It is the 4th of July, and a family prepares to go for a picnic. Champ, the family dog, who does not want to miss the celebration, secretly hides inside the food basket. When they arrive at the park, Champ has a feast of his own with other dogs that have arrived with other families. In the end, the family is left without food so the families of the other dogs share their meals; and they all end up celebrating together. Contains an informative section on the Fourth of July.

Champ is seen through the eyes of a likable tomboy, who sets out from her favorite spot by a maple tree and finds herself by the lakeshore. She meets Champ, who turns out to be a very kid-friendly monster, inviting the girl to sit on his head and ride with him through the Vermont countryside. Together, these unlikely friends dash past farms and mills and over covered bridges, meet some cows, eat some maple syrup-covered cheese, and eventually return to the girl’s favorite maple tree.

As Charlie the Caterpillar meets one group of animals after another playing together and having fun, he asks if he can join in. But each time he’s told not welcome — because he’s ugly. As winter approaches, Charlie spins himself a cocoon. When spring arrives, the cocoon opens and out comes Charlie — now a beautiful butterfly. Everyone wants him to be part of their group. But Charlie puts these fair-weather friends properly in their place in this heartwarming story about the meaning of true friendship.

“A told B, / and B told C, / I’ll beat you to the top of the coconut tree.” Rascally A entices the whole alphabet up the tree, but the tree cannot handle the weight. All the lowercase letters come crashing to the ground, “Chicka chicka… BOOM! BOOM!” Uppercase letters rush in to comfort the little ones, and all is well-for a while-in this irresistible alphabet book. Ehlert’s bright, graphic illustrations join the jazzy foot-tapping rhyme. Watch out for that imp, A!

Just in time for the holidays, this beautiful collection of Christmas tales is perfect for the whole family to share. Both original stories and reinventions of the classics, featuring everything from an under-the-weather Rudolph to a boy who can’t make up his mind when writing to Santa Claus, are brought to life with illustrations by some of the most beloved artists in children’s books. Christmas Cheer captures the warmth and excitement of the Christmas season, inviting the family to cozy up around the fire and take time to enjoy the …

This scrumptious follow-up to the bestselling Cookies: Bite-Size Life Lessons captures the spirit of the holiday season. From making the same kind of cookies at the same time each year (tradition) to decorating them with lots of sprinkles (celebrate), youngsters will gobble up vocabulary words and holiday lessons in this charming dictionary of sorts. Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s timeless morsels of wisdom paired with Jane Dyer’s cozy illustrations are as irresistible as the aroma of cookies fresh from the oven. Go ahead, take another bite!

At the outset of this novel, the intrepid Jack and Annie are invited to come to Camelot for Christmas Eve. Without a research book for the first time ever, the two kids set off in the Magic Tree House. No sooner do they arrive at the castle, when a dark knight appears and freezes King Arthur and all his court- including Jack and Annie’s friend Morgan le Fay. Jack and Annie set off to the Otherworld to find the Cauldron of Poetry and imagination, which is the only thing that …

Youngsters can celebrate the 500th anniversary of Columbus’s fateful voyage with this dramatic, easy-to-read account of a pivotal moment in American history.

She was a perfect baby, and she had a perfect name. Chrysanthemum. When she was old enough to appreciate it, Chrysanthemum loved her name. And then she started school. “I’m named after my grandmother,” said Victoria. “You’re named after a flower.” Chrysanthemum wilted. Life at school didn’t improve. In fact, it got worse. Then the students were introduced to their music teacher, Mrs. Twinkle. Mrs. Delphinium Twinkle. And suddenly, Chrysanthemum blossomed….

In this first book of the series, Clementine tries to help out her friend Margaret, but ends up in a lot of trouble for it. Things get worse each day of the week, until finally she’s worried that Margaret is right: Clementine’s parents might consider her “the hard one” in the family. They’re up to something mysterious…are they thinking they’d be better off if they only had her little vegetable-named brother… “the easy one”?