(4) K-3 Illustrated by Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen. "An X on our map / for the road near the shore, / twisting and turning, / M-22--let's explore!" This alphabetic tour of Lake Michigan's federally protected shoreline suffers less from the series-format constraints than do previous titles. Unevenly rhyming couplets introduce a topic--some more relevant than others--while sidebars provide details. Realistic painterly illustrations convey the location's natural beauty.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(3) K-3 Illustrated by John Bendall-Brunello. Leisurely rhymes ask what would happen if an otter followed some children home ("If that otter gets thirsty / will you get him / some punch? / What if that otter / wants popcorn / for lunch?"). The frivolity is tastefully illustrated and tinged with a serious but not-hectoring message about letting wild animals live in their natural habitats.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Linda Bronson. In this alphabet book, some typical summertime words (fireflies, picnic, swim) and more generic ones (everything, nature, owl) are tied rather loosely to the Christian vision of God: "Let's pick some Daisies / of yellow and white. / The center reminds us / of God's pure delight!" The singsongy rhymed couplets are accompanied by bright, cheery illustrations.

Reviewer: Brittany Schlorff

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Bendall-Brunello. The team behind Moose on the Loose is back. This time around, Wargin's bouncy rhymes and Bendall-Brunello's humor-filled illustrations star a big brown bear who wreaks havoc at a campsite: "If he climbed in your bunk, / would the bed go kerplunk?" As in Moose, it's an adult-provided solution that saves the day--to scare a bear, "Just say... Boo!"

Reviewer: Carrie Harasimowicz Sullivan

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Kim Gatto. "Small caterpillars are nature's surprise. / When God waves his hand they become butterflies." This pastoral alphabet book connects the renewal of spring with Christian lessons about God. The rhyming text is bland, but the cheerful illustrations featuring children of different ethnicities tapping sugar maples for sap and baking hot-cross buns may fill a gap in libraries in need of religious material.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Zachary Pullen. Wargin focuses on Nobel's adult life, from his invention of dynamite to his horror at its use ("...people began to use dynamite to solve problems by hurting others. This made Alfred very sad") to the creation of the Nobel Prize. Though the text is superficial, it gives a sense of the man. Pullen's accompanying oil paintings are nicely shaded but distractingly caricaturish.

Reviewer: Chelsey Philpot

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Bendall-Brunello. "What would you do / with a moose on the loose?" Outlandish scenarios are bolstered by humorous illustrations depicting a boy and his pajama-clad, pie-devouring house guest. The tale's parent-centered agenda is apparent on the final pages: "And what if that moose / says...'I think I will stay,'" a query that can only be answered by "mother...who has the last say."

Reviewer: Carrie Harasimowicz Sullivan

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Yawen Ariel Pang. "He turns the fields into ribbons of Gold, / sparkling with frost as the autumn grows cold." This alphabet book celebrates the evidence of God's creations through signs and symbols of autumn. The singsongy rhyming text and bright gold, orange, and brown illustrations give a more subtle religious underpinning than many Christian-themed picture books.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Bruce Langton. A brief, plainspoken text recounts the college career of George Gipp, who was awarded a baseball scholarship to Notre Dame but instead became a football hero under the coaching of Knute Rockne. Although he died before graduating, Gipp's spirit--and the phrase "Win one for the Gipper"--would inspire later players. The book's accompanying illustrations are dark and static.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Gijsbert Van Frankenhuyzen. In November 1975, the cargo ship Edmund Fitzgerald and its entire crew sank to the bottom of Lake Superior. Despite the somewhat confusing and dull narration, the ship itself becomes a compelling character in the moody paintings and an epilogue adds emotional depth to the presentation. The inclusion of a map would have been useful.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore