17-22. Picture Book Parade

17. Goodnight, Bruce. (Mother Bruce #10). Ryan Higgins. 2026. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book, animal fantasy, bedtime book, 4 stars]

First sentence: It's alive! Oh, the horror! The humanity! Why didn't I just eat my vegetables?!

Premise/plot: It is time for bed. Bruce is struggling--well, that's an understatement--to get his children (mice and geese) to actually actually go to bed. It is Friday night. It is monster-movie night. They must, must, must finish the movie. Will Bruce get his family tucked in for the night???? Or will, perhaps, he be outsmarted???

My thoughts: I have loved, loved, loved some of the Bruce books. They are almost always enjoyable. Some have more of a story than others. A few are more 'meh' because they don't seem particularly necessary. HOWEVER, the characters are great fun. If you've read one in the series and enjoyed it, it is definitely worth seeking out others in the series to continue the fun.

18. Lolly on the Ice. Sarah S. Brannen. 2025. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, picture book, confidence, ice skating]

First sentence: Ice is slippery. "Careful!" said Dad. "It's fine," said Lolly. "No one saw."

Premise/plot: Lolly LOVES to ice skate. She does. It is one of her favorite, favorite, favorite things to do. However, skating in front of others isn't. When there's an ice show opportunity, Lolly at first chooses a background role instead of one performing in the spotlight. However, when another skate is unable to perform and the act is in danger of being cancelled, Lolly might just risk her nerves to help out her friends.

My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. There aren't really that many books for children about ice skating. This book about self-confidence and conquering one's fears--or nerves--is good.

19. Rumpelstiltskin. Mac Barnett. Illustrated by Carson Ellis. 2026. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, picture book, fantasy, fairy tale/folk tale]

First sentence: Once upon a time, a girl grew up in the woods, climbing trees and whittling sticks and catching tadpoles with her bare hands. Her father, a poor miller, was a nice enough guy, but he had a big mouth. He told wild stories and bragged all the time. Here, I'll give you an example.

Premise/plot: Mac Barnett has retold the story of Rumpelstiltskin. It has been a while since I read the original, but, it seems traditional and not that much of a variation.

My thoughts: This one is definitely text-heavy. That isn't bad. It just means it's probably best suited for older readers or younger readers with long attention spans. I know some elementary grades do a folk tale and/or fairy tale unit, this one would fit nicely with that. The illustrations are probably what makes this one stand out from other variations. I'm not sure if I love the illustrations? But they are certainly interesting.

20. Tiny Garden. Deborah Underwood. Illustrated by Jax Chow. 2026. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, picture book, gardening, nature]

First sentence: Andrew loved plants. But the fancy gardens on his block overwhelmed him. Too big. Too tall. Too much. So he dug a small rectangle in the grass. "Is that a garden?" asked a neighbor. "It needs to be much bigger." "This will be my tiny garden," said Andrew.

Premise/plot: Andrew creates a tiny garden that is appreciated greatly by tiny animals that love this garden that feels perfectly perfect for them.

My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. Deborah Underwood is a great writer with a way with words. This one is all about appreciating nature and finding your own happy place in the world.

21. The Future Book. Mac Barnett. Shawn Harris. 2026. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, humor, picture book]

First sentence: This book is from the future. Lots of things are different here in the future. In the future, the sun is called the moon and the moon is called the sun. Morning is called night and night is called morning. Bananas are called apples and apples? There's no words for apples. We don't have apples in the future.

Premise/plot: The Future Book is many things: whimsical, silly, nonsensical. The pace is perhaps uneven, but, I found the ending worth it.

My thoughts: I don't love every Mac Barnett book I read. HOWEVER, whenever I see a new Mac Barnett at the library I check it out. His books can be odd, whimsical, silly, FUN. I definitely enjoyed this one! Maybe it depends on how you read it aloud, maybe it depends on the audience. BUT I thought it was quite fun.

22. Pizzasaurus. Tammi Sauer. Illustrated by Kyle Beckett. 2026. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, animal fantasy, dinosaurs, picture book]

First sentence: You look like someone who knows a lot about dinosaurs. Of course you've heard of Tyrannosaurus rex, Stegosaurus, and Triceratops. Who hasn't?

Premise/plot: Readers meet a dinosaur that LOVES pizza.

My thoughts: This is a silly picture book. If you have little ones that LOVE pizza and/or LOVE dinosaurs, this one may be a good match. The illustrations are bright and colorful. The plot, well, there isn't much of a plot, BUT pizza + dinosaurs.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

14-16 Three Jamie Oliver Board Books

14. Board Book: Let's Make Pizza. Jamie Oliver. Illustrated by Adrian Johnson. 2025. 14 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, board book, cooking, food]

First sentence: Are you read? Let's start with...puff pastry. Roll, roll. Tomato sauce. Swirl, swirl.

Jamie Oliver has written a handful of board books for the youngest audience. Super, super, super simple text. Basic instructions. Each two-page spread of the board book features a flap to unfold that continues the recipe. (Rolling, swirling, etc.) So one page ingredient, second page, activity.

The illustrations are super bright and bold.

This one is Let's Make Pizza. It was an enjoyable board book.




15. Board book: Let's Make Pancakes. Jamie Oliver. Illustrated by Adrian Johnson. 2025. 14 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, board book, cooking, food]

First sentence: Are you ready? Let's start with....flour. Tip, tip. Egg. Crack, crack. Milk. Whisk, whisk.

Jamie Oliver has written a handful of board books for the youngest audience. Super, super, super simple text. Basic instructions. Each two-page spread of the board book features a flap to unfold that continues the recipe. (Rolling, swirling, etc.) So one page ingredient, second page, activity.

The illustrations are super bright and bold.

This one is Let's Make Pancakes. It was an enjoyable board book.



16. Board book: Let's Make Pasta. Jamie Oliver. Illustrated by Adrian Johnson. 2025. 14 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, board book, cooking, food]

First sentence: Are you ready? Let's start with...tomatoes and garlic. Crush, crush, squish, squish. Basil. Pick, pick.


Jamie Oliver has written a handful of board books for the youngest audience. Super, super, super simple text. Basic instructions. Each two-page spread of the board book features a flap to unfold that continues the recipe. (Rolling, swirling, etc.) So one page ingredient, second page, activity.

The illustrations are super bright and bold.

This one is Let's Make Pasta. It was an enjoyable board book.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

13. Two Ballerinas and a Moose

13. Two Ballerinas and a Moose. James Preller. Illustrated by Abigail Burch. 2025. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [early reader, 4 stars]

First sentence: Two ballerinas. One in red. One in blue. Look at their fancy clothes. Look at their pointy toes. Me too! I want to dance too!

Premise/plot: Can a Moose dance ballet? Maybe. Maybe not. The other two dancers--to be fair--are also animals.

My thoughts: I like this one well enough. I do. Do I love, love, love it? No. Is it silly? Yes. For an early reader does it have an enjoyable enough story? Yes.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

12. I Wish That I Had Duck Feet

12. I Wish That I Had Duck Feet. Dr. Seuss (Writing as Theo LeSieg) Illustrated by B. Tobey. 1965. Random House. 64 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence:
I wish 
that I had duck feet.
And I can tell you why.
You can splash around in duck feet.
You don't have to keep them dry.

Premise/plot: A young boy imagines what it would be like to have duck feet, antlers, a whale spout, a tiger tail, and an elephant trunk. He imagines first WHY it would be GREAT. But the more he thinks it out, the more he comes to see the potential problems. Yes, duck feet and a whale spout would be great, but, would his mother like either one on her son?! NO! By the end, the boy concludes that it's great to be himself.

My thoughts: I really love this one. I have always loved this one. The storytelling is just fun. Though I didn't realize as a kid that Big Bill might just be a bully bothering the young hero.

Have you read I Wish That I Had Duck Feet? Did you like it? Did you love it? hate it? I'd love to know what you thought of it!



© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

11. Would You Rather Be a Bullfrog

11. Would You Rather Be A Bullfrog? Theo LeSieg (Dr. Seuss). Illustrated by Roy McKie. 1975. Random House. 36 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, beginning reader]

First sentence: Tell me! Would you rather be a Dog...or be a Cat? It's time for you to think about important things like that. 

Premise/plot: The narrator asks readers a long series of questions. All questions are silly--or at the very least playful--but some are sillier than others. Some questions are about which animal you'd rather be. Others are about inanimate objects like...would you rather be a ball or a bat OR would you rather be a door or window.

My thoughts: First time reading this one. Honestly I'm not sure I have a decided opinion on it. I certainly liked it better than I thought I would. But I had low expectations in mind. I wasn't expecting it to be a great find, something I'd been "missing" in my life. It was fun in its way. And I think I liked it well enough. Perhaps it will help me remember the difference between rather and whether.

Have you read Would You Rather Be A Bullfrog? Did you like it? love it? hate it? I'd love to know what you thought of it!


© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

10. Great Day for Up

10. Great Day for Up. Dr. Seuss. Illustrated by Quentin Blake. 1974. Random House. 36 pages. [Source: Bought] [3 stars, early reader, beginning reader]

First sentence: Up! Up! The sun is getting up. The sun gets up. So UP with you!

Premise/plot: Do you like getting up in the morning? The book is gentle prompting to do just that. "Up" being the prominent word of the entire book. But does the narrator himself end up getting out of bed? Read and see for yourself!

My thoughts: I liked the "twist" ending. I did. Overall, I liked this one fine. I didn't love, love, love it. But it's certainly an entertaining enough read.

Have you read Great Day for UP! Did you like it? love it? hate it? I'd love to know what you thought of it!


© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

9. Fireworks

9. Fireworks. Matthew Burgess. Illustrated by Catia Chien. 2025. 44 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, picture books, Caldecott Medal]

First sentence: In the summer, the sun rises
between buildings on our block
to greet us at breakfast,
and it beats warmer and brighter
when we venture out across
steamy city sidewalks.

Premise/plot: A poetic look at a summer day. It is implied that it is the fourth of July, though, that is not stated specifically. But there is a HUGE fireworks display in the evening that they (siblings?) watch from the rooftop.

My thoughts: What makes this one pop? POETIC language, great imagery, and phenomenal illustrations. I love, love, love, love, LOVE the illustrations. I do. The illustrations are incredible. The text is so descriptive and packed with imagery.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

8. Stop that Mop!

8. Stop that Mop! Jonathan Fenske. 2025. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, beginning reader]

First sentence: I am a mop. I mop and mop. I mop. And mop.

Premise/plot: You may doubt that a book about a mop could be fun. But if you're familiar with Jonathan Fenske's work, then you know there's nothing to worry about! In this one, a mop who is TIRED OF IT ALL runs away. Many try to catch the mop....but will any succeed?????

My thoughts: I love, love, love Jonathan Fenske. I do. This one was fun. Is it my favorite of his? Probably not. Is it more entertaining that 90% of all other beginning readers???? YES. I thought this was a silly, fun, exuberant read. It did win the Geisel Award for 2026.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

7. The Tunneler Tunnels in the Tunnel

7. The Tunneler Tunnels in the Tunnel. Michael Rex. 2025. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, beginner reader, ready to read, animal fantasy]

First sentence: The tunneler tunnels in the tunnel. The gardener gardens in the garden. The tunneler tunnels in the tunnel. The farmer farms on the farm. The tunneler tunnels in the tunnel.

Premise/plot: The tunneler tunnels in the tunnel on almost page of this one. Where is the tunneler tunneling to? Is it worth all the hard work?

My thoughts: I don't love this one, but it is perfectly okay. I do think depending on how it's read or read aloud, it could be fun. I think it would be perhaps amusing as a shared read. With one person doing all the 'tunneler tunnels in the tunnel' pages and another reader reading the rest aloud. I do think you could ask questions as you read like, where do you think he's tunneling? You could also read the details of the illustrations for clues.

 

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

6. Earl & Worm: The Big Mess

6. Earl & Worm: The Big Mess and Other Stories. Greg Pizzoli. 2025. 72 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, early chapter book, animal fantasy]

First sentence: It was spring. Worm was cleaning her house. Worm loved to clean. She loved things neat. She loved things tidy.

Premise/plot: Earl and Worm are best friends. This is their second adventure. There are three stories in this book, "The Big Mess," "The Lucky Penny," and "The Sunrise."

In "The Big Mess" Earl helps Worm clean house. Worm's newly cleaned house soon acquires some of Earl's mess. "The Lucky Penny" has Earl finding a penny. But will the penny be a lucky or unlucky penny?! "The Sunrise" has Earl and Worm staying up all night so they can watch the sunrise together.

My thoughts: My favorite story is "The Big Mess." It was a GREAT story. I loved it so much. The other stories were good too.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

5. Pizza and Taco Go Viral

5. Pizza and Taco Go Viral (Pizza and Taco #10) Stephen Shaskan. 2026. 72 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, graphic novel, children's series]

First sentence: What are you watching?

Premise/plot: Pizza and Taco are back in another adventure. (Is this really their tenth book?!?!?!) In this one, the two become obsessed with become StewTube stars. If they start a StewTube channel, can they make a video go viral?!?! What kind of videos should they make together?!?!

My thoughts: There isn't much substance in this one. To be fair, it has its amusing moments. They talk about famous StewTubers that they watch. This allows for some fun puns.

It isn't my favorite or best from the series, BUT, I do love Pizza and Taco as characters.



© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

4. Traitors in Space

4. Traitors in Space. Tim Collins. 2025. 192 pages. [Source: Review copy] [3 stars, pick your own path, choose your own adventure, science fiction, space, aliens]

First sentence: The door to your ship closes, and you take your helmet off.

Premise/plot: YOU are in control of your destiny in this 'pick your own path' sci-fi space adventure. YOU are a scientist returning from space--bound for earth--but there's danger on the ship. An alien life form has been detected. It is presumably parasitic. ONE of your fellow crew COULD be the alien. But how do you KNOW who to trust and who to thrust out into space?!

My thoughts: I wanted to enjoy this one. I do think it's perhaps possible to read and enjoy this one. It depends on how YOU read choose your own adventure books. I am methodical. As in with paper and pen in hand, I write down ALL the page number opportunities, I track each one to the end. Go back start again. Cross page numbers off, etc. I don't immerse myself in the story--if there is in fact a story. It's just too mechanical or methodical for me. I don't reread the story heading into new endings.

It didn't work for me because I wanted more from the characters and the story. There are eight characters for YOU to "get to know" to figure out who is trustworthy and who is alien. Are eight characters developed? Nope. Are any of the eight characters developed? Nope. Is that too much to hope for?! Probably. I didn't really expect continuity between all the choices in terms of characters and story. BUT it would have added a level of awesomeness IF there had been a true mystery to solve. IF there were objective facts, truths that stayed true, between ALL the possibilities, then it would have been more like a mystery-mystery. There would have been clues that you could slowly but surely gather as you kept reading. Layers to the story. There's none of that. And that is okay. That's not the book in hand. And that's fine. Expect bare minimum of story and characters. Do expect a gimmicky, fun read with plenty of possibilities.

Despite the description saying TWENTY possible endings, I counted forty-two. At least ten of those were repeat endings using the exact same pages. Again, I think if there had been FEWER characters MORE time could have been spent with those we had AND the endings would have had to have been better.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

3. If You Make a Call On a Banana Phone

3. If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone. Gideon Sterer. Illustrated by Emily Hughes. 2025. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, imagination, picture books]

First sentence: If you make a call on a banana phone, somewhere deep in the jungle...a gorilla will probably answer. And if they do, they will have some questions, Like, Who are you? and Why are you calling? If you'd like, you can tell the gorilla your name. If you are calling just because, that's okay. But it is good to be interesting and share some things, like your favorite color or sandwich or joke. If you make a gorilla laugh on a banana phone, they will probably like that very much--there aren't many jokes in the jungle, and they might wonder more about you.

Premise/plot:  This book imagines what MIGHT happen if you should make a call on a banana phone (and who hasn't made a call on a banana phone?!?!) It is written in second person.

My thoughts: I love, love, love this one. I do. I love it because it celebrates imaginative play. I love it because it celebrates the wonders and joys of imagination. I love that it is extended imaginative play. It keeps asking what might happen next....and next....and next....and next. I love how so much of the story is told THROUGH pictures.

I think this one would be great for sharing with young readers. Parents, grandparents, teachers, librarians. I do think teachers could do extension activities with this one. Young readers could become young writers and write imaginative stories of their own. They can write their own adventures if they call on a banana phone.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

2. Squirrel Sits Still (Board Book)

2. Squirrel Sits Still (Board Book). Christianne Jones. Illustrated by Jayri Gomez. 2026. 20 pages. [Source: Library] [board book, 5 stars, animal fantasy]

First sentence: It's hard for Squirrel to sit still. She's still working on that skill. She tries to get the wiggles out. She jumps and shakes and moves about. She hurries to her story spot. She thinks about what she's been taught.

Premise/plot: Squirrel struggles with sitting still. In this context, Squirrel is trying to sit still during a library story time. The story is written in rhyme (see quote above).

My thoughts: Rhyming books don't always work for me. BUT the rhyming in this one seems natural and not forced in terms of rhythm and flow. IT works. Squirrel is adorable enough as the protagonist. I enjoyed the text and the illustrations.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

1. The Animals of Farmer Jones

1. The Animals of Farmer Jones. Leah Gale. Illustrated by Richard Scarry. 1942. 32 pages. [Source: Bought, 4 stars, Golden Books, children's classic, farm stories]

First sentence: It is supper time on the farm. The animals are very hungry. But where is Farmer Jones?

Premise/plot: The Animals of Farmer Jones is a classic Little Golden Book. This one was originally published in 1942. Half the book is spent visiting ALL the animals on the farm--every one must make its sound after all--who want to know where Farmer Jones is. The other half of the book focuses on Farmer Jones visiting ALL the animals and feeding them.

My thoughts: Is this the most thrilling farm book? Perhaps it isn't. But it has all the elements you'd expect: a wide variety of farm animals, all the animal sounds, repetition of the text, predictability. The illustrations are by Richard Scarry. They are fabulous illustrations.

If reading about farm animals is part of your life now as a parent, a grandparent, a guardian, then you might as well read a few classics as well.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers