Big Bear Hug (Nicholas Oldland)

When you are good natured and loving, it is shocking to see people be destructive! This bear finds a good way to solve the problem. Love always wins!

Goodreads says:

A huge bear is wandering through the forest - but wait a minute! Who's that he's hugging? A beaver? And a moose? And a bird? And a tree?

Welcome to the world of Big Bear Hug, a contemporary fable about a bear who has an appetite for hugging everything in sight - even creatures that bears have been known to eat. One day, the benevolent bear meets up with a human. This human proceeds to do something the bear cannot understand: he raises his axe and begins to cut down a tree. Suddenly the bear doesn't feel like hugging anymore and must make a difficult decision on how to stop this destruction in his forest.

The environmental message of Big Bear Hug is both funny and powerful, while simple enough to engage very young children and show them the awesome power of a hug.

Making the Moose Out Of Life (Nicholas Oldland)

Sometimes you need a reminder to go for it and try some new things, like this moose!

Goodreads says:

From the creator of Big Bear Hug comes the comic-adventure story of a mild-mannered moose who learns how to take life by the antlers. This moose may live in the wild, but he doesn't act it --- he watches from the sidelines as his friends have fun. Every now and then, he wonders if he's missing out on anything.

When the moose finally takes a chance and goes on a solo sailing trip, a raging storm carries him far from everything he knows. Will he curl up in a ball and cry, or make the most of it?

The moose's unlikely hero-journey is a lighthearted, contemporary fable that celebrates living life to the fullest.

Bob (Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead)

I think the cover of this book is enchanting. I listened to some of it on an audio book and it was great because of the Australian accents.

The story is lovely. I think it will be fun to discuss it with grade fours and talk about things they remember from when they were younger, now that they're more grown up.

For a while I was confused about whether Bob was imaginary or not. Turns out he isn't imaginary. He is a well-dweller! Lots of memory moments in this book to notice and note.

Goodreads says:

A classic middle-grade tale of magic and friendship, about a girl who helps an old friend find home, by two New York Times–bestselling authors Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead.

It’s been five years since Livy and her family have visited Livy’s grandmother in Australia. Now that she’s back, Livy has the feeling she’s forgotten something really, really important about Gran’s house.

It turns out she’s right.

Bob, a short, greenish creature dressed in a chicken suit, didn’t forget Livy, or her promise. He’s been waiting five years for her to come back, hiding in a closet like she told him to. He can’t remember who—or what—he is, where he came from, or if he even has a family. But five years ago Livy promised she would help him find his way back home. Now it’s time to keep that promise.

Clue by clue, Livy and Bob will unravel the mystery of where Bob comes from, and discover the kind of magic that lasts forever.

Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead, two masterminds of classic, middle-grade fiction come together to craft this magical story about the enduring power of friendship.

This Book Just Stole My Cat (Richard Byrne)

Fun...but maybe a little too young for my crowd. Apparently, I should have read the dog one first. Oops.

Goodreads says:

In this next picture book from Richard Byrne--the author-illustrator of This book just ate my dog!--Bella, Ben, and that adorable dog have to rescue Ben's cat from the clutches of the naughty book.

When Ben's cat disappears into the gutter of the book, Bella joins in the search-and-rescue mission. But when the helpers disappear one after another, Ben realizes it's up to him to set things right. Cleverly using the physicality of the book, This book just stole my cat! is kid-friendly fun! 

The Clever Boy and the Terrible, Dangerous Animal (Idries Shah)

Don't be afraid of new things! Great lesson. Also, we noticed after, that the outside is the colors of a melon, up close. In the words, it looks like there are watermelon seeds. The inside cover of the book is the inside of the watermelon. So clever!


Goodreads says:

A Sufi teaching tale of a boy who visits another village and helps the townspeople deal with their fear of something that they have mistaken for a terrible, dangerous animal.

Stop Reading This Book! (Caroline Fernandez)

My class was a little unsure of how to take this book. They enjoyed it but it wasn't as big a hit as The Book With My Pictures, but maybe that's because they read TBWNP when they were younger. Maybe this is better for a younger audience? I thought it was pretty fun though.

Goodreads says:

Here's an idea...turn the left page. That way, you can go back to the beginning, close the book, and pretend you didn't start reading this book. It would be like going back in time... give it a try... This heart-warming picture book urges children to read using comedy and contradiction. Who is the villain--the reader or the book? In this story, the book itself perceives the reader as a mischief-maker and tries to protect its pages. It is a story of a book judging a reader by their "cover." In turning pages, the reader becomes the hero of their own story overcoming the challenges the book puts up to roadblock reading. Stop Reading This Book introduces young readers to book elements like protagonists, antagonists, conflict, and resolution and showcases themes of child empowerment, judgment and misjudgment, marginalization and inclusivity, and persistence.

Tuesdays With Morrie (Mitch Albom)

I read this about 8 years ago. I re-read it when my book club was reading it. We had a wonderful discussion from it. Still, I could only rate it a 3. I feel a little guilty about that because Mitch Albom has done some wonderful things and Morrie was a great man and it is about life and death and really living. However, I still found it a little cheesy. I tend to think it is a little bit of memory bias. People tend to

Maybe it just isn't the right time in my life. Maybe I'll have to read it again.

Goodreads says:

Maybe it was a grandparent, or a teacher or a colleague. Someone older, patient and wise, who understood you when you were young and searching, and gave you sound advice to help you make your way through it. For Mitch Albom, that person was Morrie Schwartz, his college professor from nearly twenty years ago.

Maybe, like Mitch, you lost track of this mentor as you made your way, and the insights faded. Wouldn't you like to see that person again, ask the bigger questions that still haunt you?

Mitch Albom had that second chance. He rediscovered Morrie in the last months of the older man's life. Knowing he was dying of ALS - or motor neurone disease - Mitch visited Morrie in his study every Tuesday, just as they used to back in college. Their rekindled relationship turned into one final 'class': lessons in how to live.