Best Books of 2015

Pre-K to Elementary School

Bernice Gets Carried Away
by Hannah E. Harrison, (Dial Books for Young Readers, ages 3-5, $16.99)
We’ve all had bad days, including Bernice the cat, who feels neglected at her friend’s birthday party. As she grabs a bunch of balloons from the party and is whisked away into the sky, the detailed illustrations help show how she sees things from a different perspective. Like many of us, she realizes that things aren’t so bad once you develop a positive attitude, and she is able to spread some cheer among friends. – AA                                 

Your Alien
by Tammi Sauer and Goro Fujita (Sterling Children’s Books, ages 3 and older, $14.95)
This sweet story tugs at the heartstrings as a little boy discovers a friendly alien in his backyard. They become inseparable friends, and they enjoy helping each other discover new things on a daily basis. As time goes by, the little boy must figure out why his alien is suddenly sad, and we learn the hard lesson that sometimes when you love something, you must set it free. – FB

Spectacular Spots
by Susan Stockdale (Peachtree Publishers, ages 2-6, $15.95)
Spots are a thing of beauty in this gorgeous picture book of spotted creatures ranging from ornate butterflies with “eyespots,” to cheetahs and jaguars with their bold, distinctive markings. This nonfiction book serves as a guide to explain how spots actually help animals blend in with their surroundings to help ensure their survival. Readers will enjoy the fun matching game at the end to identify which spots belong to each animal. – FB

Find Momo Coast to Coast
by Andrew Knapp (Quirk Books, ages 3 and older, $14.95)
Get ready to love Momo! Photographer Andrew Knapp and his border collie Momo are Instagram stars. In this incredible hide-and-seek book, the pair tour the United States and Canada in a vintage orange Volkswagen van. Knapp photographs Momo hanging out in well-known tourist spots and off-the-beaten path destinations. Good luck – it is awfully hard to find the adorable black and white pup in many of these shots! I see this book being a staple in the “keep the kid quiet on a road trip” stack! – SC

Finders Keepers
by Keiko Kasza (Penguin Young Readers, ages 3-5, $16.99)
A squirrel’s red hat, carried by the wind, goes on a journey and is put to other uses by the critters that acquire it, who all exclaim, “Finders, keepers!”  When the squirrel finally reclaims his hat, readers are in for a delightful surprise.  – AA

Daylight Starlight Wildlife
by Wendell Minor (Penguin Young Readers, ages 3-7, $17.99)
Bright, clear illustrations of familiar animals and descriptive, flowing text makes this book of “compare and contrast” a good addition to any child’s library. Butterflies fly by day, luna moths flutter by night. Children will be enchanted while learning about creatures as they move between dark and light. – SC

The Wonderful Things You Will Be
by Emily Winfield Martin (Random House, ages 3-7, $17.99)
Wondering what the future holds for our child is a universal truth of parenthood. Will he be kind? Will she change the world? This lovely book ends with the answer parents feel in our hearts: I’ll love you, whoever you grow up to be. A great gift for expecting or new parents! – SC

Home
by Carson Ellis (Candlewick, ages preschool-3, $16.99)
A fun read with beautiful illustrations, Ellis guides us through different types of homes, including a house in the country, an apartment, a wigwam, her own home, and even a big shoe. Children are sure to enjoy exploring each of these homes, and the message that home is a place of joy and comfort. – Kevin Powell

Butterfly Park
by Elly MacKay (Running Press Kids, ages preschool and older, $16.95)
A young girl has trouble adjusting to life in a new, big city. She misses the sounds of birds and crickets, and the fluttering of butterflies from her old home. She wants to create a butterfly garden, but she needs the help and ingenuity of her new friends and neighbors to make the garden happen. MacKay’s radiant illustrations communicate a love for nature and community parents and kids will enjoy.– KP

Last Stop on Market Street
by Matt de la Pena (G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, ages 3-5, $16.99)
On the way to the Market Street stop, CJ wonders to his grandmother why they have to wait in the rain, why he doesn’t have an iPod, and why they ride the bus and don’t have a car. Readers are in for a pleasant and heartwarming surprise as Pena’s text and Robinson’s illustrations show the special connection that grandparents have with their grandchildren as great listeners and voices of guidance.– KP

This Is Sadie
by Sara O’Leary and Julie Morstad (Tundra Books, ages 3-7, $17.99)
Sadie has an imagination big enough for two children and she uses it all day, every day, building boats and castles and pretending she’s part of all the stories and books she reads. Sadie’s story reveals the wonder of books to kids who are just starting to explore them. – AA

My Bike
by Byron Barton (Greenwillow Books, ages 3-7, $16.99)
When Tom hops on his bike to go to work, he passes by the usual – people, cars, buses. You start to wonder, though, when he rides by monkeys, elephants, lions and tigers to get to his destination. Can you guess where he works? Colorful illustrations bring the words to life. – AA

Get Out of My Bath!
by Britta Teckentrup (Nosy Crow, ages 3-7, $15.99)
Ellie the elephant is making waves in her bath until a crocodile joins her, then a flamingo and a tiger – and then it starts to get so crowded, she wants everyone out! This beautifully illustrated book is a fun read that invites children to shout with Ellie, “Get out of my bath!” – AA

The Nonsense Show
by Eric Carle (Penguin Young Readers, ages 3-7, $18.99)
This legendary author does it again with a truly entertaining book about things that make no sense at all. We see snakes with two tails, mice chasing cats for a change, birds and fish swapping habitats, and more silly scenarios. Readers will enjoy the playful, colorful imagery while suspending belief. This book encourages dialogue for children to come up with even more preposterous things long after the story is over! – FB

Don’t Think About Purple Elephants
by Susan Whelan and Gwynneth Jones (EK Books, ages 4-7, $17.99)
When Sophie is in bed at night and everything is quiet, she’s plagued by “what if” worries and can’t get to sleep. For instance, “What if she forgot her lunch and had nothing to eat at school?” Her family tries to help but nothing works until her mother tells her, “Don’t think about purple elephants.” – AA

Bulldozer’s Big Day
by Candace Fleming and Eric Rohmann (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, ages 4-7, $17.99)
It’s bulldozer’s birthday and he hopes to celebrate with his construction site buddies, but they’re all busy at their jobs. He thinks nobody cares about his special day until the construction whistle signals it’s quitting time. – AA

Pete the Cat and the Bedtime Blues
by James Dean (Harper Collins, ages 4-8, $17.99)
My son would read the telephone book if Pete the Cat were on the front. The colorful paintings of Georgia artist James Dean, as in all the Pete the Cat books, steal the show in this new tale. Pete the Cat is ready to hit the sack, but his friends aren’t ready yet. Find out how Pete gets them to go to sleep. Add it to your Pete collection! – SC

A Pig in a Wig
by Emma A. Virjan  (HarperCollins, ages 4-8, $9.99)
This book is really silly. And that’s exactly what kids will love about it! There’s this pig, and it’s in a wig, and then it’s on a boat … and then things start to get crowded. With bold illustrations and a catchy sentence structure, emerging readers will have fun with this simple book of ridiculous rhyme. – SC

We Forgot Brock!
by Carter Goodrich (Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers, ages 4-8, $17.99)
Phillip and Brock are best friends who do everything together. The thing is, no one can see Brock except Phillip because Brock is imaginary. As we play along with Phillip, our hearts ache when he loses his beloved imaginary friend at an amusement park. All hope seems lost until another little girl and her imaginary friend display the strong power of friendship to try to reunite the two. – FB   

Gwendolyn Grace
by Katherine Hannigan (Greenwillow Books, ages 4-8, $17.99)
Parents with babies and young children at home will identify with this adorable story featuring a precocious alligator named Gwendolyn Grace who just can’t seem to play quietly while her baby sibling takes a nap. Children will giggle at the crazy antics that Gwendolyn Grace comes up with, like swimming in the “ocean” of her bathtub, playing dress-up with her dog, “sledding” down her staircase, and more. As it turns out, she just can’t wait for the baby to wake up so that they can make joyful noise together. – FB

Trombone Shorty
by Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews and Bryan Collier (Abrams Books for Young Readers, ages 4-8, $17.95)
Readers can’t help but be inspired by this true story about a young boy living in New Orleans named Troy who earns the nickname “Trombone Shorty” after finding a broken trombone twice his size. He is determined to make beautiful music with his new instrument, and he even catches the attention of Bo Diddley during a big concert. Hard work, practice, and determination pay off for Trombone Shorty.  – FB

Gordon Parks: How the Photographer Captured Black and White America
by Carole Boston Weatherford and Jamey Christoph (Albert Whitman & Co., ages 5-8, $16.99)
Starting out with a used camera that cost $7.50, celebrated photojournalist Gordon Parks exposed the racial and class divide in our segregated nation. This book shows children there is power in using art to illustrate and draw attention to the lives of everyday people, and that anyone can create dialogue that leads to change if we are brave enough to do it. – SB

Chu’s Day at the Beach
by Neil Gaiman and Adam Rex (HarperCollins Publishers, ages 4-8, $17.99)
It starts off as a typical fun day at the beach for the lovable panda bear Chu and his family until … achoo! Chu’s larger-than-life sneeze manages to split the sea in half, causing upheaval for all the sea animals and beachgoers. Young readers will delight in coming up with antics to get Chu to sneeze again to fix this dilemma. – FB

Tulip and Rex Write a Story
by Alyssa Satin Capucilli and Sarah Massini (Katherine Tegen Books, ages 4-8, $17.99)
It’s quite the adventure for a little girl named Tulip and her trusty dog sidekick, Rex, as they embark on a “word walk” throughout the city.  They cleverly use their surroundings to find words to write down in Tulip’s notebook, and their vivid imaginations help them come up with the perfect ending to their short story.  – FB

The Thing About Spring
by Daniel Kirk (Abrams Books for Young Readers, ages 4-8, $16.95)
Everyone’s excited that winter is drawing to a close, and spring is quickly approaching – everyone except the skeptical Rabbit, that is. It takes all of Rabbit’s forest friends, including Mouse, Bird, and Bear, to point out all of the wonderful things the spring season has to offer. Readers can relate to the many reasons that Rabbit will miss winter until they realize that spring is actually full of pleasant surprises.  – FB

Two Girls Want a Puppy
by Ryan and Evie Cordell and Maple Lam (Harper Collins, ages 4-8, $17.99)
When two sisters really want a puppy, they set out to show their father that they’re responsible enough to care for a four-pawed family member. They take care of a neighbor’s dog and research why people are healthier and happier with pets, and discover than eight million dogs in shelters are looking for a home. – AA

Cat & Bunny
by Mary Lundquist (Blazer+Bray, ages 4-8, $17.99)
Cat and Bunny are best friends and they do everything together until Bunny invites others to play with them. Cat feels left out and alone until he makes a new circle of friends. – AA

A Fine Dessert, Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat
by Emily Jenkins and Sophie Blackall (Random House, ages 4-8, $17.99)
The dessert is Blackberry Fool and the story follows the dessert’s preparation through four generations of families, from its start 300 years ago in England. With each generation and more modern appliances, preparation becomes easier but the dessert’s appealing taste doesn’t change. – AA

What About Moose?
By Corey Rosen Schwartz, Rebecca J. Gomez and Keika Yamaguchi (Simon & Schuster, ages 4-8, $17.99)
Moose has a poor understanding of teamwork when he and his animal friends start to build a treehouse. He barges in and takes over, hollering orders – until he makes one demand too many, and his friends work together to get him out of a jam. – AA

Itty Bitty Kitty
by Joan Holub and James Burks (HarperCollins Publishers, ages 4-8, $17.99)
Every parent braces themselves for when their young child asks for a pet, and Ava’s parents are no exception. When Ava begs for a cat but doesn’t get the answer she wants, she takes matters into her own hands and smuggles a tiny kitty cat into her home. No one suspects a thing until Itty Bitty Kitty isn’t so little anymore! This hilarious story and colorful illustrations show us that pets can actually end up playing important roles in our families. – FB

Rappy the Raptor
by Dan Gutman and Tim Bowers(HarperCollins Publishers, ages 4-8, $17.99)
Rappy the Raptor doesn’t miss a beat as he raps and rhymes throughout this catchy story. We can’t help but giggle as we learn through whimsical rhyme just how Rappy developed such a unique skill from the time he was born. Young readers learn that we all have individual talents that make us special. – FB

Counting Lions: Portraits from the Wild
by Katie Cotton and Stephen Walton (Candlewick Press, ages 5 and older, $22)
The incredibly detailed illustrations in this large-form counting book immediately catch your eye. Poetic lines about rare and beloved animals like gorillas, tigers and macaws, have a quieting effect as you read them; the subtle and simple rhythm is captivating. This is a special book, and it can be the beginning of important conversations about how we value the life of all creatures and the role we each play in caring for their future of our planet and all who inhabit it. – SC

Animal Supermarket
by Giovanna Zoboli and Simona Mulazzani (Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, ages 5-8, $16)
At the Animal Supermarket – where mice, cows, elephants, monkeys, foxes and many more animals shop – you’ll only find healthy foods, no ice cream, cookies or chips. The frozen food section was shut down and turned into a meadow where bees carry their baskets from flower to flower. This subtle message is beautifully illustrated with a quiz at the end – what does each animal eat? – AA

Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast
by Josh Funk and Brendan Kearney (Sterling Children’s Books, ages 5-8, $14.95)
Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast overcome all obstacles in the fridge – a broccoli forest, potato mash mountain, a chili lagoon and even a bean avalanche – in their race to beat each other to the remaining drop of syrup. But maybe friends shouldn’t behave this way? – AA

Feet, Go to Sleep
by Barbara Bottner and Maggie Smith (Alfred A. Knopf, ages 5-8, $16.99)
Fiona has had a long day at the beach, but she thinks she’s not ready to go to sleep until she starts remembering her day. She starts with her toes that gripped her flip-flops on the way to the beach and works her way up her body to her brain that still caught up in the day – that’s when she realizes she’s really tired and sleepy. – AA