Maybe A Bear Ate It! written by Robie Harris, reviewed by Terry Wahrman

Summary:  This highly amusing interactive book keeps readers wondering what the next page will bring.  This little catlike animal is dressed for bed and cannot find his book.  He looks high and low while the narrator asks us questions about how we feel, what do we see, and what do you think happened to the book?

Straight Talk for Librarians:  This is an early reader book with discussion questions built in.  The questions were created to interact with a child that talks.  The questions were different so that it was not the normal one word answer.  It was refreshing to have the opportunity to stop and examine our feelings and have a discussion. Great for a classroom group read or for a parent and child time.  In the back you will find What am I? - animal riddles.  Imagination station - finish the sentence. Mystery solved - learn how to solve mysteries. Picture time- draw pictures. All wonderful ideas to do with students.   Highly Recommended.

Will Giraffe Laugh?, written by Hilary Leung, reviewed by Klaudia Janek

Summary: I’m on a board book reviewing spree and this book was chosen because I could not resist the grumpy giraffe on the cover. Props to the illustrator for making a giraffe grumpy. Usually, they are depicted as cute, gentle and very unassuming characters. I also loved the green argyle flower design on the book spine. In this book, a Giraffe is grumpy and his friends want to cheer him up. They want Giraffe to laugh. Bear does some juggling, crocodile puts on a puppet show, sheep makes balloon animals, frog shoots his tongue all over the place, ladybug to entertain on her guitar. Nothing works. Giraffe yells at his friends and makes them all feel bad. Now it is Giraffe’s turn to make his friends laugh. Young readers will also laugh at the outcome.

Straight Talk for Librarians: What a great book to learn about friendship! The youngest readers will think about the things they do to cheer up their friends. It will also make readers think about what happens if they yell at their siblings or friends. No one feels good when they are yelled at. The color choices throughout the book are somewhat muted and earthy. They reflect nature very nicely. The only page spread that is different is when Giraffe gets really mad. The dark skies roll in and lightning strikes as it is raining. It’s a perfect way to show Giraffe’s stormy emotions. A little bit of slapstick comedy seems to cheer everybody up and readers will come away with a very satisfying ending. This book is a great choice for classrooms to read about feelings. It’s a good purchase for any library serving the PreK crowd. It is also a perfect purchase for a baby shower to help start a home library for little ones. This book has been a favorite of my 4-year-old. Unfortunately, it did not survive the drop into a giant puddle of water....in a rainstorm...