Kids Books

Caroline Murphy is a Hurricane Child. Being born during a hurricane is unlucky, and 12-year-old Caroline has had her share of bad luck lately. She's hated and bullied by everyone in her small school on St. Thomas of the US Virgin Islands, a spirit only she can see won't stop following her, and—worst of all—Caroline's mother left home one day and never came back. But when a new student named Kalinda arrives, Caroline's luck begins to turn around. Kalinda, a solemn girl from Barbados with a special smile for everyone, becomes Caroline's first and only friend—and the person for whom Caroline has begun to develop a crush. Now, Caroline must find the strength to confront her feelings for Kalinda, brave the spirit stalking her through the islands, and face the reason her mother abandoned her. Together, Caroline and Kalinda must set out in a hurricane to find Caroline's missing mother—before Caroline loses her forever.

One little penguin. Three hungry cats. His chances don't look good - can this penguin in peril make his escape?

Find the confidence to rock out to your own beat. Melly only joined the school band because her best friend, Olivia, begged her to. But to her surprise, quiet Melly loves playing the drums. It’s the only time she doesn’t feel like a mouse. Now, she and Olivia are about to spend the next two weeks at Camp Rockaway, jamming under the stars in the Michigan woods. But this summer brings big changes for Melly: her parents split up, her best friend ditches her, and Melly finds herself falling for a girl at camp named Adeline. To top it off, Melly's not sure she has what it takes to be a real rock 'n' roll drummer. Will she be able to make music from all the noise in her heart?

When Kirby, a fun-loving penguin, arrives on Polar Bear Island, she shakes things up—much to the dismay of Parker, the mayor. Will Parker learn to see how great it is to make new friends? Or will he chase Kirby away . . . forever? “Welcome to Polar Bear Island. NO OTHERS ALLOWED!” Parker is the mayor of this peaceful, predictable island, and he wants to keep it just the way it is. But Kirby, a penguin, thinks the place is paradise, and she wants to stay. Parker says no, but the other polar bears love Kirby—and soon they’re begging Parker to let Kirby (and her family) move in. Will Parker agree . . . and make the island fun for EVERYONE? With its gentle message of inclusivity, this playful and lighthearted story will delight children.

Balloons are bright and floaty and shiny and perfect . More than anything else in the whole wide world, Isabel wants a balloon. Everyone will get one on Graduation Day—everyone except the porcupines, because Porcupines + Balloons = Trouble But Isabel isn't going to settle for another boring bookmark. She has a plan...

Twelve-year-old Sunny St. James navigates heart surgery, reconnections with a lost mother, first kisses, and emerging feelings for another girl. When Sunny St. James receives a new heart, she decides to set off on a "New Life Plan": 1) do awesome amazing things she could never do before; 2) find a new best friend; and 3) kiss a boy for the first time. Her "New Life Plan" seems to be racing forward, but when she meets her new best friend Quinn, Sunny questions whether she really wants to kiss a boy at all. When the reemergence of her mother, Sunny begins a journey to becoming the new Sunny St. James.

Forest animals set up camp in an empty human house in this rollicking picture book by up-and-coming talents Julie Falatko and Ruth Chan. When the humans head out to go camping, the animals settle in for a relaxing holiday of their own! Teen bear takes over the bathroom with her curling iron, the beavers prepare their fanciest recipes, and the deer kick up their feet for a dance party. What starts as a little unwinding soon escalates to a big mess, just in time for everyone to head home... Julie Falatko and Ruth Chan's quirky humors shine in this hilarious take on family trips that will have kids wondering what exactly goes on back at home when they're on vacation.

When twelve-year-old Cady Bennett is sent to live with the aunt she didn’t even know she had in the quaint mountain town of Julian, she doesn’t know what to expect. Cady isn’t used to stability, or even living inside, after growing up homeless in San Diego with her dad. Now she’s staying in her mother’s old room, exploring the countryside filled with apple orchards and pie shops, making friends, and working in Aunt Shell’s own pie shop—and soon, Cady starts to feel like she belongs. Then she finds out that Aunt Shell’s pie shop is failing. Saving the business and protecting the first place she’s ever really felt safe will take everything she’s learned and the help of all her new friends. But are there some things even the perfect pie just can’t fix?

An accidental-friendship story packed with humor from author-illustrator Eric Barclay Sheep is an expert at protecting sheep—or so she thinks until one happy afternoon when she bumps into a very hairy someone on the farm. “Who are you?” she asks. “I’m the sheep dog!” the someone says. “I watch the sheep.” Holy begonia! Sheep knows this can’t be right. After all, she’s the pro! So Sheep goes off to get everything Sheep Dog needs to get the job done, but each time she goes, something almost happens to Sheep… And it's Sheep Dog who saves the day! For fans of Goodnight Already! by Jory John, You Will Be My Friend! by Peter Brown, and Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle, this hilarious and tender friendship story proves that even the best watchers must look out for one another.

If home is where the heart is, what would happen if you lost it? Compassion and humor infuse the story of a family caught in financial crisis and a girl struggling to form her own identity. It’s the first day of summer and Rachel’s thirteenth birthday. She can’t wait to head to the lake with her best friend, Micah! But as summer unfolds, every day seems to get more complicated. Her “fun” new job taking care of the neighbors’ farm animals quickly becomes a challenge, whether she’s being pecked by chickens or having to dodge a charging pig at feeding time. At home, her parents are more worried about money than usual, and their arguments over bills intensify. Fortunately, Rachel can count on Micah to help her cope with all the stress. But Micah seems to want their relationship to go beyond friendship, and though Rachel almost wishes for that, too, she can’t force herself to feel “that way” about him. In fact, she isn’t sure she can feel that way about any boy—or what that means.

With one of his shoes untied, and all of the animals too scared to help, what's Bear going to do? The surprisingly clever answer will make kids—and parents—laugh. A perfect read-aloud. A lumbering little polar bear has one shoe untied, and he needs some help! Sadly for him, though, the other animals are all too scared of him: the lemmings, rabbits, and seals all run away as he approaches them for assistance. What's Bear going to do? Luckily, two plucky birds are more than happy to help out and offer advice—though probably not quite in the way that readers anticipate. In this sweet and funny book about asking for help (and receiving it), expectations are flipped in a simple but clever way. Praise for Bear Needs Help A Junior Library Guild selection! "Laced with humor and . . . decipherable in more ways than one." —Kirkus Reviews "The silliness will likely win the day and earn a few giggles . . . Use this to bring some surprising goofiness to a bear-themed or winter-themed storytime." —BCCB

One sunny day, a little boy heads outside for a swim, but his pool is already taken . . . There's a big whale in the water and it's not budging! The boy tries everything to get the whale to leave. Nothing seems to work. Not fetch. Not tag. Not even offering his allowance. What's a boy to do? Luckily, he comes up with the perfect solution: he decides to chill out on a spray of water over the whale's spout. This colorful whale of a tale from the talented Joyce Wan is sure to inspire giggles from little guppies!

Bear likes to keep his house clean and tidy. In fact, the only thing Bear loves more than cleaning is taking care of his small stuffed friend, Ursa. Then Bear sees a sticky spiderweb . . . and where there's a web there is certainly a spider! The messy guest must be found, but what Bear and Ursa finally discover might just be an unlikely friend. Opposites attract in this adorable story, where new friends come in all shapes and sizes.

Brenda Is A Sheep is a massively mischievous and heart-warming story about being accepted, from Morag Hood – the creator of The Steves, I Am Bat, Aalfred and Aalbert, and author of Sophie Unicorn Expert . Brenda says she is a sheep, but why does she look so different from her fluffy friends? All the sheep adore Brenda. With her sharp pointy teeth and cool grey fur, she's the snazziest sheep around. But Brenda is also very hungry, and doesn't much like the taste of grass . . . she soon begins plotting the most delicious feast of all. But will the sheep notice that Brenda isn’t quite the same as them? A hilarious twist on the classic wolf-in-sheep's-clothing fable.

The story of a shark-obsessed child who's convinced she's getting a pet shark for her birthday. Meet a little girl who is the biggest shark superfan around! And when she overhears her parents utter the word shark while discussing her birthday, her imagination is off and running! She can't wait to be surprised by the pet shark she just KNOWS is coming her way . . . but what kind will it be? As she lists all the possibilities, her disbelieving pooch, Ralphie, tries to set her straight. But she's not paying attention—instead, she is getting more and more excited by the beauty and variety of these awesome creatures. Finally, when her birthday rolls around, she gets a different kind of surprise—a wild shark adopted in her name. She's disappointed at first—but ultimately is proud to play a role in helping protect the creatures she loves so dearly (and is finally listening to Ralphie—who sure knows a lot about sharks for a dog!).

No one believes Larf exists, and he likes it that way. Larf, you see, is a sasquatch, the only sasquatch in the world (or so it seems). He has a very pleasant, and very private, life in the woods, where on any given day he might be found jogging, gardening or walking Eric, his pet bunny. But everything changes one morning when Larf discovers that another sasquatch is scheduled to make an appearance in the nearby city of Hunderfitz. What?! That must mean he's not the only sasquatch in the world! Excited by the prospect of having a friend to share hair grooming tips with (and let's face it, teeter-tottering alone is no fun), Larf disguises himself as a city slicker and heads for Hunderfitz —- where he's in for a couple enormous surprises. Ashley Spires once again shows her chops for creating irresistible, quirky characters and laugh-aloud stories and illustrations. Readers with little feet and big feet will fall head over heels for Larf.