Children's Picture Book Database at Miami University

One candle | by Bunting, Eve

A Jewish family spends Hanukkah that same way every year. Traditions are passed from generation to generation. After a family meal, grandma and great-aunt Rose tell their story. One very special candle is lit in honor of their memories.

Keywords: family, feelings, food, generations, grandparents, hanukkah, history, holidays, Jewish, language, memories, multicultural, nutrition, parents, prayer, sadness, siblings, stars, storytelling

Hill of fire | by Lewis, P. Thomas

Bored of his day-to-day lifestyle, a farmer complains to his wife and son how nothing ever hannpens. One day while plowing, the farmer comes across an explosion coming from his field. It turns out to be a volcano erupting and the farmer's field becomes a place in history.

Keywords: beverage, boredom, bull, bus, church, dancing, depression, farm, fire, food, helping, market, mexican, mountains, night, noise, ox, party, prayer, rocks, running, sadness, safety, school, spanish, toys, truck, volcano, work

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

The magic kite | by Stanbridge, Bobette

A kite travels to America through time and watches America change and grow. Katy the kite spends time with a young girl in a city until it becomes too busy to fly. A Native American medicine man teaches Katy to speak to mother earth, father sky, angels, and fairies.

Keywords: angel, animals, birds, butterfly, elephant, friendship, grasshopper, imagination, insects, kite, magic, multicultural, native american, picnic, prayer, spiritual, tree, turtle

Names for snow | by Beach, Judi K.

A rabbit asks his mother what is snow? and she responds with several different descriptions of snow and the many names there are for it.

Keywords: barn, birds, butterfly, cat, christmas, disappearance, fire, flowers, friendship, garden, prayer, presents, santa, scarecrows, skiing, sledding, sleep, snow, winter

I lost my tooth in Africa | by Diakite, Penda

Amina and her parents take a trip to Mali to visit family. On the way, Amina realizes that her tooth is loose! Amina's father tells her that if she looses her tooth in Africa, she will receive her very own chicken from the Africa tooth fairy. When Amina finally looses her tooth, she finds more than just a chicken in return!

Keywords: africa, airplane, animals, birds, body parts, chicken, cow, culture, differences, donkey, family, food, goat, grandparents, language, maps, morning, night, parents, pattern, pheasant, prayer, recipe, song, storytelling, teeth, traditions, travel

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

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

Ashanti to zulu: African traditions | by Musgrove, Margaret

Explains some traditions and customs of twenty-six African tribes beginning with the letters from A to Z.

Keywords: africa, african, alphabet, animals, boat, bodies of water, cattle, celebration, clothing, community, crocodile, dancing, family, farmer, fishing, geography, instruments, language, maps, multicultural, music, nonfiction, nonverbal communication, parrot, play, prayer, river, symbols, traditions, transportation

Bintou's braids | by 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.

Keywords: africa, african, america, animals, beach, birds, bodies of water, celebration, chicken, clothing, critical thinking, dreams, envy, family, feelings, fish, food, fruit, grandparents, moon, multicultural, parents, prayer, pride, sadness, sea, selfishness, siblings, sleep, sounds, stars, storytelling, stress management, sun, traditions, tree, village

Thank you for me! | by Bauer, Marion

Join in with this storybook rhyme about exploring the body parts and what they do! From your hands, to your feet, and from your ears to your nose, learn about body actions and senses through rhyme, alliteration and a fun steady beat!

Keywords: alliteration, animals, body parts, drawing, exercise, five senses, food, grandparents, health, height, numbers, parents, picnic, play, playground, poetry, prayer, rhyme, rhythm, running, sequence, sight, singing, sleep, sounds, umbrella, weather

Eating | by Swain, Gwenyth

Food is eaten in different ways around the world and is prepared by different families. Real life photos glimpse into multiple eating customs and habits around the globe.

Keywords: antarctica, canadian, cooking, customs, food, garden, indian, korean, mexican, moldavian, moroccan, multicultural, nutrition, prayer, preparation, scottish, thai, vietnamese

The promise quilt | by Ransom, Candice

A little girl, living in the mountaintops of Virginia, wants to go to school. Her father promises to send her when she is old enough, but he goes off to fight in the civil war. During the war the school and books are burned. Find a special way to build a new school.

Keywords: books, critical thinking, decision making, family, fear, feelings, goal setting, history, loss, parents, poverty, prayer, quilt, reading, rhyme, sadness, siblings, war, writing

Grandpa's gamble | by Michelson, Richard

A brother and sister are tired of always having to be quiet so as not to interrupt Grandpa Sam while he is praying. The children think they have a very boring grandfather. Grandpa Sam overhears the children and tells them the story of his life. He was born a Jew in Poland and to escape persecution he came to the United States. He learns to gamble to make a living but when his daughter becomes very ill he decides to lead an honest, humble life and pray every morning and night. The children are now amazed by their Grandpa Sam's story and respect his prayer time.

Keywords: author's note, boredom, culture, faith, family, forgiveness, grandparents, holidays, immigrants, Jewish, multicultural, parents, passover, photograph, prayer, religion, siblings, storytelling, stress management

Rumi: Whirling dervish | by Demi

Born in Afghanistan in the thirteenth century, Rumi settled in Turkey and became the greatest mystical poet who ever lived. Although he began his adult life as a highly respectable scholar, he found his true calling after becoming the disciple of a mysterious holy man, Shamsuddin, who taught him for three years. From Shams he learned to listen for the sacred sound of God within himself. When his creative spirit was awakened, he recited more than 50,000 rhymed couplets. He wrote about the love that resides in the soul of everyone regardless of religion or background. He founded the order…

Keywords: afghani, arabic, author's note, birthday, creativity, dancing, death, faith, god, history, learning, love, multicultural, muslim, poetry, prayer, religion, rhyme, spiritual, storytelling, turkey, wedding, wisdom

Namaste! | by Cohn, Diana

Nima Sherpa lives next to Everst, and her father guides people to the top once a year. Before he leaves, he tells Nima that he will have a story for her when he returns and asks Nima if she will have a story for him. As Nima walks around the village thinking of what her story could be, she greets everyone with Namaste, just as her mom taught her. She struggles with her story until she realizes that she spreads sweetness everytime she says Namaste.

Keywords: animals, author's note, cooking, critical thinking, family, flag, flood, goddess, helping, light, mountains, multicultural, nonverbal communication, prayer, school, storytelling, tiger, travel, verbal communication, yak

Welcome dede!: An African naming ceremony | by 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.

Keywords: africa, african, baby, birth, celebration, ceremony, clothing, community, cooking, family, feelings, food, geography, giving, grandparents, happiness, hard work, language, maps, market, multicultural, parents, photograph, prayer, presents, traditions, village

Freedom river | by Rappaort, Doreen

John Ripley shows courage and perseverence in Southern Ohio through his actions. John crosses the Ohio River into the slave state of Kentucky to help other African Americans escape to freedom. John listens to nature as he rows a slave family across the Ohio River to freedom along the Underground Railroad.

Keywords: african american, author's note, baby, boat, bodies of water, cabin, community, courage, escape, family, fear, feelings, fight, freedom, happiness, history, illustrator's note, listening, maps, money, multicultural, night, parents, prayer, quiet, relationship, rhythm, river, running, sadness, safety, secrets, slavery, transportation, underground railroad, woods, work, worry

Hush harbor: Praying in secret | by Evans, Freddi Williams

Simmy is both excited and nervous for his job as Scout during the community meeting. Simmy is excited because this means the elders trust him, but he is nervous because slaves are not supposed to gather and sing together. Simmy must be very careful and listen for the master during the meeting.

Keywords: african american, anger, anticipation, author's note, bravery, cabin, closeness, communication, cooking, creativity, creek, critical thinking, culture, dancing, death, faith, family, folktale, forest, friendship, hard work, hearing, hope, horse, listening, missing, multicultural, music, nonverbal communication, prayer, relief, religion, rhythm, river, running away, safety, secrets, slavery, song, spiritual, storytelling, woods, worry

Prayer for a child | by Field, Rachel

Before she goes to bed, a little girl asks for blessings for the things and people around her.

Keywords: critical thinking, prayer, religion, self esteem, sleep, verbal communication

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