ACCESS DIGITIZED EDITION
Guide/Reviews Database
EASY READERS
Lehman, Barbara

Cool Buds: Treasure Map!

32 pp. | Clarion | January, 2026 | Trade ISBN 9780063389090 $18.99 | Paper ISBN 9780063389083 $5.99
(2) K-3 In the second installment of this comics series for new readers (Cool Buds: To the Rescue!), the Cool Buds—an Arctic fox, Atlantic puffin, Arctic hare, and harbor seal—find a treasure map in a bottle on the beach. After the fox prepares anacks, the quartet sets off on a quest. Thick borders on clearly delineated panels work with the movement of the characters to guide readers through the story. Clean compositions in blues and greens with pops of yellow and orange focus on action and details important to the plot, allowing novice readers to concentrate on decoding words that may be less familiar (rubies, delicious, quest). The friends follow the map to Dog Rock and find another map that leads them to Big Stump. They find a third map, they picnic, nap, and then follow the trail to Square Rock. While the characters don’t have much individuality, their amiable collective personality, occasional species-specific dialogue (the puffin’s “feathers crossed,” the seal’s “flipping out”), and the undeniable fun of following a treasure map give the book enough emotional energy to work. After visions of diamonds, pearls, and goblets (not goblins, the seal clarifies), our heroes find a box with a ping-pong set, which turns out to be all they needed to cap off the “best treasure hunt ever,” in an offering whose sunny spirit warms its snowy Arctic setting.
Reviewer: Adrienne L. Pettinelli | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2026

RELATED 

EASY READERS

Night Light
by Emberley, Michael
EASY READERS

I Want It!
by Meisel, Paul
EASY READERS

The Luna Sisters
by Yaccarino, Dan
EASY READERS

Squid in Pants
by Windness, Kaz
EASY READERS

Og Meets Mog!
by Dyckman, Ame
More

Get connected. Join our global community of more than 200,000 librarians and educators.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?