Don't BUG Me! I'm Reading!

 This week, we're sharing picture books about insects and spiders.  Here's a few of our favorites . . . .

The Itsy Bitsy Spider by Iza Trapani

The itsy-bitsy spider encounters a fan, a mouse, a cat, and a rocking chair as she makes her way to the top of a tree to spin her web.

Twig by Aura Parker

Heidi, a tall, twig-like stick insect, does everything she can to make friends on her first day at Bug School, but even her teacher, Miss Orb, fails to notice her.

Yoo-Hoo, Ladybug! by Mem Fox

This book invites the reader to search for Ladybug, who loves to hide.

Hank's Big Day: The Story of a Bug by Evan Kuhlman

Hank is a pill bug whose daily routine involves nibbling a dead leaf, climbing up a long stick, avoiding a skateboarder, and playing pretend with his best friend, a human girl named Amelia.

Waiting for Wings by Lois Ehlert

Illustrates the life cycle of four common butterflies by featuring butterfly and flower facts, butterfly identification tips, and a guide to creating a butterfly garden.

More Books --

A Beetle Is Shy by Dianna Hutts Aston

Bug in a Vacuum by Melanie Watt

Bugs Galore by Peter Stein

Bugs in My Hair by David Shannon

Bye-Bye Big Bad Bullybug by Ed Emberley

Can You Make a Scary Face? by Jan Thomas

Caterpillar Dreams by Clive McFarland

The Diary of a Spider by Doreen Cronin

Dreamweaver by Jonathan London

Fly! by Karl Edwards

Goodnight Butterfly by Ross Burach

How to Ride a Dragonfly by Kitty Donohoe

I'm Trying to Love Spiders by Bethany Barton

Kaia and the Bees by Maribeth Boelts

Luigi, the Spider Who Wanted to Be a Kitten by Michelle Knudsen

Miss Spider's Tea Party by David Kirk

Old Cricket by Lisa Wheeler

One Hundred Hungry Ants by Elinor Pinczes

The Perfect Pet by Margie Palatini 

Summer Birds: The Butterflies of Maria Merian by Margarita Engle

Swarm of Bees by Lemony Snicket

Sylvie by Jean Reidy

Ten Little Caterpillars by Bill Martin 

The Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle

1-2-3 Count With Me

This week, I'm sharing some great picture books focusing on numbers and counting for kids . . . .

Let's Count Goats! by Mem Fox
Encourages counting skills with humorous illustrations of goats.

Night Light by Nicholas Blechman
Count the lights and, through die-cut pages, find out which vehicle they belong to.

My Little Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman
Little sister has no problem eating one hare, two snakes, and three ants, but when she gets to ten peas, she throws up quite a mess.

Mouse Count by Ellen Stoll Walsh
Ten mice outsmart a hungry snake.

Count the Monkeys by Mac Barnett
The reader is invited to count the animals that have frightened the monkeys off the pages.


More Counting Picture Books --
1 Zany Zoo by Lori Degman
100 Snowmen by Jen Arena
Can You Count Ten Toes? Count to 10 in 10 Different Languages by Lezlie Evans
Cha-Cha Chimps by Julia Durango
Count on the Subway by Paul Du Bois Jacobs
Counting Crows by Kathi Appelt
Dinosaur Countdown by Nicholas Oldland
Edible Numbers by Jennifer Bass
Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree by Eileen Christelow
Flight 1-2-3 by Maria van Lieshout
Lyle Walks the Dog: A Counting Book by Bernard Waber
Numbers Everywhere by Elliott Kaufman
Old MacDonald in the City by Suzanne Williams
One Family by George Shannon
One Is a Mouse by Jonathan Hunt
One Two That's My Shoe! by Alison Murray
The Right Number of Elephants by Jeff Sheppard
Shout! Shout It Out! by Denise Fleming
Soup for One by Ethan Long
Ten Little Fingers, Two Small Hands by Kristy Dempsey
Ten Seeds by Ruth Brown
Ten Tiny Tickles by Karen Katz
Warthogs in the Kitchen by Pamela Duncan Edwards
When Sheep Sleep by Laura Numeroff
Wombat Walkabout by Carol Diggory Shields
Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss

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.

1, 2, 3, Read to Me: Counting Books for Young Children

One of the more popular requests we get at the Children's Desk is for counting books.  Here are some of my favorites . . .

Let's Count Goats by Mem Fox
Encourages counting skills with humorous illustrations of goats.

Mouse Count by Ellen Stoll Walsh
Ten mice outsmart a hungry snake.

Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin
Pete the cat loves the buttons on his shirt so much that he makes up a song about them, and even as the buttons pop off, one by one, he still finds a reason to sing.

The Right Number of Elephants by Jeff Sheppard
A counting book in which a little girl relies on the help of some eager elephants.

Soup for One by Ethan Long
A little fly who anticipates enjoying a big bowl of hot soup is unexpectedly joined by a sequence of interlopers who help themselves to his lunch one by one until their number reaches ten.

Ten Terrible Dinosaurs by Paul Stickland
One by one, ten dinosaurs at play become fewer and fewer as various things happen to them.