With a mere 19 words (yo appears twice, yes six times) the author/artist of Charlie Parker Played Be Bop presents a spirited conversation on a city sidewalk that is, in itself, a complete drama. Two boys meet as strangers. One hails the other, who is cautious. The first persists. The other responds. Gradually they begin to talk and end up as friends. Full color. 1994 Caldecott Honor Book.
With his hyper-realistic artwork full of striking detail, the award-winning Anthony Browne tells a story of an unlikely friendship.Once there was a very special gorilla who had almost everything he needed. There was only one thing he didn’t have: a friend. With no other gorillas at the zoo, the keepers try something new. Will the gigantic ape strike a bond with another sort of creature, one as tiny and innocent as a kitten? Sparked by the story of a real gorilla who learned to sign, LITTLE BEAUTY is a celebration of a most surprising friendship.
Artie was a happy little lion, and Julie was a happy little rabbit—until one day Julie was sent to the grassland to eat grass, and Artie was sent to the grassland to eat . . . rabbit! Distracted from their destinations, they both discover a delicious jellyberry patch. Driven by a sudden storm into a nearby cave, they become friends before they know they are meant to be enemies. Each returns home with a new friend, a tuft of each other’s fur as a keepsake, and a surprising story to tell their parents. A unique design adds depth to this clever tale—when Artie and Julie are apart their parallel stories are told on separate split pages, but when the two become friends the pages join together as well. Filled with playful art that adds a whimsical tone, this amusing story encourages young readers to overlook differences and demonstrates that fear should never be an obstacle to friendship.
Featured in Vol. I, Issue 4 of WOW Review.
Melrose has planned a wonderful birthday for his best friend, Croc: a vacation at a villa right by the ocean. Melrose wants everything to be perfect, especially the gift, so he decides to take a boat out on the sea to catch Croc a birthday fish. But when a blustery storm rolls in, Melrose is in danger. It’s up to his loyal friend Croc to come to the rescue—but can he get there in time?
Little guinea pig is obsessed with his favorite TV show and with its star, Super Guinea Pig. Every day he tunes in to watch Super Guinea Pig save the world from evil and terrible disasters. And every day he ignores his friends—an old hound dog, a yellow bird, and a plump goldfish—to watch his hero. When they start making fun of little guinea pig and asking why his new best friend never visits him, he dresses up as Super Guinea Pig to teach his friends a lesson. Leaping and acting like his hero, little guinea pig gets himself into a bit of trouble and calls upon Super Guinea Pig for help. His real friends save him the day.
Franny and her friends are going on an outing. They find a cozy little place under a tree for a picnic. After a delicious snack, it’s time for an expedition. But Franny has so many friends to keep track of. And suddenly Itty Bitty Kitty and Little Heddy are gone. But no worries, they can’t have wandered too far off. And when the group searches together, it isn’t long before the missing friends are located.
In the time of the Han Dynasty in ancient China, a young orphan struggles with her new responsibility. Ping has survived her days as a slave at Huangling Palace, but new challenges await her in the desolate mountains of Tai Shan. The aged dragon Danzi is gone, and now it is up to Ping to take care of the baby dragon, Kai. She does her best, but food is scarce, and she must be constantly on the lookout for her enemies. Things seem to get better when fate leads her back to the Imperial Palace, to the Garden of the Purple Dragon. Yet even within these hallowed walls, Ping and Kai are not as safe as they believe. This story of adventure, action, friendship, and loyalty will have readers cheering for Ping and the young dragon as they embark on their journey of faith and courage.
Otto and Lisa are special friends. Otto may be old, but he can still spit cherry pits, make slingshots and grow delicious raspberries. He and Lisa share a fascination with numbers, tell stories, and gaze at the stars. But when Otto gets ill and dies, Lisa struggles to understand. Her rage, confusion and mourning are reflected in the heartwarming illustrations, as she slowly comes to understand that while people die, memories last forever.
What do you do when you find a seven-leaf clover? Well, you give it to your best friend, of course. Sometimes, though, best friends forget to be thoughtful in return.
A sensitively written, real-life sory about a boy called Litle Leap Forward, growing up in he hutongs of Beijing in the 1960’s, at the time of the Cultural Revolution. Little Leap offers children an intimate and immediate account of a child’s experiences as Mao Tse Tung’s Great Leap Forward policy tightens its grip on China.