Reviews written by Karen Yingling, Staff Reviewer

A small, scruffy, yellow dog is shown out alone in the world, enduring a hard life. She is scared, hungry, and alone, and wants desperately to find her "someone". When she is found and take to an animal rescue, she doesn't like the grooming or the shots, and is not...

The authors of When I Became Your Mother and When I Became Your Brother continue their series with this charming tale of sisterly love. Two raccoons are shown sharing adventures outside, as they show the ups and downs of having a close relationship. Sometimes they don't get along, but they...

Storey Publishing's Backpack Explorer series generally take readers outside to look at rocks, trees, or the night sky, but this edition is devoted to a variety of natural items that can be found in an urban setting. There are great tips for using the book and noticing the world through...

In this small format (5.5x 6.9) picture book perfect for Valentines Day, the familiar refrain of Martin, Archambault, and Ehlert's classic 1989 Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is given a loving twist. Adding hearts, flowers, and bees, as well as lots of pink and red to the illustrations, this celebration...

Young soccer players who fancy themselves the next Lamine Yamal will do well to read this latest "How To Be" book by former professional soccer player Yankey. The book is full of practical information on how to improve one's game and start on the path to be a soccer Star,...

Inspired by an Easter Sunday kitchen table conversation between Steinem and Gbowee in 2009, this picture book, this ode to sisterhood is both poetic and empowering. It compares and contrasts the childhoods of both of these changemakers, showing how they were inspired to work to make the world a more...

Bob is an enormous bear with an enormous ego, and he is forever telling anyone who will listen how big, strong, and smart he is. The other creatures in the forest are clearly not as impressed as Bob wishes them to be, and are more annoyed by him than frightened...

Rose Valland was a curator at the Jeu de Paume museum in Paris before World War II, and when the Germans invaded the city in 1940, she was the only staff member left to manage the collection. She loved art, so was glad to stay behind, even though she was...

A small, white rabbit living in a hutch has a busy morning as he magically transform into a bow-tie wearing Easter bunny and makes all of his preparations for delivering eggs. He consults his lengthy to-do list as he gathers and Dye's eggs, harvests jelly beans from a tree, and...

This exuberant picture book introduces children to the concept of AWE: an Awesome, Wonderous, Empowering emotion. Not the "aww" of cute little kittens, but the larger feeling one might get from a whale emerging from the sea, a desert vista at sunset, the Northern Lights, fireworks, or the majesty of...

Mickey is bored because he doesn't sleep. He and his hairless dog, Baldie, because of his bad allergies. They often go out at night, because his parents are working a lot after losing money in a bad real estate deal. With nothing better to do, he takes up running. Skye,...

Tweens LOVE to sleep these days, but do they know the benefits that sleep has for their growing bodies? Why Do We Sleep? takes a surprisingly deep dive into the science and psychology of sleep for middle grade audiences in this large format, picture book style nonfiction title. ...

There are two nonfiction topics I've been anticipating for years: the history of Black hair (which was partially filled by Qualls' Fros, Fades, and Braids: A Brief History of Black Hair in America) and the history of SHOES. Thanks to Cicada Books, my toes are tapping with this great illustrated...

This inspirational, coffee table sized book features quotes from fifty Black men, along with full page, artistic illustrations of each man quoted. These range from well known historical figures like James Baldwin and Nelson Mandela to more modern men like Ahmir Thompson (Questlove) and Iddris Sandu. Most of the quotes...

Olivia is starting 7th grade, and is fortunate enough to have a good group of friends. Her brother, Malcolm, has come out as gay, and Olivia's parents have thrown a party for him as a way to be supportive. Olivia used to spend a lot of time in the school...