Recommended Reads Books (List)

Just when seventeen-year-old Cullen Witter thinks he understands everything about his small and painfully dull Arkansas town, it all disappears. . . .

In the summer before Cullen's senior year, a nominally-depressed birdwatcher named John Barling thinks he spots a species of woodpecker thought to be extinct since the 1940s in Lily, Arkansas. His rediscovery of the so-called Lazarus Woodpecker sparks a flurry of press and woodpecker-mania. Soon all the kids are getting woodpecker haircuts and everyone's eating "Lazarus burgers." But as absurd as the town's carnival atmosphere has become, nothing is more startling than the realization that Cullen’s sensitive, gifted fifteen-year-old brother Gabriel has suddenly and inexplicably disappeared.

While Cullen navigates his way through a summer of finding and losing love, holding his fragile family together, and muddling his way into adulthood, a young missionary in Africa, who has lost his faith, is searching for any semblance of meaning wherever he can find it. As distant as the two stories seem at the start, they are thoughtfully woven ever closer together and through masterful plotting, brought face to face in a surprising and harrowing climax.

Complex but truly extraordinary, tinged with melancholy and regret, comedy and absurdity, this novel finds wonder in the ordinary and emerges as ultimately hopeful. It's about a lot more than what Cullen calls, “that damn bird.” It’s about the dream of second chances.

Felix, a Jewish boy in Poland in 1942, is hiding from the Nazis in a Catholic orphanage. The only problem is that he doesn't know anything about the war, and thinks he's only in the orphanage while his parents travel and try to salvage their bookselling business. And when he thinks his parents are in danger, Felix sets off to warn them--straight into the heart of Nazi-occupied Poland. To Felix, everything is a story: Why did he get a whole carrot in his soup? It must be sign that his parents are coming to get him. Why are the Nazis burning books? They must be foreign librarians sent to clean out the orphanage's outdated library. But as Felix's journey gets increasingly dangerous, he begins to see horrors that not even stories can explain.
Despite his grim suroundings, Felix never loses hope. Morris Gleitzman takes a painful subject and expertly turns it into a story filled with love, friendship, and even humor.

Captain Malik and the crew of his spaceship are in search of the only resources that matter – and can only be found by harvesting the giant corpses of alien gods that are found on the edge of human space..and now they see an opportunity to finally break free from this system: by being the first to find a living god.

THE GODS ARE ALWAYS BEAUTIFUL... ...AND THE GODS ARE ALWAYS DEAD. Captain Malik and the crew of the spaceship the Vihaan II are in search of the only resources that matter – and can only be found by harvesting the giant corpses of alien gods that are found on the edge of human space. While other autopsy ships and explorers race to salvage the meat, minerals, and metals that sustain the human race, Malik sees an opportunity to finally break free from this system: by being the first to find a living god. But Malik’s obsession with the gods will push his crew into the darkest reaches of space, bringing them face to face with a threat unlike anything they ever imagined, unless the rogue agent on their trail can stop them first... Superstars Al Ewing (Immortal Hulk) and Simone Di Meo (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers) present a new sci-fi epic about the search for meaning and the hard choices we make to find it, no matter the cost to the world – or universe – around us. Collects We Only Find Them When They’re Dead #1-5.

One day, gravity on Earth suddenly became a fraction of what it is now. Twenty years later, humanity has adapted to its new low-gravity reality. And to Willa Fowler, a woman born just after G-day, it's...well, it's pretty awesome, actually. You can fly through the air! I mean, sure, you can also die if you jump too high. So you just don't jump too high. And maybe don't get mixed up in your Dad's secret plan to bring gravity back that could get you killed...

SKYWARD HC collects all 15 issues of the Eisner Award nominated series from writer JOE HENDERSON (showrunner of Netflix's LUCIFER) and artist LEE GARBETT (LUCIFER, LOKI: AGENT OF ASGARD).

A witty, irreverent tour of history's worst plagues—from the Antonine Plague, to leprosy, to polio—and a celebration of the heroes who fought them

In 1518, in a small town in Alsace, Frau Troffea began dancing and didn’t stop. She danced until she was carried away six days later, and soon thirty-four more villagers joined her. Then more. In a month more than 400 people had been stricken by the mysterious dancing plague. In late-seventeenth-century England an eccentric gentleman founded the No Nose Club in his gracious townhome—a social club for those who had lost their noses, and other body parts, to the plague of syphilis for which there was then no cure. And in turn-of-the-century New York, an Irish cook caused two lethal outbreaks of typhoid fever, a case that transformed her into the notorious Typhoid Mary.

Throughout time, humans have been terrified and fascinated by the diseases history and circumstance have dropped on them. Some of their responses to those outbreaks are almost too strange to believe in hindsight. Get Well Soon delivers the gruesome, morbid details of some of the worst plagues we’ve suffered as a species, as well as stories of the heroic figures who selflessly fought to ease the suffering of their fellow man. With her signature mix of in-depth research and storytelling, and not a little dark humor, Jennifer Wright explores history’s most gripping and deadly outbreaks, and ultimately looks at the surprising ways they’ve shaped history and humanity for almost as long as anyone can remember.

"David Sedaris's ability to transform the mortification of everyday life into wildly entertaining art," (The Christian Science Monitor) is elevated to wilder and more entertaining heights than ever in this remarkable new book.
Trying to make coffee when the water is shut off, David considers using the water in a vase of flowers and his chain of associations takes him from the French countryside to a hilariously uncomfortable memory of buying drugs in a mobile home in rural North Carolina. In essay after essay, Sedaris proceeds from bizarre conundrums of daily life-having a lozenge fall from your mouth into the lap of a fellow passenger on a plane or armoring the windows with LP covers to protect the house from neurotic songbirds-to the most deeply resonant human truths. Culminating in a brilliant account of his venture to Tokyo in order to quit smoking, David Sedaris's sixth essay collection is a new masterpiece of comic writing from "a writer worth treasuring" (Seattle Times).

Praise for When You Are Engulfed in Flames:

"Older, wiser, smarter and meaner, Sedaris...defies the odds once again by delivering an intelligent take on the banalities of an absurd life." --Kirkus Reviews

This latest collection proves that not only does Sedaris still have it, but he's also getting better....Sedaris's best stuff will still--after all this time--move, surprise, and entertain." --Booklist

Table of Contents:

It's Catching
Keeping Up
The Understudy
This Old House
Buddy, Can You Spare a Tie?
Road Trips
What I Learned
That's Amore
The Monster Mash
In the Waiting Room
Solutions to Saturday's Puzzle
Adult Figures Charging Toward a Concrete Toadstool
Memento Mori
All the Beauty You Will Ever Need
Town and Country
Aerial
The Man in the Hut
Of Mice and Men
April in Paris
Crybaby
Old Faithful
The Smoking Section


 

One small snowflake fluttering down--
That's all you need for a snowman.
     Or is it? In these pages, an exuberant crew is summoned to create a snowman of heroic proportions.

One cold day Mouse and Poppa venture into the clear white world. From sledding down hills, to skating across the ice, to meeting fluffy snow angels, Mouse finds that wintertime is full of surprises. And before it's time to go home, Mouse just might have time to "make" a special new friend!

Available for the first time as a Classic Board Book, this seasonal story is perfect for little hands!

ANIMAL STORIES. Featuring Olaf, the happy-go-lucky comic relief of Disney's "Frozen," this humorous tale of what it means to dream is told in verse and features charming illustrations. Ages 0+

"A gentle story of patience."--Horn Book (starred review)

Caldecott Medal-winner Kevin Henkes's award-winning and bestselling mouse, Penny, stars in an irresistible story about anticipation, disappointment, and a brand-new sled. Told in five short chapters, Penny and Her Sled is perfect for reading alone, reading aloud, and sharing together.

When Penny, a sweet and curious mouse, gets a new sled, she can't wait to use it. But there's one big problem--there's no snow!

Patiently, Penny waits and watches for the snow to appear. She puts on her scarf and hat. She sleeps with her mittens. Maybe if she's ready, the snow will finally come. But day after day, the snow does not arrive. Finally, Penny decides she will use her sled for other things--it's too wonderful not to!

With a little imagination, the sled becomes a bridge for her glass animals to cross. It becomes a bed for her doll, Rose. It becomes a magic carpet that takes Penny and Rose on adventures all around the world.

And as Penny waits for a snowfall that may never appear, she learns all about the power of patience, imagination, play . . . and spring! Told in five short chapters, and with an emphasis on family and patience, Penny and Her Sled is the perfect choice for emergent readers and for family sharing.

Everybody knows shark expert Freddy Thresher is also a snowshoe whiz--or is he? When Mrs. Wushy announces that the class will be competing in the mini-Winter Olympics, everyone is excited for the competition. But, after betting Max the bully that he will win the Snowshoe Race, Freddy heads straight for snowshoe boot camp, and fast! Will Freddy be able to win gold amid sled pulls and the infamous Snowball Toss? (copy continues)

First grade and kindergarten teacher Abby Klein has been teaching for almost twenty years, and she brings her firsthand knowledge of children to this popular series. As well, she tailors each story and the language in it for new readers--using just the right words, as well as the issues that are most important to children this age.

For extra fun, the word "fin" is hidden in every illustration, and children will have a good time playing the games in "Freddy's Fun Pages" at the end of the book. Attention shark lovers! Freddy Thresher is a first grade expert on sharks, and each book features cool facts about sharks as an added bonus.

Have you ever built a snowman and discovered the next day that his grin has gotten a little crooked, or his tree-branch arms have moved? And you've wondered . . . what do snowmen do at night? This delightful wintertime tale reveals all! Caralyn Buehner's witty, imaginative verse offers many amusing details about the secret life of snowmen and where they go at night, while Mark Buehner's roly-poly snowmen are bursting with personality and charm. From the highly successful team that created such winning titles as Fanny's Dream, Snowmen at Night is fabulous, frosty, and fun!

B-R-R-R-R! AH-CHOO! Sneezy the Snowman is cold, cold, cold. To warm up, he drinks cocoa, sits in a hot tub, stands near a warm fire--and melts! But the children know just what to do to build him up again--and make him feel "just right." Hilarity chills the air with playful mixed-media illustrations by Stephen Gilpin as Sneezy attempts to warm himself with some silly results.

A heartwarming winter story perfect for fans of classics like The Snowy Day, The Mitten, The Snowman, and The Giving Tree.

Drift was a very plain snowman. Every day he dreamed of wearing a stylish hat, a scarf, and mittens just like the other snowmen—and, most of all, having a pointy orange carrot nose.

Then, he knew, he would finally be perfect—and he would finally belong.

Until one special, snowy day, Drift’s deepest dreams come true.

But when dark clouds roll in and a terrible blizzard begins to blow, can Drift face giving up what he loves most and become the most perfect snowman of all?

From celebrated cartoonist Chris Britt, The Most Perfect Snowman is a touching story about kindness, friendship, and the importance of giving.

The joys of a winter day

"Goodbye, Mommy . . .
Here we go!
Through the door
And . . . HELLO, SNOW!"

On the morning of a fresh snowfall, a young girl bounces out of bed, scrambles into warm clothes, grabs her dad, dashes outside, and jumps right into the delights of a snowy day. Whether she's rolling a giant snowball, bumping into a new friend, or tumbling into a pile of white, her spirit and energy are hard to resist.
Playful rhyming text and exuberant watercolor illustrations full of funny antics and details reflect the enthusiasms of a snow-loving girl on this best of winter days.

The funny, endearing insect pals find a way to be more than fair-weather friends in a second early chapter book from Megan McDonald and G. Brian Karas.

Brrrr! The leaves are off the trees, and frost is on the ground. It’s time for bugs to hunker down and hide out for the winter. But Ant isn’t ready to hunker down. Ant isn’t ready to be all by herself for months on end. The thought of a long chilly season without her best friend, Honey Bee, is enough to make Ant shiver with dread. Can Ant brave the cold for one last surprise visit before the snow flies? And will Honey Bee welcome an interruption of her peace and quiet? The author of the Judy Moody series teams up again with award-winning illustrator G. Brian Karas to show that true friends can weather whatever comes their way — even if one is feeling antsy and the other has blissful hibernation in mind.

These are no ordinary princesses-they're Rescue Princesses!

Northernland is the snowiest kingdom the Rescue Princesses have ever visited. They are delighted to go sledding, drink hot cocoa, and make friends with the girl who lives there, Princess Freya.

When Princess Freya's mischievous kitten goes missing, the princesses leap into action. They have to find the kitten-even if it means letting Freya in on their Rescue Princess secret.

 

Snow doesn't stop the Golden Retriever, Tinka. She runs and plays and sleds with her boy. But when her friend Millie the beagle shows up, off races Tinka. And she gets lost--till her boy finally rescues her.

A companion to Fun Dog, Sun Dog and Cool Dog, School Dog.

At the end of a long snowy day, a young girl waits for her father to come home from work. She imagines great things: a snow castle, a feast, dancing--all attended by a host of animal characters. But her father is late. Where in the world can he be? The snow princess mounts her steed and flies off on a quest to find her father and guide him home.

Winter has pounced on Transylmania in full force. While the kids are thrilled to have a snow day, their good times are cut short when they realize the cause: An Abominable Snow Kid has moved to Transylmania, and she has brought the cold weather along with her. Will the Mighty, Mighty Monsters be able to fend off this frozen fiend?

Eleven-year-old Matt is struggling in school and he has to set up his own business to save his failing math grade. But what is he even good at? The only thing he truly loves is his team of dogs, and so Matt's Sled Dog School is born. Teaching dogsledding should be easy, right?

But people, just like dogs, can be unpredictable. And sometimes the bravest thing a person can do is admit they need help. Like Terry Lynn Johnson's popular Ice Dogs, Sled Dog School is about overcoming adversity, finding your strengths, and your friends, and following your passions.

In this illustrated children's book, Ruthie would rather go sledding than go to school. When she asks both children and adults how they might spend a snow day, they begin to envision fantastic alternatives to their usual routines. Ruthie teaches them her newly invented song and snow dance to help make their wishes come true. Even those in non-snowy climates will appreciate the longing for an unexpected vacation from work and school.

It's snowing! What will Sam do outside? This simple story incorporates words from the Kindergarten-level Dolch Sight Word List to build literacy skills.

The sixth book in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s treasured Little House series, and the recipient of a Newbery Honor—now available as an ebook! This digital version features Garth Williams’s classic illustrations, which appear in vibrant full color on a full-color device and in rich black-and-white on all other devices.

The town of De Smet in the Dakota Territory is hit with terrible blizzards in the hard winter of 1880-81, and the Ingalls family must ration their food and coal. When the supply train doesn’t arrive, all supplies are cut off from the outside. Soon there is almost no food left, so young Almanzo Wilder and a friend must make a dangerous trip in search of provisions.

The nine Little House books are inspired by Laura’s own childhood and have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America’s frontier history and as heartwarming, unforgettable stories.

Into the Snowis an exuberant story told in the child's own voice. Celebrating immediacy and exploration, along with the tender bond between mother and child, this is a story that feels good, the way all real things do.

Masamitsu Saitowas born in 1958 in Japan. He studied graphic design at Tama Art University. His work can be found in magazines, on chocolate packages, and inside wonderful books.

Yuki Kanekois an artist, naturalist, translator, and author. She grew up in Japan, and now lives in Brooklyn with her husband and daughter.

Into the Snowis an exuberant story told in the child's own voice. Celebrating immediacy and exploration, along with the tender bond between mother and child, this is a story that feels good, the way all real things do.

Masamitsu Saitowas born in 1958 in Japan. He studied graphic design at Tama Art University. His work can be found in magazines, on chocolate packages, and inside wonderful books.

Yuki Kanekois an artist, naturalist, translator, and author. She grew up in Japan, and now lives in Brooklyn with her husband and daughter.

A new generation of children love Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, inspired by the classic series Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood!

Bundle up with Daniel Tiger in this adorable new 8x8 storybook based on a popular episode of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood that comes with a sheet of stickers!

It’s snowing in the neighborhood, and Daniel Tiger can’t wait to go outside and build a snowman with Miss Elaina! Daniel tells Mom Tiger that he doesn’t need his hat and mittens, but when he gets outside, he’s too cold to play! Luckily, Mom Tiger is close by to help Daniel pick the right clothes for cold weather.

This sweet winter-themed storybook is perfect for helping little ones understand that playing in the snow is much more fun when you’re dressed for the weather!

© 2015 The Fred Rogers Company

There’s snow place like home in this seventeenth Galaxy Zack adventure!

The Nelsons are ready for a galactic winter vacation on a great new planet! And Zack’s best friend, Drake, is coming too! From solar-snowboarding, hydro-freeze fishing, supreme snowball fights, and epic ice forts, the boys can’t wait to dive into the winter games. But at the resort, Zack realizes there are a bunch of hurdles he wasn’t prepared for. Will Zack find a way to beat out the winter blues before it’s time to snow home?

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Galaxy Zack chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.

Discover the world of Bitty Baby - a special new friend to help girls ages 3 - 5 shine bright! These engaging tales are written by Newbery Honor winner Kirby Larson and illustrated by award-winning artist Sue Cornelison. In this story, a little girl takes her Bitty Baby doll outside to play in the snow, but her big brother is too busy sledding to help build a snowman. As she waits, the girl tells a story about Bitty Baby and a polar bear and how they learn to play together. When her brother finally arrives, she has solved her own problem. Includes a "For Parents" section that provides insight and tips on encouraging positive social play.

Look out. Now look up. From the sky one flake falls, then another. And just like that—it's snowing.

In this beautiful book from debut creator Bomi Park, a young girl wakes up to the year's first snowy day. From her initial glimpse out the window to her poignant adventures—rolling a snowman, making snow angels—the girl's quiet quests are ones all young readers will recognize. Simple, muted text and exquisite, evocative art conjure the excitement of a day spent exploring the wonder of snow—and the magic that, sometimes literally, such a day brings. As subtly joyful as a snow day itself, this book will find its home in the hearts of young adventurers everywhere.

Snow doesn't stop the Golden Retriever, Tinka. She runs and plays and sleds with her boy. But when her friend Millie the beagle shows up, off races Tinka. And she gets lost--till her boy finally rescues her.

A companion to Fun Dog, Sun Dog and Cool Dog, School Dog.

These are no ordinary princesses-they're Rescue Princesses!

Northernland is the snowiest kingdom the Rescue Princesses have ever visited. They are delighted to go sledding, drink hot cocoa, and make friends with the girl who lives there, Princess Freya.

When Princess Freya's mischievous kitten goes missing, the princesses leap into action. They have to find the kitten-even if it means letting Freya in on their Rescue Princess secret.

 

The funny, endearing insect pals find a way to be more than fair-weather friends in a second early chapter book from Megan McDonald and G. Brian Karas.

Brrrr! The leaves are off the trees, and frost is on the ground. It’s time for bugs to hunker down and hide out for the winter. But Ant isn’t ready to hunker down. Ant isn’t ready to be all by herself for months on end. The thought of a long chilly season without her best friend, Honey Bee, is enough to make Ant shiver with dread. Can Ant brave the cold for one last surprise visit before the snow flies? And will Honey Bee welcome an interruption of her peace and quiet? The author of the Judy Moody series teams up again with award-winning illustrator G. Brian Karas to show that true friends can weather whatever comes their way — even if one is feeling antsy and the other has blissful hibernation in mind.

A new generation of children love Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, inspired by the classic series Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood!

Join Daniel Tiger and Prince Wednesday on a wintry adventure in this adorable new 8x8 storybook based on a popular episode of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood!

It’s a sparkling, snowy day in the neighborhood, and Daniel, Dad, and Prince Wednesday are all going out for some wintertime fun! Daniel can’t wait to try ice skating for the first time!

© 2016 The Fred Rogers Company.

What is soft, fluffy, and white? Pablo’s wool, of course. But this little lamb soon discovers that there’s something else as well: SNOW! From making trails to sledding with friends, having snowball fights and crafting snowmen, there’s tons of fun to be had in the snow. But winter days grow dark very fast, and Pablo finds himself lost on his way home. Not to worry—Mama and Papa help Pablo get back to the cozy barn so he can talk about his adventures.

A Christy Ottaviano Book

The joys of a winter day

"Goodbye, Mommy . . .
Here we go!
Through the door
And . . . HELLO, SNOW!"

On the morning of a fresh snowfall, a young girl bounces out of bed, scrambles into warm clothes, grabs her dad, dashes outside, and jumps right into the delights of a snowy day. Whether she's rolling a giant snowball, bumping into a new friend, or tumbling into a pile of white, her spirit and energy are hard to resist.
Playful rhyming text and exuberant watercolor illustrations full of funny antics and details reflect the enthusiasms of a snow-loving girl on this best of winter days.

Millie's new job as a mail cow keeps her very busy. Christmastime is especially hectic, and she can barely wait for the milking to be done before she's out delivering presents.

On Christmas Eve, at the end of a long day, the mail carrier sends Millie home with all the presents he's made for the farmer and the other animals. Only, Millie gets a bit confused by the snow-covered landscape. Suddenly everything looks the same, and the farm is nowhere in sight! Can Millie make it home to deliver the presents in time for Christmas? And more important, will the presents make it there in one piece?

There's a snowman-building contest in town and the grand prize is a year's supply of free ice cream Horrid Henry just has to beat Moody Margaret and her dumb old ballerina snowman. So Henry makes the biggest monster snowman ever. But Henry might have to use a few last-minute tricks to win this one. Plus three other stories that won't melt.

Galaxy Book Award's Best Children's Book of the Year!

Francesca Simon is one of the world's best-loved children's authors. She is the only American to have ever won the Galaxy Book Award, and her creation, Horrid Henry, is the #1 bestselling chapter book series in the UK-with a hit TV show and over fifteen million copies sold! Each book contains four easy-to read stories and hilarious illustrations by the one and only Tony Ross, so even the most reluctant of readers won't be able to resist Henry's amazing talent for trouble!

"A loveable bad boy."
-People

Look inside to see what kids and adults have to say about the master of mischief!

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HORRID HENRY AT JABBERWOCKYKIDS.COM!

PRAISE FOR HORRID HENRY

Why Horrid Henry?

Kids love it!
"I love the Horrid Henry books by Francesca Simon. They have lots of funny bits in. And Henry always gets into trouble!"
Mia, age 6, BBC Learning is Fun

"It's easy to see why Horrid Henry is the bestselling character for 5-8 year olds."
Liverpool Echo

Because it's funny
"My two boys love this book and I have actually had tears running down my face and had to stop reading because of laughing so hard. My oldest son is rereading all the books in this series on his own now and he still loves them. Happy reading!"
T. Franklin, Parent

"A modern comic classic."
SF Said, Guardian Children's Books Supplement

Kids get to be harmlessly rebellious
"Henry is a beguiling hero who has entranced millions of reluctant readers... little rebels will love this collection and even little angels will be secretly thrilled by Henry's anti-heroic behaviour."
Herald

Henry's naughtiness is a yardstick against which children can get a sense of their own moral goodness and social justice
"What is brilliant about the books is that Henry never does anything that is subversive. She creates an aura of supreme naughtiness (of which children are in awe) but points out that he operates within a safe and secure world."
Emily Turner, Angels And Urchins Magazine

Reaches the most important age group - children who are learning to read
"I have tried out the Horrid Henry books with groups of children as a parent, as a babysitter, and as a teacher. Children love to either hear them read aloud or to read them themselves. The books are spot on for the 5-8 age range and are fun for the adults who share them too."
Danielle Hall, Teacher

The structure provides new readers with a real sense of accomplishment
"My son is 7 years old and a big Horrid Henry fan. This book lived up to his expectations! Horrid Henry is like most boys: he always has a plan and is always getting into mischief! It was amusing, and he could not put it down. Can't wait for the next. He read it cover to cover by himself in 2 days! That for me sells a book! He can't wait for the next one to be published. He has recommended it to all his friends."
Mrs. Tami Gold, Parent

Reaches both boys and girls equally
"Wonderfully appealing to girls and boys alike, a precious rarity at this age."
Judith Woods, Times Books

A global publishing phenomenon with 12 million copies sold!

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT HORRID HENRY:

"Parents reading them aloud may be consoled to discover that Henry can always be relied upon to behave worse than any of their own offspring." Independent

"An absolutely fantastic series and surely a winner with all children. My son took this book as his favourite during book week at his school and converted a few children to the cause. Long live Francesca Simon and her brilliant books! More, more please!"

"My 5-year-old adores them so much he couldn't wait to start reading because of them."

"I really like Horrid Henry and like reading it to my dad. It's funny!"
Matthew, 9, St. Albans

"Horrid Henry is a fabulous anti-hero: monstrously selfish and greedy, he does things most children only dream about... a modern comic classic."
The Guardian

"My 6-year-old son has now read the whole series unaided and is quite content to re-read the stories again and again. My 5-year-old is dying to be able to read well enough so she can read them independently too!"

"Henry is really naughty and makes me laugh. He's very funny and he has lots of adventures."
Martha, age 5, Bella

"A flicker of recognition must pass through most teachers and parents when they read Horrid Henry. There's a tiny bit of him in all of us."
Child Education

"It didn't even make it to the library shelves and there's a long waiting list for it! Enough said."
Nancy Astee, Child Education

"A definite must for every teacher - reading about Henry makes your naughtiest child seem like a saint!"

"As a teacher of 8-year-olds, it's great to get a series of books my class love... They torment me to lend them the books so they can read them on their own. Need I say more?"

Rendered with reassuring words and pastoral scenes, this soothing lullaby of a story is sure to settle even the most restless of cubs.

Mouse is rushing to her nest.
In soft, dry grasses she will rest.

Geese are calling, a chilly wind is blowing, and the sky is turning gray. Winter is on its way. For Mama Bear and Small Bear, that means it’s time to tuck into their den for a long sleep. But Mouse is scurrying by, and Chipmunk is still gathering nuts beside the lake. And look at Hare and Skunk, still romping through the leaves! Why can’t Small Bear stay up, too? To each question, Mama Bear responds with the coziest of answers, finally painting a dreamy picture of the brightening colors and new adventures that will greet Small Bear in the spring. But first comes sleep, in this irresistible invitation to drowsy little cubs everywhere.

A small boy, a cruel city, and the incredible dogs who save him.

Based on a true story!

When Ivan's mother disappears, he's abandoned on the streets of Moscow, with little chance to make it through the harsh winter. But help comes in an unexpected form: Ivan is adopted by a pack of dogs, and the dogs quickly become more than just his street companions: They become his family. Soon Ivan, who used to love reading fairytales, is practically living in one, as he and his pack roam the city and countryside, using their wits to find food and shelter, dodging danger, begging for coins. But Ivan can’t stay hidden from the world of people forever. When help is finally offered to him, will he be able to accept it? Will he even want to?

A heart-pounding tale of survival and a moving look at what makes us human.

A heartwarming winter story perfect for fans of classics like The Snowy Day, The Mitten, The Snowman, and The Giving Tree.

Drift was a very plain snowman. Every day he dreamed of wearing a stylish hat, a scarf, and mittens just like the other snowmen—and, most of all, having a pointy orange carrot nose.

Then, he knew, he would finally be perfect—and he would finally belong.

Until one special, snowy day, Drift’s deepest dreams come true.

But when dark clouds roll in and a terrible blizzard begins to blow, can Drift face giving up what he loves most and become the most perfect snowman of all?

From celebrated cartoonist Chris Britt, The Most Perfect Snowman is a touching story about kindness, friendship, and the importance of giving.

The plucky little hero of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Little Snowplow returns in a story about wishing, waiting, and the magic of a first snowfall.

The little snowplow loves his job on the Mighty Mountain Road Crew, but the work he loves best is plowing snow. Throughout the year, he wishes for snow to come, but winter begins without a single flake in sight. As the weeks pass and the little snowplow's birthday approaches, he starts to wonder whether it will snow at all. Will the little snowplow's birthday dreams come true?

A boy and his father share a winter night of sledding. Outside, the crescent moon is shining brightly and the world is covered with snow. Inside, a boy and his father feel sad. So they put on their hats and coats and climb a hill, pulling a red sled. Father and son climb aboard and zoom down the hill under a starlit sky. With their spirits lifted high, they return home for a mug of hot chocolate. Then it's time for bed. Patricia Thomas's loving story, affectionately illustrated by Chris L. Demarest, is told with the utmost simplicity.

B-R-R-R-R! AH-CHOO! Sneezy the Snowman is cold, cold, cold. To warm up, he drinks cocoa, sits in a hot tub, stands near a warm fire--and melts! But the children know just what to do to build him up again--and make him feel "just right." Hilarity chills the air with playful mixed-media illustrations by Stephen Gilpin as Sneezy attempts to warm himself with some silly results.

A playful guessing game set in a snowy landscape, this gorgeously illustrated picture book offers a cozy look at a cold winter that slowly melts into a bright spring with only a handful of carefully chosen words

A close-up of tree trunks leads to the question "What are these?"
A page turn reveals: trees!
Look to the right—what are those?
Shadows of crows!

Follow the clues on each spread until the snow starts to melt and spring is revealed.

Everybody knows shark expert Freddy Thresher is also a snowshoe whiz--or is he? When Mrs. Wushy announces that the class will be competing in the mini-Winter Olympics, everyone is excited for the competition. But, after betting Max the bully that he will win the Snowshoe Race, Freddy heads straight for snowshoe boot camp, and fast! Will Freddy be able to win gold amid sled pulls and the infamous Snowball Toss? (copy continues)

First grade and kindergarten teacher Abby Klein has been teaching for almost twenty years, and she brings her firsthand knowledge of children to this popular series. As well, she tailors each story and the language in it for new readers--using just the right words, as well as the issues that are most important to children this age.

For extra fun, the word "fin" is hidden in every illustration, and children will have a good time playing the games in "Freddy's Fun Pages" at the end of the book. Attention shark lovers! Freddy Thresher is a first grade expert on sharks, and each book features cool facts about sharks as an added bonus.

ANIMAL STORIES. Featuring Olaf, the happy-go-lucky comic relief of Disney's "Frozen," this humorous tale of what it means to dream is told in verse and features charming illustrations. Ages 0+

If you were a snowman, what job would you choose?

Ten years ago, on the publication of Snowmen at Night, we discovered the secret lives of snowmen. While we humans sleep, the snowmen go sledding, play baseball, and drink cocoa. But now it's revealed that snowmen don't just play all night--they have jobs to do, just like the parents of human kids. Dentists replace missing coal from snowman smiles while pet store owners help pair snowkids with their very own snowpuppy or snowfish to love. The pizza man delivers frozen pizza, and factory workers make the coolest toys in town.

This fourth book in the New York Times bestselling Snowmen series is a gleeful, goofy delight. Kids will love spotting the silly details in each illustration, and the hidden pictures too. (They can look on the back side of the book jacket for a key to all that's concealed within.)

Snow is coming, and it's time to get ready The squirrel gathers nuts, the geese soar south, and the snowshoe hare puts on its new white coat. But what should the fox do? Each animal advises the fox that its own plan is best, but the fox thinks otherwise--yet it's not until he meets a golden-eyed friend that he finds the perfect way to celebrate the snowfall.

Stunning illustrations by the new talent Richard Jones are the perfect complement to the Newbery Honor winner Marion Dane Bauer's lyrical and playful homage to the natural world.

In this hardcover picture book from the New York Times bestselling Ladybug Girl  series, Ladybug Girl and Bingo need to look on the bright side of things to make their snow day adventure as much fun as it should be.
 
Lulu and her dog Bingo wake up to a snow-covered yard and decide to have the best snow day ever. They make penguin tracks and taste the frosting-like snow. But the snow is deep and cold, and when Lulu tries to build a fort or make a snowball, her mittens are too wet and snow falls down the back of her neck. This is not the day she planned. And then Lulu remembers that she is Ladybug Girl and Ladybug Girl can do anything! With another determined look at the snow, Ladybug Girl overcomes her frustration and sees the yard in a whole new light. She and Bingo are now ready to use their imaginations to create their own snow games, snow animals, and snow adventures! 
 
For fans of The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats, Ladybug Girl and the Big Snow honors the magic of the outdoors and creativity!

One cold day Mouse and Poppa venture into the clear white world. From sledding down hills, to skating across the ice, to meeting fluffy snow angels, Mouse finds that wintertime is full of surprises. And before it's time to go home, Mouse just might have time to "make" a special new friend!

Available for the first time as a Classic Board Book, this seasonal story is perfect for little hands!

The best snow day book since Ezra Jack Keats's THE SNOWY DAY...

A young rabbit wakes up to wonderful news: A snow day! School is canceled, and the day that follows is rich with the magic and delight of the falling snow. And yet there is longing too, as the young rabbit and his mother wait for news of his father, grounded on a plane in a faraway city.... The news that his father will be home tomorrow gives the book a peaceful, comforting, and perfect ending.

A snowy day, a trip to Grandma's, time spent cooking with one another, and space to pause and discover the world around you come together in this perfect book for reading and sharing on a cozy winter day.

One winter morning, Lina wakes up to silence. It's the sound of snow -- the kind that looks soft and glows bright in the winter sun. But as she walks to her grandmother's house to help make the family recipe for warak enab, she continues to listen.

As Lina walks past snowmen and across icy sidewalks, she discovers ten ways to pay attention to what might have otherwise gone unnoticed. With stunning illustrations by Kenard Pak and thoughtful representation of a modern Arab American family from Cathy Camper, Ten Ways to Hear Snow is a layered exploration of mindfulness, empathy, and what we realize when the world gets quiet.

An excited and frustrated boy watches hopefully as wintry weather develops slowly into a "big snow."

While "helping" his mother with holiday housecleaning, a boy keeps a watchful eye on the progress of a winter storm. He's hoping for a big snow. A really big snow. Inside, he is underfoot, turning sheet-changing and tub-scrubbing into imaginary whiteouts. Outside, flakes are flying. But over the course of a long day (for Mom) the clouds seem slow on delivering a serious snowfall. Then comes a dreamy naptime adventure, marking just the beginning of high hopes coming true in this irresistible seasonal story.

A stuffed buffalo, a plush stingray, and a plastic ball venture outdoors and discover snow for the very first time in this delightful wintry picture book.
Lumphy, StingRay, and Plastic—the toys from the beloved chapter books Toys Go Out, Toy Dance Party, and Toys Come Home—are back in a glorious full-color picture book, perfect for gift-giving this holiday season. Acclaimed author Emily Jenkins and Caldecott Medal–winning illustrator Paul Zelinsky have created a book destined to become a classic.
 
Children who have loved listening to the Toys trilogy, as well as those meeting the toys for the very first time, will be thrilled to see Lumphy, StingRay, and Plastic venture outdoors to play in the snow. Together the toys build a snowman, make snow angels, and, when day is done, head back inside their cozy house and wait for the return of the Little Girl.

First Snow is the newest picture book from acclaimed Caldecott Honor–winning author-illustrator Peter McCarty, which extends the winning world of animal characters established in Chloe, a Kids' Indie Next List Pick and Kirkus Reviews Best Children's Book, and Henry in Love, a New York Times Best Illustrated Book.

It's a day of firsts for Pedro . . . First snowfall. First snow angel. First taste of a snowflake. First sled run. First snowball fight!

All the joy, magic, and wonder of a child's first experiences are captured in this breathtaking picture book.

In this evocative and heartwarming novel for readers who loved The Thing About Jellyfish, the author of I Can Make This Promise tells the story of a Native American girl struggling to find her joy again.

It's been a hard year for Maisie Cannon, ever since she hurt her leg and could not keep up with her ballet training and auditions.

Her blended family is loving and supportive, but Maisie knows that they just can't understand how hopeless she feels. With everything she's dealing with, Maisie is not excited for their family midwinter road trip along the coast, near the Makah community where her mother grew up.

But soon, Maisie's anxieties and dark moods start to hurt as much as the pain in her knee. How can she keep pretending to be strong when on the inside she feels as roiling and cold as the ocean?

The Heartdrum imprint centers a wide range of intertribal voices, visions, and stories while welcoming all young readers, with an emphasis on the present and future of Indian Country and on the strength of young Native heroes. In partnership with We Need Diverse Books.

"A gentle story of patience."--Horn Book (starred review)

Caldecott Medal-winner Kevin Henkes's award-winning and bestselling mouse, Penny, stars in an irresistible story about anticipation, disappointment, and a brand-new sled. Told in five short chapters, Penny and Her Sled is perfect for reading alone, reading aloud, and sharing together.

When Penny, a sweet and curious mouse, gets a new sled, she can't wait to use it. But there's one big problem--there's no snow!

Patiently, Penny waits and watches for the snow to appear. She puts on her scarf and hat. She sleeps with her mittens. Maybe if she's ready, the snow will finally come. But day after day, the snow does not arrive. Finally, Penny decides she will use her sled for other things--it's too wonderful not to!

With a little imagination, the sled becomes a bridge for her glass animals to cross. It becomes a bed for her doll, Rose. It becomes a magic carpet that takes Penny and Rose on adventures all around the world.

And as Penny waits for a snowfall that may never appear, she learns all about the power of patience, imagination, play . . . and spring! Told in five short chapters, and with an emphasis on family and patience, Penny and Her Sled is the perfect choice for emergent readers and for family sharing.

A hamsterific celebration of the best time of the year

Room 26 is abuzz. The students are making costumes and practicing their special songs for the Winter Wonderland program and Humphrey is fascinated by all the ways his classmates celebrate the holidays (especially the yummy food). He also has problems to solve like how to get Do-It-Now-Daniel to stop procrastinating, convince Helpful-Holly to stop stressing over presents, and come up with the perfect gift for Og the frog. Of course he manages to do all that while adding delightful heart and humor to the holiday season.

Nominated for twenty-four state awards and the winner of seven, the Humphrey series is a hit across the country. And he's becoming a one school/one book favorite!

Fun-loving, mischievous Fox--the hilarious trickster character featured in Geisel Award-winning Fox the Tiger--goes up against a surprising foe!

Fox does not like winter. None of his friends are around to play. He is bored and alone. Then Fox has an idea. If he cannot escape winter, he will fight it!

Fox versus Winter is a My First I Can Read book, which means it's perfect for shared reading with a child. Other Fox books include: Fox the Tiger, Fox Is Late, Fox and the Jumping Contest, and Fox and the Bike Ride.

Find out what happens when a cast of unlikely woodland friends discover a well-loved sled outside a cozy cabin in this whimsical wintertime Classic Board Book!

In this almost wordless story, a host of woodland creatures take a child’s sled for a nighttime joy ride. Their whimsical ride is gorgeously depicted in bold watercolor, complemented by humorous expressions and pitch-perfect sound effects. With a timeless tone and classic characters, Red Sled is a wintertime favorite for parents and little ones alike.

This time, the old lady is swallowing everything from snow to a pipe, some coal, a hat, and more! With rollicking, rhyming text and funny illustrations, this lively version will appeal to young readers. And this time, there is a surprise at the end no reader will be able to guess!

An exuberant crew is summoned to create a snowman of heroic proportions. Schertles clever and energetic rhyming text details the steps these little sculptors take to create a chilly chum. Lavallees bold and lively illustrations overflow with brisk winter energy. Full color.

A majestic polar bear heads out on a mysterious walk in a dazzling, playful collaboration from an exciting pair of picture-book creators.

Follow a magnificent polar bear through a fantastic world of snow and shockingly blue sea. Over the ice, through the water, past Arctic animals and even a human . . . where is he going? What does he want? Acclaimed author Mac Barnett's narration deftly balances suspense and emotion, as well as poignant, subtle themes, compelling us to follow the bear with each page turn. Artist Shawn Harris's striking torn-paper illustrations layer white-on-white hues, with bolts of blue and an interplay of shadow and light, for a gorgeous view of a stark yet beautiful landscape. Simple and thought-provoking, illuminating and intriguing, this engaging picture book will have readers pondering the answer to its final question long after the polar bear has continued on his way.

From Caldecott Medalist and Newbery Honor author Kevin Henkes and acclaimed painter Laura Dronzek, the bestselling and award-winning creators of When Spring Comes and In the Middle of Fall, this picture book about winter celebrates the sights, sounds, and smells of the season.

Snow falls, animals burrow, and children prepare for the wonders winter brings. Caldecott Medalist and award-winning author Kevin Henkes’s striking text introduces basic concepts of language and the unique beauty of the winter season. Laura Dronzek’s expressive paintings beautifully capture the joyful wonders of winter.

This is an engaging companion to the best-selling When Spring Comes and In the Middle of Fall. Winter Is Here is an ideal choice for story time, seasonal curriculums, and bedtime reading.

Winner of the 2018 Caldecott Medal

A girl is lost in a snowstorm. A wolf cub is lost, too. How will they find their way home?

Paintings rich with feeling tell this satisfying story of friendship and trust. Wolf in the Snow is a book set on a wintry night that will spark imaginations and warm hearts, from Matthew Cordell, author of Trouble Gum and Another Brother.

Have you ever built a snowman and discovered the next day that his grin has gotten a little crooked, or his tree-branch arms have moved? And you've wondered . . . what do snowmen do at night? This delightful wintertime tale reveals all! Caralyn Buehner's witty, imaginative verse offers many amusing details about the secret life of snowmen and where they go at night, while Mark Buehner's roly-poly snowmen are bursting with personality and charm. From the highly successful team that created such winning titles as Fanny's Dream, Snowmen at Night is fabulous, frosty, and fun!

From three-time Newbery Honor-winning author Gary Paulsen comes a beloved follow-up to his award-winning classic Hatchet that asks: What if Brian hadn't been rescued and had to face his deadliest enemy yet--winter?
 
In the Newbery Honor-winning Hatchet, thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson learned to survive alone in the Canadian wilderness, armed only with his hatchet. As millions of readers know, he was rescued at the end of the summer. But what if that hadn't happened? What if Brian had been left to face his deadliest enemy--winter?
 
Brian Paulsen raises the stakes for survival in this riveting and inspiring story as one boy confronts the ultimate adventure.
 
“Paulsen picks Hatchet’s story up in midstream; read together, the two books make his finest tale of survival yet.” —Kirkus Reviews, Starred
 
“Breathtaking descriptions of nature . . . Paulsen fans will not be disappointed.” —School Library Journal

Read all the Hatchet Adventures!
Brian's Winter
The River
Brian's Return
Brian's Hunt

Jack and Annie, joined by Teddy and Kathleen (from earlier books), travel in the Magic Tree House to a land of snow where the Ice Wizard has captured Morgan and Merlin. The four friends must find the Ice Wizard's missing eye . . . or is it really his heart that is missing? Illustrations.

From Rainy Day Tomato Bisque with Mini Grilled Cheese Sandwiches to Tuscan White Bean Soup with Sage, the recipes in this innovative collection will sustain and nourish home chefs the way the best homemade soups should. The number of ingredients is modest and the techniques are easy, but the resulting dishes are nothing less than spectacular. The way Joanna Pruess cooks for two doesn’t mean you’re left with lots of half-empty containers cluttering your refrigerator shelves. In every case, from Mom’s Chicken Noodle to Swiss Chard, Potato, and Sausage, these soups require ingredients that can be easily procured in small portions. Try them all!

A perfect soup recipe is one you make forever - it is comforting, nourishing, the very essence of flavor. In this handsome, focused cookbook, the experts at Cooks Illustrated boil the world of soups down to the very best choices, each one a kitchen-tested keeper yielding flavors that exceed even what grandma cooked up. Here are the ideal broths, the heartiest rustic soups, most elegant purees, and the best examples from around the world. All-Time Best Soups turns soup-making into an everyday pleasure with recipes guaranteed to become cherished favorites.

Nourishing bone broths and stocks are popping up on menus and replacing caffeine in the cups of Americans on the run. Stock, Broth, and Bowl introduces you to all you need to know to get on board with this bone broth trend and the ultimate make-ahead ingredient with 40 recipes.

Whether you're a seasoned cook or have never set foot in a butcher shop, Stock, Broth, and Bowl will help you dip your toe in the wildly popular bone broth pool. This book teaches you to prepare nine different stocks with straightforward recipes that are the foundation for great comfort food and the building blocks for creating nourishing drinking broths. You'll learn about sourcing ingredients, having the right kitchen tools, and straining and storing stock.

There are nine stock recipes in this book, including a recipe for bone broth and how to doctor it. You'll recreate the essence of a multi-meat broth and discover the essential sweetness of root vegetables with a vegetarian broth. Stock, Broth, and Bowl also includes 20 recipes for turning stock into broth, into a delicious drink or dinner. The recipes range from one-pot meals like a savory bread pudding or decadent pot roast to broth-based cocktails. Get comfortable. Get simmering. Get Well Stocked.

Whether it’s a bowl of chicken soup when you’re sick, a thick and hearty gumbo in winter, or a refreshing gazpacho on a hot summer day, soup is a timeless favorite. In Soup of the Day, Ellen Brown presents more than 150 classic and inventive recipes, most of which were collected from top restaurants across the nation. Try the Tortilla Soup from Fearing’s in Dallas, the Cream of Celery Soup from Bayona in New Orleans, the Cheddar Soup with Bacon from The Soupbox in Chicago, or Ellen’s own New England Clam Chowder. With the recipes are explanations on how to create great stocks, cook perfect garnishes, and even bake delicious breads. Make your favorite or try something new - it’s a soup lover’s dream!

The answer to your dinnertime dilemma. Family-friendly soups to satisfy your soul - and stomach. To close the coldest, bone-chilling day or soothe the roughest afternoon, turn to Soup & Comfort for hearty classics, international favorites, and inventive updates. Packed with pages of nourishing, emotionally satisfying soups and stews using affordable, fresh, easy-to-find ingredients (No bouillon cubes here!), every recipe in this soup cookbook caters to a wide variety of dietary preferences and tastes, from tantalizing vegetarian versions to gluten-free options.

Featuring full-color photos, Soup & Comfort explores the many ways that homemade soup can nourish body and soul, with: 135 mouthwatering recipes, from comfort classics like Grandma's Chicken Noodle to international flavors like Chicken Faux Pho; time-saving tips for making great stocks and preparing perfect garnishes; and convenient "fix-and-forget" slow cooker recipes, plus handy soup tips to liven leftovers. From chilled soups to chowders, Soup & Comfort offers something for everyone to enjoy-one spoonful at a time.

Acclaimed superfood chef Julie Morris has chosen 100 favorites packed with nutrient-dense and plant-based whole foods such as vegetables and fruits, legumes and grains, nuts and seeds. Plus, she boosts each dish with such scientifically lauded superfoods as chia, medicinal mushrooms, turmeric, and kale. From a comforting Smoky Pumpkin Soup with Candied Seed Clusters, to an irresistibly inventive Watermelon Goji Gazpacho, to the tasty Cacao Black Bean Soup, every health-giving bowl delivers deeply nourishing deliciousness that satisfies on every level. Along with beautiful color photographs, the book is full of helpful soup-making advice and information about the health rewards of superfood soups, including soup cleanses and rejuvenating broths.

With a masterful selection of soups and stews that celebrate the brand’s authority, heritage, and culinary wealth, this cookbook is for everyone who relishes cooking home to Saveur’s standard of excellence. These authentic, diverse, and from around the globe recipes feature a range of techniques and cuisines that will inspire home cooks everywhere. Contents include meat, chicken and poultry, seafood and chowders, vegetable, beans and legumes, noodles and dumplings, chilled, and stocks.

These authentic and diverse easy-to-follow recipes, combined with the editor’s top tips, will help you churn out delicious soups all year long.

This fourth edition of 1,001 Delicious Soups and Stews delights the palate and soothes the soul, no matter the season. This edition features streamlined recipes focused on swift and simple preparation and recipe classification information to make recipe selection easier. Hundreds of these wonderful recipes can be prepared in 45 minutes or less (special icons identify these dishes), and hundreds more are easily found according to preferences for low-carb, low-calorie, and vegetarian options. All recipes are written in a concise format and use readily available ingredients with a focus on fresh, seasonal foods. No special cooking skills or equipment are required - great one-pot meals have never been easier.

This comprehensive collection features hundreds of recipes from all over the world, including the Americas, the Mediterranean, China, and India. Readers will find everything from old standbys and comfort-classics to bold chilis, chowders, bisques, fruit soups, and chilled soups. Stick-to-your ribs stews make meal planning easy - they're substantial enough to be complete, one-pot meals in themselves, and fast and easy enough for weeknight suppers or elegant dinner parties. Either way, readers will never run out of mealtime ideas again!

Soup nights are popping up all around the United States as a stress-free way to bring neighbors together. The host provides two or three pots of soup, and the guests bring their own dishes and silverware, and perhaps a salad or some bread. Neighbors get to know each other by name, people of all ages connect and socialize, and the neighborhood becomes friendlier and safer. In Soup Night, Maggie Stuckey offers a practical guide to starting your own soup night group, along with 99 delicious soup recipes and 40 recipes for accompaniments.

A Chez Panisse graduate, Talbott was chosen by Alice Waters to be Executive Chef of the innovative Rome Sustainable Food Project at the American Academy in Rome. There, while cooking for the Academy’s creative community of scholars, historians, artists, archaeologists, and architects, Talbott perfected a repertoire of dishes made from local, seasonal, organic ingredients. Central to the menu are soups.

Inspired by the traditions of cucina povera, the so-called “cuisine of the poor” that has been the source of so many brilliant Italian dishes, Talbott’s recipes waste nothing, employ the concept of arrangiarsi (“making do”), and skillfully transform leftovers. And, in another nod to the wisdom and economy of traditional kitchens, she also points out which soups can easily be made into one-dish meals with the addition of a single ingredient such as a poached egg, a piece of grilled toast, or even clams.

Much more than a collection of remarkable soups, Mona Talbott’s Zuppe is also a wise and gentle tutorial on the “the beauty and delicious rewards of frugality” and how the humblest foods can be the most profoundly satisfying. In addition to 50 recipes, Talbott shares approaches and techniques that can change the way a cook thinks about economy, improvisation, and using all the flavors and nutrients inherent in each ingredient.

Divided into three sections, this edition of Taste of Home Casseroles, Slow Cooker & Soups is like owning three cookbooks in one! Turn to the first section for stick-to-your-ribs casseroles families crave. Bursting with buttery goodness, these meal-in-one dishes can’t be beat! Next, let your slow cooker do the work with page after page of specialties that simmer on their own while you’re away. You’ll discover everything from slow-cooked appetizers and entrees to set-it-and-forget-it potluck classics and rich desserts. And you’ll love the full-flavored recipes in the soups section. Whether you’re stirring up a healthy chicken soup, a hearty chowder or red-hot chili, you’re sure to win raves. No matter which section you start with, you’ll whip up a winner with the 500+ classics in this three-in-one cookbook you’ll turn to all year long.

How much of an impact can an animal have? How many lives can one cat touch? How is it possible for an abandoned kitten to transform a small library, save a classic American town, and eventually become famous around the world? You can't even begin to answer those questions until you hear the charming story of Dewey Readmore Books, the beloved library cat of Spencer, Iowa.

Dewey's story starts in the worst possible way. Only a few weeks old, on the coldest night of the year, he was stuffed into the returned book slot at the Spencer Public Library. He was found the next morning by library director, Vicki Myron, a single mother who had survived the loss of her family farm, a breast cancer scare, and an alcoholic husband. Dewey won her heart, and the hearts of the staff, by pulling himself up and hobbling on frostbitten feet to nudge each of them in a gesture of thanks and love. For the next nineteen years, he never stopped charming the people of Spencer with his enthusiasm, warmth, humility, (for a cat) and, above all, his sixth sense about who needed him most.

As his fame grew from town to town, then state to state, and finally, amazingly, worldwide, Dewey became more than just a friend; he became a source of pride for an extraordinary Heartland farming town pulling its way slowly back from the greatest crisis in its long history.

Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can't seem to heal through literature is himself; he's still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.

After Perdu is finally tempted to read the letter, he hauls anchor and departs on a mission to the south of France, hoping to make peace with his loss and discover the end of the story. Joined by a bestselling but blocked author and a lovelorn Italian chef, Perdu travels along the country’s rivers, dispensing his wisdom and his books, showing that the literary world can take the human soul on a journey to heal itself.

This is the epic story of Frankie Presto - the greatest guitar player who ever lived - and the six lives he changed with his six magical blue strings.

Frankie, born in a burning church, abandoned as an infant, and raised by a music teacher in a small Spanish town, until war rips his life apart. At nine years old, he is sent to America in the bottom of a boat. His only possession is an old guitar and six precious strings. His amazing journey weaves him through the musical landscape of the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s, with his stunning playing and singing talent affecting numerous stars (Duke Ellington, Hank Williams, Elvis Presley) until, as if predestined, he becomes a pop star himself.

He makes records. He is adored. But Frankie Presto’s gift is also his burden, as he realizes the power of the strings his teacher gave him, and how, through his music, he can actually affect people’s lives. At the height of his popularity, tortured by his biggest mistake, he vanishes. His legend grows. Only decades later, having finally healed his heart, does Frankie reappear just before his spectacular death - to change one last life. With the Spirit of Music as our guide, we glimpse into the lives that were changed by one man whose strings could touch the music - and the magic - in each of us.

After Tova Sullivan's husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she's been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.

Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn't dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors - until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.

Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova's son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it's too late.

Lucas Ray is shocked when an adorable puppy jumps out of an abandoned building and into his arms. Though the apartment he shares with his mother, a disabled veteran, doesn't allow dogs, Lucas can't resist taking Bella home.

Bella is inexplicably drawn to Lucas, even if she doesn't understand the necessity of games like No Barks. As it becomes more difficult to hide her from the neighbors, Lucas begins to sneak Bella into the VA where he works. There, Bella brings joy and comfort where it is needed most.

After Bella is picked up by Animal Control because pit bulls are banned in Denver, Lucas has no choice but to send her to a foster home until he can figure out what to do. But Bella, distraught at the separation, doesn't plan to wait. With four hundred miles of dangerous Colorado wilderness between her and her person, Bella sets off on a seemingly impossible and completely unforgettable adventure home.
 

When fate brings three strangers to a charming space for lease on the California coast, the Boardwalk Bookshop is born. Part bookstore, part gift shop, part bakery, it's a dream come true for Bree, Mikki and Ashley. But while their business is thriving, their personal lives are...not.

Bree, wounded by brilliant but cold parents and her late husband's ultimate betrayal, has sworn to protect her heart at all costs. Even from Ashley's brother, a writer and adventurer who has inspired millions. He's the first man to see past Bree's barricades to her true self, which terrifies her. Mikki has this divorce thing all figured out - somehow, she's stayed friends with her ex and her in-laws... until a new man changes how everyone looks at her, and how she sees herself. Meanwhile, Ashley discovers that the love of her life never intends to marry. Can she live without being a wife if it means she can have everything else she's ever wanted?

At sunset every Friday on the beach in front of the Boardwalk Bookshop, the three friends share a champagne toast. As their bond grows closer, they challenge one another to become the best versions of themselves in this heartachingly beautiful story of friendship, sisterhood and the transformative power of love.
 

January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb...

As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends - and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island - boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.

Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.

James is a street musician struggling to make ends meet.

Bob is a stray cat looking for somewhere warm to sleep.

When street musician James Bowen found an injured cat curled up in the hallway of his apartment building, he had no idea how much his life was about to change. James was living hand to mouth on the streets of London, barely making enough money to feed himself, and the last thing he needed was a pet. Yet James couldn't resist helping the strikingly intelligent but very sick animal, whom he named Bob. He slowly nursed Bob back to health and then sent the cat on his way, imagining that he would never see him again. But Bob had other ideas.

On the eve of her 40th birthday, Alice’s life isn’t terrible. She likes her job, even if it isn’t exactly the one she expected. She’s happy with her apartment, her romantic status, her independence, and she adores her lifelong best friend. But her father is ailing, and it feels to her as if something is missing. When she wakes up the next morning she finds herself back in 1996, reliving her 16th birthday. But it isn’t just her adolescent body that shocks her, or seeing her high school crush, it’s her dad: the vital, charming, 40-something version of her father with whom she is reunited. Now armed with a new perspective on her own life and his, some past events take on new meaning. Is there anything that she would change if she could?

Over the course of ten Mitford novels, fans have kept a special place in their hearts for Dooley Kavanagh, first seen in At Home in Mitford as a barefoot, freckle-faced boy in filthy overalls.

Now, Father Tim Kavanagh's adopted son has graduated from vet school and opened his own animal clinic. Since money will be tight for a while, maybe he and Lace Harper, his once and future soul mate, should keep their wedding simple.

So the plan is to eliminate the cost of catering and do potluck. Ought to be fun. An old friend offers to bring his well-known country band. Gratis. And once mucked out, the barn works as a perfect venue for seating family and friends. Piece of cake, right?

In Come Rain or Come Shine, Jan Karon delivers the wedding that millions of Mitford fans have waited for. It’s a June day in the mountains, with more than a few creatures great and small, and you’re invited - because you’re family.

For the past six months, Arthur Moses's days have looked the same: He tends to his rose garden and to Gordon, his cat, then rides the bus to the cemetery to visit his beloved late wife for lunch. The last thing Arthur would imagine is for one unlikely encounter to utterly transform his life.

Eighteen-year-old Maddy Harris is an introspective girl who visits the cemetery to escape the other kids at school. One afternoon she joins Arthur - a gesture that begins a surprising friendship between two lonely souls. Moved by Arthur's kindness and devotion, Maddy gives him the nickname "Truluv." As Arthur's neighbor Lucille moves into their orbit, the unlikely trio band together and, through heartache and hardships, help one another rediscover their own potential to start anew.

Fred Rogers (1928–2003) was an enormously influential figure in the history of television and in the lives of tens of millions of children. As the creator and star of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, he was a champion of compassion, equality, and kindness. Rogers was fiercely devoted to children and to taking their fears, concerns, and questions about the world seriously.

The Good Neighbor, the first full-length biography of Fred Rogers, tells the story of this utterly unique and enduring American icon. Drawing on original interviews, oral histories, and archival documents, Maxwell King traces Rogers’s personal, professional, and artistic life through decades of work, including a surprising decision to walk away from the show to make television for adults, only to return to the neighborhood with increasingly sophisticated episodes, written in collaboration with experts on childhood development. An engaging story, rich in detail, The Good Neighbor is the definitive portrait of a beloved figure, cherished by multiple generations.

The Lowcountry of South Carolina is where By Invitation Only begins at a barbecue engagement party thrown by Diane English Stiftel, her brother Floyd, and her parents to celebrate her son’s engagement. On this gorgeous, magical night, the bride’s father, Alejandro Cambria, a wealthy power broker whose unbelievably successful career in private equity made him one of Chicago’s celebrated elite, discovers the limits and possibilities of cell phone range. While the mother of the bride, Susan Kennedy Cambria, who dabbles in the world of public relations and believes herself deserving of every square inch of her multimillion-dollar penthouse and imaginary carrara marble pedestal, learns about moonshine and dangerous liaisons.

Then the story zooms to Chicago, where the unraveling accelerates. Nearly a thousand miles away from her comfortable, familiar world, Diane is the antithesis of the bright lights and super-sophisticated guests attending her son Fred’s second engagement party. Why a second party? Maybe it had been assumed that the first one wouldn’t be up to snuff? Fred is marrying Shelby Cambria, also an only child. The Cambrias’ dearest wish is for their daughter to be happy. If Shelby wants to marry Frederick, aka Fred, they will not stand in her way - although Susan does hope her friends won’t think her daughter is marrying more than a few degrees beneath her socially. At the same time, Diane worries that her son will be lost to her forever.

This is a tale of two families, one struggling to do well, one well to do, and one young couple - the privileged daughter of Chicago’s crème de la crème and the son of hard-working Southern peach farmers.

Bud Threadgoode grew up in the bustling little railroad town of Whistle Stop with his mother, Ruth, church-going and proper, and his Aunt Idgie, the fun-loving hell-raiser. Together they ran the town’s popular Whistle Stop Cafe, known far and wide for its fun and famous fried green tomatoes. And as Bud often said of his childhood to his daughter Ruthie, “How lucky can you get?”

But sadly, as the railroad yards shut down and Whistle Stop became a ghost town, nothing was left but boarded-up buildings and memories of a happier time.

Then one day, Bud decides to take one last trip, just to see what has become of his beloved Whistle Stop. In so doing, he discovers new friends, as well as surprises about Idgie’s life, about Ninny Threadgoode and other beloved Fannie Flagg characters, and about the town itself. He also sets off a series of events, both touching and inspiring, which change his life and the lives of his daughter and many others. Could these events all be just coincidences? Or something else? And can you really go home again?

Although Scott Carey doesn’t look any different, he’s been steadily losing weight. There are a couple of other odd things, too. He weighs the same in his clothes and out of them, no matter how heavy they are. Scott doesn’t want to be poked and prodded. He mostly just wants someone else to know, and he trusts Doctor Bob Ellis.

In the small town of Castle Rock, the setting of many of King’s most iconic stories, Scott is engaged in a low grade - but escalating - battle with the lesbians next door whose dog regularly drops his business on Scott’s lawn. One of the women is friendly; the other, cold as ice. Both are trying to launch a new restaurant, but the people of Castle Rock want no part of a gay married couple, and the place is in trouble. When Scott finally understands the prejudices they face - including his own - he tries to help. Unlikely alliances, the annual foot race, and the mystery of Scott’s affliction bring out the best in people who have indulged the worst in themselves and others.

From legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki comes Shuna's Journey, a new manga classic about a prince on a quest for a golden grain that would save his land, never before published in English!

Shuna, the prince of a poor land, watches in despair as his people work themselves to death harvesting the little grain that grows there. And so, when a traveler presents him with a sample of seeds from a mysterious western land, he sets out to find the source of the golden grain, dreaming of a better life for his subjects.

It is not long before he meets a proud girl named Thea. After freeing her from captivity, he is pursued by her enemies, and while Thea escapes north, Shuna continues toward the west, finally reaching the Land of the God-Folk.

Will Shuna ever see Thea again? And will he make it back home from his quest for the golden grain?

"Powerful, wrenching.” –JOHN GREEN, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Turtles All the Way Down

"Raw and gripping." –JASON REYNOLDS, New York Times bestselling coauthor of All American Boys

"A must-read!” –ANGIE THOMAS, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give

Raw, captivating, and undeniably real, Nic Stone joins industry giants Jason Reynolds and Walter Dean Myers as she boldly tackles American race relations in this stunning #1 New York Times bestselling debut, a William C. Morris Award Finalist.

Justyce McAllister is a good kid, an honor student, and always there to help a friend—but none of that matters to the police officer who just put him in handcuffs. Despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can't escape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates.

Justyce looks to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King to find out.

Then comes the day Justyce goes driving with his best friend, Manny, windows rolled down, music turned up—way up, sparking the fury of a white off-duty cop beside them. Words fly. Shots are fired. Justyce and Manny are caught in the crosshairs. In the media fallout, it's Justyce who is under attack.

"Vivid and powerful." -Booklist, Starred Review
 
"A visceral portrait of a young man reckoning with the ugly, persistent violence of social injustice." -Publishers Weekly

"How to Invent Everything is such a cool book. It's essential reading for anyone who needs to duplicate an industrial civilization quickly." --Randall Munroe, xkcd creator and New York Times-bestselling author of What If?

The only book you need if you're going back in time

What would you do if a time machine hurled you thousands of years into the past. . . and then broke? How would you survive? Could you improve on humanity's original timeline? And how hard would it be to domesticate a giant wombat?

With this book as your guide, you'll survive--and thrive--in any period in Earth's history. Bestselling author and time-travel enthusiast Ryan North shows you how to invent all the modern conveniences we take for granted--from first principles. This illustrated manual contains all the science, engineering, art, philosophy, facts, and figures required for even the most clueless time traveler to build a civilization from the ground up. Deeply researched, irreverent, and significantly more fun than being eaten by a saber-toothed tiger, How to Invent Everything will make you smarter, more competent, and completely prepared to become the most important and influential person ever. You're about to make history. . . better.

A riveting, brilliantly written debut novel, The Death of Bees is a coming-of-age story in which two young sisters attempt to hold the world at bay after the mysterious death of their parents.

Marnie and Nelly, left on their own in Glasgow's Hazlehurst housing estate, attempt to avoid suspicion until Marnie can become a legal guardian for her younger sister.

Written with fierce sympathy and beautiful precision, and told in alternating voices, The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell is an enchanting, grimly comic tale of lost souls who, unable to answer for themselves, can answer only for each other.

From the creators of the #1 international hit podcast Welcome to Night Vale comes an imaginative mystery of appearances and disappearances that is also a poignant look at the ways in which we all struggle to find ourselves . . . no matter where we live.

Welcome to Night Vale . . . a friendly desert community somewhere in the American Southwest. In this ordinary little town where ghosts, angels, aliens, and government conspiracies are commonplace parts of everyday life, the lives of two women, with two mysteries, are about to converge.

Pawnshop proprietor Jackie Fierro abides by routine. But a crack appears in the standard order of her perpetually nineteen-year-old life when a mysterious man in a tan jacket gives her a slip of paper marked by two pencil-smudged words: KING CITY. Everything about the man unsettles her, especially the paper that she cannot remove from her hand. Yet when Jackie puts her life on hold to search for the man, no one who meets him can seem to remember anything about him.

Diane Crayton’s fifteen-year-old son, Josh, is moody and a shape-shifter. Lately, Diane has started to see the boy’s father everywhere she goes, looking the same as he did the day he left when they were teenagers. Josh is growing ever more curious about his estranged father—leading to a disaster Diane can see coming but is helpless to prevent.

Diane’s search to reconnect with her son and Jackie’s search to reclaim her routine life draw them increasingly closer to each other, and to this place that may hold the key to their mysteries and their futures . . . if they can ever find it.