When duck gets lost in the tall weeds a little monkey calls, "I can help."  But, that kind little monkey lands on a broken branch and starts falling. Enter giraffe who says calls, "I can help!" And so it goes. One helper after another ends up needing help until this circular tale returns to the little duck. Children are going to love chiming in with the "I can help," refrain and the author has not left out the thank you’s after each rescue. An old-fashioned book with the kind of repetition that children love. The art is upbeat and exactly right for this delightful little book. They say 3-6, we think some older twos will like it and older preschoolers and first graders will like "reading" it after they have heard it a few times.

Age: Toddlers, Preschool, Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

If you are expecting the usual mild toddler style tales from Lucy Cousins – this is not it! These are not watered down versions of Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Pigs, or Henny Penny, among others. As in many Grimm tales the Hungry Wolves and foxes do their grim deeds and Cousins paints it all in her usual bright palette. So, look closely before you bring this home to the usual Cousins' audience. This is a better choice for kids from 7 & up.

Age: Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

Using language that developing readers can handle and photographs that convey that this is a true story, Ruby Bridges tells her remarkable story. It was she who braved the segregated schoolhouse with federal marshals in the battle for civil liberties. Using archival Life magazine photos by Margaret Bourke-White and others, this is a handsome little book that will surely be used during Black History month in schools and/or as a treasure in the family library.  You can hear Ruby Bridges herself read the story on Scholastic’s website.

Age: Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

An abbreviated version of the classic, Snow White, is told on the fold out flaps of this stunning, 3-D book. Paper engineered to resemble a theater set, the delicate cut-outs are intricately layered and are worth a thousand words. This is not your Disney version of Snow White, nor is it exactly the classic version. Indeed, it is notably different as it ends with a bi-racial prince waking Snow White, an image that probably would not have been marketed five years ago.

Age: Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

What a neat idea! Grandparents can fill out a form and send photos to this publisher and they will produce a book about your life to share with your grandkids. You use their template that covers your likes and dislikes, your school years and family, too. Send it back to the company with photos and your cherished memories become family history that kids can treasure. It's a 20 page book that covers your life from childhood to the present and can include your grandchild and his parents. For more info visit their website, ISeeMe.com.

Age: Preschool, Early School Years, Later School Years. Award Year: 2009.

What with the media blitz of a Disney feature with the first African American Princess, there is bound to be a lot of merchandise to go around. If a keepsake of that movie is on your little one's wish list, this storybook is not a bad choice. Princess Tiana has been invited to a ball and her friend Charlotte insists she must follow the Princess handbook in getting ready for the big night. Princess Tiana ends up doing it her way...and she is a natural. It's not great literature, but it's not bad. Indeed it says something about being yourself....even if you are a princess.

Age: Preschool, Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

Each of the dinosaur eras is represented with an amazing pop-up scene that features the dinosaurs of that time along with birds and other mammals all accompanied with sound effects that add to the excitement. The information in between the pop-ups is set in such small type that young readers will have a problem and older readers will need a magnifier. That said, this is still an amazingly handsome book. The text on the pop-up page is simple enough for young readers to comprehend and the details will interest the most devoted dinohaulics. 

Age: Preschool, Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

Striking 3D pop-ups invite young readers into the rain forests of the world. There are five transparent layered scenes with keys that identify the many animmals and plants found in each setting. The book is also laced with stunning photographs and factoids. It's not a book that kids will likely read from page one to the end. It's more of a book to browse through and get a sense of wonder about the amazing variety of species in the natural world. From the undergrowth to the canopy of the rain forest, this is a visually exciting introduction.

Age: Early School Years, Later School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

It’s hard to say what will hold you more, the elegant acrostic poems or glorious photographs. Some of the poems rhyme, others do not…but they are all playful and capture the sense of the creature caught on each facing page. Young people will enjoy reading the up and down acrostic generally found in the first letter of each line. But the poems and portraits of each folio add much more than a little ‘trick’ on each page. These are striking images from game parks in Africa.

Age: Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

Six of the best known Princess stories are in this lovely collection. Each story opens with an enchanting pop-up and is illustrated with dreamy impressionistic paintings. This is one of those books that will be enjoyed first as a read aloud and again as a read alone. It includes:  The Princess and the Pea, The Wild Swans, Snow White, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, and the Frog Prince.  

Age: Early School Years, Later School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.