Fiction

I Do Not Like Books Anymore!

By Daisy Hirst
Call Number: PIC HIR
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Natalie and Alphonse REALLY like books. Picture books with Dad, scary stories with Mom, and especially stories they remember or make up themselves. So when it’s time for Natalie to learn to read, she thinks it will be exciting — she can have all the stories in the world now, and even read them to Alphonse. But when Natalie gets her first reading book, the letters look like squiggles and it isn’t even a good story; it’s just about a cat that can sit. “I do not like books anymore!” Natalie declares. But she still wants to make up stories. With Alphonse’s help, can she find a way to turn a love of telling stories into a love of reading stories?

Winter is Here

By Kevin Henkes
Call Number: PIC HEN / Winter
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Snow falls, animals burrow, and children prepare for the wonders winter brings. Caldecott Medalist and award-winning author Kevin Henkes’s striking text introduces basic concepts of language and the unique beauty of the winter season. Laura Dronzek’s expressive paintings beautifully capture the joyful wonders of winter.

Carmela: Full of Wishes

By Matt De La Pena
Call Number: PIC DEL
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When Carmela wakes up on her birthday, her wish has already come true–she’s finally old enough to join her big brother as he does the family errands. Together, they travel through their neighborhood, past the crowded bus stop, the fenced-off repair shop, and the panadería, until they arrive at the Laundromat, where Carmela finds a lone dandelion growing in the pavement. But before she can blow its white fluff away, her brother tells her she has to make a wish. If only she can think of just the right wish to make . . .

Space Cows

By Eric Seltzer
Call Number: PIC SEL
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Space cows fly high. Space cows fly low.
Space cows dance three in a row.
Space cows are green. Space cows are blue.
Some of them quack (but most of them moo)!

Read all about space cows in this book for beginning readers who like to giggle!

Nonfiction

Sun! One in a Billion

By Stacy McAnulty
Call Number: QB 521.5 .M39 2018
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Meet Sun: He’s a star! And not just any star―he’s one in a billion. He lights up our solar system and makes life possible. With characteristic humor and charm, Stacy McAnulty channels the voice of Sun in this next celestial “autobiography.”

Polka Dot Parade: A Book about Bill Cunningham

By Deborah Blumenthal
Call Number: TR140.C778 B58 2018
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Every day, Bill Cunningham pedaled his bike through New York City searching for beauty. As he took picture after picture, Bill found beauty not in people, but in their clothes. Drawn to bold and creative choices, Bill’s photos captured the attention of the New York Times. He traveled to Paris for Fashion Week, and admiration for his work grew. With his sense of creativity and daringness, his own personal style of photography came to be known as street art photography. His photos left a lasting impression on all those who came across his work and they continue to inspire creativity today.

Dreamers

By Yuyi Morales
Call Number: E 184 .M5 M67 2018
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In 1994, Yuyi Morales left her home in Xalapa, Mexico and came to the US with her infant son. She left behind nearly everything she owned, but she didn’t come empty-handed. She brought her strength, her work, her passion, her hopes and dreams…and her stories. Caldecott Honor artist and five-time Pura Belpré winner Yuyi Morales’s gorgeous new picture book Dreamers is about making a home in a new place. Yuyi and her son Kelly’s passage was not easy, and Yuyi spoke no English whatsoever at the time. But together, they found an unexpected, unbelievable place: the public library. There, book by book, they untangled the language of this strange new land, and learned to make their home within it.

Fiction

Thank You, Omu!

By Oge Mora
Call Number: PIC MOR
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Everyone in the neighborhood dreams of a taste of Omu’s delicious stew! One by one, they follow their noses toward the scrumptious scent. And one by one, Omu offers a portion of her meal. Soon the pot is empty. Has she been so generous that she has nothing left for herself?

The Boy Who Went to Mars

By Simon James
Call Number: PIC JAM
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On the day that Stanley’s mom takes a work trip overnight, Stanley decides to leave planet Earth. But when his spaceship touches down again in the backyard, a young martian crawls out, proclaiming to Stanley’s dad that residents of Mars don’t wash before dinner, eat their vegetables, or brush their teeth. It just so happens that martians tend to act out in school, too. . . . With whimsy and sympathy for a familiar dilemma, Simon James ushers us into the coping fantasies of an imaginative, sensitive kid — and shares the pleasure of his sheepish reunion with a most accepting family.

Kitten and the Night Watchman

By John Sullivan
Call Number: PIC SUL
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The night watchman hugs his wife and kids and drives to work.
All night he is alone.
Every hour he makes his rounds.

When he is joined by a stray kitten, the night suddenly seems different. Has the kitten found a new home? Kitten and the Night Watchman is inspired by the true story of author John Sullivan meeting a stray cat while working as a night watchman. The cat, Beebe, was John’s companion for seventeen years.

Giraffe Problems

By Jory John
Call Number: PIC JOH
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Edward the giraffe can’t understand why his neck is as long and bendy and, well, ridiculous as it is. No other animal has a neck this absurd. He’s tried disguising it, dressing it up, strategically hiding it behind bushes–honestly, anything you can think of, he’s tried. Just when he has exhausted his neck-hiding options and is about to throw in the towel, a turtle swoops in (well, ambles in, very slowly) and helps him understand that his neck has a purpose, and looks excellent in a bow tie.

Nonfiction

Tadpole to Frog: National Geographic Readers

By Shira Evans
Call Number: QL 668 .E2 E83 2018
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Learn all about how animals grow and change in this leveled Co-reader, perfect for parents and kids to read together. Through vibrant, adorable images and expert-vetted text, you’ll glimpse some of the most amazing metamorphoses in the natural world. Kids will see a tadpole transform into a frog, watch a caterpillar become a butterfly, and learn how a nymph becomes a dragonfly.

Cute as an Axolotl: Discovering the World’s Most Adorable Animals

By Jess Keating
Call Number: QL 49 .K347 2018
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The Internet pretty much runs on cute animal photos, but “cute” is so much more than clickbait kittens and insta-pups. Cute is for feathery-gilled axolotls (pronounced: ax-uh-LOT-ulz), shy pygmy hippos, poisonous blue dragons, and armored pangolins. All of these animals are cute, but they’ve also adapted remarkable ways to survive in their unique environments.

Inky’s Amazing Escape: How A Very Smart Octopus Found His Way Home

By Sy Montgomery
Call Number: QL 430.3 .O2 M65 2018
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Inky had been at the New Zealand aquarium since 2014 after being taken in by a fisherman who found him at sea. Inky had been getting used to his new environment, but the staff quickly figured out that he had to be kept amused or he would get bored. Then one night in 2016 Inky, about the size of a basketball, decided he’d had enough. He slithered eight feet across the floor and down a drainpipe more than 160 feet long to his home in the sea.

 

There’s a Hole in the Log on the Bottom of the Lake

By Loren Long
Call Number: PZ 8.3 .L8513 The 2018
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A cumulative text featuring repetition and tongue-twisters combine with gorgeous illustrations from New York Times bestselling illustrator Loren Long for a book kids will clamor for at storytime. Endpapers include sheet music and lyrics for kids and parents to have their own singalong!

Adrian Simcox Does NOT Have a Horse

By Marcy Campbell
Call Number: PIC CAM
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Adrian Simcox tells anyone who will listen that he has a horse–the best and most beautiful horse anywhere. But Chloe does NOT believe him. Adrian Simcox lives in a tiny house. Where would he keep a horse? He has holes in his shoes. How would he pay for a horse? The more Adrian talks about his horse, the angrier Chloe gets. But when she calls him out at school and even complains about him to her mom, Chloe doesn’t get the vindication she craves. She gets something far more important.

Can You Find Pup?

By Vincent X Kirsch
Call Number: PIC KIR
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Tate likes to draw. He draws 10 cats on the couch, 10 bugs in the garden, and 10 birds in the park. Pup, who craves attention, is never in Tate’s pictures. Pup is very upset, so he runs away to join the circus. Tate misses Pup and draws many, many pictures of the dog to hang all over town. Tate and Pup reunite, and now Tate will always remember to draw Pup.

Wild Orca: The Oldest, Wisest Whale in the World

By Brenda Peterson
Call Number: PIC PET
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Told from the perspective of young Mia and her family on a whale-watching excursion in the San Juan Islands, here is a moving homage to Granny, the world’s oldest known orca. This intimate and informative story celebrates the importance of respecting and protecting wildlife. It also sheds light on communication and family connections in both human and orca communities, all while answering essential questions about how these intelligent animals live.

The Sun Is Kind of a Big Deal

By Nick Seluk
Call Number: QB 524 .S45 2018
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Oh hey, guess what? The Sun never stops working to keep things on Earth running smoothly. (That’s why it’s been Employee of the Month for 4.5 billion years.) So why does the Sun get to be the center of attention? Because it’s our solar system’s very own star!

Stop That Yawn

By Caron Levis
Call Number: PIC LEV
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Gabby Wild has had enough of bedtime. Yawn, curl, snuggle, snore—what a bore! So instead of tucking in, she jets out—with poor Granny in tow—to a place where beds are for bouncing, hushes are shushed, and it’s never too late for ice cream. But sometimes, even when you grit your teeth and seal your lips, it’s impossible to stop that…YAWN! There’s a yawn on the loose! Can Gabby stop that yawn from spreading the snooze, or will it be lights out for Never Sleeping City?

Our Celebración

By Susan Middleton Elya
Call Number: PIC ELY
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Come join the crowd headed for a summer celebración! Marvel at the people riding motociclos, bicycles, triciclos, and unicycles. Duck out of the way as firefighters spray water everywhere. Clap to the music as people playing clarinetes, saxophones, trompetas, and drums march by. Feast on lemonade, watermelon, tacos, and helado. Take cover when a brief rain shower comes, and then as night falls–big sorpresas. Pop, pop, pop! ¡Bón, bón, bón!

Fiction

 

The Rough Patch

By Brian Lies
Call Number: PIC LIE
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Evan and his dog do everything together, from eating ice cream to caring for their award-winning garden, which grows big and beautiful. One day the unthinkable happens: Evan’s dog dies. Heartbroken, Evan destroys the garden and everything in it. The ground becomes overgrown with prickles and thorns, and Evan embraces the chaos. But beauty grows in the darkest of places, and when a twisting vine turns into an immense pumpkin, Evan is drawn out of his misery and back to the county fair, where friendships—old and new—await.

The Wall in the Middle of the Book

By Jon Agee
Call Number: PIC AGE
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There’s a wall in the middle of the book, and our hero–a young knight–is sure that the wall protects his side of the book from the dangers of the other side–like an angry tiger and giant rhino, and worst of all, an ogre who would gobble him up in a second! But our knight doesn’t seem to notice the crocodile and growing sea of water that are emerging on his side. When he’s almost over his head and calling for help, who will come to his rescue? An individual who isn’t as dangerous as the knight thought–from a side of the book that might just have some positive things to offer after all!

Hungry Bunny

By Claudia Rueda
Call Number: PIC RUE
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It’s fall, which means it’s the perfect time for mama’s apple pie. The only problem? These apples are hard to reach! But Bunny has some ideas. Young readers will delight in using the red ribbon to help Bunny reach new heights and pick those tasty apples. But the fun doesn’t end there!

See Pip Flap: The Adventures of Otto

By David Milgrim
Call Number: PIC MIL
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See Tweet fly. Fly, Tweet, fly. Pip wants to fly too—flap, flap, flap! Can Otto help Pip find a way to soar in the sky? This Pre-level 1 Ready-to-Read with bright illustrations and minimal text is perfect for the true emergent reader.

Mapping Sam

By Joyce Hesselberth
Call Number: PIC HES
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Maps can show us streets and subways and cities and countries. But they can also show us what we can’t see, what we can only imagine, or how to build something. In Joyce Hesselberth’s Mapping Sam, Sam the cat puts her family to bed, and then—when all is quiet—heads out to explore her neighborhood. As Sam follows her customary path, wandering farther and farther away from home, readers encounter different kinds of maps illuminating different points of view and the various spots Sam visits. Finally, when Sam reaches her favorite place and confirms that all is well, she heads back home, climbs onto a cozy bed, and falls asleep.

Non-Fiction

Earthrise: Apollo 8 and the Photo That Changed the World

By James Gladstone
Call Number: QB637 .G54 2018
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This important and timely picture book is publishing to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 8 mission, telling the story behind the photograph, both inside the spaceship and back on Earth. Text includes dialogue pulled from NASA’s Apollo 8 transcript, drawing readers into the iconic moment Earth was photographed from space. An author’s note at the end explains more about the photograph, the Apollo 8 mission, and how Earthrise went on to inspire Earth Day.

Now You Know How It Works

By Valorie Fisher
Call Number: T48 .F52275 2018
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Valorie Fisher takes infographics to a new level with bright, colorful visuals that are perfect for young, inquisitive minds. Her eye-catching mix of photographs and illustrations compels readers to dive in and explore how things work — from paper airplanes to straws, crayons to kites, pencils to boats.

Fiction

A Big Mooncake for Little Star

By Grace Lin
Call Number: PIC LIN
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Little Star loves the delicious Mooncake that she bakes with her mama. But she’s not supposed to eat any yet! What happens when she can’t resist a nibble?

How to Be a T. Rex

By Ryan North
Call Number: PIC NOR
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Being a regular old human is kind of a drag. That’s why Sal is not going to be a teacher or doctor or lawyer when she grows up. She is going to grow up to be an awesome Tyrannosaurus Rex. Her brother thinks it’s impossible, but Sal sure shows him! And in the beginning, being a T. Rex is AWESOME. But did you know that it’s kind of hard to make friends when you are a super-giant, super-loud, super-stompy dinosaur? If only there were a way for Sal to be 100% awesome, 100% of the time…

The Day You Begin

By Jaqueline Woodson
Call Number: PIC WOO
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There are many reasons to feel different. Maybe it’s how you look or talk, or where you’re from; maybe it’s what you eat, or something just as random. It’s not easy to take those first steps into a place where nobody really knows you yet, but somehow you do it.

Do You Believe in Unicorns?

By Bethanie Murguia
Call Number: PIC MUR
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Is that a horse wearing a hat? It’s definitely not a unicorn in disguise — that would be ridiculous, right? It’s probably just a horse that’s having a bad hair day. Or trying to keep the sun out of its eyes. Or perhaps this horse just really likes hats! If you follow it long enough, maybe it will take off its hat and you’ll finally know for sure. Or will you? It’s all a matter of perspective in this cheerful, cheeky story about seeing magic in the everyday.

How to Knit a Monster

By Annemarie van Haeringen
Call Number: PIC HAE
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Greta the goat is a wonderfully accomplished knitter. She can even knit little goats and turn them loose to play around her feet. But when she gets distracted from her knitting, threatening creatures spring from her needles, each more menacing than the last. It takes quick thinking, courage, and brilliant knitting for Greta to find her way out of a perilous situation.

The Crocodile and the Dentist

By Taro Gomi
Call Number: PIC BER
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Oh, it’s time to go to the dentist! Crocodile has a toothache, but he’s afraid of the dentist. The dentist wants to help, but he’s afraid of Crocodile. Never fear! Bestselling author-illustrator Taro Gomi cleverly and humorously presents both sides of the story, as the crocodile and the dentist learn to be brave and face their fears—of what might happen in that dentist’s chair and of each other!

Douglas, You’re A Genius!

By Ged Adamson
Call Number: PIC ADA
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Pals Nancy and Douglas think their baseball game is over after their ball rolls through a hole in the fence. But when the ball rolls back, followed by a note in an unfamiliar language, they have to discover who’s on the other side of the fence. And so in a series of truly outrageous–and hilarious–stunts, Nancy tries to launch, vault, and fly Douglas over to the other side to see what’s what. Finally, after all Nancy’s plans fail, Douglas gets his turn to execute a plan–and it works!

I Just Ate My Friend

By Heidi McKinnon
Call Number: PIC MCK
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A little creature is looking for a new friend, but he’s not having any luck. Why is he looking for a new friend, you ask? Because he ate his old one! Heidi McKinnon delivers a hilariously macabre story with colorful illustrations and a satisfying, dry wit.

Henry and the Yeti

By Russell Ayto
Call Number: PIC AYT
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Henry loves yetis. Yes, yetis. The problem is nobody knows if yetis actually exist. Henry, however, is sure they do, and he sets off on an expedition to find one. He has packed everything he needs, including a camera to take photos for evidence. But can he find a yeti? And will anyone believe him when he returns home?

Little Whale

By Jo Weaver
Call Number: PIC WEA
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Together, Little Whale and Gray Whale swim under midnight skies and through coral reefs teeming with life as they migrate to the cool, rich waters of the north to feed. Gray Whale gently guides her baby along the way, keeping Little Whale safe from passing ships and dangerous predators. At long last, the echo of a whale song calls to them through icy water and they know . . . they are home.

Non-Fiction

Saving Fiona: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Baby Hippo

By Thane Maynard
Call Number: QL737 .U57 M39 2018
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The amazing, true story of Fiona, a baby hippo born prematurely at the Cincinnati Zoo, the team of scientists and caregivers who nursed her to health, and the vast community in Cincinnati and beyond who rallied around her. Includes full-color behind-the-scenes photographs throughout.

Mama Dug a Little Den

By Jennifer Ward and Steve Jenkins
Call Number: QL756 .W37 2018
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There are so many different kinds of dens that mother animals make for their babies, from desert burrows to snow caves to elaborate underground tunnels. Jennifer Ward introduces young readers to all sorts of animals and the cozy burrows they call home in this bouncy, rhyming picture book, illustrated by Caldecott Honoree Steve Jenkins.