(3) PS "1 shiny trophy / 2 blows on the whistle / 3 hurdles / 4 white lines." So begins an up-to-twenty counting book starring an all-animal cast participating in an Olympics-like competition; after a "break for 20 minutes!", it's time to count back down to "1 winning team!" The woodblock-like art, in a starter-crayon-box palette, has a tidiness that keeps things from getting too zoo-y.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 This homage to P. L. Travers's Mary Poppins stories features Mary Poppins returning (via kite string) to Cherry Tree Lane to visit Jane and Michael Banks. They sightsee around London and enjoy magical nighttime adventures before she leaves again. The rhyming text is a bit forced; Druvert's stunningly intricate lasercuts that divide the black-and-white drawings on each spread are the true stars here.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Katie Harnett. Everyone is afraid of dragon Franklin until he makes friends with a girl who loves books as much as he does, and together they devise the titular bookshop. It's a pleasing bibliophile story, but the wandering present-tense text makes inconsistent efforts at rhyming and tries a touch too hard to be whimsical; Harnett's color-saturated illustrations are stylized in a way that sometimes looks amateurish.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(3) PS Illustrated by Alex Barrow. Through bouncy rhyming text, a little girl recounts the wonderful things she could do with a pet dinosaur, from taking him to school to teaching him to fetch (a tree). These flights of fancy are complemented by whimsical retro-style illustrations and playful design elements (e.g., curving text paralleling the dino's body). Facts about the titanosaur fossil discovery that inspired the book precede the text.

Reviewer: Russell Perry

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Dylan Giles. This historical novel relates the story of a Babylonian ark (similar to but pre-dating Noah's story) as translated from ancient Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets; direct translations are interspersed in bold to support Finkel's expanded narrative. The writing wavers between classical and colloquial, sometimes confusingly, and the black-and-white illustrations are a bit muddy. A package best appreciated by ancient-history buffs.

Reviewer: Kristine Caldwell

(4) K-3 In "Olly's Wings," a horse feels abandoned by his flying-unicorn friends. In "Lionel's Mane," a lion's mane vanishes. In "Red's Wedding," a wolf steals a wedding cake. In all three forest-set vignettes, animals (forest and otherwise) collaborate on a solution. Pristine geometric art in rainbow colors helps tell the tales, all of which end with the jarring enjoinder "Be happy now!"

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Adapted by Maisie Paradise Shearring. Illustrated by Maisie Paradise Shearring. Wilde's classic tale about the transformative power of sacrifice focuses on the friendship forged between a statue and a sparrow. Shearring's new modernized illustrations balance colorful portraits of luxury and happiness against scenes of wintery urban bleakness. She employs a sophisticated sense of design that invites readers to share both the intimacy of Wilde's story and its universal appeal.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Quentin Blake. The book that launched Yeoman and Blake's careers as children's book creators is here reissued. Blake's scribbly, energetic, personality-rich pen-and-ink drawings (overlaid with pink and gold) grace seven original animal fables written by Yeoman. The collection is probably of more interest to collectors than to contemporary child readers. A new foreword by Blake is included.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) K-3 Assorted wild mammals (some more "beastly" than others) shuffle, sneak, and strut across the pages of this attractive oversize book. Spreads on topics such as "Claws and Jaws" and nineteen individual animals contain a Q and A (e.g., "Why is a tiger stripey?") and a handful of interesting facts, leaving plenty of room for the energetic art. Includes "mystery paw prints" to find throughout. Ind.

Reviewer: Nancy Sheridan

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Catherine Bidet. Mother Forest narrates a reader-directed walk through the forest: "Look, there's a squirrel! Let's follow it to page 5. Or would you rather discover...insects? Then go to page 9." Numbered tabs shaped like natural objects help guide readers as Mother Forest offers random facts about flora and fauna. Striking color-blocked illustrations on heavy stock use a limited palette for this inviting if gimmicky ramble.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(4) K-3 Translated by Nancy Maze. Illustrated by Poul Strøyer. A naughty crow, trying to steal a farmer's cherries, is captured and ordered to perform tasks--all of which he does badly. The farmer trades him to a baker, to similar results. The crow escapes and returns to his family, receiving a hero's welcome. Swedish author Hellsing's inexpert but propulsive verse is accompanied by Danish illustrator Strøyer's brightly colored art in eye-pleasing compositions.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Claire Goble. Critical, honest questions guide readers through an introduction to general art theory and criticism. The text, with periodic bolded words highlighting key concepts, answers some burning queries and also promotes further inquiry. Spreads feature multiple and varied captioned images, but linear layouts make the information easy to follow. Occasionally, questions encourage skipping to different sections for answers, providing opportunities for browsing. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(4) PS Illustrated by Yara Kono. "How many letters will there be before you drop off?" That's the introductory challenge of this alphabet book spotlighting bedtime-related words and phrases, from Awake ("This is how you look now") to Zzzz ("The book has been switched off...Turn yourself off too"). The premise and woodblock-like art are grand, but the book is tediously wordy--perhaps this would-be soporific's strategy?

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) PS One morning, Mother Fox's four cubs hide from her in the snow-covered forest; readers can find them in the cut-paper collage illustrations by turning die-cut pages and flaps. There's nothing else to it--the cubs are found, and everyone returns to the den for sleep--but this large-scale French import's paper-cut engineering will please toddlers accustomed to flaps designed for older children's more dexterous hands.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) 4-6 First introduced to Penrose's unique childhood in The Boy Who Bit Picasso, readers now learn about his experiences with Spanish surrealist artist Joan Miró, a family friend. Varied type fonts and children's art inspired by Miró creatively emphasize the childlike exuberance of Miró's animal paintings. Guiding questions about his art ("Can you see any animal shapes in these sculptures?") and photographs of Miró are included.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(3) 4-6 Filled with copious captioned reproductions and photographs, this is a fascinating, perusable survey of twenty important painters and sculptors, from Michelangelo to Warhol. Four-page sections covering the artist's background, big ideas, challenges, art movement, techniques, and influences emphasize his or her overall contributions to the art world. Occasional "How to..." sidebars encourage practicing techniques. Notable contemporary artists are annotated at the end. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter

(3) 4-6 This solid overview of technology milestones features over twenty inventors and their creations. At least two spreads about each first give basic facts--about, say, Stephanie Kwolek and Kevlar--followed by expansions and updates on the process, with numerous photos and other illustrations throughout. Giving attention to both ideas and inventors, the information is accurate and accessible. Timeline. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(3) 4-6 In an engaging, browsable volume, Goldsmith profiles nineteen scientific breakthroughs and the people credited with those discoveries. Grouped by topics (e.g., medicine, planet earth, the universe), each four-page section includes an overview of the concept, a full-page photo or illustration of the scientist, and an account of how the discovery was made. Additional illustrations help to explain the scientific content. Timeline. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon. Young Parisienne Belle visits the countryside, where she meets a talking bee while on a bike ride. The lighthearted narrative takes a heavy-handed turn when the bee introduces Belle to its various animal friends ("In nature, we all have a job to do") and explains bees' importance ("We help everything grow," etc.). The lecture is balanced by breezy, summery illustrations.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Neil Stevens. London girl Dot shares a name and a birthday with her New Yorker grandmother. This book follows the younger as she tries to deliver a card; flip it to follow Grandma Dot as she travels westward through international cities to London for the big day. Nicely parallel story lines offset the gimmick-factor. Retro blue-and-red illustrations are adorable but for some old-fashioned cultural stereotypes.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen