OH, WHAT BIG TEETH YOU HAVE ALAN!

Alan the alligator has enormous and brilliant white teeth. He does much to take care of them, brushing for at least ten minutes. These chompers are useful for many things but when he couples them with a variety of scaring techniques, the other animals are not amused; just downright scared! That is, until one day, a beaver comes and discovers a secret that Alan has been hiding. Instead of keeping the secret to himself, beaver shares it with the other animals. Will Alan find other ways to scare his friends?  

Jarvis’ story and illustrations in Alan’s Big Scary Teeth are hilariously fun and although Alan has a bit of a problem with scaring others, readers will find ways to root for him too.

For ages 3-7

ANOTHER GRAPHIC WINNER

Smile by Raina Telgemeier is a hilarious story of how Raina (yes, it's based on the author's childhood) deals with braces, missing teeth, and growing up. A graphic novel is the perfect way to share all the visual humor of this teenage trauma. I won't attempt to describe them since the author did such a great job already. Here are a few hilarious excerpts:

For readers in 5th grade and up.

SMILE, OR ELSE!

Grandpa woke up one morning to find his teeth, which he always kept in a glass of water on the nightstand, have gone missing. Everyone in the family as well as the entire police force is recruited to search for the stolen dentures but nothing turns up. Grandpa suspects everyone in town, especially if they didn't smile. Business begins to fall off because tourists were too scared to come to a town full of smilers. So, desperate and miserable, the town comes together to discuss a solution to make Grandpa and everyone else happy again.

Grandpa's Teeth by Rod Clement is a fun and clever picture book for older readers in 1st - 4th grade.

THE TOOTH FAIRY MEETS EL RATON PEREZ

When Miguelito, a Mexican-American boy looses his tooth and hides it under his pillow waiting for a present in exchange. he has no idea that he is setting off a big conflict between the Tooth Fairy and her Spanish-speaking counterpart, el Raton Perez, the charming and adventurous mouse who also collects children's teeth in Spain and Latin America. The Tooth Fairy feels she is in a competition, so she claims Miguelito's tooth, "Here's my tooth!" she says, and the mouse replies "!Aqui esta mi diente!". Fortunately the conflict is resolved when both collectors learn to work together teaching a lesson about sharing and cooperation. Charming storybook full of humor and imagination. Written by Rene Colato Lainez, illustrated by Tom Lintern. Kindergarten ages 5-6.