Along a Long Road (2012) - Frank Viva

Along a Long Road is a fun book with a nice twist (no pun intended) that kids will no doubt enjoy. Although it uses only five colors, the book is eye-catching, especially the yellow ribbon of road that winds along throughout. This is another one of those books that probably work best with either smaller storytime groups or in one-on-one situations.

Storytelling  3

Color Attractiveness  4
Book Size 3
Text Size  4
Illustrations  3 (a little too detailed on some pages)
Participation Potential  2 
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 3

A Ball for Daisy (2011) - Chris Raschka

Chris Raschka's A Ball for Daisy is a wonderful, wordless picture book that's absolutely adorable. (I am, if nothing else, a sucker for dog books.) Parts of the book "read" like a graphic novel with several "panels" on some pages, which might require the "reader" to point a lot and ask "What's happening here?" Other pages are self-contained with a few more in the style of splash pages (in this case, one picture taking up two pages). The book could work with a small group, but is probably best suited to a one-on-one situation. 

Storytelling  4

Color Attractiveness  4
Book Size 3
Text Size  (No Text)
Illustrations  3
Participation Potential  2 
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 3  

Blackout (2011) - John Rocco

I love the idea behind Blackout and the execution of it: The power goes out in a city block, forcing a family to abandon their phones, computers, video games, cooking and anything else connected with electricity. Of course, the story is about how families can reconnect without technology (always a good lesson) and the doors that simpler times allowed.

The artwork is gorgeous and the nighttime scenes are simply wonderful. The book might work as a storytime prospect, but programmers may have to fill in some gaps for the kids, asking questions like "What are they doing here?" and such. (Younger kids who live in Suburbia might also need to have some aspects of "city life" explained.)

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

Say Hello to Zorro! (2011) - Carter Goodrich

Say Hello to Zorro! has a lot going for it. Not only is it a great dog story, it also says a lot about how siblings can behave towards each other. When a new dog comes into the family, there's always potential for shenanigans and there certainly are many here. This book would work well for smaller storytime groups, since the text and pictures are a bit on the small side. Of course, for a one-on-one book, it should be a big hit. Goodrich's artwork is excellent, especially the facial expressions of the dogs. (You just have to be pretty close to see them.)

Storytelling  4
Color Attractiveness  3
Size of Book  3
Text Size  3
Illustrations  5
Participation Potential  3 
Overall Appropriateness for Storytime 3.5

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