Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Bob is a lazy–but hungry–alligator who hopes that birds will fly into his mouth when he calls to them.  When that plan fails, he notices how much birds like birdseed, and decides to open a seed restaurant on his nose.  Chez Bob attracts its first customer the very next day.  The bird promises to tell all its friends, so Bob decides not to eat it.  Pretty soon, Chez Bob is super popular, and Bob finds himself enjoying the community with a book club, a basketball team (he’s the coach), and a sunset cruise.  When a storm comes up, Bob invites his new friends to take shelter in his mouth.  He can hear them laughing, playing, and cleaning his teeth.  It’s official: these birds have gone from “the birds he was going to eat” to “the birds he was absolutely, without a doubt, definitely not going to eat.”  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Bob Shea (who, according to the back flap, insists that the book’s title has nothing to do with his first and last names) has created another goofy book which, like Who Wet My Pants? is also an unexpectedly sweet friendship story.  The cover is sure to catch the eye of young readers and they won’t be the least disappointed by what’s inside.

Cons:  It’s not clear what Bob will be eating once he befriends the birds.

Published by Neal Porter Books

Summary:  In this companion to Green and Blue, Laura Vaccaro Seeger creates the story of a lost fox told with the color red: “Dark red/light red/lost red/bright red” takes the fox from traveling through a forest to sleeping in a field to getting caught in the headlights of a blue pickup at a railroad crossing.  Die-cut pages give a glimpse of the red on the next page, as the fox discovers more man-made barriers. Rusty nails cut its paws, a chain link fence and brick wall block its path, and finally a raw steak lures it into a trap.  A neighbor girl finds the trap and frees the fox, who finds its way back to its family.  “Just red” shows an adult fox and a kit happily nuzzling one another.  Includes an author’s note.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Caldecott honoree Laura Seeger works her magic again, perfectly portraying a range of strong emotions through color, illustrations, and a few words.  Be sure to read the author’s note which links the human characters in all three of her books, and places this book in the context of our political times.  A Caldecott consideration for sure.

Cons:  It was an emotional roller coaster.

Published by Scribble US

Summary:  A subway train that is part of the Seoul network (one of the longest in the world) tells the story of its travels.  At each stop, a new person gets on and tells a bit about their life.  There’s a grandmother taking fish to cook for her daughter and granddaughter, a shoemaker who can tell about people’s lives from studying their shoes, an overwhelmed high school student, an unemployed 29-year-old man, and more.  As each one boards, the narration switches to their voice, and a two-page spread gives us a bit of their story.  The voice of the subway closes the book: ‘The unique lives of strangers you might never meet again are all around you, every time you take the train.”  52 pages; grades 1-5.

Pros:  At first glance, this might look like a book for someone who likes trains, and it is that, but it’s also an invitation to slow down and notice the people all around you and to contemplate what kind of life each one of them might be living.  The watercolor portraits are beautiful renditions of the different people, and the poetic language could be used as a mentor text for narrative writing. I was kind of blown away by all that’s contained in this one picture book.

Cons:  The narrative structure of this book is different from most, with six pages of text before the title page and so many different voices, that it might be difficult for younger kids to understand all that is going on without some extra help.

Published by Alazar Press

Summary:  Alaina wakes up feeling excited about the day ahead.  The second graders are putting on a play, and she, a kindergartener, gets to deliver the last line, “Thank you for coming.  Goodbye.”  She reviews her line with her mother as they walk to school, then goes over it in her head throughout the day.  Finally, it’s time for the big production.  Alaina watches in the wings, getting caught up in the different emotions that the actors portray.  When it’s time for her line, she is too excited to stay on script, and instead improvises: “Wasn’t that great? Wasn’t it stupendous? What about those jokes, and the yelling, and the crying, and the dancing, and…?”  The teacher cuts her short by closing the curtain, but Alaina sticks her head out for her final, “Thank you for coming. Goodbye!”  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Eloise Greenfield, who died this year at the age of 92, once said she wanted her books “to enable Black children to realize how beautiful and smart they are”. She realizes that vision in this posthumously published story about Alaina.  The story and the gorgeous illustrations capture the excitement of the theater, and Alaina’s delight in the production is infectious.  This would make a great introduction to read before attending a play.

Cons:  Seems like someone could have thought of a slightly catchier title.