All Those Secrets of the World

Written by: Jane Yolen

First line: In this seemingly biographical story, a little girl watches her father go off to fight World War II, learns a lesson about perspective, and then welcomes her wounded father home again after two years apart. It's a small drama tailored for young minds, full of family relationships and a child's-eye view of the world, with a happy ending. A good choice for readers dealing with separation issues.

Why you shouldn't read this book: The kids are handling your spouse's deployment better than you are.

Rainy's Powwow

Written by: Linda Theresa Raczek

First line: The Thunderbird Powwow was about to begin.

Why you should read this book: This story offers a picture of a beautiful cultural practice while simultaneously telling a universally accessible story about a little girl unsure about how she fits in to her culture at large. Rainy and her brother are watching the dancers, and Rainy is acutely aware that her little brother is so young that he can dance however he wants, and their friend Grandmother White Hair's dancing days are past, but that she, Rainy, is old enough to choose a dance. Lacking relatives who could help her learn her dance and induct her into society, she talks to the other dancers and then seeks solace in the woods before finally figuring out where she belongs.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You don't know what it's like to have a club want you for a member.

Owl Moon

Written by: Jane Yolen

First line: It was late one winter night, long past my bedtime, what Pa and I went owling.

Why you should read this book: A little girl recounts her experience of going out with her father to look for owls for the first time. She knows she must be quiet, and brave, and inured to the cold, and that, even then, there might not be an owl, but her excitement at being taken on this adventure by her father is enough to give her strength, and, of course, in the end, there is a beautiful owl to look at "For one minute, three minutes, maybe even a hundred minutes." Written in delicious prose just as cool and pure as the snow that covers this Caldecott-winning book, it's a good choice for reading aloud.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Your kids are already bringing home wild animals they find everywhere and you're running out of space.

Poison: Sinister Species with Deadly Consequences

Written by: Mark Siddall

First line: We tend to think that our world is, on the whole, a safe place.

Why you should read this book: A lot of great things come out of the American Museum of Natural History, and this light-hearted and somewhat tongue-in-cheek catalog of poisonous creatures, comprising many anecdotes the author researched for, but was not able to include in a museum exhibit on the Power of Poison, is one. Although there is a great deal of chemistry and biology laid out here, by and large it's a wholly accessible work for those without scientific backgrounds, divvied up amusingly into 4 parts: "Things One Shouldn't Touch," "Things One Shouldn't Eat," "Things That Bite," and "Things That Sting," with jokes and commentary enlivening the death and agony that runs through the narrative. Includes a glossary of scientific terms and dozens of sketches of various creatures to avoid eating, touching, and being bitten or stung by.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Many deadly poisonous creatures.

Landed

Written by: Milly Lee

First line: On his twelfth birthday, Sun's parents gave him an American fountain pen.

Why you should read this book: In the early 20th century, racist immigration laws sought to stem the flow of Chinese workers into the US, and young men who were allowed in to help their fathers in business were subjected to rigorous testing to ensure that they were who they said their were. When Sun is old enough to accompany his father to Gold Mountain, he must memorize salient details about his home and family to prove his legal standing, and he worries about mixing up his cardinal directions or forgetting how far it is from his house to his school. This historical text shows the details of a Pacific crossing and the reality of detention at Angel Island, as told to the author by her father-in-law, who lived through it.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Patrolling the Mexican border.

How the Second Grade Got $8,205.50 to Visit the Statue of Liberty

Written by: Nathan Zimelman

First line: The second grade collected two tons of all kind of paper for which we were paid thirty dollars by Mr. Abner Carmody, recycler of everything.

Why you should read this book: With a quiet hilarity, it recounts the increasingly unsuccessful efforts of a bunch of seven-year-olds to raise enough money for a social studies class trip, detailing the money they make, the expenses required to earn that money, and the trail of destruction they leave in their wake. Cats will be doused in lemonade, diets will be ruined, and even the principal's car will not remain safe from the well-intentioned antics of these young entrepreneurs. In the end, of course they'll get to go see the Statue of Liberty, and while there are surprises along the way, adult readers will most likely not be shocked to learn where the class trip money ultimately comes from.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're too busy buying overpriced wrapping paper/cookie dough/candy bars to finance your local PTA.

Sleeping Ugly

Written by: Jane Yolen

First line: Princess Miserella was a beautiful princess if you counted her eyes and her mouth and all the way down to her toes.

Why you should read this book: Very, very few offerings in the easy reader category actually tell worthy stories, but Yolen, a talented writer in multiple genres, succeeds in crafting an intelligent and entertaining fractured fairy tale. Miseralla, lovely to behold, possesses an ugly personality, while Plain Jane is kindness itself. Their encounter with a disguised fairy, three wishes, and a handsome prince offers enough twists to keep even jaded readers interested.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're uneasy with the idea of forcing other people to fall in love with you.

My First Kafka: Runaways, Rodents, and Giant Bugs

Retold by: Matthue Roth

First line: "I don't know!" I cried without being heard.

Why you should read this book: I was considering buying this as a present for a variety of small children with hip parents I happen to know, but after reading these tender retellings of favorite stories, I am not convinced that even watered-down Kafka is something I want to give to children I love who still have half a chance of growing up sane. There is a certain softening of the hardest edges; for example in "The Metamorphosis," Gregor's family does not explicitly wish to be rid of him and his death is not explicitly stated, but there's not much comfort in the implications, either. The book is an amusing curio, but most likely not appropriate for bedtime reading.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You are a happy child.

Copper

Written by: Kazu Kibuishi

First line: Hello.

Why you should read this book: There's something really special about these comics featuring a generally optimistic boy and his generally pessimistic dog living in a magical world that apparently exists on the border between Hawaii and the Dreamlands. Monsters, robots, surfing, melon bread, mountain climbing, sentient mushrooms, and friendly store clerks all coexist in Copper's universe, one in which the journey is more important than the destination and love is a living legend that peeks out at our heroes when their backs are turned. Beautiful scenery pairs with adorable illustrations; the book also include a little introduction to drawing comics primer in the back, showing how a page is produced start to finish.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You don't approve of too much creativity.

Fagin the Jew

Written by: Will Eisner

First line: I was born Moses Fagin, the only son of Abraham and his wife, Rachael.

Why you should read this book: An older, wiser Eisner, toward the end of his life began to examine the racist stereotypes he employed during his career as a cartoonist, and sought to make amends by telling more honest stories about his own people, the Jews. In this unusual volume, he imagines a backstory for the villain Fagin in Charles Dickens's Oliver Twist, one that recognizes the difficulties of life in Dickensian England and the paucity of opportunities for most Jews. Fagin learns crime as a child because there is no other way to survive, and even when he tries to become an upstanding citizen, a single incident sends an otherwise kind, loving, and hardworking man into a life of constant wrongdoing, for lack of any other options in survival.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You've never read Oliver Twist.