Great Books, part 2

When choosing my Great Picture Books group, I usually try to look for a theme or topic that I think will contain books I can use in drop-in story times. I usually try for some sort of animal group (you can almost always find a book or two to use with animal books). This year, there didn't seem to be an animal group, so I chose "Home Sweet Home".

1. In Library Mouse by Daniel Kirk, Sam is a mouse who lives in a library. One day he decides to write his own book. He leaves it in the collection where it is found by the librarian. Sam continues to do this and his books become very popular. When asked to come and meet the children, Sam does something to encourage the author in everyone to emerge. This is a cute story with bright and vivid illustrations. A little long for the typical story time, but would be good to use with a kindergarten - second grade class.
2. In The Perfect Nest by Catherine Friend, Jack the cat is hungry for omelets, so he builds the perfect nest to attract a chicken to supply him with some eggs. It's the perfect plan until a chicken, a duck, and a goose all lay claim to the nest, leaving Jack many more complications than he anticipated. Nice illustrations, fun use of language and not too long. This would work well for a drop-in.
3. In Some Dog by Mary Casanova, George has had a wonderful life as with his owners and they find him very special. All that is threatened by the arrival of a stray puppy who is full of mischief and energy. Can George compete with Zippity? A nice story. Maybe a tad bit long. Could be used with an older group.
4. Henry's Freedom Box by Ellen Levine is based on the true story of Henry Brown, a slave who first loses his parents and then his wife and children. With nothing to lose and help from the underground railroad, Henry shuts himself into a packing crate and is mailed to freedom in the north. A very powerful and inspiring story, beautifully illustrated. Would be a good choice for an elementary school age program. Would be good for Black History Month programs.
5. Stealing Home by Robert Burleigh is two stories in one. First it is a simple descriptive story of how Jackie Robinson stole home plate during game one of the 1955 World Series. It is also the story, told in baseball card fact boxes on each page of Robinson's integration into Major League Baseball. Nicely illustrated. The layout is a little complex in that I needed to read the facts separate from the story or else the story got lost for me. I'd recommend this as a one on one read with a child/student.