Oxbow Island Gang

This beautiful picture book celebrates the power of imagination and an appreciation of the natural world. A young girl finds a starfish on the beach and wants to show it to her mother at home, but doesn’t want to take it from its home. With encouragement from her dad and a little imagination, Ana is able to let the sea star go and yet keep it with her at the same time. This beautiful picture book celebrates the power of imagination and an appreciation of the natural world. Back matter invites children into the lives and experiences of a jellyfish, stingray, loggerhead turtle and other sea creatures. “The sea star waited as the sand settled around it. Then slowly, slowly it crept home to the sea grass meadow on hundreds of tiny tube feet.” “Ana watched a snowy plover grab its dinner from the surf. Then the tiny bird skittered across the sand. Ana and Papa followed their shadows home.”

Anyone with small children knows how hard it can be for them to wait for something. This charming and vibrant book marks a little girl,s island moments that add up to much more than a week. It captures the fun and whimsy of summer, the importance of imagination, and the not-so-small task of waiting for a visit from Nana.

*2016 Maine Lupine Award Winner* Riley’s birthday is coming, but the mail plane with his gifts from the mainland hasn’t been able to get to the island for days because of bad weather. In a mood that matches the weather, he agrees to help Uncle Harv collect driftwood to make furniture. One thing leads to another as it always does on a small island, and eventually Riley realizes that everything he needs for a great birthday is already right at hand. Fountas & Pinnell Level O

Tamen longs to see the stars, but none are visible in the light-polluted sky above the fire escape of his urban apartment building. Even in the neighborhood park, the stars are hidden by city lights. This is a story about love and sacrifice: Tamen’s mom, a nightshift nurse, finds a way to take him camping. For one magical night on the shore of a wilderness pond, the Milky Way in all its glory belongs to them.