Reviews
“Newman’s simple story (with its frequent ‘Eyn ba’aya’ refrain) will appeal to young listeners, and Gutierrez’s pastel, cartoon-style illustrations are well suited to the laid-back, yet upbeat, story.” —Booklist View →
“Multimedia collages illustrate the news reports’ fanciful elements as effectively as they express the story’s rather bleak setting and its darker edge.” —Booklist View →
“This early chapter book mystery is engaging, providing a case to solve that is age appropriate. Numerous clues are provided, a red herring is present, and the mystery has a surprising twist at the end…. This series provides super sleuthing strategies at the end of the book… View →
Spiky, Slimy, Smooth: What Is Texture?
“Bright, attention-grabbing, and, in some cases, enlarged photographs of hard candies, duck slippers, stone walls, and other common objects give viewers the impression that they can reach out and touch them…. Clever, indeed.” —Booklist View →
Elephant Talk: The Surprising Science of Elephant Communication
“Well-chosen color photos appear on nearly every page, transporting readers from American zoos to African wildlife preserves to an Indian festival celebrating the birthday of the Hindu god Ganesh…. This wide-ranging book is always engaging and informative.”… View →
Sarah Emma Edmonds Was a Great Pretender: The True Story of a Civil War Spy
“Accessible to younger children than most books on the Civil War, this would be a good addition to many collections.” —Booklist View →
What to Expect When You're Expecting Larvae: A Guide for Insect Parents (and Curious Kids)
“This consistently amusing entry in the Expecting Animal Babies series presents itself as a reassuring guide for new insect parents… Heos’ humor conquers all, whether discussing a place to lay eggs (‘the dog doo of my dreams!’); urging patience (‘You… View →
Ticks: Dangerous Hitchhikers
“Markle, an award-winning science writer, is also a former elementary teacher, and in this title in the Arachnid World series, she clearly draws on her past classroom experience in a clear, conversational text that will draw young people into the zoological facts with gripping,… View →
The Lifesaving Adventure of Sam Deal, Shipwreck Rescuer
“With a good shot of energetic action and a focused look at a little-known slice of history, this quick story should have appeal both in and out of the classroom.” —Booklist View →
Ancient Medical Technology: From Herbs to Scalpels
“The design is modern, with text supported by sidebars, quotes, and colorful photographs and captioned illustrations. The authors (a medical journalist and a school librarian) explore not only what early health care was but what archaeology has revealed about it, and include a time View →
What Can't Wait
“This solid debut deftly explores the daily struggle of some students to persevere in the face of long odds.” —Booklist View →
Everything I Was
“Demas anchors this quiet, hopeful book in today’s headlines of job loss and the surprisingly vital safety nets that support families…. Never saccharine, this satisfying offering, with its solid storytelling and memorable characters of all ages, should please fans of… View →
Six Sheep Sip Thick Shakes: And Other Tricky Tongue Twisters
“Anyone who struggles with Dr. Seuss’ Fox in Socks (1965) will enjoy these silly sentences that simply must be read out loud…. Colorful, stylized illustrations feature human and animal characters, and each image and sentence form a discrete package, one to a page or to… View →
I Love Him to Pieces: Book 1
“When the two teens try to fight their way out of embattled St. Petersburg, Florida, is scary and gory and exciting but not too bloody for a middle-school audience. Görrissen’s refreshing, black-and-white art gives the story a crisp, modern feel, with clearly individuated… View →
I Want to Do It Myself!
“Ross’ concept is clear and funny, and the pink- and purple-heavy watercolors maintain a light, airy feel befitting the stress-free concept.” —Booklist View →
The Daytona 500: The Thrill and Thunder of the Great American Race
“Pimm, who worked in the pit box during her husband Ed Pimm’s NASCAR racing days, offers an informative introduction to the Daytona 500…. A solid entry on stock-car racing.” —Booklist View →
Oil Spill!: Disaster in the Gulf of Mexico
“Throughout, Landau applies the clear-sighted, nonalarmist tone of a veteran science writer but still manages to infuse the narrative with nearly the same urgency as an edge-of-your-seat disaster flick…. A spate of books on this topic are likely on the horizon, but few are… View →
“McNish has a gift for portraying characters undergoing disturbing transformations to battle ancient evils.” —Booklist View →
Seven Wonders beyond the Solar System
“‘People love to make lists of the biggest and the best,’ begins each of these four awe-inspiring volumes in the Seven Wonders series, each of which introduces readers to outer space in targeted volumes with an intriguing ‘greatest hits’ approach….… View →
Lost in the River of Grass
“In this authentic survival adventure…it’s the identity questions as much as the taut rescue story that will resonate with readers.” —Booklist View →
What a Team!: Book 3
“The engaging Mr. Badger and Mrs. Fox graphic-novel series, about a blended forest family and four stepsiblings’ efforts to get along, continues to provide both age-appropriate complexity and sweet watercolor artwork.” —Booklist View →
The Maltese Mummy: Book 2
“Another goodnatured adventure with a few nods to classic detective stories.” —Booklist View →
“The real treat here is the Dodger-blue-and-graphite kineticism of Morse’s stylized, limber figures and dynamic layouts. Consider this book as a leadoff hitter to set the table for the slugger, Kadir Nelson’s We Are the Ship (2008).” —Booklist View →