By the Kate Greenaway Medalist

Deep in the woods in an old white cabin, three friends make their pumpkin soup the same way every day. The Cat slices up the pumpkin, the Squirrel stirs in the water, and the Duck tips in just enough salt. But one day the Duck wants to stir instead, and then there is a horrible squabble, and he leaves the cabin in a huff. It isn't long before the Cat and the Squirrel start to worry about him and begin a search for their friend. Rendered in pictures richly evoking autumn, Helen Cooper's delightful story will resonate for an child who has known the difficulties that come with friendship. Included at the end is a recipe for delicious pumpkin soup.

Snow is a 1998 New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year and a 1999 Caldecott Honor Book.

It's snowing, said boy with dog.
It's only a snowflake, said grandfather with beard.

No one thinks one or two snowflakes will amount to anything. Not the man with the hat or the lady with the umbrella. Not even the television or the radio forecasters. But one boy and his dog have faith that the snow will amount to something spectacular, and when flakes start to swirl down on the city, they are also the only ones who know how to truly enjoy it.

Uri Shulevitz' playful depiction of a snowy day and the transformation of a city is perfectly captured in simple, poetic text and lively watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations.

Fleeing war-torn Cambodia in 1980, Dara, her mother, and her older brother find sanctuary in a refugee settlement on the Thailand border, but when fighting erupts, Dara finds herself separated from everyone and everything she loves.

Wilson Williams worries about passing his times-table tests

Wilson has a hard time with math, especially with Mrs. Porter's timed multiplication tests. If only he were as quick as Laura Vicks, the smartest kid in third grade, or as quick as his brother, Kipper -- a kindergartner. Wilson's mother and father try to help, but Wilson doesn't appreciate having to do practice tests on a play date. Fortunately, his friend Josh Hernandez is a comfort, as is Squiggles, the class hamster. Wilson is sure that with his own little animal squeaking and cuddling beside him, he could learn anything. But his mom doesn't like pets. So Wilson bravely struggles on, hoping that one day in the not-too-distant future he'll pass all his times-table tests. Then, surprisingly, Kipper comes to the rescue.

With sensitivity and gentle humor, Claudia Mills examines a common childhood fear and a common family experience. G. Brian Karas provides tender, funny pictures.

7 x 9 = Trouble is a 2003 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

An incredible journey

I don't know much, but I know what I know. I gotta go! I gotta go! I gotta go to Mexico! The creepy-crawly bug doesn't know why she does what she does. She only knows she has to do it. But making the journey seems impossible for the slow-moving critter, who has no idea what or where Mexico is. Then an everyday miracle occurs, bringing a transformation that will help her fulfill her destiny. Each autumn, millions of Monarch butterflies migrate from the central and eastern United States and Canada to colonies in the mountains of Mexico, where they mate before flying north in the spring to lay their eggs. In simple, jaunty text and pictures, Sam Swope and Sue Riddle celebrate the amazing story of one of these intrepid bugs.

Isaac Millman tells Moses Goes to a Concert in pictures and written English, and in American Sign Language (ASL), introducing hearing children to the signs for some of the key words and ideas.

Moses and his school friends are deaf, but like most children, they have a lot to say. They communicate in American Sigh Language, using visual signs and facial expressions. This is called signing. And even though they can't hear, they can enjoy many activities through their other senses. Today, Moses and his classmates are going to a concert. Their teacher, Mr. Samuels, has two surprises in store for them, to make this particular concert a special event.

You can learn sign language, too At the end of the book are two full conversations in sign language and a page showing the hand alphabet.

When Wooly the sheep suffers from insomnia, he goes for a walk and gets into just about everything. Each illustration features objects for children to count.

Leyla Torres's beloved picture book The Subway Sparrow playfully engages with issues of big city life and multiculturalism.

An English-speaking girl, a Spanish-speaking man, and a Polish-speaking woman might not be able to converse, but when a sparrow trapped in their subway car needs help, their common concern bridges the language barriers between them.

In The Money Tree, Caldecott Honor-winning writer/artist team Sarah Stewart and David Small reveal the true root of happiness for an independent woman content with the little things in life in this beautifully illustrated children's picture book.

Miss McGillicuddy's simple country routine involves taking care of her pets and garden, and enjoying such pleasures as reading and quilting.

Then one day, she discovers a very unusual tree growing in her yard--one with leaves that appear to be bills of money. As she shares the fruits of this bounty with her neighbors, their increasing greed leads to a year where folks just can't get enough cash, disrupting her quiet life.

All the Small Poems and Fourteen More gathers all four of Valerie Worth's small poetry children's books and includes the original illustrations by Natalie Babbitt, the award-winning writer/artist of Tuck Everlasting.

Inspired by her love of nature, Valerie Worth's wondrous verse about animals, plants, and other everyday objects presents a perfect perspective of the world through a child's eyes.

This volume includes Small Poems, More Small Poems, Still More Small Poems, and Small Poems Again.

Three humans and two cats

Five creatures live in our house.
Three humans, and two cats.
Three short, and two tall.
Four grownups, and one child (that's me ).

In this book of lighthearted comparisons, simple text and warm pictures work together to depict various scenes in a happy household where each member is distinct but also has something inn common with one or more of the others. The fun comes from sorting out the similarities and the differences.

Five Creatures is a 2001 Boston Globe - Horn Book Award Honor Book for Picture Books.

Two children experience a tornado.

Although she sees them safely to the cellar, Mama has to leave Lucille and Natt and go help Mr. Lyle, an elderly neighbor. She tells the children not to open the door until she comes back. But Mama doesn't come back, and Lucille must comfort Natt throughout the terrifying experience of a tornado.

The classic true story of one child's experiences during the holocaust.

Nine-year-old Piri describes the bewilderment of being a Jewish child during the 1939-1944 German occupation of her hometown (then in Hungary and now in the Ukraine) and relates the ordeal of trying to survive in the ghetto.

Upon the Head of the Goat is the winner of the 1982 Boston Globe - Horn Book Award for Nonfiction and a 1982 Newbery Honor Book.

This is a book that should be read by all those interested in the Holocaust and what it did to young and old. --Isaac Bashevis Singer