The Best Children's Books Daily Blog

May 16, James and the Giant Peach: Magic Friendly Fruit!

Wed, 16 May 2012 23:37:34 GMT

James is a 7 year old living with two unpleasant aunts in Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach. When a mysterious old man offers James a satchel

May 10, Free Peter Rabbit Download: For Printing, Reading and Coloring!

Thu, 10 May 2012 19:27:47 GMT

We're giving away a free Tale of Peter Rabbit download, a coloring book version (with full text) of Beatrix Potter's most classic tale. Print Peter Rabbit, read and color! This freebie

May 10, d’Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths: Picture Book Mythology!

Thu, 10 May 2012 15:38:44 GMT

d’Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths, by the Caldecott winning husband-wife illustrating team, introduces ancient Greek legend graphically but with restraint.

May 7, Return to Finkleton by KC Hilton: New Secrets In Uncle Harry's Shop!

Mon, 07 May 2012 19:10:43 GMT

In KC Hilton's Return to Finkleton, Jack, Lizzy and Robert are a little older and better able to take on the greedy outsiders who would destroy the town.

May 7, From What I Remember: Sweet Kids Behaving Not-So-Badly!

Mon, 07 May 2012 18:51:58 GMT

From What I Remember, a YA novel featuring unbelievable action and utterly predictable love, is nevertheless a joy from start to finish.

May 1, 'Yuck! That's Not a Monster!' Who's Ugly to Whom?

Tue, 01 May 2012 22:36:35 GMT

The creators of Yuck! That's Not a Monster! play with perceptions by presenting Mr and Mrs Monster's new baby as not looking monstrous at all. People would find him cute. Monsters, not so much.

May 1, The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict: Benedict Society Prequel!

Tue, 01 May 2012 18:53:47 GMT

In The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict, prequel to The Mysterious Benedict Society, begins with Nicholas's arrival at a new orphanage.

May 1, The Fat Cat Sat on the Mat: Politically Incorrect Reader!

Tue, 01 May 2012 17:33:41 GMT

Nurit Karlin's reader, The Fat Cat Sat on the Mat, features politically incorrect words like, well, 'fat,' 'hates,' and 'brat.'

Apr 27, Great closeout deal for boat fans

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 21:14:42 GMT

We subscribe to our closeout book partner's newsletter to see when something's just so incredibly priced (closeout priced AND on sale as well!) we have to pass it along. Right now they're offering All About Ships: Amazing Maritime Facts for just $1.99. Don't say we didn't tell you!

Apr 25, The Three Silly Billies: The Billy Goats Gruff Modernized!

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 18:04:27 GMT

Margie Palatini and Barry Moser put a modern spin on The Three Billy Goats Gruff with The Three Silly Billies. Using characters from other fairy tales

Apr 25, Writing for an age group

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:22:17 GMT

I am a novice writer of children's books. I apologize for not being more articulate. I am worried that I need to know for what age group the book is

Apr 23, We Publish Picture Books - Learn More!

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 19:11:06 GMT

We publish picture books for sale from our online store. That means we need authors! We're accepting picture book manuscripts from authors, and pdfs from author-illustrators.

Apr 18, The Moorchild by Eloise McGraw: A Story of Alienation

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 15:55:11 GMT

Saaski is a changeling, a half-fairy left to be raised by unknowing humans in Eloise McGraw's Newbery Honor-winning story of alienation, The Moorchild.

Apr 18, Princess Academy by Shannon Hale: Courage and Strength!

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 15:46:53 GMT

Shannon Hale's Princess Academy is not a story about princesses so much as about the potential of any child to achieve great things in any setting. Miri from Mount Eskel

Apr 18, The Runaway Bunny - Mother/Bunny Love!

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 14:47:24 GMT

An Enduring Classic Tale of Mother-Bunny Love It is assumed, in Margaret Wise Brown’s much beloved story, that the titular runaway bunny is too young

Apr 15, Happy Birthday, Winnie!...Winnie the Witch Celebrates!

Sun, 15 Apr 2012 18:03:43 GMT

Happy Birthday, Winnie is just one book in Valerie Thomas's Winnie the Witch series, with incredible illustrations by Korky Paul. Add witchy magic to a birthday party

Apr 15, The Wonky Donkey: You Don't Have to Be Pretty to Be Cute!

Sun, 15 Apr 2012 17:59:09 GMT

The Wonky Donkey picture book, based on the song, is a joyous of lovability--despite a questionable appearance! Wonky Donkey has yellow teeth, a wooden leg,

Apr 12, Anne of Green Gables: Changing All Around Her!

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 23:27:50 GMT

Called by Mark Twain “the dearest and most lovable child in fiction since the immortal Alice,” Anne of Green Gables is a freckle faced orphan with a huge imagination and a deep desire to belong.

Apr 12, Wolf Brother: 1st Book in Chronicles of Ancient Darkness

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 22:15:20 GMT

12 year old Torak of the Wolf Clan is out with his father when a bear attacks. With his dying words, his father sends him to the Mountain of the World Spirit. His wolf brother is

Apr 9, Coraline by Neil Gaiman: A Girl's Spooky Other Home!

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 15:17:26 GMT

On the other side of a mysterious locked door lies an alternative home that isn't precisely what it seems in Neil Gaiman's Coraline book, illustrated by Dave McKean.

Apr 8, The Magic Fish by Freya Littledale: Greed Is NOT Good!

Sun, 08 Apr 2012 21:26:04 GMT

Freya Littledale's The Magic Fish is a children's book about greed and its negative consequences. When a fisherman catches a talking fish who claims to be a prince

Apr 5, Solace of the Road by Siobahn Dowd: Teenager Alone

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 23:41:58 GMT

14 year old Holly Hogan flees foster care (and her past) in search of her mother in Siobahn Dowd's Solace of the Road.

Apr 5, A Monster Calls: Patrick Ness based on Siobahn Dowd

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 23:24:37 GMT

In A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, based on an idea by Siobahn Dowd, 13 year old Conor has recurrent nightmares, but his new nightmare might be real.

Apr 5, Hands Up by Paul Magrs: Son of a Demented Puppeteer!

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 23:04:38 GMT

Paul Magrs' Hands Up is a YA novel about a truly messed up family. Jason is the son of a formally famous puppeteer gone mad, whose puppet, Tolstoy, reawakens

Apr 5, Rosalyne Bowmile, Children's Book Reviewer: Biography

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 21:59:27 GMT

Book reviewer Rosalyne Bowmile has degrees in Sociology and Children's Media, Writing Production and Management, experience as a day-care director, and is a full time painter.

Apr 3, Skellig by David Almond - Stunning...and Hard to Explain

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 15:37:21 GMT

David Almond’s Skellig is not your average children’s book. Although in some ways Skellig is a familiar story, Almond’s work is anything but commonplace.

Mar 31, Wabi Sabi by Mark Reibstein: A Cat's Zen Journey!

Sat, 31 Mar 2012 00:27:39 GMT

A cat named Wabi Sabi sets out in search of the Zen meaning of her name in Mark Reibstein's Wabi Sabi, a multi-layered picture book.

Mar 30, Old Style Fairytale/Fantasy Illustration

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 23:47:54 GMT

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

Mar 30, Apple Trouble: Look What's Stuck to Hedgehog!

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 04:27:54 GMT

Hedgehog is preparing to hibernate but--uh, oh!--something's stuck to her spines! In Ragnhild Scamell's funny Apple Trouble, one thing leads to another

Mar 27, Easter Giveaway

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 04:56:22 GMT

We're giving away a free printable of Beatrix Potter's The Tale of Peter Rabbit just in time for Easter! It's the full story (Ms. Potter's first and most famous), plus all the original illustrations turned into coloring book art. Bunnies for Easter! And it's yours, free, just for visiting.

Mar 27, Self-Publishers Don't Write "Real" Books

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 01:21:07 GMT

Self-Publishers Don't Write Real Books. Do You Buy That? I'm always on the lookout for books to help improve my writing. I recently read Writing for the

Mar 26, Is Your Kid Watching Too Much TV? Fix the Problem with This Book!

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 18:14:12 GMT

Television is an easy way to entertain a child, but what do you do when your child is watching too much TV? Our book can help! This story of a child who CHOOSES to turn off the TV

Mar 26, Motivating Your Child: This Book Helps with Lack of Effort

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 17:47:11 GMT

Children don't always 'get' why effort is important. Try motivating your child with the help of this storybook. How Vansanna Learned that Work Can Be Fun depicts a child who learns that trying

Mar 26, An Excerpt from "How Vansanna Learned that Work Can Be Fun"

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:45:54 GMT

This is an excerpt from How Vansanna Learned that Work Can Be Fun. This bibliotherapy book helps children appreciate the rewards that come from expending more effort.

Mar 24, Last to Finish – A Story about the Smartest Boy in Math Class

Sat, 24 Mar 2012 20:21:32 GMT

In 'Last to Finish - A Story about the Smartest Boy in Math Class,' a boy struggling with math anxiety discovers he's the most advanced student in class. Comprehension vs. memorization

Mar 23, Quirky Cartoon Illustrations

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 13:07:03 GMT

Connie Beckham is a strange but cute freelance Illustrator based in Wisconsin. She will have a BFA from the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, where

Mar 20, Genesis by Bernard Beckett: Philosophers' Dystopia

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 22:53:57 GMT

In Bernard Beckett's Genesis, Anax lives in the Republic, an island society of philosophers cut off from a plague-stricken world. Her chance to be admitted into the Academy

Mar 19, I like drawing for children

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 21:10:13 GMT

I am a novice illustrator. in 2009 graduated and began working in children's illustrations. Painted for publishers. Journal stories. illustrations for

Mar 16, Tam Lin: Girl Power Scottish Fairy Tale!

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 21:59:06 GMT

Jennett Mackenzie is the heroine in Jane Yolen's retelling of the ancient Scottish ballad, Tam Lin. Centuries ago, fairies stole a handsome youth and took him to Carterhaugh, a castle

Mar 16, Oh Bother! Someone's Afraid of the Dark! Winnie the Pooh vs. Fear

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 15:51:18 GMT

Someone's Afraid of the Dark is part of Disney's 'Oh Bother' series of Winnie the Pooh books. In this one, Winnie helps Piglet confront his fear of darkness.

Mar 12, Fu-Dog: Learning Chinese Heritage in England!

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 22:40:30 GMT

Chinese-English children go on a magical family adventure with a talking doll. A Fu-Dog was a dog that long ago guarded temples and palaces in China.

Mar 12, Maya Moon (Doña Luna): The Story Behind the Phases of the Moon!

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 22:33:30 GMT

Mesoamerican legend has it that the phases of the moon can be ascribed to...turtles! Learn more in Marianne Mitchell's Maya Moon (Doña Luna).

Mar 11, The Three Little Pigs by James Marshall - Extended Version!

Sun, 11 Mar 2012 21:04:45 GMT

James Marshall gives us a visually playful version of The Three Little Pigs with more story than we're used to; in Marshall's version, Wolf does more than huff and puff!

Mar 9, Self-publishing and local investment

Fri, 09 Mar 2012 01:59:09 GMT

A Train Story: how self-publishing and local investment can save your world A quote from Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails: If they (the Music industry)

Mar 7, Anook the Snow Princess: Picture Book King Lear with a Happy Ending!

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 15:41:01 GMT

In Hans Wilhelm's Anook the Snow Princess, a shy but true polar bear princess disappoints her father but later comes to his rescue. Inspired by Shakespeare's King Lear

Mar 6, Fruition Illustration and Design

Tue, 06 Mar 2012 03:34:11 GMT

Fruition Illustration and Design - Bring your ideas & dreams to Fruition! My art varies quite a lot and I have the ability to utilise different styles

Mar 5, Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret: Talking to God

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 22:13:04 GMT

11 year old Margaret has just moved and finds herself confronting issues of religion and adolescence in Judy Blume's Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

Feb 29, The Ghost of Greyfriar’s Bobby: Tribute to a Faithful Dog

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:20:42 GMT

The Ghost of Greyfriar’s Bobby is a tribute to a faithful dog who lingered near his master's (Old Jock) grave in Edinburgh, Scotland, for over a decade.

Feb 29, I Like Cats by Patricia Hubbell: Cats Galore!

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:17:43 GMT

Patricia Hubbell's I Like Cats book details all the cats there are to like, from White Cats, Black Cats to Sneak-a-Little-Snack cats.

Feb 27, Forever by Judy Blume: First Love, First Sex, First Break Up

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 01:34:02 GMT

Judy Blume's Forever..., with its story of first love and first sex, is as timely as ever. The story of Katherine and Michael, high schoolers with college in their sights