Family

Yoko’s Show-And-Tell

When Yoko’s grandparents send her a beautfui antique doll all the way from Japan, Yoko couldn’t be happier. She places Miki on a windowsill and brings her candy every day. On Girls’ Festival Day, Yoko wants to show Miki to her class and tell them all about the Japanese holiday. In her Big No voice Mama says, “We don’t trouble trouble or trouble will trouble us.”  But Yoko is so excited about Girls’ Day that she can’t resist taking Miki to school. Mama will never know . . . .   What could possibly go wrong? Rosemary Wells brings the loveable Yoko back in a story that deftly explores cultural differences, bullying at school, and learning to forgive, with her trademark accessibility and elegance.

Cinnamon Baby

Miriam the baker is beloved in her village. Every day she bicycles to work and saves her favorite cinnamon bread for last, singing as she kneads spices into the dough. The scents and songs attract fellow bicyclist Sebastian, and he falls head over handlebars for Miriam. After marrying, their domestic bliss is disrupted when their beautiful new baby begins to cry continuously. What finally placates the fussy infant? The sounds and smells of Miriam making a batch of cinnamon bread. Many children will welcome the beside-the-point depiction of a multicultural family: Miriam is paper white, Sebastian is cocoa brown, and their cinnamon-colored child gives the title a sly double meaning. A charming offering infused with warmth, romantic whimsy, and love

Hooray For Anna Hibiscus!

Anna Hibiscus lives in Africa. Amazing Africa. She loves singing to her two baby brothers, Double and Trouble. But when she is chosen to sing for her school in front of the president, her throat runs dry and her bones turn to stone. Can Double and Trouble save her?

Where I Belong

Master storyteller Cross delivers an exciting new novel set in London and Somalia, which grapples with such issues as identity, trust and family.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 2.

My Mom Is So Unusual

“My Mom and I live alone. That makes our family different from the families of most of my friends.” A young girl and her unusual mother share affection, humor, sometimes anger, and more humor, and a whole lot of love. And because of her mother’s unusual ways, the youngster is content about their being an unusual family.

Waiting for the Whales

This book tells the simple story of an old man who lives alone in a house overlooking the sea. His life has assumed a cozy regularity to match the seasons: collecting firewood and clams in wintertime; planting his garden in the spring; and, in summer, watching his beloved orca whales swimming by. When his daughter comes to visit one spring with a new infant, the man has someone with whom to share his love of the natural world–especially the whales.