Bebe Goes Shopping by Susan Middleton Elya, illustrated by Steven Salerno.
This is a wonderful bilingual picture book where the Spanish portion of the text is used almost effortlessly.  Somehow the author has also managed to make it trip off even the most hopeless tongue.  It is the story of Bebe who goes to the market with his Mama.  It is a normal trip to the store where the little one grabs things off the shelves and is finally settled down with some animal crackers.  The illustrations are a retro/modern style that suit the story perfectly.  They add pizzazz and color to the book.  There is a glossary at the end with a pronunciation guide and English translations of the Spanish.  This is great fun and can be shared at any storytime about food, shopping, or animals.  This is definitely one to be read aloud with gusto.

Here Lies the Librarian by Richard Peck.
Peck does it again!  He has created a rollicking, fun, fast book that is welcoming to both boys and girls.  Peewee lives with her brother Jake in rural Indiana where they are trying to make a living at running a garage.  But it is 1914, and the automobile is just starting out.  To add to their troubles, their competitors who live in town are willing to damage people’s cars for business and to rob others.  Everything changes when a tornado rips through the community, damaging the library that has been closed for years.  Four female library students who also drive cars arrive in town to be the librarians.  Peewee has suddenly found role models for being a lady.  But sometimes Peewee finds herself sitting on the sidelines when she would rather be in the race.  Can a young lady do both?
This is a great book to share aloud.  Peck’s language begs to be read to others so that his humor and jokes will shine.  He returns us to a moment in time that we are able to relive through an amazing heroine.   Share this with others in classrooms and sell it to kids looking for a funny book that is definitely fast moving.