Toddler Reads – Page 20

Picture Book Party! Potties, Pirates, Grandmas, and more!

Posted on July 23, 2017July 23, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

It’s a picture book roundup of Spring and early Summer!

I’ve Got to Go, by Guido van Genechhten, (May 2017, Clavis Books), $16.95, ISBN: 978-1605373379
Recommended for readers 2-5

Doggy has to go. It’s urgent! But his sister is sitting on his potty, because Mouse is on her potty… and so goes this sweet, cumulative tale. As Doggy runs by each animal friend taking up potty real estate, Doggy’s situation is becoming dire – until he reaches the big toilet! Endpapers introduce kids to synonyms for “being used”: “full”, “taken”, “busy”, “occupied”, “in use”, and engaged”, all of which show up throughout the book as Doggy makes his run to the big boy toilet. There’s an array of animal potties on the final endpapers, so kids can point out whose potty belonged to whom. The art is fun and tongue in cheek; kids will squeal with delight at Zebra “doing his business” and Giraffe sitting on the potty while reading a book. It’s a fun book that shows the transition from potty to big kid toilet that toddlers and preschoolers will love.

Sarah at the Wedding, by Pauline Oud, (May 2017, Clavis Books), $16.95, ISBN: 978-1605373317
Recommended for ages 3-6

The latest in Pauline Oud’s Sarah and Ian series has the two friends playing a big part in Sarah’s Aunt Olivia’s wedding! The flower girl and ring bearer get dressed in their party clothes, watch Aunt Olivia marry William, and enjoy the celebration; blowing bubbles, posing for photos, and making their own veil and top hat at an arts and crafts table. This would make a great gift for any bride or groom to give to their flower girls or ring bearers, and is a nice addition to collections on friendship and special events. William, the groom, is a person of color, as is the celebrant and a handful of wedding guests. The bridal veil looks like photographed lace incorporated into Oud’s artwork for a nice, textured feel. Front endpapers feature illustrations of different clothes and activities for a wedding, along with some comprehension questions about the story for older audiences. Back endpapers include fun make your own veil and top hat crafts. Sarah at the Wedding was originally published in Dutch in 2015 and is a sweet addition to Pauline Oud’s collection; I love her art and her short sentences are great for younger readers gaining more confidence in reading independently.

The Only Way I Can, by Bonnie Grubman/Illustrated by Carolien Westermann, (May 2017, Clavis Books), $16.95, ISBN: 978-1605373393
Recommended for readers 4-7

A Rabbit sees Bird flying; he wants to fly, too, and asks Bird for help. Despite Bird’s misgivings, he tries to help Rabbit; from making wings of feathers and string, to training exercises, to running into the wind, but nothing works. Rabbit decides to soar in his own way – the only way he can – and uses his imagination. The Only Way I Can is a story of self-acceptance and imagination, with beautiful backgrounds and warm colors. The illustrated endpaper spreads bring readers into the story setting and gently let them leave when the book ends. A good storytime book about accepting oneself and one’s limits while celebrating the bravery of taking chances.

My Good Morning!, by Kim Crockett Corson/Illustrated by Jelena Brezovec, (May 2017, Clavis Books), $16.95, ISBN: 978-1605373423
Recommended for readers 3-6

A little girl wakes up, ready to start her day; can her Mommy and Daddy keep up with her as she gets ready for school? This is a fun, rhyming tale about getting ready for school in the morning, with a little girl that’s raring to go, and her parents, who are… a little less energetic, at first. We follow the girl through her morning ritual: going to the bathroom, washing up and brushing teeth, getting dressed, and out the door. Mom and Dad are there to help, but our girl wants to do things by herself, making for fun moments with mismatched socks, uneven buttons, and more milk for the cat than the little girl. When she gets to school, there are no tears: there’s too much fun to be had! Dad is a person of color, and the little girl is biracial; classmates form a diverse group. The rhyming text is fun, with short sentences that allow for interactivity by asking kids about what they see in each spread. Ask kids about their morning rituals and notice how different each person’s morning routine is. Pink argyle endpapers match the wallpaper in the family’s home. This is a fun read for storytime, be it a back-to-school storytime, a family storytime, or a storytime about being brave. My Good Morning! was originally published in Dutch in 2016 and is a nice addition to collections.

Pirate John-Wolf, by Natalie Quintart/Illustrated by Philippe Goossens, (July 2017, Clavis Books), $18.95, ISBN: 978-1605373300
Recommended for readers 4-7

John-Wolf feels weak and afraid most of the time. The only time he feels brave is when he’s alone in his room, singing songs about pirates like Blackbeard and Captain Hook. But one night, pirates kidnap John-Wolf and take him to their ship! Captain Drake demands that he sing some heroic deeds about him; and when John-Wolf finds his voice, he breaks into a loud and funny song about how weak and boring the pirates are. As he sings, he finds his bravery and impresses Captain Drake, who invites him to stay on board as John-Wolf the Pirate Singer. When John-Wolf returns to school, after his adventure, he has a different outlook and his classmates notice it. He’s more self-assured, more comfortable in his own skin. Pirate John-Wolf is a fun pirate story about finding your voice and self-confidence. The book says that John-Wolf’s adventure is a dream, but it’s not communicated as clearly in the story itself – not that it’s a big deal, just worth mentioning. The story has fun, with emphasized words and fonts throughout, and the art is cute and cartoony, with pirate animals and skull and crossbones endpapers. Originally published in Dutch in 2015, Pirate John-Wolf is a cute add to collections where pirate stories are popular.

What Can Your Grandma Do?, by Anna Sawan/Illustrated by Sernur Isik, (May 2017, Clavis Books), $16.95, ISBN: 978-1605373324
Recommended for readers 4-7

There’s a grandparents’ talent show coming up at Jeremy’s school! All of his friends talk about their grandparents’ special talents: there are doctors and artists, bakers and dancers; Jeremy starts to worry, because his grandmother doesn’t have any special talents like that. He and Grandma decide to go shoot some hoops while they think about a special talent, and then Jeremy realizes that his Grandma has a special talent of her own after all! What Can Your Grandma Do? takes a fun look at breaking the mold – Grandma can slam dunk in her coiffed hair and pearls. Grandparents are doing fun, exciting things in this story, which fits nicely with a more active generation of Baby Boomer grandparents, who will get a kick out of this story. Cartoony artwork and fun fonts, plus little details that enrich each spread, make this a good storytime choice and a great classroom choice when grandparents are in attendance. Talk to kids about their own grandparents’ special talents, and use the book as an opportunity to talk about how we all have our own special abilities. Pair with Rock Away Granny for a Grandparents Day storytime.

Silver Dolphin loves hands-on learning

Posted on July 17, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Silver Dolphin Books has some great novelty books for kids. I’ve loved their First Stories board books and their adorable Noisy Books. They were kind enough to send me two more sets of their developing novelty lines, the Busy Builders and Woodworks Nursery Rhyme series, and after a lot of playtime with my 5 year old, I can safely say these are way too much fun!

The Woodworks Nursery Rhymes series has got to be my favorite. The cute little box has a magnetic flap, allowing kids to easily get to the small board book, play mat, and little wooden vehicle inside. The nursery rhymes: The Wheels on the Bus and Old MacDonald Had a Farm – are adorably illustrated, and caregivers and kids can sing along while they drive their little tractors or school buses around the vinyl playmat.

This is what happens when you let a 5 year-old fold the playmat.

Talk about the path the school bus is taking, lead into a conversation about your child’s school bus, or, for pedestrians, the walk to school, as you play, introducing your little ones to the neighborhood around them. Farm play is great for the Old MacDonald playset! Point to the animals on the mat, make animal sounds, and add any animals to your playset as you go along. We introduced dinosaurs to our Old MacDonald playset, which may have upset the chickens a bit.

I want to pick up a few of these sets to add to my Story Hour reference. It will make for a great toddler storytime! The sets are sturdy, the wooden vehicles are well made, and the board books are small enough for little hands.

Next up are the Busy Builders series. I received the Construction Site, Airport, and Fire Station sets. Each box folds out into a playset and includes a 32-page book and model pieces to build roads, vehicles, equipment, and people to add to your playset.

The model pieces come together like puzzle pieces, allowing you to create 3-dimensional fire trucks, construction equipment, ground crew at the airport, and a radio tower, most with moving pieces. The dump truck will tip, for instance, and the fire truck ladder will lift. The book includes instructions in addition to facts about fire stations, construction sites, and the airport. The illustrations are very cute and there’s a lot of information available, in a readable and easily digestible format.

Some of the vehicles are a little fiddly to put together, and the stands for the people take a little time to get just right, but it’s worth it. My kiddo goes berserk for these playsets, and goes right to the book box where I stash them on a regular basis. He can’t put these together solo, so it makes for a nice playtime for us. Breakdown is easy, and I put all the pieces in gallon-size Ziploc bags before putting them back in the boxes, so we can avoid losing pieces and tears for the next time.

These aren’t for toddler hands – they’ll break these apart in no time – but are perfect fun for preschoolers to 2nd graders; they have more manual dexterity and, once they start reading, will enjoy reading the books over and over again. If you have a small library, you may consider these for a playtime collection, but they’d be eaten alive in my library; these are a good gift idea for me!

Old McDonald Had a Farm, Illustratrated by Elliot Kreloff, (Silver Dolphin), $13.99
ISBN 13: 978-1-62686-955-4
Format: Kit
Pages: 16 pp.
Trim: 6.25 x 8.25
Art: Full Color
Category: Nursery Rhymes
Age Range: 0 to 3

The Wheels on the Bus, Illustrated by Elliot Kreloff, (Silver Dolphin), $13.99
ISBN 13: 978-1-62686-956-1
Format: Kit
Pages: 16 pp.
Trim: 6.25 x 8.25
Art: Full Color
Category: Nursery Rhymes
Age Range: 0 to 3

Busy Builders: Construction Site, by Katherine Sully/Illustrated by: Carles Ballesteros (Silver Dolphin), $19.99
ISBN 13: 978-1-62686-564-8
Format: Kit
Pages: 32 pp.
Trim: 7.10 x 9.84
Art: Full Color
Category: Machines & Vehicles – Activity & Sticker Books
Age Range: 5 and up

Busy Builders: Airport, by Timothy Knapman/Illustrated by Carles Ballesteros, (Silver Dolphin), $19.99
ISBN 13: 978-1-62686-563-1
Format: Kit
Pages: 32 pp.
Trim: 7.10 x 9.84
Art: Full Color
Category: Machines & Vehicles – Activity & Sticker Books
Age Range: 5 and up

Busy Builders: Fire Station, by Chris Oxlade/Illustrated by Carles Ballesteros, (Silver Dolphin), $19.99
ISBN 13: 978-1-62686-565-5
Format: Kit
Pages: 32 pp.
Trim: 7.10 x 9.84
Art: Full Color
Category: Machines & Vehicles – Activity & Sticker Books
Age Range: 5 and up

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Gareth Lucas Noisy Books are too much fun!

Posted on July 10, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Gareth Lucas Noisy Books are fun board books that feature different sounds on each spread. No more worrying about the sounds being off from the spread when your little ones press the page 10 times on the first spread! (I can’t be the only one who sweated that, can I?)

Dinos on Deck!, by Gareth Lucas, (June 2017, Silver Dolphin Books),
$14.99, ISBN: 978-1-62686-938-7

All aboard the Jurassic Jewel for a dino-riffic adventure! Each spread boasts roars, squawks, splish-splashes, digging, creaks, and a hoo-ray as the dinos set sail in search of a tasty treasure. The dinos are cartoony and fun, the sounds have a good volume and are clear, and toddlers and preschoolers alike will love reading this one again and again. My own kindergartener-to-be won’t let this one out of his room: I’m writing this while he’s at camp. Shhh.

Dig, Dig, Digger!, by Gareth Lucas, (June 2017, Silver Dolphin Books),
$14.99, ISBN: 978-1-62686-936-3

A construction crew of friendly animals build a playground! They’ve got diggers and cranes, bulldozers and cement, and there are plenty of beeps, crashes, and bangs for kids to enjoy as they follow the builders to the playground. The art is cartoony and fun, and each sound – as with the Dino book – is easy to spot, set off with a bold, fun font and blue design on each spread.

Both books are sturdy and should hold up to multiple readings. There’s battery information on the back of each book, so parents (and librarians) can stock up and extend the life of the books. Each adds its own fun to storytime, whether you read them together for a fun, noisy storytime or separately, to enhance a construction storytime (a nice fit with Summer Reading’s Build a Better World theme), a pirate storytime, or dino storytime.

The Noisy Books are adorable and fun, and little ones will get a kick out of them. I love introducing books with unexpected moments, like lift the flap, pop-ups, and sounds, in toddler storytimes; it adds a sense of excitement for the kids, and their expressions make storytime even more rewarding. Try one in your next circle time!

Early Reader, History, Non-Fiction, Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Cheer Up, Ben Franklin! There’s a party coming soon!

Posted on June 1, 2017January 28, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Cheer Up, Ben Franklin!, by Misti Kenison, (July 2017, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky), $9.99, ISBN: 9781492652472

Recommended for ages 0-3

Poor Ben Franklin is sad! No one has time to fly kites with him today. George Washington’s rallying his troops, Betsy Ross is sewing a flag, Sam Adams is throwing a tea party in Boston, and Alexander Hamilton is too busy counting money. What’s a Founding Father to do? Ben’s friends are sure to pull through in the end, with a signing of the Declaration and a big fireworks party to cheer him up in this fun, adorable book by Misti Kenison.

This is the cutest book for budding historians (and the adults who love them: one of my best friends is an historian who wrote her thesis on Franklin, and she loves this book). It’s great for toddlers who understand what a drag it is when no one can play with them, and the artwork is adorable. Ape this book up in storytime! Ben’s giant, mournful eyes will get sympathy from anyone, and the big fireworks party at the end is a great way to celebrate with an Independence Day storytime. Thanks to Ms. Kenison for, to paraphrase Abigail Adams, remembering the ladies! Including Betsy Ross and Abigail Adams is important, to illustrate to readers that women were indeed a big part of founding the United States of America.

A timeline at the end of the book goes from 1773, when Sam Adams organized the Boston Tea Party, through 1801, when Jefferson became President. Each historical figure mentioned in the book is briefly profiled here, too. A must-add to libraries, schools, and personal collections, and also a perfect gift for the Hamilton fans in your life.

Misti Kenison is a web/graphic designer and author/illustrator of the Tiny Traveler series. Visit Misti at her Tiny Traveler site to learn more about her books, and download some fun printables!

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Cuddle-worthy books for Mother’s Day

Posted on May 11, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Sunday is Mother’s Day! Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms, grandmothers, godmothers, and caregivers! I’ve come up with a short list of cuddle-worthy books to snuggle and read with your little ones.

Counting Kisses, by Karen Katz Baby is cranky and tired! Mom knows the way to soothe baby: with kisses! Ten little kisses on teeny, tiny toes, nine laughing kisses on busy, wriggly feet… leading all the way to the last sleepy kiss on baby’s head. Kiss along with this one and watch your little ones giggle and squirm, especially when you throw a tickle or two in for good measure.

Mama Mama, by Jean Marzollo/Illustrated by Laura Regan “Mama, Mama/Play with me/Carry me/So I can see”. One of the sweetest, beautifully illustrated baby books I’ve ever read, Mama Mama pairs animal babies and their loving mothers. This has been one of my favorites since my eldest was a baby; I can still feel my chin on his cheek as I’d read it to him.

Mummy’s Always Right, by Joe Mulvey Never let it be said that we don’t have a sense of humor in my home. I backed this Kickstarter last year and my youngest and I still read it all the time. A little mummy named Gaws (get it? Gauze!) plays with his monster friends while his Mummy provides rhyming advice about hygiene, nutrition, and safety always reminding her little lovey that Mummy’s always right. There are lots of laughs to be had here, especially when meeting some of Gaws’ friends: the cranky Frankenmine, the tentacular Cthu-Lou, and the ghostly Ghoulia. There’s nothing scary about this book – Sesame Street has monsters that are cute; so does Joe Mulvey.

Someday, by Alison McGhee/Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds It’s every mother’s dream for her little ones to live their life to the fullest; to have everything good come to them, to grow, explore, and live. I’m not going to promise you that you’ll finish this book dry-eyed, but you will hug your sweetie a bit longer than usual. The child in the story is female, but you can easily talk to your sons about their milestones they will reach, with you cheering them on every step of the way.

Mamasaurus, by Stephen Lomp Babysaurus and Mamasaurus are eating tender leaves in the jungle one day, when whoops! He slips off her back and finds himself alone. Similar to PD Eastman’s classic Are You My Mother, Babysaurus meets other dinosaurs on his search for Mamasaurus: Does she run fast? Does she have a long horn, or have wings? No, but she knows how to find her Babysaurus, and she’s the best Mamasaurus in the whole jungle. This is my little guy’s and my favorite cuddle book; it’s perfect for reading and snuggle time.

Runaway Mummy: A Petrifying Parody, by Michael Rex Margaret Wise Brown’s Runaway Bunny is (deservedly) on so many lists, I thought I’d give a little love to the equally sweet and very funny Runaway Mummy. A little monster tries on different monster personas to get away from Mummy, but just like the Bunny’s mother in Runaway Bunny, Mummy is never too far behind, even when he transforms into the unthinkable: A BOY. This book gets as much love during a Mother’s Day storytime as it does during a Halloween storytime; give it a shot.

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Blog Tour: Share, Big Bear, Share! And Giveaway!

Posted on May 1, 2017May 1, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Big Bear has a big pail of yummy blueberries! His friends would like some, too, but Big Bear seems to be a bit clueless. The old oak tree tells him to SHARE, BIG BEAR, SHARE!, but Bear is so enamored of his blueberries, he’s not really listening – and hears something different each time! Will he finally realize that a good friend shares, and invite his pals to have some berries?

Share, Big Bear, Share!, by Maureen Wright/Illustrated by Will Hillenbrand, (Apr. 2017, Two Lions), $17.99, ISBN: 978-1503951006. Recommended for readers 3-7

Share, Big Bear, Share! is a great story for preschoolers and kindergarteners, who are developing social skills and learning to share and work together. Big Bear is a nice bear, he’s just a little unaware; when the Old Oak Tree tells him – multiple times – to share, Big Bear – who’s not really listening; he’s got an entire bucket of blueberries! – half-hears the message, with hilarious results. The message for readers is twofold: sharing is important, but so is paying attention! I think a round of the old game, Telephone is a perfect accompaniment to this story: a teacher, parent, or educator whispers something into one child’s ear and has the message go around the group, until the last player states what he or she heard, which is usually something very different from the original statement!

The story makes it point in a sweet, funny way that appeals to young readers. Will Hillenbrand’s graphite pencil artwork, fleshed out with digital media, gives Bear and his woodland friends a cuddly quality that kids will love. Old Oak Tree looks wonderfully wise and his facial expressions are perfect and accurate. Kids will have seen that face on their caregivers many times!

Share, Big Bear, Share! is the third Big Bear book by Maureen Wright and Will Hillenbrand (Sleep, Big Bear, Sleep! and Sneeze, Big Bear, Sneeze!) Display this one with books like Anna Dewdney’s Llama Llama, Time to Share and Leo Lionni’s It’s Mine! for readalikes; build a social skills library by adding Beth Ferry’s Stick and Stone, Rowboat Watkins’ Rude Cakes, and Julie Gassman’s You Get What You Get.

There’s a Help Big Bear SHARE Game, available through illustrator Will Hillenbrand’s website, for you to download, print, and hand out.

GIVEAWAY! Want a chance to win your own copy of Share, Big Bear, Share? Enter here!

WILL HILLENBRAND has written and/or illustrated over 60 books for young readers including Down by the Barn, Mother Goose Picture Puzzles and the Bear and Mole series. He has lived almost all of his life in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he grew up as the youngest of four boys. He now lives in Terrace Park and was recently honored as Author/Illustrator in Residence at Kent State University.

Information about his books, selected readings, art process videos and activity ideas can be viewed at www.willhillenbrand.com. Connect with Will at www.facebook.com/willhillenbrandbooks.

Early Reader, Non-Fiction, Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Cultivate your little scientist with Baby University’s books

Posted on April 27, 2017January 28, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Baby University, from Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, are a cute series of board books that break down principles of science for little ones. Written by quantum theorist and dad Chris Ferrie, the first four books: Newtonian Physics for Babies, General Relativity for Babies, Rocket Science for Babies, and Quantum Physics for Babies all use the example of a child’s toy – a ball – to explain science to the littlest scientists in training. The covers are adorable, incorporating pacifiers into the scientific art.

Newtonian Physics for Babies (May 2017, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $9.99, ISBN: 9781492656203) introduces babies to a bouncy ball, explaining in short, bolded sentences how gravity affects the ball, which leads to an exploration of mass, acceleration, and force. Being Newtonian Physics, we also see the apple, and gravity’s effect on the apple and Sir Isaac Newton. The ending proudly exclaims that the reader is understands Newtonian physics.

General Relativity for Babies (May 2017, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $9.99, ISBN: 9781492656265) uses the ball to explore mass, black holes, and gravitational waves. Babies are pronounced experts in general relativity at the end.

Rocket Science for Babies (May 2017, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $9.99, ISBN: 9781492656258) looks at the ball, but changes the ball’s shape to a wing to explain air movement, lift, and thrust. From there, we learn how to put wings on a rocket to make it move, and how a rocket requires an explosion to propel it forward. Readers are affirmed rocket scientists at the book’s end.

Quantum Physics for Babies (May 2017, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $9.99, ISBN: 9781492656227) demonstrates energy and atoms – starring the neutrons, protons, and electrons – by using the ball. Readers learn about movement within the atom, and are bestowed with the quantum phycisist title at the end.

The books are simple and fun, with clean, computer-generated art and simple explanatory text. Are my toddlers at storytime going to get this? No, but it’s not going to stop me from handing out small rubber balls to parents to let the kids play with and get a feel for as I read the books. It’s exploring scientific topics early, introducing babies to the words and letting them become household names, words that maybe won’t frighten them when they get older, if they grow up hearing them. I’d read these with preschoolers, too, when they can grasp ideas a bit more.

I love STEM, and I love helping young children fall in love with science, especially the sciences (and their accompanying mathematics) that scared me away when I was a kid. These are fun, bright books to get in front of babies, toddlers, and preschoolers now, if just to introduce exciting new words to their vocabularies. At least, your little one learns that Sir Isaac Newton was beaned on the head by an apple. At most, you get a Nobel Prize winner who thanks you in his or her speech.

Preschool Reads, Toddler Reads

Two Little White Fish books make for a fishy storytime!

Posted on April 19, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Little White Fish Is So Happy, by Guido van Genechten, (March 2017, Clavis Books), $16.95, ISBN: 978-1-6053-7326-3

The jungle heat begs for The Perfect Siesta

Posted on April 11, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Perfect Siesta, by Pato Mena, (June 2017, NubeOCHO), $15.95, ISBN: 978-84-945415-3-7

First Stories bring toddlers into fairy tale fun!

Posted on April 6, 2017 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Author Dan Taylor and publisher Silver Dolphin Books have debuted the cutest interactive board books to introduce toddlers to some of the most popular, beloved fairy tales:

Beauty and the Beast, $8.99, ISBN: 978-1626868977

Belle the Beauty becomes the Beast’s “guest” in place of her father, where she eventually sees past his beastly exterior (see what I did there?), he throws her a lovely feast, and they fall in love, breaking the curse and letting him because a handsome prince again.

Cinderella, $8.99, ISBN: 978-1626868984

Cinderella is treated horribly by her horrible stepsisters, but her Fairy Godmother steps in and declares that she shall go to the ball! She runs off at the stroke of midnight and forgets her shoe, but the handsome prince tracks her down. Try as her stepsisters might, they can’t get the shoe on, but it’s a perfect fit for Cinderella!

Rapunzel, $8.99, ISBN: 978-1626869004

A handsome prince sees poor Rapunzel trapped in a tower by a mean old witch who uses Rapunzel’s hair to get up and down the walls. When the prince tries to climb up to meet her, the witch snips Rapunzel’s hair, sending him flying over the edge! It’s okay, though – Rapunzel and the prince get their happily ever after at the end

Each book is only about 10 pages (and that includes front and back covers), and the pages are sturdy – they’ll hold up to multiple readings, which is a good thing, because each page has something fun for little hands to explore: slide Cinderella away to her pumpkin coach before midnight, scroll through the delightful food offerings Beast offers Beauty at dinner time, or help the prince and Rapunzel reunite at the end of the story! The art is very sweet and bright. The books are loaded with fun things to do and see, a perfect introduction to fairy tales for storytime for boys and girls alike.