Chelsey Bahlmann Bollinger, Sarah Duncan and Jeanne Gilliam Fain
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s a reader! Superpowers like flying and X-ray vision are pretty cool, but books can send readers on adventures, allow them into the minds of characters, and help increase their brain power. Invite students to exercise their reading superpower with a book as their sidekick during the fall celebration of 2021 Children’s Book Week (November 8-14) and all year long.

Best Friend in the Whole World. Sandra Salsbury. (2021). Peachtree.
One day while walking in the woods, Roland, a lonely rabbit, comes upon a pine cone. He picks up the pine cone, names it Milton, and takes him home. The two become the best of friends. On another walk, Roland sees posters tacked on the trees about a missing friend who looks like Milton and sadly knows he must return Milton to his home. Happily, however, upon seeing the woods full of “Wanted New Friends” notices, he realizes that he can have two best friends in the whole world: Milton (really named Popkin) and Lucy, the cat who posted the original “Missing” notices. Sandra Salsbury’s watercolor illustrations clearly convey Roland’s feeling of loneliness and then happiness expressed in this child-pleasing friendship story. (PreK-Gr 2)
—CBB

Best Friends-ish (Audrey L & Audrey W #1). Carter Higgins. Illus. by Jennifer K. Mann. (2021). Chronicle.
Audrey Locke thought that second grade would be twice as good as first grade, but her best friend, Diego, has new buddies, and it seems like everyone in Room 19 except her is best at something. When Audrey Waters joins the class, Audrey is annoyed to become Audrey L for the rest of the year. After being assigned Audrey W’s “Welcome Ambassador,” she wonders about her best-friend potential, and as she gets to know her, learns lessons about friendship and acceptance. By the end of the week, the two Audreys’ relationship is clearly “best friends-ish.” Short chapters filled with lots of realistic school-day details, gentle humor, and numerous black-and-white drawings make this new series an engaging choice for readers transitioning to chapter books. (PreK Up)
—SD ​

​Blueberry Cake. Sarah Dillard. (2021). Aladdin.
Little Bear wants Mama to make him a blueberry cake, so he sets out with his red bucket to pick wild blueberries in the woods. But picking blueberries and getting them back to Mama isn’t as easy as you might think. Succumbing to the temptation of eating berries and the distractions of the woods thwarts his efforts, and Little Bear arrives home with a bucket full of wildflowers instead of blueberries. After dreaming of blueberry cake, Little Bear goes berry-picking again and gets a blueberry cake—and the reader gets a recipe to make one at home— in this delightful tale told through vivid illustrations and a simple text of speech bubbles. (PreK-Gr 2)
—SD

The Curse of the Mummy: Uncovering Tutankhamun’s Tomb. Candace Fleming. (2021). Scholastic Focus.
“It was said…” that during the excavation of Tutankhamun’s tomb many strange things happened. Were these situations a coincidence or a result of a curse? Candace Fleming’s straightforward narrative provides background on the history of mummification and tomb building in ancient Egypt. She details how British Lord Carnarvon, who had been financing treasure hunts in the Valley of the Kings since 1906, and archaeologist Howard Carter got caught up in uncovering King Tut’s tomb in 1922. Many stories of the whats, whys, and hows of the excavation are shared along with captioned black and white archival photographs. Each chapter ends with an “It was said . . .” section related to one purported “curse of the mummy.” Back matter includes an author’s note, map, timeline, bibliography, source notes, photo and illustration credits, and index. (Gr 6 Up)
—CBB ​

Fox & Rabbit Celebrate (Fox & Rabbit #3). Beth Ferry. Illus. by Gergely Dudás. (2021). Amulet.
This latest book in Beth Ferry’s graphic novel series invites young readers to join Fox and Rabbit in another adventure as the two friends plan a “super-trooper’” pizza party to celebrate Sparrow’s birthday. Dragon, a new character to the series, agrees to help Fox and Rabbit with heating their grandiose pizza as he tells them he struggles finding friends. As Dragon joins in the joyful celebration of Sparrow’s birthday, his new friends discover it is his birthday too. Young readers will enjoy reading the five linked stories (with alliterative titles) presented in an easy-to-follow graphic format of eight panels per page with vibrant graphite-and ink illustrations and text full of wordplay presented in speech bubbles. (PreK Up)
—JGF ​

​The Girl Who Stole an Elephant. Nizrana Farook. (2021). Peachtree.
Chaya, the twelve-year-old daughter of a village headman, has a habit of stealing from the rich to help those in need in her village, but when she sneaks into the palace and takes the queen’s jewels, she goes too far. Her best friend, Neel, confesses to the robbery and is held in the palace’s underground prison. While he awaits execution, Chaya plots an escape that frees him but leaves them both as wanted criminals. After she steals the king’s elephant, Chaya, Neel, and Nour, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, go on a dangerous adventure through the wild Sri Lankan jungle as they attempt to outrun the palace soldiers. Readers who love non-stop action will enjoy the chase, while the lush description of the Sri Lankan jungle and its exotic plants and animals gives them a peek into a beautiful South Asian Island setting. (Gr 3 Up)
—SD 

An Occasionally Happy Family. Cliff Burke. (2021). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Thirteen-year-old Theo Ripley, whose mom died two years ago, is not thrilled  to be going on a vacation with his older sister, Laura, and his dad to Big Bend National Park in Texas in July. Theo is definitely not the outdoorsy type. As he predicted, the vacation involves too hot temperatures, too many bugs, encounters with annoying hikers, and even an encounter with a bear at their camping site. When Theo and Laura discover their dad’s surprise behind this unexpected vacation, meeting his secret girlfriend, they both have conflicted feelings about this and must grapple with the idea of their dad being read to move on while they are still grieving over their mom’s death. This story about a family overcoming life’s challenges is realistic and also funny in all of the right places. (Gr 6-8)
—JGF ​

Percy’s Museum. Sara O’Leary. Illus. by Carmen Mok. (2021). Groundwood.
Percy leaves his old home in the city, where there was always something to do and friends with whom to do it, and finds himself in the middle of the country in complete solitude. However, once he discovers the busy activity of bees, ants, and birds in his backyard, he begins to carefully explore the ever-changing natural world around him, makes drawings of his observations, and builds a nature collection in a small shed in his backyard. His posting of a “Percy’s Museum” sign on the mailbox attracts attention, and he begins to make friends by inviting them to visit the museum filled with his environmental discoveries. Carmen Mok’s colorful artwork, rendered in gouache and colored pencil, complements Sara O’Leary’s joyful story of adjusting to moving to a new home, exploring nature, and making new friends. (PreK-Gr 2)
—JGF

To Tell You the Truth. Beth Vrabel. (2021). Atheneum.
Trixy, a talkative and adventurous fourth grader had loved spending time with her grandmother, a great storyteller, who has died. When she must write true stories to bring up her failing grade in English, Trixy, who struggles to find her voice as a writer, has her mind filled with Gran’s stories of her childhood. Although Gran had told her never to share her stories with anyone, Trixy writes up some of them for the assignment. The stories are good, but are they true stories? To prove that Gran didn’t just make them up, Trixy sets out on an adventurous road trip through Tennessee with her best friend, Raymond, and his father and sister to uncover the truth about Gran and her family. This engaging story explores the power of the truth in troubling times and of a family coming together. (Gr 3 Up)
—JGF

Travels to Cuba (Travels with My Family #5). Marie-Louise Gay & David Hamel. Illus. by Marie-Louise Gay. (2021). Groundwood.
Charlie and his younger brother, Max, are quite the travelers. They are used to their Cuban family leaving their home in Canada for adventurous out-of-the ordinary vacations. Now they are traveling to Cuba where their mother, an artist, has been asked to work with local school children. The boys expect to enjoy beautiful beaches, but what they experience is something quite different. During their excursions they meet kind people, eat delicious food, and listen to wonderful music, but they also encounter the poverty, hunger, fear, and rules of the communist country. Short chapters, peppered with Spanish terms and black-and-white illustrations, make this book an interesting introduction to present-day Cuba and a good read aloud choice for children in upper elementary grades. (Gr 3-5)
—CBB

​Trouble with Tattle-Tails (The Fabled Stables #2). Jonathan Auxier. Illus. by Olga Demidova. (2021). Amulet.
Young Auggie works on an island at the Fabled Stables, “a magical place full of one-of-a kind creatures.” The appearance of an empty stall is the signal that Auggie must rescue a new beast. When they are magically transported to the village of Rainbow’s End, Fen, who is a literal Stick-in-the-Mud, helps Auggie recover a pot of gold that has been stolen by two villainous Rooks, who are always trying to steal one-of-a-kind things (including Auggie’s friend Willa the Wisp in the first book in the series), before coming up with a clever plan to free the unhappy townspeople of the tattle-tails that are attached to them. After they return to the Fabled Stables with Nunya, the original Tattle-Tail, Auggie solves the problem of knowing what the Unfeeling Brute, a creature with no eyes, ears, mouth, or nose, needs by attaching Nunya to it. Whimsical, full-colored artwork adds to the fun of reading this fanciful early chapter book. (PreK Up)
—CBB 

Walls. L. M. Elliott. Photo essay by Megan Behm. (2021). Algonquin.
It is August 1960, and divided Berlin is on the frontline of the Cold War. Disappointed over not having the much-anticipated opportunity of pitching his baseball team to the state championship in Virginia, fifteen-year-old Drew has moved with his family to West Berlin for his military dad’s new assignment. When Drew meets his German cousin Mattias, who lives in East Berlin, they clash over politics and beliefs, but gradually form a tentative truce as they observe each other’s lives and find common ground, including a love of music. Every chapter features a photo essay explaining key historical and cultural happenings occurring synchronously with the book’s events as the story spans the tension-filled year before the Berlin Wall was built in August 1961. Back matter includes an author’s note, acknowledgments, selected sources, and photo credits. (Gr 6-8) 
—SD ​

The Year I Flew Away. Marie Arnold. (2021). Versify.
In 1985, when ten-year-old Gabrielle has the opportunity to leave her small village in Haiti and go to America, she has to take it even if it means leaving her parents behind while they wait for their papers. Living with relatives in Brooklyn, Gabrielle struggles with homesickness and not fitting in at school. When Lady Lydia, a witch, offers her a magic mango to make her problems go away in exchange for her essence, Gabrielle accepts. But is the price of getting her wish to be a “real” American too great? With elements of magical realism, Gabrielle’s story shares the day-to-day challenges of being a young Haitian immigrant who wants to belong while also remaining true to her identity. (Gr 3 Up) 
—SD

Chelsey Bahlmann Bollinger is an assistant professor in the Early, Elementary, and Reading Department at James Madison University. Sarah Duncan is an associate professor in the College of Education at Lipscomb University. Jeanne Gilliam Fain is a professor in the College of Education at Lipscomb University.
​

​Tiffany F. Watson
Including the reading of trade books as part of the curriculum can arouse interest and enhance understanding. The books reviewed here allow students to explore important literary concepts and use a variety of comprehension skills to think critically about STEM-related topics. 

​Beaver and Otter Get Along . . . Sort of: A Story of Grit and Patience Between Neighbors. Sneed B. Collard III. Illus. by Meg Sodano. (2021). Sourcebooks eXplore.
This engaging picture book story opens with Beaver building a dam in a stream to create a pond that is the perfect place to build a lodge. When otters arrive at the pond, Beaver sees them as a nuisance, damaging his dam and creating lots of noisy, splashing chaos in the thriving pond ecosystem. As the year goes on, Beaver’s and Otter’s families grow, and while they never become the best of friends, they learn to accept one another and coexist in their shared community. Realistic illustrations allow readers to explore ancillary information about plants and animals in a beaver pond ecosystem. Back matter includes facts about the adaptations and behaviors of beavers and river otters and their commensal relationship in pond ecosystems. Additionally, there are specific teaching points outlined for literacy, social-emotional learning, and STEAM activities. (PreK-Gr 2)

​Bird Show. Susan Stockdale. (2021). Peachtree.
This story of feather fashion features exquisite portraits of eighteen birds and a descriptive rhyming text. “All of us dress / in our own special way, / and put on a fashion show every day!”  Readers will learn about the variety of colors, shapes, and patterns of the feathers of birds from around the world. Susan Stockdale’s vibrant acrylic paintings provide detailed visuals of each bird’s plumage, while the minimal text on each page lends itself well to reading the book aloud in early grades and offers an opportunity to study vocabulary in addition to the obvious relation to studies about bird species. Back matter includes thumbnails of each bird in the book along with its common name, a descriptive note, and its native range and a quiz inviting readers to look back through the book to find the birds that display the colors and patterns shown. (PreK-Gr 2)

​Blue Floats Away. Travis Jonker. Illus. by Grant Snider. (2021). Abrams.
Through the personification of an iceberg, Travis Jonker introduces young readers to the water cycle. In the story, Blue, a young iceberg, is unexpectedly separated from his parents and undergoes significant changes. Floating in the ocean, Blue makes friends with sharks and sailboats, and he finds their company comforting. As the weather gets warmer, Blue gets smaller and smaller, evaporates, condenses, and sees the world from a cloud’s perspective, discovering airplanes and birds along his journey. As the weather gets cooler, Blue takes on a new form, snow. In this precipitation stage of the water cycle, he finds his parents once again. Grant Snider’s colorful, child-pleasing illustrations, created with cut paper, colored pencil, and white ink, help readers to understand both character development and the water cycle. The story ends with a visual representation of the water cycle featuring Blue in each of his states of matter. A discussion of the effects of climate change on polar ice can be started through the use of the author’s note, which includes information on what we can do to help. (PreK-Gr 2)

​Bots and Bods: How Robots and Humans Work, From the Inside Out. John Andrews. (2021). Andrews McMeel.
Writing in a conversational tone, John Andrews compares human bodies to robots. The detailed comparison begins with the features of the human body and moves on to its functions. In addition to the engaging, relatable narrative, the book includes diagrams; “Fantastic Facts,” “Think About This . . .,” and “Try This . . .” text boxes to inspire critical thinking; and interest-catching captioned illustrations. Organized in four chapters, “Body Basics,” “Get Moving,” “Seeing and Sensing,” and “Thinking and Feeling,” the book provides information on how the structure and function of the human body relates to that of various types of robots, like buddy robots, robot cars, and space probes. Appropriate headings within the chapters and an index guide readers in finding information related to specific topics. Overall, this book provides an out-of-the-box look at the human body with a powerful, natural connection to technology. (Gr 3 Up)

​Dr. Fauci: How A Boy from Brooklyn Became America’s Doctor. Kate Messner. Illus.by Alexandra Bye. (2021). Simon & Schuster.
This picture book biography tells the inspiring life story of Dr. Anthony Fauci (b. 1940), a curious boy from Brooklyn who became a doctor specializing in infectious diseases and gained recognition as “America’s Doctor” during the Covid-19 pandemic. Kate Messner’s succinct style of storytelling paired with Alexandra Bye’s cartoonlike, digitally-rendered illustrations make this book a good read-aloud choice on a timely topic. The book offers a valuable message for young people, which is repeated throughout the book when Fauci faces specific challenges in life: “Don’t get discouraged. Think about it carefully. Try to work it out.” This message also connects student thinking to the scientific method, which is reflected in the portion of the story recounting Fauci’s studies of COVID-19, and how overcoming challenges may lead to success in both scientific research and life. Back matter includes a timeline, recommendations for further reading, facts on the purpose of vaccines and how they work, and “Dr. Fauci’s Five Tips for Future Scientists.” (PreK Up)

​Except Antarctica! Todd Sturgell. (2021). Sourcebooks eXplore.
A turtle’s “We’ll see about that!” response on the title page to the statement “Turtles are found on every continent . . .  EXCEPT ANTARCTICA!” introduces this engaging picture book in which the narrator’s attempt to provide factual information about where animals are found in the world goes awry as the turtle invites various animals known by scientists not to inhabit Antarctica (owl, dung beetle, snake, mouse, bee, and frog) to join him on a trek to the frozen continent, despite the narrator’s insistence they will not like it. When they arrive at the coldest continent, the animals realize it is not a suitable habitat for them, and they begin a return journey home. But wait! Where’s that emperor penguin going? Back matter includes a double-page spread with four interesting factoids about each animal in the story, information on some other animals found on every continent except Antarctica, four factoids about the emperor penguin found only on Antarctica with a note on other animals of Antarctica, information on the continent of Antarctica, notes on the effects of climate change on Antarctica and the world, and a glossary. Reading aloud Except Antarctica! may lead to a lively discussion that encourages students to do further research on the continent and environmental issues. (PreK-Gr 2) 

​How to Talk to a Tiger...and Other Animals: How Critters Communicate in the Wild. Jason Bittel. Illus. by Kelsey Buzzell. (2021). Magic Cat.
Jason Bittel shares a plethora of information on animals from some most young people will be familiar with, like dogs and bees, to less well-known animals, like jackdaws and tarsiers. Some of the animals are large animals (elephants and tigers) and others small (ants and spiders). Keeping the focus on communication, the book is organized into four sections by senses: sight, sound, taste and smell, and electrosensory and touch. For example, in the sight section, readers discover behaviors of different animals related to protection and dominance or submission, including how they communicate using their eyes. The format of the book with its interest catching headings; text boxes of concise explanations and rich vocabulary; Kelsey Buzzell’s colorful digitally-rendered illustrations; a table of contents; and an index makes it a good addition to text sets for students researching behaviors of animals. (Gr 3 Up)

​Mars Is: Stark Slopes, Silvery Snow, and Startling Surprises. Suzanne Slade. (2021). Peachtree.
In this exploration of the planet Mars, Suzanne Slade shares spectacular photographs of HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment), an incredible camera which has been transmitting Mars photos to Earth since March 2006. She connects photos and scientific facts with relatable comparisons and explanations. The beautifully crafted book pairs a series of close-up photos of Mars with two sets of text. The first is printed in various colors in large, bold fonts and reads like poetry. The second includes blocks of  text in small, black italics with details about each of the photos. In addition to direct links to space science standards in the STEM curriculum, this book is also relatable to Earth science through the discussion of landforms and to physical science through a discussion of states of matter. Back matter provides additional information and photos on NASA’s launching of the mission to Mars in August 2005 and the HiRISE camera, a “More about Mars” section, and a timeline of the exploration of Mars. (PreK Up) 

​Space Explorers: 25 Extraordinary Stories of Space Exploration and Adventure. Libby Jackson. Illus. by Léonard Dupond. (2021). Beyond Words.
A resource for teaching space in middle school and beyond, this anthology shares twenty-five engaging true stories of people, events, and discoveries from the beginning of space travel to present-day explorations. The book opens with the Soviet Union’s spacecraft Sputnik’s 96-minute orbiting of Earth in 1957 and the story of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin—the first space traveler—who made one orbit of the Earth on the Vostok 1 mission on April 12, 1961. Additional stories present the important contributions to space exploration of others including Katherine Johnson, a “human computer” at NASA; Chris Hadfield on the International Space Station; and Burt Rutan’s SpaceShipOne. The book concludes with “Going to Mars,” a story that has yet to be written—the story of when astronauts first travel to Mars. The book includes a brief glossary to assist readers with vocabulary found in the stories. These engaging stories of space explorers could lead readers to further research on space exploration. (Gr 6 Up)

​I Like Space . . . What Jobs Are There? (That’s a Job?). Steve Martin. Illus. by Tom Wooley. (2021). Kane Miller.
In an interesting infographic-like format, Steve Martin presents a day in the life of twenty-five individuals in space-related jobs. The introduction engages readers by telling them about the team of people needed to send an astronaut into space before Martin and Wooley describe each team member’s job through a step-by-step, numbered account of what a day might look like for each position. Within the description of duties, text bubbles share what the person does, as well as insight into why or how they do it. The best and worst parts of all twenty-five jobs are also presented in text boxes. The book includes a set of graphics to help students identify which space job might best suite them based on their skills, qualities, goals, and interests. I Like Space . . . What Jobs Are There?, part of the That’s a Job? series, would be a good resource for beginning a cross-curricular project on space-related occupations. (Gr 3-5) 

​Nancy Brashear and Carolyn Angus
Poetry is for everyone. Here are some recently published books for sharing: traditional nursery rhymes in ear-pleasing and eye-catching picture book format, collections of poetry written in various poetic forms that tell stories and convey information on a variety of topic of interest, and anthologies that celebrate the work of individual poets. 

Aquí era el paraíso=Here Was Paradise: Selección de poemas de Humberto Ak'abal=Selected Poems of Humberto Ak'abal. Humberto Ak’abal. Patricia Aldana (Ed.). Trans. by Hugh Hazelton. Illus. by Amelia Lau Carling. (2021). Groundwood.
Aquí era el paraiso=Here Was Paradise introduces the poetry of Humberto Ak’abal (1952-2019), who is recognized as one of the greatest Indigenous poets of the Americas. In the introduction, Patricia Aldana, who selected the poems in this beautifully-designed anthology, explains why Ak’abal chose to write his poems in K’iche’, the native Mayan language of Guatemala, then translated them into Spanish, and, later, into English. Although Ak’abal wrote for an adult audience, the topics and simplicity of his poems make them suitable for young people, too. The poems are presented in Spanish and English on facing pages. For example, “La Lluvia / Ayer encontré a una nube llorando.” “The Rain / yesterday I came across a weeping cloud.” Amelia Lau Carling's watercolor-and-pencil illustrations that introduce thematic portions of the book (such as childhood, animals, family members, nature, seasons, spirits, and the plight of indigenous people) are especially inviting. Back matter includes additional information about the poet, illustrator, translator, and editor. (Gr 6 Up)
—NB 

​The Book of Not Entirely Useful Advice. A. F. Harrold. Illus. by Mini Grey. (2021). Bloomsbury.
A. F. Harrold presents young readers with a book of silly poems accompanied by Mini Grey’s vibrant illustrations with their own visual humor. Harrold sets the tone for the book as he confesses up front that the offered advice “will not only make you happy, not only keep you safe, but also—most importantly—stop you from getting eaten by tigers.” The book’s hodge-podge of advice is divided into four equally nonsensical sections relating to food, ducks, and dessert (“But, watch out for crocodiles in your porridge / and watch out for tigers under your toast”); to animals, giants, and the natural world (“Don’t kiss / anything with a hiss”); to school life, onions, and general-knowledge-type stuff (“Always keep an onion handy / They’re great for self defense”); and to the human condition, drama, and miscellaneous other subjects that didn’t fit elsewhere (“The merits are debatable / of a castle that’s inflatable”). Back matter includes notes for readers wishing to continue their adventure in advice with directions for creating a “Advice-A-Tron 216” game and an “Index of Advice, Examples, Morals, and Useful Lessons.” (Gr 3 Up)
 —NB

Carry On: Poetry by Young Immigrants. Simon Boulerice (Ed.). Trans. by Susan Ouriou. Illus. by Rogé. (2021). Owlkids.
In this collection of poems and portraits of young immigrants participating in a creative writing workshop at a Quebec high school, teens write about their feelings of sadness and uncertainty on leaving behind family, friends, and a familiar way of life and share their hopes for the future as they make a foreign place their new home. Lines from the poems give voice to personal statements, but also express the universality of the immigration experience. “Immigration is heartache / But a lucky break too” (Dowoo Kim, South Korea). “What waits for us in this place? / What path will my life take?” (Dimitri Dogot (Moldova). “I have gained the future / I have lost the past” (Hernan Farina Forster, Uruguay). Back matter includes an editor’s note and an illustrator’s note. (Gr 6 Up)
—CA

​Dear Treefrog. Joyce Sidman. Illus. by Diana Sudyka. (2021). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Set against a background of Diana Sudyka’s lush, brightly colored double-page paintings, Joyce Sidman’s free form poems filled with observations and introspection on verso pages are matched with factoids about treefrogs on recto pages. In summer, a shy, young girl in a new home makes a quiet discovery. “I See You / suddenly / among the tangled green / a tiny dollop of / frog / where before / there was only leaf / . . . / Are you new here too?” After she introduces a new friend, a young boy, to Treefrog, he also is fascinated by the tiny creature. As the story progresses, Treefrog disappears during the winter, and then in the final poem, spring arrives. “We See You / suddenly / a tiny dollop of / frog / where before / there was only leaf / . . . / Dear Treefrog / did you miss us too?” Back matter features a “More About Treefrogs and How to Welcome Them” page. (PreK-Gr 2)  
—NB

​Delicious!: Poems Celebrating Street Food Around the World. Julie Larios. Illus. by Julie Paschkis. (2021). Beach Lane.
“Cajun? Lebanese? Cuban? Thai? / So many choices! What should I try?” Julie Larios’ first poem, “Carts in the Park,” in which a girl ponders the diversity of foods available in New York City, is the perfect introduction to this collection of short (four to six lines) rhyming and free verse poems about street foods from around the world. In “Market Breakfast,” a young boy enjoys champurrado, a hot milk drink, and cinnamon churros in Oaxaca, Mexico; in “Train Station,” passengers purchase cups of saffron tea to quickly drink up in Mumbai, India; and in “Dance Class,” a young girl selects a special treat of deep-fried scorpions on a stick after her dance class in Beijing, China. Julie Paschkis adds watercolor paintings showing people enjoying street foods and colorful thematic borders to the fourteen poems. A double-page “International Menu of Sweets and Treats” provides additional information. (PreK- Gr 2)
—CA

​Everything Comes Next: Collected and New Poems. Naomi Shihab Nye. Illus. by Rafael Lopéz.  (2021). Greenwillow.
Beginning with an introduction by poet and author Edward Hirsch and a foreword by Palestinian-American Naomi Shihab Nye, the United States’ Young People’s Poet Laureate (2019-2021), this collection of Nye’s old and new poems and short prose affirms her belief that people matter and that caring for each other’s sorrows, sufferings, and celebrations promotes hope. The poems are organized into three sections: “The Holy Land of Childhood,” with insights and observations of children, “The Holy Land That Isn’t” describing the human consequences of war including poems about the displacement of Nye’s family, and “People Are the Only Holy Land” dealing with the lives of people and their stories. Beautiful black and-white illustrations by Rafael López focus attention on the relationships between people and things. Back matter includes Nye’s “Slim Thoughts” about the nature of writing; “Notes on Poems,” which provides the context for some of the poems; and biographical notes on Nye and Hirsch. (Gr 6 Up)
—NB

Girls and Boys Come Out to Play.  Mother Goose. Illus. by Tracey Campbell Pearson. (2021). Margaret Ferguson.
“Girls and boys come out to play, / The moon doth shine as bright as day.” Tracey Campbell Pearson turns the classic nursery rhyme “Girls and Boys Come Out to Play” into a delightful picture book in which Mother Goose invites young children to join her on a lively nighttime adventure in the neighborhood before she returns them to their homes for bedtime. “Good night. Sweet dreams.” With repeated readings, young children will enjoy searching the richly-detailed mixed media illustrations for the host of nursery rhyme characters from the eight Mother Goose poems on the endpapers: “Hey Diddle, Diddle,” “Ring Around the Rosy,” Humpty Dumpty,” “Little Boy Blue,” “Jack and Jill,” “Rub-a-Dub-Dub,” “Old King Cole,” and “Wee Willie Winkie.” (PreK- Gr 2)
—CA 

​The Last Straw: Kids vs. Plastic. Susan Hood. Illus. by Christiane Engel. (2021). Harper.
Susan Hood pairs seventeen poems with text boxes and quotes to introduce how child activists from around the world have come up with creative ways to deal with the ever-growing plastic problem. The first poem, “Fantastic Plastic,” which addresses the importance of plastic, ends with the quatrain “Is plastic a blessing? / Or is it a curse? / It makes our lives better. / BUT could they get worse.” A text box adds a key question: “How do we use—and reuse—the plastic we need, refuse the plastic we don’t, and avoid abusing the Earth?” The final poems, “Stand Up, Speak Up” and “Join the Crew,” should inspire readers to reconsider their thinking about plastic and act to bring about change to save our planet. Back matter includes an author’s note, timeline, infographics on alternatives to plastic items and the top ten ocean polluters, sources, notes on poetry formats, and further reading (books and websites). (PreK Up)
—CA

​Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance. Nikki Grimes. (2021). Bloomsbury.
In Legacy, Nikki Grimes follows up her celebration of poets of the Harlem Renaissance in One Last Word (2017) by pairing original poems, written in the Golden Shovel format, with poems that introduce readers to the works of not-well-known women poets of the era (Mae V. Cowdery, Alice Dunbar-Nelson, Gwendolyn Bennett, and twelve others) organized into three parts: “Heritage,” “Earth Mother,” and “Taking Notice.” As Grimes explains in a note on poetic form in the front matter, the writer of a Golden Shovel takes a short poem in its entirety, or a line from the poem, and creates a new poem with lines ending with these words. Each set of poems in Legcy is paired with a stunning full-color illustration by a contemporary Black woman artist. Back matter includes biographies and selected works of the poets whose voices are heard in the book, artist biographies, sources, and an index.  (Gr 6- Adult)
—CA

​Niños: Poems for the Lost Children of Chile. María José Ferrada. Trans. by Lawrence Schimel. Illus. by María José  Valdez. (2021). Eerdmans.
In Niños, María José Ferrada pays homage to “the lost children of Chile,” the thirty-four children under the age of fourteen among the thousands of people who were executed or “disappeared” during the seventeen-year military dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, which began in 1973. Ferrada’s short poems, translated from Spanish and each titled with a child’s name, imagine childhood experiences and connections to the natural world they might have enjoyed had they not been innocent victims of political violence. Each poem appears against the background of an emotive mixed media illustration created in soft colors by María José Valdez. Back matter includes a list of the children and their ages at the time of their “disappearance” and the final poem, “Pablo,”  with a note about Pablo Athansiu, who was included on the list until he was found alive in 2013. (Gr 6 Up)
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​What Are Little Girls Made Of? Jeanne Willis. Illus. by Isabelle Follath. (2021). Nosy Crow.
What are little girls made of? “Sun and rain and heart and brain— / that’s what girls are made of.” In this collection of feminist retellings of seventeen classic nursery rhymes, the girl kissed by Georgie Porgie sends him on his way with “Don’t kiss me unless I say,” and after Humpty Dumpty’s great fall from a wall, his shell is mended and his tears dried by a female doctor. Isabelle Follath’s playful mixed-media illustrations pair perfectly with Jeanne Willis’s witty portrayals of independent girls doing what they want to do. The final rhyme, “Girls and Boys, Come Out to Play,” ends with an empowering message for all children as both boys and girls choose their own activities. (PreK-Gr 2)
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