BookDragon Children/Picture Books

Stories 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 by Eugène Ionesco, illustrated and translated by Etienne Delessert

24 Oct, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, European, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Short Stories, Translation

How strange to admit that Dave Eggers taught me Eugène Ionesco – Mr. Theatre of the Absurd himself – wrote kiddie stories in addition to his dozens of plays (Rhinoceros, The Chairs, The Bald Soprano, being some of his signature pieces). Eggers founded McSweeney's which recently debuted McMullens,...

The Thinking Girl’s Treasury of Dastardly Dames | Njinga: “The Warrior Queen” by Janie Havemeyer, illustrated by Peter Malone

21 Oct, by SIBookDragon in African, Biography, Children/Picture Books, Middle Grade Readers, Nonfiction

Those Dastardly Dames are increasing their fold (yippeee!), this time to welcome a 16th-century West African queen named Njinga, meaning "twist," because she was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck! She certainly found her fighting spirit early on: as the eldest daughter...

The Thinking Girl’s Treasury of Real Princesses | Sacajawea of the Shoshone by Natasha Yim, illustrated by Albert Nguyen

20 Oct, by SIBookDragon in Biography, Children/Picture Books, Chinese American, Middle Grade Readers, Native American/First Nations/Indigenous Peoples, Nonfiction

Girl-powered Goosebottom Books expands both their Thinking Girl's Treasuries of Real Princesses and Dastardly Dames this month. After nearly paralyzing herself writing the first six royal titles, Head Goose Shirin Yim Bridges swore she would get some help as the series grew. True to her...

Dreaming Up: A Celebration of Building by Christy Hale

16 Oct, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction

I'm a little hesitant to tell you about this ingenious book ...

Zephyr Takes Flight by Steve Light

10 Oct, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

Of course, a child named Zephyr is predestined to love planes, always ready to ride the gentle winds in the limitless sky. [I should also mention that "Zephyr" is the name of the (unmanned, solar-powered) plane that holds the world record for being continuously airborne...

The Sky of Afghanistan by Ana A. de Eulate, illustrated by Sonja Wimmer, translated by Jon Brokenbrow

27 Sep, by SIBookDragon in Afghan, Children/Picture Books, European, Fiction, Spanish, Translation

"I look at the sky, I close my eyes, / and my imagination begins to soar ...

Nora the Mind Reader by Orit Gidali, illustrated by Aya Gordon-Noy, translated by Annette Appel

13 Sep, by SIBookDragon in Absolute Favorites, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Israeli, Translation

What a relief to find out someone has finally found the magic wand! It might look like an ordinary bubble blower to some, but you just need to read to believe. Nora comes home from kindergarten one day and sadly tells her mother about the boy...

My First Book of Korean Words: An ABC Rhyming Book by Henry J. Amen IV and Kyubyong Park, illustrated by Aya Padrón

10 Sep, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Korean, Korean American, Nonfiction

No matter where you've been hiding, someone has been able to infiltrate your defenses and made you watch the freakishly popular "Gangnam Style" by PSY (in Korean, 싸이, although apparently it's short for 'psycho'). The South Korean singer (educated at Boston University and Berklee College of Music, I must add)...

Same, Same but Different by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw

30 Aug, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Indian, South Asian

Winner of this year's South Asian Book Award from the South Asia National Outreach Consortium [SANOC], Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw's latest is a whimsical, delightful exploration of friendship, family, and cultures ...

The No-Dogs-Allowed Rule by Kashmira Sheth, illustrated by Carl Pearce

22 Aug, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Indian American, Middle Grade Readers, South Asian American

Ishan Mehra has CDS ...

Food and Faith by Susan Reuben and Sophie Pelham

13 Aug, by SIBookDragon in British, British Asian, Children/Picture Books, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction

Six children, six different faiths … while their holy days and festivals vary, the one thing they share – that we all share, regardless of the specifics of our backgrounds – are special foods we share with family and friends to celebrate memorable occasions. Francesca is...

The Girl Who Loved Danger: A Steve Light Storybox by Steve Light

11 Aug, by SIBookDragon in African, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

As the e-publishing world is shrinking our stories into little mobile devices, storyteller, teacher, and author Steve Light brings back some delightful heft with his new Storybox collection that features classic tales from around the world that your youngest readers can bring immediately to life ...

Maya and the Turtle: A Korean Fairy Tale by Soma Han and John C. Stickler, illustrated by Soma Han

07 Aug, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Korean, Korean American

In between "Long, long ago ...

Kodoku by Wililam Emery, illustrated by Hanae Rivera

05 Jul, by SIBookDragon in Biography, Children/Picture Books, Hapa/Mixed-race, Japanese, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction

Kodoku is one of those rare titles that immediately makes you want to learn more about what you just read. The slim kiddie book chronicles the extraordinary voyage of a young man – "Kenichi the brace, Kenichi the adventurer" for whom "the wind blows forever / across...

Faith: Five Religions and What They Share by Richard Steckel and Michele Steckel

01 Jul, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction

With everyday declarations of about how different we are (bipartisan struggles, ongoing wars, shifting borders, even playground scuffles), sometimes we need reminders of how alike we are to connect us back together. As founders of the Milestones Project which champions mutual respect, understanding, and acceptance...

Let’s Hear It for Almigal by Wendy Kupfer, illustrated by Tammie Lyon

26 Jun, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

Almigal is “absolutely, positively the luckiest girl in the world.” But sometimes, even the luckiest girl wishes all her friends wore hearing aids … or wishes she didn’t feel left out when she can’t hear “every single sound in the whole entire universe!” And who...

Baby Flo by Alan Schroeder, illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu

24 Jun, by SIBookDragon in Biography, Black/African American, Children/Picture Books, Chinese American, Nonfiction

In a short introductory paragraph on the copyright page, author Alan Schroeder begins with a summary of what’s real and what’s been embellished “for storytelling purposes” in this vibrant title, because “[r]eliable information about [Baby Flo's] early years is limited.” Schroeder is definitely speaking to...

Sélavi, That is Life: A Haitian Story of Hope by Youme, with an essay by Edwidge Danticat

29 May, by SIBookDragon in Caribbean, Caribbean American, Children/Picture Books, Haitian, Haitian American, Nonfiction

The first thing you need to know is that this story is real. And although it was first published eight years ago – and six years before the tragic January 12, 2010 Haitian earthquake – Sélavi is an even more urgent call for help for Haiti's children. A...

One Day I Went Rambling by Kelly Bennett, illustrated by Terri Murphy

19 May, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

Ready for some Saturday fun? Turn off all those screens and power up with your ever-more powerful imagination instead! Come join Zane as he turns things ordinary into magical adventures! What Zane sees as a flying saucer's crest, Lamar mistakenly calls a hubcap. No, Zane's...

The Wooden Sword: A Jewish Tale from Afghanistan by Ann Redisch Stampler, illustrated by Carol Liddiment

16 May, by SIBookDragon in Afghan, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Jewish

"One starry night in old Kabul ...