(3) K-3 Illustrated by Qin Leng. A clueless panda bear and a wandering kite interrupt a series of unfriendly animals in this mostly wordless book. Loose ink and watercolor illustrations capture panda's missteps in sequential images; as the protagonist topples a pangolin's drum and disrupts a raccoon's game, the offended animals only point out what is "mine" and what is "yours." This visually appealing animal story gently reinforces the importance of community.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald

(2) K-3 Translated by Adriana Domínguez. Illustrated by Angela Dominguez. This bilingual picture-book biography chronicles the early life of biologist Valentina Cruz, born in 1971 on Floreana, a Galápagos island. Readers accompany Cruz on an introductory tour of Floreana and its animals that she vows to protect, brought to vivid life through Dominguez's vibrant, digitally-colored pencil illustrations. Translation of the English text into Spanish (including the appended author's note and animal descriptions) is concise and accurate. Bib.

Reviewer: Monica Tapia Boyer | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2018

(3) PS Illustrated by Renata Liwska. "It's winter and I haven't seen one snowflake," says Badger. The forest animals try to summon snow by banging pots, wearing pajamas backward, and performing a snow dance. Hedgehog wisely reminds them, "It will snow in snow's time." Soft-hued, digitally colored pencil illustrations convey the animals' valiant efforts (even sprinkling sugar for snow) in the child-friendly text until finally, after much waiting, "it was time."

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(2) PS Illustrated by Matthew Cordell. The wind carries off a bear's red scarf ("Lost"). Two raccoons see it ("Found") but run away, leaving it behind ("Lost"). With one of the title words on most pages, this effectively paced story plays out in Cordell's lively but spare pictures. After finding the scarf completely unraveled, the bear gathers the yarn and knits a new one that brings everyone together--in friendship.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2015

(3) PS Illustrated by Pierre Pratt. When "a thundering, ear-splitting / Roar of a snore" prevents Jack from sleeping, he wakes each of his family members--and all the farm animals--but the snore roars on. After searching the hayloft, they finally find the source of the snore: a tiny kitten. Humorous acrylic paintings display the muted tones of nighttime on a farm.

Reviewer: Patricia Riley

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Too much of a twinkle toes to lead the herd, a Wisconsin cow travels the globe trying to find work as a dancer, but her proficiency doesn't match her enthusiasm. When she discovers the conga she returns home to teach it to the other bovine wannabe hoofers. The caricaturish art and intermittently rhyming text have, like Lily, welcome spunk, but they don't have much substance.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Jack E. Davis. Sophie, a cover-girl glamour cat, has a change in fortune when she falls out of her limousine and begins a new life in the Paris subway. The resourceful feline discovers she has a penchant for music and dancing and an eye for bits of baguette and quiche. Rotund, curvilinear illustrations picture Paris life, capturing Sophie's new friendship with Jacques the violinist.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Brad Sneed. Unlike her sister Velma Jean, who seems to be fearless, Ruby Jane doesn't feel courageous at all. However, when a tornado threatens, she braves the storm and coaxes Velma Jean into the cellar, despite the older girl's secret fear of going underground. The story drags somewhat at the climax, but Sneed's watercolors add excitement and portray the setting vividly.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Brad Sneed. In this tall tale inspired by a true story, a sixty-year-old Australian sheep rancher gains the energy to run around his ten-thousand-acre ranch by eating pumpkins. When he enters a nine-hundred-kilometer race, he surprises everyone but himself by finishing first. Oil paintings with unusual perspectives and a likable protagonist add to the text's understated humor.

Reviewer: Jackie C. Horne

(4) K-3 In a somewhat rambling story, Nathaniel's spry one-hundred-year-old great-grandfather becomes discouraged when he can't find any fellow centenarians with whom he can swap stories. Nathaniel, of course, comes up with a plan to restore Greatpaw's spirits. Sepia-toned watercolors help differentiate Greatpaw's stories of the past from action in the present, which is rendered in bright hues.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.