Children's Picture Book Database at Miami University

The tower of life: How Yaffa Eliach rebuilt her town in stories and photographs | by Stiefel, Chana

Yaffa loved helping her Grandma Alte in her photography studio in Poland. Many people had their photographs made during special events and celebrations, then they were mailed overseas to relatives before the Jewish New Year. After the Holocaust when 3500 Jewish souls were murdered by Nazi soldiers, Yaffa worked for 17 years to recover 6000 photographs and stories about people from Eishyshok, which is now a different town in Lithuania. Yaffa became a professor of history who rebuilt the lives of those lost by connecting with their loved one's photographs from six continents.

Keywords: books, careers, chicken, children, communication, correspondence, death, history, museum, photograph, photography, Poland, polish, time, travel, united states, war

The key from Spain: Flory Jagoda and her music | by Levy, Debbie

Just as her ancestors were forced to leave Spain during the Inquisition, Flory flees Europe for a new life in the United States, bringing with her a precious harmonica and a passion for Ladino music.

Keywords: american, Bosnian, christians, Croatian, dancing, generations, gymnastics, history, instruments, Jewish, ladino, language, multicultural, music, muslim, neighbors, numbers, prayers, pretend, refugee, sewing, ship, singing, song, spain, storytelling, time, train, transportation, war

A different pond | by Phi, Bao

A young boy accompanies his dad to catch fish for food before the sunrises and before other family members awake. The dad tells the bait man at the all-night store that he is starting a second job. The boy meets a Hmong man and a black man who are also fishing -- but this time, it is just the boy and his dad under the starlit sky. The boy learns to make a fire and to bait his hook and to honor the stories of his Dad as he explains how life was in Vietnam when he was a boy. When they return home, the dad and mom head to work while the boy looks after his brothers and sisters.

Keywords: african american, author's note, bicycle, bodies of water, counting, feelings, fire, fishing, food, hard work, hmong, illustrator's note, language, learning, loss, morning, multicultural, photograph, pond, poverty, refugee, responsibilities, sadness, siblings, sleep, storytelling, teeth, tree, vietnamese, war, work

From the tops of the trees | by Yang, Kao Kalia

Four year old Kalia wants to know what is beyond the fences of the Ban Sinai Refugee Camp where many Hmong families are held in Thailand after fleeing the Secret War in Laos. Kalia and her cousins play together by racing with chickens and riding a pet dog. One day, Kalia's father picks her up to hold her in his arms as he climbs a tall tree in the camp. This gives Kalia a chance to see a new and different world.

Keywords: animals, body parts, clothing, Days of the Week, dog, fear, feelings, food, hmong, hygiene, perspective, refugee, sewing, Thailand, travel, tree, war

Sybil's night ride | by Winnick, Karen B.

A brave girl takes a brave journey on a horse through the night. Find out how her brave actions helped America while at war with the British.

Keywords: adventures, america, animals, assertiveness, bravery, british, decision making, helping, history, horse, multicultural, nonverbal communication, patriotic, progress, war

Who was the woman who wore the hat? | by Patz, Nancy

In the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam, a lone hat is on display in a glass case. It is all that remains of a woman's life. A pictorial and poetic view of this hat, worn during the Holocaust, is poignantly expressed.

Keywords: author's note, clothing, discrimination, diversity, family, feelings, germany, history, Jewish, memories, multicultural, museum, photograph, prejudice, relationship, religion, war

Coming on home soon | by Woodson, Jacqueline

A girl says goodbye to her mother who is heading to find work in the city. The girl waits everyday for her mother's letter that says she will be coming home. All the while, the girl remembers her mother loves her more than snow or rain.

Keywords: african american, animals, careers, cat, coping, correspondence, death, disappointment, emotions, family, future, love, money, multicultural, nature, parents, prayer, rain, snow, time, war, weather

Alec's primer | by Pitts-Walter, Mildred

Alec was a slave who wanted to be free. Ms. Josephine, one of his masters and three years older than him, told Alic if he wanted to be free he needed to learn to read. Ms. Josephine taught him to read and when Alec was old enough he couragously fights in the Civil War and obtained his freedom.

Keywords: accomplishment, african american, alphabet, ambition, assertiveness, author's note, biography, books, courage, critical thinking, freedom, goal setting, hard work, learning, multicultural, museum, peace, photograph, prejudice, racism, reading, self esteem, slavery, verbal communication, war

Old home day | by Hall, Donald

From the time when only plants and animals lived there, to the modern bicentennial celebration, the people who called the fictional village of Blackwater home remember its history.

Keywords: aggression, aging, american, animals, author's note, autumn, baby, barn, baseball, birds, birth, bodies of water, bones, careers, celebration, change, community, conflict, conflict resolution, cow, death, decision making, deer, family, farm, farmer, forest, future, generations, goal setting, grandparents, hard work, history, hunting, lake, love, marriage, memories, nature, neighbors, nonverbal communication, parade, parents, peer resistance, plants, pond, reunion, seasons, settlers, snow, sports, spring, summer, war, water, weather, wilderness, winter, work

The snow goose | by Gallico, Mary//Gallico, Paul

A young, naive girl attempts to understand her environment in the midst of war. She does this through the love of the birds who live in this area.

Keywords: autumn, birds, bodies of water, critical thinking, decision making, feelings, fog, goose, happiness, history, loss, love, nonverbal communication, rain, sadness, sea, seasons, snow, spring, summer, sun, verbal communication, war, weather, winter

Sami and the time of troubles | by Heide, Florence Parry//Gilliland, Judith Heide

Sami lives with his family in Beriut. Once it was one of the most splendid cities in the world but today it is a place of ruin and trouble. Living in violence allows Sami to look at all the good memories when troubles arrive. In the end, Sami learns a great deal about fighting.

Keywords: conflict resolution, critical thinking, family, feelings, fight, food, games, grandparents, happiness, lebanese, multicultural, nutrition, parents, sadness, safety, siblings, stress management, verbal communication, violence, war

Sleds on boston common: A story from the american revolution | by Borden, Louise

It's 1774 and British troops are occupying Boston. King George closes Boston Harbor to punish people who speak out against his laws. Henry, a young boy from Boston, hopes to try out his new sled on his birthday. But when he and his brothers and sister get to the hill they find that the troops have set up camp there. After building up enough courage, Henry asks General Gage to move his troops because Boston Common is for everyone. Being a kind man of his word, General Gage agrees and the children can once again sled.

Keywords: american, assertiveness, author's note, beliefs, birthday, boat, british, courage, england, exercise, family, giving, history, play, presents, royalty, school, sharing, skating, sledding, snow, transportation, verbal communication, war

Sweet dried apples: A vietnamese wartime childhood | by Breckler, Rosemary

It is wartime in Vietnam, and a little girl who lives in the country is faced with the prospect of her father leaving for the army. Her father, the village herb doctor, comes to stay with them until he dies. Their village is bombed and the little girl and her family must flee Vietnam.

Keywords: change, community, death, grandparents, language, loss, market, plants, siblings, travel, vietnamese, war

Racing against the odds: The story of Wendell Scott, stock car racing's African-American champion | by Weatherford, Carole Boston

Wendell O. Scott made history as the only black driver to win a race in a NASCAR Grand National division. Using secondhand Fords that he fixed up in his garage, he competed in five hundred races in NASCAR'S top division. This is the story of a man who worked full time while racing on the side. A man who didn't just dust the competition, he blazed the trail.

Keywords: accidents, alcohol, body parts, car, careers, competition, food, games, history, language, mischief, school, segregation, skating, transportation, war

The silence in the mountains | by Rosenberg, Liz

Iskander and his family live in Lebanon until war breaks out. Then, they are forced to flee the country they love to live in American where there is no war. However, Iskander is homesick. To help him feel better, each of his family members do something special to make him feel better.

Keywords: airplane, animals, car, cow, family, farm, fear, feelings, goat, grandparents, homesickness, lebanese, mountains, multicultural, nonverbal communication, parents, sadness, transportation, travel, verbal communication, violence, war, woods

Silver threads | by Skrypuch, Marsha Forchuk

Ivan and Anna flee from Ukraine and sail to Canada where they are promised land for farming. They begin a new life, but Canada soon joins World War I. Ivan tries to fight for Canada in the war, but they take him as a prisoner instead. Years pass and Anna waits alone until Ivan finally returns to the farm from an internment camp

Keywords: assertiveness, canada, christmas, conflict resolution, cooperation, escape, farm, food, history, holidays, hope, immigrants, love, loyalty, multicultural, patience, prayer, spider, stress management, ukrainian, war

Memorial | by Crew, Gary

Storytime is a great time to recollect and gain lessons on past events. Take a stand with a young boy as he tries to preserve a memory.

Keywords: assertiveness, conservation, critical thinking, decision making, family, fight, generations, grandparents, history, memories, monument, plants, storytelling, tree, war

We | by Schertle, Alice

Describes the emergence of humankind out of Africa, charting the course of human development from seven million years ago to today, highlighting the development of diversity among peoples and our ability to invent and discover.

Keywords: africa, art, astronomy, baseball, boat, bodies of water, buildings, construction, desert, discovery, exploration, forest, history, home, inventions, machines, moon, mountains, music, nonverbal communication, poetry, prayer, religion, rhythm, river, sea, sports, sun, technology, transportation, travel, verbal communication, war

Shadow | by Brown, Marcia

The village storytellers and shamans of African expound on the important, mysterious, haunted, and enchanted life of shadows.

Keywords: africa, animals, appreciation, birds, bodies of water, cow, dancing, eagle, elephant, fable, fire, forest, insects, magic, mystery, night, reptiles, river, scorpion, shadows, snake, spy, storytelling, tree, war

To be a drum | by Coleman, Evelyn

Daddy Wes whispers to his two young children about the history of Africans forced into slavery and how the pulse of the drum has moved through them over time. Daddy Wes promises his children that as long as they can hear the heartbeat of the earth, they will be free.

Keywords: africa, african, bodies of water, careers, colors, community, culture, five senses, freedom, hearing, history, instruments, language, multicultural, music, nonverbal communication, ocean, playing, pride, rhythm, sea, ship, slavery, sounds, spiritual, storytelling, symbols, time, verbal communication, war

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