A Story for Bear – Dennis Haseley

This darling picture book is the story of a young bear who is out exploring in the woods one day and finds something curious. He brings it back to his den and looks it over carefully. It was a piece of paper with writing on it. He kept it over the years and pulled it out often to look at it. He’d never seen anything like it before or since, and it became one of his treasures. One day, he went wandering a little further than usual into the woods, and he came upon a cabin in a clearing. A … Continue reading →

Don’t Forget to Come Back! – Robie H. Harris

Mommy and Daddy are going on a date, and the babysitter is coming. Our heroine doesn’t like that at all, so she tells her parents that she no longer needs a babysitter. She can take care of herself now. She thinks if she can convince her parents not to get a babysitter, she can convince them not to leave at all. Her dad doesn’t seem to be impressed with her wisdom and logic. So she tells him three things that will scare him into staying home. If they leave, a storm will come up and blow the house down. She’ll … Continue reading →

What Does My Teddy Bear Do All Day? — Bruno Hachler

The little girl in our story is very fond of her teddy bear and plays with him often. Every day, she leaves him behind while she goes to school, but she can’t help but wonder – does he really stay there the whole time, or does he come to life and embark on wild adventures of his own? Maybe he flips on the radio and dances all around her room. Maybe he paints on her walls. There’s only one way to find out, and that’s to stay at home and spy on him. She’ll keep her eyes peeled and see … Continue reading →

Arthur’s Really Helpful Bedtime Stories

I’m not sure how helpful Arthur’s Really Helpful Bedtime Stories are, but I do know that our copy is well worn. Marc Brown’s twists on familiar fairy tales kept my children amused and asking for more. The book contains ten familiar fairy tales but told with characters from the world of Arthur. Not only do the characters like D.W. take the place of the fairytale characters like Little Red Riding Hood, but they maintain their own personalities as well. So we have D.W. being stubborn and saving Grandma Thora from the wolf. In “The Three Little Pigs” Binky sides with … Continue reading →

Paddington Bear and the Christmas Surprise – Michael Bond

It’s Christmas time, and Paddington wants to do something special. He suggests to the Brown family that they head down to the department store to see Santa. There will be a sleigh ride and a visit to Santa’s workshop, as well. Paddington is especially curious to see where Santa makes his marmalade. (I didn’t know Santa made marmalade, but who am I to argue with Paddington Bear?) The Browns are clueless about the marmalade too, which makes me feel better. They headed off to the store and Paddington made a beeline to Santa. There were two huge sacks of toys, … Continue reading →

The Gingerbread Baby – Jan Brett

Jan Brett books are known for detailed illustrations. The Gingerbread Baby is no exception. Each page shows not only an illustration of what is happening, but a decorated border that looks like cookie decorations or cookie molds. Some of the pages have a side illustration that reveals what else is happening in the story. This is a different version of the classic story of the gingerbread man. On a cold day, a young boy named Matti decides to make gingerbread. He opens up a worn looking cookbook with old-fashioned writing on the cover to a page that says “Gingerbread Boy”. … Continue reading →

A Creature was Stirring: One Boy’s Night Before Christmas – Carter Goodrich

We’re all familiar with the classic poem “T’was the Night Before Christmas.” This cute children’s picture book takes the rhyme and gives it a new twist. On the left side of the book, we are treated to the original rendition. On the right, we see that someone isn’t asleep yet, and he’s adding his own verses as well. He’s trying to go to sleep, he really is – but we all know how hard it is to fall asleep on Christmas Eve, when we’re all so excited about everything that’s going to happen the next day. He tries commanding himself … Continue reading →

Auntie Claus – Elise Primavera

The Kringles love Christmas. In fact, everything in their world revolves around it. The father owns a jingle bell company. The mother owns the Mistletoe-and-Nail Salon. They keep their tree up all year long. Sophie and Chris, the children, have presents galore – and still want more. Auntie Claus watches all this with a disapproving eye, and suggests that perhaps they get too many presents, but the Kringles won’t hear of such a thing. So Auntie does her best to instill good values in the children, having Sophie over for tea and giving her good Christmas advice, such as how … Continue reading →

Merry Christmas, Curious George! — Margret and H.A. Rey

What would Christmas be without taking a moment to celebrate with Curious George? He’s almost as much a tradition as Santa Claus! The man with the yellow hat has taken George to the Christmas tree farm to pick out the perfect tree. They’re all lined up, like in the jungle, and George quickly climbs to the top to get a better look. He jumps from tree to tree, looking for just the right one. How many trees are at the farm? They seem to go on forever! He is sitting near the top of one of the tallest ones when … Continue reading →

Santa’s Last Present – Marie-Aude Murail and Elvire Murail

Julian is getting just a little old for Santa – at least, he thinks so. His mother and father seem to disagree, and Santa is all they can talk about as Christmas gets closer. Finally, just to appease his parents, Julian writes a letter to Santa and asks for a video game system just like his cousin’s. His mother goes a little pale when she sees the request, but Julian assures her that Santa can afford that kind of thing. Christmas morning comes and sure enough – the game system is under the tree. But way back under the tree … Continue reading →