2013 Caldecott Honor Book. From New York Times bestselling author Toni Buzzeo and Caldecott Medal winning illustrator David Small, comes a cool tale about an unlikely friendship. On a spontaneous visit to the aquarium, straight-laced and proper Elliot discovers his dream pet: a penguin. When he asks his father if he may have one (please and thank you), his father says yes. Elliot should have realized that Dad was probably thinking of a toy penguin, not a real one… Clever illustrations and a wild surprise ending make this sly, silly tale a kid-pleaser from start to finish.

A guessing game featuring six kinds of craftsmen and the 24 tools they use to build a house from the ground up.

It’s a quiet morning in the library—until a little girl roars out of control! Tess resigns herself to a time-out, but finds that she is the one who has to maintain order when a T. rex leaps from the pages of a book into real life. Books scatter, knights clatter, and a pirate brandishes a sword as T. rex leads the charge to the stars. Will Tess be able to get this dino under control? And will the library ever be the same? Catchy text and energetic illustrations will make young readers eager to discover what happens next.

Kito wants to be just like his papa, the protector of the pride. Throughout a day and night on the savanna, the cub imitates the way his father roars, swings his tail, shakes his head, and pounces. Kito may be too little to catch a wildebeest, but he is brave enough to succeed in his own hunt. Someday he will be King, just like Papa. With its rhythmic text, dramatic moments on the African plain, playful times for cub and papa, and word-for-word narration this book will make a perfect read-aloud for family sharing.

Playing on the phrase, The author and you, a commonly taught reading comprehension strategy that teaches the learner how to look at the words of an author and make inferences about what is being said, this series assists teachers and teacher-librarians in understanding the underlying purposes of the author as they prepare learning activities for their students. Through family photos, reminiscences, anecdotes and stories, Toni Buzzeo relates her lifelong preparation to become a writer. The book features wonderful insights into the creation of her picture books for children and interesting creative lesson activities to use with students. The series focuses primarily on books for the elementary age child (K-6), featuring insights into the author's background, purposes and goals in writing books. By furnishing an overview of the author's works, the books in the series give teachers the big picture. Each book features personal information about the author, including insights into why this author has chosen to write in a specific genre plus lesson plans and/or activities for each of the author's books featured. These lessons will stress the particular interest of the author and the author and you (the teacher) will build a collaborative instructional relationship using the material provided. Each book is written by the featured author or in close collaboration with the author. Using family photographs, reminiscences, anecdotes and stories, Toni Buzzeo relates her lifelong preparation to become a writer. The book features wonderful insights into the creation of her picture books for children and interesting creative lesson activities to use with students. Grades K-6.

Supplement is a library lesson based on the story.

In the wide, shining world there is so much to see, and Twiga is curious. But Twiga's tall, tall Mama wants her baby to stay close, stay safe from the dangers that lurk near each irresistible sweet smell and sparkling sight that Twiga finds. With lyrical text and enchanting illustrations, this story of a mother's love will soothe and delight readers of all ages.