Our first three recent-release book picks are ranked from our favorite downward, and then we have an "oldie but goodie" for you.
Fiona the Flower Girl
by Carley Roney and the editors of the knot
Eight-year-old Fiona is going to be the flower girl at her aunt Caroline's wedding. This book begins with her aunt's engagement ("Fiona thought it would be much better to have a ring that was purple, but she could tell that Aunt Caroline was very happy with her clear ring."), then goes on to dress shopping, the bridal shower, the rehearsal, the all-important walk down the aisle, and the reception.
This is an excellent book for flower girls-to-be. It explains wedding lingo and a flower girl's role simply, while still functioning more as a fun story than as an instructional manual. There is, however, a guide for parents at the end that reads more like a good magazine article, suggesting flower girl etiquette and traditions. The illustrations are charming, with girly patterned backgrounds and accents. The book includes a little purple flower necklace on a ribbon to match the one Fiona receives from her aunt.
Holy cow, it's
on sale on Amazon, down from $16 to about $6.50!
Little Chick
by Amy Hest, illustrated by Anita Jeram
Little Chick is a sweet book made up of three similar mini-stories. In the first, Little Chick is waiting for a carrot to grow - but "Old-Auntie" says that sometimes a small carrot is just what you need, so the chick pulls it. In the second, she's waiting for her kite to fly. Old-Auntie comes along and walks with her, and eventually, the kite catches the wind. In the third, she wants to pluck a star from the sky, but Old-Auntie says the star makes the sky sparkle, so she leaves it there.
I was waiting for more with each of the stories. Little Chick is a cute character, and appropriately preschooler-ish in personality (a little impatient, exuberant, adventurous), but the stories lacked punch. I twice wondered if I had accidentally skipped a page, or if they really did just end like that. The storylines are very simple, and to me, a little boring. I was also put off by the name "Old-Auntie." I imagined my aunt getting indignant if Sarina were to nickname her that.
The illustrations are watercolor and pencil, with large gray text.
My daughter asked me to read the story to her twice, and then never again. I think she was a little bored by its repetitiveness, too. But if you have a particularly gentle child, this might be just right.
On sale in hardback, down from about $17 to just over $12.
Dinosaurs Roar, Butterflies Soar!
by Bob Barner

The illustrations in
Dinosaurs Roar, Butterflies Soar! are superb; made with cut paper and pastels, they're simple and bright and friendly. That's where my nice review ends.
The text is dry and tries to cover too much. The top half of each layout is supposed to be the simple storyline, while the bottom gives more in-depth facts and bits of trivia. This in itself was confusing, because if I read both, it broke up the storyline and I’d forget where we were by the next page. It didn't matter much, though, because the storyline felt like a school lecture. What a wasted opportunity to give the (worthwhile) lessons some real life by making it a personal story that kids can relate to.
While the recommended audience here is from 4-8, I'd suggest it's for ages 6 and up... if you happen to have a kid who's really into not just the "fun" aspect of dinosaurs, but the historical aspect.
$13-$14 on
Amazon.com.
Oldie But Goodie: Honey Bunny Funnybunny
by Marilyn Sadler
Honey Bunny Funnybunny is one of the Cat in the Hat Beginner Books for early readers, and it's a good pick for kids who are dealing with sibling squabbles. In this book, Honey Bunny has an older brother, P.J., who loves to drive her crazy. He pulls the covers off her bed, ties knots in her sleeves, switches the colors her paint jars, and even switches the heads on her dolls.
Finally, their dad yells at P.J., and he stops teasing his sister. For a while, she's happy - "but after a while, she began to feel that something was missing." P.J. is out playing with his friends now, and he's ignoring her entirely. She realizes she actually misses his teasing, and is afraid that he doesn't love her anymore. But when she wakes up one morning and discovers that he's painted her face with polka dots while she slept, she's elated. "P.J. loves me!" she cries. A cute take on quirky sibling relationships.
A mere $9 on
Amazon.com, and if you like that, there's a
whole series of these books.
Jenna Glatzer (www.jennaglatzer.com) is the author of 19 books. Her most recent collaboration is Unthinkable with Scott Rigsby, the first double-amputee to finish the world-famous Hawaiian Ironman triathlon. Jenna lives with her two-year-old daughter in New York. - Jeremiah