The books listed on this page were selected by Sharon Avina, a student worker at Watzek Library, for a February 2021 display. They can now be found in the Juvenile Picture Book section (ask at the service desk for directions). Click on individual titles to check real-time availability.
Henry's Freedom Box by
A stirring, dramatic story of a slave who mails himself to freedom by a Jane Addams Peace Award-winning author and a Coretta Scott King Award-winning artist.Henry Brown doesn't know how old he is. Nobody keeps records of slaves' birthdays. All the time he dreams about freedom, but that dream seems farther away than ever when he is torn from his family and put to work in a warehouse. Henry grows up and marries, but he is again devastated when his family is sold at the slave market. Then one day, as he lifts a crate at the warehouse, he knows exactly what he must do: He will mail himself to the North. After an arduous journey in the crate, Henry finally has a birthday -- his first day of freedom.
Call Number: Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 L478hPublication Date: 2007
Selavi, That Is Life by
"Not so long ago and not so far away, people with guns could take a family, burn a house and disappear, leaving a small child alone in the world." So begins the true story of Selavi, a small boy who finds himself on the streets of Haiti. Selavi finds other street children who share their food and a place to sleep with him. Together they proclaim a message of hope through murals and radio programs. Youme is an artist and activist who has worked with communities in Kenya, Japan, Haiti and Cuba to make art which honors personal and cultural wisdom. Edwidge Danticat, Haitian author, adds an essay to Selavi.
Call Number: Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 Y665sPublication Date: 2004
Mango, Abuela, and Me by
A 2016 Pura Belpré Author Award Honor Book A 2016 Pura Belpré Illustrator Award Honor Book When a little girl's far-away grandmother comes to stay, love and patience transcend language in a tender story written by acclaimed author Meg Medina. Mia's abuela has left her sunny house with parrots and palm trees to live with Mia and her parents in the city. The night she arrives, Mia tries to share her favorite book with Abuela before they go to sleep and discovers that Abuela can't read the words inside. So while they cook, Mia helps Abuela learn English ("Dough. Masa"), and Mia learns some Spanish too, but it's still hard for Abuela to learn the words she needs to tell Mia all her stories. Then Mia sees a parrot in the pet-shop window and has the perfectoidea for how to help them all communicate a little better. An endearing tale from an award-winning duo that speaks loud and clear about learning new things and the love that bonds family members.
Call Number: Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 M43mPublication Date: 2015
A Place Where Sunflowers Grow by
While she and her family are interned at Topaz Relocation Centre during World War II, Mari gradually adjusts as she enrols in an art class, makes a friend, plants sunflowers and waits for them to grow.
Call Number: Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 L4388pPublication Date: 2006
Ideas Are All Around by
As an author and his dog, Wednesday, walk through their neighborhood, they look at sunflowers, say hi to Frank, a turtle, who makes quick for the water and disappears, and watch a train rumble by as they walk uphill to a big purple house that belongs to their friend Barbara. Wednesday chases squirrels while the two friends discuss fishing and war and how back before the neighborhood was there enormous woolly mammoths roamed where houses now sit. Thoughts open up to other thoughts, and ideas are born and carried forward, often transforming into other ideas until he finds that ideas really are all around, you just have to know what to do with them. This title has Common Core connections.
Call Number: Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 S724iPublication Date: 2016
The Eyes of the Gray Wolf by
Listen carefully and you will hear the wild, untamed music of Gray Wolf as he races along icy ridges, howls at the moon, fiercely defends his territory against an unknown pack, and, finally, settles with a new mate. The simple, poetic text follows the restless Gray Wolf as he wanders through the northern winter night and the spectacular illustrations present a dramatic look at a beautiful, endangered animal. A list of organizations is provided at the back ofthe book for readers moved to learn more and for those who would like to help the endangered wolf. An afterword that adults will want to share with children is also included and offers detailed information on wolves and their range throughout the world.
Call Number: Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 L659ePublication Date: 1993
Hello Lighthouse by
A beloved picture book from two-time Caldecott Medal award-winner Sophie Blackall that transports readers to the seaside in timeless, nautical splendor! Watch the days and seasons pass as the wind blows, the fog rolls in, and icebergs drift by. Outside, there is water all around. Inside, the daily life of a lighthouse keeper and his family unfolds as the keeper boils water for tea, lights the lamp's wick, and writes every detail in his logbook. Step back in time and through the door of this iconic lighthouse into a cozy dollhouse-like interior with the extraordinary award-winning artist Sophie Blackall.
Call Number: Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 B554hPublication Date: 2018-04-10
The Moon Lady by
Nai-nai tells her granddaughters the story of her outing, as a seven-year-old girl in China, to see the Moon Lady and be granted a secret wish.
Call Number: Featured Reading (normally Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 T36m)Publication Date: 1992
A Pocketful of Cricket by
"Chee! Chee!" Inside Jay's dark pocket Cricket began fiddling. The talking stopped. Everybody listened.A Caldecott Honor classic that celebrates friendship and new experiences-back in print on its 40th anniversary One afternoon late in August, before the start of a new school year, Jay finds Cricket. Cricket fits just right in small spaces-like under a tea strainer or in Jay's very own pocket-and Cricket makes the most exciting sounds. But what happens when it's time to go back to school? Will Cricket come too?Forty years after its original publication, this charming tale continues to capture the imaginative world of a child.
Call Number: Featured Reading (normally Juvenile Lit Picture Books 813 C385p)Publication Date: 2004
