Book Bites -- May 2011
by Houston Family Magazine
This Month’s Selections from Your Harris County Librarians
Toddlers (Ages 1 – 3)
I Must Have Bobo! • by Eileen Rosenthal
When Willy wakes up without his favorite toy, he looks everywhere until he finds it. Willy needs Bobo, but Earl the cat likes Bobo, too. A favorite toy is hard to share, even when it’s a sock monkey.
Read to Tiger • by S.J. Fore
A little boy who wants to read his book keeps being distracted by a tiger that is busy chomping on gum, growling, and practicing karate kicks.
Say Hello! • by Rachel Isadora
As Carmelita, her mother, and her dog Manny are walking through their neighborhood on the way to visit Abuela Rose, they see friends of many different cultures and greet them in different languages.
Picture Books (Pre K – K)
Sneaky Sheep • by Chris Monroe
Blossom and Rocky, two sneaky but not very bright sheep, keep trying to get away from the rest of the flock, in spite of the dangers they encounter.
LaRue Across America: Postcards from the Vacation • by Mark Teague
Mrs. LaRue takes a cross-country drive with her hospitalized neighbor’s cats and her own dog, Ike, who keeps the cats’ owner informed of their misadventures through a series of postcards.
The Trucker • by Barbara Samuels
A boy who loves trucks is disappointed when he receives a cat named Lola instead of a toy fire truck, but Lola has some surprises in store for him.
Early Readers (Grades 1 – 3)
Buzz Beaker and the Cave Creatures • by Cari Meister
Buzz and his dad head to a cave to test a new invention – the cat-eye vest. As they explore the cave, they see crystals, snakes, and bats. Buzz’s latest invention may lead to a great discovery.
Mac and Cheese • by Sarah Weeks
Macaroni and Cheese are best friends, but they couldn’t be more different. Written in the style of P. D. Eastman’s classic Big Dog . . . Little Dog, this modern-day alley-cat odd couple will delight beginning readers.
The Noisy Night: A Pet Club Story • by Gwendolyn Hooks
The Pet Club is going camping! From bonfires and tasty treats to scary stories and strange noises, this will be one fun adventure.
Children’s Fiction & Nonfiction (Grades 4-6)
The Last Best Days of Summer • by Valerie Hobbs
During a summer visit, twelve-year-old Lucy must come to terms with both her grandmother’s failing memory and how her mentally-challenged neighbor will impact her popularity when both enter the same middle school in the fall.
The Other Half of My Heart • by Sundee T. Frazier
Twin daughters of interracial parents, eleven-year-olds Keira and Minna have very different skin tones and personalities, but it is not until their African-American grandmother enters them in the Miss Black Pearl Pre-Teen competition in North Carolina that red-haired and pale-skinned Minna realizes what life in their small town in the Pacific Northwest has been like for her more outgoing, darker-skinned sister.
A Dog’s Way Home • by Bobbie Pyron
A heartwarming contemporary story in the tradition of Lassie Come Home about a spirited 11-year-old girl in the Appalachian mountains, her faithful Sheltie, and their determination to find one another after an accident separates them.
Teen Fiction and Nonfiction (Ages 12 & up)
Clarity • by Kim Harrington
Sixteen-year-old Clare Fern, a member of a family of psychics, helps the mayor and a skeptical detective solve a murder in a Cape Cod town during the height of tourist season—with her brother a prime suspect.
Boys, Bears, and a Serious Pair of Hiking Boots • by Abby McDonald
Seventeen-year-old Jenna, an ardent vegetarian and environmentalist, is thrilled to be spending the summer communing with nature in rural Canada, until she discovers that not all of the rugged residents there share her beliefs.
Purple Heart • by Patricia McCormick
While recuperating in a Baghdad hospital from a traumatic brain injury sustained during the Iraq War, eighteen-year-old soldier Matt Duffy struggles to recall what happened to him and how it relates to his ten-year-old friend, Ali.
