Children

To those who cannot understand subtlety, I have included a lot of titles this month that remind us – ALL of us – of the importance of treating others with kindness. In a day and age when everyone likes to blame others and never accept responsibility, I think it is critical that each of us look in the mirror and figure out how we can make things better by our treatment of others. Let’s start our own bug…not the flu, the “kindness” bug.

Reynolds is very successful and doesn’t need me promoting his work, but I am including this book for three reasons: (1) I love everything Peter Reynolds writes and illustrates; (2) kids deserve a nice story about the value of vocabulary and (3) everyone could heed the book’s message of the importance of kindness.

Given some of the latest despicable tragedies, I’d encourage every family to cuddle up to this wonderful poem about the importance of love in a young child’s life by Caldecott Honor and Newbery Winner Matt de la Peña, with beautiful illustrations by Loren Long.

Applegate – a Newbery-winning author – has another hit on her hands. As Publishers’ Weekly notes, this accessible and moving novel demonstrates how the creative resilience of a child's mind can soften difficult situations, while exploring the intersection of imagination and truth. Beautiful book – needs to be a part of every middle school teacher’s classroom library.

A perfect addition for Black History Month. Harrison’s beautifully illustrated book features 40 African-American women who changed the world. Truly inspiring.

There are few things more gratifying to me than reading funny poems to children, and Prelutsky has always been one of my favorites. A fun poetic romp any parent can relate to regarding the ritual of trying to get kids to go to bed.

Moss encourages her young audience to concentrate on two areas: focusing on inner self-esteem and building social confidence. Through procedure and practice, she reminds kids that real confidence doesn’t come from being the smartest, prettiest, or the most popular one in the room but from the comfort one has with him- or herself. Great book for all upper elementary and middle school teachers.

Conceived by the amazing Kate DiCamillo and featuring enchanting illustrations by Jaime Kim, this nearly wordless graphic story follows a little girl in search of a friend.

Tilby has written and illustrated a wonderful story that gives children the right idea of how to stand up for themselves, without offending well-intentioned friends and family who proffer what they “should” do with their lives. Terrific read-aloud.

Adorable Christmas gift by the dependable author of the How to Catch series.

Brother and Sister Bear can't wait for Christmas and all the presents they'll open. But during the Christmas pageant something special happens! The Bear cubs learn a very valuable lesson about the joy of giving to others. Does it get any better than The Berenstain Bears?

With beautiful illustrations by Barbara Cooney, Houston has gifted us with a timeless Appalachian Classic that is always welcome for the holidays.

Born in Ghana with a deformed leg, Emmanuel chose to ignore the doubters around him and listen to his mother, who taught him to reach for his dreams. At age thirteen he became a cyclist and rode an astonishing four hundred miles across Ghana in 2001, spreading his powerful message: disability is not inability. Beautiful story that brings me to tears every time I read it to students.

Zog is the most eager student in the class, but he's also the most accident-prone. With each test (and each bump, bruise, or scrape), his dream of earning a gold star seems further away than ever. But a mysterious girl keeps coming to his rescue. And when Zog faces his toughest test yet, she may be just the person to help Zog win classroom glory! Includes wonderful illustrations by Axel Scheffler.

When a huge black dog appears outside the Hope family home, each member of the household sees it and hides. Only Small, the youngest Hope, has the courage to face the black dog, who might not be as frightening as everyone else thinks.