My rating:

Sometimes it's hard to be patient. Ben gets frustrated when he talks to Penguin and Penguin never answers him back. He goes through all sorts of contortions trying to get Penguin to respond, talking to him, entertaining him, and finally gets so frustrated that he yells at Penguin. A passing lion doesn't like Ben yelling, and swallows Ben--and that's when Penguin springs into action to save the day. Ben pops out, safe and sound, and discovers he really does have a friend in Penguin--and Penguin can talk, when h's ready to. This is an entertaining book about friendship, patience, frustration, and feeling ignored, though at times it falters a little.

Dunbar's (Flyaway Katie, Dog Blue) brief, simple text soon will have the reader wondering, along with Ben, if Penguin will ever talk, and if he won't, what Ben will do. Tension is built up by Penguin refusing to speak, but simply looking at Ben and the reader in silence. . . .

My rating:

One day when Benny opens up his bakery, he finds a skinny brown dog waiting for him on the step, obviously hungry and needing a home. The dog follows Benny right into the bakery. Benny knows that a bakery isn't a place for a dog, so, noting how hungry the dog looks, he leads the dog outside with some food. The dog stays around, and each day Benny feeds him, and wonders what it would be like to have the dog come live with him--but he's determined not to let that happen. Still, Benny can't help thinking about the dog left alone at the bakery when he goes home at night. The dog gradually makes his place in the bakery, even getting a name: Brownie. Then one day Benny breaks his leg, and Brownie runs for help. Benny misses him terribly, and when he gets out of the hospital, he takes the dog home with him, happy for his company.

Skinny Brown Dog is a story with heart. It is rich, layered, moving, well-written, and has depth, emotion, strong and likable characters, and good tension. Holt (Part of Me, Keeper of the Night) sets the story up well, showing us Benny's day-to-day existence and the kind of person he is before the skinny brown dog comes into his life. Holt also introduces another key character on the second page of text, so that when she comes up later she's already familiar to readers. . . .

My rating:

What happens when you're lonely and alone, and even the weather seems dreary? In Rainstorm, the lonely boy discovers new friends through magic—a key that opens a treasure chest that leads down into a winding tunnel, up some stairs, and into a different part of the world—an island where the sun is shining, the sky is blue, and children are waiting to play with him.

Lehman's signature wordless fantasy (The Red Book, Museum Trip) doesn't disappoint. While this book doesn't feel quite as magical as The Red Book, it delights and brings a sense of magic, hope, and friendship. This is a great book that can give readers a sense of hope, belonging, and a feeling that they aren't alone. . . .

My rating:

Anna has two very special friends—giants, who come to play with her "when the sun shines just so...." Together, they play hide-and-seek and marbles, gather flowers, jump rope, and play with dolls—only the giants' ways of doing these things are different than ours. When the giants play hide-and-seek, Anna can hide in one of the giant's pockets. When they jump rope, houses around them rise into the air with the impact. And when they play dolls, well, Anna's older sister is like a doll to the giants. When Giants Come to Play is an endearing, imaginative story about a girl whose giant friends keep her company, as well as a book about friendship, imagination, and playfulness.

Beaty's text is gentle and poetic at times, perfectly capturing the delight of having imaginary friends. It also captures the freedom and playfulness that can exist in childhood. . . .

My rating:

What happens when a cold, lonely duck knocks on your door in the middle of a winter night? In Duck at the Door, the kind multi-animal-and-one-human family welcome him in. Max the duck stays all winter, learning things like how to read, drink from a cup, and use the remote on the TV. Max starts hogging the remote, making his own recipes for others to eat, and getting on the others' nerves, but just as they get ready to talk to him, Max hears his flock and leaves. The others discover that they're lonely and bored without Max, and they miss him, so when winter comes back around and there's a knock on the door, they all hope it's Max. But they're in for a surprise—it's not just Max who's at their door.

This is a funny, warm book about friendship, generosity, and accepting others, written with humor and heart. The text reads well, and there's a good sense of story throughout. . . .

My rating:

This wordless fantasy is a delight to page through. Anyone who's ever felt lonely and in need of a friend can identify with and enjoy this story. A lonely city girl discovers a red book in the snow, opens it up and sees first a map, then an island, and then another lonely child. Then that lonely boy discovers a red book in the sand, and opens it to see the city, then a building, and then the girl reading her red book. They both look up, startled, then happy, each book they hold reflecting the other.

My rating:

In this touching book, a young West Highland terrier escapes a dogcatcher's truck, and wanders about in the dark, and later the rain, trying to find a home. He receives unfriendly noises from many houses, until finally he finds a home where the people and smells welcome him in. The couple takes him on a ride to return him, and then realize that they want to keep him.

Readers will feel for McDuff, hungry, out in the dark without a home, and feel the comfort, too, when he finally finds a home. . . .