Special Collections
Caldecott Award Winners
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Goldilocks and the Three Bears
by James Marshall"With the same delightfully irreverent spirit that he brought to his retellings of Little Red Riding Hood, Marshall enlivens another favorite ... The illustrations are fraught with delicious humor and detail. Like its predecessor, perfect for several uses, from picture book hour to beginning reading".--Kirkus Reviews. Caldecott Honor Medal.
Owl Moon
by Jane Yolen and John SchoenherrLate one winter night a child and father go owling. The trees stand still as statues and the world is silent as a dream. Wordlessly the two companions walk along, for when you go owling you don't need words. You don't need anything but hope. Sometimes there isn't an owl, but sometimes there is.
Distinguished author Jane Yolen has created a gentle, poetic story that lovingly depicts the special companionship of a child and father as well as humankind's close relationship to the natural world.
Images and image descriptions available.
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters
by John SteptoeThe king is going to marry. Mufaro has two very beautiful daughters. One is kind and considerate, the other selfish and spoiled. Which daughter will be chosen "The Most Worthy and Beautiful Daughter in the Land"? Which daughter will the king choose to be his wife?
Winner of the Coretta Scott King Medal
Hey, Al
by Arthur YorinksAl, a janitor, and his faithful dog, Eddie, live in a single room on the West Side. They eat together, they work together, they do everything together. So what's the problem? You name it. Their tiny home is crowded and cramped; their life is an endless struggle. Al and Eddie are totally miserable until a large and mysterious bird offers them a change of fortune. Transported to a gorgeous island in the sky, they are soon living a life of ease and comfort. But sometimes, they discover, the grass can be a little too green on the other side. After a dramatic escape from their "paradise," both man and dog agree: There really is no place like home. Arthur Yorinks and Richard Egielski have previously collaborated on Sid and Sol, which Maurice Sendak described as "a wonder"; Louis the Fish, named one of the Best Books of 1980 by School Library Journal; and Happened in Pinsk, a Booklist Children's Editors' Choice for 1984.
Rumpelstiltskin
by Paul O. ZelinskyA miller's daughter finds her life at stake when she needs to turn straw into gold. A tiny man pops out and offers to help, for a very big price. All seems well until the man returns--and she cannot keep her promise. What will she do? Follow along in this retelling of the classic Brothers Grimm tale!
Winner of the Caldecott Honor
The Polar Express
by Chris Van AllsburgFor twenty years, The Polar Express has been a worldwide bestseller and Christmas classic. A perfect keepsake for any family, this beautiful edition can be handed down to each new generation of readers.
In 1986 The Polar Express was awarded the prestigious Caldecott Medal and hit the New York Times bestseller list. Since that time, more than six and a half million copies have been sold, and every December it faithfully reappears on national bestseller lists. In 2004, The Polar Express became a blockbuster holiday movie. The DVD release in 2005 assures, that like the book, the movie will become a holiday classic.
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub
by Audrey Wood and Don WoodIn this delightful story, the king refuses to leave his bathtub and rule the kingdom. "Beauty aside, this also has a panache and sly wit that will please children and their parents, who will be called on to peruse the book again and again." --Booklist
The Relatives Came
by Cynthia RylantIn a rainbow-colored station wagon that smelled like a real car, the relatives came.
When they arrived, they hugged and hugged from the kitchen to the front room.
All summer they tended the garden and ate up all the strawberries and melons.
They plucked banjos and strummed guitars.
When they finally had to leave, they were sad, but not for long.
They all knew they would be together next summer.
Saint George and the Dragon
by Margaret HodgesWinner of the 1985 Caldecott Medal. Set "in the days when monsters and giants and fairy-folk lived in England," this retelling of a classic and well-loved tale recounts the battle between Saint George and the Dragon a creature so huge and fearsome that his tail "swept the land behind him for almost half a mile," and whose "deep jaws gaped wide, showing three rows of iron teeth ready to devour his prey." In graceful and evocative prose, Margaret Hodges retells the dramatic story from Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queene. Trina Schart Hyman portrays the monstrous dragon; the long, horrible battle; and the final victory celebration in exquisite detail, bringing her full artistic genius to bear in this work. Both storyteller and artist have re-created this timeless legend in a book for children of generations to come. MARGARET HODGES first thought of retelling the story of Saint George and the Dragon when a professor of hers mentioned that he had read Spenser's Faerie Queen, to his four year old granddaughter. After Mrs. Hodges saw a reading of the story enacted by puppets, she "became devoted to Saint George" and says that she finds him "everywhere in paintings, sculpture, stained glass, in poetry, and, above all, in legends of many lands. Saint George, it seems, is loved everywhere for his courage and virtue. In Spenser's version the character of Una is equally brave and adventurous." Margaret Hodges is Professor Emeritus in the School of Library and Information Science at the University of Pittsburgh. She has written over twenty books for children and has a special interest in folklore and legends passed down through the oral tradition. TRINA SCHART HYMAN describes herself as "an old-fashioned, traditional kind of illustrator," who welcomed the chance to try out all her romantic ideas on this retelling of Saint George and the Dragon. In the process, she "gained a lot of respect for all her old heroes and their warlike ways," and admits that she was very relieved when the Dragon was finally killed. In the borders of the book, she has painted flowers that are indigenous to the British Isles. Trina Schart Hyman lives in Lyme, New Hampshire, and has illustrated many classic fairy tales for children, including Snow White and The Sleeping Beauty.
Hansel and Gretel
by Rika LesserPaul O. Zelinsky's stunning Caldecott Honor Book allows readers to see the story of Hansel and Gretel anew. Full color. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.
Have You Seen My Duckling?
by Nancy TafuriA duckling is missing! Mother Duck sails frantically around the pond, with the rest of her brood behind her. But none of the pond residents has seen the little duckling, not bird, not turtle, not beaver, not fish. But clever readers can see that duckling isn't lost at all--just adventuring, and never far away.
The Glorious Flight
by Alice Provensen and Martin ProvensenA biography of the man whose fascination with flying machines produced the Blériot XI which crossed the English Channel in thirty-seven minutes in the early 1900s.
Ten, Nine, Eight
by Molly BangNine stuffed animals, one sleepy toddler. Numbers from ten to one are part of this lullaby which observes the room of a little girl going to bed.
Winner of the Caldecott Honor
When I was Young in the Mountains
by Cynthia RylantA story about the childhood reminiscences of growing up in the Appalachian Mountains & the pleasures in life.
A Chair For My Mother
by Vera B. WilliamsThe jar of coins is full. The day has come to buy the chair--the big, fat, comfortable, wonderful chair they have been saving for. The chair that will replace the one that was burned up--along with everything else--in the terrible fire. A book of love and tenderness filled with the affirmation of life.
Jumanji
by Chris Van AllsburgThe game under the tree looked like a hundred others Peter and Judy had at home. But they were bored and restless and, looking for something interesting to do, thought they'd give Jumanji a try. Little did they know when they unfolded its ordinary-looking playing board that they were about to be plunged into the most exciting and bizarre adventure of their lives. In his second book for children, Chris Van Allsburg again explores the ever-shifting line between fantasy and reality with this story about a game that comes startlingly to life. His marvelous drawings beautifully convey a mix of the everyday and the extraordinary, as a quiet house is taken over by an exotic jungle.
Where the Buffaloes Begin
by Olaf BakerFollow Little Wolf to the fabled lake in the south where the buffaloes begin. Watch the huge beasts surge out of the water and onto the prairie, as Little Wolf leads them to a victory against the enemies of his people. A Caldecott Honor Book. Illustrations in black-and-white. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.
Outside Over There
by Maurice SendakMaurice Sendak, the master conjurer of images and words, mingles dark memories with myth, nightmares with sweet dreams and turns them all into "a profound work of art for children".--New York Times. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.
A Visit to William Blake's Inn
by Nancy WillardNancy Willard was inspired by William Blake's verbal and visual imagery as a child. She has now produced a book of poems that are not "in the style of" but more of an homage to Blake's poetry. The organizing principle is that Blake runs and inn and it is staffed and patronized by a variety of fanciful creatures and people. The rhyme schemes and words are mostly simple enough for children. The allusions and imagery extend the interest to older readers.
Newbery Medal Winner
Fables
by Arnold Lobelpig flying through marshmallow clouds to a marzipan moon? A camel pirouetting through the desert? A wolf who looks suspiciously like an apple tree-or is it the other way around? A bear in a frying-pan hat and paper-bag boots? Where can a reader-child or adult -find such marvelous things but in a fable? Arnold Lobel, creator of Frog and Toad, has given us his own funny and true fables. Each with a fresh and unexpected moral. Each accompanied by an illustration of glowing color and rich detail. Indeed, the reader of Arnold Lobel's fables will be rewarded - just like the mouse who goes off to see the world - by many moments of happiness. Winner of the 1981 Caldecott Medal This file should make an excellent embossed braille copy.
The Bremen Town Musicians
by Ilse PlumeThe book is all about the four aged animal friends trying to make living for them as they were escaped from their cruel masters.
Mice Twice
by Joseph LowA round of uneasy hospitality results when Mouse and Dog arrive at Cat's house for dinner.
Ox-Cart Man
by Donald HallChildren's book about the ox-cart man and his hard work throughout the year.
The Treasure
by Uri ShulevitzA poor man, inspired by a recurring dream, journeys to a far city to look for a treasure, only to be told to go home and find it.
[This text is listed as an example that meets Common Core Standards in English language arts for grades 2-3 at http://www.corestandards.org.]
The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses
by Paul GobleFrom the Book jacket: In simple words and brilliant paintings that sweep and stam pede across his pages, Paul Goble tells of a Native American girl's love of horses. Her people saw that she understood the herd in a special way. The horses would follow her to drink at the river. And in the hot sun she would sleep con tentedly beside them as they grazed among flowers near her village. One day a thunderstorm drove the girl and the horses far from home, and the people were frightened. The girl was lost beneath strange, moonlit cliffs; yet, next morning, she was glad, for a beautiful stallion who was the leader of the wild horses wel comed her to live with them. PAUL GOBLE is in Residence at the Gall Indian and Western Arts at Mt. Rushmore National Memorial in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Among his other books are: THE FRIENDLY WOLF "A young Plains Indian boy and his sister, bored with berry-picking, wander off and become lost. They take overnight shelter in a wolfs den, and, in answer to their pleas for help, the wolf leads them home. Their tribe honors the wolf and declares friendship with the wolf people ... The clear text is complemented by colorful, full-page illustrations which present accurate, richly detailed information about Indian life...A splendid resource for children..." School Library Journal (starred review) LONE BULL'S HORSE RAID "The Plains Indians needed horses for hunting buffalo and hauling their possessions...This story tells of Lone Bull's first horse raid and the battle it led to, which enabled Lone Bull to stand before his people as a warrior. . .Magnificent color illustrations full of rich detail... in this excellently designed, honest portrayal of the Indian point of view." School Library Journal (starred review)