August Recommendations

In cozy, contemplative HIRO: WINTER AND MARSHMALLOWS, by Marine Schneider, translated by Vineet Lal, Hiro is a bear who’s “too curious to sleep for months on end.” Her mom warns that “winter can bite,” but Hiro packs a bag and slips outside her den. Though the breeze is icy, Hiro thinks winter is beautiful. She follows some tracks and the “sweet, gooey scent of toasted marshmallows” to a party of humans who flee their campfire at her approach. Hiro’s sad sighs rekindle the fire, causing half-eaten marshmallows to melt over the flames. But then Émile, a “marshmallow expert” peeks out from behind a tree, and together they have a wonderful time, sharing stories, running, hiding, and finding common ground. The text is evocative and sweet, and the illustrations, made with colored pencils, watercolors, acrylic paint, and markers, are impressionistic and delightful. A tender treat, not to be missed!

LUCKY DUCK, by Greg Pizzoli, is the funny story about Duck, who’s “feeling a bit unlucky.” The roller skates she ordered online are too big, but then a wolf tells her she’s won a fabulous soup pot. Now Susan feels lucky. When her kitchen lightbulb burns out, she’s back to feeling unlucky. But then the wolf says she’s won onions, “great for soup!” By now readers will likely be having some laughs as Susan’s discovery that the pickle jar is empty is followed by the wolf showing up with celery, and so on. Just when Susan fears her luck has run out for good, the wolf encounters some bad luck (and a pickle jar and roller skates) of his own. I’m a big fan of Pizzoli’s straightforward text and distinctive illos, and kid-friendly Lucky Duck doesn’t disappoint.

I WANT 100 DOGS, written by Stacy McAnulty and illustrated by Claire Keane, begins with a child who wants 100 dogs, (then 90, then 80, etc.) and the two parents who explain why, in each instance, that might not be a great idea. Told all in dialog, the reasons for wanting so many dogs—and the reasons why they would be impractical—include plenty of humor, which is amped up by the energetic art. Text is indicated in speech bubbles and the digital illustrations of all those dogs and their consequences are in thought “clouds.” It all comes together nicely with the child getting just the right amount of dog.

In THE SPACEMAN, by Randy Cecil, the titular, diminutive spaceman is collecting soil samples on one of a series of planets when he’s distracted by “something special” (a flower). At that moment, his ship is stolen by a bird. Though he’s frightened by a huge, “hideous beast, all covered in fur” (a dog), he’s also fascinated by a “fantastical array of creatures” (snails, ladybugs, a butterfly). The charms of this planet and its furry inhabitant grow on the little spaceman, and he begins to weigh his responsibility to find his spaceship and collect more samples with his desire to spend time laughing, playing, and “enjoying the gentle breeze with [his] friend.” Text is droll, and oil painted illustrations have plenty of texture, color, and style. Pair it with WE ARE DEFINITELY HUMAN, by X. Fang, for a couple of tongue-in-cheek fish-out-of-water, aliens-on-earth stories that would make for a terrific storytime.

HIDE-AND-SEEK, written and illustrated by Molly Cranch, is a delightful look at camouflage, disguised as a fun game. Turtle is IT, but Heron doesn’t know where to hide. Trout, Manatee, Otter, and Cricket have taken all the best spots. But soon Heron, too, finds exactly the right place to hide from Turtle. Chirp-chirp! Slish-slosh! Trudge-trudge! Splish-splash! Squeak-squeak! Surprise! Look who’s IT now! This fun book, with its onomatopoeia and beautiful illustrations, will have kids begging to read it again and again.

CAMILLA SUPER HELPER, written by Julie Dillemuth and illustrated by Laura Wood, is another Camilla, Cartographer book which promotes spacial awareness thinking skills and map-making. In this one, Camilla and her neighbor Parsley are reading about superheroes one hot summer day, when Melli, a honey bee, breezes in through the open window. Melli has to fly all day to find flowers to make honey, so Camilla decides to help, by setting up water stations and planting more flowers. There are so many locations to consider, it's a good thing Camilla’s superpower is drawing excellent maps. Before long, Camilla and friends set out to help. This engaging book, about a forest full of superheroes, has back matter about the importance of bees and how to make a bee garden, which includes mapping out the project.

--Lynn