Elementary

Each kindness makes the world a little better.

Chloe and her friends won't play with the new girl, Maya. Maya is different; she wears hand-me-downs and plays with old-fashioned toys. Every time Maya tries to join Chloe and her gang, they reject her. Eventually, Maya plays alone, and then stops coming to school altogether. When Chloe's teacher gives a lesson about how even small acts of kindness can change the world, Chloe is stung by the lost opportunity for friendship, and thinks about how much better it could have been if she'd shown a little kindness toward Maya.

"Pick whatever you like most. Then I’ll tell you its story."

Worm likes school...almost as much as he likes weekends. The best part of school for Worm is his teacher, Mrs. Mulch. When Mrs. Mulch misses a day of class, Worm and his friends discover that it's her birthday. Who knew teachers could take the day off? Who knew teachers had birthdays? Worm does know one thing--he has to figure out the perfect present.

Brrrr! The leaves are off the trees, and frost is on the ground. It's time for bugs to hunker down and hide out for the winter.

But Ant isn't ready to hunker down. Ant isn't ready to be all by herself for months on end. The thought of a long chilly season without her best friend, Honey Bee, is enough to make Ant shiver with dread. Can Ant brave the cold for one last surprise visit before the snow flies?

Whatever the outside weather might be, a friendship is going to have hot days and cold ones. Just as Ant and Honey Bee!

Sophie gets mad, climbs a tree to calm down, and is soon ready to come home to her loving family. "The text is...brief, for it is Bang's double-page illustrations, vibrating with saturated colors, that reveal the drama of the child's emotions." - School Library Journal, starred review. "Bang's strong, nonproscriptive acknowledgment of a feeling most children will recognize will be welcomed." - Booklist, starred review
Caldecott Honor Book 2000

When I was ten, one summer night,
The baby stars that leapt
Among the trees like dimes of light,
I cupped, and capped, and kept.

It takes only a few words, if they're the right words, to create a strong image. Whether listened to in the comfort of a cozy lap or read independently, the thirty-six very short poems in this collection show readers young and old that a few perfect words and pictures can make the world glow.

It befell that on the first day of Lent, Brother Hugo could not return his library book. The Abbot was most displeased. "Our house now lacks the comforting letters of St. Augustine, Brother Hugo. How did this happen?"

The precious book, it turns out, has been devoured by a bear, and so Hugo must replace it. Letter by letter and line by line the hapless monk crafts a new book, all the while being trailed by a hungry new friend who thinks that the words of St. Augustine are truly far sweeter than honey.

It's easy to feel nervous when a new baby is on the way. The little girl in this book is lucky. She will soon have a new sibling, but she also has a very special blue wool bunny that her grandmother Nonni made her when she was born. Bubbit always makes her feel better.

Nonni is coming to stay while they wait for the baby. The girl and her grandmother are planning on doing a lot of sewing together. And every new baby deserves something special...