Children's Books for Parents and Teachers - book reviews and suggestions for parents and teachers.
Fiction

Fiction is story telling. More specifically, fiction is an imaginative form of narrative, one of the four basic rhetorical modes. Works of fiction need not be entirely imaginary and may include real people, places, and events. Fiction is largely perceived as a form of art and/or entertainment. The ability to create fiction and other artistic works is considered to be a fundamental aspect of human culture, one of the defining characteristics of humanity.

Party Animals
By: Kathie Lee Gifford
Publisher: Running Press Book Publishers

Lucy Goosy is carefully reviewing her list of animals to invite for her birthday party. She has to make sure to invite the right guests so that her party will be perfect. But when she focuses on everyone’s bad qualities, instead of good, she discovers that there is no one to attend! With a little help from the Wise Owl, Lucy Goosy discovers it is our special characteristics that make us unique. Written in adorable sing-song rhyme, Kathie Lee Gifford’s new picture book for children teaches us that we are …

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Fancy Nancy: Every Day Is Earth Day
By: Jane O'Connor
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Being green is important to Nancy—so important that she wants her family to take care of the Earth morning, noon, and night!

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The Hundred Dresses
By: Eleanor Estes
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Never out of print since its 1944 publication, this tender story offers readers of all ages a timeless message of compassion and understanding. At its heart is Wanda Petronski, an immigrant girl in an American school, who is ridiculed for wearing the same faded blue dress every day. When she tells her classmates that she has one hundred dresses at home, she unwittingly triggers a game of teasing that eventually ends in a lesson for all.

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Every Year on Your Birthday
By: Rose A. Lewis
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company

In I Love You Like Crazy Cakes, Rose Lewis and Jane Dyer told the heartfelt story of one woman’s adoption a baby girl from China. These sentiments are brought to life again in this touching portrait of birthday celebrations and unforgettable moments between a mother and her little girl: from joyous hugs for a new puppy, to quiet nights gazing at the stars remembering a faraway family. Capturing the richness of both Chinese and American cultures, Every Year on Your Birthday is a poignant tribute to the growing bond of …

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Pigs Make Me Sneeze!
By: Mo Willems
Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children

Mo Willems’ award-winning Elephant and Piggie series continues to charm readers. Featuring two lovable and funny characters — an optimistic (and sometimes reckless) pig and a cautious, pessimistic elephant — these books make reading irresistible to the beginning readers. Children who sat on their parents’ laps to have Pigeon read to them will eagerly take the plunge with these books to start reading on their own.

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Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
By: David Benedictus
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)

It was eighty years ago, on the publication of The House at Pooh Corner, when Christopher Robin said good-bye to Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood. Now they are all back in new adventures, for the first time approved by the Trustees of the Pooh Properties. This is a companion volume that truly captures the style of A. A. Milne-a worthy sequel to The House at Pooh Corner and Winnie-the-Pooh.

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Catching Fire (Hunger Games Series #2)
By: Suzanne Collins
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.

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Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Dog Days (Book #4)
By: Jeff Kinney
Publisher: Abrams,Harry N Inc

It’s summer vacation, the weather’s great, and all the kids are having fun outside. So where’s Greg Heffley? Inside his house, playing video games with the shades drawn.

Greg, a self-confessed “indoor person,” is living out his ultimate summer fantasy: no responsibilities and no rules. But Greg’s mom has a different vision for an ideal summer…one packed with outdoor activities and “family togetherness.”

Whose vision will win out? Or will a new addition to the Heffley family change everything?

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Where’s My Mom?
By: Julia Donaldson
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)

When little monkey can’t find his mother, butterfly offers to help in the search. Little monkey says that his mother is big, so butterfly leads him to . . . an elephant. No, that’s not right! Little monkey says his mom is furry, so butterfly leads him to . . . a bat. That’s not right either. From then on, little monkey and butterfly meet many jungle animals, but they don’t find Mom until little monkey comes up with just the right description.

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Thumbelina
By: Hans Christian Andersen
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)

Thumbelina is content to spend her days rowing in a boat made from a tulip petal and sleeping in a cradle made from a polished walnut shell. Then one horrible night a toad kidnaps her, and she is tossed from one wretched adventure to another.

Will Thumbelina be forced to marry the toad’s son or spend her days deep underground with a rich mole? Only her steadfast kindness and bravery and the help of some loyal friends will lead Thumbelina to true love.

Two-time Caldecott Honor artist Brian Pinkney’s adaptation of the …

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