Age: Preschool+
SEL: Gratitude, Appreciation

A calming presentation of the essential needs in life: air, water, education, a home, food, and family & friends. And when we have met all these needs, or have an overabundance, the next thing to do is share.

Age: Toddler-Preschool
All about me: Pooping

A dog walks under the safety of a desk as a man discovers a pile of "business" on the carpeted ground, and asks where the poop came from. The continued use of the word "business" is very silly and kids will love the variety of poop and places that poop goes.

Age: Kindergarten-1st grade
Fantasy: Dragons, goblins

Gilbert the Goblin is fed up with dragons and their propensity to scare humans. Goblins are terrifying, too! Gilbert finally gets his way when he scares off a quest of knights, with an expertly executed poop joke. Gilbert's persistence to be scary vs. his actual level of scariness is hilarious. Unicorns Are the Worst wasn't my favorite but this one really knocks it out of the park.

Age: Preschool-Kindergarten
Things that go: Pedestrian walk sign

Watch the walk sign and he'll tell you when to go and when to stop. But what if he gets the urge to go?

A charming, childlike thought about what the walk sign figurine would do if he were given the opportunity to leave and explore the city. Graff takes this concept a bit further by examining what it means to go an adventure, to grow, and then to come back with those changes and still fit happily, albeit differently, into your life before.

Age: Kindergarten-1st grade
Food: Candy
Friendship: Making friends
Identity, Author: Korean

Oh, excuse me. What gives this book that has magic candy balls and a couch that asks not to be farted on, what gives it the right to end with such a powerful punch of feels?

Kids will love the concept of magical candy that makes things, animals, and the true feelings of a father, talk. My curiosity was peeked, wondering what the next hard candy would reveal. The last see-through candy says nothing at all, giving Tong Tong the little bit of courage that he needs.

Age: Preschool-1st grade
Bilingual: Predominantly English with blended Spanish words

Lucia is delighted to show you around her yellow casa, including all the raucous and love-filled activity that happens there. A sweet celebration of family and childhood delights that arise from being with the ones you love.

As an adult reader, having a background in speaking Spanish is a definite plus (especially since there is no glossary in the back) but with the illustrations and the context clues of the sentence, non-Spanish speakers can guess the word's meaning.

Age: 4th-6th grade
Identity: Korean American
Tough Issues:

Spoiler

death of grandmother due to old age, Alzheimers

"The words come out quickly. My heart beats hard, almost as hard as it did when I talked to the tiger--as if asking a question is just as scary as facing a beast."

Lily has the power of invisibility--well, she is so quiet and so demure that she tends to fade into the background of people's consciousness. She rejects the identity of QAG (Quiet Asian Girl) but, at the same time, she feels it is true. Now living in her grandmother's magic-infused home, Lily must figure out how to save her grandma with the help of a conniving tiger. Or is the tiger just a manifestation of her worried mind?

Kids who love a blend of magic in their realistic fiction will be intrigued by this combo mindbender. However, I would not recommend this book for younger kids that need a clear delineation between the genres. Additionally, the last 30 pages of the book are truly heart-wrenching and may be triggering to children that have watched a close loved one pass away

Spoiler

(the grandmother is seen collapsing onto the ground several times throughout the book and the protagonist is there as she dies in the hospital)

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Age: Preschool-2nd grade
Food: Making lunch

A boy and his Auntie visit a Jazz club for lunch but leave in the middle of the set because the boy soon becomes overstimulated by the crowd and the heat. The Auntie feels artistically inspired to cook and they both make a delicious lunch fit for a feast--which is exactly what they provide to their surprise guests: the jazz band from the club!

Dapier pairs onomatopoeia and clever twists on the names of Jazz greats to create a rhythmic, bouncy story. The illustrations are gorgeous and perfect for one-on-one reading but it may be used as a read-aloud if you pair the book with some background Jazz. Jazzy parents will love reading this aloud as they admire the album covers throughout and their favorite musicians.

Age: Preschool-1st grade
Friendship: Opposites attract
Identity: Yiddish words sprinkled throughout

Gitty is joyous, optimistic, and adventurous. Kvetch reluctantly comes along for the ride. But Kvetch's pessimistic attitude quickly turns around when a rainy day dampens Gitty's spirit. The back-and-forth banter is delightfully juxtaposed without Kvetch ever entering bully territory. Sure, he's annoyed by everyday inconveniences and trying new things, but he still goes along with Gitty because he values their time together.

The seamless integration of yiddish words throughout the book gives it an added boost of delight. I cannot wait for another adventure!

Age: Toddler-Preschool
Emotions: Anger, frustration
Things that go: Construction

Little Dump Truck is normally a happy camper, until things don't go her way. Her grumpiness keeps piling up in her bed, morphing into something as heavy as a hippopotamus. The crew tries to help with phrases that don't acknowledge her feelings. "Work it out!" "Turn that frown upside down!" "It's no big deal!" Soon, she explodes piling her grumpy feelings on everyone else. But then, she closes her eyes and takes a moment to connect with her senses: she feels the grass tickling her tires, hears the birds singing, and hears her own engine humming.

How delightful to have a mindfulness book that appeals to kids, both with the characters and the format of the story. I will be using this in my next mindfulness storytime for ages 0-6.