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Teddy is a kid who likes to play with all kinds of toys--trucks and hula hoops and puzzles and action figures and rockets--but his favorite toy of all is his doll, Bren-Da, Warrior Queen of Pacifica. After all she has the best manners, is the most versatile to style, and even has some pretty impressive fighting skills. But one day, during a really tough battle, Bren-Da breaks her leg. Teddy tries in vain to tend to her wounds using the latest surgical technology, bubble gum and lots of tape, but when he goes off to school the Warrior Queen of Pacifica gets mistaken for trash and hauled away. Will Teddy ever be able to see his favorite toy again? Only if his intrepid mom--with some pretty impressive style and warrior moves of her own--has anything to say about it.
Teddy's Favorite Toy, by Christian Trimmer and illustrated by Madeline Valentine, makes for a delightful and lively read-aloud, and is sure to be embraced by preschoolers through second graders who understand the strong bond between a kid and their favorite toy--and their valiant parents alike.
THE DOLL SHOP DOWNSTAIRS by Yona Zeldis McDonough and illustrated by Heather Maione is a quaint little historical fiction about a Jewish family at the beginning of World War I. The family owns a doll repair shop that has fallen on hard times due to the fact that all the replacement parts for dolls come from Germany, and the United States refuses to trade with Germany during the war. So, the three girls Sophie, Anna and Trudie try to come up with ideas that will keep her family in business. This is a perfect story for accelerated third grade readers, or 4th graders not quite ready for lengthier chapter books.
