The Secret of Nightingale Wood, written by Lucy Strange, reviewed by Todd Erickson

Summary: in 1919. Henrietta, or Henry as she is called by her family, moves from London to Hope House in the English countryside with her grief-stricken mother, distant father, nanny and toddling sister, affectionately named piglet. Henry thinks she sees ghosts, which could very well be when you consider the secrets of Hope House and the tragedy that has befallen them all. In Nightingale Wood, Henry meets a strange woman, whom she calls Moth, who may or may not have it in her to save Henry and her dysfunctional family from a curse of grief, the local doctor, and all around hopelessness.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The Secret of Nightingale Wood reads like a throwback to an old timey gothic English Countryside story of mystery, fairytale and grief soaked horror. As a first person narrator, Hen makes many references to the many fairy tales and stories she knows. They are basically her only solace since her older brother's tragic death, her mother's mental unraveling and her distant father's physical absence. The tale has the light touch of a fairy tale, despite the heavy material. It builds to a fantastical conclusion, of Hen saving the day from the evil town doctor and his unwitting accomplice, her own nanny. An all-around enjoyable, if slightly maudlin story - but one of hope in a time of unimaginable sadness.

Goodnight Train Rolls On! written by June Sobel, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: This book is a cute story for preschool children. It tells the tale of children going to sleep and what, apparently, happens during the magical process. The two-page spread illustrations will work well whether during a group story time or if the book is being read to one child. They pack a lot in and will generate interest and questions. The fun process shows the goodnight train chugging through herds of sheep (that may be counted), an octopus in a bathtub and a bear in a pillow fight. This would be a nice book to read to a preschool child to make bedtime look fun.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The book is for preschool children. It would be great for a story time because of the large, colorful illustrations.

Monkey Walk, written by Colleen Madden, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: This story will get young children's imaginations going full force. The young girl in the story is going, reluctantly, to the zoo with her family. But the day becomes fun and adventurous when when she imagines that her hat and then her phone are stolen by zoo animals and she must bargain with them to get her items back. She imagines that they want bananas and penguins when she is shown drawings of these objects. The illustrations are cute and show the girl working hard to find the objects she needs to barter. Once the day is done and she is in the car with her family you see that all of the "animals" were really objects belonging to her and her little siblings. It is a cute story about family, adventure and imagination. Recommended.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The topics of adventure, family and imagination will be good talking points.

Princess Adventures: This Way or That Way? written by Sylvie Misslin, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: Rose and Josephine are ready for an adventure. Which path should they take for an adventure? Should they go toward the raspberry bush or the river? Should they go to the cave or continue on the path? As the girls continue their imaginary adventures they always have a choice. The author lets you explore both choices and that will make the story interesting and fun for young children. It may be a bit confusing for young children when it comes to using the tabs to choose the adventure but it doesn't really matter what they choose. The story is cute and fun and works no matter which way the reader and the girls go for adventure.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The tabs in the book, for choosing which way to go, are going to be a bit difficult for very young children. However, it doesn't really matter if they are used correctly or not. The story still flows.

Bunny's Staycation, written by Lori Richmond, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: Bunny is going to miss his Mama when she goes on a business trip. She explains to Bunny that she will be back in 5 days and that he and his Papa will have fun while she is away. Bunny goes to great lengths of imagination as to how he will keep his Mama from leaving. But she convinces him that he and Papa will have adventures. So, Bunny and Papa have a different adventure, at home, each day. Young children will get a laugh out of Bunny's creative thoughts on how to keep his Mama home. The fun illustrations show Bunny trying to stuff his Mama's suitcase in a mailbox, hide it behind plants, place it in a "time machine," flush it down the toilet and slingshot it away. Papa's ideas for home adventures will also be a hit with young children. Papa changes a cardboard box into a car and they travel to the tropics (the bathroom), a wintry wonderland (the kitchen), a safari (the lawn) and, finally to camp (the living room) for a special welcome home for Mama. The story is cute and has strong family vibes. The illustrations nicely complement the text. Recommended.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The story of a family will be a hit for many young children. Strong parental vibes.

Reformed, written by Justin Weinberger, reviewed by Todd Erickson

Summary: Ian Hart and three friends get into some trouble when the feed a peanut butter sandwich to a kid who's allergic. They will not be allowed to enter middle school with their classmates unless they spend the summer in Bully Reform School. If they manage to failout, they are sent off to Children's Village - a reform school for hopeless delinquents. Ian isn't so much a bully as a follower, and as he meets other real bullies, he needs to confront what it is he wants to be known for and who he wants to be. He has some hard choices to make in this funny, irreverent story about a kid confronting the voice in his head and his peers.

Straight Talk for Librarians: This is a funny and lighthearted story for 5th and 6th graders who might be in the middle of making some important life decisions about how they might want to present to their peer group. Do they want to be a follower or a leader? And what kind of friends do they want to hang out with. Ian is not a leader, and that's what gets him into trouble. He mostly goes along to get along, and ultimately he ends up paying a price for that. For being a bully reform school, none of the bullies are too over the top. It's mostly just a humorous take on middle school. There are a lot of characters and they all appear to be white, so sometimes it's difficult to follow along, but the message is sincere without being too preachy or obvious.

Possum and the Summer Storm, written by Anne Hunter, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: The adventures of a possum and his baby possums finding a new home after a storm is charming and educational. A storm washes away the home of the possum family so they set out to find a new home and make friends along the way. Animals such as a chipmunk, muskrat, a wasp and an oriole try to help by showing the family how they build a home. This will be interesting to young children as they learn about animals and nature and the structures in which they live. The ending is nice with the possum family using all of the knowledge they have gathered from their wildlife friends. The illustrations are very nice and make the story even more meaningful and even educational. Recommended

Straight Talk for Librarians: This is a nice story for young children to learn about friendship and how some animals live in the wild.

Little Book of Big What-Ifs, written by Renata Liwska, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: A very cute book where animals are the lead characters demonstrating "what if" questions. What if you can't think of anything versus what if your imagination runs wild? What if there is too much room versus what if there isn't enough room? Young children can learn about possibilities and opposites from the different questions presented in the book. The illustrations are cute and do a good job of representing the viewpoints. This would be a good read aloud book and it should provoke some discussion with young children to see things from both sides or different viewpoints. Recommended.

Straight Talk for Librarians: This is a good book for discussion with young children about looking at things from different viewpoints.

Margret & H.A. Rey's Curious George Goes Swimming, written by Allessandra Preziosi, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: I am assuming that young children love Curious George because there are so any CG books available and have been popular for decades. This book about George going to a public swimming pool with the man with the yellow hat has a lot of good content on rules and friendship. Going to the public swimming pool means George has to follow rules such as playing in the pool with others, being careful on the wet area around the pool, helping a new friend to swim and obeying the pool rules. Young children will learn about sharing and helping from George as he befriends a girl who cannot swim under water. He helps her to have the confidence to do so when he dropped his ice cream pop into the pool and she helped him by retrieving it from the bottom of the pool.The book is on the small side but it would still be great for a read aloud. Young children will enjoy George's adventures and learn at the same time with George! Recommended.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The book is chock full of learning experiences for young children.

Bone Hollow, written by Kim Ventrella, reviewed by Todd Erickson

Summary: In an attempt to save Miss Cleo's pet chicken during a thunderstorm, Gabe falls from the rooftop of the only home he's ever really known. Gabe awakens to a tearful scene in Miss Cleo's bedroom, but no one seems to notice. Later, he escapes the mortuary table to reunite with his faithful canine Ollie, but to his shock - his guardian, friends and neighbors are not too happy to see him appear at his own candlelit vigil. Gabe doesn't quite realize that he's in fact dead, until it's spelled out to him by an 100 year old ghost girl Wynne. She invites him to stay with her in Bone Hollow. Wynne has a secret and a job that takes her away for chunks of time. In the end, Wynne has more in store for Gabe than he can even imagine.

Straight Talk for Librarians: Believe it or not, Bone Hollow starts out as a hilarious tale of one boy's haphazard and untimely death as he falls from the roof while attempting to rescue his guardian's chicken during a thunderstorm. Hijynx and mayhem ensues when Gabe attempts to convince his loved ones that he's really alive. To his horror, they chase him out of town with baseball bats. Believe it or not, this is all hysterical and side-splittingly funny, until Gabe meets Wynne and moves into Bone Hollow. Then the story becomes dead serious and less of an otherworldly joke. Honestly, the first half of the book is much more entertaining in tone and plot. The second half drags, as Gabe becomes resigned to his eternal fate.

Thank You Book, written by Mary Lyn Ray, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: This book is a nice add to the collection for young children. It follows a group of friends including children, with gender and racial diversity, and anthropomorphic animals going through scenarios of daily life. Each scenario such as watching the sun rise, playing outside, reading books, splashing in puddles and eating with family are all things for which to be thankful. The author demonstrates being thankful for big events and little events in a very nice way that young children will understand and appreciate. The illustrations by Stephanie Graegin present the activities and events to be thankful for in a great way for young children. Recommended.

Straight Talk for Librarians: This book will work very well in a discussion with young readers on being thankful.

Dinosaurs by the Numbers, written by Steve Jenkins, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: Young children who are interested in dinosaurs will love this book. The author has written another book using infographics and, this time, it is to explain and demonstrate the world of dinosaurs. The book is small so it could not be used in a read aloud but it is perfect for young people interested in dinosaur research or who just have an interest in the topic. The book covers topics such as speed, size, extinction and many other facts. An interesting part of the book is "living dinosaurs." The author writes that birds are considered living dinosaurs because of their skeletal similarities to some dinosaurs. Young children will find the book interesting and they will learn a lot from the great infographics. Highly recommended.

Straight Talk for Librarians: This is a great book for children interested in dinosaurs. The infographics are fun, interesting and helpful. The book is physically small so it won't really work for a read aloud.

Earth by the Numbers, written by Steve Jenkins, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: This book offers a great way to explain science and nature to young children. Using infographics young readers will see how earth and all the features of earth not only work but how they compare. For example, one infographic compares the highest mountain peaks on all 7 continents. Other examples include rivers compared to swamps and marshes compared to lakes. The infographics illustrating these comparisons are extremely helping and telling. Some infographics such as those demonstrating the force of tornadoes may frighten some young readers but they may also find them very interesting. I recommend the book for young readers because it is full of great facts on earth and the infographics are excellent.

Straight Talk for Librarians: This book will be welcomed by students interested in science and nature. The book is small so it would not work in a read aloud but will work great for young children researching these topics or who have interest in these topics.