The House In The Night - Susan Marie Swanson (2008)

                                      (Caldecott Medal - 2009)

       Have you ever held the key to a magical night, that just goes endless in an enchanted way? If no, hold this book and you can get a peek of that night.

Key To A Magic Portal

       It all starts with a child, being handed the key to a house. The house, where a light burns. In the light's warmth, there lies a bed. On the bed, there is a book, which pictures a bird. In the soul of the bird, a song is playing, about the dark. In the dark, the moon is glowing with the lights from sun.


The Day-Glo Brothers - Chris Barton (2009)


              Fluorescence is not just about colors. It's a science. Every scientific invention blooms up over the imagination and toil of its inventor. And, this book paints the (extra) colorful story of the inventors of fluorescence, Bob and Joe Switzer.

A Glo(w)rious story

             Bob and Joe Switzer are two 'Chalk and Cheese' brothers, who has different abilities and different ambitions. Bob is a hard worker, who aspires to become a doctor. Joe practises to become a top-notch magician and he possesses a knack for speed and unique problem-solving methods.

Green - Laura Vaccaro Seeger (2012)

         (Caldecott Honor - 2013)


         Emerald? Shamrock? Mint? Basil? Any kind of green is a green. And, that is the very concept of this book, illustrated with various kinds of green in various environments, in each two-page spreads.

A Green Album
       
          What is that luscious colour that covers the top of a forest? It is forest green. And, what about the color of a sea turtle, that swims swiftly underwater? Yes, sea green. When the green color extends all the way into foods, we get lime green and pea green. Explore more green with jungle, khaki and fern greens. Is that it? No.

Andrew Drew And Drew - Barney Saltzberg (2012)


          Noodling or doodling, anything can start an art for Andrew. But, the pages in this book show only some scribbles. So, where do his imaginative illustrations are hiding? Well, maybe, under those surprising flaps.

An Art Journey

        Andrew was a doodle boy. Andrew drew and drew and drew. He drew stairs and a mighty dinosaur emerged out of it. (The normal page spread of the book shows only the stairs. Open the side flaps to see that stairs extend into the scales of the double-page sized dinosaur). He just started a line, but ended up with a rocket-y kite and clouds.
    

Periodic Table : Elements With Style - Simon Basher & Adrian Dingle (2007)


           "I am deadly serious"; that is how the periodic table element Plutonium introduces itself, in this book. And, that is only a very small preview of fun-info combo in this book.

Fun-chemist

           The periodic table, developed by chemist Dmitri Mendeleev, is a tabular arrangement of all the chemical elements. The elements are classified into groups, as alkali metals, alkali-earth metals, the boron elements etc., based on their properties.

The Dark - Lemony Snicket (2013)

         Fear of darkness starts from  the absence of en(light)enment. En(light) darkness and there would be no fear left out.

The 'Dark' Truth

         Laszlo is afraid of the dark. But, the dark is not afraid of him (Yes, meet the other character in this book, the 'personified' dark). The dark lives in the basement of Laszlo's house. Every morning, Laszlo would peek the dark in the basement and say "Hi" (He believes that if he visited the dark, then the dark won't come visit his room and he would be safe).

My Teacher Is A Monster (No, I Am Not) - Peter Brown (2014)


          Monsters are not really out there. It's just our eyes and minds that makes monsters. Here, a boy says that his teacher is a monster. But, what she is, really?

A Monster Problem
       
          Robert (aka Bobby) has one monster problem, his teacher, Ms. Kirby.  She stomps, roars and she is a real monster when Bobby throws airplane in the class. Unfortunately, he meets Ms.Kirby, when he was going to his favorite spot in the park, on a Saturday.

The Umbrella - Jan Brett (2004)

        Lush rainforests are quite a sight to see. Don't worry, if you can't see one up close. Open this book and you will be right there.

An Animal Safari

        A boy (Carlos) walks into cloud forest, with his umbrella (Not just any ordinary umbrella, it's a picturesque umbrella, with a sturdy, curvy wooden stem adjoined with stitched huge green leaves). Carlos climbs up a tree, leaving his umbrella down, in the hope of seeing the animals.

Hello, Red Fox - Eric Carle (1998)

           Are you wondering why is there a green fox starring in the book cover, while the book is titled as "Hello, Red Fox"? Well, there lies the magic of Eric Carle.

Turn the color wheel

         It is the time for little frog's birthday party. He has invited Red Fox, Purple butterfly, Orange Cat, Green Snake and some other friends of yellow, blue and white color.  But, wait, what happened? Every guest is not in their original color.

Wabi Sabi - Mark Reibstein (2008)



 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature (Picture Books) - 2009 


        Is it the heart? Or, the eyes? Which sees beauty? The ancient tradition of Japan, Wabi Sabi, (rooted from Chinese origin) can give a perfect answer to this question. Wabi Sabi is an aesthetic Japanese tradition, where the heart sees the beauty in simple, modest and imperfect things.