 LMNO
Peas
by Keith Baker
Ages 3–8
A hilarious group of alphabet
peas romp through the alphabet, appropriated garbed to
illustrate various jobs and occupations for each letter.
Bouncy rhyming text accompanies each letter, presented
as a large colorful shape surrounded by cheerful busy
pea creatures. The book is a fun read-aloud, and young
readers will want to spend time examining each page closely. |
|
 King
Jack and the Dragon
by Peter Bently, Helen Oxenbury
Ages 3–5
Jack and his friend Zack along
with baby Casper build a fabulous fort from a cardboard
box and an assortment of discarded materials. They
spend a wonderful day defending the fort against a
horde of imaginary creatures until Zack and Casper
are summoned inside for bed. Alone in the fort, King
Jack finds that defending the fort himself is a bit
scary. This enchanting tribute to pretend play and
the comfort of a parent’s embrace is a kid-pleasing
read-aloud. |
|
 Dirtball
Pete
by Eileen Brennan
Ages 4–8
Pete’s mother tries to scrub
him clean before the class presentation — Fifty States
and Why They’re Great — but Pete’s notes blow away and
his chase to catch his speech turns him back into Dirtball
Pete. But Pete’s charisma triumphs over his appearance
and his Pennsylvania presentation makes his mother proud.
This hilarious book begs to be read aloud. |
|
 Cool
Daddy Rat
by Kristyn Crow
Ages 3–up
Bass player Cool Daddy Rat heads
out to perfrom in the big city and his son Ace comes
along in this tribute to jazz. Scat lines are delicious
to read aloud. |
|
 A
Pig Parade Is a Terrible Idea
by Michael Ian Black, Kevin Hawkes
Ages 4–8
A pig parade may sound like a
great idea, but this funny book with hilarious illustrations
proves that it is not. Pigs don’t like to march, they
won’t wear uniforms, and their hooves are not designed
to hold onto balloons. They really don’t care about floats,
and prefer country ballads to military tunes. This laugh
out loud book makes a wonderful read-aloud. |
|
 Thump,
Quack, Moo
by Doreen Cronin, Betsy Lewin
Ages 4–8
Farmer Brown is trying to build
a fabulous Statue of Liberty corn maze, but the subversive
duck has other ideas in this hilarious read-aloud winner. |
|
 A
Place to Call Home
by Alexis Deacon, Viviane Schwarz
Ages 3–8
A band of hamster-like brothers
outgrow their birthplace and head off on a grand adventure
to find a place to call home. Timid and frightened
at first, they don a variety of outrageous headgear
and bravely blunder through a variety of obstacles,
never losing sight of their goal. Hilarious physical
comedy will have young readers clamoring for a another
reading. |
|
 Louise,
The Adventures of a Chicken
by Kate Dicamillo, Harry Bliss
Ages 4–8
Louise is an adventurous chicken
who longs for excitement, so she leaves the farm and
meets pirates on the high seas and lions under the big
top. The comic narration makes for a perfect read-aloud. |
|
 Chickens
to the Rescue
by John Himmelman
Ages 4–8
No problem is too small for
the intrepid chickens on the Greenstalk farm. Lost
sheep? A watch dropped down the well? The cow is stuck
in the tree? You can count on this energetic flock
to come up with a zany solution. Simple text is paired
with detailed and hilarious illustrations that will
be appreciated over and over and over again. |
|
 Pigs
to the Rescue
by John Himmelman
Ages 4–8
Eight excitable pigs throw themselves
into solving minor problems at the Greenstalk farm with
over-the-top rescue missions. Hilarious illustrations
bring the funny situations to life in this silly book
that begs to be read aloud. (follow-up to Chickens
to the Rescue) |
|
 How
to Clean Your Room in 10 Easy Steps
by Jennifer Larue Huget, Edward
Koren
Ages 4–8
When your mother uses all
three of your names, you know it really is time
to clean your room, advises this hilarious book.
Koren’s scratchy ink drawings are the perfect match
for the funny directives in the text. A perfect
read-aloud, this book will appeal to messy kids
and those who live with them. |
|
 A
Foot in the Mouth:
Poems
to Speak, Sing and Shout
edited by Paul B. Janeczko, illustrated
by Chris Raschka
Ages 8–12
The poems in this book beg
to be read aloud. Included are rhyming poems, tongue
twisters, bilingual poems, dual voice poems, and poems
that will inspire kids to memorize and recite them. |
| |
|
|
 Carmen
by Walter Dean Myers
Ages 12–up
The plot of Bizet’s opera is moved
from 19th century Spain to current day Spanish Harlem where
Carmen seduces a cop and then deserts him for rap star and
film producer Escamillo. Instead of helping a gang of smugglers,
Carmen and her friends help with a credit card fraud. Written
in script format in two acts, the dramatic plot and snappy
dialog would make a lively classroom read-aloud. |
|
 Bunny
Days
by Tao Nyeu
Ages 3–6
The six adorable bunnies in this
hilarious picture book are unintended victims of their
busy but unobservant neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Goat. Luckily
the Bear is always there to put things right, though
sometimes the cure is as bad as the accident. The charming
illustrations and prim narration are perfect foils for
the silly stories that will keep the audience giggling
throughout. |
|
 The
Flint Heart
by Katherine Paterson, John Paterson,
John Rocco
Ages 7–12
This retelling of Eden Phillpotts’s
1910 fairy tale is both true to the original and adapted
for the modern reader. In the Stone Age, an ambitious
man demands a talisman that will harden his heart and
give him total power over his tribe. The Flint Heart
does exactly that, giving the bearer a lust for power
and a tolerance for cruelty. After being buried for thousands
of years, the Flint Heart is unearthed by a kind-hearted
farmer, and wreaks havoc upon the lives of humans, fairy
creatures, and animals. This humorous fairy tale is perfectly
designed to be shared as a family, one chapter each night. |
|
 Frankenstein
Makes a Sandwich
by Adam Rex
Ages 5–10
This hilarious collection of
illustrated poems describes the lives of famous monsters.
Kids will love the effortless rhymes and the different
art styles, individually tailored for each creature.
Great read-aloud. |
|
 Emma-Jean
Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree
by Lauren Tarshis
Ages 10–14
Seventh-grader Emma-Jean is extremely
bright but doesn’t connect socially with her classmates.
In fact, she observes their interactions with a scientific
detachment. Then Colleen asks Emma-Jean’s help in dealing
with the class bully, and Emma-Jean applies the principles
of logic to the situation. Narrated in alternating chapters
by two very different girls, this humorous book makes
a great read-aloud. |
|
 The
Rise and Fall of Mount Majestic
by Jennifer Trafton, Brett Helquist
Ages 9–12
One night 10-year-old Persimmony
Smudge becomes lost in the woods and overhears a plot
to steal the king’s gold buried under the castle on
the top of Mount Majestic. When Persimmony tells spoiled
12-year-old King Lucas about the intended theft, she
learns that the gold is in the form of a belt buckle
asleep under the small island they live on, the Island
at the Center of Everything. In fact, the mountain
is actually the belly of the sleeping giant. Persimmony
and her friend Worvil the Worrier race to convince
the island's inhabitants that the giant is real and
may wake up at any moment. This humorous and fascinating
tale would make a perfect read-aloud. |
|
 Sophie
Peterman Tells the Truth!
by Sarah Weeks, Robert Neubecker
Ages 4–8
Sophie Peterman tells the truth
about babies: they aren’t cute, or precious, or sweet.
In fact, they are smelly crybabies and attention hogs.
Sophie’s personality leaps off the pages of this funny
book that begs to be read aloud. |
| |
|
|
