Welcome Precious by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Bryan Collier.
This picture book features one of Nikki Grimes’ incredible poems.  Her words are always a magical combination of reality and metaphor.  In this poem, a baby is being welcomed into the world, a world of rainbows, warmth, sun, moon, and kisses.  Collier’s paintings are equally as magical as he matches the wonder of the poetry page by page. 
Give this one as a baby gift.  It encapsulates all you would wish for a new baby to have.  It can also be shared as a first picture book, though the parents will love it most. 

Dear Mr. Rosenwald by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie is the story of Ovella’s one-room schoolhouse and the community’s effort to build a new school for African-American children.  The community must raise money for the school and then Mr. Rosenwald, president of Sears, Roebuck & Co will match those funds.  The book demonstrates the struggle of a poor community to raise funds, the joy of accomplishment, and the wonder of a new school and learning.  This picture book is done in verse with each two-page spread a combination of poem and picture.  The book is well executed with the illustration and poetry enhancing one another.  The illustrations have the feel of folk art, evocative of the effort and community that it took to build this school. 
This is a picture book for older children and a very important one.  It speaks both to the power of community and to the wealth of generosity.  Modern day children need to understand the history of African American poverty and lack of schooling.  Share this in an African-American history unit, a unit on schools or just to share a moment in history with children.  Children aged 3rd grade and up will enjoy it most.

Bats at the Beach by Brian Lies.
This is my new favorite beach read-aloud.  The bats discover that the moon is perfect to head to the beach, so they all grab their towels, books, buckets, shovels, and more to have the perfect beach party.  But the author does not forget that these are bats, not people, so the bats’ party is uniquely batty with bat treats and bat games.  And his illustrations add additional depth to the story through their luminous yet definitely nighttime perfection.  My favorite illustration is the bat who has tested the water when they first arrive.  I don’t think I can imagine a bat looking more chilled with a grimace on his face and his wings tightly wrapped around him.  It has a great rhyme pattern that makes it easy to read, but the author is also not afraid to use wonderful words that children may not know like embers, slender, weary, and crevice.  What a lovely way to learn new words. 
This is a must-read and a must-have for beachy story times, but share it with kids interested in bats.  It also makes the perfect bedtime story as it ends with the bats all curled up together as morning breaks. 

Mrs. Crump’s Cat by Linda Smith, illustrated by David Roberts.
Mrs. Crump is a rather grumpy, older woman who lives by herself.  But her life changes when a cat insists on entering her house and staying.  She finds herself buying cream for the cat, even though the grocer warns her not to feed it.  And on her walk back home, it somehow seems shorter.  Each day, Mrs. Crump tries to put the cat out, but then something makes her reconsider.  As the days pass, she gets happier and more friendly.  When she puts up the missing cat flyer to see if the cat belongs to anyone, she describes the cat in very unique terms.  No one claims the cat, so Mrs. Crump has very little choice but to happily live with it.
I enjoyed this more than other unwanted cat stories, because the cat does nothing but simply be a cat.  It is not sneaking back in after being thrown out or making a pest of itself.  It simply is there wanting to be fed, happy to be petted, looking for a warm lap.  Recommend this one to cat lovers.  It is a nice length to share with Kindergarteners or first graders in a cat storytime. 

Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw tale of friendship and freedom by Tim Tingle, illustrated by Jeanne Rorex Bridges.
Martha Tom, a young Choctaw girl, crosses the Bok Chitto River even though she has been told not to.  There she finds a slave church service out in the forest.  Martha makes friends with Little Mo, a young slave who returns her safely to the other side of the river after slowly and silently passing right under the noses of the Master and his family.  Then it is Little Mo’s turn to see the Choctaw people doing a wedding ceremony.  The two children cross back and forth, learning more about each other’s cultures.  But then comes the day when Little Mo’s mother is sold away.  The only solution is for them to escape.  It is his friendship with Martha Tom that will save their family.
This book is gorgeously illustrated, winningly written, and will sound a chord with most people.  The use of faith and song to tie two cultures together is done lovingly and with great respect for both.  This is one to hand to families looking for a deep, moving story whatever their faith or background.  Simply lovely.

Sigh. After casting around for an image of the great cover of this book, I give up. I present you a review with no accompanying cover, but know that it is quite a nice cover, especially considering this is historical fiction and those covers are so often not reflective of the actual story.
Desperate Journey by Jim Murphy.
This work of children’s fiction is written by that amazing author of children’s nonfiction, Jim Murphy. With this book, he proves that he is just as good at fiction as nonfiction. 12-year-old Maggie lives on a boat on the Erie Canal along with her father, mother, younger brother and uncle. Life on the canal is hard and lonely as the mules that pull the boat must be worked with, people who live on land not accepting their roaming way of life, and the constant motion of moving from place to place with cargo. Maggie’s father is known all along the canal as a man who is not afraid to fight but who only fights to right a wrong. Last year, her father fought Longfingered John and lost hundreds of dollars. Now the family is hurrying to their next port to get a bonus that will let them keep their boat. But when they stop along the way, Maggie’s father is accused of assaulting a man and beating him almost to death. Maggie’s uncle is accused as well.
With her father and uncle dragged off to jail, Maggie and her brother find themselves alone on the river with their ailing mother trying desperately to reach their next port to claim the bonus and then rush back down the canal for the trial.
This book is gripping. The constant pressure the family lives under as well as the roughness that surrounds them is daunting, but Maggie and her family continue to do the right thing and fight against the adversity they find themselves in. Maggie is a strong female character who manages to not lose her feminity while she does the work of a grown man. The characterizations of the family are three dimensional and well done. Only the villains of the story are two-dimensional and that is to be expected because that is how Maggie herself views them. I especially enjoyed the character of Billy Black, an unlikely hero in the story. The historical aspects of the book are vividly written and the small details woven into the story create a whole that is realistic.
Recommend this book to teachers to read aloud for historical fiction. Also recommend to young readers who enjoy survival stories and history.

The Dream-Maker’s Magic by Sharon Shinn is the third book in a series that started with The Safe-Keeper’s Secret.  Each book in the series is set in the same kingdom, but focus on different characters.  This book is about Kellen, a girl who is raised as a boy because her mother insists that she gave birth to a boy rather than a girl.  When Kellen starts school, she meets Gryffin, a very intelligent boy whose legs are damaged so that he walks with canes.  They are both outcasts of the village because of their differences, and they become fast friends.  Through the years, they meet a variety of characters as they work in bed and breakfasts and a bustling inn.  Their friendship is just starting to turn into something else when Gryffin’s life changes forever and he must leave their village for the capital city. 
If you enjoyed the previous two books in the series this one is just for you.  Though it features the stories of Kellen and Gryffin, readers get to see many of the other people of the realm.  Written in Shinn’s clean language the writing allows readers to completely embrace the magic within the story.  Recommend this to teens who enjoy either romance or fantasy.  The magical parts of the story are subtle, rather than wizards and zinging spells, which is part of the charm of the series as a whole.

Ouch! by Ragnhild Scamell, illustrated by Michael Terry.
Hedgehog has just finished creating the perfect nest to hibernate in, but as she stands back to admire it, an apple falls from the tree above her an lodges itself in her spikes.   Now she can’t fit into her snug nest anymore.  She asks Squirrel to help her, but when he tugs on the apple, three nuts get stuck along with the apple.  Hedgehog goes from one animal friend to anther asking for help and each time ends up with more and more things stuck to her back.  It isn’t until she asks Goat for help that the situation is resolved.
This book is great fun for kids.  It is the perfect length for preschool storytimes and will get kids giggling along at Hedgehog’s obvious dismay as each new item adds to her burden.  I can see this being a great addition to autumn storytimes.  It reads aloud well and there are plenty of character voices to add to the fun.  Share this one with a group or in your own snug nest at home.

Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters by Lesly M. M. Blume.
This book is a charmer of a story.  It is the story of lonely, 11-year-old Cornelia, who finds it hard to make friends, hides behind her large vocabulary, and has an impossible relationship with her famous pianist mother.  As Cornelia grows lonelier and lonelier, she meets her new next-door neighbor who happens to be Virginia Somerset, one of the four famous Somerset sisters who traveled the world together.  In Virginia Cornelia finds a kindred spirit who listens to her, understands her and tells incredible stories.  Cornelia begins spending lots of time in Virginia’s apartment where each room has been redone to reflect a country she traveled to and with each visit, Cornelia hears a wonderful story or two.  By the end of the book, Cornelia has found herself changed and her mother as well. 
I often don’t like framed stories, because they are a little too neatly done and the stories mesh too well.  In this book though, the stories Virginia tells are wonderfully fresh and fun.  Readers will feel their own spirits rise along with Cornelia’s.  Cornelia is a shy, lonely child whom readers will also respond to.  She makes a great foil through which to see the gusto and verve that the Somerset sisters had in their lives. 
This would be a good readaloud for classes interested in women’s history or history in general.  Recommend it to any reader who enjoys history or girls having adventures.