Books by Topic

Title: Flash and Gleam Author: Sue Fliess Illustrator: Khoa Le Publisher: Millbrook Press, 2020 Book Type: STEM, Multicultural Ages: 2-6 Opening Lines: Lights / Rise / Open eyes Reach/ Low / Nurture, grow Synopsis: The soft glow of a candle, the blink of a firefly, a burst of fireworks―light is everywhere in our world! Rhyming… Read more »

A very belated Happy New Year! I’ve been away too long from the blog and all of you. Lots going on. My debut picture book was announced last fall. You can find out about it here. I am doubly-excited to share today’s book. First, I absolutely adored their first collaboration, BEAUTIFUL. The colors, the energy… Read more »

Diwali is coming up on November 7th this year. We tell our kids Diwali is big like Christmas is here in America. I personally haven’t celebrated Diwali in India but I hear it’s quite amazing. This lovely board book is a wonderful introduction for those new to the holiday and those who already celebrate it…. Read more »

I am excited to be featuring Hannah Holt’s debut picture book. Hannah and I met years ago through the 12×12 Picture Book group. And became closer over the years as our writing journey took twists and turns. Now on my family trips to Portland, Oregon we make a point to meet-up. Hope you enjoy the… Read more »

I am so excited to tell you about this wonderful book by debut author Margaret Greanias. This is extra special since Margaret has been my critique partner and friend since 2011! I saw this book in its nascent forms and to see it today with sparkling text and colorful pictures– I’m in awe. <3 Come… Read more »

Title: How to Code a Sandcastle Author: Josh Funk Illustrator: Sara Palacios Publisher: Viking Books, 2018 Editor: Kendra Levin and Leila Sales Book Type: Fiction Ages: 4-8 Theme: Coding, Persistence Excerpt: There must be a coding trick I can use. Aha! a LOOP! When you need to repeat something in code, you can use a LOOP!… Read more »

Title: Room In Your Heart Author: Kunzang Choden Illustrator: Pema Tshering Publisher:  Kitaabworld, March 27, 2018 Book Type: Fiction Ages: 4-7 Theme: Kindness, Generosity Opening Lines: To the east of Thimphu and west of Trongsa, somewhere among the mountains high, lived an old woman in a little house. A gray cat, a yellow dog and a brown speckled… Read more »

The Indian holiday of Holi is coming up next week, March 1 & 2, 2018 so it seemed appropriate to review this wonderful new picture book which introduces the holiday that will appeal to both newcomers to the holiday and those already familiar. Title: Festival of Colors Author: Kabir Sehgal & Surishtha Sehgal (check out the interview… Read more »

I’m so excited to share this lovely book. It seemed like the perfect choice since Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) week is coming up February 11-17, 2018.    Title: Be Kind Author: Pat Zietlow Miller Illustrator: Jenn Hill Publisher:  Roaring Brook Press, 2018 Editor: Connie Hsu Book Type: Fiction Ages: 4-8 Theme: Kindness Excerpt: What does it mean to… Read more »

Title: Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years Author: Stacy McAnulty Illustrator: David Litchfield Publisher: Henry Holt, 2018 Editor: Sally Doherty Book Type: Fiction Ages: 4-8 Theme: Earth, Space Opening Lines: Hi! My name is Earth. Some people call me Gaia, the World, the blue marble, or the third planet from the sun. You can call me Planet Awesome. Synopsis (from Amazon website):… Read more »