Pre-K (< 5)

In the book, Gerald McGrew is a kid who, when visiting a zoo, finds that the exotic animals are “not good enough”. He says that if he ran the zoo, he would let all of the current animals free and find new, more bizarre and exotic ones. Throughout the book he lists these creatures, starting with a lion with ten feet and escalating to more imaginative (and imaginary) creatures, such as the Fizza-ma-Wizza-ma-Dill, “the world’s biggest bird from the island of Gwark, who eats only pine trees, and spits out the bark.” The illustrations also grow wilder as McGrew imagines …

Six fictional children talk about what they would do if they were president of the United States. “If I were president,” says one child, “the people would be my boss.” With simple text in a picture book format, Stier touches on the duties, responsibilities, and traditions of the office of the president.

If you give a cat a cupcake, he’ll ask for some sprinkles to go with it. When you give him the sprinkles, he might spill some on the floor. Cleaning up will make him hot, so you’ll give him a bathing suit . . . and that’s just the beginning!

The lovable cat who first appeared in If You Give a Pig a Party now has his very own book! Written in the tradition of the bestselling If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond’s newest story will show everyone that Cat is where it’s at!

What happens if you give a mouse a cookie? Why he’ll need a glass of milk to go with it! He’ll also need a straw, a napkin, a mirror–each item prompts the need for another. When the mouse is hanging a picture from a refrigerator (how did he get there?), he’s reminded that he’s thirsty and needs a glass of milk (uh-oh). With this milk, it’s absolutely necessary to have a cookie, of course! Bond’s wonderful illustrations enliven this modern day classic.

Twenty-one insects take center stage in this collection of poems and paintings. After reading a few poems aloud, turn children loose to pore over the detailed pictures and read more poems on their own. Each poem celebrates the distinctive features of its subject, from the lengthy limbs of “O Daddy/Daddy O” Long Legs to the “pure evil” of a boll weevil.

From anemones to zooplankton, Rose’s simple, rhyming text introduces readers to an alphabet of sea creatures that cling, sting, prance, prey, dive, and thrive across these beautifully illustrated pages. Jenkins’s amazing paper collages fill each page with marine animals and plants. A glossary tells readers more about the sea life they discover throughout the book.

Iris is miserable. She has moved from the city to the country and is sure that she’ll always be lonely. Things change, however, when she discovers a rope ladder hanging from an enormous tree — with Walter on the other end. Though Iris still dreams of her city home, Walter introduces her to the wonders of country life. This story begins a series of books about Iris and Walter’s friendship and experiences that young readers will enjoy.

In this rollicking volume of verse, more than 100 poems are packed with Prelutsky’s zany humor.

Prelutsky is a stretcher of language, a champion of wit, and an expander of children’s imaginations. James Stevenson’s hilarious black-and-white drawings only add to the fun.