Mrs. Malecha Reads!

by Greg Pizzoli Did you hear that noise?  Owl did!  He is trying to fall asleep and he can't figure out where the squeaking is coming from.  Step by step he tries to eliminate everything in his house that might be making a squeaking noise. Soon he is left with nothing but his bed...and then he sees the source of the noise!  Finally, Owl can get some sleep!

by Eve Bunting Illustrated by Lauren Castillo Callie is having a hard time watching people come to her yard sale.  Her parents had to sell their house and now they will be moving to a small apartment where there isn't room for all of the things they have in their house.  Callie doesn't want to part with her things, leave her friends, and go live in a new place.  But as she watches her belongings disappear, she realizes the most important thing, her family, is still going to be with her no matter where they live.

by Jonathan London Illustrated by Matthew Trueman Have you ever wondered what the deadliest animal in Africa is?  You may be surprised to learn that it is the hippo!  Hippos can run up to 25 miles per hour, have razor sharp tusks and can weigh as much as 50 grown men!  If you want to know more facts about hippos, this is the book for you!

by John Coy Photographs by Wing Young Huie What is your family's arrival story?  This book tells the arrival stories of many through photographs of families doing everyday sorts of activities.  The United States is made up of immigrants from all over the world and this book aims to help celebrate the diversity that exists throughout the country. Many immigrants made sacrifices to bring their families to a new place.  What will people do with this great gift?

by Ryan T. Higgins Bruce loves eggs and he is always looking for the freshest, most delicious eggs.  But one day the eggs he buys from a goose, hatch, before he is able to cook them.  Now he is stuck with four little goslings who think that Bruce is their mother.  He tries everything to get rid of them, but they just won't leave. Whatever is Mother Bruce going to do?

by Sherman Alexie Illustrated by Yuyi Morales Thunder Boy, Jr. is named after his dad, which is kind of cool, except that he would like to have his own name.  Many people call his dad Big Thunder, so then people think they can call him Little Thunder.  He doesn't really want to be Little Thunder.  He wants a name that celebrates something special about him.  How will he figure out the best name for himself?

by Adam Lehrhaupt and Scott Magoon Theodore is always thinking about his next meal.  He lies in his cave and waits for it to appear.  But one day, something new comes that he has never seen before.  It is a boy and Theodore is excited to try something new.  Surely this boy will be a delicious and tasty treat...or maybe not?  If Theodore doesn't eat him today, there is always tomorrow.

by Miranda Paul Illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon In Njau, Gambia, when people were done with a plastic bag, they just dropped it in the dirt and there it would sit until one bag became a pile of 10, then 20, then 50, then 100.  Animals started getting sick from eating the bags and people got tired of the mounds of plastic.  Isatou Ceesay decided to do something about it.  She collected the bags, washed them, and cut them into strips and then taught herself to crochet.  She crocheted the plastic bags into new purses that she sold to by new goats for her farm.  Many people laughed at her idea, but Isatou believed in her dream and made it come true!

by Terry Fan and Eric Fan Grimloch Lane is your average boring street, until one night when someone trims a tree to look like an owl.  And then the next night another tree becomes a cat.  And so it continues...each night a new tree becomes something more magical than before. William can't figure out who is behind the magic, but then he spots an unfamiliar figure sneaking down the street.  Has he found the infamous night gardener?

by Marsha Diane Arnold Illustrated by Matthew Cordell One windy day, Bear loses his red scarf.  Beaver finds it and turns it into a cozy cap.  But then the scarf gets lost again, until the next animal finds a use for it.  And so it goes...lost. Found. Lost. Found. But where will the scarf end up?  Will Bear ever get it back?