Published by HMH Books for Young Readers 

Summary:  Ever since Henry got Leo the lion for his second birthday, they have been inseparable friends.  One day, the family decides to go for a walk in the woods.  Henry is happy, because he knows that Leo loves the woods.  His sister tells him that Leo isn’t real, but Henry knows better.  By the time the family gets back from their long trek, Henry is falling asleep on his father’s shoulders.  As soon as he gets into bed, though, he realizes something is wrong.  Leo is missing.  The family goes searching, but no Leo.  Henry’s mother tries to tell him that Leo isn’t real.  On the next several wordless pages, we see Leo being discovered by the forest animals.  They work together (with the help of a compass) to figure out where Leo belongs, and to get him as far as the front yard.  In the morning, Henry is overjoyed to see Leo.   Henry’s father and sister are puzzled, certain that they both looked in that very spot the night before.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  A worth companion to Knuffle Bunny, this beautifully illustrated story will resonate with anyone who has ever loved and lost a favorite toy.

Cons:  Any mother who says a stuffed animal isn’t real must not have had much of a childhood.  #bigelow

Published by Beach Lane Books 

Summary:  Welcome to the yellow time of year, when geese are gone, but crows remain, and when everyone is waiting for the yellow leaves on the trees to start falling.  Soon the wind comes, and children dance with the swirls of yellow all around them.  When it’s over, the whole world is yellow.  Then it’s time to press leaves in books, remembering what a lovely time yellow time was…and to get ready for the white time.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  A brief meditation on fall, that captures the sights, sounds, and smells of the season.  Each page has just a sentence or two of text, accompanied by a colorful (predominantly yellow) illustration.  Use this to inspire children to write about autumn.

Cons:  When I lived in Colorado, October really was the yellow time.  Here in New England, a few more colors need to be included to get the whole picture.

Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Summary:  The entire book is an invocation (defined in the author’s note as a poem that invites something to happen) to “change the world before morning”.  As the poem unfolds, we see a girl sadly saying goodbye to her mother one evening.  As the girl and her father sleep, the mother, dressed in an airline pilot’s uniform, drives through an increasingly heavy snow.  By the time she reaches the airport, the planes are covered, and she’s forced to get a ride home in a snow plow.  The world has indeed been changed, and it results in the family getting to spend a snow day together, eating a leisurely breakfast, sledding, and stopping at the bakery for hot chocolate.  48 pages, ages 4-7.

Pros:  Newbery honoree Sidman pairs with Caldecott winner Krommes to create a beautiful, evocative book that perfectly captures the feeling of a snow day.  I would love to see this book get some kind of Caldecott recognition; the scratchboard pictures are gorgeously detailed.  Keep on hand to read right before a snowstorm.

Cons:  I found myself wishing for a snow day in mid-October.

Published by Disney-Hyperion 

Summary:  Reading other reviews for this book, I learned a new word—metafiction, which Merriam-Webster tells us is “fiction which refers to or takes as its subject fictional writing and its conventions.”  Fiction and nonfiction are blurred here as Barnett and Rex show how their book was made, with a few questionable additions like an arm-wrestling tiger, marauding pirates, and a pile of books visible from outer space.  The concepts of author, illustrator, editor, and publisher are all introduced in the context of producing a book from start to finish.  The final page reminds kids that a book really isn’t a book until it is read, so that you, the reader, have been an integral part in the making of this book.  48 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  If you’re looking for a straightforward account of how books are made, this may not be the best choice, but if you’re looking for an exercise in hilarious craziness, this will fit the bill.

Cons:  For the illustrator biography on the back flap, Adam Rex takes the phrase “How this illustrator was made” literally, resulting in a slightly PG-rated couple of sentences.

Published by Greenwillow Books 

Summary:  Lester is finally going home with his new parents, Daddy Albert and Daddy Rich, after waiting a year for his adoption to become final.  Even though he’s spent a lot of time with his two dads and their dog Wincka, it still feels weird to him to be in a new home.  Although his parents encourage him to unpack, he insists on keeping his suitcase full of action figures right next to his bed in case he needs their protection.  And every night, he goes into his parents’ bedroom and stands at the foot of the bed until they wake up and take him back to his own bed.  This becomes more and more of a problem for everyone, until finally Wincka figures out what to do.  After many years of sleeping at the foot of Albert and Rich’s bed, he realizes he has a new job, and moves in with Lester.  This gives Lester the security he’s been looking for, and at last he is ready to begin his new life.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  A moving story of love and family, written by Caldecott honoree Vera B. Williams, and illustrated by Caldecott medalist Chris Raschka.  Raschka has included a note at the end on how he and Williams worked together to create this final book before Williams’ death last October.

Cons:  Due to its length and somewhat rambling nature, it’s a story best suited for one-on-one sharing.

Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

Summary:  He’s sick and tired of being called a monster.  Okay, so maybe he does have horns, claws, and fangs.  And perhaps his feet clomp louder than most, his hair is wild, and he likes to roar, cackle, and howl at the moon.  But do people really need to scream and run away from him when he’s innocently walking around, buying groceries, or trying to catch some sleep under your bed or in your closet?  His parents were monsters, and he’s a monster, too.  He can’t help it.  And for the record, his name is Floyd.  Floyd Peterson.  The penultimate page has an exchange he appreciates:  “Daddy, I think there’s a monster in my closet!”  “No, son, it’s just Floyd Peterson.”  “Oh…okay.  Good night.”  Much better.  40 pages; ages 3-7.

Pros:  So many possibilities.  Persuasive writing mentor text.  Empathy for differences.  Or simply a really fun read-aloud that will make kids laugh out loud.

Cons:  Is it just me, or does the monster look like a hairy version of one of those dancing raisins from 1980’s commercials?

Published by Chronicle Books

Summary:  When a boy’s teacher asks him, “So what did you do this summer?”, he spins an increasingly fantastic tale.  It starts with him finding a message in a bottle which turns out to be a treasure map.  He ends up on a pirate ship, in a submarine, scaling the Great Wall of China, being chased by mummies in Egypt, and much, much more.  He concludes the story by saying to his teacher, “So you probably don’t believe me…right?”  The next page shows his teacher busily drawing something at her desk, with the caption, “Three months earlier…”, and then [spoiler alert] tossing a bottle with a paper inside toward the boy at the beach. 44 pages; grades K-3.

Pros:  A fun story that could inspire kids to come up with their own tall tales.  The pictures are crowded with action.  Readers will laugh at the final plot twist.

Cons:  The small size of the book and the unappealing appearance of the protagonist turned me off from reading this for quite a while.