INTRODUCING BUNJITSU BUNNY

In a series of thirteen vignettes, Isabel, nicknamed Bunjitsu Bunny, proves her mastery. The animated young rabbit, though expertly trained and admirably skilled, accomplishes this not by kicking higher, hitting harder, or throwing further than others, but rather by exploring alternatives to expected solutions. Whether she is confronting monsters in her dreams, helping a friend redefine his abilities and self-perception, or schooling pirates, Isabel approaches each challenge with indomitable spirit.

Though there’s a lesson to be learned with every tale, the tone strikes a perfect balance to avoid seeming overly moralistic. Bold black and white illustrations on every page lend themselves well, deftly capturing the movement and spirit of each character. John Himmelman’s Tales of a Bunjitsu Bunny is a celebration of humor, wisdom, kindness, and creative thinking. A second book, Bunjitsu Bunny's Best Move, is set to be published October 2015.

For grades 1 and up.

THE ANIMALS BEHIND THE STORIES

Winnie-the-Pooh and, much more recently, Ivan the gorilla have become beloved children's book characters. But both characters were also based on real-life animals, and the books Winnie: The True Story of the Bear Who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh by Sally M. Walker and Ivan: the Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla by Katherine Applegate tell the little-known stories behind the celebrated ones.

The story of Winnie (originally named Winnipeg) begins with an army veterinarian in Canada who finds her at a train station and buys him from a man for $20. The bear shadows the vet as he works in army camps, endearing herself to all the soldiers, but after war breaks out, Winnie must begin her life at the London Zoo. It is there where a young boy named Christopher Robin and his author father meet Winnie, and so begins idea for one of the most beloved children's book characters of all time. Walker's story is engaging and gently told, and historic photographs of the real Winnie and her life in the army on the endpapers supplement the sweetly charming watercolor illustrations by Jonathan D. Voss throughout the story.

Though the story of Ivan the gorilla's time spent as a spectacle in a shopping-mall display is much newer to young readers, it has also captured their imaginations in a big way, and the children's novel The One and Only Ivan won Applegate the Newbery Award in 2013. Now she has turned to the non-fiction picture book to tell Ivan's story for children too young for the award-winning novel and provide extra background for those who loved it and want to know more. The warm and delightful artwork by G. Brian Karas pairs nicely with Applegate's simple but evocative words, and will pull young readers as they learn all about the esteemed gorilla's life from wild to shopping mall to zoo.

Both animal biographies are ideal for first graders and up.  

HER NAME IS WHAT?

Do you ever find yourself wishing you had a different name and that your parents had given you a shorter, funnier or cooler name?  Most probably you have and you even have thought about changing your name as soon as you are an adult.  However, imagine that your name was Cataline Magdalena Hoopensteiner Wallendiner Hogan Logan Bogan and you had to live with that name for the rest of your life...Now, your own name doesn't sound as strange or long does it?

CATALINA MAGDALENA HOOPENSTEINER WALLENDINER HOGAN LOGAN BOGAN WAS HER NAME is by TEDD ARNOLD and you are going to just love this book.  Unfortunately, her name is not the only thing that is unusual...

While others use their toes to stand on their feet, she puts them in her nose, while others use their eyes to see straight, she uses them to see left and right...You have to read this story to find out how her name gets even longer than what it already was...

For grades 1st and up.

THE STARS GUIDE YOUR WAY

THE DRINKING GOURD by F. N. Monjo is a little bit of history with a twist of doing the right thing. Tommy Fuller gets in trouble at church one Sunday and is sent home, only to find a family of runaway slaves hiding in his barn. The Drinking Gourd, also known as the Big Dipper, contains the North Star which is leading Big Jeff and his family to Canada, and Tommy’s father is hiding them. Tommy’s father states that laws should not be broken, but there are exceptions to every rule. There aren't many historical fiction stories for the early reader, much less one that deals with the Underground Railroad. This is a great book to get younger readers into the historical fiction genre. For Kindergarten - 3rd grades.

DINOSAURS SOLVING MYSTERIES?

Ever hear of a dinosaur doing police work? Here's a book that will really surprise you then. DETECTIVE DINOSAUR by James Skofield is a collection of three mysteries that Detective Dinosaur and his partner Officer Pterydactl must solve involving a missing hat, a squeaky shoe and a noisy something down a dark alley. Perfect if you just learned to read and want something a little longer, but you're not quite ready for chapter books. For K-2nd grades.

FESTIVE FOOD FOR THE HOLIDAYS

This is a story about Maria and her family's holiday tradition - making tamales. Maria tries on her mother’s wedding ring while making the masa for the tamales and thinks she loses it in the dough. Rather than telling her mother she fears she has lost her wedding ring in the masa, Maria forces her cousins to help her eat through 24 tamales. TOO MANY TAMALES by Gary Soto is a delightful holiday tale, mixing English with Spanish words for ingredients and a little life lesson thrown in for spice. A great story for all ages, but especially for 1st - 4th graders.

IS YOUR TURKEY CHICKEN?!?!

In this funny story called A Hoboken Chicken Emergency by Daniel Pinkwater, a young boy named Arthur is sent to get the Thanksgiving turkey. Unfortunately there aren't any, so he's sent home with a huge, living chicken. Arthur grows attached to the chicken and many adventures take place as he tries to prevent the chicken from becoming Thanksgiving dinner. If you find yourself laughing at books like Captain Underpants or Junie B. Jones, you are really going to giggle at the crazy, silly things that happen to Arthur in this book! Ages 6-10.

FUNNY FOX SHOWS OFF!

Sometimes animals seem a lot like humans. In the book FOX BE NIMBLE by James Marshall, the human-like character is Fox, and he has three chapters of funny happenings. Fox really thinks he's hot stuff. But apparently not everyone knows just how great he is, so he makes a point of showing everyone! First he must babysit for the Ling children who are hard to keep still and end up getting Fox on the evening news. Next, Fox injures himself falling on a skate and makes a big deal out of it, even though he wasn't very hurt, just because he is such a show off. He finally puts his antics to good use as the baton-twirling leader of a parade. This is good for 1st - 3rd graders who are almost ready to read chapter books, but aren't ready for anything too long.

KIDS FOR LUNCH

The biggest crocodile in all of Africa is out to find a tasty child for lunch. He considers himself to be quite an intelligent crocodile as he has devised many secret plans for capturing his meal. Unfortunately he shares these plans with many other jungle animals along the way, and they all end up ruining his great ideas and his lunch! Roald Dahl, author of THE ENORMOUS CROCODILE is always a fantastic author and talks about the slimy, yucky, creepy things that are often funny, sneaky, and a little crazy. Quentin Blake illustrates most of Dahl's books and does a wonderful job of capturing the character of the sneaky mean crocodile.

THUMP AND PLUNK

Thump and Plunk are ducklings with froggy dolls named Thumpit and Plunkit. The whole story involves Thump and Plunk thumping and plunking each other, sometimes while using Thumpit and Plunkit as thumpers and plunkers. You most definitely find your tongue twisting reading this story aloud! Thump and Plunk’s mother eventually explains that they should not be hitting each other, or their dolls. The dialog is realistic and goes through the whole process of who thumped or plunked first, and the mom being firm about not thumping or plunking. The illustrations are so cute, and add even more laughs to the silly text. THUMP AND PLUNK by Janice May Udry is part of the “My First I Can Read Book” series.

LETTERS FROM A MOUSE?

Have you ever written to a Pen Pal? Or, do you know someone who is just starting to learn English? Well, Jenny's dealing with both. In DEAR WHISKERS by Ann Whitehead Nagda, Jenny's class must write letters to the second grade pretending to be mice. Everyone gets a response except for Jenny. She learns that her pen pal, Sameera, is from Saudi Arabia and is just starting to learn English. At first this is discouraging for Jenny, but she thinks of some creative ways to help Sameera learn English and return her correspondence. Perfect for 1st - 3rd graders, or those just starting to read chapter books.