Kane Miller - Hot off the Press!!

As a mom of daughters born in another country - diverse literature is near and dear to me!

So when Kane Miller asks me to review books - I'm ALL over it!!

Here are some great ones I got in their box this past month!

Good Luck Anna Hibiscus! and Have Fun Anna Hibiscus by Atinuke

These are delightful beginning chapter books (ages 5-9). Anna is a dear little girl that lives in Africa - you see her world from her fun viewpoint and learn about the wonderful African culture at the same time. My beginning reader devours these!!! Don't miss any in this series!!

Seasons by Anne Crausaz is a picture book that goes through the seasons with a new and refreshing look at how things change. The illustrations are a style unlike I have seen before - they are simple and yet the striking contrasts in color are beautiful. What a wonderful and unique look at the seasons!

Rope 'Em! by Stacy Nyikos and illustrated by Bret Conover is a book that has "lots of laughs" written all over it! The story of a lassoing-octopus and a round-up'ing seahorse - the best cowhands ever!! You will love this story set in the O.K. Coral!!

Hush, Little Beachcomber by Dianne Moritz and illustrated by Holly McGee is a fun picture book set at the beach and read to the tune of "Hush, Little Baby" - yep, this one is clever and fun! My girls loved it - and they joined right in to sing along because they are already familiar with "Hush, Little Baby". This one would be so great with a beach unit or story hour.

Dorje's Stripes by Anshumani Ruddra and Illustrated by Gwangjo and Jung-a Park is the story of Dorje - a beautiful Royal Bengal tiger - but a tiger with no stripes. What a great multi-cultural story - Master Wu, a Buddhist monk in Tibet, tells this story about why the tiger has no stripes and how he may yet get his stripes. I liked this - it is totally different than other picture books and gives us a wonderful glimpse into the culture of Tibet.

Need another fun dog book?? This is it!! Anitha Balachandran's The Dog Who Loved Red is one that will fit in so well with your unit on dogs, colors or just another fun read!! Raja is a dog you can't help but love AND learn about colors at the same time. GUARANTEED laughs and you will hear "read it again!!" :)

Do NOT MISS - Learning to Fly. This is a picture book that will touch your heart AND make you smile. A wonderful story of a penguin that, because he knows birds should fly, is determined to learn how to fly. I LOVE this one - the illustrations are delightful and simple. A book from Germany - written by Sebastian Meschenmoser - this one is a fun find!!

Pelly and Mr. Harrison Visit the Moon by Lindsay Ward is a picture book that I am so excited to add to our "outer space" unit. It is the story of Pelly, a little girl and her dog, Mr. Harrison and what happens when their bathtub has a rocket engine attached! This is great fun and a story kids will love!!

All of these wonderful titles are available online (links below) or through Usborne book consultants - if you need names - I have some!! :)

*I was provided copies for review purposes by Kane Miller.