Sudanese feminist politician Fatima Ahmed Ibrahim: the first female elected to a parliament in the Arab world. Also the first Muslim woman from Africa to be elected President of the Women’s International Democratic Federation. More here: sister-hood ..read more

Author/Illustrator: Marika Maijala, translated by Mia Spangenberg Publisher: Elsewhere Editions, 2023 Age: 3-7 Themes: greyhounds, dogs, freedom Opening: Rosie races down the track. Her paws hammer the ground. Summary: (from my library’s catalog) Racing greyhound Rosie escapes the confines of the racetrack and bounds towards freedom. I picked this book because: (from my review in Indie Next Kids!) A captivating tale of freedom for a racing dog named Rosie, told with beautiful rhythm and the perfect sort of pacing to make it a great read aloud for toddlers and early ..read more

Author: Taghreed Najjar Illustrator: Maya Fidawi Publisher: Crackboom! Books, 2018 Age: 3-7 Themes: watermelon, food, eating habits Opening: Noura is a little girl who loves to eat watermelon. Summary: (from my library’s catalog) Noura is crazy about watermelon. She wants to eat nothing else, every day, at every meal. In fact, Noura thinks there is no such thing as too much watermelon. Until one night, when the watermelon she has hidden in her room to eat all by herself begins to grow and Noura gets taken on a wild watermelon adventure! A story t ..read more

Author/Illustrator: Bernard Waber Publisher: Walter Lorraine Books, HM, 1997 Age: 3-7 Themes: bears, sleepovers, cold Opening: see image below (brilliant!) Summary: (from my library’s catalog) In a cumulative story, one animal after another asks to come in out of the winter cold to sleep in Bearsie Bear’s big bed. I picked this book because: my critique partner Lynn Becker recommended it to me, and all I’m wondering is why haven’t I heard of it before? I love it! It’s the perfect sort of storytime readaloud for toddlers (my homies!) with just the right amount of repetition a ..read more

Author: Didier Lévy Illustrator: Fred Benaglia Publisher: Thames & Hudson, 2019; orig. 2016 Age: 3-7 Themes: dragons, health, human-animal relationships Opening: Can’t breathe fire? not even the tiniest flicker of flame? Has your pet dragon’s fire gone out? Don’t worry. There must be a way to relight him! Summary: (from my library’s catalog) Has your dragon forgotten how to breathe fire? Have no fear. This imaginative story follows the exploits of one frustrated dragon owner as she tries increasingly hilarious tricks to rekindle her ..read more

Author: Simon Philip Illustrator: Lucia Gaggiotti Publisher: Orchard Books, 2020 Age: 2-6 Themes: cake, girls, self-control Opening: “There’s a smell I can’t ignore. It’s wafting through the kitchen door. It’s time for me to find out more.” Summary: (from my library’s catalog) How on earth do you resist the most amazing cake? One little girl is about to find out just how hard it can be… I picked this book because: it’s pure fun to watch someone else with the same weakness for cake try as hard as this adorable main character to be good. Spoiler alert: the ..read more

Author: Jutta Bauer Translator: Matthias Wieland Publisher: Red Comet Press, 2022; orig.: Kibitz Verlag, 2021 Age: 3-7 Themes: mice, contentment, happiness Opening: I am Albie. “Albieee! The king is asking for you!” Summary: (from my library’s catalog) Albie is on a mission! The king has commanded him to deliver an important message to the neighboring castle. Dutifully he dashes away. But once on his way, something comes up . . . and then another thing, and then another! What is one to do when a squirrel, a tired mother and her many children, and an old animal ..read more

Author: Jairo Buitrago; transl.: Elisa Amado Illustrator: Mariana Ruiz Johnson Publisher: Greystone Kids, 2022; orig.: Leetra Final, 2021 Age: 3-6 Themes: friendship, social interaction, toads Opening: To make friends you should sit under a huge tree. Summary: (from my library’s catalog) A quirky and uplifting guide to making new friends for kids 4 to 7 from a beloved, internationally renowned author. What’s the best way to make friends? Toad has the most magnificent ideas! Sometimes they don’t go according to plan… but that’s okay ..read more

Author: Elana K. Arnold Illustrator: Doug Salati Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, 2022 Age: 3-7 Themes: ducks, eggs, life cycles Opening: Once, when we all had to stay home for the whole long springtime, when schools were closed and work was closed and everything fun was cancelled,… Summary: (from my library’s catalog) When a family brings home two abandoned duck eggs and waits for them to hatch, they read, learn and laugh, until one day Pip and Zip are born! I picked this book because: Lots of layers here : bit of science, bit of contemporary timefra ..read more

Author: Daniel Picouly, after Hans Christian Andersen, transl. by Claudia Zoe Bedrick Illustrator: Olivier Tallec Publisher: Enchanted Lion, 2007 Age: 4-8 Themes: fairy tale interpretations, girls, emotions Opening: Once upon a time in Toulaba, a country at the far end of faraway, there lived a woman, young as the sweet breeze of spring and dark as the night when the moon merely smiles. Summary: (from my library’s catalog) In this retelling of the Andersen fairy tale, a tiny girl is stolen from her loving mother and many siblings, has adventures with a wise caiman, an injured ..read more