Mr. Putter & Tabby Smell the Roses by Cynthia Rylant

We currently have one very BIG fan of Mr. Putter & Tabby at our house.....so we have read them all.  Many. Many. Times!  In the newest in the series, Mr. Putter is excited to celebrate Mrs. Teaberry's birthday.  But he does not want to celebrate it the same way they have in the past!  Mr. Putter decides a perfect day for Mrs. Teaberry would be spent at the conservatory.  It is a perfect day until Zeke, often the cause of trouble on their adventures, sees a banana tree and assumes it is for HIM!  

Text:  5 Buckeye leaves

Illustrations:  5 Buckeye leaves

Land Shark by Beth Ferry

Bobby's birthday is approaching and he wants a pet.  But the pet Bobby has in mind is not exactly what his parents have in mind.  He drops all kinds of hints but when his special day arrives, his parent's gift is not exactly what he received.  The new family member is not very cooperative, chewing up things, and generally making a mess of the house.  Bobby can not, will not, ever like a dog...unless the dog is helping his cause.

Text:  4 Buckeye leaves
Illustrations:  4 Buckeye leaves

Memoirs of an Elf by Devin Scillian

Spark Elf provides a first hand account of Santa's big night through his journal.  Trying to keep Santa on schedule, especially when there are cookies and dogs involved, is not easy.  When they finally arrive back home after all the deliveries, they discover they have brought along a stowaway, a dog named Tugboat. Together a plan must be put into action to get Tugboat home with his family.  In order to carry out the plan they must break some rules before Tugboat's family has a very unhappy Christmas.  

Text:  4 Buckeye leaves

Illustrations:  5 Buckeye leaves

*Same author and illustrator team of Memoirs of a Goldfish (one of my favorites) and Memoirs of a Hamster.  

The Cat, the Dog, Little Red, the Exploding Eggs, the Wolf, and Grandma by Diane and Christyan Fox

Cat begins reading a very inquisitive Dog about Little Red Riding Hood.  Dog is full of questions.  Is Little Red a superhero?  She wears a cape so she must be a superhero, right?  Does she zap the wolf with a kindness ray?  Is Grandma still in the closet?  Hilarious twist on a familiar fairy tale that even older elementary students will enjoy, and probably "get the humor" better than the younger students.  Great addition to fairy tale study.

To view the trailer of this book click HERE!

Text:  5 Buckeye leaves
Illustrations:  5 Buckeye leaves

Lola Goes to Work: A Nine-to-Five Therapy Dog by Marcia Goldman

Meet Lola, an adorable little dog that works hard every day as a therapy dog.   In order to be a therapy dog, Lola had to learn certain skills.  After all her training she had to take a test to prove she could be a good therapy dog.  Each day while she is working Lola visits friends in their homes or schools and tries to cheer them up.  Younger children will enjoy this simple book with amazing (and sometimes funny) photographs to compliment the text.  Great introduction for kids that have never heard/seen therapy dogs. 

Text:  3 Buckeye leaves
Illustrations:  4 Buckeye leaves

Snow Dog, Go Dog by Deborah Heiligman

Tinka is back for the third installment.  In true Tinka fashion, he is on the move and this time that means snow fun!  However this time Tinka takes off and can not his way back.  Will Tinka learn his lesson this time?  

Text:  4 Buckeye leaves

Illustrations:  5 Buckeye leaves (Love the illustrations!  Tinka is adorable!!)