books.

Picture Book Reviews: Pumpkin and Me (English and Spanish Editions)

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Pumpkin and Me by Alicia Acosta

Pumpkin and Me
by Alicia Acosta, Mercè Galí (Illustrator)

5 out of 5 stars

When Pumpkin (the family dog) dies, a little girl is feeling very sad. A dark cloud seems to follow her around. She must have gotten soap in her eyes, because she can’t stop crying. A mean octopus appears to be squeezing her heart so much that it hurts all the time. Her family tell her that it is normal to feel grief and sadness when you lose something you loved. The little girl has a dream about her dog, Pumpkin, visiting her. In the dream, Pumpkin chases away the dark cloud and licks away her tears. Pumpkin barks so loud that the octopus is scared away. The little girl realizes that the memory of Pumpkin will be something she will always carry with her.

This is such a sweet and thoughtful book about grief. Emotions can be overwhelming, and this book is a gentle way to open up a conversation about grief. The story is tender and insightful, and is sure to soothe any little readers who might be dealing with some big emotions.

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Picture Book Review: Fox Tells A Lie (English and Spanish Editions)

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Fox Tells a Lie by Susanna Isern

Fox Tells a Lie
by Susanna Isern, Leire Salaberria (Illustrator)

5 out of 5 stars

Fox tells his friends that he knows the superhero, Superturtle. He tells them how he knows Superturtle’s secret flying techniques. But it is a lie. Fox’s friends get very excited and want to meet Superturtle. Squirrel thinks she can try to fly too. All of Fox’s lies are putting his friends in danger! Can Fox admit the truth before Squirrel gets hurt?

I really appreciated the good moral messages in this book about the importance of truthfulness. There is one page where the story says that all the attention from his friends made Fox “feel important” at first. I love the depth of this story, and the way it explores Fox’s emotions surrounding the lies. He begins to worry that he has told too many lies and he feels ashamed.

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Picture Book Review: What’s Cooking in Flowerville?

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What's Cooking in Flowerville? by Felicita Sala

What’s Cooking in Flowerville?
by Felicita Sala

4 out of 5 stars

People all over the city are harvesting fruits, vegetables, and herbs from their gardens. There are rooftop gardens, community gardens, window ledge herb gardens, and fruit trees in the apartment square. Each month of the year, something is being harvested and used in a special recipe. With a list of fresh ingredients, the reader can also make each recipe following the instructions.

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Book Reviews: Museum Kittens #1-2

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The Midnight Visitor by Holly Webb

The Midnight Visitor (Museum Kittens)
by Holly Webb, Sarah Lodge (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

Three kittens (Tasha, Boris, and Bianca) live with their family in the basement of a museum, where the night guard keeps them to scare away the rats. The kittens are intrigued when a stray cat brings in a black kitten, Peter, to live in the museum. Tasha, Boris, and Bianca are not sure they want to welcome Peter. He is so different, and no one knows where he is from. Peter will have to prove his worth if he wants to become a museum kitten.

This is such an adorable book! The kittens are so cute, and I love the little adventures they have. The plot is simple, but interesting. The writing style is perfect for this age group, and even enjoyable for an adult to read.

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Picture Book: Yoga Adventure!

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Yoga Adventure! by Jamaica Stevens

Yoga Adventure!
by Jamaica Stevens, Roco Alejandro (Illustrations), Jamaroo Kids (Performance)

4 out of 5 stars

Children go on a journey around the world, visiting different animals and doing yoga poses in exotic locations. First we do a plane pose to travel to a new continent. Then we do a warrior pose with bison, and bicycle to a new place where we meet chinchilla doing happy baby pose. We stretch like grey wolves, pandas, frogs, and koalas. We sail the seven seas and hop on board a train.

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Picture Book Review: Gloria’s Porridge

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Gloria's Porridge by Elizabeth Laird

Gloria’s Porridge
by Elizabeth Laird

5 out of 5 stars

In this Ethiopian folk tale, Gloria is making a pot of porridge, but the cat eats it all up! Gloria chases the cat, who runs into the donkey, who bumps against the tree with a beehive. The bees fly around in a panic, startling the hen who drops all her corn. Everything is chaos! Only the fox can make sense of what is happening and make them all stop and calm down.

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Book Review: A Dragon Used to Live Here

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A Dragon Used to Live Here by Annette LeBlanc Cate

A Dragon Used to Live Here
by Annette LeBlanc Cate

5 out of 5 stars

Thomas and Emily are the children of a knight and lady. They live in a castle, take archery lessons, and learn courtly manners and knightly conduct. They meet Meg, a scribe, who used to know their mother when she was a child. Meg tells them stories about the dragon who used to live in the castle and how their mother became involved in a terrifying adventure. But is Meg telling the truth? Or is she just weaving a tall tale?

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3 Picture Book Reviews from Candlewick Press

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Not That Pet! by Smriti Prasadam-Halls

Not That Pet!
by Smriti Prasadam-Halls, Rosalind Beardshaw (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

Mabel gets to choose a pet at the pet store, and she makes the most awful decisions, choosing pets that slither or growl or stink. The elephant is nice, but much too big. The skunk is pretty, but too stinky. The ants are fun, but they crawl into everything, including Dad’s underpants! Can Mabel find a pet that is cuddly and sweet? A pet that everyone in the family will love?

This book is so fun and hilarious! However, I did not like that one of the pets Mabel chooses is a snake. Ew. I had to skip those pages. Too scary! And she also chooses a spider. So if you have arachnophobia, this is not the book for you!

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Graphic Novel Review: Pixels of You

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Pixels of You by Ananth Hirsh

Pixels of You
by Ananth Hirsh, Yuko Ota, J.R. Doyle (Illustrations)

3 out of 5 stars

Indira is not thrilled when she has to team up with an android to put together an art show, but she quickly learns that Fawn is more than just a android. They learn to work together and explore their artistic sides through photography. Eventually, the two girls discover that friendship is possible no matter if you are cyborg, human, or android. They begin to have romantic feelings for each other as well.

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Activity Book: Where’s Waldo? Santa Spotlight Search

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Where's Waldo? Santa Spotlight Search by Martin Handford

Where’s Waldo? Santa Spotlight Search
by Martin Handford
5 out of 5 stars

Waldo and his friends are surrounded by hundreds of Santas in costume. There are a lot of festive activities going on as the Santas prepare for the big sleigh ride. And somewhere in the chaos of reindeer, presents, and Christmas trees, Waldo is hiding among all the red and white. However, each scene is covered by a dark screen, and you have to use the spotlight search tool, a handy cardboard wand, to “light up” the scenes.

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