The Best Children's Books Daily Blog

This blog keeps you up to date as this site grows.

Right-click on the orange button below and to the left to subscribe to the "feed" version of this blog (instructions provided).

The items below are the most recent updates to the site (along with special notes on what you may have missed). The feed keeps you from having to come back and search what's new!

Dimitrios Sokolakis, Children's Book Reviewer: Biography

Children's book reviewer Dimitrios Sokolakis is a Greek businessman with three daughters and, thus, an interest in children's books!

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Dimitrios Sokolakis, Children's Book Reviewer: Biography"

Me...Jane: Future Scientist Jane Goodall as a Girl

In Me...Jane, Patrick McDonnell weaves images and words to make Jane Goodall's future in Gombe with the chimps seem practically pre-ordained. This touching book

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Me...Jane: Future Scientist Jane Goodall as a Girl"

Grandpa Green by Lane Smith: Topiary Memories!

In Lane Smith's Grandpa Green, a boy introduces us to his great-grandfather by way of the grandfather's topiary garden and what the sculptures mean to him.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Grandpa Green by Lane Smith: Topiary Memories!"

Mummy Math: An Adventure in Geometry - Math Needed to Survive!

Cindy Neuschwander's Mummy Math: A Geometry Adventure features two kids who get locked in a pyramid trying to help their scientist parents find an ancient pharaoh. Using Geometry

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Mummy Math: An Adventure in Geometry - Math Needed to Survive!"

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin: Minli's Journey

Minli is a young girl intent on improving her family's fortune in Grace Lin's Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. Review. Searching for the Old Man of the Moon

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin: Minli's Journey"

A Ball for Daisy: Dogs Don't Use Words; Neither Does This Book!

Chris Raschka's A Ball for Daisy is a wordless picture book telling the story of a dog whose prize red ball bursts. Kids will relate to both the joy and the sense of loss

Permalink -- click for full blog post " A Ball for Daisy: Dogs Don't Use Words; Neither Does This Book!"

The Circus Ship by Chris Van Dusen: Animal Heroes!

Inspired by the 1836 sinking of the Royal Tar, a ship filled with circus animals, in The Circus Ship author-illustrator Chris Van Dusen imagines a very wholesome outcome.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Circus Ship by Chris Van Dusen: Animal Heroes!"

Personalized Children's Books by KD Novelties

KD Novelties We offer a large selection of personalized books, personalized music and personalized photo DVDs where your child is the star of all of

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Personalized Children's Books by KD Novelties"

The new Caldecott Award winners

The new Caldecott Medal and Honor books were announced today. We haven't reviewed them YET, but we have the list! Order them from your library before everyone else does!

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The new Caldecott Award winners"

Old Style Fairytale/Fantasy Illustration

Alan's Visions My style is fairytale/fantasy, old school style. I work in both colour - watercolour and acrylic - and pen and ink, as well as pastel

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Old Style Fairytale/Fantasy Illustration"

So You Want to Be a Wizard - Recite the Oath!

Hiding in the library from bullies, Nita Callahan happens on the self-help book, So You Want to Be a Wizard. Taking the Wizard's Oath, she soon finds herself on a list of local wizards.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "So You Want to Be a Wizard - Recite the Oath!"

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - Meet the Herdmans!

A family of bullies in search of booty descends on the town church in Barbara Robinson's The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - Meet the Herdmans!"

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever (#6) by Jeff Kinney

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever (#6) features Greg Heffley trying to score points with Santa Claus.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever (#6) by Jeff Kinney"

The Dogs Don't Bite in Heaven by Tony and Brooklynn Langston

This story by Tony and Brooklynn Langston is entitled The Dogs Don't Bite in Heaven. A father's story about what it's like in heaven

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Dogs Don't Bite in Heaven by Tony and Brooklynn Langston"

Cautionary Tales for Children: New Visual Spin on a Classic!

Edward Gorey gives his visual spin on Hilaire Belloc's century-old Cautionary Tales for Children. Naughty kids

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Cautionary Tales for Children: New Visual Spin on a Classic!"

Just Another Ordinary Day...if your neighbor's a T.Rex!

Just Another Ordinary Day might seem a rather boring story...until the pictures tell you who the characters really are!

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Just Another Ordinary Day...if your neighbor's a T.Rex!"

Trickster Tre

Trickster Tre is an easy reader wriiten in rhyme. The story is about a red hed 6 year old boy who made false claims with his family. At the end of the

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Trickster Tre"

What to put in a cover letter to a publisher!?!

Hi, I have been putting off sending any of my children's books for a long time now due to worrying too much about what to put in my cover letter. I've

Permalink -- click for full blog post "What to put in a cover letter to a publisher!?!"

Max's Breakfast: More Max and Ruby Fun!

Max deals with Ruby's insistence on his eating the 'right' way in Max's Breakfast, another great story from the Max and Ruby series.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Max's Breakfast: More Max and Ruby Fun!"

Some Things Are Scary: Examining Childhood Fears!

Help your kid look at childhood fears with the wonderful Some Things Are Scary. Brilliantly illustrated by Jules Feiffer

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Some Things Are Scary: Examining Childhood Fears!"

Illustration Basket

My work is quite varied but is usually decorative and design oriented. I love to use bright vibrant colors and interesting patterns and textures to

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Illustration Basket"

"Look & Say" books for beginning readers

Just Clownin' 'Round...in between breakfast duty, bus duty, and teaching. Self-publishing or print on demand? Self-pub, baby. And I demand quite a bit

Permalink -- click for full blog post ""Look & Say" books for beginning readers"

Pirates and Princesses: Boy-Girl Play!

Ivy and Fletch are old friends who risk getting separated by preschool gender roles in Pirates and Princesses.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Pirates and Princesses: Boy-Girl Play!"

Charlie Hits It Big: Guinea Pig with a Dream!

Charlie is little Sophie's guinea pig in Charlie Hits It Big. With aspirations of being a star, Charlie heads to Hollywood.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Charlie Hits It Big: Guinea Pig with a Dream!"

Karen Nelson, Children's Book Reviewer: Biography

Children's book reviewer Karen Nelson is a stay at home mom who has worked in the medical field--with both people and animals!

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Karen Nelson, Children's Book Reviewer: Biography"

Writing a children's book to address childhood obesity

A head full of ideas but an empty page in front of me! Hello all, Firstly, thank you in advance for taking the time to read this, it's very much appreciated.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Writing a children's book to address childhood obesity"

The World of Childhood

Hello, my name is Sergey Taranik and I have two sons. Now they both are grown up men, of course, and have their own families, but when they were children

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The World of Childhood"

Parsley Rabbit's Book about Books: Kids Meet Book!

Parsley Rabbit's Book about Books is just that: a child's introduction to the world of text (and pictures) between covers.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Parsley Rabbit's Book about Books: Kids Meet Book!"

10 contests for self-published authors

This self-pub author was kind enough to share her list!

Click for more info

The Snowman by Raymond Briggs: Wondrous and Wordless!

In Raymond Briggs' wordless classic, The Snowman, a little boy spends an evening playing with a snowman he built himself.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Snowman by Raymond Briggs: Wondrous and Wordless!"

Heart n Soul Expressions (Lueders Fine Arts LLC)

My name is Jennifer Lueders and I have two degrees in art, a B.A. in Studio Art and an M.F.A. in Printmaking and Drawing. I mostly use acrylic, watercolor,

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Heart n Soul Expressions (Lueders Fine Arts LLC)"

Peek Inside The Cover

When I do my Illustrations my main aim is to amuse children and also keep them curious about what is going on. I want to encourage children to have fun

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Peek Inside The Cover"

Shop African American Children's Books

Our African-American children's bookstore, powered by Amazon, offers the best in picture book and young adult reading.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Shop African American Children's Books"

Our Classic Children's Bookstore!

Our classic kids' bookstore features many of the books that have stood the test of time and your child should have access to!

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Our Classic Children's Bookstore!"

Weird Parents by Audrey Wood: Parental Embarrassment!

Audrey Wood's Weird Parents looks at the world from the perspective of a child who finds his parents embarrassing.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Weird Parents by Audrey Wood: Parental Embarrassment!"

An Excerpt from 'How Tombo Learned to Turn Off the TV'

This is an excerpt from How Tombo Learned to Turn Off the TV.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "An Excerpt from 'How Tombo Learned to Turn Off the TV'"

Mungo and the Dinosaur Island: Dinosaurs and Pirates!

Two favorite boy things--dinosaurs and pirates--come together in Timothy Knapman's Mungo and the Dinosaur Island.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Mungo and the Dinosaur Island: Dinosaurs and Pirates!"

Wait! No Paint! - Crazy Retelling of The Three Little Pigs!

Why did the three little pigs leave home? Bruce Whatley tells us in his wacky Wait! No Paint!

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Wait! No Paint! - Crazy Retelling of The Three Little Pigs!"

The Terrible Plop: The Smallest Rabbit Solves the Mystery!

The smallest rabbit is forced by a big brown bear to join him in solving the mystery of The Terrible Plop.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Terrible Plop: The Smallest Rabbit Solves the Mystery!"

The Santa Trap by Jonathan Emmett: Trying to Catch Santa!

Bradley Bartleby is a beastly boy who wants ALL the presents in Jonathan Emmett's The Santa Trap. If he can just catch Santa

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Santa Trap by Jonathan Emmett: Trying to Catch Santa!"

Susan Syddall, Children's Book Reviewer: Biography

Children's book reviewer Susan Syddall is a long-time teacher who now homeschools. She's also a children's book author.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Susan Syddall, Children's Book Reviewer: Biography"

First Animal Encyclopedia: The DK First Reference Series

DK's First Animal Encyclopedia is typical of all the books in their First Reference Series: gorgeous. Close-up photography

Permalink -- click for full blog post "First Animal Encyclopedia: The DK First Reference Series"

Klara's New World by Jeanette Winter: 19th Century Swedish Immigrant!

Jeanette Winter's Klara's New World details a fictional Swedish girl's 19th century immigration, with her family, to America.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Klara's New World by Jeanette Winter: 19th Century Swedish Immigrant!"

Three Names of Me by Mary Cummings: Chinese-American Adoptee

Mary Cummings' Three Names of Me features an ethnically Chinese girl adopted to America, working to reconcile her cultural heritage.

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Three Names of Me by Mary Cummings: Chinese-American Adoptee"

Taste of Bluegrass: Dyann J Callahan

I have specialized in very detailed wildlife and fantasy art in a variety of mediums. The human form in sculpture or painting is another specialty from

Permalink -- click for full blog post " Taste of Bluegrass: Dyann J Callahan"

The Hero Beowulf: Picture Book of Poem's Beginning!

Eric Kimmel tackles the beginning of Beowulf in picture book form in The Hero Beowulf. Slaying the monster Grendel

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Hero Beowulf: Picture Book of Poem's Beginning!"

Going from big print run to POD

Self-publishing, then POD I published my first book, Weezer the Sneezer Finds a Home, with a printer in Minnesota. I still have boxes of books in my den

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Going from big print run to POD"

Measuring Growth - Free Children's Book by Dale Emmert

This free children's story by Dale Emmert is entitled, Measuring Growth. A young girl admits she didn't

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Measuring Growth - Free Children's Book by Dale Emmert"

Swimmy by Leo Lionni: The Little Fish Who Got Away!

Leo Lionni's Swimmy is a little black fish whose family gets swallowed by a bad tuna. Finding a new school, brave Swimmy teaches them

Permalink -- click for full blog post "Swimmy by Leo Lionni: The Little Fish Who Got Away!"

The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf: The Gentle Bull!

Munro Leaf's classic The Story of Ferdinand features a pacifist bull picked to participate in a bullfight. Just sitting in the middle of the ring

Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf: The Gentle Bull!"