Take a Trip . . . with a Picture Book

The great thing about books is that they can take you to other places.  This week, I'm sharing some great picture books that will allow you to take an armchair vacation -- simply by reading a book.

The Day We Danced in Underpants by Sarah Wilson
When Papa's pants--worn thin from dancing on his visit to France--split as he sits down to picnic with the king, the embarrassing moment provides both cooling and comic relief for the guests, prompting them to take off their hot clothes and dance.

Gumption by Elise Broach
When Peter goes on an African adventure with his beloved Uncle Nigel, who hopes to spot a rare gorilla, the oblivious Nigel urges Peter on by telling him to have gumption, while Peter keeps his eyes open and uses his ingenuity.

Possum Magic by Mem Fox
When Grandma Poss's magic turns Hush invisible, the two possums take a culinary tour of Australia to find the food that will make her visible once more.

Tulip Sees America by Cynthia Rylant
A young man and his dog drive west from Ohio and marvel at the farms of Iowa, the skies of Nebraska, the wind in Wyoming, the mountains of Colorado, the desert in Nevada, and the ocean in Oregon.


More Great Books --
Adele & Simon in America by Barbara McClintock
Aloha Is -- by Tammi Paikai
Babushka by Sandra Ann Horn
Big Anthony: His Story by Tomie DePaola
Big Rain Coming by Katrina Germein
Bintou's Braids by Penda Diakite
Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Verna Aardema
Cactus Soup by Eric Kimmel
The Cows Are Going to Paris by David Kirby
Crow Boy by Taro Yashima
Doctor DeSoto Goes to Africa by William Steig
Erandi's Braids by Antonio Hernandez Madrigal
The Firebird by Jane Yolen
Gabriella's Song by Candace Fleming
Hula Lullaby by Eric Kono
I, Crocodile by Fred Marcellino
I Lost My Tooth in Africa by Penda Diakite
Kamishibai Man by Allen Say
Eloise in Paris by Kay Thompson
Kumak's Fish by Michael Bania
Lila and the Secret of Rain by David Conway
Madeline in London by Ludwig Bemelmans
Mirror by  Jeannie Baker
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe
No Year of the Cat by Mary Dodson Wade
Old Mikamba Had a Farm by Rachel Isadora
Papa Do you Love Me? by Barbara Joosse
Tacky in Trouble by Helen Lester
Take Me Out to the Yakyu by Aaron Meshon
Togo by Robert Blake
The Wolfhound by Kristine Franklin
Yoshi's Feast by Kimiko Kajikawa


Check these and other books about other places out on display at the Arnold Branch through August 14, 2015.

Solve the Mystery!

See if you can crack the mystery before the detectives in these books for kids . . .

Mr. and Mrs. Bunny -- Detectives Extraordinaire! by Polly Horvath
Middle-schooler Madeline's hippie parents have been kidnapped from Hornby Island, Canada, by foxes, and Madeline, upon discovering that she can understand animal languages, hires two rabbit detectives to find them.

Missing on Superstition Mountain by Elise Broach
Simon, Henry, and Jack Barker decide to ignore their parents' warning to stay away from Superstition Mountain in order to search for their missing cat Josie, but they begin to see the wisdom of their mom and dad's advice when they find three human skulls.

Smells Like Dog by Suzanne Selfors
When farm boy Homer Pudding's explorer-uncle dies and leaves him a droopy dog with a mysterious coin hidden on its collar, it leads him to The City, where they meet Madame la Directeur, the conniving head of the Museum of Natural History, who is trying to steal the coin and take Homer's place in a secret society of adventurers.

Walls Within Walls by Maureen Sherry
When the Smithfork family moves into a lavish Manhattan apartment building, they discover clues to a decades-old mystery hidden behind the walls of their new home.

The Pickle King by Rebecca Promitzer
During an endlessly rainy summer in the town of Elbow, twelve-year-old Bea and her misfit friends solve an unlikely mystery involving an unidentified dead man who is missing an eye, an evil surgeon, a ring shaped like an old castle, a bag of smelly intestines, and a helpful ghost.