Reviews written by Karen Yingling, Staff Reviewer

In rhyming verse, a cozy day at the beach is described. Five small children with a variety of complexions wake up, venture to the shore, and spend some time paddling at the edges of the water before returning to a cottage. There, they get ready for bed, say goodnight to...

Parker and Randall are best friends, and spent countless hours together playing, building sandcastles, and exploring. When they come across a group of other bears, Randall is too shy to approach them, but Parker pushes him. Sadly, the bears can't see Parker. The group plays kickball, and Randall doesn't feel...

Penguin is exhausted, and tells his friend Lion that it is time to go to sleep. Lion would rather stay up, but Penguin goes to sleep on top of Lion's head and has lovely dreams about candy. He is rudely awakened by an enormous crash that Lion causes. He reminds...

Alex has had a difficult life. His mother struggled with mental illness, and when she could no longer care for him, he was placed in foster care. Now, his aunt and uncle are raising him, but doing so reluctantly and frequently complaining about the cost. Alex had done something very...

This picture book in verse does an excellent job of rhyming the different animals and their babies, and has a refrain of "everyone grows". This makes the story a very quick and engaging read. With accompanying illustrations, we meet everything from sheep and their lambs to echnidas and their puggles....

First of all, if you bought this board book for a baby because it encompasses your fondest memories of growing up in the 1990s and you say "Oh, I'm so OLD!", I will slap you with a slap bracelet. This is because I gave birth to 90s babies! I'm...

Castillo Torres is bound and determined to earn her Happily Ever After; going to college to study event planning after an internship with the famous Mandy Whitmore. She's planned lots of things; events at school, and some parties, after her older sister Po's quinceañera ended in disaster. Of course, part...

Sleepy Sheepy is so excited to spend the night with his grandparents for the first time while his parents go out. He packs his bags, and is glad to see some of his favorite people! He tries on the purple rabbit outfit that grandma is knitting and admires his grandfather's...

YoYo is an exuberant young bunny who has trouble settling down. Even at bedtime, she has a lot of trouble not wiggling and giggling. Her Grandpa has a good idea; he will teach YoYo and other little bunnies how to do yoga. YoYo tries, but the grass tickles her bottom,...

Through traditional, rhymed verse, we see all of the ways that parents keep their babies safe all over the world. With delightful parallel construction that will make this one that the listeners can chant along with after just a read or two, we see birds, lambs, fennec foxes, and a...

Young readers are fascinated by Ancient Greece and Rome once they are introduced to it; look at the success o f the 2005 The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, and all of the other books that have come out since. I was a Latin teacher many years ago, and my...

In this larger format (8.05 x 0.47 x 8.39 inches instead of the 5.5" square board books like those published by Sandra Boyton), we see a child who is about to read a book and is calling to friends to join in the fun. Soon, a hamster, zebra, cat, lion,...

This book was an interesting format that is hard to categorize; essentially, it is like the National Geographic Weird But True books if James Joyce (Ulysses) had written them in his stream-of-consciousness style. It ping pongs in a delightful way from ultraviolet light to 17th century German books hollowed out...

Young friends Bunny and Clyde (who is a chipmunk) do everything they are told, and get a lot of praise for it, but are tired of being good. Even when they are collecting bottle caps and other found items, they are congratulated for picking up trash. Of course, they are...

Mrs. Z. has some good news; the children at Curiosity Academy are going to be able to have a school garden. In order to get supplies, however, they will need to be able to raise some money. Rohan's mother, who is an artist, stops by to give the class some...