APRIL BOOK LIST
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MY TOP FIVE
FAMILY READ ALOUD
by Seth Myers
When you're a bear who is easily scared, it's hard to have friends. Fortunately, Bear has one: Rabbit, who is very brave. One day, Rabbit urges Bear to face his fears and embark on an adventure together. However, things don't entirely go as planned, and the two friends learn the true meaning of bravery.
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by Jory John
Edward the giraffe can't understand why his neck is as long and bendy and, well, ridiculous as it is. No other animal has a neck this absurd. He's tried disguising it, dressing it up, strategically hiding it behind bushes--honestly, anything you can think of, he's tried. Just when Edward has exhausted his neck-hiding options and is about to throw in the towel, a turtle swoops in.
by Max Lucado
A green nose. How silly, thought Punchinello. It wouldn't make him faster, stronger, or even smarter. It would only make him greener―and make him look just like all the other Wemmicks! Why would he want that when he knows Eli made each of them different for a reason?
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by Rachel Ignotofsky
Butterflies soar in the sunlight. While moths flutter under the moon and stars. Find out more about these mysterious and majestic insects similarities and differences, and their awe striking metamorphosis!
by Kadir Nelson
With spare text and breathtaking oil paintings, If You Plant a Seed demonstrates not only the process of planting and growing for young children but also how a seed of kindness can bear sweet fruit.
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by Jef Aerts
​Adin and Dina are best friends. They live in the beautiful countryside surrounded by cherry trees. Their favorite game is to plant cherry pits around their little village – in the cracks in the sidewalk and in the flowerbeds outside the post office. Then one day Adin and his family move away to the city. Will Adin and Dina's friendship survive the new distance between them?
by Linda Marshall
​Growing up in London, Beatrix Potter felt the restraints of Victorian times. Girls didn't go to school and weren't expected to work. But she longed to do something important, something that truly mattered. As Beatrix spent her summers in the country and found inspiration in nature, it was through this passion that her creativity flourished.
by Laura Knowles
As the tree grows, it is joined by well-loved woodland creatures—squirrels and rabbits, butterflies and owls—who make it their home. The story culminates with a foldout page showing a mature tree shedding seeds to continue the beautiful cycle of life.
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by Robin Muller
​Badger loves his cozy little cottage. The door sticks and the shutters bang, but Badger doesn't mind-until a huge storm makes a mess of his house. He doesn't think he can fix the damage, so he sells the cottage to Grandmother Mouse and moves to a lovely mansion.
by Greg Pizzoli
With perfect comic pacing, Greg Pizzoli introduces us to one funny crocodile who has one big fear: swallowing a watermelon seed. What will he do when his greatest fear is realized? Will vines sprout out his ears? Will his skin turn pink? This crocodile has a wild imagination that kids will love.
by Henry Cole
​Caroline moves to a new suburban house. The yard, like all the surrounding yards, is plain, boring grass. But then she discovers a wildflower. Soon she’s got her own little wildflower preserve, carefully protected from Dad’s lawn mower. She adds a tree . . . a pond . . . birdhouses . . .she’s brought a meadow to Meadowview Street!
by Shirin Bridges
Mary Wrightly is the best-behaved little girl around. She always politely says please and thank you and even “I’m sorry” when something isn’t her fault. But when a shopper comes between Mary and the blue elephant toy she wants to buy for her beloved baby brother, will Mary just let the woman walk away with it? Speak up, Mary!
by John Rocco
A young boy’s favorite place in the world is the old, splintery neighborhood dock. At this dock the boy can swim, fish, or watch minnows dart between the rocks. But a hurricane is coming…and its violent winds and rain carry with it anything that can float.
by Julie Fogliano
Following a snow-filled winter, a young boy and his dog decide that they've had enough of all that brown and resolve to plant a garden. They dig, they plant, they play, they wait . . . and wait . . . until at last, the brown becomes a more hopeful shade of brown, a sign that spring may finally be on its way.
by Celia Krampen
Most people would say there is nothing good about trudging to school on a rainy day. Most people would say that being carried away by the wind and dropped into the middle of a tumultuous sea is a very bad sort of situation. But Sunny isn’t most people. Sunny likes to look on the bright side. And when things get exceedingly bleak?
by Hyewon Yum
​One rainy day, a little boy is upset because he can't go out and play. His mom comes up with a way to keep him entertained--by drawing a picture of herself and him going outside, playing in the rain, and splashing in a giant puddle. They have so much fun drawing themselves that they decide to venture out and make the most of the rainy weather.
by Chris van Dusen
Imaginative Jack dreamed up a whimsical fantasy ride that could do just about anything. Now he's back and ready to build the house of his dreams, complete with a racetrack, flying room, and gigantic slide. Jack's limitless creativity and infectious enthusiasm will inspire budding young inventors to imagine their own fantastical designs.
by Rachel Isadora
sweet and simple introduction to the five senses is perfect for the youngest children, who will recognize themselves in charming vignettes portraying a wide range of childhood activities. Hearing, smelling, seeing, touching, tasting--our five senses allow us to experience the world in so many ways!
by Max Lucado
The story highlights the adventure of a sweet little acorn becoming a big, strong oak tree. Readers will cheer on the growing tree when he can't grow oranges like the orange tree or flowers like the rose bush.
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by Katie Smith Milway
One Inspired by true events, One Hen tells the story of Kojo, a boy from Ghana who turns a small loan into a thriving farm and a livelihood for many. This story shows what happens when a little help makes a big difference.
by Torben Kuhlmann
When an inventive mouse misses the biggest cheese festival the world has ever seen, he’s determined to turn back the clock. But what is time, and can it be influenced? With the help of a mouse clock maker, a lot of inventiveness, and the notes of a certain famous Swiss physicist he succeeds in traveling back in time.
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by Eliza Wheeler
Miss Maple gathers lost seeds that haven’t yet found a place to sprout. She takes them on field trips to explore places to grow. In her cozy maple tree house, she nurtures them; keeping them safe and warm until it's time for them to find roots of their own, and grow into the magnificent plants they’re destined to become.
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by Jim Averback
He stretches his wings the width of his boring cage and notices the tree outside stretching its branch. And on the end of that branch? Another canary! But he’s so shy and quiet. Trevor knows just how to make him feel comfortable.
by Yael Werber
Sophie listens and watches for the signs of spring. Day after day, the same snow is frozen outside her window and the skies above are as gray as the day before. And then Sophie thinks will spring ever come and how will I know it is here?
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by Cynthia Rayner
Norris the bear has been waiting patiently for the last ripe fruit to fall from the tree. But Tulip the raccoon and Violet the mouse have too . . . although maybe not so patiently. In fact, Tulip and Violet sniff, listen to, and even hug the fruit. Norris catches the fruit when it finally falls, and because he is a wise bear, he shares it and makes two new friends.
by Martin Jenkins
It’s time for Bird to build her nest! Follow her as she pulls a worm out of the ground, lifts some twigs that are just the right size, and pushes the twigs into place. Uh-oh — one of the twigs falls to the ground! But after a day of hard work, Bird’s nest is ready and waiting. Can you guess what it’s waiting for?
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by Kenard Pak
​Join a boy and his dog as they explore nature and take a stroll through the countryside, greeting all the signs of the coming season. In a series of conversations with everything from the melting brook to chirping birds, they say goodbye to winter and welcome the lushness of spring.
by Corey Tabor
Readers will delight in turning their book sideways and upside down to follow Mel on her journey from downward fall to triumphant flight in this tale of self-confidence and taking a leap of faith.
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by Sean Taylor
In this uplifting picture book about spring, follow two children and their father through their backyard as they discover all the different ways nature wakes up from its long winter sleep.
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by Nikki Samuels
Birds join, a bee’s wings flit. Soon the whole forest is filled with magnificent sights and sounds, but who is there to hear it? Who is there to see it?
by Virginia Lee Burton
Virginia Lee Burton wrote and illustrated stories that have been entertaining children, parents, and grandparents for more than sixty years. Many of her books—with themes that honor a simple way of life and celebrate heroes who endure through determination and by adapting to change—have become classic American tales.