Skip to main content
Elvira
Shannon, Margaret
Instead of eating princesses, Elvira the dragon would rather dress like them. She is independent and wants to live life in her own unqiue way.

The lady with the ship on her head
Lattimore, Deborah Nourse
When Madame Pompenstane leans over at the beach to gather shells, she does not notice that a tiny ship sails onto her head. Later at the Fancy Dress Ball, she is pleased to win the prize for the Best Headdress.

Let's dance
Ancona, George
Children from all backgrounds move and dance to different rhythms of their culture. Dances range from tap to folk dances and from Native American dance to Tibetan dance. There are many forms, types, and styles of dance a person can do to express their emotions. There are different dances for men, women, animals, and puppets too!

When I am old with you
Johson, Angela
A grandfather and a young boy talk and participate in a variety of activites together. Grandaddy and the child play cards, go fishing, enjoy nature, eat together, and play dress up.

Kevin and his dad
Smalls, Irene
Kevin loves spending time with his dad. Kevin learns that after he works hard, he can play hard with is dad. Kevin and his dad spend the day cleaning the house, then they play sports and go to the movies. Oh what fun!

The piano man
Chocolate, Debbie
A young girl listens to her grandfather share his deep love for music and the piano. Grandfather shares the history of silent movies, Vaudeville, Ragtime, and Broadway. He never lets his passion for music end and continues to share it with his grandaughter.

Up home
Grant, Shauntay
A young woman of African decent recalls her childhood in her native homeland of Preston, Canada. She remembers long hot days of summer playing with cousins, singing on Sunday mornings, climbing trees and picking blueberries. Gatherings with her family are special celebrations.

Mr. George Baker
Hest, Amy
Harry enjoys spending time with his older next door neighbor, Mr. Baker. Harry likes to wait for the bus with Mr. George Baker. Harry learns about Mr. Baker's life as a musician and learns that a person is never too old to learn to read.

Maisy's wonderful weather book
Cousins, Lucy
Follow Maisy as he experiences all the different kinds of weather and how to dress and have fun in each kind. sun, rain, snow and wind conditions require different clothing! Maisy calls each one a wonderful choice of weather day!

Ella the elegant elephant
D'Amico, Carmela & D'Amica, Steven
Ella is the new elephant at school and is worried about fitting in. to feel more comfortable, Ella wears the lucky hat her grandmother gave her. Much to her dismay., Ella's lucky hat cause much teasing to come her way. In the end, through, it is Ella's lucky hat that saves the day when the bully gets into trouble and is forced to have a change of heart.

Wash day
Cole, Barbara H.
Every wash day, Granpa plays his trumpet, keeping the children entertained while Miss. Ett does the wash. This music tradition stays strong until grandpa becomes ill and a tragedy occurs, causing grandpa to pass on his beloved trumpet to begin a new tradition.

Jazzy Miz Mozetta
Roberts, Brenda C.
One night Miz Mozetta decided that she felt like dancing. Her friends outside made excuses not to dance and the children across the street would not let her. Miz Mozetta sulks to her room, but soon enough her friends and the children show up in her memories ready to dance the jitterbug all night long.

A new improved Santa
Wolff, Patricia
Santa is determined to become a new and improved Santa. He changes his hair, loses weight, and changes his clothing style. The children are not happy with his changes; they want the old Santa back.

One little lamb
Greenstein, Elaine
One little lamb is shaved for wool. The wool is cleaned, combed, spun into yarn, dipped into dye, and transformed into a pair of mittens. A little girl visits the lambs while wearing mittens.

The biggest soap
Shaefer, Carole
Kessy loved to listen to stories told by his Mama and his cousins on laundry days. One laundry day, Kessy is asked to go to the store and bring back the biggest piece of laundry soap. Kessy returns and tells his story about the biggest soap.

The balloon sailors
Swanson, Diana
When bickering princes take the throne, the kingdom is split in two by a wall so that each brother rules half. The kingdom is divided and it is illegal for people to cross the wall. Since Tamala and Abalon are forbidden to see their grandmother and cousin on the other side of the wall, they decide to float over it in a hot air balloon. They work with their parents to collect materials, build the balloon, and wait for the perfect weather conditions. The family departs during the night, escapes military fire from soldiers, and surprises their relatives in the morning. This adventure is loosely based on the true story of two East German families sailing over the Berlin Wall in their own hot air balloon in 1979.

My first Chinese New Year
Katz, Karen
Gung Hay Fat Choy! Happy New Year! A Chinese child is getting ready for the Chinese New Year by decorating the walls with red, making an alter to honor ancestors, getting a new dress to wear, and getting a haircut to start the new year off fresh and new. They eat a New Year Eve feast for good health and enjoy the New Year parade with lion dancers, drummers, and the dragon! Then, they wish each other Gung Hay Fat Choy!

My little round house
Baasansuren, Bolormaa Adapted by: Mixter, Helen
Baby Jilu talks through his first year in the world, from when he is born to when he is a year old. he is born into a round world, with a round bed in a round home in Mongolia. His family comes to meet him, and they travel to their autumn quarters. Once snow begins to fall, Jilu's family moves on to their winter campground and soon celebrate Tsagaan Sar, meaning Spring will come again. In the spring, Jilu can ride on the camel saddle with his mother, and he will not have to wear boots again until after summer.

Ashanti to zulu: African traditions
Musgrove, Margaret
Explains some traditions and customs of twenty-six African tribes beginning with the letters from A to Z.

Bintou's braids
Diouf, Sylviane
When Bintou, a little girl living in West Africa, finally gets her wish for braids, she discovers that what she dreamed for has been hers all along.

Africa brothers and sisters
Kroll, Virginia
At lunchtime Daddy and Jesse play their favorite game: a question and answer game about people who live in Africa and the ways in which they are connected to Jesse.

Jamari's drum
Bynum, Eboni//Jackson, Roland
Jamari grows up drawn to the beating of the djembe, the keeper of the peace, the great drum of his Mali village. Jamari grows older and becomes the drummer of the djembe. He eventually gets caught up in other aspects of village life. When the village is once again threatened by the nearby angry mountain, Jamari returns to his post as drummer for village peace.

African beginnings
Haskins, James//Benson, Kathleen
Come explore and celebrate the powerful impact people of African descent have made on world history and on the American experience.

Monkey for sale
Stanley, Sanna
Two little girls in Africa look forward to their village market day in the Congo. They must make wise choices for their spending. They make initial purchases, but later find a monkey they want to rescue. They creatively work together to find a solution.

Where are you going manyoni?
Stock, Catherine
Manyoni, a little girl living near the Limpopo River in Zimbabwe, sees many different animals and wildlife on her walk to school.

The duchess of whimsy: An absolutely delicious fairytale
de Seve, Randall
The Duchess of Whimsy is very well known to be extravagant, through her celebrations, clothing, and conversation. The Earl of Norm is quite the opposite; in fact the Duchess thinks he is rather ordinary. However her father tells her, their two kingdoms have to be friends. The Earl of Norm loves the Duchess of Whimsy and goes to extraordinary lengths to try to impress her, but none of them impress her. One night at supper the cook becomes sick, so all the Duchess' guests try to impress her with their cooking. However the one food that impresses her is the one ordinary food. Cooked by whom?

The talking cloth
Mitchell, Rhonda
Aunt Phoebe has a collection of many wonderful things, each having an interesting story. The little girl's favorite thing is an adinkra cloth from Ghana. It has many colors and symbols to represent feelings, faith, power, and love.

The queen's progress: An Elizabethan alphabet
Mannis, Celeste Davidson
Queen Elizabeth I of England takes an alphabetical journey one letter at a time. Factual footnotes are written on each page. Learn how the queen travels, likes, and interacts with her people.

Do like Kyla
Johnson, Angela
A little girl looks up to her older sister Kyla. Anything Kyla does, her little sister mimics. Her adoration for her sister is evident from waking up to bedtime.

Yes, a cat named marty cohen
Gardner, Wendy Ann
A colorful cat becomes bored and wants to travel somewhere new. He packs up his clothes, food, and a few of his favorite things. He travels by boat and arrives in a sunny new place, then makes himself at home.

Ella Sarah gets dressed
Chodos-Irvine, Margaret
A young girl named Ella knows what she wants to wear and no one in her family can convince her otherwise. She refuses each person's suggestions for alternative clothing choices. Ella shows confidence and determination as she chooses her own style and presentation.

Garibaldi's biscuits
Steadman, Ralph
In nineteenth-century Italy, the wife of General Garibaldi bakes biscuits, as a peace offering for a defeated French army.

Hello baby!
Rockwell, Lizzy
It is such a special time when there's a new baby on the way. This little boy has been involved in his new sister's life since the beginning. He went to the doctor with his mommy and helped unpack baby clothes. When his baby sister is born, he is the happiest boy in the world!

Pick a pumpkin, Mrs. Millie!
Cox, Judy
Silly Mrs. Millie is at it again. In the fall, she takes her kindergarten class on a trip to pick pumpkins for their harvest party. The class has fun guessing the meanings of their favorite teacher's nonsense words. They go on a dragon (wagon) ride, pet the boats (goats), and drink apple spider (cider). Coupled with hilarious artwork in pen, pencil, and colored dyes by Joe Mathieu, this lighthearted text sets a class trip on its ear with subtle lessons in wordplay.

Buffalo
Brodsky, Beverly
The buffalo was very important for the survival of Native Americans. Learn about the history and importance of the buffalo. Excerpts from Native American songs and many original paintings add an artistic dimension.

That's good! That's bad! On Santa's Journey
Cuyler, Margery
Santa runs into a few problems on his Christmas Eve journey. At the beginning of the trip, he gets delayed by a snow storm. When it clears up, he continues to the first little boy's house, but his reindeer have trouble landing on the icy roof. Santa continues to encounter problems, but manages to deliver all the presents.

Welcome dede!: An African naming ceremony
Onyefulu, Ifeoma
Amarlai has a new baby cousin and he can't wait for her to be given a name. A tradtional African name will tell people where she comes from and which child she is in the family.

Creativity
Steptoe, John
Charles speaks English and Hector speaks Spanish. They learn that even though they speak different languages, they both come from African ancestors. Charles helps Hector adjust to life in the U.S. through fun activities.

Jamela's dress
Daly, Niki
Jamela's mama has just bought some beautiful fabric for a new dress. While she's watching it dry outside in the South African air, Jamela wraps it around herself and starts parading down the street. Everyone is watching her, she is so proud. When she gets home, Jamela finds her mama very upset because her fabric is ruined. With the help of a friend, Jamela buys her mama more fabric. At this South African wedding, both Jamela and her mama are beautiful in their new dresses.

Bessie Smith and the night riders
Stauffacher, Sue
Emmarene always loved to listen to Blues music. When Bessie Smith comes to town, Emmarene can't wait to hear Bessie sing. Not everyone likes Bessie though. Emmarene and Bessie Smith have to stand up against people who tried to destroy their nights. And boy, could Bessie sing on stage and off!

Let the celebrations begin
Wild, Margaret//Vivas, Julie
Miram and the women of the camp make toys for children from material scraps and buttons. They plan for a celebration when the soldiers come to free them from the German camp.

Winter rescue
Valgardson, W.D.
Thor wants to stay inside and watch cartoons on T.V. One day his grandfather needs help ice fishing and Thor is volunterred to help. Thor goes with grandfather, and the two ice fish for the entire day in the bitter cold. Thor ends up saving a man who falls through the ice.

Song and dance man
Ackerman, Karen
When the children go to visit their grandpa, he takes them to the attic to show his three grandchildren what he used to do for entertainment before television was invented. He dresses up in his hat, vest, and cane, then begins to dance and sing for his grandchildren. When they go downstairs, they wonder how much he misses the good old days.

The rabbit's revenge
Wiese, Kurt
Old man Shivers planned on killing rabbits for a coat. The rabbits found out and made a plan to stop him. The rabbits, with the help of nature, caused the old man's house to float away and they never saw him again.

Gullible's troubles
Shannon, Margaret
Gullible believes everything he hears when his aunt, uncle, or cousin tells him stories. For example, he believes that there are monsters in the basement. When his family tries to trick him again, the joke ends up being on them.

Caps, hats, socks, and mittens: A book about the four seasons
Borden, Louise
Learn the many colors, smells, and activities of each season. We start and finish the cycle with the caps, hats, socks, and mittens of winter.

Lazy tommy pumpkinhead
du Bois, William Pene
Lazy Tommy Pumpkinhead was a boy that had all his belongings computerized.His bed, shower, clothes, and food were all controlled electronically and he never had to do anything for himself. When a storm knocks out the electricity, Tommy sleeps for seven days. When he awakes the machines go crazy and do seven days worth of work in one day.

Dream snow
Carle, Eric
A farmer lives on a small farm with his animals named one, two, three, four and five. One night as he naps, he dreams of snow fall covering his animals and him. He wakes up to discover real snow covering the ground and almost forgets a special Christmas surprise.

Poppy the panda
Gackenbach, Dick
A little girl's panda, Poppy, would not got to bed until it had something to wear like the other stuffed animals. The little girl could not satisfy the bear. Her mother tied a bow around his neck to make him happy and he went to bed.

Missing mittens
Murphey, Stuart J.
When Farmer Bill begins to get dressed in his warm winter clothes, he finds he only has one mitten. Therefore, he has an odd number and he doesn't have a pair!When he checks on his animals in the barn he finds that they're missing mittens also. They find the footprints that lead to the mitten thief. Who could it be?