(3) K-3 Illustrated by Barry Moser. "Tough Tom," "Minnie," "Sylvie, the Boss." Each one of these thirteen playful poems profiles a cat, giving readers a glimpse at his or her feline personality. The cats narrate their own verses, and cat lovers especially will recognize their pets' behaviors in these poems. Moser's dynamic watercolors capture each subject's attitude and character.

Reviewer: Sophie Williamson

(3) PS Illustrated by David Diaz. In lilting, evocative text, a mother enumerates the riches of the life she had before her baby was born ("Before you came, I had a garden of blue morning glories..."). She then explains that all of those elements are now better because they are shared with her child. Warm, flowing illustrations keep pace with the impressionistic text.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Katy Schneider. In fourteen entertaining free-verse poems puppies describe everything from their sleeping habits to their likes and dislikes and their own rules for doggie behavior ("No lick! / No bite! / No jump. / No bark. / No fun"). Broad-brushstroke paintings showcase a variety of breeds snuggling, chewing, retrieving, and dreaming after a long, hard day of mischief and mayhem.

Reviewer: Cindy Lombardo

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Amanda Shepherd. When "half a moon shines through her window," Fiona wakes up, leaves her room, and goes out to explore the nocturnal world. She stargazes, sings to a mockingbird, and visits her night garden of angels' trumpets and moonflowers. Gentle, rhythmic text skims across the pages like cool night air, accompanied by deep-hued impressionistic paintings.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Dan Yaccarino. Nigel, a cat, and Julia, a dog, live contented lives--one chases mice and scratches rugs, the other sleeps and dreams of bones--until their owners bring home a new baby. At first they wonder "What good is she?" but soon "Bittle" grows on them. The casual storytelling is full of warmth and charm, and the bold images win with their eye-pleasing colors and near-geometric shapes.

Reviewer: Mark Adam

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Katy Schneider. Patricia MacLachlan has teamed up with her daughter to tell the story of a young boy who lives and paints on an island. Come summer, artists and their dogs arrive. And the boy tries out his own brush shoulder to shoulder with painters of portraits, landscapes, flowers, and still lifes. Schneider's painterly style aptly captures the vistas, personalities, and, most of all, the dogs on the island, but the writing is too self-conscious.

Reviewer: Hilary Breed Van Dusen