Picturebook Makers

By a talent and highly acclaimed illustrator, The Lion and the Bird is every bit as unusual, lovely, and powerful as Little Bird and should be represented. The high production values of the book, along with the quality of the images and storytelling, as well as the author's previous books should lead buyers to take a chance on this title. Not to represent this book would be to miss out on a major book of the spring season. This is a book for all ages so provide buyers, whether at the independents or the museum stores, with several strong choices in terms of shelving and presentation. As a French Canadian author, Dubuc is close to the east coast and will be coming to promote and talk about her book.

A New York Times Best Illustrated Book Hélène has been inexplicably ostracized by the girls who were once her friends. Her school life is full of whispers and lies - Hélène weighs 216; she smells like BO. Her loving mother is too tired to be any help. Fortunately, Hélène has one consolation, Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre. Hélène identifies strongly with Jane's tribulations, and when she is lost in the pages of this wonderful book, she is able to ignore her tormentors. But when Hélène is humiliated on a class trip in front of her entire grade, she needs more than a fictional character to see herself as a person deserving of laughter and friendship. Leaving the outcasts' tent one night, Hélène encounters a fox, a beautiful creature with whom she shares a moment of connection. But when Suzanne Lipsky frightens the fox away, insisting that it must be rabid, Hélène's despair becomes even more pronounced: now she believes that only a diseased and dangerous creature would ever voluntarily approach her. But then a new girl joins the outcasts' circle, Géraldine, who does not even appear to notice that she is in danger of becoming an outcast herself. And before long Hélène realizes that the less time she spends worrying about what the other girls say is wrong with her, the more able she is to believe that there is nothing wrong at all. This emotionally honest and visually stunning graphic novel reveals the casual brutality of which children are capable, but also assures readers that redemption can be found through connecting with another, whether the other is a friend, a fictional character or even, amazingly, a fox.

Four friends, three big and one little, are out for a walk. Suddenly, they spot it - a beautiful bird perched high in a tree They simply must have it and - shh - they have a plan.

For fans of the Chronicles of Narnia comes the first book in the Wildwood Chronicles, the New York Times bestselling fantasy adventure series by Colin Meloy, lead singer of the Decemberists, and Carson Ellis, acclaimed illustrator of The Mysterious Benedict Society. Wildwood captivates readers with the wonder and thrill of a secret world within the landscape of a modern city. It feels at once firmly steeped in the classics of children's literature and completely fresh. The story is told from multiple points of view, and the book features more than eighty illustrations, including six full-color plates, making this an absolutely gorgeous object. In Wildwood, Prue and her friend Curtis uncover a secret world in the midst of violent upheaval—a world full of warring creatures, peaceable mystics, and powerful figures with the darkest intentions. And what begins as a rescue mission becomes something much greater as the two friends find themselves entwined in a struggle for the very freedom of this wilderness. A wilderness the locals call Wildwood. The bestselling trilogy from Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis consists of Wildwood, Under Wildwood, and Wildwood Imperium.

A whimsical tribute to the different types of homes depicting them in real-world environments as well as fantastical settings.

"Olga lives in her kiosk. Every day she looks after her customers and dreams of faraway places. Until one day, a series of absurd events turns her world upside down and Olga finds herself on an unexpected journey"--Back cover.

Describes the relationship between two young boys, whose friendship is tested by difficult stituations. Rules are broken, with surprising consequences, but eventually friendship is restored. A sophisticated picture book.