa: Un poema para cocinar/A Cooking Poem (Bilingual Cooking Poems)

A young boy and his sister gather the ingredients and grind them up in a molcajete, just like their ancestors used to do, singing and dancing all the while. The children imagine that their ingredients are different parts of an orchestra, the tomatoes are bongos and kettledrums, the onion, a maraca, the cloves of garlic, trumpets and the cilantro, the conductor. They chop and then grind these ingredients in the molcajete, along with red chili peppers for the “hotness” that is so delicious, finally adding a squeeze of lime and a sprinkle of salt. When they are finished, their mother warms tortillas and their father lays out plates, as the whole family, including the cat and dog, dance salsa in mouth-watering anticipation.

Abukacha’s Shoes

n a Jewish folktale retold in the author’s family, Abukacha, who has the largest feet in the world, has a new pair of shoes and tries to get rid of the old ones, only to find that is not as easy as he expects.

One Minute’s Silence

On the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I, David Metzenthen asks, “What is the true meaning of remembering?” This is a powerful and moving picture book for older readers about the “one minute’s silence” observed in Australia on Remembrance Day, and what Gallipoli means to Australians in this context.

Boy and a Jaguar

Alan loves animals, but the great cat house at the Bronx Zoo makes him sad. Follow the life of the man Time Magazine calls, “the Indiana Jones of wildlife conservation” as he searches for his voice and fulfills a promise to speak for animals, and people, who cannot speak for themselves.

Featured in WOW Review Volume IX, Issue 4.

In The Moonlight Mist: A Korean Tale

A good-hearted woodcutter finds a heavenly wife in this retelling of a Korean folk tale. One day in the forest, a woodcutter rescues an enchanted deer stalked by a hunter. In return for saving its life, the deer offers to make the woodcutter’s secret wish come true.

The Wonderful World of Pascal the Very Brave

Pascal, the Very Brave Platypus, lives in a most incredible town with his most incredible friends. There’s everyone from Fancy the roller-skating turtle, to Zelda the frog with the underwater trampoline and Ringo, the motor-cycle wearing bear who is the madcap inventor of the Piggy Bouncer. There are silly carrot recipes, a collections of chewed-up gum, an ant-powered toilet and ever-so-much more crammed onto spreads and spreads of hilariously detailed drawings, maps, illustrations and more everything guaranteed to have Pascal fans poring over for hours and hours and roaring with laughter.

Once Upon a Rainy Day

This is the story of a story that starts over again every day in the same way: as the sun rises, Mr. Warbler steps outside his cottage and walks into to the forest to wake the Big Bad Wolf. Every day, this action unleashes the same cavalcade of antics as the forest animals try to escape. But today, none of it happens, Mr. Warbler doesn’t even go outside, because it is raining.