(3) PS Illustrated by Cathon. Young Chuck finds a toy fire truck at a yard sale and gleefully takes it home. When the truck goes missing, "Chuck is dumbstruck," but he gets it back in time for it to sleep beside him that night. Simple cartoon illustrations enhance the everyday drama of the brief text, which playfully uses words rhyming with truck. Toy-truck fans (and others) will enjoy this one.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Lori Joy Smith. Multilingual best friends Annie, Lillemor, and Lilianne decide to enter the school talent show as a singing group. But Annie tests their friendship when she insists on making all the decisions ("because this whole thing was my idea"). Dunklee's realistic story about bossiness, compromise, and teamwork features a mix of simple narration and speech bubbles set against Smith's expressive, brightly colored digital art.

Reviewer: Lana Barnes

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Lori Joy Smith. Annie and Lillemor, who's from Sweden, are best friends who have a lot in common. But when new girl Lilianne, who seems to have even more in common with Lillemor, arrives from France, Annie feels left out. Text and speech bubbles tell this relatable story about normal friendship woes. The playful and friendly digitally colorized pencil illustrations bring the girls' activities to life.

Reviewer: Lana Barnes

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Matthew Forsythe. Elizabeth, who could be a poster child for self-esteem, vents about her irritation at friends, family members, and neighbors for shortening her name ("Yo, Liz, what's up?!"; "Hi, Beth!"). This artless slip of a book is note-perfect to the end. Forsythe's pictures--black and white with some orange-y red and powder blue--are retro-style but nevertheless his own.

Reviewer: Nell Beram