(3) YA A collection of memoirs and stories that relate the eye-opening, mind-bending effects of travel. Entertaining and thought-provoking, these tales demonstrate the advantages of leaving one's comfort zone and stretching one's mental and physical boundaries. Contributors include M. T. Anderson, Lois Lowry, Harry Mazer, and Katherine Paterson.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Maryann Kovalski. In this story set in Manhattan's Lower East Side in the 1930s, a young girl from Italy plants morning glories to help cheer up her homesick mother. Soon the vibrant flowers spread all over the city and revive the poor immigrant neighborhood. Energetic illustrations perk up the humdrum text.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Beppe Giacobbe. A catchy, rhythmic text describes a cat's most superlative qualities: e.g., "Nobody's prowlier / than a cat-- / a sneak-a-peek cat, / a hide-'n'-seek cat." Giacobbe's digitally rendered art, mainly in dark and secondary colors, ably demonstrates these qualities while adding an enjoyable narrative element: the cat-and-mouse chase depicted on the book's cover is continued in the background of each illustration.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(3) YA In this carefully researched fictional account, alternating first-person narratives of Pocahontas and John Smith recount the 1607 interaction between the Powhatan and the English in Jamestown, Virginia. In his stirring interpretation of this clash of cultures, Bruchac crafts a riveting portrait of a brave and proud man and a satisfying picture of Pocahontas as a curious and peace-loving Powhatan girl. Bib., glos.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(4) 4-6 Based on Warren's adult book, The Perfect Game: America Looks at Baseball, this volume presents some of the sport's most important history while also discussing baseball-themed folk art. Color photos of the art are numerous and well captioned. The book's organization is somewhat haphazard, but the authors demonstrate an engaging correlation between the game and the art created in its honor. Bib.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(4) K-3 In a handsome book without a lot of child appeal, each letter of the Italian alphabet introduces an Italian word (bicicletta, gelato, olivo) that is translated in the accompanying text. Rich, sweeping illustrations help showcase the lifestyle, sites, and famous residents of Tuscany. Included are pronunciation guides and notes on the Italian alphabet, Tuscany, and famous residents.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(4) 4-6 Ten-year-old Kara implements a strategy to get herself kicked out of Catholic school. Her ruse is successful, but in the end Kara realizes that she no longer wants to leave. Though the action is sometimes frenetic, Kara's shenanigans are funny and her arch-nemeses, Sister Mary Francis and Sister Blandina, add depth and humor to the narrative.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(4) YA After his mother's death, seventeen-year-old Zachary goes to live with his father, whom he's never met, and his father's family. Thirteen-year-old Tottie never knew that her half-brother existed, and she has difficulty adjusting to his arrival. The narrative timing is awkward in this depiction of a family's growing pains, but Zachary and Tottie's alternating voices are genuine and enjoyable.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(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

(4) 4-6 Dilly's mother died six years earlier, and twelve-year-old Dilly still feels angry at her mother. While Dilly searches for a misplaced letter Mummie wrote to her before her death, Dilly finally comes to terms with her grief and learns to forgive her mother for dying. The prose can be flowery and the letter, when found, is anticlimactic, but the characters are believable and the narrative is satisfyingly resolved.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(3) 4-6 A teacher designs a website for his grade school students to express their worries and subsequently helps to smooth some of the wrinkles in their lives. Witty, good-spirited, and genuine, these interconnected stories, each detailing one child's worry, range in gravity from a schoolboy crush to domestic abuse. One impressive story is written not by Wilson but by a twelve-year-old contest winner.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Jane Ray. A storm blows all the possessions of a greedy, gluttonous king over the water and into the backyard of the poor and hard-working washerwoman Mrs. Jewel. This reversal-of-fortune tale ends with the newly humbled king marrying the generous Mrs. Jewel, and everyone lives happily ever after. Crisp, elegant prose and inventive, lively illustrations elevate a humdrum plot.

Reviewer: Kristin Cashore