Browse Items · Children's Picture Book Database at Miami University

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Maxie

Kantrowitz, Mildred

Maxie wakes up each day and goes through the same routine. One day Maxie feels unloved and lonely, so she decides to stay in bed. Maxie doesn't realize how much others depend on her until her living room is full of worried neighbors. Maxie realizes how many people need and rely on her daily routine.

Tags

caring, community, depression, feelings, friendship, happiness, identity, loneliness, neighbors, nonverbal communication, perspective, relationship, sadness, self esteem, worry

Our community garden

Pollak, Barbara

Neighborhood children plant a garden together and each contribute by helping to take care of the garden. They set goals, work hard, and build healthy friendship. After harvesting their crops, everyone from the community comes together for a special meal made from vegetables grown in the garden. What a nutritious, heart-warming treat!

Tags

ant, bee, beetle, bug, celebration, community, cooking, counting, dancing, decision making, diversity, dragonfly, flowers, food, friendship, garden, goal setting, hard work, harvest, helping, insects, ladybug, learning, multicultural, nature, neighbors, nonverbal communication, numbers, nutrition, plants, playing, recipe, responsibilities, teamwork, tools, variety, vegetables, worm

Spaghetti eddie

SanAngelo, Ryan

Eddie loves spaghetti. He eats it all the time. While running an errand for his mother, Eddie helps several neighbors by using his spaghetti noodles as a shoestring, a fishing net, and guitar strings. Eddie even stops a robber with a meat ball.

Tags

bravery, celebration, community, critical thinking, family, food, friendship, giving, instruments, kindness, neighbors, nutrition, party, self esteem

Dona flor

Mora, Pat

A vicious animal is causing panic among the villagers. Done Flor, a giant woman with a heart of gold, helps find the reason behind the mysterious beast.

Tags

bravery, conflict resolution, courage, critical thinking, friendship, giants, giving, magic, mythical, neighbors, problem solving, relationship, verbal communication, village

Little flower

Rand, Gloria

Miss Pearl loves her pet pig Little Flower. The pig can play dead and loves the attention this trick gets her. One day Miss Pearl has an accident and can't go get help. Little Flower finds a unique way to communicate Miss Pearl's need for help.

Tags

accidents, animals, balloon, emergency, fear, feelings, happiness, heroism, injury, neighbors, nonverbal communication, party, pets, pig, sadness, technology, telephone

The marshmallow incident

Barrett, Judi

The town of Right and the town of Left do not have anything to do with one another. Someone had even painted a yellow line that nobody ever dared cross. The Order of the Ambidextrous Knights of the Dotted Yellow Line, watch over the line as well as guarding their marshmallows. In June, the town of Right has their picnic, and someone accidentally trips over the yellow line. The knights immediately grab the closest ammunition: their marshmallows, and minutes later both towns are covered with marshmallows, until they realize how silly it was. The towns hold town meetings and no one could think of reasons why they should keep the yellow line. The two towns join together to wash the yellow line and socialize for the first time.

Tags

castle, celebration, colors, community, conflict, conflict resolution, creativity, dancing, decision making, differences, fable, food, goal setting, kite, neighbors, peace, play, poetry, puppets, royalty, teamwork, verbal communication

Little bit & big byte: A day at the beach

Feigh, C

Big Byte, Joy, and Little Bit go to the beach to be with their friends Webster and Kay Board. They all see a couple of nefarious bugs named Vi and Russ who are going surfing. Big Byte and Kay Board want to go with them but Joy and Little Bit warn them that it is too dangerous. When Big Byte and Kay Board find themselves in danger, what will happen? Will Little Bit, Joy, and Webster be able to do anything to help them in this computer age adventure?

Tags

adventures, animals, art, beach, bodies of water, cat, community, competition, computer, dog, five senses, neighbors, ocean, rescue, school, surfing, technology, vocabulary

A castle on Viola street

Disalvo, Dyanne

Andy's family lives in a small, cramped apartment, and his parents work long hours to support the family. He never thought that they would ever live in an actual house, but one day they find a flyer saying You too can own a home. The organization buys empty houses and allows families to fix-up houses and then other people will help fix up a house for them. Andy's family is so excited as they help clean, paint, put down hard wood flooring, and pass out lemonade. At the end of the year, they find out that the next house to be built will be theirs!

Tags

author's note, celebration, change, community, construction, decision making, family, food, goal setting, hard work, home, hope, neighbors, safety, self esteem, teamwork

Molasses man

May, Kathy L.

A young boy and his family make molasses every summer. This summer the sourghum turns into a recipe that the boy's Grandfather has perfected. The boy spends his summer days helping his family make molasses and playing outside during the cooking process. While some molasses is cooling, Mama and her sisters pour it into glass jars and set up a stand near the road for passers-by.

Tags

african american, animals, author's note, books, community, cooking, family, farm, five senses, food, games, generations, glasses, grandparents, happiness, hard work, horse, moving, mule, neighbors, noise, observation, parents, plants, playing, pretend, recreation, sequence, smell, teamwork, traditions

Roy makes a car: Based on a story collected by Zora Neale Hurston

Lyons, Mary

Roy Tyle is known around town as the best mechanic in Florida. Roy makes it his mission to create a car that will be accident proof. No one in the town believes him, but Roy proves them wrong time and time again. Roy's creativity and perseverance leads to the making of the best cars in the area.

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.

Tags

accidents, bodies of water, clothing, cold, culture, emergency, fishing, food, ice, injury, lake, neighbors, nutrition, recreation, rescue, snow, storytelling, technology, television, weather, wind, winter

Rockin' reptiles

Calmenson, Stephanie//Cole, Joanna

Allie the Alligator is a typical young girl. She and her two girlfriends have lots of fun together playing games and dressing up. The three of them will do anything to be able to go to the Rockin Reptiles concert, their favorite band. There's a catch though -- only two can go.

Tags

alligator, basketball, bias, biking, boat, challenges, competition, conflict resolution, cooking, dancing, dedication, exercise, family, friendship, fun, games, humor, jumping, moving, music, neighbors, peer resistance, play, relationship, reptiles, selfishness, song, sports, technology, telephone, verbal communication

One lucky girl

Lyon, George Ella

It is just a normal Sunday for a young boy and his family. The boy's family and neighbors relax in the shade away from the hot sun while his baby sister takes a nap in her crib inside their trailer. Suddenly the sky turns black and the air becomes very still. A tornado!The storm quickly sweeps through the neighborhood. A huge mess is left when the tornado is gone. Everyone is okay, but the boy's baby sister is missing. Will the boy and his family ever find her?

Tags

animals, baby, baseball, buildings, family, horse, lost, neighbors, sports, storm, tornado, weather

Rose meets mr. wintergarten

Graham, Bob

Rose's nice cheerful family moves next door to Mr. Wintergarten, a man who has not seen daylight in years. When Rose's ball goes over the fence, despite many warnings, she retrieves it. She brings cookies to Mr. Wintergarten and becomes his friend. Mr. Wintergarten is less lonely.

Tags

aging, assertiveness, bias, conflict resolution, decision making, depression, feelings, friendship, goal setting, loneliness, neighbors, peer resistance, self esteem, stereotypes, stress management

Two dog biscuits

Cleary, Beverly

Jimmy and Janet each get a dog biscuit from their neighbor. Since they don't have a dog to give the biscuits to, they go on a walk with their mother to find one. After searching for the perfect dog, they decide to give the biscuits to a cat, who eats them quickly.

Tags

animals, cat, conflict resolution, critical thinking, dog, exercise, family, food, neighbors, pets, refusal skills, sharing, siblings, verbal communication

Going west

Waddell, Martin

A little girl experiences one of the most dramatic changes in her life. While going west to build a new home, she learns to cope with many different things. She regains hopes and dreams for her new home.

Ottie slockett

Luttrell, Ida

Ottie said mean things to his neighbors all day. One day he builds a glass house which allows his neighbors to meddle in his life. He then decides to be nice to them.

Tags

conflict resolution, critical thinking, decision making, feelings, loneliness, manners, neighbors, shelter, verbal communication

Next door to Laura Linda

Udry, Janice May

Laura Linda was not happy with anything she had. She wished she had a perfect little girl to play with in her tree house and yellow house next door. Finally, a little boy moved in next door and invited her to play in his treehouse if he could swing on her tree.

Tags

conflict resolution, feelings, friendship, moving, neighbors, plants, play, recreation, sadness, self esteem, sharing, shelter, verbal communication

The christmas eve mystery

Nixon, Joan Lowery

Susan and Mike accompany their neighbors on Christmas Eve to find out if horses really talk at midnight. While in the barn, Susan and Mike hear a robbery take place and help to find the robbers and the money stash.

Tags

animals, awareness, christmas, critical thinking, family, holidays, honesty, horse, mystery, neighbors, robbery, siblings, superstition

Marge's diner

Gibbons, Gail

Everyone goes to Marge's Diner because it is open 24 hours a day. Marge feeds all kinds of people: truck drivers, families, travelers, school kids, businessmen, and telephone company workers. Everyone is friendly at the diner, and it is a big meeting place for friends.

Tags

careers, community, food, friendship, neighbors, nutrition, restaurant

The widow's broom

Van Allsburg, Chris

Minna Shaw rescues a fallen witch and in return is given the witch's old broom. Neighbors think the broom is evil, but it helps the widow with her chores. The neightbors try to destroy the broom, which later comes back to haunt them.

Tags

assertiveness, conflict resolution, decision making, destruction, neighbors, nonverbal communication, rescue, responsibilities, witches

Who's a pest?

Bonsall, Crosby

Homer starts to believe he is a pest because others say he is. When the others fall in a hole, Homer thinks of a way to get them out. After they are rescued, they never call Homer a pest again.

Tags

acceptance, conflict resolution, decision making, neighbors, rescue, self esteem

Rickety rackety rooster

Wahl, Jan

Farmer Puckle owns a rooster who crows constantly. They try everything to get him to stop and finally discover a treasure to solve the problem.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, birds, canary, community, cow, critical thinking, crow, duck, family, farm, fear, feelings, five senses, food, horse, neighbors, noise, nonverbal communication, nutrition, owl, parents, problem solving, rain, sheep, sleep, stress management, weather, wind

Christmas on an island

Gibbons, Gail

Christmas is coming so everyone is busy making preparations on the island. On Christmas Eve, everyone gathers at church for a festive celebration.

Tags

anticipation, celebration, christmas, excitement, friendship, holidays, island, kindness, neighbors, party, preparation, seasons, traditions, verbal communication, winter

Arthur's birthday party

Hoban, Lilliam

Arthur's determination to have the best birthday party and be the best all-around gymnast causes him to be inconsiderate of the feelings of his sister and friends. When Arthur forgets to be fair and have fun at the competition, his younger sister is quick to point out that each chimpanzee has his or her own special skill to be honored with a medal at the birthday competition.

Leah's pony

Friedrich, Elizabeth

One summer, Leah's father gives her a pony which she grows to love dearly. When told the devastating news that her family is running out of money, Leah has to decide what she will sacrifice to help.

Tags

animals, author's note, conflict resolution, decision making, family, farm, feelings, money, neighbors, pony, poverty, unselfish

Folks call me appleseed john

Glass, Andrew

Johnny Appleseed is one of America's favorite heroes. As he travels across the wilderness of a peaceful land, he meets people and leaves behind appleseeds.

Tags

adventures, animals, bodies of water, cave, critical thinking, decision making, exploration, heroism, lake, native american, neighbors, nonverbal communication, plants, river, verbal communication, wolf

Grandmother bryant's pocket

Martin, Jacqueline Briggs

Sarah's best friend is her dog Patches. Patches dies in a barn fire and every night after the fire, Sarah has nightmares and wakes up calling for Patches. Sarah goes to her Grandparent's house hoping to cure her from her nightmares. To comfort Sarah, Grandmother gives Sarah her old pocket filled with herbs, scissors, and gold buttons and embroidered with the words no fear, to wear under her skirt. In the meantime Sarah befriends a stray one-eyed cat. Sarah is not cured alone by the pocket full of herbs and the cat's friendship. It is only after a mean neighbor's accident that Sarah becomes more brave and confident and the nightmares stop.

Tags

animals, bravery, cat, death, dog, dreams, family, farm, fear, fire, food, garden, grandparents, grief, loss, medicine, neighbors, nutrition, parents, pig, plants, self esteem, storytelling

The mystery of the flying pumpkin

Kellogg, Steven

A group of children plant a pumpkin for Halloween in a neighbor's garden. All summer they care for the pumpkin, but certain events happen which prevents them from making it into a jack-o-lantern. How will the children solve the pumpkin problem?

Tags

autumn, critical thinking, friendship, garden, goal setting, halloween, holidays, neighbors, plants, problem solving, seasons, summer

Kindle me a riddle: A pioneer story

Karm, Roberta

Jack, Constance, Mama, and Papa play a riddling game which helps them understand life on the frontier. Their riddles are about their log cabin, food, icehouse, candles, and baskets.

Tags

alphabet, bee, bodies of water, cabin, critical thinking, duck, family, fire, neighbors, pioneers, pond, school, sewing, sheep, teaching, transportation, verbal communication, wagon

Popcorn at the palace

McCully, Emily Arnold

Based on real events, Maisie Ferris, a girl from the mid-1800s, and her family don't really fit in with their neighbors in the small town of Galesburg, Illinois with their new ideas. They take one of their American creations, popcorn, to England and impress everyone with their corn that turns to snow.

Tags

american, animals, assertiveness, author's note, boat, carriage, cow, creativity, dolls, english, family, farm, food, garden, history, horse, imagination, multicultural, neighbors, nutrition, pioneers, royalty, self esteem, snow, spiritual, transportation, travel

Moonfall

Whitcher, Susan

Sylvie is a little girl who believes that the moon is magic. Even after her parents try to explain how big and far away the moon is, Sylvie still believes that the moon fell behind the neighbor's lilac bush. Sylvie believes that she saves the moon.

Tags

family, magic, moon, neighbors, night, parents, sky

Rhymes for annie rose

Hughes, Shirley

More than twenty rhymes tell about the daily life and activities of a young girl named Annie Rose. The playful poems cover several topics including animals, people, seasons, routines and adventures that children love.

Tags

adventures, animals, bedtime, behavior, birds, boat, body parts, clothing, counting, cow, dancing, day, dog, dolls, dreams, food, friendship, games, garden, imagination, mice, moon, morning, nature, neighbors, night, numbers, playing, poetry, presents, rain, rhyme, sand, sea, seasons, sheep, snow, summer, sun, toys, tree, water, weather, winter

Harry and the lady next door

Zion, Gene

Harry doesn't like the lady next door because she sings very high and loud and it makes his ears hurt. Harry tries to have the lady sing lower and quieter.

Tags

conflict resolution, critical thinking, hearing, neighbors, noise, song, sounds

Johnny crow's new garden

Brooke, L. Leslie

Johnny Crow has a new garden of the local animals. They sang, dance, and have a party thanking Johnny Crow.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, birds, conflict resolution, crow, dancing, garden, neighbors, party, rhyme, song, verbal communication

The paper dragon

Davol, Margueritte W.

Sui-Jen, the dragon, is awakened and begins to destroy everything. Mi Fei is the only person brave and wise enough to put the dragon back to sleep. Mi Fei needs courage, heroism, and wisdom to save his village from the dragon.

Tags

art, assertiveness, bravery, challenges, chinese, community, conflict resolution, courage, critical thinking, culture, dragons, heroism, love, loyalty, multicultural, neighbors, verbal communication

Pink paper swans

Kroll, Virginia

An eight-year-old girl learns how to make things out of paper by using the ancient Japanese art of origami. She eventually helps her elderly neighbor with this project during the summers.

Tags

aging, art, helping, japanese, multicultural, neighbors, seasons, summer

The christmas ghost

Buck, Pearl S.

A small boy shares the spirit of Christmas with his family and neighborhood. One of the older neighbors tells him about a ghost who walks each Christmas Eve. In turn, the boy learns about friendship, believing, and remembering.

Tags

christmas, conflict resolution, critical thinking, faith, family, friendship, ghosts, holidays, memories, neighbors, nonverbal communication, sharing, verbal communication

A very special friend

Levi, Dorothy Hoffman

Frannie is lonely without friends her age in her neighborhood. When Laura moves in down the street, Frannie is excited but then sad because Laura is hearing impaired and cannot talk. The girls soon learn to communicate through sign language and become close friends.

Tags

feelings, five senses, friendship, handicap, happiness, hearing impaired, loneliness, neighbors, nonverbal communication, sadness, sight, sign language

I never knew your name

Garland, Sherry

A young boy is fascinated with his neighbor. He watches the neighbor's actions and understands his feelings. Unfortunately, no one notices the boy.

Tags

awareness, basketball, challenges, critical thinking, depression, feelings, friendship, insecurity, loneliness, neighbors, nonverbal communication, sadness, sports

Addie runs away

Robins, Joan

Addie's parents want to send her to camp. She thinks that they do not want her anymore, so she runs away. Her friend, Max, tells her camp is fun and they decide to go to camp together.

Tags

camping, exercise, family, fear, feelings, friendship, independence, neighbors, parents, play, recreation, running, running away

A country tale

Stanley, Diane

Cleo and Lucy are great friends who live in the country. Mrs. Snickers, who came from the city, moves into the mansion next door and Cleo is enchanted by her elegance.

Tags

acceptance, appearance, cat, change, community, conflict resolution, coping, friendship, moving, neighbors

There's a cow in the road!

Lindbergh, Reeve

As this girl gets ready for school, a cow and many other animals show up outside of her house. When the bus finally comes, there is chaos with people, cars, and animals in the neighborhood.

Tags

animals, bus, car, chaos, cleanliness, cow, goat, goose, horse, hygiene, neighbors, pig, rhyme, school, sheep, time, transportation

Fox on stage

Marshall, James

Fox and his friends are bored, so they decide to put on a scary play for the neighborhood. The play goes wrong and instead of being scary it is the funniest play the neighbors have ever seen.

Tags

actor, animals, boredom, careers, fox, fun, humor, neighbors, performance, play, rain, weather

The magic moonberry jump ropes

Hru, Dakari

April and Erica love to Double Dutch, but they have no friends to Double Dutch with. When their Uncle Zambezi returns from a trip to Tanzania, he gives the girls a jump rope that will grant wishes because it is made from magic moonberries. The girls Double Dutch and wish for two new friends to arrive. Suddenly, a moving van pulls up, and a family with a boy and girl moves in across the street.

Tags

african american, author's note, bicycle, biking, colors, exercise, family, friendship, jump rope, jumping, karate, language, multicultural, neighbors, plants, play, rhyme, siblings, skating, wish

The great big scary dog

Gleeson, Libby

Jen, her sister, and a friend decide to scare a dog with their dragon costume for the Chinese New Year's dance. When they roar and try to scare the dog, the dog is very friendly to the girls and allows them to pet him.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, celebration, chinese, critical thinking, dog, dragons, family, fear, feelings, friendship, holidays, multicultural, mythical, neighbors, new year, nonverbal communication, parents, siblings

My perfect neighborhood

Komaiko, Leah

A young girl goes out into her neighborhood and finds many extraordinary things. What do you think about grown ups lining up for recess and poodles getting married?

Tags

adventures, creativity, fun, imagination, neighbors, nonverbal communication, uniqueness, verbal communication

The other side

Woodson, Jacqueline

A fence not only divides two properties -- it segregates two families because of their different cultures. Initial fears from the parents cause them to set rules that will forbid the friendship of their young daughters. Little did they know that their daughters would break the barrier as they climbed the fence together to see the world as it should be, not as it is.

Moving is hard

Prestine, Joan Singleton

A young girl is sad that she has to move from her house. She must leave her friends, her school, and all of her favorite things, like playing baseball and running in the fields with her dog. She soon makes new friends, though, and learns her new apartment is not much different from her old neighborhood and begins to like it.

Tags

acceptance, animals, baseball, books, bus, change, coping, dog, exercise, feelings, friendship, loneliness, loss, moving, neighbors, park, refusal skills, running, sadness, school, sports, transportation

Babylon

Walsh, J. P.

Three children walk along an old viaduct and leaving their slum neighborhoods by using their imaginations. Dulcie is sad because she's always lived in England and can't share memories with the other two.

Tags

conflict resolution, critical thinking, decision making, english, feelings, friendship, imagination, memories, multicultural, neighbors, nonverbal communication, peer resistance, play, sadness, verbal communication

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