The Children's Hour - Children's Book Reviews - Kindergarten

CHILDREN'S BOOK REVIEWS
KINDERGARTEN
HOLIDAY / SPECIAL DAYS

Kindergarten

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Christmas Cricket
written by Eve Bunting, illus. by Timothy Bush, (Clarion Books, 2002), 32p, Ages 3-7.
On Christmas Eve, a small cricket feels insignificant and useless, but finds a home in a family's Christmas tree where his singing is thought to be the voice of an angel.

Easter Mice
written by Bethany Roberts, illus. by Doug Cushman, (Clarion Books, 2003), 32p, Ages 3-6.
Its fun to hunt for Easter eggs. but one little mouse, distracted by the beautiful spring day, forgets the hunt when he stumbles on a very special egg.

Gregory's Shadow
written & illus. by Don Freeman, (Viking Children's Books, 2000), 32p, Ages 4-8.
Gregory the groundhog and his shadow are accidentally separated on the day before his annual Groundhog Day appearance. Be sure to read this one on February 2nd.

Hop To It! A Scholastic Easter Treasury
various authors & illustrators, (Cartwheel Books., 2003), 224p, Ages 4-8.
Seven popular Easter stories and activities are contained in this collection. Children will enjoy hearing The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Clifford's Happy Easter, Peter Cottontail, The Best Easter Hunt Ever, Bunny Trouble, More Bunny Trouble, and The Easter Ribbit.

Humbug Rabbit
written & illus. by Lorna Balian, (Humbug Books, 1997), 32p, Ages 4-8.
The story of two families unfold at the same time, when Granny (above ground) prepares for a family Easter egg hunt. The Rabbit family (below ground) prepares for their Easter, but the children are convinced by a mouse that their dad is the Easter bunny.

I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie
written by Alison Jackson, illus. by Judith Bryon Schachner, (Dutton Children's Books, 1997) 32p, Ages 4-7.
Invited to Thanksgiving dinner by an unsuspecting family, a ravenous senior citizen devours the pie, jug of cider, and proceeds to polish off the entire Thanksgiving dinner. The family resolves the crisis with a perfect holiday solution - their own Thanksgiving Day parade balloon.

McDuff's New Friend
written by Rosemary Wells, illus. by Susan Jeffers, Hyperion Books for Children, 1998), 26p, Ages 3-7.
During a Christmas Eve storm, a family gives up waiting for Santa and goes to bed, but faithful McDuff watches through the night. His persistent woofing alerts dad and Santa is rescued from a snowdrift.

The Mouse Before Christmas
written & illus. by Michael Garland, (Dutton Children's Books, 1997), 32p, Ages 2-7.
In his enthusiasm to see Santa, a small mouse sneaks a ride with Santa and is treated to a whirlwind tour of the world.

Mr. Willoughby's Christmas Tree
written & illus. by Robert Barry, (Doubleday Books for Young Readers, 2000), 32p, Ages 4-7.
When Mr. Willoughby's Christmas tree arrives, it is too tall for the ceiling. In a series of amusing events, the top is trimmed and given to another in the household. The process is repeated until only the tip remains, which is put to good use by a small mouse for his family.

The Night Before Christmas
written by Clement C. Moore, illus. by Mary Engelbreit, (HarperCollins, 2002), 32p, Ages 4-8.
Children will enjoy Mary Engelbreit's interpretation of this classic poem about a father who awakes on Christmas Eve to find St. Nicolas in his living room.

Peter Rabbit's Christmas Collection
written & illus. by Beatrix Potter, (Frederick Warne & Co., 2003) Ages 3-7.
Four of Beatrix Potter's original stories are included in this Christmas book collection: The Tailor of Gloucester, The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tale of Flopsy Bunnies and The Tale of Two Bad Mice.

Rocking Horse Christmas
written by Mary Pope Osborne, illus. by Ned Bittinger, (Scholastic Press, 1997), 32p, Ages 4-8.
A young boy and his rocking horse, Shadow, joust with knights, chase outlaws, explore foreign lands, and fight dinosaurs. Time passes and Shadow is relegated to the attic. Years later, another small boy discovers his father's horse and they begin their own adventures.

The Runaway Pumpkin
written by Kevin Lewis, illus. by S. D. Schindler, (Orchard Books, 2003), 32p, Ages 4-8.
On Halloween Buck and Billy Baxter ignore sister Lil's advice and cut a huge pumpkin loose. They watch in horror as it zooms down the hill toward the Baxter farm, crashing through the fence and coming to rest in a ditch. Granny saves the day by cooking up a bunch of pumpkin holiday treats in this tongue-twisting story.

Six Creepy Sheep
written by Judith Ross Enderle/Stephanie Gordon Tessler, illus. by John O'Brien, (Boyds Mills Press, 1992), 24p, Ages 3-6.
In this sweet and simple counting book, six sheep dressed as ghosts meet trick-or-treaters disguised as pirates, goblins and witches and one by one are frightened. All ends well when they are reunited at a Halloween party.

'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving
written & illus. by Dav Pilkey, (Orchard Books, 1990), 32p, Ages 4-8.
On a school field trip, a bond develops between the children and turkeys on Mac Nuggett's Tturkey Farm. The children realize that Ollie, Stanley, Larry, Moe, Wally, Beaver, Shemp and Grouch are destined for the dinner table. So they decide to sneak the turkeys home and celebrate a vegetarian Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Mice!
written by Bethany Roberts, illus. by Doug Cushman, (Clarion Books, 2001), 32p, Ages 4-7.
Four mice encounter problems when they put on a play about the first Thanksgiving when the Pilgrim mice traveled across the sea and settled in America. The simple story also serves an introduction to the theatre.

Willow at Christmas
Written & illus. by Camilla Ashforth, (Candlewick Press, 2002), 32p, Ages 3-6.
Willow and his friend, Little Pig Pink, prepare for Christmas on Paradise Farm in this gentle, perfect for bedtime, story.

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