(4) PS Illustrated by Kelly Canby. A girl off to get a haircut considers various looks but finds that none of them is quite her: "I think I'll get a ponytail, / A swirls-like-macaroni tail, / To twirl while on the phone-y tail... / NO. That's my big sister." The be-yourself message and bouncy rhymes prompt art that, while not fashion-magazine-worthy, gets the job done.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Wendell Minor. Featuring expansive realistic illustrations, this book begins with images of pristine land, water, and sky filled with creatures; progresses to show human expansion and industry resulting in crowded cities and pollution; but ultimately ends with people planting trees and helping sea turtles. Together with its rhyming text, the package as a whole becomes sentimental, but the book's eco point may be well taken.

Reviewer: Bridget McCaffrey

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Owen Smith. Shore and Alexander touch on historical elements of baseball along with highlighting a handful of players including "Dizzy" Dean ("his fastball is mean!"), Babe Ruth ("the Sultan of Swat"), and Jackie Robinson ("This is the Dodger / fulfilling a dream..."). This appealing paean to the "ages-old pastime that captures us all" is illustrated with big-blue-sky, lush-green-grass paintings.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz