Picture Book

A Prairie Year

The year begins with hockey, icefishing, and a snowmobile race. Spring brings renewal: the arrival of piglets, baby chicks in the farm kitchen; and outside, the fields are seeded. In summer, there’s a dinosaur park to be visited; a calf is groomed for the fair and wheat tested between grandfather’s fingers. In fall, a farm auction becomes a party, trick-or-treating is done by pick-up truck, and Clydesdales are driven by teams competing at the world’s great farm fair.The glorious year ends with the arrival of Santa on the main street at night in a pickup truck, while beyond in the dark is the infinite mystery of the prairies.

The Queen’s Necklace: A Swedish Folktale

A cruel and greedy king prizes a pearl necklace above all, but the kind-hearted young woman who becomes his wife gives the pearls away one by one to help the poor.

A Season for Mangoes

Sareen is attending her first sit-up, a Jamaican tradition that celebrates the life of a loved one who has died. The whole village has come to share memories of Sareen’s Nana. Sareen wants to tell her stories of Nana’s last mango season and their search for the perfect mango, but she’s afraid the words won’t come or that she’ll begin to cry. It’s only when Sareen faces her fear that she realizes it’s not the sadness of Nana’s death that she’ll remember best but the joy of Nana’s life.Set amid the rich culture and lush scenery of Jamaica, this moving book offers the hope of rediscovering joy after a loss and pays tribute to the remarkable power of story: to touch, to connect, and to heal.

The Bremen Town Musicians

This is the classic tale of four beleaguered animals—a donkey who can no longer work, a hound who can no longer hunt, a cat who’s too old to chase mice, and a rooster who’s scheduled to become dinner—who decide to run off to be musicians in the town of Bremen. But they get more than they bargained for when they stumble upon a frightful gang of robbers.

My Dog, My Cat, My Mama, and Me!

Lift the flaps to find out why a dog and a cat and finally a mom might go off with expanded tummies — and return with a big surprise.What could it mean when your dog or your cat gets fatter and fatter, then hides in a cupboard or box and comes out thin? With the flip of a flap, little ones will be happy to help the young narrator as she discovers a litter of puppies and a batch of kittens — and finally knows what to expect when her own mom’s widening girth precedes a hospital visit. Bob Graham’s whimsical illustrations and a simple, repetitive text capture the curious anticipation that all new babies bring.

I Completely Know about Guinea Pigs

Lola gets to bring the class guinea pig, Bert, home over school vacation! She takes good care of Bert, but when she and Charlie build him a guinea pig run, he escapes. They hunt all over, and when they find him, they also discover a big surprise—lots of absolutely very adorable baby Berts! This new Charlie and Lola adventure will have readers giggling and wishing for a pet guinea pig of their very own.

The Rich Man and the Parrot

In this retelling of a tale by Rumi, a parrot tricks a wealthy merchant into setting him free.

Martha in the Middle

Martha is tired of being in the middle — until a frog points out its benefits — in a funny story sure to have middle siblings feeling on top of the world.Being in the middle is no fun for Martha. She gets squashed between her siblings when they argue. She never gets called “big and sensible” or “cutesy-wootsy.” Sometimes she even feels invisible. One day she gets so fed up, she decides to run away. Luckily, Martha meets a wise frog who points out that the middle is the best bit — the tasty seeds in the sunflower, the sweet peas in the pod, the juiciest part of a watermelon. With beguiling warmth and humor, Jan Fearnley reassures children that being in the middle of things is a choice spot after all.