New Picture Books

Giant Dance Party - Betsy Bird
Six-year-old Lexy Tanz loves dancing so much that she wants to share her skills with others, and when she is becoming discouraged because no one wants lessons from a girl so small, a herd of hairy giants arrives to test her teaching ability.

Big Bear's Big Boat - Eve Bunting
When Big Bear outgrows his old boat, he gives it to Little Bear and builds himself a new one--just like it except bigger--until his friends start making suggestions that result in something very different.


Train - Elisha Cooper
Board a commuter train in New York, then follow the journey west and see the stations, the scenery, the different types of trains, and all the people who travel and work on the railroad system.

Little Red Writing - Joan Holub
Once upon a time, in pencil school, a brave little red pencil sets out to write an exciting story with nouns and adverbs and everything--but first she has to face the ravenous pencil sharpener, the Wolf 3000.


Old Mikamba Had a Farm - Rachel Isadora
The inhabitants of Old Makimba's farm in Africa, including a baboon, an elephant, and a lion, are described, verse by verse. Includes facts about African animals.

The Tortoise & the Hare - Jerry Pinkney
Illustrations and minimal text relate the familiar fable of the race between a slow tortoise and a quick but foolish hare.


Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animal Lives - Lola M. Schaefer
A counting primer that combines contrasting illustrations with animal facts, inviting young children to count a woodpecker's 30 roosting holes, a giraffe's 200 spots, and 1000 baby seahorses.

Bedtime Monsters - Josh Schneider
A young boy conquers his fear of bedtime monsters after making a surprising discovery.


Digger, Dozer, Dumper - Hope Vestergaard
Rhymes and colorful illustrations invite young readers to meet their favorite trucks and vehicles face-to-face.

Mr. Wuffles! - David Wiesner
"Mr. Wuffles ignores all his cat toys but one, which turns out to be a spaceship piloted by small green aliens. When Mr. Wuffles plays rough with the little ship, the aliens must venture into the cat's territory to make emergency repairs."-- Provided by publisher

I'm a Frog! - Mo Willems
Piggie introduces his reluctant friend, Gerald the elephant, to the wonderful world of pretend.

How Do Dinosaurs Say I'm Mad? - Jane Yolen
Illustrations and rhyming text explore some of the things that dinosaurs might do when they are angry--and how they should control their tempers.

New Picture Books

Fairy Tale Comics: Classic Tales Told by Extraordinary Cartoonists - Edited by Chris Duffy
From favorites like "Puss in Boots" and "Goldilocks" to obscure gems like "The Boy Who Drew Cats," this volume has something to offer every reader. Seventeen fairy tales are wonderfully adapted and illustrated in comics format by such noted artists as Raina Telgemeier, Brett Helquist, Cherise Harper, and others.

Diary of a Worm: Teacher's Pet - Lori Haskins Houran
(based on the creation of Doreen Cronin and Harry Bliss)
Worm makes a surprising discovery -- teachers have birthdays! That means Worm and his friends have to find the perfect present for their teacher, Mrs. Mulch.

Paper Son: Lee's Journey to America - Helen Foster James and Virginia Shin-Mui Loh
Twelve-year-old Lee, an orphan, reluctantly leaves his grandparents in China for the long sea voyage to San Francisco, where he and other immigrants undergo examinations at Angel Island Immigration Station.

What If You Had Animal Teeth!? - Sandra Markle
Text and illustrations depict how a child would look and behave with the teeth of various animals, including elephants, tigers, and rattlesnakes.

A Parable About the King - Beth Moore
This endearing story, shared by Moore at many of her conferences, guides readers to learn about the unfailing and unconditional love that God showers upon His children.


Cowboy Boyd and Mighty Calliope - Lisa Moser
A cowboy and his trusty rhinoceros try to prove themselves at the Double R Ranch, where the Slim, Hardtack, and Rancher Rose doubt Calliope's potential, but Boyd believes in her.

Wait! Wait! - Hatsue Nakawaki
A young child learns that although creatures that appear can also disappear, parents will always be there.


I Scream Ice Cream!: A Book of Wordles - Amy Krouse Rosenthal
"What do 'I Scream!' and 'Ice Cream!' have in common? Nothing--besides the fact that they sound the same! The ever-surprising Amy Krouse Rosenthal unleashes her prolific wit in this silly and smart book of wordplay. Perfectly complemented by equally clever illustrations from the talented and internationally renowned Serge Bloch, this mind-bending book will have young readers thinking about words in an entirely new way!"--Provided by publisher


Is This Panama? A Migration Story - Jan Thornhill
Follows Sammy, a young Wilson's warbler, on his first migratory journey south to Panama.

Middle School and YA

Fiction
Confessions of a So-Called Middle Child - Maria T. Lennon
Charlie C. Cooper, reformed bully, gifted hacker, and middle child wants to make "cool" friends at her new school in Los Angeles, but her psychologist tasks her with becoming friends with the school's "biggest loser".

The Lord of Opium - Nancy Farmer
Sequel to The House of the Scorpion. In 2137, fourteen-year-old Matt is stunned to learn that, as the clone of El Patrón, he is expected to take over as leader of the corrupt drug empire of Opium, where there is also a hidden cure for the ecological devastation faced by the rest of the world.

Insignia - S.J. Kincaid
Tom, a fourteen-year-old genius at virtual reality games, is recruited by the United States Military to begin training at the Pentagon Spire as a Combatant in World War III, controlling the mechanized drones that do the actual fighting off-planet.

Vortex - S.J. Kincaid
Sequel to Insignia. While serving as a superhuman government weapon during World War III, teenager Tom Raine's loyalties are tested by corruption and nefarious enemies.

The War Within These Walls - Aline Sax
Misha and his family do their best to survive in the appalling conditions of the Warsaw ghetto during World War II, and ultimately make a final, desperate stand against the Nazis.

Rose Under Fire - Elizabeth Wein
Companion book to Code Name Verity. When young American pilot Rose Justice is captured by Nazis and sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious women's concentration camp, she finds hope in the impossible through the loyalty, bravery, and friendship of her fellow prisoners.

Nonfiction
The Boy on the Wooden Box: How the Impossible Became Possible...on Schindler's List
- Leon Leyson
The biography of Leon Leyson, the only memoir published by a former Schindler's List child.

"The President Has Been Shot!" The Assassination of John F. Kennedy - James L. Swanson
Recounts the 35th president's assassination and details key events while sharing informative back matter and archival photographs.

Picture Books

Click, Clack, Boo! A Tricky Treat - Doreen Cronin
Farmer Brown does not like Halloween, but the animals hold a Halloween party in his barn.

Strega Nona Does It Again - Tomie dePaola
Strega Nona has the perfect remedy for a houseguest who overstays her welcome.

Tea Party Rules - Ame Dyckman
"A bossy little girl makes a bear cub follow all the rules at her tea party before he is allowed to eat any of the cookies."-- Provided by publisher

Henry's Map - David Elliot
Henry, a very organized pig, frowns at the untidy farm where he lives, but after making a map to show where everything belongs, he and the other farm animals discover a big problem.

Good Night, Sleep Tight - Mem Fox
In this book with rhyming text, Bonnie and Ben's favorite babysitter tells them nursery rhymes before putting them to bed.

Little Red Hot - Eric Kimmel
A hot pepper pie exposes the big bad wolf in this southwestern retelling of Little Red Riding Hood.

Ah Ha! - Jeff Mack
With simple repeated text the story follows the ups and downs of a frog's day.


The Gingerbread Man Loose on the Fire Truck - Laura Murray
When the Gingerbread Man joins the children who made him on a school field trip to a fire station, he escapes being eaten by Spot the Dalmatian and rides along to a fire.

Picture Books

Marc Brown's Playtime Rhymes - Marc Brown
A lively collection of the artist's 20 favorite read-and-play-along finger rhymes complements such entries as "The Itsy-Bitsy Spider" and "I'm a Little Teapot" with pictorial instructions for correlating finger movements.



One Gorilla: A Counting Book - Anthony Browne
Learn to count with a variety of primates--gorillas, gibbons, mandrills, and others.

Empty Fridge - Gaetan Doremus
No one in Andrew's building remembered to buy anything for dinner. By working together and pooling their resources, the community is able to solve the problem.

Little Naomi, Little Chick - Avirama Golan
Little Naomi has a fun and busy day at preschool and with her family, while Little Chick has a busy, fun day on the farm.

You're Wearing That to School? - Lynn Plourde
A cautious mouse named Tiny gives advice to his best friend, an exuberant hippopotamus named Penelope, on such things as what to wear and what to take for show-and-tell on the first day of school.

The Blessing Cup - Patricia Polacco
A single china cup from a tea set left behind when Jews were forced to leave Russia helps hold a family together through generations of living in America, reminding them of the most important things in life.

Baby Bear Counts One - Ashley Wolffe
Before curling up with his mother in their cozy den, Baby Bear counts other animals preparing for winter.

Elementary Fiction

The Surprise Attack of Jabba the Puppett: An Origami Yoda Book - Tom Angleberger
Dark times have fallen on McQuarrie Middle School. Dwight is back--and not a moment too soon--as Kellen, Sara, and the gang face a new Menace: the FunTime Educational Program. FunTime is supposed to raise students' standardized test scores. Instead, it's driving everyone crazy. The students turn to Origami Yoda for help.

The Year of the Baby - Andrea Cheng
Fifth-grader Anna is concerned that her baby sister Kaylee, adopted from China three months ago, is not thriving so she and her best friends, Laura and Camille, create a science project that may save the day.

The Year of Billy Miller - Kevin Henkes
Seven-year-old Billy Miller starts second grade with a bump on his head and a lot of worries, but by the end of the year he has developed good relationships with his teacher, his little sister, and his parents and learned many important lessons.

Bowling Alley Bandit - Laurie Keller
Arnie the talking doughnut is delighted to be Mr. Bing's new pet "doughnut-dog," so when Mr. Bing starts rolling gutter balls during a big bowling tournament, Arnie suspects foul play and sets out to solve the mystery.

Anna Was Here - Jane Kurtz
Three generations of the Nickel family reunite when fourth-grader Anna, her Mom and Dad, and four-year-old sister Isabella relocate to Oakwood, Kansas.

Listening for Lucca - Suzanne LaFleur
Thirteen-year-old Siena's visions of the past intensify when her family moves to the Maine coast hoping her little brother will begin speaking, and she connects with residents of the house from many years earlier who faced a similar problem.

The Screaming Staircase - Jonathan Stroud
Follows three young operatives of a Psychic Detection Agency as they battle an epidemic of ghosts in London.