The Boo-Boos of Bluebell Elementary, written by Chelsea Lin Wallace, Chronicle Books
A rollicking read-aloud featuring a wide cast of characters coming to the school nurse for help with their hilariously dramatic bumps, runny noses, and many other colorful complaints!
Kids at Bluebell don’t feel well—
Gus is sad, and Benny fell.
Splinters, lice, a paper cut,
throw-up, bumps, a hungry gut.
Charlee’s tooth won’t wiggle free!
But there's someone to go to—Miss Peatree!
The big feelings and minor dilemmas of elementary school are no match for this hilarious, delightful cast of characters and the untiring compassion of Miss Peatree. One after another, students pile into her office to get fixed up—whether they need a Band-Aid for a bumped knee or a solution for a touch of homesickness. Even the principal visits with an urgent paper cut!
With irresistible, hilarious rhyme and endlessly lively art, Chelsea Lin Wallace and Alison Farrell showcase the humor of elementary school's many little problems and the gentle good sense that puts everything right.
HILARIOUS HUMOR FOR ALL AGES: This genuinely funny picture book for kids will tickle adults, too. It’s tongue-in-cheek but genuine, dramatic but keenly felt. Riddled with rhyme and chock-full of humor in every stanza, it's a perfect read-aloud at school, at bedtime, or whenever kids need cheering up on terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days.
TIMELESS TOPIC: Classic in sensibility but with fresh, sharp wit, this book touches on a truly universal topic with an authentic voice young readers will recognize and identify with. The children's struggles immediately capture the drama of feeling sick without being scary.
CELEBRATING SELF-CARE: In celebrating the ups and downs of potentially scary situations—feeling sick or getting injured—this book emphasizes the value of sharing emotions and seeing oneself through life’s various difficulties.
GREAT BOOK FOR CLASSROOM LIBRARY: The accessible, easy-to-read, funny text does an excellent job of getting kids to read and enjoy poetry without even noticing it. In addition to sharing this book for its fun school setting, elementary school teachers and librarians can easily use it in connection with poetry units.
Perfect for:
Read-aloud option for parents, teachers, and librarians looking for funny books for kids
Starting-school or back-to-school book for young readers
Reassuring book for kids who experience sickness or struggle to get through bad days
Fans of humor, children's poetry, and books that celebrate big feelings
A KIT STORY written by Kristen Tracy, Chronicle Books
I am a fox. Do you see me?
Timeless and nostalgic, quirky and fresh, lightly educational and wholly heartfelt, this autobiography of a fox kit will delight all cuddlers and snugglers.
See the world through a fox kit's eyes in a charming book about finding your place in the world. Over the course of four seasons, Kit comes of age in the forest. In spring, she gambols. In autumn, she races. In summer, she sneaks and slinks. But with her mama, she will always be a little kit.
A CUB STORY, Chronicle Books
Timeless and nostalgic, quirky and fresh, lightly educational and wholly heartfelt, this autobiography of a bear cub will delight all cuddlers and snugglers.
See the world through a bear cub's eyes in this charming book about finding your place in the world. Little cub measures himself up to the other animals in the forest. Compared to a rabbit, he is big. Compared to a chipmunk, he is HUGE. Compared to his mother, he is still a little cub.
The first in a series of board books pairs Kristen Tracy's timeless and nostalgic text with Alison Farrell's sweet, endearing art for an adorable treatment of everyone's favorite topic: baby animals!
PERFECT FOR BEDTIME KISSES: The book goes through a day in the life of a baby bear cub and ends tucked into his den with mama bear. The perfect book to take families through their own day, ending with a cozy goodnight moment!
ENCOURAGES CHILDREN TO IMAGINE OTHER PERSPECTIVES: This book is told in the first person: "I am a cub." This unusual narrator will get the youngest readers thinking about what it's really like to be a little bear cub!
TEACHES COMPARISONS: The idea of seeing through the animal's eyes by comparing themselves to familiar ideas (cub is bigger than rabbit but smaller than mama bear) is a perfect introduction to comparative logic.
CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED ILLUSTRATOR: Alison Farrell is the author/illustrator of the fan favorite The Hike, along with Cycle City and Bicycle Bash. Here she brings her love of science and sweet animals a brand-new series based on forest animals!
BABY ANIMALS!: There's one thing all babies love: baby animals! There are all kinds of animals to look at and learn about in these pages, rich with wildlife and filled with love.
A BOOK TO BOND OVER: This is the perfect cuddly read between baby and parent, since it's focused on baby animals and their families.
Perfect for:
•Parents
• Grandparents
• Friends searching for the perfect baby shower gift
• Animal lovers
Richard Scarry meets Nana In the City in this bicycle themed seek-and-find adventure.
Imagine visiting Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory—but for bikes! This is a seek-and-find/activity book rife with quirky illustrations that hits the sweet spot of every reader from the youngest to the oldest! The wheels keep turning in Cycle City, and it's finally time for the annual Bicycle Bash, where one and all can ride their bikes indoors. Etta's been specially invited by her Aunt Ellen to attend! But why does Aunt Ellen need a list of Etta's friends?
Taking place in the Bicycle Museum, this celebration rolls out bicycles of all kinds—from low riders to tricycles to "bone shakers." The Museum even has lanes and tracks indoors so that everyone, Giraffe and Mouse alike, can ride their bikes anywhere. After a full day of riding through the museum halls, Etta pedals out to find a special surprise—her own birthday bash with her best friends! Follow Etta along her first bike tour with this delightfully detailed seek-and-find adventure.
• BELOVED WORLDWIDE: The companion book, Cycle City, was published in seven foreign countries! Don't miss out on the favorite biking book of ciclistas worldwide!
• FUN SEEK AND FIND: Alison Farrell's colorful, vibrant village will delight all kids who loved Richard Scarry's Cars and Trucks and Things That Go and Busytown books and thrill parents hoping for the same idea plus a hip design aesthetic.
• DETAIL-RICH: There's so much to see on each page! From mini conversations between town denizens to countless biking encounters outside the narrative, young readers will delight in rereading this book in order to see the many enticing, funny sights of this little town.
• A TREAT FOR BICYCLE LOVERS: Big, small, fancy, historic—the many different kinds of bikes in this book are a feast for the eyes.
Perfect for:
• Fans of Richard Scarry
• Fans of seek-and-find books
• Families and friends who enjoy bike riding together
• Parents looking for a lighthearted picture book their kids can spend hours with
• Aunts looking for a picture book that portrays niece/nephew relationships
• Parents, grandparents, and other family members looking for a lightly educational picture book
• Fans of museums
Written by Joan Hulub, Nancy Paulsen Books
When the road signs take a vacation, chaos and hilarity ensue--and they quickly learn how important they are.
School is ending for the summer, and the stick figures on the school crossing sign are jealous of all the vacation plans they hear the students making. The stick figures work hard--maybe they deserve a vacation, too! So they abandon their signpost and set off on an adventure, inviting along all the other underappreciated road signs they meet on the way. It's all fun and games for a while, especially when they stumble upon a fantastic amusement park. But the people they've left behind are feeling their absence, and soon there are traffic tangles and lost pedestrians everywhere. The signs are more important than they realized, and now it's time for them to save the day!
Reviews
“Wry, pun-filled text. . . . Humorous illustrations depict the black silhouettes of newly liberated, ambulatory figures (a park ranger, hikers, a bear, road workers). Entire signs, like HAIRPIN TURN and ONE WAY sport sturdy white arms and legs. . . . This union of dialogue-rich text and panoramic representations of a diverse town provides a just-right balance between community-safety instruction and kid-appealing hijinks. Perfect for end-of-the–school-year read-alouds and good fun all year long.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Holub’s concise, satisfying narrative and the characters’ speech-balloon comments read aloud well. The story’s unspoken message, that everyone likes to be appreciated for what they do, is one that young children can appreciate. Capturing the joy of an unexpected holiday, Farrell contributes a series of wonderfully childlike gouache-and-ink illustrations that become increasingly chaotic, then resolve into order as the signs return to their posts. An appealing picture book for reading aloud.”—Booklist
“Along the streets that run by Sunnyside school, the signs are different. They might look the same as those of other towns, but these have a life of their own. . . . Gives young readers a detailed look at common street signs with an inventive story to highlight their importance.”—School Library Journal
“Farrell’s (The Hike) gouache and ink pictures portray a landscape that’s enchanted in a comically quotidian way—readers should get a kick out of watching familiar symbols scamper down the street, some of them sprouting cartoon arms and legs. Minimal narration by Holub (the Goddess Girls series) moves the story along, while dialogue balloons capture the signs’ devil-may-care attitude.”—Publishers Weekly
Read the Kirkus review here
THE HIKE, Chronicle Books
The Hike is a must-have for budding scientists, best friends, and all adventurers in preschool and kindergarten.
"These young explorers demonstrate the best principles of time spent in the woods: observing, admiring and learning. And, through their delightfully illustrated adventure, so do we."—The New York Times
A plucky and sweet adventure story, The Hike celebrates how fun and rewarding it is to explore nature in your own backyard!
Three intrepid young female explorers set out to conquer the outdoors in their local forest, enjoying the process in their own different ways. Wren brings a sketchbook and a flag, El brings a poetry notebook, and Hattie brings feathers (and holds Bean the dog’s leash). They get lost and use maps to find their way. They draw wildlife, spot deer tracks, and see a deer before it startles and disappears, all before they finally and joyfully reach their destination.
Filled with lyrical language that captures the majesty of the natural world, coupled with a fun narrative, this spirited picture book tells the story of the girls' friendship—and their tribulations and triumphs in the great outdoors.
ARTFUL AND EDUCATIONAL: The book includes Wren's sketchbook that highlights discoveries the kids make along the trail, plus a glossary, scientific backmatter, and abundant labels of the flora and fauna of a Western woodland throughout for learning about various plants and animals.
A WONDERFUL GIFT: This adorable book makes a perfect present for the littlest nature lovers and families that love the outdoors.
RAVE REVIEWS: "Beautifully illustrated . . . This is a perfect addition to elementary school libraries to support readers who love the great outdoors." —School Library Journal; "Utterly satisfying."—Kirkus Reviews
Perfect for:
Parents and grandparents of kids who like to explore outside
Teachers and librarians looking for an outdoors-themed book
Fans of children’s books like We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Helen Oxenbury, The Bad Seed by Jory John, and We Are the Gardeners by Joanna Gaines
READ THE KIRKUS REVIEW HERE
When little Etta the Elephant goes to her Aunt Ellen's house, she takes a journey through bicycle-filled Cycle City, a town filled with bikes of all kinds! At the end of the day, a special surprise awaits Etta—the most amazing bicycle parade imaginable. Detail-rich illustrations in this fun seek-and-find book paint the colors of this unusual town where everyone rides some kind of bike—whether a penny-farthing, a two-wheeled unicycle, or a conference bike, everyone is on wheels! Packed with prompts and lots to see on every page, this is a sweet story for the sharpest of eyes.
Emily Arrow's Cycle City SONG:
Book Trailer:
interview with BikePortland
Find Cycle City at your local independent bookstore, or here:
There are seven foreign editions of Cycle City! The first links go directly to the foreign publisher site:
simplified Chinese
Korean
Drawn to Color (Sasquatch Books, 2017) is a Pacific Northwest coloring book featuring many local artists. Look for my mushroom party spread!