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.

    

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.

Officer Buckle And Gloria - Peggy Rathmann (1995)

                 Caldecott Winner - 1996

         Safety Tip #1 : Never tell a safety tip, without some fun added to it. Well, this book followed this tip to a T, and it is a grand success with kids.

Safe Fun

        Officer Buckle, of Napville town, knows many safety tips. But, safety tips are not fun to hear. So, no student in Napville school listens to the officer's 'safety tip' speech. But, things change, when Officer Buckle brings a new police dog, Gloria, along to his speech.

Jack Frost - William Joyce (2015)

        Snow, ice, sleet, frost... science can have many names for winter phenomenon. But, mythology has one name... Jack Frost. And, here is the tale behind Jack Frost. This book is part of the 'Guardians of Childhood' series.

A tale of cold and warmth


         Jack Frost is one of the guardians of childhood among Santa, Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy. But he has an another life too, a life with the name "Nightlight".

The Adventures of Beekle : The Unimaginary Friend - Dan Santat (2014)

               Caldecott Winner - 2015

     What comes before imagination? All we know is, imagination comes first in mind and then people work on them. But, the author and illustrator, San Dantat has this special imagination, where "imaginations" are waiting for someone to be imagined.

Yet-to-be-befriended

       He is a not-yet-imagined creature (not-yet named too), born in a faraway island, where all imaginary friends of  every "Earthling" kid is born. Day after day, he waits under stars, waiting for a kid to imagine him, along with his fellow island-mates. But his turn doesn't come yet.

It's An Orange Aardvark - Michael Hall (2014)

          With five carpenter ants and some peep holes, what story could you possibly write? But Michael Hall can write an amazing story with an outstanding moral in it.

Is it really an aardvark?

       
           Five carpenter ants living in a wood stump, hear a rumble outside. An ant with 'red hat' (The ants are color-coded with carpenter hats) is sure that it is an aardvark. The three 'blue hat' ants are scared to death now, as aardvarks prey on ants. But the brave 'yellow hat' ant drills a peep hole in the stump to see the outside. When orange color appears in the peephole, the 'blue hat' ants are relieved. (It's just orange color like orange). But, the 'red hat' ant scares everyone that it could be an orange aardvark.

Daylight Starlight Wildlife - Wendell Minor (2015)

         When the sun and the moon swap their places in the sky, there is a whole scenario of changes happen in the animal kingdom. While the diurnal animals return to their cozy home, all the crepuscular and nocturnal animals start their active life.

Nature's balance
       
        The concept of this book expands into "For every animal that rules the world by day, there is equally an animal, active at night". When a red-tailed hawk soars through sky by day, a barn owl swishes through by night. If cotton tail rabbit and her kits bustle through a field by day, night is the time for pink-nosed opossum and her family. At night, Luna moth takes the place of a butterfly in the morning. Nature has a perfect balance of everything.

Camille And The Sunflowers (A story about Vincent van Gogh) - Laurence Anholt (1994)

        Vincent van Gogh was an acclaimed painter. But often, it was  poverty and unrecognition, entwined his life. This book opens up one small portion of his life in Arles, where he painted his masterpieces.

A starry night dream

        Camille lives in a small town, where sunflowers are bright. His father is a postman. One day he meets a strange man in his town. Little does he know that the strange man is going to be a part of history one day.

Warning! Do Not Open This Book - Adam Lehrhaupt(2013)

     Oops! Don't misunderstand. That's the real title of this book. But I would say, please ignore the title warning and proceed.

Dangerous fun ahead

         
           You are being warned not to open this book, in the cover image itself. The endpapers post more warnings about the dangers inside the book. But, I know, you are going to proceed, by turning more pages. You are not going to believe what happened to the last guy who read this book. Oh, there comes the monkeys, making a huge mess. Then toucans follow them, making the surrounding more dangerous. The danger does not stop there, as there is an .....
         

The Nearsighted Giraffe - A.H. Benjamin (2013)

ISBN 10 : 1-60992-433-9
ISBN 13 : 978-1-60992-433-1
(Hardcover)

      Will glasses make a giraffe look silly? Well, that's what this nearsighted Giraffe thinks and she refuses to wear one. But, how does she manage to walk through the forest?

A foresight solution

        She wears a bicycle helmet, after she banged her head on a branch. She ties a bell to her tail, after she crashed into a rhino. She starts to wear boots, after she hurt her foot on a rock. Not to stop with that, she adds a pillow, an inflatable ring and a ladder one by one, after every crash, until she looks ..... yes, super silly.

You Are What You Eat And Other Mealtime Hazards - Serge Bloch (2010)

ISBN 10 : 1-4027-7130-4
ISBN 13 : 978-1-4027-7130-9
(Hardcover)

              Imagine a potato lying on a couch ("couch potato"), a stomach opens its mouth to growl ("stomach growling") and a horse dining in a table("eat like a horse"). Yes, you got it. This book cartoons the various idioms based on food, interluded with the story of a picky-eater changing into a "tough cookie".

Fun Down to a T

              The protagonist of this book is a picky-eater, who eats like a bird. Even when he is advised to "think outside the box" and to "use his noodle", he is not ready to change. But things get a different turn, when he is invited over to his friend's house (whose mom is a "health-nut"). Does this picky-eater "chicken-out" or "brave it out"?

Understanding Sam And Asperger's Syndrome - Clarabelle Van Niekerk & Liezl Venter (2008)

ISBN 10: 0-9747217-1-9
ISBN 13 : 978-0-9747217-1-2
(Hardcover)

       Is Autism a hard topic for a kid, to understand? No, I believe. It is a comprehensible and even an important topic for every kid.

A happy understanding

       Sam is a small boy, part of a lovely family. Playing cello, humming tunes and building puzzles have always made him happy. But there are some aspects, where Sam is a little different from other kids. He cannot make friends easily. He is sensitive towards some situations. Most importantly, it happens that he wanders off out of home, one night. Soon, Sam is diagnosed with "Asperger's syndrome", a form of Autism. 

Is It Big Or Is It Little? - Claudia Rueda (2013)

ISBN 10 : 0 8028 5423 0
ISBN 13 : 978 0 8028 5423 0
(Hardcover

      A pebble could look like a big rock in an ant's view. Of course, it is our mind's eye that judges things, not just our physical eye. And, here is a book that explores this concept, in a child's perspective.

Perspective Differs

       A cat chases a mouse. Well, it is normal. But, in this book, everything around them takes a different perspective in their view. While a ball of yarn looks 'big' in the mouse's view, it is 'little' for a cat. When the mouse crosses a 'deep' puddle, the cat passes it with 'shallow' steps. Finally, there is an another person, who comes to 'end' the troubles of the mouse. Or, does it mean the 'beginning' of cat's troubles?

Gandhi : A March To The Sea - Alice B. McGinty (2013)

ISBN 10 : 14778 16445
ISBN 13 : 978 14778 16448
(Hardcover)

     (Note : India was ruled by British government for over 200 years. Mohandas Gandhi and various other leaders fought their way against British, for Indian freedom. This book talks about one of the non-violent protests, led by Gandhi, called 'Dandi March'.)

The Sweetest Salt

             A march for salt forms the pivotal movement of Indian freedom fight. When salt is very crucial to human life next to air and water, a protest can break out, at the point when people are denied their right to take salt from sea.

Dollars And Sense - Stan & Jan Berenstain (2001)

ISBN 13 : 978 0 375 97492 2 - First Time Books
(Paperback)

            Money-growing trees and dollar-bill rain are not possible in reality. So, it is a hard-core reality that we need kid-sized versions of money management lessons to teach our kids.

A Check To Check

            The Berenstain bear cubs are in need of money, for buying baseball cards and a doll dress. They do know about money, like how to play with it and how to spend it, but they do not know how to save it (That's true, which kid knows?).

Talkin' Guitar : A Story Of Young Doc Watson - Robbin Gourley (2015)

ISBN 10 : 0 544 12988 1
ISBN 13: 978 0 544 12988 7
(Hardcover)

        Being blind, his ears have opened a whole new musical world, to the notorious Grammy-winning guitarist, Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson.

A World Of Sounds

         Born in a place, where the sky meets mountains, young Watson's surrounding is filled with nothing, but music. Mom's lullaby, clucking of chickens, mooing of cows, whistling of train, wind, rain and every other sound is musical to Arthel.