SOME SUPER SILLY FUN PICTURE BOOKS

I Love You Like a Pig by Mac Barnett and illustrated by Greg Pizzoli is a wacky nonsensical (You're sweet like a banker) yet sometimes sensical (I'm lucky like a window) picture book where a child and a pig are enjoying two stolen slices of pie cooling on a window sill.  Comparing loves and likes with fun and expressive illustrations of Pizzoli are great companions to the words by Barnett.  Another winner from this team.  


Toad on the Road by Stephen Shaskan is a cautionary tale, where mom is invoked because little toad is constantly playing in the road.  Each animal on a different vehicle or mode of transportation crashes to avoid toad until the end when... 
I won't give away who comes along to rescue little toad, whose only crime is trying to catch a fly, in the middle of the road.  

In Bumpety, Dunkety, Thympety-Thump by K. L. Going and Simone Shin two children are going down a road in a wagon going bumpety bump and stopping along the way to dunkety dunk in a pond or eating berries and putting them in a buckety buck with a plunkety plunk.  The noises and sounds continue all through the day until everyone in the family falls asleep with hearts beating a thumpety thump.  A lovely illustrated book for a great family read aloud 

For toddlers - Kindergarteners. 

SHARKS, PIRATES, AND DEATH!

Fidelia Quail and her family were on their last outing at sea before winter and the beginning of the Undertow, when her parents perished in a storm. Deep in a depressive state over the loss of her family, Fidelia's aunt Julia wants to move to the mainland, but Fidelia doesn't want to move away from Aborley Bay and all she knows and loves.  

But when she is kidnapped by the notorious pirate Merrick the Monstrous, Fidelia is forced to use her knowledge of sharks and her skill in invention to find his most prized treasure. Pursued by Her Majesty's Naval Admiral, Merrick presses Fidelia to finish her underwater breathing invention before time runs out. Will Fidelia ever be able to just go back home to her Aunt Julia? 

Race to the Bottom of the Sea by Lindsay Eager is a thrilling novel about an eleven-year-old's love of sharks, the sea, and her family, told both in the past and in the present.

Ideal for readers in 5th through 8th grades.

TIME WITH GRANDPA

There aren't many stories about grandfathers and these two deserve a special mention.  Check out my all time favorite, Grandpa Green by Lane Smith from a few years ago, too. 

The Lost Picnic by b.b. Cronin is a very unusual and intensely colorful story of going on a picnic with grandad.  Instead of following the classic rhyme of putting something into the basket, something falls out of the basket on each double page spread.  At the end of the story, everyone realizes the basket is empty and they have to go back and search for the picnic food.  Now the reader must retrace page by page to help the family find everything.  See if you can find all the food falling out at each turn and stop.  

My Grandfather's Chair by Jiyeon Pak
Grandpa needs a new chair and so the search begins for that one special chair, but after trying many, many chairs none feel right.  Eventually he gets a brand new custom made chair fitting only him but he worries about bad things happening to the chair, so he puts it away for safe keeping.  Grandpa goes for a walk, a rest and a bit of reading when he realizes he has just found the perfect seat - a tree stump.  

These two books are great reads for preschool up to second grade readers.

THE TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF MRS. WHITE RABBIT

Mrs. White Rabbit (wife of that famous White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland) shares her concerns and many household problems in her diary after having just moved to a new home. First on her list is her oldest daughter, who wants to be a housewife one moment and a scuba diver the next. The twins are always up to something and not always a good thing. She is concerned about all of her other children as well as her husband, the White Rabbit. On top of all this, an invisible cat, probably from Cheshire, just suddenly shows up everywhere in the house, too. 

The amazing thing about this is book are the illustrations and the references to Alice in Wonderland and other fairytale characters, if one looks carefully. In one spread Bachelet draws 100 different carrot dishes from the cookbook 100 Ways to Cook Carrots! Fantastic!  Mrs. White Rabbit by Gilles Bachelet is great fun for parent and child from preschool through second grade. 

A LOVE STORY

Ox writes a letter to Gazelle, raving about her beauty and telling her how much he adores her, but arrogant Gazelle just sends him a generic fan photo, insulting him in letter after letter. Undeterred, or being thick, Ox continues to extol her virtues, intelligence and honesty. Another fun picture book by the team of Adam Rex (author of The Legend of Rock, Paper, Scissors) and Scott Campbell (illustrator of the Zombie in Love books), XO, OX combines great watercolor illustrations with hilarious word play, making this a good read aloud for kindergartners to adults.  

XO, OX is a thought provoking read right before Valentine's Day. Is this an unrequited love story or an obsessive stalker-ish love? Either way you see it, I love it.  

THE EGG AND THE FALL

After the Fall - How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again by Dan Santat is the follow up story to that famous incident where Humpty Dumpty fell and was put back together again, but he didn't escape unscathed. Humpty now fears heights. He can't sleep on the top bunk. He can't climb to reach the "good" cereal on the top shelf.  
Humpty discovers a new hobby making and flying paper birds, which allows him to watch beautiful birds fly high again. His acrophobia comes to a head one day, when one of them gets stuck wayyyy up high.  

What now? Can Humpty climb up to get it? 

Humpty's emotions are illustrated beautifully to evoke sadness and joy with different colors and hues. Everyone talks about being surprised by the ending and I agree. You will too. 

For readers in preschool and up.  

A SURPRISE FOR EUGENIA

Eugenia Lincoln and the Unexpected Package by Kate DiCamillo and Illustrated by Chris Van Dusen another story in the Tales From Deckawoo Drive series.

Eugenia Lincoln, the older of two sisters living on 52 Deckawoo Drive, does not like surprises and does not indulge in frivolity.  She's practical and has no time for fun, silly things like an accordion.  One day a little man shows up at her door trying to get her to find that little bit of music in her heart.  Everyone has a bit, he claims.  

After a night of music and merrymaking by everyone but Eugenia, she bumps into little Stella on her way to the trash, who asks to try the accordion.  Before Stella could play anything, Eugenia accidentally squeezes out a bit of music on the keys and Stella excitedly claims that she just made music and should keep on playing.  

Maybe there is a place for some frivolity in Eugenia's life after all.  Will she ever find out who sent her the accordion?  Maybe it doesn't matter anymore.  

A beginning chapter book perfect for 2nd-4th grade readers. 

LOVE THAT MONSTER

Leo is terrified of the monster under his bed--and Under-The-Bed Fred really is under the bed. One night, when Leo can't hold it (you know what "it" is of course) in any longer and just has to go! He asks the monster to give him safe passage to the bathroom and when he's safely back in bed, seeing how easy it all was, he strikes up a friendly conversation with the monster, who now calls himself Fred.  

Desperate to bring something to class for show and tell, Leo decides to bring Fred to school. It all starts out well enough until his entire class runs out of the room terrified of Fred's many scary monster impressions. 

Pick up this fun beginning chapter book by Linda Bailey, illustrated by Colin Jack, to meet the not-so-scary Fred.   

For readers in 2nd- 3rd grades. 

A TOAST TO T.O.A.S.T

Pranks are being set off throughout an elite school in Washington D.C. so Florian and Margaret are engaged as consultants by the FBI to investigate them and the perpetrator.  Everyone is brilliant and seemingly unfriendly so there's no lack of suspects among the the children of prominent Washingtonians. Every move is calculated and watched so they really have to put their T.O.A.S.T. skills to use. 

Is the president's daughter involved?
Is the school bully behind it? 
What about Victoria, the leader of the popular girls? 
Or, that gifted violinist who just appeared out of nowhere? 

The two friends have impressed the school director with their T.O.A.S.T. skills but a good first impression is not enough to solve the case.  

In this sequel Vanished!, James Ponti explores the complexity of friendships and social structure within the exclusive and intense lives of elite private middle school students.  

For readers in 5th-8th grades.

CATS AND DOGS DO GET ALONG

Fuddles does not like the new visitor, a dog who drools and makes too much of a commotion.  He tells Puddles to go away--it's his house--but when Fuddles accidentally lands on top of the doghouse next door, unable to escape the ferocious dog, Puddles comes to Fuddle's rescue. Fuddles finally realizes what a true friend Puddles is and they happily share their home together.  

Fuddles and Puddles by local author Frans Vischer is another fun story for readers in preschool through 2nd grade.   

SCIENTIST CHARLOTTE

In Charlotte the Scientist is Squished, Charlotte uses the scientific method to solve her problem ... not enough space in her large rabbit family.  Tired of not having enough space in the bathroom, or anywhere for that matter, Charlotte designs and builds a rocket to fly to the moon where there will be no crowding.  With plenty of room on the moon, she performs all the experiments she could want and take long leisurely baths.  Unfortunately Charlotte experiences an unexpected problem in space by herself and so she decides to tackle one final experiment.  

A fun book for preschoolers through second graders, written by Camille Andros and illustrated by Brianne Farley, about getting what you wish for.  

OUT OF THE WAY!

Sam comes to the construction site everyday to watch the workers at the construction site but on this particular day some older boys dare him to go inside the site itself.  To their horror, Sam begins to  behave unexpectedly.  He takes their dare and drives off in the cement mixer and then pour wet concrete all over the road.  He behaves in more seemingly crazy ways for a little boy.  Scared that they have egged Sam on and are in a heap of trouble, the boys run after him, but the chaos just continues.  

But Sam is observant and clever and his actions are very logical and reasonable.  Find out what Sam is up to as he drives different types of construction vehicles in this madcap romp through the city.
There's humor, tension and action for everyone who enjoy cars, construction and a good story in Sam and the Construction Site by Tjibbe Veldkamp and Alice Hoogstad.  

For preschool through second grade.  

ANOTHER SWEET LAKE MONSTER

Drawn by the sweet sound of Hattie's singing, Hudson the lake "monster" pokes his head up to the surface to check it out, but then goes back into hiding when the other lake goers are frightened by him.  Determined to find the animal in the lake and confirm that it is just a curious thing, Hattie hatches a plan to get everyone to see Hudson as a friendly creature of the lake instead something to fear.

Hattie & Hudson, written and illustrated by Chris Van Dusen, is a sweet story of friendship with vibrant illustrations.  It is perfect read-aloud for all ages.

THE MOON LOOKS LIKE WHAT?!

Many Moons by Remi Courgeon illustrates what we've always known - finger nail clippings do look like tiny crescent shaped moons.   Each night a different person sees the moon and it reminds them of a variety of things from a banana to a smile. 

This is a lovely and unexpected book on the daily changing shapes of the moon and what it images and thoughts it evokes.  It's basically the night version of looking at the clouds  as they pass overhead.  

For preschool to second grade. 

WAY UP HIGH IN THE APPLE TREE

The Starry Giraffe is very very tall.  He's so tall that all the shorter animals ask him to reach for an apple from the way too tall apple tree for them.  Mouse would like one, then the raccoons, and even the tiny inch worm.  Will there be any apples left on the apple tree for the hungry giraffe?  Illustrated with bold yet simple graphic images and text, this is an adorable read-aloud with a gentle message about sharing and reward by Andy Bergmann. 

For toddlers through 2nd grade. 

FOLLOW THAT CAT

The cat arrives in to town walking slightly askew.  The townspeople begin to notice the tilted cat and that things are no longer their usual selves like the hair cuts are different and yet everyone loves them.  Catawampus' tilt begin to change people's attitudes, how they look at things and even they build, too.  

Was this Catawampus' intent?  Did he mean to change everything? Check out the endpages with a drawn map showing Catawampus' route through town.  The Catawampus Cat by Jason Carter Eaton and illustrated by Gus Gordon is a silly and enjoyable read for readers 4 years old and up.  

A TOO TIDY TALE

In Tidy a fanatical badger likes everything neat and tidy but he may be just a tad too neat for his own good.  When Pete the Badger's excitement over a supremely neat and clean forest makes it impossible for him to get into his home because he has laid concrete over the entire forest floor was just too much, even for him.  The only thing left for him and the forest friends to do is to break up the extremely clean habitat with a bit of a mess and enjoy a picnic together. 

Emily Gravett has given us another wonderfully illustrated story about all things in moderation, even ecological conservation.  

For ages 4 and up.  

SHELBY NOT SHERLOCK

The Great Shelby Holmes by Elizabeth Eulberg is another fun twist on the Sherlock Holmes craze.  Only this time the great genius detective is a young girl and Watson is the new neighbor living with his single mom in the same New York apartment building.  Shelby is years younger than any other sixth grader but John, being new and it's summer, has no choice but to befriend this strange girl.

Her reputation in the neighborhood is that of a great problem solver, everyone knows her, she knows everyone AND she's a know it all. When a classmate pulls up in a chauffeured car and asks Shelby to help find her missing dog, John Watson jumps in as well because no matter how odd she is, she is one interesting kid and it is bound to lead to some great excitement.  

For readers in 4th- 6th grades. 

HIPPO HAS HATS FOR EVERY JOB

Hippo and Red Panda are tired of their neglected and rundown zoo so they go out to the human world and in order to find amazing jobs.  Each new job comes with a different hat and skill set but none are right for them.  After being fired from all of these amazing jobs (cook, dental assistant, construction worker, etc.), Red Panda runs out of optimism and Hippo is feeling down in the dumps. Hippo and Red Panda realize how their true skills and talents can best be put to use.

A new graphic novel filled with humor, a lot of silliness but at it's core it's a story of friendship and self-discovery. 
Hippopotamister by John Patrick Green is great for beginning readers, graphic novel lovers and anyone else who enjoys a read aloud.   

For Kindergarten through 4th grade.

IMAGINATION AT FULL SPEED

Max just finished cleaning his room and off he zooms on a super adventure: dodging volcanoes, dealing with sharks and super secret underwater caves, and just having a good time. An adorable preschooler, Max is drawn with bright simple illustrations, shown having a good old time imagining himself in fun and exciting fantasy play.  

Max Speed by Stephen Shaskan makes for great read aloud fun with your toddlers up through kindergarteners.