HOW TO CHANGE THE WORLD IN 12 EASY STEPS Written by Peggy Porter Tierney Illustrated by Marie Letourneau (Tanglewood Publishing; $15.99, Ages 4-8)     ★Starred Review -Kirkus   Before reading How to Change the World in 12 Easy Steps, a new picture book written by Peggy Porter Tierney and illustrated by Marie Letourneau, I had not heard about Eva Mozes Kor, the inspiration for this story. I wish I'd had the opportunity to attend one of the talks that she did around the country before she passed away in 2019. If you know what she experienced as a Mengele…

GIFT BOOKS FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY ∼ A ROUNDUP ∼   TIGER, TIGER, BURNING BRIGHT! An Animal Poem for Each Day of the Year Selected by Fiona Waters Illustrated by Britta Teckentrup (Nosy Crow; $40, Ages 3-7) Louise  Bolongaro, Head of Picture Books at Nosy Crow, describes poems as bite-sized worlds that can be snacked on word by word or swallowed whole in one big gulp. I could not agree more. That's why this new collection of poems for each day of the year is indeed a treat to be savored whether read daily, weekly, monthly, or whenever the mood…

    I HEAR YOU, FOREST Written by Kallie George Illustrated by Carmen Mok (Greystone Kids; $17.95; Ages 3-7)     When a child walks through the forest and hears its majestic sounds, we're reminded by author Kallie George that the forest needs to be heard in I Hear You, Forest, with breathtaking illustrations by Carmen Mok . As a new mom, George knows the importance of helping babies and toddlers juggle their emotions. And the simple words, “I hear you” let them know they are heard and they are respected. The story takes the reader on a walk, guided…

      AN INTERVIEW WITH JOANA PASTRO AUTHOR OF BISA’S CARNAVAL ILLUSTRATED BY CAROLINA COROA (Orchard Books; $18.99, Ages 4 to 8)       SHORT SUMMARY “Trumpets, trombones, tubas, and saxophones sing louder, faster, faster, louder! It’s CARNAVAL!” With help from her bisa (great-grandma), a young girl in Brazil prepares for Carnaval: bright costumes, feathers, flowers, and plenty of glitter. But bisa must stay home. As the girl hugs bisa goodbye, the music pulls her in. Excitement is everywhere, on every sight, sound and scent. But…  Carnaval isn’t the same without bisa.  With the blow of a whistle…

  PLANTING FRIENDSHIP: Peace, Salaam, Shalom Written by Callie Metler, Shirin Rahman, and Melissa Stoller Illustrated by Kate Talbot (Spork; $17.99, Ages 5-8)       Review Planting Friendship: Peace, Salaam, Shalom has landed on bookshelves at just the right time when the world needs more stories about coming together despite our differences. This uplifting joint effort by Callie Metler, Shirin Rahman, and Melissa Stoller introduces young readers to characters whose faith matches those of the authors: Christian, Muslim, and Jewish respectively. Adding to the appeal is the detailed art by Kate Talbot whose depictions of the three girls, Molly,…

WORDS COMPOSED OF SEA AND SKY by Erica George (Running Press Teens; $17.99, Ages 13 and up)          Two love triangles unfold in Erica George’s YA romance, Words Composed of Sea and Sky. Michaela (Mack) Dunn’s stepfather won’t pay for her to attend a poetry workshop. However, a local contest is giving away that retreat as a prize for whoever writes the best dedication plaque for the new statue honoring the Highland Whaler, Captain Benjamin Churchill. The problem is, not much is known about Churchill even though his name is plastered all over Mack’s Cape Cod town.…

  CHICKEN CHICKENS Written and illustrated by Valeri Gorbachev (NorthSouth Books; $18.95; Ages 4-8)         The charming Chicken Chickens by author-illustrator Valeri Gorbachev is back after 20 years, just in time to help a new generation of children overcome being labeled a “chicken” when feeling fearful about experiencing something new. This 40-page picture book is about twin chickens who go to a playground with Mother Hen for the very first time. The soft colors of green, yellow, and brown bring warmth to a busy playground of cats on swings, turtles in sandboxes, and dogs on seesaws. When…

  NEW HANUKKAH BOOKS FOR 2021 ∼A ROUNDUP∼       BABY LOVES ANGULAR MOMENTUM ON HANUKKAH! Written by Ruth Spiro Illustrated by Irene Chan (Charlesbridge; $8.99, Ages  0-3) The popular Baby Loves Science board book series has notched up over 15  titles in the collection touching on myriad STEM subjects from quarks to coding. In Baby Loves Angular Momentum on Hanukkah! little ones are introduced to the holiday, and in particular, the dreidel or spinning top game played by Jewish families around the world. Using the dreidel, Spiro presents the fascinating physics' concepts of torque (what makes a dreidel…