Book Nook-Friendship Month

Yes & No

by Elisha Cooper (Author) Elisha Cooper (Illustrator)

Reading Level: K − 1st Grade

From Caldecott Honor author/illustrator Elisha Cooper comes Yes & No, a timeless tale of friendship, adjusting your perspective, and the joys (and trials) of siblinghood. Good morning, good morning. It’s time to wake up! Join a cat and puppy pair through their day–the ups of being fed and romping through grass, and the downs of days that are too short and things that don’t go as planned–as they realize that sometimes the very best thing that can happen is just being.

Hey! A Colorful Mystery

by Kate Read (Author) Kate Read (Illustrator)

Reading Level: K − 1st Grade

A mysterious rumor spreads among a colorful sea of fish in Kate Read’s new picture book, a follow-up to the award-winning One Fox.

All is quiet in the deep blue sea, when a rumor bursts forth about a “great big fish hiding in the deep!” One by one, new fish are sucked into the growing story —

The red octopus was really rattled, which petrified the purple puffer fish, and startled the blue shoal, until they all flee…into a deep, dark cave.

Uh-oh! That’s no cave at all, but the mouth of a whale!

Ezra Jack Keats Illustrator Honor Award-winner Kate Read returns with a clever oceanic twist on the old telephone game starring a tiny pink fish and schools of brilliantly hued fish in a deep blue sea. As the chatter spreads, young readers will explore different varieties of sea animals, colors, and themes of gossip and unchecked claims.

Perfect for interactive readalouds as well as for early childhood education units on colors, friendship, and marine life. Back matter includes an introduction to color theory. Also by Kate Read: One Fox

Your Friend, Parker (Ready to Read: Level One)

by Parker Curry (Author) Tajae Keith (Illustrator)

Reading Level: K − 1st Grade

Series: Ready to Read: Level One

The New York Times bestselling team behind Parker Looks Up returns with this Level 1 Ready-to-Read celebrating friendship that stays strong even over long distances! Parker is writing to her friend, Gia, about the exciting sights she sees during her road trip across America. Even though Parker and Gia are far away from each other, they can still be best friends!

An Elephant & Piggie Biggie-Biggie-Biggie-Biggie! (Elephant & Piggie Biggie #4)

by Mo Willems (Author)

Reading Level: K − 1st Grade

Series: Elephant & Piggie

From award-winning, best-selling author and illustrator Mo Willems comes a bind-up of five Elephant & Piggie adventures that celebrate friendship. This bind-up includes the titles: My Friend is Sad; I Love My New Toy!; Pigs Make Me Sneeze!; A Big Guy Took My Ball!; and My New Friend is So Fun!

Stoop Sale Treasure (Hand-Me-Down Magic #1)

by Corey Ann Haydu (Author) Luisa Uribe (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

Series: Hand-Me-Down Magic

Meet the best friends at 86 1/2 Twenty-Third Avenue.

DEL loves LOTS of things! The Curious Cousins Secondhand Shoppe. Ginormous family dinners. And of course, her best-friend-cousin, Alma.

ALMA loves her abelite’s tasty empanadas. Her old home by the lake. And soon, she’ll love living in the same place as her best-friend-cousin, Del. Yet despite having Del by her side, Alma isn’t quite sure she fits in with their family at 86 1/2 Twenty-Third Avenue. It’s a new life and it’s all so different. When Del finds a special item at a neighbor’s stoop sale, she gets so excited by the magic luck it brings–but doesn’t see that it’s driving the two best friends apart. Will family, friendship, and maybe a little everyday magic be enough to make things right again?

Brimming with adorable illustrations and short, easy-to-read chapters, this is sure to be an instant favorite for fans of Ivy and Bean and Dory Fantasmagory!

Big Foot and Little Foot (Big Foot and Little Foot #1)

by Ellen Potter (Author) Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

Series: Big Foot and Little Foot

Hugo is a young Sasquatch who longs for adventure. Boone is young boy who longs to see a Sasquatch. When their worlds collide, they become the unlikeliest pair of best friends.

At the Academy for Curious Squidges, Hugo learns all manner of Sneaking–after all, the most important part of being a Sasquatch is staying hidden from humans. But Hugo dreams of roaming free in the Big Wide World rather than staying cooped up in caves. When he has an unexpected run-in with a young human boy, Hugo seizes the opportunity for a grand adventure.

Soon, the two team up to search high and low for mythical beasts, like Ogopogos and Snoot-Nosed Gints. Through discovering these new creatures, together, Big Foot and Little Foot explore the ins and outs of each other’s very different worlds but learn that, deep down, maybe they’re not so different after all.

The New Friend

by Charlotte Zolotow (Author) Benjamin Chaud (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

A poignant evocation of childhood pain and jealousy at the desertion of a best friend, with a message of optimism and empowerment A child reminisces about the many moments of joy and playfulness he used to share with his dear old companion, who has, sadly, made a new friend. Although he is sad, he finds the strength to keep his head high and sets out to find a new playmate.

The Word for Friend

by Aidan Cassie (Author) Aidan Cassie (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

From author/illustrator Aidan Cassie, the creator of Sterling, Best Dog Ever and Little Juniper Makes It Big!, comes The Word for Friend, an adorable and timely picture book story about ways to welcome, friendship, and overcoming language barriers that will connect classmates and cultures alike.

Kemala the pangolin is sure she’s going to make friends at her new school in her new country. After all, Kemala loves to talk. The kids at school like talking, too–but their words are all different. This country speaks a language Kemala doesn’t know.

At first, no one understands Kemala either. This realization makes her curl into a little ball, like most pangolins do when they’re nervous. But a classmate helps draw her out with an art project that doubles as a vocabulary exchange. Soon, Kemala is learning the most universal language of all: friendship.

Across the Desert

by Dusti Bowling (Author)

Reading Level: 4th – 5th Grade

One girl sets out on a journey across the treacherous Arizona desert to rescue a young pilot stranded after a plane crash in this gripping story of friendship, courage, and rescue, from bestselling and award-winning author Dusti Bowling

Twelve-year-old Jolene spends every day she can at the library watching her favorite livestream: The Desert Aviator, where twelve-year-old “Addie Earhart” shares her adventures flying an ultralight plane over the desert. While watching this daring girl fly through the sky, Jolene can dream of what it would be like to fly with her, far away from her own troubled home life where her mother struggles with a narcotic addiction. And Addie, who is grieving the loss of her father, finds solace in her online conversations with Jolene, her biggest–and only–fan.

Then, one day, it all goes wrong: Addie’s engine abruptly stops, and Jolene watches in helpless horror as the ultralight plummets to the ground and the video goes dark. Jolene knows that Addie won’t survive long in the extreme summer desert heat. With no one to turn to for help and armed with only a hand-drawn map and a stolen cell phone, it’s up to Jolene to find a way to save the Desert Aviator. Packed with adventure and heart, Across the Desert speaks to the resilience, hope, and strength within each of us.

Falling Short

by Ernesto Cisneros (Author)

Reading Level: 4th – 5th Grade

Ernesto Cisneros, Pura Belpré Award-winning author of Efrén Divided, is back with a hilarious and heartfelt novel about two best friends who must rely on each other in unexpected ways. A great next pick for readers who loved Ghost by Jason Reynolds or The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Pérez.

Isaac and Marco already know sixth grade is going to change their lives. But it won’t change things at home–not without each other’s help. This year, star basketball player Isaac plans on finally keeping up with his schoolwork. Better grades will surely stop Isaac’s parents from arguing all the time. Meanwhile, straight-A Marco vows on finally winning his father’s approval by earning a spot on the school’s basketball team. But will their friendship and support for each other be enough to keep the two boys from falling short?

Long Distance

by Whitney Gardner (Author) Whitney Gardner (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 4th – 5th Grade

From the creator of Fake Blood comes another exceptionally charming middle grade graphic novel about friendships both near and far, far away.

Vega’s summer vacation is not going well.

When her parents decide it’s time to pack up and leave her hometown of Portland, Oregon, behind for boring Seattle, Washington, Vega is more than upset–she’s downright miserable. Forced to leave her one and only best friend, Halley, behind, Vega is convinced she’ll never make another friend again.

To help her settle into her new life in Seattle, her parents send Vega off to summer camp to make new friends. Except Vega is determined to get her old life back. But when her cellphone unexpectedly calls it quits and things at camp start getting stranger and stranger, Vega has no choice but to team up with her bunkmates to figure out what’s going on!

Dan Unmasked

by Chris Negron (Author)

Reading Level: 4th – 5th Grade

This heartfelt middle grade debut about grief, creativity, and the healing power of friendship shows that not all heroes wear capes and is perfect for fans of John David Anderson and Ali Benjamin. Whether they’re on the baseball field or in Nate’s basement devouring the newest issue of their favorite comic book, Dan and Nate are always talking. Until they’re not. After an accident at baseball practice, Nate’s fallen into a coma. And if Dan ever wants to talk to Nate again, he’s got to take a page out of his hero Captain Nexus’s book, and do whatever it takes to save the day. But heroes have powers–and without Nate, all Dan has is a closet stuffed with comics and a best-friend-shaped hole in his heart. There’s no way a regular kid can save the day all on his own. Right?