The One and Only Marigold by Florence Parry Heide, illustrated by Jill McElmurry.

Marigold is a little monkey with her own way of doing things.  She has a favorite purple coat that she wears all the time, even in the shower and to bed.  But now her coat is wearing out and she has to face replacing her beloved coat.  Marigold is a loyal monkey and refuses to give up her best friend, her purple coat for anyone.  This includes her other close friend, Maxine who gets upset when Marigold lists the coat before her on her friend list.  Maxine storms out and Marigold plots revenge which she achieves in an interesting and subtle way.

I love picture books that are not saccharine and sweet, but instead show children characters who have complicated feelings and relationships just like they have in real life.  Marigold is a protagonist with firm ideas and a strong sense of self.  Through skillful writing, the author manages to avoid making her whiny or annoying.  Instead she is surprising, fun and unique.  McElmurry’s illustrations match the story well, filled with little touches that are just as fascinating as the main character.

This is a longer picture book, making it appropriate for slightly older children.  Recommended for ages 5-7.

Tough Chicks by Cece Meng, illustrated by Melissa Suber

From the minute they hatch, Penny, Polly and Molly are chicks of a different feather.  They wrestle worms, race bugs, and dive for flies.  And they move at a fast pace with a "Peep, peep, zoom, zip, cheep."  All of the farm animals beg mother hen to make her chicks behave and be good.  But mother hen knows that her chicks are good.  Even the farmer gets upset when he finds the chicks under the hood of his tractor.  The animals on the farm put together an educational program for the chicks to help them be more normal, but with each lesson the chicks look at things from a completely different angle.  When a runaway tractor heads for the henhouse, the chicks just might be more useful than expected!

Happily targeting the role of cute young girls in a family and society, this book skewers the social norm with a playful spirit.  These three chicks are just like many girls who enjoy action, motors and little danger and refuse to move at a sedate, ladylike pace.  Meng’s text is just as lively as the chicks themselves, zooming along at a great pace.  Suber’s art is equally lively with crotchety pigs, perturbed fowl, and goggle-eyed sheep. 

Read this one last in a story time, which is the greatest compliment a book can ever have!  This shouldn’t be saved for those chicken story times, make sure you use it as one of those rainy-day books that you pull out to brighten things up.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

What a Trip! by Arthur Yorinks, illustrated by Richard Egielski

Mel is walking along kicking a rock when he trips and falls into another dimension where everything looks similar but very pointy.  When Mel trips there, he falls back into his own dimension where no one believes him.  After finally being diagnosed as nothing more than a klutz, Mel trips once again and falls back into the pointy dimension right in front of his father.  Will Mel be able to return this time?  And what happens when he meets the pointy Mel?

This is one of those books that is so surprising that you will draw even reluctant listeners into the story with Mel’s first trip.  Everyone will need to see what the other dimension looks like and Egielski’s illustrations are such fun that they will stay to see more.  Yorinks’ story is silly, funny and gloriously inventive.  Children will be so surprised by the folding page that changes everything in the dimensions, making it OK to play with your books. 

A complete winner of a picture book.  Use this with unruly elementary groups to get them focused and listening.  It is great read aloud or all on your own.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Sparrows by Hans Post and Kees Heij, illustrated by Irene Goede

Open this book and fully enter the world of the house sparrow.  From eggs to flight, the reader follows the birds as they catch food for their young, feed them, and then as the babies move from the nest to becoming fledglings.  The seasons change and we get to see how the sparrows live in each season until spring returns and new nests are built. 

The simple language of the book with its frank but child-friendly tone is very nice.  The illustrations are realistic, often featuring close ups on white backgrounds to clearly show what the text is speaking about.  Some of the illustrations are from interesting perspectives including the point of view of a fledgling looking to fly. 

Most children have sparrows around their house but few will think about the details of their lives until now.  This book is an accessible early nonfiction title for children on a subject they can easily relate to.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

What the Rat Told Me: A Legend of the Chinese Zodiac by Marie Sellier, Catherine Louis and Wang Fei

This picture book is adapted from a Chinese Buddhist legend that explains why the cat and rat don’t get along at the same time it introduces the Chinese zodiac.  The Great Emperor of Heaven invited all of the animals to visit him before sunrise on the top of the Jade Mountain.  Cat protests that it is too early for her, but rat assures her that he will wake her in time.  But when the time comes in the morning, rat plays a trick by not waking the cat.  He also manages to slip to the front of the group by riding up the mountain on the ox’s head.  So Rat becomes the first symbol of the zodiac and the animals continue from there.  The book concludes with the Chinese zodiac and the pleasure of finding out your corresponding animal.

This book is so graphically strong and stunning.  Done just in black and red, the images are linoleum prints.  Each zodiac animal is depicted along with its Chinese symbol.  The text is nicely simple and strong, a great pairing with the images.  Each zodiac animal is shown having the characteristics that the zodiac gives them. 

This is one of those books that looks so very simple but takes such great skill.  Perfect for zodiac units around Chinese New Year, this book would be rough for story times with mixed ages because you would spend a lot of time looking up dates.  It might be nice for a classroom with a limited age range but only if you aren’t worried about children becoming monkeys, horses and oxen.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Buffalo Song by Joseph Bruchac, illustrated by Bill Farnsworth.

A boy and his father find a buffalo calf who has survived the slaughter of its herd by white hunters.  They take the calf to Walking Coyote who adds it to his herd of young buffalo, calling him Little Thunder Hoof.  Walking Coyote and his family then lead the herd of nine calves over the mountains to safety.  The trip is treacherous and filled with dangers.  When they reached the St. Ignatius Mission, the priests refuse to take the animals so they journey onto the Salish people.  As years pass, the buffalo herd grows and Walking Coyote finds others who share his vision of hills and fields black with buffalo roaming free.

Bruchac’s words sing here as they lead readers from the slaughter through dangers to safety and survival.  There is plenty here for readers to enjoy with spiritual aspects, environmentalism and adventure.  Farnsworth’s art is a magnificent accompaniment to the text, offering lots of nature, vistas and landscapes, and the promise of the blanket of buffalo.

Recommended as a very accessible book on Native American culture.  The beauty mixed with the adventure will have kids enjoying this book thoroughly.  Appropriate for ages 5-9.

The Cajun Cornbread Boy by Dianne de Las Casas, illustrated by Marita Gentry.

This spicy twist on the Gingerbread Boy is a lot of fun.  Down on the Bayou, a little old woman makes a cornbread boy but when she opens the oven he runs away calling "Run, chere, run, as fast as you can! You can’t catch me – I’m full of cayenne."  The Cornbread Boy runs past a raccoon.  Then past a fox who surprisingly does not catch him, until he comes to the water of the bayou.  An alligator offers to carry the boy across.  Can you guess what happens next?  You may be surprised!

The writing here is filled with nice Louisiana touches that will have you doing your best Cajun accent.  If you manage an accent, the book rollicks along with phrases dancing with the rhythm and beat.  The illustrations are done with watercolor and ink.  This lends them a more rustic and handmade feel that is right at home here. 

Recommended as an alternative Gingerbread Boy that is perfect for hot summer days.  This could be nicely paired with one of my other favorite Cajun read-alouds Petite Rouge: a Cajun Red Riding Hood by Mike Artell.