Age 04-08. 5 Stars. Zelinsky has done it again with his wonderful rendition of this classic fairy tale. His finely-detailed paintings capture the mood and marvel of this suspenseful story,… a picture-book format provides an opportunity for a good artist to really draw out this story’s timeless themes of greed, fear, despair, and maternal love, and the triumphant resolution of this story well balances its dark moments.

Age 04-08. 5 Stars. Sal and her mother set out for Blueberry Hill to pick blueberries for the winter, Mother with her large tin pail and Sal with her small one. Meanwhile, Mother Bear and her cub start up the other side of Blueberry Hill to eat blueberries for the winter…. Meeting a bear in the outdoors is a deliciously danger-filled adventure to read about, yet the story is not fearful, primarily because of the parallels drawn between the mothers and their children…. This is a wonderful story for introducing blueberries or blueberry season, or for preparing to spend time in an unfamiliar outdoor environment. More importantly, it’s simply an entertaining story which underscores the security of parental love and care for their children.

Age 00-04. 4 Stars. Swimmy’s courage and leadership, the teamwork and cooperation of the small fish, and the creativity with which they solve their problem, combine to make a satisfying story. The predatory behavior of the bigger fish is presented neutrally, as neither good nor evil — and since fish are less easy to identify with than other kinds of animals, the loss of Swimmy’s family isn’t too traumatic. Still, sensitive children may have trouble with this story’s beginning, so parents may want to use caution.

Age 04-08. 4 Stars. A lushly detailed, wordless picture book about a boy on a field trip to the Empire State Building who is befriended by a sentient cloud…. The only potentially concerning element is that the boy sneaks onto the cloud factory property, and gets in trouble for it while the grownups running the show are shown to be a little silly. For a child with authority issues this book might help to feed a rebellious heart. Aside from this, the wonderful artwork, the masterful use of images to tell the story without words, and the strikingly original story concept makes this worth having.

Age 04-08. 4 Stars. This is a simply yet eloquently drawn wordless book delivering a charming fantasy, undoubtedly influenced by David Wiesner but with a quite different artistic style…. Wordless books do require more effort for adult readers, but they are excellent for helping children learn to interpret visual images, and afford an opportunity for self-”reading”. This one is a straightforward, creative and easy-to-follow fantasy that would be a great step toward more complex stories. Younger children will enjoy pretending they are in this story, and it may lend a sense of wonder and potential to new, unknown books that they encounter.

Age 04-08. 5 Stars. A wonderful story about an arrogant king… who decides that he wants to rule the sky as well as the land, and brings down horror on his kingdom when his magicians cook up a dangerous, sticky new kind of precipitation…. There are echoes of King David’s deadly hubris (2 Samuel 24) in this story of divine retribution. Additionally, Bartholomew’s example of speaking truth to power is an excellent one, and for those who wish their children to grow into thoughtful, conscientious citizens, this isn’t a bad place to begin.

Age 04-08. 4 Stars. A delicious fantasy in which an inchworm volunteers to measure different parts of many birds, in exchange for not being eaten…. The way this funny story introduces the concept of measurement and spacial awareness is wonderful.

Age 00-04. 3 Stars. This is a simple presentation of the different cars on a freight train, with rhythmic text describing each car…. This is good for the transition from looking at pictures to understanding stories, especially if the young reader can have exposure to a real train.

Age 04-08. 5 Stars. A very nicely illustrated, faithfully told version of Little Red Riding Hood…. I especially enjoyed how the text describes Red Riding Hood’s foolish disobedience, implicitly connecting her experience with her actions.