(3) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. Words from a young person's poem are "mixed-up" in the wind and "whipped about / and mingled in midair." Digital illustrations with collage-like touches play a key role in this adventure: the art shows the poet's words and letters blown around in what looks like a Central American town, rearranging to create nonsense words and silly wordplay. The main character tries to reconstruct the original poem, but wind and rain carry off the pieces again. "The seeds of thoughts were planted," however, and what sprouts is aptly punny. Rhyming pairs on three spreads and mixed-up words on one spread are identified at book's end.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. Poetic text alternates between a worried daughter's remarks to her mother ("I see your hands, / Coarsened and scratched... I will stay with you") and hard-at-work Mama's clear-eyed responses ("Ten cents a pound is what I'll earn / To buy these books and set you free"). Set at a coffee field, the collage-like art finds the rumpled beauty in Mama's sacrifice.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. When eight-and-a-half-year-old Milo's family moves to the city, his little sister Georgie explores and makes new friends while Milo sulks inside. When Georgie goes missing and Milo is forced to look for her, he finds that his new neighborhood isn't so bad after all. Mixed-media illustrations depict the city and its colorful, endearing characters in an eclectic style incorporating digital collage.

Reviewer: Lolly Robinson

(3) PS Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. A flea awakened by midges takes a "leap!" into the path of a grasshopper, activating a series of jumps by a rabbit, dog, frog, etc. The flea reappears for the final leap then nestles back to sleep, bringing the poetic text full circle. The summery landscape and its animal denizens are depicted in the mixed-media illustrations with a liveliness that echoes the energy of the active-verb text.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. A young child becomes a capable and enthusiastic reader and notices that not all reading takes place in books. While the slightly preachy story celebrates reading in many forms, some of the narrator's observations seem too mature. Filled with whimsical detail, the collage illustrations complement the brief text and capture the joy of being immersed in a world of words.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. Every Sunday Leo and his family gather at Nonna's for lunch. Leo isn't interested in eating; then Nonna tells him stories about the pasta shapes. Leo's hunger for stories whets his appetite for eating. The dialogue is spiced up with some Italian words (zuppa, stelline, chiancaredde); a pronunciation guide/glossary is included. Mixed-media illustrations intersperse folktale-like spreads with warm family scenes.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. Contemplative and philosophical fish Glub takes up residence in a bowl set on a diner counter. While he thinks, onlookers gaze into his bowl and visualize their hearts' desires. Stylized and attractive mixed-media illustrations enhance a story heavy on existential musings and light on the kind of character development essential for connecting reader to content.

Reviewer: Amy Lois Cohn

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. The forest creatures prepare for a phenomenon called "Winter." Lily, a young snowshoe hare, wonders what she should do before the feared visitor arrives. Surprise! Her coat turns snow-white, and she's all set. The text conveys accurate information, despite the irritatingly anthropomorphized animal characters. Lily's gradual transformation is portrayed via realistic mixed-media illustrations. The final two pages feature "Animal and Environmental Facts."

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. In 1835, newsboys Jake and Charlie sell lots of New York Sun papers thanks to a story about animals on the moon. (The newspaper truly ran this hoax report.) While adults marvel at the "news," the boys engage in daydreamy dialogues about it. The text can be abstract and wordy, but it's generally engaging. Brown- and sepia-heavy collages establish the gritty milieu.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. In twenty-one clever, amusing, and spirited poems, books find their voices: an index beckons a reader to look up page numbers, a cover shouts out "Please stop! Take a look!", a library book compares being checked out to going on vacation. Buoyant mixed-media illustrations celebrate books as concrete objects while reinforcing their role as springboard for imagination.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. Benno the cat's life changes for the worse after the city's synagogue and stores are destroyed and many of his friends disappear. This depiction of Kristallnacht is affecting and the collage-like illustrations dramatic, but the book's audience is unclear. The treatment could supplement other more-detailed books on the event for older readers. An afterword is included. Reading list. Bib.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth