Tag Archives: Friendship

Elem. – The Sharing Book

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White, Diane. The Sharing Book. Margaret Ferguson Books, 2023. 978-0-823-44347-5. 32 p. $18.99. Grades K-3. 

Two friends spend the day making memories on a fun-filled camping trip. The day begins with a beautiful sunrise followed by a pancake breakfast. The fun continues with games of hide-and-seek, tire swinging, hiking, fishing, canoeing, napping in a hammock, storytelling, and music around a campfire. These simple experiences become special because they are shared with friends. The lyrical text celebrates life’s simple moments, and the repeated refrain reminds readers that things like meals, laughter, adventures, stories, and music are made even more memorable by enjoying them with those we care about. Hand-painted and digital illustrations feature three families enjoying the outdoors together, and their smiles, laughter, and comradery match the text’s inclusive feel. 

THOUGHTS: This title underscores the idea that love, friendship, and kindness are always worth sharing. After reading, encourage students to share their own camping experiences or other ways they’ve enjoyed the outdoors with those they care about.

Picture Book

Elem. – I’m From

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Gray, Jr, Gary R. I’m From. Illustrated by Oge Mora. Balzer + Bray, 2023. 978-0-063-08996-9. 32 p. $19.99. Grades K-3.

A boy starts his day as many kids across America do, with breakfast and getting ready for school. A ride on the bus and a, “you better hurry up” from his dad. I’m from doesn’t mean a location, but more of an answer to who am I? What makes me, me? The boy encounters racial comments at school that make him visibly uncomfortable, but he moves on with his day as any child would. All of the small moments of his day are depicted with Mora’s illustrations in her characteristic collage layered with various paint mediums.  

THOUGHTS: A must purchase, as much for the story as for the illustrations. Would be a perfect title to include in an illustrator study of Oge Mora.  Could also be used to introduce a unit on memoirs or personal narratives.

Picture Book 

Elem. – Dear Rosie

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Boehman, Meghan, and Rachael Briner. Dear Rosie. Alfred A. Knopf. 2023. 978-0-593-57186-6. $20.99. Grades 3-6.

Millie has an amazing friend group: Millie, Rosie, Gabby, Florence, and Claire. Sadly, Rosie passed away in a car accident and everything changed. All four girls have had their world completely rocked by grief over the loss of their friend. As each girl struggles with their grief over the loss of their friend, their friendship also becomes rocky. Together, the girls begin to heal and learn how to cope with loss and change in different ways.

THOUGHTS: A heartbreaking story of grief, friendship, and overcoming hardships. This story will touch the hearts of readers, many of whom may have dealt with their own loss and grief.

Graphic Novel

Elem. – Lali’s Flip-Flops

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Zia, Farhana. Lali’s Flip-Flops. Peachtree. 2023. 978-1-682-63493-6. $18.99. Grades K-2.

Lali has been working very hard to earn some money. She works and she works until she has a little jingle in her pocket, then off to the market she goes! As she travels, she sees her animal friends and they ask her if she is going to buy them treats. The road on her journey to the market is very tough on Lali’s feet. Will Lali buy new flip-flops for herself or treats for her animal friends?

THOUGHTS: This is a fun story about working hard and being generous!

Picture Book

Elem – Bibi: A Flamingo’s Tale

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Weaver, Jo. Bibi: A Flamingo’s Tale. Peachtree, 2023. 978-1-682-63553-7. Unpaged.  $18.99. Grades PreK-2.

Bibi, which means “grandmother” in Swahili, is the matron of her flock of flamingos. She teaches the others how to stand on one leg, how to preen their feathers, how to dance on the lake and shows parents how to build mud nests. After the babies are born, they learn how to walk, but it will be some time before they can fly. This creates a problem, because the extreme heat has caused the water at the lake’s edge to recede and the flamboyance must fly to a new source of fresh water. Since the baby flamingoes will have to walk there, Bibi offers to lead them. One chick called Toto is too exhausted to set out on the journey. Bibi decides that she and the other young birds will wait until he is rested and proceeds to tell them stories of life in the lake. Now rested, the group sets off again across the unforgiving desert and finally reaches water. As the summer ends, the entire flock, including the flaminglets, must fly to a new destination. Bibi, as the oldest member, feels she is too old and tired to fly. This time the avian community comes to her rescue, giving her time to get stronger until she is ready to join them in flight. The pink and gray illustrations created by the author are done in charcoal and then digitally colored. Weaver manages to instill some flamingo personality into these large scale drawings. The author includes a brief note about the migration habits of the lesser flamingo. The adult birds fly to Tanzania from East Africa, while the chicks, accompanied by a few adults, cross a salt desert of twenty miles to get there. 

THOUGHTS: This beautiful tale shows how some animals work together to help their community survive. A great choice for elementary collections.

Picture Book

YA – See You On Venus

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Vinuesa, Victoria. See You On Venus. Delacorte Press, 2023. 978-0-593-70513-1. 341 p. $12.99. Grades 8-12.

Mia has grown up in group homes and foster homes with very little known about her birth mom. She knows that her mother is from Spain and her name is Maria. Mia has grown up with a heart defect, and now faces the possibility of a short life unless she undergoes a risky surgery. Mia wants to meet her birth mom before this happens, but time is running out. She has been saving and planning this trip with her friend, Noah. Her biggest wish is to meet her mom and find out why her mother gave her up. Kyle has everything going for him until a fatal accident occurs that kills his best friend – Noah. Kyle begins to spiral to a dark place, and then enters Mia. The two of them embark on this overseas trip to find Mia’s birth mother. Will this trip provide answers to help them move forward with their lives? Noah’s death has brought them together; will this tragedy help mend their broken hearts?   

THOUGHTS: This was a quick read with a powerful message of hope and love and friendship. It has also been made into a movie, so students will be familiar with this story and may come looking for the book version. 

Romance

MG – The Cursed Moon

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Cervantes, Angela. The Cursed Moon. Scholastic Press, 2023. 978-1-338-81401-9. 224 p. $18.99. Grades 3-7.

Tell a great scary story, and you’re cool. Tell a great scary story under a cursed blood moon, and you’re also in big trouble. Sixth grade Rafa has found his niche in composing the best scary stories for his sister, Brianna, and new friends like Jayden. Together, Rafa and Brianna have moved in with their Abuelo and Abuela. Although their incarcerated mother, Nikki, is about to be released and return home, too, the impending reunion is met with anxiety and distrust by both siblings. In the days leading up to Nikki’s return, an older neighbor gives Rafa an ominous warning not to tell any of his scary stories under that night’s blood moon. Despite this plea, Rafa shares a terrifying tale with friends that night: The story of a spirit named the Caretaker who lures people into a local park’s pond to die. Unfortunately, Rafa should have listened to his neighbor. Now, it is too late. The Caretaker has come to life, and it is searching for new lives to claim. Rafa will have to figure out how to make this story have a happy ending…quickly.

THOUGHTS: The Cursed Moon contains just the right combination of creepy details and caring characters for a middle grade reader to thoroughly enjoy. While some of the focus is on the supernatural story action, Cervantes also weaves in lots of great realistic details that help fully form the characters of Rafa and Brianna. Pieces read like a realistic fiction story. At just over 200 pages, this is also an accessible book for developing middle grade readers who like a good thrill and chill!

Elem. – Squash, the Cat

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Mayer, Sasha. Squash, the Cat. Random House Studio, 2023. 978-0-593-56653-4. Unpaged. $18.99. Grades K-3.

Squash is orange and round, and when he sits up, he kind of looks like a squash (the food); that might be how he got his name. While Squash is a fan of naps, his best (human) friend Maggie is a “wild-playdate kind of girl.” Together they team up to begin each day perfectly, and they are the best duo for many situations (curbing conflict, winning more playtime, finishing dinner, and walking the dog). When Squash tries to rescue Maggie from “being devoured by a GIANT SNAKE!” things fall apart (literally). Squash and Maggie have lost their dynamic duo connection, and now Squash can’t eat, can’t sleep, and even can’t face Maggie. Will Squash and Maggie find their way back to being “perfect-for-each-other best friends,” or are they destined to live the rest of their lives separately?

THOUGHTS: Readers will adore this cat and human friendship and will laugh at the ridiculous things they do together then root for Squash and Maggie to make up after a mistake. Highly recommended for elementary collections.

Picture Book

Elem. – Chi-Chi and Pey-Pey

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Fosberry, Jennifer. Chi-Chi and Pey-Pey. Simon Spotlight, 2023. $17.99 ea. 64 p. Grades PreK-1.

School Day Drama. 978-1-665-93189-2.
Cupcake Catastrophe. 978-1-665-93201-1. 

Chi-Chi the chicken and Pey-Pey the penguin are getting ready to start school in the graphic novel School Day Drama. Chi-chi (who loves cheese puffs, cheerleading and the cha-cha) is nervous to start school. Pey-pey (who enjoys pirates, popsicles and pogo sticks) is chill and relaxed about starting the school year. When their teacher, Mrs. Possum, pairs them up as class buddies on the first day of school, and asks them to discover something they both like, the task seems impossible. The pair discuss their favorite desserts, hobbies, snacks and shapes, but they can’t agree on anything! The teacher suggests they mix some of their favorite things and make something new. But combining cheese puffs and popsicles or pom-poms and pirate ships are not winning combinations. When they stalk away from one another in frustration, they discover they can combine Chi-Chi’s love of the cha-cha and Pey-Pey’s love of jumping into a jumpy dance and a new friendship is born. As Cupcake Catastrophe opens, Chi-Chi and Pey-Pey are now fast friends who love hanging out and playing games with one another. In fact, they get along so well, they never fight. But one day at school, cupcakes are on the menu at snacktime. And not just any cupcakes, but cupcakes with brightly colored frosting. Chi-Chi wants a purple cupcake. Pey-Pey wants a purple cupcake. No problem, right? Wrong! There’s only one purple cupcake! They chirp and peep and fight over the cupcake. They finally decide to split the cupcake…but it’s gone (perhaps their teacher was responsible?). Dejected, Pey-Pey takes a blue cupcake and Chi-Chi selects a red cupcake, only to realize if they combine their frosting, they will each have a purple cupcake. Crisis averted!

THOUGHTS: The Chi-Chi and Pey-Pey series is part of Simon & Schuster’s Ready to Read Graphics series and is intended to introduce emerging readers to the graphic novel format. The larger panels feature large, simple text and brightly colored illustrations that will engage readers. Readers will also be able to relate to the storyline in each volume, as many student have encountered new peers on the first day of school or had an argument with a friend. A worthwhile purchase for graphic novel collections serving early readers.

Graphic Novel

Elem. – Pizza and Taco

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Shaskan, Stephen. Pizza and Taco. Random House, 2023. $10.99 ea. 58 p. Grades K-2.

Pizza and Taco: Rock Out! 978-0-593-48124-0.
 Pizza and Taco: Dare to be Scared! 978-0-593-48128-8.

Best friends Pizza and Taco (last seen in Pizza and Taco: Too Cool for School) are back in two new additions to the graphic novel series. In Pizza and Taco: Rock Out!, the pair decide to start a rock band. Although they enjoy music, they have no experience playing instruments, but they don’t let that stand in their way. After deciding on their instruments (Pizza will play the guitar and Taco the drums…or perhaps the tambourine), their genre of music (rock, of course) and their band name (Awesome Yaas!), they are ready to recruit some band members. An advertisement results in several folks showing up to tryout, including the folk playing Veggieburger and Tofu Dog, and the hard rock Cookie and Muffin, they ultimately decide to invite Hamburger and Hot Dog to join the band. But the band breaks up when Hamburger and Hot Dog discover Pizza and Taco can’t read or play (or as it turns out, write) music. This leads Pizza and Taco to reassess their plans. Maybe starting a band takes a lot more work than they initially thought… In Pizza and Taco: Dare to be Scared!, the pair decide to challenge each other to a “Dare-to-be-Scared Challenge”! The scary challenges include staying in a dark closet, entering the dark basement, and watching a scary movie (though Pizza’s mom nixes their initial choice of watching Night of the Living Bread). They decide to watch an episode of Ghost Pepper Hunters, with hosts Turkey Sub and Chicken Sandwich, but the show turns out not to be that scary, so they decide to go ghost pepper hunting on their own. Flashlights in hand, hats on hand, Pizza and Taco set out for a nearby graveyard when it gets dark. Upon entering the graveyard, they hear a noise…could they be about to encounter a ghost pepper?!?

THOUGHTS: These welcome additions to the Pizza and Taco series continue the laugh out loud antics the pair have shown in earlier volumes. Kids will love the humorous storyline and adults will get a kick out of play on names Shaskan incorporates throughout the text (Pizza loves the rock singer Jam Jett and her song “I Love Lobster Roll”, Taco enjoys The Beetles and their song “Love Me, Stew”). This series deserves a spot in the graphic novel collection of any library that serves younger readers. 

Graphic Novel