BEAUTIFUL SCRATCH BOARD ART

Before Morning is a beautifully illustrated story about a hard working mother’s commitment to duty and her family.  After tucking her child into bed, she heads off to the airport to fly passengers to their destinations.  As the night wears on, a wintry storm strengthens, the child longs for her mother's warmth within their cozy home.  What will happen before morning?

Joyce Sidman’s Before Morning is an endearing story about a child's wish.  Although the text is spare, Caldecott award winner Beth Krommes extraordinary art on scratch board and water colors captures the heart of a family's love. 

For readers in K-2nd grades. 

A GIRL AND HER UNICORN

What would you do with one magical wish?
When Phoebe unexpectedly frees a vain unicorn entrapped by the beauty of her own reflection, the bright-eyed four grader is granted a single wish. After addressing the irony of having her initial requests for “infinity more wishes”, “infinity dollars,” or “superpowers” rejected as being “unrealistic” by a magical unicorn, Phoebe ultimately makes an impetuous wish that secures the magical unicorn as her best friend
Despite her narcissistic tendencies, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils is clearly fond of her new obligatory human best friend. And Phoebe, though young, is nobody’s fool. Together the two share all the sort of adventures expected of a young girl and her imaginary friend (including sleepovers and magical hair braiding), with the added benefit of having other people acknowledge the magical friend’s existence.
Told through a series of witty comic strips, Phoebe and Her Unicorn is sure to appeal to fans of classic comic strips such as Peanuts, Calvin and Hobbes, and Garfield, as well as contemporary comic stories like Babymouse. With casual references to video blogging, popular cat video trends, texting, and smartphone use, Dana Simpson has created a charming modern day heroine for a new generation.
Grades 3+

ONE MAGICAL SUMMER

A review by Theresa:  

Summer is supposed to the best time of the year. It should be a time of no school, no homework, and no schedules just lots of free time to do what you want and hang out with your friends. For Ashley it is just the opposite. Her best friend is going off to camp and then moving across the county. They had planned to spend their last weeks together but instead Ashley has to entertain some strange little girl her mother has invited to come and stay with them for the first three weeks of summer. 

Life looks bleak for her as she faces the worst summer of her life. Without her best friend Lucy she wonders how she will cope with the rare condition that causes her brain not to recognize people even if she knows them well. But cope she does even when Claire, the summer visitor, turns her life upside down and Ashley finds a magic wish jar in the basement that has the power to send her back to a time of two girls very much her and Lucy. Before she knows it the three weeks she had dreaded and all the changes this summer brought to her life mean that her worst summer might just be the best one ever. 

Dreamer, Wisher, Liar by Charise Harper is best for readers in grades 5-8.

BEAUTIFUL MOON/BELLA LUNA

This picture book by Dawn Jeffers is about a little girl who wants the day to last forever so that she may play and play. When the moon grants her wish for a day that never ends and she plays until exhausted, then she wishes for night to come so she can rest. This poem answers a child's persistent questions about why we have to sleep at night. It helps kids to understand why we have night and why they need to go to sleep!

Beautiful illustrations and simple vocabulary. Bilingual full text in English and Spanish. For readers grades 2-3, ages 7-8.