(3) PS Illustrated by Christina Leist. A sweet family beach-day story uses repeating onomatopoeic phrasing to add rhythm to the spare rhyming text. "I hear the breeze, / whishery-whish, whishery-whish, / and see a bird, / fishery-fish, fishery-fish." The sandy-soft illustrations carry much of the plot line and match the simplicity of the preschool-pitched text.

Reviewer: Kari Allen

(3) PS Illustrated by Christina Leist. In Bike, a young child and his mother go for an autumn bike ride while Dad stays with the baby. In Skis, it's Dad's turn to take the boy downhill skiing while Mom and baby watch. Both books feature simple experiences; softly colored, cartoony illustrations; the briefest of texts; and lots of rhyming onomatopoeia to hold preschoolers' interests. Review covers these titles: On My Bike and On My Skis.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) PS Illustrated by Christina Leist. In Bike, a young child and his mother go for an autumn bike ride while Dad stays with the baby. In Skis, it's Dad's turn to take the boy downhill skiing while Mom and baby watch. Both books feature simple experiences; softly colored, cartoony illustrations; the briefest of texts; and lots of rhyming onomatopoeia to hold preschoolers' interests. Review covers these titles: On My Bike and On My Skis.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(4) 4-6 This title discusses the behaviors of blood-feeding species as well as their role in the world; a final chapter covers prevention and removal techniques for the animals that prey on humans. The book is thorough, but dense, small-print text and sophisticated language may pose a challenge for the audience. The eye-catching color photographs unfortunately don't indicate scale. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Peggy Collins. Twelve poems touch on different math skills and concepts including symmetry, patterns, shapes, skip-counting, and money. The collection is a bit of a mixed bag: catchy, onomatopoeic "Patterns Rock!" is a perfect springboard to a pattern lesson, but bumpy "A Treas-ARRH Rap" lacks a clear-cut answer for the guess-and-measure question it poses. Illustrations, sometimes overcrowded, are colorful and attention-grabbing. Glos.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger

(4) 4-6 Colorful and informative, this book makes maximum use of (cheesy) puns throughout ("UnBEE-lievable Body Parts," "BEE-autiful Homes"). Introducing basic anatomy and behavior, the discussion then surveys bees worldwide, noting distribution, classification, threats, and usefulness. Illustrations include diagrams, charts, and photos. Several subsections are interactive (e.g., "Leave Me BEE Game"), some of which strain for connectivity. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) PS Illustrated by Christina Leist. A child and grownup go for a stroll. Dogs are barking, bugs are hopping--the world is full of sounds: "On my walk, / my summer walk, / I hear a horse, / clippity-clop, clippity-clop." When it starts raining, they hear all the noises again in reverse order. Though the story is slight, the out-and-back journey is comfortingly portrayed. Unfussy illustrations complement the text.

Reviewer: Pearl Higgins

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Ben Hodson. While doing his homework, Jeffrey doodles a sloth. The creature comes to life and criticizes Jeffrey's writing to deter him from creating a tale in which a lazy sloth must exert some energy. The book's message about the power of words is cleverly (if a tad heavy-handedly) communicated. The acrylic and pencil illustrations, though carefully executed, occasionally strain to be funny.

Reviewer: Nell Beram