Best of 2007!

Selected by:
Mary Slamin, Kate Colquitt, Sandy Hile & Gail Fell

JP Juvenile Picture Books

(Read Aloud Stories)

JP Bergman, Mara. Oliver Who Would Not Sleep! Arthur A. Levine Books. For all parents with an Oliver (or Olivia) in their lives, and every child seeking a little fun before shut-eye, "Oliver Who Would Not Sleep!" is an ideal bedtime adventure.

JP Bunting, Eve. Emma's Turtle. Boyd Mills Press. Although Emma's turtle lives a good life in a backyard pen, he loves to listen to Emma tell him of such faraway places as Africa, Australia, and China. One day he decides to see the world beyond his pen.

JP Cate, Annette Leblanc. The Magic Rabbit. Candlewick. Ray the magician and his bunny assistant are best friends. Then comes the day when the friends are separated, and suddenly Bunny is lost and alone. How will he ever find Ray in the hustle and bustle of the city?

JP Cochran, Bill. The Forever Dog. Harper Collins. Mike and his dog Corky are best friends with a plan. They will be together forever or so Mike hopes, but it is not meant to be. The Forever Dog is a heartfelt guide for anyone who is coping with the loss of a loved one.

JP Coffelt, Nancy. Fred Stays With Me! Little, Brown and Company. This story follows a girl whose parents are divorced and her dog, Fred, from one parent's house to the other. With a simple text and childlike language, the story expresses and addresses a child's concerns.

JP Edwards, Pamela Duncan. The Old House. Dutton. The empty old house is lonely, but gets a new lease on life when the right family comes along, in this story about the deep connection between family and homestead.

JP Ehrhardt, Karen. This Jazz Man. Harcourt. A jazzy take on This Old Man starting with Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong as one down to Charlie Mingus as nine. A colorful and fascinating introduction to jazz.

JP Fleming, Denise. Beetle Bop. Harcourt Books. On every page, all over this book- beetles everywhere you look.

JP Foley, Greg. Thank You Bear. Viking. In this gentle story, a wide-eyed bear cub finds that one person's throwaway item can be another's treasure.

JP Friend, Catherine. The Perfect Nest. Candlewick Press. Jack the cat is building the perfect nest to catch the perfect egg, but Jack catches more than he bargained for.

JP Funke, Cornelia. Princess Pigsty. Chicken House. A dirty-sweet story about a royal little stinker and the joys of mucking it up.

JP Gravett, Emily. Meerkat Mail. Simon & Schuster. Sunny the meerkat decides to leave his home in the Kalahari Desert to see the world. He sends postcards (which readers can view) back to his family but he soon realizes that there is no place like home.

JP Gutman, Dan. Casey Back At Bat. Harper Collins. Watch Casey as he is offered what any failed sports hero most desires - a second chance.

JP Heiligman, Deborah. Fun Dog, Sun Dog. Marshall Cavendish. Tinka the dog can be described in many ways, but she is always the right kind of dog for her owner.

JP Toddler Jay, Alison. 1-2-3: A Child's First Counting Book. Dutton. One little girl wakes up to a wondrous fairy-tale world. Simple format with many objects to count on each colorful page makes this book just right to learn your numbers.

JP Madison, Alan. Velma Gratch & the way cool butterfly. Schwartz & Wade Books. Velma starts first grade in the shadow of her memorable older sisters, and while her newfound interest in butterflies helps her to stand out, it also leads to an interesting complication.

JP Offill, Jenny. 17 Things I'm not Allowed to do Anymore. Schwartz & Wade Books. A young girl lists the things she is not allowed to do anymore, including stapling her brother's hair to the pillow.

JP Patricelli, Leslie. The Birthday Box. Candlewick Press. What's better than getting a gift? Playing with the box it came in!

JP Rosen, Michael. Bear's Day Out. Bloomsbury. Bear's curiosity leads him to visit the city, but when the hustle and bustle becomes too much, it will take a bit of kindness from strangers to get him back home again.

JP Russo, Marisabina. The Bunnies are not in their Beds. Schwartz and Wade Books. Why aren't the bunnies in their beds? What are they doing? Where could they be?

JP Spinelli, Eileen. Heat Wave. Harcourt. In this Caldecott Honor Winner, laugh out loud as the citizens of Lumberville struggle to endure a weeklong heat wave.

JP Steiner, Joan. Look-Alikes Around The World: The More You Look, The More You See! Little, Brown and Co. Take an eye-catching trip around the world to view more than 40 famous landmarks and familiar vacation locales created out of everyday objects.

JP Winter, Jeanette. Anglina's Island. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Every day Angelina dreams of her home in Jamaica and imagines she is there, until her mother finds a wonderful way to convince her that New York is now their home.

JP Yee, Wong Herbert. Detective Small in the Amazing Banana Caper.Houghton Mifflin Company. Detective Small may be small, but his detective skills are enormously successful.

JE Juvenile Easy Readers

(Beginning Reader)

JE Arnold, Caroline. Wiggle and Waggle. Charlesbridge. Follow wormy best friends as they dig in the dirt, work hard, and have fun swimming and singing. Beginning readers will dig the simple science facts included at the end of this charming book.

JE Baker, Barbara. One Saturday Evening. Dutton Children's Books. The busy Saturday has made the two big bears and the four children tired. Or maybe not.

JE Bang-Campbell, Monika. Little Rat Makes Music. Harcourt, Inc. Little Rat loves the violin but hates to practice, until her teacher suggests she perform a duet with one of the advanced students at the holiday concert.

JE Willems, Mo. Elephant & Piggie Books. Hyperion. Enjoy the adventures of Gerald, the gloomy elephant, and Piggie, the upbeat pig, written by the author of Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus and other hilarious tales.

JE Yee, Herbert Wong. Abracadabra! Magic With Mouse And Mole. Houghton Mifflin Company. Mole suffers terrible disappointment after discovering his idol's magic is not quite what it seems, until Mouse helps him discover a different sort of magic.

JYR Juvenile Young Readers

(1st – 2nd Grade Reader)

JYR Hurwitz, Johanna. Mostly Monty. Candlewick Press. A shy boy with asthma starts first grade and comes into his own, in this appealing story for early chapter book readers.

JYR Mills, Claudia. Being Teddy Roosevelt. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. When he is assigned Teddy Roosevelt as his biography project, fourth-grader Riley finds himself inspired by Roosevelt's perseverance and resolves to find a way to get what he most wants - a saxophone and music lessons.

JYR Speck, Katie. Maybelle in the Soup. Henry Holt. When Mr. and Mrs. Peabody invite a guest to dinner, Maybelle the cockroach, who lives under their refrigerator, ignores the warnings of Henry the flea to be sensible and ends up "splashing" into a big adventure.

J Juvenile Fiction

(Novels / Stories 3rd Grade & Higher)

J Curtin, Christopher Paul. Elijah of Buxton. Scholastic Press. Elijah is the first child born into freedom in Buxton, Canada, a settlement of runaway slaves. When a disreputable preacher steals money from Elijah's friend, Elijah goes on a dangerous journey to America in pursuit.

J Korman, Gordan. Schooled. Hyperion. Capricorn (Cap) Anderson is homeschooled by his hippie grandmother and has never watched television. But when his grandmother lands in the hospital, Cap is forced to move in with a guidance counselor and attend the local middle school. While Cap knows a lot about tie-dyeing and Zen Buddhism, no education could prepare him for the politics of public school.

J Landy, Derek. Skulduggery Pleasant. Harper Collins. When 12-year-old Stephanie inherits her weird uncle's estate, she must join forces with

Skulduggery Pleasant, a skeleton detective, to save the world from the Faceless Ones.

J O'Connor, Barbara. How To Steal A Dog. Frances Foster Books. Georgina, who lives with her family in their car after her father leaves them virtually penniless, convinces her younger brother to help her get money by stealing a dog and then claiming the reward money. This novel's gentle storytelling carries a theme of love and emphasizes what is really right in the world

J Selznick, Brian. The Invention of Hugo Cabret: a novel in words and pictures. Scholastic Press. When twelve-year-old Hugo, an orphan living within the walls of a Paris train station in 193`, meets a mysterious toy seller, his undercover life and biggest secret are jeopardized.

J Shalant, Phyllis. The Secret Society of Superheroes: The Great Cape Rescue. Dutton Children's Books. A new series created by one of our favorite local authors. Finch and his friends have the power of friendship, but do they have superpowers too?

J Spinelli, Eileen. Where I Live? Dial Books for Young Readers. In a series of poems, Diana writes about her life, both before and after her father loses his job and she and her family must move far away to live with Grandpa Joe.

J Tarshis, Lauren. Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of A Tree. Dial Books for Young Readers. A quirky and utterly logical 7th grader discovers some interesting results when she gets involved in the messy everyday problems of her peers.

J Juvenile Non-Fiction

(Subject Books)

J372.6 O O'Connor, Patricia T. Woe is I Jr.: The Younger Grammarphobes Guide to Better English. G. P Putnam's Sons. Offers humorous examples and kid-friendly references to painlessly illuminate the rules of the English language.

J398.2 A Arab M. Mitchell, Stephen. Genies, Meanies and Magic Rings: Three Tales From The Arabian Nights. Walker and Company. An exciting retelling of three tales from the "Arabian Nights" --"Ali Baba and the 40 thieves," "Abu Keer and Abu Seer," and "Aladdin and the magic lamp."

J398.2 F Fleischman, Paul. Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella. Henry Holt. The author draws from a variety of folk traditions to put together this version of Cinderella, including elements from Mexico, Iran, Korea, Russia, Appalachia, and more.

J398.2 S Storace, Patricia. Sugar Cane: a Caribbean Rapunzel. Jump at the Sun. In this retelling of Rapunzel, with a Caribbean twist, Sugar Cane is imprisoned by an evil sorceress, Madame Fate, with only her pet monkey and beautiful singing voice as solace, until a brave, young man hears her song.

J592.165 S Singer, Marilyn. Venom. Darby Creek Publishing. Beware! Poisonous things are all around you. Singer brings kids the coolest, newest information on creatures that can harm or even kill with a bite or a sting.

J618.92 M Murphy, Liz. A B C Doctor: Staying healthy from A to Z. Blue Apple. To ease youngsters' apprehension about having a checkup, this book goes over the ABCs of visiting the doctor from examinations and fevers to nurses and x-rays.

J709 R Raczka, Bob. Where in the World? Around the globe in 13 works of art. Milbrook. Take a journey around the world and through time via 13 pieces of art. Each piece is paired with an informative narrative about the artist and the location.

J745.5 L Lupton, Ellen. D.I.Y. Kids. Princeton Architectural Press. Provides more than eighty, creative projects for d.i.y.(do it yourself) kids--such as party supplies, stuffed animals, t-shirts, magnets, and more--with step-by-step instructions.

J 791.437 B Burr, Ty. The Best Old Movies For Families: A Guide to Watching Together. A great selection of oldies to watch with your children from tots to tweens and teens.

J792.8 T Thompson, Lauren. Ballerina Dreams: a true story. Feiwel and Friends. Five little girls from Queens with physical disabilities dream of being ballerinas. They practice every week, and one day, they are ready. An inspiring story brought to life in this picture book.

J 910 K Kirkpatrick, Katherine. Snow Baby: The Arctic Childhood of Admiral Robert E. Peary's Daring Daughter. Holiday House. The remarkable childhood of Marie Ahnighito Peary.

J940.53 J Judge, Lita. One Thousand Tracings: Healing The Wounds Of World War II. Hyperion Books for Children. Based on a true event, this inspiring picture book tells the story of an American family who establishes contact with a German family after World War II and sends them a package of much-needed supplies, including shoes.

J970.01 F Freedman, Russell. Who was first? Discovering the Americas. Clarion Books. Colorful legends and first-person accounts are woven into a narrative that illuminates the way historians and mapmakers have gathered, evaluated, and recorded information regarding the "discovery" of the Americas.

J B Atlas, McCarthy, Meghan. Strong man: the story of Charles Atlas. A. A. Knopf. An entertaining introduction to a fitness guru and entrepreneur.

J B Sis, Peter. The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain. Frances Foster Books. Award-winning author Peter Sis offers a graphic memoir, taking readers on an extraordinary journey as he recalls his youth growing up in Czechoslovakia in the 1960s, when his country was on the Communist side of the Iron Curtain.

For assistance in finding these titles and others, be sure to ask the Greenburgh Public Library Children's Librarians for help.