Guess What I Found in Dragon Wood by Timothy Knapman, illustrated by Gwen Millward.

Told from the point of view of the dragon, this is the story of finding a boy in the woods and trying to figure out what to do with him.  It doesn’t seem to be hungry for fish and worms.  They aren’t sure if he can sleep in a bed.  And instead of breathing fire, he leaks water out of his eyes!  When the boy begins to describe his own magical land, the dragon is amazed.  The boy teaches the dragons soccer and then finally is returned home where the dragon is met with less than a warm welcome.

The text and illustrations here really work well together, setting a light and humorous tone.  The boy, Benjamin, is a fluffy-haired blonde with a constantly worried expression.  The dragons are huge, multi-colored but not scary in any way.  Their confused looks and engaged expressions make sure that no one would be frightened by them.  The text is very funny with just the right touches and tone.  The illustrations are busy, colorful and worth the time to explore fully.  They often have small arrows pointing out details, making it all the more enjoyable.

A great read-aloud, this one can be added to your dragon story time.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Skunkdog by Emily Jenkins, illustrated by Pierre Pratt

Dumpling (the dog) and her people move out into the country where she has room to run, a woods to walk in, and absolutely no friends!  One special characteristic of Dumpling is that she has no sense of smell, making it very hard for her to relate to other dogs.  So when Dumpling was digging under a bush and was sprayed by a skunk, she doesn’t really notice.  But her people do!  They try one way after another to get rid of the stench, but nothing works until they try tomato juice.  When Dumpling is finally clean and stench-free, they release her to the backyard admonishing not to play with the skunk again.  But Dumpling misses the skunk and when she can’t find the skunk she starts to get sadder and sadder.  In this tale of unlikely friends, there is of course a happy ending, except maybe for the people who have to smell Dumpling.

This book is charming.  Dumpling is a round dog with a long nose, made all the more silly by the fact she can’t smell.  The family is wonderfully cartoony, with a round-faced boy, angular mom and square dad.  But the skunk steals the show with the big pink nose and always lifted tail.  Jenkin’s words are equally successful as they tell the story of loneliness and unusual friendship.  The text may seem long for a picture book at first glance, but it is very easy to read aloud and never drags.

Highly recommended for children ages 4-7.  Add this to your dog story times, friendship story times, and to your pile of books that kindergarteners and first graders will enjoy hearing read aloud.

Jin Jin the Dragon by Grace Chang; illustrated by Chong Chang.

Children enter the world of the Chinese dragon here, very different from the European dragon tradition that many may already be aware of.  Jin Jin hatches from an egg and is not sure what type of creature he is.  As he meets different animals, he finds he has much in common with them.  He has the scales of a fish, the claws of an eagle, the body of a snake.  In order to find out what he really is, he journeys to see Old Turtle and Crane who should be able to help him.  On the way readers get a taste of Chinese lettering as well as Chinese culture.  Finally, when he reaches his destination, Jin Jin fully understands what being a dragon is all about.

Lovingly written and illustrated by siblings, this book is a glimpse into another culture where dragons are kind, curious and enchanting.  Both the text of the novel and the illustrations are more personal than most books, something that contributes to its authenticity.  The book has the feel of a traditional picture book while still being modern and accessible. 

Recommended for children to understand a different type of dragon and learn about another culture.  This is perfect to use for Chinese New Year, but should not be limited to that.  Appropriate for younger elementary children ages 6-8.

Emily’s Tiger by Miriam Latimer

Emily doesn’t want her hair cut, doesn’t want to eat her carrots and is really angry when she doesn’t get to be the clown’s assistant at a birthday party.  And when Emily gets angry, she turns into a real tiger.  Roar, teeth and all.  It takes her wise grandmother who also has a temper of her own to teach Emily how to tame her inner tiger. 

The strength of this book is in the analogy of anger with being a tiger and being out of control.  Any of us with bad tempers (and I am definitely included in that group) completely understand that tempers not only flare but sometimes go beyond that and we turn into something entirely different.  Children will really relate to this comparison and will see that they are not alone.  I also appreciated the fact that Emily does not give up her tiger side.  Instead she tames it and learns to control it.

The art in the book fully supports the analogy as well, as the tiger Emily bounds across the pages, roars directly at the reader, and generally behaves badly.  Equally as powerful are the images where Emily is controlling herself but still enjoying being a tiger. 

Recommended for all children, not only those who roar.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

The Best Story by Eileen Spinelli, illustrations by Anne Wilsdorf.

The Red Brick Library was having a contest for writing the best story.  So the main character heads home and asks her various family members what makes a story the best.  She incorporates each idea, including lots of action, humor, and romance.  She ends up with a jumbled story, until her mother tells her the the best story is the one that comes from the author’s heart.  She sits down and writes a completely new story about the things she loves, and no longer worries about whether she will win the contest or not because she is so proud of her story.

Spinelli has created a book that really talks to children about how books are written and how stories are created.  She accomplishes this without being didactic at all, instead using humor to make her point.  Wilsdorf’s cartoony illustrations also help set the tone of lightness in the book, filled with manic action and bright colors.  The final point that writers must write what they know and love is powerfully done, but not too much so.  The end nicely balances with the rest of the book.

Recommended for writing units in elementary school and for sharing in story times.  It might also be an interesting book to pair with an author visit and lead children to ask questions about the process of writing. 

I Am a Dancer by Pat Lowery Collins, illustrations by Mark Graham.

Collins has created a poem here that dances, springs, swirls and entrances.  Her words capturing movement and dance echo, offering inspiration to children and insight into the meaning of being a dancer.  Here is one stanza that grabbed my attention:

I am a dancer to the

steady drip-blip of rain,

the whisper of trees,

music carried on the air.

What a magical way to bring poetry and symbolism to children.  Using things that they see and hear every day, but making it deeper and stronger and adding meaning.

Graham has created paintings to go with the poem that also dance and move.  For me, the most spectacular is the autumn double-spread where the glory of golden autumn days is captured. 

This enchanting picture book works perfectly.  Highly recommended for children age 4-7.

The Vowel Family: a Tale of Lost Letters by Sally M. Walker, illustrations by Kevin Luthardt.

As Pm and Sm Vwl start their married life together they realize that something is missing.  Vowels!  When their twins Alan and Ellen were born, suddenly A and E entered their speech too.  But something was still missing.  The second set of twins, Iris and Otto, added I and O. But it isn’t until Ursula was born and Aunt Cyndy is around that words suddenly work.

This book must be read aloud (but don’t attempt it in front of a group without some prep time) to get the humor of the missing vowels.  Reading the first few pages is confusing and funny.  Just try to figure out how to pronounce the sentence, "Tlkng s vr hrd." 

Walker’s text adds to the fun and eventually bounces along merrily once vowels enter the picture.  She has selected words that can be pronounced with difficulty and to a certain extent can even be decoded and understood.  Luthardt’s illustrations add to the silliness of the book.  Children will immediately see the humor of the situation, will love hearing a reader stumble over nonsense words, and will even learn something in the process.

Recommended for young readers age 5-7 who will enjoy the joke most of all.