The Treasury of Read-Alouds

PICTURE BOOKS page 1 of 3

These books represent a brief portion of the hundreds
cited in the print edition of The-Read-Aloud Handbook.

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

by Judith Viorst; Ray Cruz, illus.      K and up      34 pages      Atheneum, 1972

Everyone has a bad day once in a while but little Alexander has the worst of all. Follow him from a cereal box without a prize to a burned-out nightlight. Sequels: Alexander Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday, and Alexander, Who’s Not (Do you hear me? I mean it!) Going to Move. Also by the author: If I Were in Charge of the World and Other Worries. Related books: Are You Going To Be Good? by Cari Best; and Once Upon an Ordinary Day by Colin McNaughton.

Aunt Minnie McGranahan

by Mary Skillings Prigger; Betsy Lewin, illus.      K–2      30 pages      Clarion, 1999

Everyone in the small Kansas farm town thought Aunt Minnie had lost her mind when she took in nine orphaned nieces and nephews in 1920. Based on the true story of one of the author’s relatives, the tale describes Minnie’s sometimes whimsical adventures with the children as they adjust to farm life and she adjusts to all of them. Related book: Saving Sweetness.

Baby Brains

by Simon James      PreS-1      24 pages      Candlewick, 2004

This is a wonderful send-up of the super-baby syndrome that afflicts too many parents, but, on another level, it’s a funny story for children. Mr. and Mrs. Brains do “everything right”—before he’s born: they read to him, play music and foreign language tapes, even watch the news with the sound turned up. Thus days after Baby Brains is born, he’s sitting up reading the newspaper when his parents come down for breakfast. After breakfast he announces he’d like to go to school tomorrow, which he does, and heads the class! It’s not long before he’s included with the astronauts for a trip into space and that’s where it all comes apart—but in a good way. In the sequel, Baby Brains Superstar, the wee wizard is back as a musical prodigy and rock ‘n’ roll star. Related book: A Fine School by Sharon Creech.

Baby in a Basket

by Gloria Rand; Ted Rand, illus.      K–2      36 pages      Dutton, 1997

With the winter of 1917 approaching Fairbanks, Alaska, Marie Boyer bids good-bye to her postmaster husband, bundles her three-year-old and four-month-old daughters in fur skins, and boards a large sleigh for the ten-day trip to warmer and safer Seattle. But a ferocious winter storm strikes the travelers, spooking the horses and dumping the sleigh’s contents into the snow and river. How they survived and the miraculous river rescue of the baby in the basket make this true story a great read-aloud. Related books: The Bear That Heard Crying by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock; and Mailing May by Michael Tunnell; and The Year of Miss Agnes by Kirkpatrick Hill .

Big Jabe

by Jerdine Nolen; Kadir Nelson, illus.      Gr. 1–4      30 pages      Lothrop, 2000

Some saw him as a Moses figure, others as John Henry, but everyone agreed that Big Jabe did wondrous things on the plantation—things no other slave ever dreamed of doing, including saving many of his people. The illustrator, Kadir Nelson, is the single best talent I’ve seen in children’s books in the last ten years and this book radiates with his talent. Also by the author: Harvey Potter's Balloon Farm; Hewitt Anderson's Great Big Life; and Plantzilla.

The Book of Beasts

by E. Nesbit, abridged by Inga Moore      K-2      54 pages      Candlewick, 2001

E. Nesbit was one of the great storytellers for children a century ago, and Moore has slightly abridged one of her most charming short stories for this volume and illustrated it magnificently. It’s the story of young Lionel who is suddenly summoned to the palace where, to his amazement, he’s crowned king to replace his late great, great, great, great, great grandfather. Although he’s warned by court counselors not to open The Book of Beasts in the library, he does so, thus freeing a fierce dragon from its pages that sets about devouring the countryside. Is there something in the book that might save the kingdom from the dragon? Dare he open it again?

Related books: Do Not Open by Brinton Turkle; Matthew’s Dragon by Susan Cooper; The Minpins by Roald Dahl; My Father’s Dragon, short novel by Rutg Stiles Gannett; Saint George and the Dragon retold by Margaret Hodges; The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Graham, abridged and illustrated by Inga Moore; and a chapter book The Dragonling by Jackie French Koller.

Chato and the Party Animals

by Gary Soto; Susan Guevara, illus.      K–2      28 pages      Putnam, 2000

When Chato, the original party animal (cat), discovers that his friend Novio Boy came from the pound and thus doesn’t even know his own birthday, he decides to schedule one for him and invites everyone in the barrio. The problem: He forgets to invite Novio Boy. When he doesn’t show up and can’t be found, everyone assumes he’s died or been kidnapped. When he finally shows up, there is a great pachanga. An excellent celebration of Latino culture. Other books in the series: Chato’s Kitchen and Chato Goes Cruisin’. Also by the author: Baseball in April, a collection of teenage short stories.

Corduroy

by Don Freeman      Tod–2      32 pages      Viking, 1968

In this beloved story, a teddy bear searches through a department store for a friend. His quest ends when a little girl buys him with her piggy-bank savings. Also by the author: A Pocket for Corduroy; and Beady Bear; For related books see Ira Sleeps Over.

A Day’s Work

by Eve Bunting; Ronald Himler, illus.      K–4      30 pages      Clarion, 1994

A young Mexican-American boy seeks work for his newly arrived grandfather who speaks no English. In persuading a man that his grandfather knows how to garden, the boy tells a small lie that ends up causing them twice as much work. The lesson in truthfulness is apparent, but just as important is the tender relationship of the child with an old man who needs help in a frightening new land. Related title: The Paperboy by Dav Pilkey.

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins (nonfiction)

by Barbara Kerley; Brian Selznick, Illus.      Gr. 1 and up      48 pages      Scholastic, 2001

In 1856, artist and naturalist Waterhouse Hawkins, collaborating with a leading scientist, earned an extraordinary commission: To build a dinosaur park. Think "Jurassic Park" in Queen Victoria's time. On an island outside London, Hawkins began building his giant models. And giants they were. Just one of the creatures required 30 tons of clay, 600 bricks, 1500 tiles, and 38 casks of cement. The finished product would astonish Victorian England and lead him to the U.S. where he was invited to build more models, this time in Central Park. Unfortunately, in the middle of his work, the henchmen of the infamous (and jealous) Boss Tweed vandalized the project beyond recovery. To this day, shattered pieces from the original models are still buried beneath the soil in Central Park. One could easily say that everything that has been done with dinosaurs since then — from plastic models and cereal prizes to movies and fantasy books like "Jurassic Park"—began with this one man's vivid imagination. It is a tale as fantastic as the creatures themselves. Related book: Mammoth by Patrick O'Brien.

Eddie, Harold’s Little Brother

by Ed Koch and Pat Koch Thaler; James Warhola, illus.    Gr. 1-3    28 pages    Putnam, 2005

Eddie idolized his older brother, not just because he was older but because he was the best athlete in the neighborhood. Everyone wanted Harold on their team. The one they didn’t want was Eddie. Harold insisted Eddie be chosen for one side or the other but eventually even he tired of Eddie’s clumsiness. There was one skill that Eddie did have—he could talk about almost anything. When he talked about his brother’s games, the boys were spellbound. So when a notice appeared about a public speaking contest, Harold was certain this was meant for Eddie and convinced him to give it a try. So Eddie wrote his speech, rehearsed it in front of the team, and entered the contest. What followed eventually led the never-lost-for-words Ed Koch to the mayor’s office of New York City. For other picture book biographies, see My Brother Martin.

Erandi’s Braids

by Antonio Hernandez Madrigal; Tomie dePaola, illus.      PreS.–2      30 pages      Putnam, 1999

It was once the custom for women in poor Mexican villages to sell their hair, which was then used for wigs and fancy embroidery. In this tale, Erandi’s mother has decided to sell her hair in order to pay for a much-needed fishing net. The barber refuses, saying hers is too short, but that he would gladly take the child’s braids. It is now the child’s difficult decision to make. Related books: The Legend of the Bluebonnet by Tomie dePaola; and The Babe and I by David A. Adler.

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