Busy Baby, Friends and Trucks: Sara Gillingham

Readertotz will stay busy with Sara Gillingham's Busy Baby series. Friends and Trucks allow your little reader to explore different situations and consider ensuing feelings. A disk, which turns in the board books' middle hole, lets you say Busy Baby is happy or sad.

In Trucks, can he drive the firetruck faster? Can he load the recycling or pass out scoops of ice cream? In Friends, Busy Baby is asked to share, help clean up, and wave good-bye. The reader considers if the baby is happy or sad in each situation.

With subdued color, graphic shapes, and a print texture in the illustrations, Busy Baby will keep little fingers engaged and minds considering. How does Busy Baby feel? How would you feel?

Busy Baby Friends
Busy Baby Trucks
by Sara Gillingham
Chronicle Books, 2015

More, more, more: Pete the Cat's Big Doodle & Draw Book

How fun to get to color and draw around Pete the Cat, right? If your totz enjoy Pete, look for his Big Doodle and Draw Book. Draw Pete boarding a train, add a smile to a frog, color his cap with cool colors. Tasks reinforce concepts: draw six strings on Pete's guitar, what doesn't belong in the fridge, match pictures with their opposite.

Add this work to your family's coloring books. Everyone will want to take a turn!

Pete the Cat's Big Doodle & Draw Book
by James Dean
HarperFestival, 2015

Lionel and Molly, Colors: Joanna Lake

Lionel and Molly, Colors is a new touch-and-feel book from little bee books. Joanna Lake's two characters explore color, weather, and texture together. Illustrated by Jess Racklyeft, with a touch of sophistication in the simplicity, text and imagery are a nice balance. The inserted textures are an added bonus for little readers' fingers.

Introduce your totz to multiple concepts with Colors. Look for more from Lionel and Molly.



Lionel and Molly, Colors
By Joanna Lake
illustrated by Jess Racklyeft
little bee books, 2015

Shhh! this Book is Sleeping: Cedric Ramadier

Welcome, 2016! With the new year, we wish you and yours great sleep. Hopefully your readertotz are quiet through the night. This board book may be a help, at least getting everyone settled down.

Shhh! this Book is Sleeping begins with a little pink mouse encouraging the reader to be quiet. The book in hand is sleepy. It has completed all night duties, such as brushing its teeth. Warm enough, with a hug and kiss, the reader closes the last page very gently, as the book has fallen fast asleep.

Author Cedric Ramadier helps create the bedtime ritual by repeating the necessary activities and showcasing the pleasures of quieting down. Vincent Bourgeau's graphic images, with only a few shapes and lines, convey sweet simplicity as the book falls asleep.

Your totz will enjoy putting this book to sleep, before they nod off themselves. Shhh.

Shhh! this Book is Sleeping
by Cedric Ramadier
illustrated by Vincent Bourgeau
Random House, 2016