Maria Gianferrari

Pete Oswald

a Tail of Mindfulness

Being a Dog

A student who uses a wheelchair finds a way to see her dog each day in school.

Hello Goodbye Dog

In this picture-book companion to Penny & Jelly: The School Show, Penny is invited to a slumber-under-the-stars sleepover! But there's one small detail that derails the dynamic kid-dog duo: no pets allowed. Penny and Jelly have to think quick--if the real Jelly can't go, then maybe a pretend Jelly can! A paper Jelly? Too rough. A yarn Jelly? Too soft. Jelly after Jelly just doesn't work. But with a little creativity and a lot of heart, Penny figures out how to go to the sleepover--and bring Jelly along with her. Learn more about these best friends at www.pennyandjelly.com.

Slumber Under the Stars

Penny and Jelly

As the talent show nears, Penny and her trusty canine companion Jelly scramble to find Penny's talent.

The School Show

Penny & Jelly

Officer Katz has three chances to use his clever inventions to capture famed escape artist the Great Houndini, or else Kitty City will go to the dogs.

A Tale of Two Tails

Officer Katz and Houndini

Bagram Ibatoulline

A howl in the night. A watchful eye in the darkness. A flutter of movement among the trees. Coyotes. In the dark of the night, a mother coyote stalks prey to feed her hungry pups. Her hunt takes her through a suburban town, where she encounters a mouse, a rabbit, a flock of angry geese, and finally an unsuspecting turkey on the library lawn. POUNCE! Perhaps Coyote's family won't go hungry today. This title has Common Core connections.

Coyote Moon

It’s all paws on deck in this hilarious picture book that explores the age-old debate of which four-legged friends are best: cats versus dogs? Officer Katz is looking forward to a nice retirement, complete with all the treats he could want, until his arch-nemesis, Houndini, reappears one final time to challenge Katz to a showdown. If Katz manages to catch Houndini after three tries, Houndini will stay out of Kitty City forever. But if Houndini manages to escape, the town will be renamed...Houndiniville. And Katz isn’t about to let his town go to the dogs. All the claws are out as Katz chases Houndini up, down and around town. With the help of their two assistants—Deputy Catbird and Squirrel—can Katz and Houndini call a truce? Or will this challenge have them both chasing their tails out of town?

Pancake ice, floebergs, glaciers, icicles . . . cold temperatures create an astonishing variety of ice forms! From Maria Gianferrari, award-winning author of Play Like an Animal!,comes a beautiful collaboration between verse and science. Brief poems and ethereal illustrations introduce readers to the many different types of ice on land and at sea. Fascinating back matter provides additional information about water as a solid, liquid, and gas, as well as more details about the unique forms of ice mentioned in the poems. Celebrate winter with this evocative and atmospheric exploration of ice!

Poems about the Life of Ice

Ice Cycle

This sweet story about a girl named Alma and a stray dog named Lulu shows how a girl and a dog can rescue each other. Lulu’s ears flap in the wind as the rescue truck rolls into the lot. Lulu’s tail thumps— Everything smells . . . new. Lulu sleeps under the moon, drinking from mud puddles and is covered in ticks until she is rescued. She waits for the Operation Rescue Dog truck, scared and uncertain. Alma misses her Mami, who is far away in Iraq. Alma wears Mami's scarf around her like a hug. She wonders: Can a dog feel like a hug? In this heartwarming and moving picture book, a lonely child and a lonely dog come together and find warmth, companionship, and love in each other.

Operation Rescue Dog

Stunning illustrations and gorgeous haikus lead young readers through the dramatic life cycle of one of America's most beloved wild animals. Pip. Pip. Pip. Poking A hole. Cracking. Cracking. Out Pecks the white owlet. Watch as a pair of great horned owlets peep and squeak in their feathered nest. Mama and Papa hunt for food and fend off predators while the chicks grow strong enough to hop and flap between the branches of their tree, then leap and fly away, ready to explore the wild world around them. In this thrilling nonfiction picture book, a combination of haiku and dazzling illustration shows readers the fierce majesty of one of North America's most ubiquitous wild animals.

Whoo-Ku Haiku: A Great Horned Owl Story

This fascinating and whimsical nonfiction picture book uses humorous comparisons and playful artwork to teach children the unusual ways that a variety of animals--from woodpeckers to snakes to bats--use their tongues to find food, eat, and clean themselves. In this nonfiction picture book, kids will learn about the woodpecker, which uses its tongue to burrow for insects under tree bark; the okapi, which can wash its face and ears with its tongue; and the octopus, which uses its tongue to drill holes in shells. Through debut illustrator Jia Liu's bright, playful collage artwork, readers can imagine what it would be like to have a tongue like a sword, like a straw, or like a party blower, among many other silly and illuminating comparisons. The back matter expands on each animal tongue's unique abilities and includes information about other fun tongues, too.

Terrific Tongues!

Dash! Hide! Splash! Ride! Exuberant text celebrates all the different ways animals play, from rhinos taking mud baths and parrots somersaulting through the air to kangaroos boxing and dolphins diving through the surf. Additional text explains how playing benefits animals. Fascinating back matter gives more information about the featured animals in the book and encourages readers to make time to play every day!

Why Critters Splash, Race, Twirl, and Chase

Play Like an Animal!

For Zara’s dog, Moose, nothing is more important than being with his favorite girl. So when Zara has to go to school, WHOOSH, Moose escapes and rushes to her side. Hello, Moose! Unfortunately, dogs aren’t allowed at school and Moose has to go back home. Goodbye, Moose. But Moose can’t be held back for long. Through a series of escalating escapes, this loyal dog always finds her way back to Zara, and with a little bit of training and one great idea, the two friends find a way to be together all day long.

Early morning and a ruffle of feathers, A shadow gliding through the backyard. High above your house Father Hawk circles, sharp eyes searching for prey. From the front porch, you watch. Swoosh! He dives after chipmunks, crows, sparrows, squirrels. Screech! The sun sets low in the sky. What’s for dinner? A father red-tailed hawk hunts prey for his family in a suburban neighborhood in this thrilling, fierce, and gorgeous nonfiction picture book, Hawk Rising, illustrated by Caldecott medalist Brian Floca.

Hawk Rising

A lyrical, gorgeously illustrated look at the majesty of trees—and what humans can learn from them Stand tall. Stretch your branches to the sun. Be a tree! We are all like trees: our spines, trunks; our skin, bark; our hearts giving us strength and support, like heartwood. We are fueled by air and sun. And, like humans, trees are social. They “talk” to spread information; they share food and resources. They shelter and take care of one another. They are stronger together. In this gorgeous and poetic celebration of one of nature’s greatest creations, acclaimed author Maria Gianferrari and illustrator Felicita Sala both compare us to the beauty and majesty of trees—and gently share the ways in which trees can inspire us to be better people.

Maria Gianferrari

Books

Your next favorite book is out there