A foreign mom may eat, speak, and dress differently than other moms. She may wear special clothes for holidays, twist hair in strange old-fashioned braids, and cook recipes passed down from grandma. Such a mom may be different than other moms, but she is also clearly the best.
Provides an illustrated collection of maps covering the continents and major nations of the world, detailing cities, landmarks, and cultural icons for each.
When Sammy, a young Wilson’s warbler, wakes up one frosty August morning near the Arctic Circle, he instinctively knows that it’s time to make his first migratory journey south to Panama. But there’s one problem — where’s Panama? All the other warblers having left without him, Sammy sets off on his journey by himself, stopping to ask the same question of each of the different animals that he meets along the way: “Is this Panama?”
In a garden outside a Kenyan schoolhouse, children are working together to harvest the vegetables they have grown and make them into a soup for everyone to share. But Kioni is having trouble: her herd of mischievous goats followed her to school today and they are trying to eat all the vegetables. The ensuing chaos caused by the goats is cleverly resolved by the children, making their vegetable soup very tasty while saving Kioni’s four-legged intruders at the same time.
An Arab girl of the Sahara who wants to wear a malafa, the veiled dress worn by her mother and older sister, learns that the garment represents beauty, mystery, tradition, belonging, and faith.
Already an old man, desert guide Issa has seen thousands of dawns. One particular morning, however, the desert reveals something new; something that changes his life. Tucked away in a narrow cave, shielded from a treacherous dust storm by a faithful camel, a baby girl lies wrapped in fine cotton and wearing half of a star medallion around her neck. Issa names the girl Mariama. As years pass, Issa loses his sight, and Mariama becomes his eyes. So Issa doesn’t see the pattern on the robes of a mysterious young traveler who comes through their village, or the medallion he wears.
From the first page of this unusual and original collaboration between Jorge Luján and Isol, readers will realize that this is not just another counting book. Whether they are discovering that three is for bedtime kisses, or that five is for secret creatures hiding in a glove, children will delight in the poetic and sometimes surreal text. The illustrations by Isol, winner of the 2012 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, depict a world at once familiar and strange, a place where the three musketeers can suddenly become six, and the ugly duckling is not so ugly after all.
Jamie and Emily try to clean up Hilltop stream with help from their little Tomte friends. Tomtes are small creatures, who only children can see. They live in ancient woods and like to help people and animals. Hilltop Farm has not been thriving: crops are failing, the animals are badly behaved and Bella the cow is ill. Poor Farmer Robinson puts the farm up for sale. But Emily and Jamie are determined to save the farm, so they ask their friends the Tomtes for help. Together, the Tomtes and the children look after Bella, milk the goats and plant seeds. They pick wild berries, collect eggs and make cheese. Can they persuade Farmer Robinson not to sell the farm? This is the second book about the helpful Tomtes who live in Hilltop Wood.
Although it sometimes seems that parents are just there to boss their children around, they are also good for many other things, from mending toys, kneecaps, and clothing to telling bedtime stories.
Amy may never have spent a night away from home, but today she declares that she wants to spend not one but three nights at her grandma’s house. So she packs a bag, and off she goes. During the day, she and Grandma have a lovely time, but when Amy is alone in bed she starts to miss her mother and her baby brother and their dog, Bonzo. Luckily Amy has brought her three best things for a visit, which offer a heartening taste of home — in the most remarkable ways! From the stellar creative pair of Philippa Pearce and Helen Craig comes a wonderfully reassuring bedtime tale.