Indigenous artist and storyteller Andrea Fritz tells a tale of a salmon and a sea otter who learn it's ok to say "I don't know" and to ask for help. Thuqi’ the sockeye salmon knows it’s time to spawn, but she is lost in the Salish Sea and doesn't know the way to Sta'lo’, the river. When she asks Tumus the sea otter for help, he doesn’t exactly know either, and he dismisses her questions. But when Tumus becomes lost in some weeds, Thuqi’ shows him that it’s okay not to know something—you can still find a way to help a friend in need.
Rosa Bonheur loved to draw animals. She was good at it too! Unfortunately, in nineteenth-century France, girls were not allowed to be artists. But Rosa didn't let that stop her. In this fictionalized account of her early life in Paris, Rosa studies art at home, bringing a menagerie of animals into the apartment to study up close. When she is kicked out of the horse market for sneaking in wearing boys clothing, Rosa must think creatively to challenge the rules in pursuit of her dream of becoming a world-class realist painter and artist.
Mama Lou is pregnant and everyone’s guessing what’s in her belly. Who is hiding in there? The bird thinks it’s a cat because everyone keeps petting it. The cat thinks it’s a mouse because Mama Lou is craving cheese. The brother thinks it’s a boy, and a good soccer player too. And the sister thinks it’s a doll she can dress up. Everyone has their own idea. “But I’m not any of those things!” the baby says from inside Mama’s belly. “I’m me! Don’t you understand?” No one can hear it. Until…WHAAA! The baby is tired of being ignored. It’s time their voice was heard. Finally the guessing is over and the baby can show their family who they really are!
How is Vincent supposed to focus when there's so much going on at once?! Vincent has a huge house in his head. It has an entrance, a living room, dark rooms, a light room, a space room and a control room. At school, when he tries to recite a fable in front of his class, he blows it. Even though he knows it by heart, not a single syllable comes to mind. Vincent feels like a misfit when people tell him to just concentrate, and he often has trouble in school. He can't seem to think, but he also can't stop thinking. Sometimes he wants to escape his own head and just be like everyone else. But maybe Vincent doesn't have to be the same as everyone else after all. Maybe he just has to learn how to look, to find the light room and see things in his own way. Inspired by the author's experience growing up with ADHD,
Ten-year-old Sly is spending the weekend with their fortune-telling grandmother at the mysterious Madsen Mansion. It’s Samhain, a time when the spirits can cross over into the living world, and the old mansion has secrets whispering in the rafters and unused rooms. When Sly and their grandmother hear a voice calling, Sly unlocks a cabinet that reveals a ghost girl who is trapped in a mirror. Then they accidentally speak the words of the spell that enchanted the girl in the first place, and Sly and their grandmother risk being imprisoned in the mirror as well. With the clock ticking till the end of Samhain, it’s up to Sly to solve the ghost’s riddles and puzzles and locate a long-lost book of spells in hopes of freeing them all.
In the small village of Seuño Bay, famous for its mysterious crystals and legendary moon creatures, friends Kay, Ollie, Jenna and Sleeves try to help a lost moon creature at the lighthouse of Candle Point. When a wild winter storm rolls in and all the power goes out, Kay stays with her reclusive aunt, Gayle, the lighthouse keeper of Candle Point. On the long trek through the blustery snowstorm, Kay stumbles upon an injured moon creature. Kay smuggles her new friend into her aunt's lighthouse to take shelter from the cold. While exploring the lighthouse she discovers a network of tunnels and a colony of moon creatures. Kay tries to reunite the abandoned creature with its family but she can't do it alone.
Polar bears and penguins live in similar climates, but they never, ever meet. What if they had a party together? The penguins of Antarctica write a letter inviting the polar bears of the Arctic to join them at the South Pole to celebrate their longest day of the year. But how will the polar bears get there? It's such a long journey—will they make it in time? What will they bring? And what will happen when they arrive? Dear Polar Bears combines a playful story of friendship with humorous imagery depicting the differences between Earth's polar regions. With fun facts about penguin and polar bear species, the distance between the poles, and the summer solstice, this will be the most exciting party thrown by penguins you've ever attended.
It's Ramadan, a time to focus on good deeds and to fast, and Badir and his brother, Anis, are out for a walk one evening while they wait for their iftar meal. In the park Badir sees a rat. A very, very large rat. He soon learns it’s actually a beaver, an animal that doesn't live in Tunisia, the country Badir and his family have emigrated from. It turns out that some of the neighbors who enjoy the park think this beaver is a bit of a pest, but Badir thinks it's wonderful and learns everything he can about the iconic Canadian animal. When a petition is started to remove the beaver, Badir, who knows firsthand how difficult it is to leave your home behind, rallies his classmates to save it. And with a little help from new friends, the kids learn that collaboration and faith can change the way we think about the world.
Hyperorganized perfectionist Beatrice More is determined to plan a spectacularly professional birthday party for her little sister, Sophie. But she is foiled at every turn: her mother insists on making a homemade cake (disaster!), her father offers up discount mismatched decorations (debacle!), guests are hard to find in their new neighborhood (dire!), and no gift seems remotely special enough (defeated!). Will Beatrice's organizational skills be enough to turn this party around, or will she need a little help from her friends and maybe even from Sophie herself?
Beatrice More is no average third-grader. She is a list-making, hyperorganized perfectionist whose laid-back parents and messy little sister consistently frustrate her high standards. And when a new house, a new neighborhood and new friends are thrown into the mix, Beatrice sends the family into a comic tailspin, all in the name of “professionalism.” Despite her most feverish organizational efforts, Beatrice ultimately discovers that some of the best experiences are the ones you can’t control.
A Whale’s World follows a pod of spy-hopping orcas as they explore the ecosystems of the Great Bear Sea while hunting for their next meal. Past rocky shores and through kelp forests, they observe foraging wolves, hungry grizzly bears, curious black bears, graceful fin whales, splashing porpoises, slippery seals and other members of the Pacific coastal food web. The book gives readers an introduction to the many ways that marine and land animals interact with their environments and with each other.
A tiny island is experiencing extreme weather, a rash of shipwrecks and the disappearance of whole swaths of marine life. Is it climate change? A bad storm season? Or is something else going on?
In the small village of Sueño Bay, famous for its mysterious crystals and legendary moon creatures, friends Ollie, Jenna, Sleeves and Kay are building a go-kart for the annual Fall Fair competition. Living in the nearby hills are tiny moon creatures, the Hivers, who play a crucial role in the health of the local mushroom crop. But the Hivers' important job is interrupted when Sleeves, the youngest of the group, stumbles upon them. Feeling left out of the go-kart project, Sleeves claims the Hivers as his loyal subjects and locks them away when he’s not around. Without the Hivers, the island’s mushroom crop starts to take a turn for the worse. Stories say that the last person who messed with the Hivers, the Hillside Hermit, was cursed to roam alone and never return to Sueño Bay. Is Sleeves destined to suffer the same fate or can he and his friends return balance to the island in time? This is the third book in the Sueño Bay Adventures series, following Shadow Island and Otter Lagoon.
A little girl grieves the loss of her mother, but she can’t grieve alone. When her friends and family arrive at her house to sit shiva, laden with cakes and stories, she refuses to come downstairs. But the laughter and memories gradually bring her into the fold, where she is comforted by her community. By the end of the book, she feels stronger and more nourished, and she understands the beautiful tradition. Then, when sees her father sitting alone, she is able to comfort him in his time of need. Sitting Shiva is a beautiful, heartfelt story about grief and loss, but also about comfort and community. It shows that no matter what religion you practice, we are all more similar than we are different. A note from the author explains the ritual of sitting shiva, a seven-day period of mourning for the death of a family member observed in Jewish homes.
Over the past 500 years, thousands of species of plants and animals have become extinct. The Late, Great Endlings pays homage to some of the more well-known endlings of the past century with rhyming stanzas that accompany watercolor illustrations and factual descriptions of each animal, along with the circumstances that led to their species' extinction. Together, these portraits of animals, like the passenger pigeon, the Pinta Island tortoise and the Tasmanian tiger, are a poignant symbol of a world irreversibly altered by human development, habitat loss and climate change. Readers are invited to reflect on the interconnectedness of all life forms on our planet with an additional look at animals that are at risk of becoming extinct in our lifetime. Concluding on a hopeful note, the final page offers suggestions for what kids can do to change the course of this mass species extinction crisis.
Jacky notices that the climate is changing and the summers are becoming hotter and drier... Little Jacky is a Jack pine cone who loves living in the woods with all of her animal friends. When a fire breaks out in her forest, all her friends run to safety and the firefighters battle the flames. The fire threatens to get too close to a neighboring village and Jacky watches as the people who live there, and the fire crew, take measures to make sure everyone is safe. While the village is protected from the fire, Little Jacky is scorched by the flames and finds out that the heat is important for her to continue her life cycle. Beautifully detailed illustrations integrate science with storytelling, and children will enjoy finding new bits of information with every read.
It’s everyone’s favorite day of winter semester: the class field trip to the museum! Jordan is excited to see the mummies and Max can’t wait for his first trip to the big city without his big sisters watching over him. But when Jordan gets distracted by an extraordinary costume display and Max flies off to the depths of the Bat Cave, the group carries on to lunch without them. Before the two friends know it, their class has left the museum and they’re all alone downtown! Jordan knows they should find their classmates, but it’s hard to do the responsible thing when there is so much to do in the city. With Max at his side, the pair run wild: dancing alongside street musicians and tasting food from every single vendor they can find. Just when they think the day couldn’t get any more interesting, Jordan and Max find themselves in a strange neighborhood after dark where an even stranger ceremony is getting underway…a winter solstice celebration! This is the second book from Suzanne Sutherland featuring Jordan and Max, following Jordan and Max: Showtime!
Lightning sparks a forest fire deep in the mountains near the town of Waterton. Days later, the sky is blue and the air is clear, so it doesn’t seem like an emergency, until crews of firefighters begin to arrive and townspeople start to prepare. Cricket and her friends watch deer and birds flee the forest and run right through town. But what about the slower animals? What about the porcupines and squirrels, the salamanders and snakes? Cricket searches for a way to help until the fire surprises everyone by quickly switching directions and racing towards the town. She hopes that the preparations and the firefighters' experience will be enough to save her home. But what about all the animals she loves? This is the fifth title in the Cricket McKay series, following Cougar Frenzy, Bats in Trouble, Ospreys in Danger and Salamander Rescue.
On returning to their home after a massive wildfire, nine-year-old Jasmin and her seven-year-old brother, Hunter, thought the biggest surprise would be whether their fire-resistant house had survived. Jasmin and Hunter did not expect to find an orphaned bear cub stuck in the neighbors’ well. Rescuing the tiny cub from the well was the easy part; now they need to care for it until the people from the bear-rescue sanctuary can make it safely through the fires to pick it up. The cub turns out to be exactly what one would expect of a wild animal—a huge handful!
Kenyan orphans, Kitoo and Nigosi, spend their days studying, playing soccer, helping their elders with chores around the orphanage and reading from the limited selection of books in their library. When the librarian gives Kitoo a copy of Sports Around the World he becomes fascinated by an image of the Canadian national men's ice hockey team. Then one day the fates align and Kitoo finds a pair of beat up old roller blades, he teaches himself to skate and dreams of one day playing hockey like the men in his book. But you can’t play ice hockey in Kenya, can you?
When the tsunami destroyed Makio's village, Makio lost his father . . . and his voice. The entire village is silenced by grief, and the young child's anger at the ocean grows. Then one day his neighbor, Mr. Hirota, begins a mysterious project—building a phone booth in his garden. At first Makio is puzzled; the phone isn't connected to anything. It just sits there, unable to ring. But as more and more villagers are drawn to the phone booth, its purpose becomes clear to Makio: the disconnected phone is connecting people to their lost loved ones. Makio calls to the sea to return what it has taken from him and ultimately finds his voice and solace in a phone that carries words on the wind. The Phone Booth in Mr. Hirota's Garden is inspired by the true story of the wind phone in Otsuchi, Japan, which was created by artist Itaru Sasaki. He built the phone booth so he could speak to his cousin who had passed, saying, "My thoughts couldn't be relayed over a regular phone line, I wanted them to be carried on the wind." The Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011 destroyed the town of Otsuchi, claiming 10 percent of the population. Residents of Otsuchi and pilgrims from other affected communities have been traveling to the wind phone since the tsunami.
Simon tries to be kind. But sometimes he loses his temper and acts without thinking, which almost always gets him into trouble. As Simon begins to understand his outbursts, he imagines himself in a boxing ring with his emotions. Can he come out on top and learn how to acknowledge his feelings?
Reece's new dog, Ruckus, tears through life like a Tyrannosaurus rex. He bites everything that moves and drives Reece's mom nuts. The puppy was Dad's idea, to make things easier for Reece after his parents' separation, but Ruckus is not easy at all and Mom is getting fed up. When her diamond earrings go missing, it sends the family into a tailspin. What happens when a dog swallows something precious? Reece is about to find out. But they can't give up on this little Jack Russell terror, can they? He's family, after all. We first met Reece and his family in the Orca Echoes title Where's Burgess? by Laurie Elmquist.
Follow our little cloud on an adventure through the sky and learn the science behind how it transforms from a simple cumulus cloud to a full-blown hurricane. Beautifully detailed illustrations from award-winning artist Julie McLaughlin integrate science with storytelling. Children will enjoy finding new gems of information even after several reads, thanks to a whimsical and rich layout. And meteorologist Johanna Wagstaffe weaves a comprehensive narrative about a powerful weather system that’s so compelling readers won’t even realize they are on their way to becoming budding meteorologists.
Every morning, a young girl walks her grandmother to the Aajibaichi Shala, the school that was built for the grandmothers in her village to have a place to learn to read and write. The narrator beams with pride as she drops her grandmother off with the other aajis to practice the alphabet and learn simple arithmetic. A moving story about family, women and the power of education—when Aaji learns to spell her name you’ll want to dance along with her. Women in countless countries continue to endure the limitations of illiteracy. Unjust laws have suppressed the rights of girls and women and kept many from getting an education and equal standing in society. Based on a true story from the village of Phangane, India, this brilliantly illustrated book tells the story of the grandmothers who got to go to school for the first time in their lives.
