Mo Willems -- The Pigeon Presents

If you are a fan of Mo Willems' work -- The Pigeon books, the Knuffle Bunny duo, the Elephant and Piggie series -- you will love his book website, "The Pigion Presents." Not only can you find out about Willems'published works, but you can download a coloring page or play "Dress the Naked Mole Rat" or watch Elephant and Piggie dance (you choose from a variety of possible dances for each). Or you can help the Pigeon put condiments on his hot dog. Lots of fun stuff! Go to http://www.pigeonpresents.com/ and start having fun today!

"Strega Nona's Harvest" by Tomie da Paola

If you love Tomie da Paola's classic "Strega Nona," you will also love his newest book "Strega Nona's Harvest." Strega Nona's bountiful garden, blessed with her magic, has a bumper crop. So of course Big Anthony plants a garden and tries to use a magic charm -- with unexpected results!

If you teach elementary school or homeschool your children, you can use these two books to introduce the topic of healthy eating: the bubling pasta pot and the lush garden with al of its healthy vegetables are perfect lead-ins to food families and healthy eating.

The Hallowiener by Dav Pilkey

In honor of the nearness of Halloween, I have to recommend "The Hallowiener" by Dav Pilkey. Yes, the Dav Pilkey of Captain Underpants fame has written more than just that best-seling series; he has a number of other great books for children, many of which feature his special brand of tongue-in-cheek humor.

In "The Hallowiener" we meet Oscar, a young "weiner dog" or dachshund. He is teased by the other dogs at obedience school for being low and long in comparison to their sturdier, stockier builds; and on Halloween, when he just wants to be one of the gang, his mother presents her "little Vienna sausage" with a surprise costume: a hotdog wiener in a bun, complete with mustard. Oscar wears the costume to please her; and against all odds, he ends up the hero on a trick-filled night of fun and suspense.

"The Hallowiener" is sure to bring a smile to the faces of young and old trick and treaters! The vividly-colored cartoon like drawings are attractive and entertaining. Overall, this is a boo-ful book for the scary season!