Picture Book Picks

Most picture books generally have a recommendation of age 3 and up but with so many great titles being reissued in board book format, nowadays even the youngest can enjoy your favorites. One "wonderful" new title we're recommending is Lenny & Lucy, from the husband-and-wife team of Philip and Erin Stead. Boswellian Jen Steele offers: "When Peter's family moved to their new home, Peter does not like it. He tells Harold this but Harold is just a dog and can't do anything about it. Peter's new house is near a bridge and on the other side of that bridge? The dark woods! With his trusty dog, Harold, Peter sets out to build a guardian of the bridge. Once the guardian is built, Peter names him Lenny. Now that Peter feels safe he sees that Lenny looks lonely out there all alone guarding the bridge. So Peter and Harold build Lenny a friend, Lucy. And now it's not so lonely or scary out there."

Bookseller Todd Wellman's picture book pick is Lazy Dave, written and illustrated by Peter Jarvis: "Whoa; is Dave the dog lazy! Or is he? In this winsome tale Dave's inner desire to explore leads him to sleepwalk when his owner Lilly is at school. Dave becomes, unbeknownst to him, an adventurous hero. He swims with an octopus; floats through space; and trips up a bank robber. In the end, Dave is back at home with no memory of his exploits, and he and Lilly see a hero dog featured on the news. Neither knows the hero dog is really Dave--and Dave is forlorn about his assumed laziness in comparison to the hero dog's vitality. Lilly announces she loves Dave the way he is, though, and Dave smiles and nods off, happy to be loved."

Boswellian Phoebe Dyer is talking up Oskar and the Eight Blessings, a new collaboration from Richard and Tanya Simon that makes a great Hanukkah gift: "Beautiful illustrations complement this heartwarming and historical story. Oskar leaves Europe all by himself after the Night of the Broken Glass to travel to America. Before he leaves, his father tells him to look for the blessings in life, even the small ones. As he walks down Broadway in New York City to his aunt's house, Oskar learns that his father's words ring true. This book is truly astounding and my eyes got a bit watery while I read it. The art will inspire you and the story will touch your heart!"

Don't forget that these recommended age ranges are both a generalization and a guess. Dial suggests 8 and up for Confessions of an Imaginary Friend: a Memoir by Jacques Papier, by Michelle Cuevas, and Jen Steele seals the deal with her shpiel: "Jacques Papier is having an existential crisis.  He has recently discovered that he's not an eight-year-old boy with a twin sister named Fleur. And perhaps everyone doesn't actually hate him (well, except maybe for Francois, the family's cantankerous wiener dog). It turns out he's actually Fleur's imaginary friend. People aren't ignoring him because they hate him. People just can't see him because he might possibly not be real. And so begins Jacques's journey to figure out just who he really is. Confessions of an Imaginary Friend is funny and charming and an absolute delight to read. I loved this book!"

Boswellian Barb Katz is a Stuart Gibbs fan and notes that Evil Spy School (also recommended for 8+) is on par with previous offerings. Here's her complete report, now declassified: "After thirteen-year-old Ben Ripley is kicked out of the CIA's Academy of Espionage he is recruited by rival school, the evil SPYDER. Fast paced and filled with humor and drama, Ben has to decide if he really wants to be part of SPYDER or become a double agent.  Well drawn characters, both good and evil, will draw readers into the action.  Though this is the third book in the series (following Spy School and Spy Camp), it can easily stand alone." Good news---events point to a probable fourth book in the series! (Editor's note: But not for a while, as the next book, coming in April, is part of the Moon Base Alpha series.)

 

Simon and Schuster is recommending 10 and up for the newest from Kenneth Oppel, who like Gibbs, has visited Milwaukee for a previous title. His newest, The Nest, is a feather in the author's cap, according to bookseller Todd Wellman: "Young Steve is obsessed with many things-including the health of his newly born baby brother. When his dream of a friendly angel reassures him that all will be well, he begins to believe his dreams might be real. Soon it is revealed that the figure in his dream is a queen wasp with a mission to replace his brother with a newly formed baby, and Steve takes on the task of saving his actual brother from being swapped out by real-world wasps. My inclination was to overlook the deep questions of mental health and root for Steve to succeed, and further pondering led me to want to talk to everyone else who's read the book to question if Steve is really experiencing what is said to happen."

More staff recs for intermediate reads on our website.