Animal Baths (2011) - Bob Barner

Animal Baths is a simple, colorful, fun book that would be great for a Bathtime or Nighttime Storytime. The colors are big and vibrant with a great mix of animals kids love. Kids can easily identify most of the animals and can learn about some (like the manatee) that might be unfamiliar. The last two pages (which would be great for one-on-one) teach the correlation between each particular animal and getting clean. Good clean fun!

Storytelling  4
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  5
Text Size  5
Illustrations  5
Participation Potential  4  
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 5

See Me Run (2011) - Paul Meisel

See Me Run is a cute, fun dog book, but it's really more of an easy reader than a picture book: lots of simple sentences, few words on a page, and word repetition. It's certainly fun watching dogs be dogs and Meisel's drawings are cute and playful. The ending, however, has the potential to scar dog-loving kids for life. Nothing in the story prepares kids for the final three pages. Not good for storytime.

Storytelling  1
Color Attractiveness  2
Size of Book  2
Text Size  2
Illustrations  2
Participation Potential  1
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 1

Big Little Brother (2011) - Kevin Kling, Chris Monroe

Big Little Brother is a cute, funny, and probably realistic look at the advantages of being a big brother.... Until he grows taller than you! 

I really enjoyed the book and thought it had lots of subtle ideas dropped here and there that worked well (fear of the dark, the love/hate relationship of siblings, etc.), but think it would work far better as a one-on-one book than a storytime prospect.

Storytelling  4
Color Attractiveness  3
Size of Book  4
Text Size  3
Illustrations  3
Participation Potential  2
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 3

Everything Goes on Land (2011) - Brian Biggs

Everything Goes on Land is a wonderful book that would work best in a one-on-one situation or possibly a small storytime setting of just a handful of kids.

There's lots going on with just about every page. Busy streets provide lots to look at and identify, making the book far too detailed for large groups, but great for one-on-one reading. Kids can hit visual overload on some of these pages, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, since Biggs pauses to give young readers an in-depth look at the parts of a car, an 18-wheeler, a camper, motorcycle, bicycle and more. It's definitely a fun book that gets kids to notice the world around them, even if they're stuck in traffic. Again, great for very small groups, but not-so-good for large storytimes.

Storytelling  4
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  4
Text Size  2
Illustrations  3
Participation Potential  2
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 3

Grandpa Green (2011) - Lane Smith

Lane Smith's Grandpa Green has a lot going for it, but it's probably not one of those books you'll use very often in a one-on-one situation. Like many other picture books out there, it's as much (maybe more) for adults than for kids.

The book is a touching look at life, love and death, not exactly the type of thing you want to promote in Storytime. ("Okay, kids! It's Death Storytime today!" Don't think so.) The illustrations, while excellent, are too detailed and too subtle for most children. I would never use this book for Storytime and would even hesitate to use it in one-on-one situations, and even then only if you're dealing with the death or near-death of a close family member, and even then only if the child was ready for it.

Storytelling  2
Color Attractiveness  2
Size of Book  2
Text Size  3
Illustrations  3
Participation Potential  1
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 1

Shout! Shout It Out! (2011) - Denise Fleming

Shout! Shout It Out! by Denise Fleming doesn't have much a story, but for a storytime setting, who cares? It's got everything else: big bold colors, counting, ABCs, animals, and much more.  This book practically demands audience participation!

The story also includes a cute little mouse that kids in a storytime setting could probably see if you pointed him out. The little guy says something on just about every page, but it would probably be more effective to read his words in a one-on-one setting only.

Storytelling  2
Color Attractiveness  5
Size of Book  5
Text Size  5
Illustrations  5
Participation Potential  5
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime  5

I Must Have Bobo (2011) - Eileen Rosenthal, Marc Rosenthal

I Must Have Bobo (2011) by Eileen Rosenthal and Marc Rosenthal is a cute, fun book about a boy named Willy who has trouble keeping up with his favorite toy, a sock monkey named Bobo. This trouble is due to the fact that Willy's cat Earl like Bobo too.

Unfortunately, the book and its text size are just too small for large storytime groups. The main characters are colorful, but little else is. There's really not much potential for audience participation, other than asking the kids where Bobo went. I Must Have Bobo would probably work great as a one-on-one book, but is not recommended for large storytime programs.  

Storytelling  3
Color Attractiveness  3
Size of Book  2
Text Size  2
Illustrations  3
Participation Potential  1
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime  2