Pip the gnome plays happily with his woodland friends, the mouse, robin, wren and spider. Follow them through spring, summer, into autumn and then winter. The colourful illustrations and simple words introduce very young children to the seasons, with bright green leaves in spring, warm sunshine in summer, blustery wind in autumn and snowfall in winter. Perfect for bedtime, the story ends as we look up at the stars and say good night to Pip.
When the lazy people of Cologne go to sleep, the helpful elves do all their work. They measure and saw for the carpenter, knead and mix for the baker, carve and chop for the butcher, taste and pour for the winemaker, and snip and sew for the tailor. But no one ever sees them. Until one day the tailor’s wife becomes curious.
This classic picture book is based on a poem by August Kopisch (1799–1853), who specialised in re-telling popular legends. It is brought to life with humorous illustrations by Beatrice Braun-Fock (1898–1973).
When Goldilocks goes to collect flowers in the wood she gets lost and stumbles upon a pretty house in a clearing. She looks inside and sees a table with three chairs: a big chair, a medium chair and a little chair, and in front of each chair is a steaming bowl of porridge. The porridge smells so good, and Goldilocks is so hungry, that she opens the door and walks inside. But this house belongs to three bears: a big daddy bear, a medium mummy bear and a little baby bear — and they’ll be back soon.This is a beautiful interpretation of a classic story. Gerda Muller’s timeless, intricate illustrations offer wonderful extra detail for children to enjoy. From the very first page, she includes big, medium and little versions of birds, squirrels, mice, plates, umbrellas, slippers, and more. Children and parents will notice new things each time.
Hannah the hen spends a whole day on the farm looking for a quiet place to lay her eggs, so that she can have chicks of her own. The pigs grunt too loudly, the lambs are too playful, the cows are too clumsy…Will Hannah ever find a nice quiet place where her eggs will be safe?
Faith, the little fairy, can’t get to sleep. It’s a lovely summer’s night and magic is in the air, so she flies off to see who else is still awake. Faith meets a mother fox and her young cubs, who can’t get to sleep, an elf father whose children can’t get to sleep, and the sandman who is filling sacks with magic dust to help children everywhere get to sleep. Finally the little fairy meets a moth-fairy prince who takes her to the source of the night’s magic – a wonderful Midsummer Night’s party – where she dances until she is so tired that she finally falls asleep.This magical, dreamlike tale makes perfect bedtime reading.
The author of “Mahtab’s Story” and the author of “The Island “team up to bring young readers another powerful social justice-related work–an inspiring, thought-provoking picture book about finding one’s way in the world “”You must do as you’re told.”””” “”Let the army make you a man.”””” “”Your country needs your vote.”” As the voices in his life crowd in on him, Thomas looks for another way, refusing to conform to the expectations and demands of family and community. A loner, Thomas refuses to feel lonely, an inspiring choice in this masterful tale of questioning authority and resisting oppression. Powerful illustrations and a spare text make a parable of Thomas’s journey, which reflects the courage we all need to find our passion and be ourselves.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume 4, Issue 2
An African lullaby in Swahili and English in which a little boy says good night to all the animals and ends with his mother.
This is the traditional story, told simply and elegantly, of how Juan Diego meets the beautiful Lady on a windswept hilltop in December and carries her message to the disbelieving bishop. The Lady fills Juanz’s cloak with full-blooming roses and impresses her image on its fibers as a sign for the bishop to fulfill her request of building a house of prayers. The story tells of how, over many years, countless hands built the great church dedicated to the Lady of Roses, Nuestra Senora Guadalupe on the hill of Tepeyac. Everyone will enjoy the story of Talking Eagle and the Lady of Roses and the wild and glorious illustrations of award-winning, Taos, New Mexico, artist Amy Cordova. Also included is an informative afterword by Gene Gollogly.
Roses for Isabella invites us to experience life in Ecuador through the eyes of a young girl who keeps a journal and loves to write. We learn about Isabella’s parents who work on one of the hundreds of farms growing beautiful roses that are sold all over the world. But not all of these farms are fair to worker and kind to the earth. Through Isabella, we learn how her family’s life changes for the better when her parents find work at a Fair Trade farm.
A Chinese-American boy gains a new understanding of his Chinese grandfather in this celebratory story of family, martial arts, and the Chinese New Year. Vinson is very excited when his grandfather comes from China for a visit. When Grandpa practices tai chi in the garden, Vinson asks to learn, hoping it will be like kung fu, full of kicks and punches. But tai chi’s meditative postures are slow and still, and Vinson quickly gets bored. He can’t understand why Grandpa insists on calling him by his Chinese name, Ming Da, or why he has to wear a traditional Chinese jacket to the Chinese New Year parade. As the parade assembles, however, he notices the great respect given to his grandfather and the lion dancers under his training. And when Vinson is offered a role in the parade, he realizes that being part Chinese can be pretty cool—and is ready to start learning from his grandpa’s martial-arts mastery in earnest.