Never underestimate the power of good friends! Patchwork, a colorfully quilted stuffed bear, sets forth on a quirky journey and enlists the help of his wildly eclectic bunch of buddies including a great blue whale, a mama-loving llama, and a gracious narwhal to help him repair his best pal, a raggedy bear named Fred. Patchwork Helps a Friend is the debut picture book from artist and designer Jacqueline Schmidt of Screech Owl Design. Schmidt’s charming illustrations bring to life the endearing tale written by Gail Greiner. As this imaginative story unfolds, we learn that anything can be accomplished with the help of trusted friends. This sweetly illustrated story celebrates the value of friendship and the love of a good adventure while including always-captivating children’s book staples like talking animals, surprises, and even some dancing! For those who fell in love with Laura Vaccaro Seeger’s Dog and Bear, Patchwork Helps a Friend is a no-brainer must-have that promises to be read aloud over and over again! Patchwork Helps a Friend is the introductory book in the series, Patchwork’s Adventures, taking youthful readers (ages 3 to 7) on highly visual, emotionally-driven adventures led by the oh-so loveable stuffed bear and his menagerie of animal comrades.

Patchwork Helps a Friend

Children's Books

Greiner, Gail

Animals

POW! Kids Books

For fans of Bruno Munari's Zoo and Andrew Zuckerman's Creature ABC, Almost an Animal Alphabet is a quirky combination of alphabet and (almost) animal book, introducing young children to the letters of the alphabet via a collection of appealingly drawn critters. With a gently humorous sensibility and a unique illustrative style, Almost an Animal Alphabet is a perfect choice for pre-readers who love animals. • Why is it called Almost An Animal Alphabet? There are actually 21 animals, 1 extinct animal, 3 non-animals (for N, U, and X), and 1 imaginary animal (for Y--can you guess? It's a yeti.) • Alphabet books are perennial sellers, popular with parents and as gifts--this one is distinguished by its simple, elegant style and the quirky emotional appeal of the animals • Katie's art has a textural quality and an artisanal feeling that is enhanced by the matte paper-over-board cover of Almost an Animal Alphabet, making this a great gift for design-obsessed parents and possibly cross-over to non-parents who like the art

Almost An Animal Alphabet

Viggers, Katie

Masterworks of contemporary art teach kids about feelings and how they can be expressed in art. The bold work of contemporary artists, including Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami, and Alex Katz is totally accessible to small children, and in this gorgeous, ground-breaking picture book, these works of art speak to children about emotions. Children will recognize love, surprise, hurt, and other powerful feelings in these images, which accompany a fun-to-read aloud narrative with a silly twist at the end that is sure to delight younger readers. Parents can enjoy the art as well as the opportunity to engage their children in a light-hearted discussion of feelings and how they affect us—the beginnings of emotional intelligence. Learn more at NoAnimalsOnlyFeelings.com.

There Are No Animals in This Book (Only Feelings)

Sanchez, Chani

Arts, Music & Photography

Where do shadows go at night? Young readers will find out when they take a trip to Shadowville. Gorgeous block-print style illustrations with a retro feeling accompany a whimsical text and reveal the secret life of shadows in this delightful picture book that follows shadows to the magical land they visit after the sun goes down. • illustrator Michael Bartalos originally published this charming picture book in 1995, and this reissue brings back all the charm of the original with a beautiful new cover and endpapers • after dark, freed of their daytime jobs, the shadows come out to play in Shadowville, where they can relax, play sports, shop, and even dine, "though they've eaten huge amounts, they still weigh only half an ounce" • bold, contrasting illustrations and rhyming text make this a fun read-aloud for children age 3 to 7

Shadowville

Bartalos, Michael

Fairy Tales, Folk Tales & Myths

At once fun to read and educational, 1 to 20, Animals Aplenty shows each number both numerically and as a quantity, which is the key to teaching children not only to count but also the building blocks of mathematical skills. The new book from Katie Viggers, author of Almost an Animal Alphabet, teaches kids to count from 1 to 20 as they meet a menagerie of amusing creatures. Each number is depicted in animals, so kids learn the number and also instantly see how many. All this education is disguised by Katie's adorable, detailed creatures, who romp through the numbers with unexpected and frequently silly props—and it all rhymes! For example... "5 goats wearing coats" "7 pigs, 7 wigs" "15 bats who are acrobats"

1 to 20, Animals Aplenty

Book Blocks are chunky little board books that are shaped like blocks, the perfect first books for babies! Featuring high-contrast colors, eye-catching shapes, and colorful patterns (incorporating the latest scientific research about vision development), these mini books are designed to entice infants to focus and develop their visual acuity. Four little block-shaped mini books, each measuring 2-3/8 x 2-3/8 inches, comprise this adorable set: Book 1: Black and White--simple but interesting shapes moving into more complex shapes and patterns Book 2: Red, Blue, and Yellow--introduces primary colors and slightly more complex shapes, moving into real patterns with multiple colors Book 3: Color and Pattern--secondary colors and more complex patterns Book 4: Visual Excitement--subtle shades and complicated patterns Simply sit with your baby a few minutes each day and turn the pages, encouraging baby to focus on each page. As your baby develops, you will be able to hand the book blocks back and forth, and soon your baby will be able to grasp the book blocks and explore for her or himself. • The set of 4 books is presented in a slim box, 9-1/2 x 2-3/8 x 2, with an acetate window that reveals the book blocks inside. • Studies show that during the first year of life, babies' visual skills develop dramatically. While a month-old infant will prefer sharply defined, black and white edges and patterns, by 4 months of age, most babies can distinguish even subtle shades and respond to repeating patterns. • These little books provide a great opportunity for parents and caregivers to interact with baby. Just a few minutes a day of looking at and tracking shapes and colors helps babies to develop good visual acuity. • Designed by Dan Stiles, who is known for his appealing use of color and pattern, these bloox make a great toy that will continue to be fun to play with long after babies have learned to see as well as adults.

Baby's First Book Blocks: Boxed Set

Stiles, Dan

Activities, Crafts & Games

Artist and printmaker Jesse Levison brings style to the alphabet in U is for Underwear. Toddlers will keep turning the pages of this chunky board book featuring simple, vibrant, and graphic illustrations. Imbuing everyday objects with a sense of wonder, the bold artwork makes a perfect introduction to the ABCs for young pre-readers who can trace the letters with a finger and begin to understand the symbolic representation that underlies reading and writing. Parents can begin to develop literacy in even very young children by exposing them to the letters of the alphabet, making U is for Underwear a fun and easy tool for imprinting little brains. Pleasing to the eye for both kids and adults, Jesse's retro sensibility and witty simplicity makes this a potential cross-over title for their little learners—or at least a great gift for style-conscious parents.

U is for Underwear

Levison, Jesse

Humor

Bone up on your gaming knowledge with this gently ironic yet thoroughly informative guide to video game terminology, presented as a picture book for all ages. Attack! Boss! Cheat Code! A Gamer's ABC is an indispensable guide, a lively look at the language of video games that might actually bridge the gap between game-obsessed kids and their often-perplexed parents. If you can decipher the following sentence, you don't need this book: "This open beta game is in third-person but first-person is unlockable if you know the cheat code or install your own mod, but either way, for the best attack on the boss on this level, try to grab that power-up!" Almost any 9-year old could translate for you but if you don't have access to one, try this book instead. Video games are the dominant form of pop culture today, a $75 billion industry worldwide, and an inescapable part of modern living. Don't be left out! A quick perusal of Attack! Boss! Cheat Code! is all you need to get in the game. Brilliantly colorful illustrations by video game artist Joey Spiotto vividly embody the terminology of video games, bringing the world of video games to life. Lucid definitions make terms clear and understandable, even for non-players. Presented as an alphabet, Attack! Boss! Cheat Code! is also an entertaining visual history and glossary of gaming, providing a solid understanding of terms that have made their way into everyday language, from to "mod" to "RPG."

Attack! Boss! Cheat Code!: A Gamer's Alphabet

Barton, Chris

Humor & Entertainment

The second book in Jacqueline Schmidt's delightful Patchwork series finds the resourceful little bear seeking a quiet spot to go to sleep. Where should a stuffed bear sleep? His wild counterparts hibernate in caves, but a cave does not seem like a very cozy sleeping spot to Patchwork. In order to find the perfect place to lay his stuffed head, Patchwork decides to consult with his friends, as he did with such good results in Patchwork Helps a Friend. As he journeys, asking delicate everyone from the delicate butterflies to an enormous whale about an ideal spot to sleep, Patchwork begins to realize that home might be the best place for him. Each spread is a visual celebration of nature and the imagination, with Jacqueline's distinctively lovely collages depicting natural creatures amid fantastical imagery, enhanced by rich colors and pleasing patterns. This sweet bedtime book is a wonderful choice for parents seeking to send little ones off to dreamland. Jacqueline's lilting prose and gorgeously detailed dreamscapes will help lull children into a restful state. The exquisitely detailed collages encourage repeated readings, night after night, helping to create an expectation of sleep. "Schmidt's collage-like imagery makes this a great book to read to toddlers and preschoolers together--while the older one completes the rhyming sentences, the younger one can point to the random fruit, objects and animals that sneak up in each scene."—Brooklyn Based

Patchwork Goes Under Cover (PATCHWORK ADVENTURES)

Schmidt, Jacqueline

Robots are perennial kid-favorites. In this series, acclaimed illustrator Marc Rosenthal's vividly colored, retro-futuristic robots encourage kids age 2 to 5 to lift the flaps and learn all about basic concepts. One Robot Lost His Head follows the travails of a slightly clumsy robot who can't quite keep track of his own head, and the smart robot pals who help him find it. A gatefold on each spread opens to reveal a visual punch line that teaches kids basic number skills while making them laugh. Each number is presented as a bold numeral, with a matching number of robots shown on the spread.The robots, though not human, are nevertheless full of charm, and their antics, captured perfectly in Marc Rosenthal's colorful, funny illustrations, are sure to crack up toddlers and preschool-age kids.

1 Robot Lost His Head: A Robot Counting Book

Rosenthal, Marc

Science Fiction & Fantasy

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