Submitted by Ms. Jill!
Off Go Their Engines, Off Go Their Lights by Janice Milusich, illustrated by David Gordon. The sun is setting in the city as the yellow taxi picks up its last pair of passengers. As they make their way through the streets, the taxi and the people inside pass other hardworking vehicles at the end of their long day. A red pumper truck at the fire station is being cleaned and dried for the night: “Off goes its engine. Click. Off go its lights.” A green dump truck has finished a hard day of hauling. A brown delivery truck has made countless stops. A black and white police car has patrolled and kept the city safe all day. A blue ice cream truck has made countless people smile. One by one, each vehicle is shut down for the night: “Off goes its engine. Click. Off go its lights.” Janice Milusich’s gently repetitive refrain is perfect for settling down at day’s end, and David Gordon’s delightfully personified illustrations contrast the vehicles’ hardworking days with their sleepy preparations for a well-earned rest. Your little future mechanics will demand this roadworthy bedtime book again and again. See this book listed in our catalog
A Ball for Daisy
Submitted by Ms. Janis!
A Ball for Daisy by Christopher Raschka. Daisy is a puppy who loves her ball. She loves playing with it, and when one day her owner takes her to the park, Daisy brings her ball. A much bigger dog and Daisy are playing with the ball and the ball pops! Daisy is heartbroken. The illustrations indicate Daisy is very sad. This is all about Daisy, since we only see her owner’s face at the very end. It’s a feel-good ending when Daisy goes back to the park only to meet up with the same dog and her owner. The good news is that they have brought a new ball to play with, and Daisy gets to take it home! This book teaches a good lesson about taking care of other people’s toys. See this book listed in our catalog
Friends
Submitted by Ms. Sue!
Friends: True Stories of Extraordinary Animal Friendships by Catherine Thimmesh. Some of the most unexpected and surprising friendships can be found among animals. In this true, extraordinary book some very different animals become incredible friends, even though they are so very different in every way, and in all sizes. Each page gives young readers a verse describing the friends pictured, such as an orangutan and a cat, a mouse and a frog, a cheetah cub and a pup, a baby badger and baby fox, and more. Each featured set of friends is also accompanied by a description of how their unusual friendship came to be. Many talented photographers were able to capture the truth and beauty of these animals at just the right moment. Animals from around the world show us how friendships can happen no matter what differences there are between them. See this book listed in our catalog
Saving Audie
Submitted by Ms. Tess!
Saving Audie: A Pit Bull Puppy Gets a Second Chance by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, with photos by William Muñoz, is the inspirational true story of one of the dogs rescued from Bad Newz Kennels, Michael Vick’s dog-fighting outfit that was shut down in 2007. Typically dogs held for evidence in court are put to sleep after the trial is over. Luckily, several animal rights organizations banded together to save the “Vick dogs.” One of those dogs was a black pit bull puppy, eventually named Audie. Audie was able to be cleaned up, trained, and adopted! He had some knee problems, but was able to get surgery, and now does agility training. And he didn’t trust people at first, but now he has lots of friends–people, and other dogs! The book also has an informative section in the back, with facts about pit bulls and the Michael Vick case. Saving Audie is a wonderful book about overcoming adversity to become the best you can be! See this book listed in our catalog or read more about Audie at the Vick Dog Blog
The Odd Egg
Submitted by Ms. Brenda!
The Odd Egg by Emily Gravett is a fun, interactive book, with delightful illustrations, and witty little snippets of animal dialog. Poor Duck is the only bird who doesn’t have an egg to hatch. All of the other birds have eggs to hatch. But then, all of a sudden, Duck finds an egg of his own! This egg is perfect! It’s huge. It’s huge, and white. It’s huge, white, and covered with green speckles! It’s the most beautiful egg in the whole, wide world! That’s not what the other birds think, though. They laugh at his egg. They tell him that it will never hatch. They are not very nice to poor Duck. Using cleverly cut pages, the hatching of all the eggs unfolds. All but Duck’s egg. Duck waits, and waits, and waits. Then one day, there’s creaking, and there’s cracking, and out pops a… well, you’ll just have to read this book for yourself to find out (but I sure wouldn’t make fun of someone else’s egg if I were you)! See this book listed in our catalog
Little Owl Lost
Submitted by Ms. Carol!
Little Owl Lost by Chris Haughton is a story about a cute little owl who falls out of his nest while sleeping. Owl is lost, and is looking for his mommy. He stumbles across Squirrel, and Squirrel tries to help Owl search for his mommy. Owl describes his mommy. He says his mommy is very big, so Squirrel says he knows where his mommy is, and he brings Owl to Bear. “Here she is,” says Squirrel. Owl of course says no, his mommy has pointy ears, so Squirrel brings him to Rabbit. “Here’s your mommy,” says Squirrel. Owl says no, his mommy has big eyes like his. Squirrel brings Owl to Frog. “Here she is,” says Squirrel. Owl says “no” again. Will Owl every find his mommy? Little Owl Lost is a cute and funny story about friendship. See this book listed in our catalog