I Get So Hungry by Bebe Moore Campbell; illustrated by Amy Bates.

Nikki is a girl who eats to feel better.  She even sneaks potato chips during class when she is teased.  Her new teacher, Mrs. Patterson is also heavy and Nikki sees her sneaking a cookie from her purse during the day too.  When Nikki goes to the doctor later, she is told to not eat any more junk food.  Her mother agrees, but on the way home buys them some doughnuts.  When they return from Christmas break, Mrs. Patterson has changed.  She isn’t sneaking food, she’s drinking water and she spends her early mornings walking.  Nikki joins Mrs. Patterson on her walks in the mornings and starts to watch what she is eating too. 

This picture book perfectly captures the issues of family and youth obesity.  I appreciated that Nikki has good friends.  She is not a loner, not disliked, but she is teased by one boy in her class.  The depiction of using food as a mood stabilizer is also well done.  There is no miraculous weight loss here, which is also a good thing.  Rather there is a change in attitude and lifestyle.  Bates’ illustrations are filled with doughnuts and potato chips at first and then transition to vegetables and the green of the outdoors. 

This book is ideal for classroom use when speaking about good nutrition.  Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Lincoln and Douglass: An American Friendship by Nikki Giovanni, illustrated by Bryan Collier.

At a reception celebrating his second inauguration, President Abraham Lincoln scans the crowds for his friend Frederick Douglass.  Though one man was black and the other white, one a slave and the other free, their lives parallel one another in remarkable ways.  Both men found themselves at the heart of the abolitionist movement in America.  The book documents the youth of both men in alternating pages, emphasizing their commonalities.  It also provides information on other figures in the abolitionist movement, including John Brown and Mammy Pleasant. 

Reprising their partnership in Rosa, Giovanni and Collier once again shed light upon American history through a picture book.  Giovanni’s writing is easily digested and using a remarkably small amount of text sheds light on complicated historical events.  Collier’s cut-paper collage illustrations are remarkable.  The double-spread of Lincoln in the grove of trees is moving and gut-wrenching.  The bark of the trees is formed from African-American faces, evoking lynching, containment, and yet growth and freedom too.  All of which are dynamics at work in the history and the book as a whole.

Highly recommended as an accessible entry to these difficult subjects.  Appropriate for ages 8-10.

The Mystery by Maxwell Eaton III.

Max and Pinky return in another adventure, this time filled with mystery and intrigue.  Max and Pinky set out to paint the barn red.  They just manage to finish the entire structure before dark.  But when they awake, the barn is PINK!  They repaint.  They guard it all night, but fall asleep.  And now it’s plaid!  Finally, they decide they must investigate.  They look for clues, conduct interviews, and set a trap.  Who is the mystery painter?  You’ll have to read it to find out!

This book in the series continues the charm and wit of the earlier books.  The illustrations are bright colored and great fun.  The asides of many of the other animals in the picture add to the fun, though they could be skipped when reading the story to a group.  Eaton excels at writing books with few words and lots of laughs.  His characters say so much with a simple facial expression.  This is simplicity at its best.

Highly recommended.  This book will project well to a group, and children will adore the changing colors of the barn.  Guaranteed to get them giggling.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

When I Was King by Linda Ashman, illustrated by David McPhail

A gentle and humorous book on sibling rivalry and how the older sibling once ruled the castle and now no longer does.  A little boy struggles with being replaced as the center of attention, noticing that if he burps or drools he is told it is bad manners but the baby is praised for doing just that.  There are pages of the boy telling his baby brother that all of this was once MINE, which capture the desperation and neediness of a new older sibling perfectly.  Through gentle parenting and insight, the boy slowly grows to understand his new role in the family as big brother.

Ashman’s poetry is a joy to read aloud, offering easy cadences as well as rhyme.  It pairs effortlessly with McPhail’s illustrations which show a modern family but evoke a timeless coziness as well.  The tone set in the book is balanced, even when the boy finally has a temper tantrum about all the things his little brother is ruining.  Both older and younger siblings will see themselves here.

Recommended for story times and units on siblings.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Hush, Little Dragon by Boni Ashburn, illustrated by Kelly Murphy.

Little Dragon is ready for bed high in the treetop, but he’s very hungry.  So his mother flies off to find him a snack.  Set to the same rhyme and rhythm of Hush Little Baby, his mother returns with all sorts of great things for him to munch on, including a princess, knights, a king, and a queen.   By the end, Little Dragon’s tummy is bulging though it isn’t clear exactly what (or who) he has devoured. 

A classic rhyme made into a picture book that children who enjoy knights and dragons will adore.  The book can be sung or simply read aloud.  The illustrations are lusciously colored and will project well to a group of children. 

A definite winner to add to dragon story times, this book begs to be sung.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox and Helen Oxenbury.

Two masters of the picture book come together in this book filled with the joy of babies.  Fox’s gentle rhyme carries the book forward and Oxenbury’s illustrations of babies set on a background of white capture the spirit of the text perfectly.  The babies are shown in all skin colors, all happily playing side-by-side.  The length of the text and the book’s gentle spirit make it the perfect first picture book.  I am hopeful that it will come out as a board book so that it can be placed directly into small hands without fear of tearing.  Watch for my favorite little baby with the runny nose.

The perfect book for baby showers, it should also be shared with new older siblings.  Appropriate for ages 0-2.