MOXY MAXWELL DOES NOT LOVE WRITING THANK-YOU NOTES
by Peggy Gifford
Schwartz & Wade;ISBN: 9780375842702;$12.99;2008

Moxy, the queen of procrastination, is back, and this time, she's putting off writing her Christmas thank-you notes. Will her schemes to shortcut the process cost her a trip to see her absent father in Hollywood?

Suggested for ages 7 - 10

LITTLE MOUSE'S BIG BOOK OF FEARS
by Emily Gravett
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers;ISBN: 9781416959304;$17.99;2008

Die-cuts, nibbled pages, collage, dictionary definitions, and a fold-out "Visitors' Map of the Isle of Fright" illustrate Little Mouse's long list of phobias inviting children to think or even laugh about their own worries.

Suggested for ages 7 - 10

TRACTION MAN MEETS TURBODOG
by Mini Grey
Knopf;ISBN: 9780375855832;$16.99;2008

Oops! When a boy’s father unfairly declares Scrubbing Brush unfit as a toy and replaces it with dimwitted Turbodog, Traction Man must brave the trash and the evil Bin-Things to rescue his pal in this inventively illustrated sequel.

Suggested for ages 6 - 10

WHAT TO DO ABOUT ALICE?
by Barbara Kerley
illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham
Scholastic;ISBN: 9780439922319;$16.99;2008

Independent-minded Alice Roosevelt, Teddy’s irrepressible daughter, defied convention and did what she liked. Cartoon illustrations capture Alice’s exuberant refusal to conform to the expectations the world had for a president’s daughter.

Suggested for ages 7 - 12

THE WILLOUGHBYS
by Lois Lowry
Walter Lorraine;ISBN: 9780618979745;$16;2008

The wily Willoughby children are easily a match for their dastardly parents as each group tries to rid themselves of the other.

Suggested for ages 8 - 12

PLANTING THE TREES OF KENYA: THE STORY OF WANGARI MAATHAI
by Claire A. Nivola
Frances Foster;ISBN: 9780374399184;$16.95;2008

What can one person do? This inspirational picture book biography answers that question by showing how Wangari Maathai, recipient of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize, led others to plant three million trees and reforest the arid soil of Kenya.

Subjects: Africa

BOYS OF STEEL: THE CREATORS OF SUPERMAN
by Marc Tyler Nobleman
illustrated by Ross MacDonald
Knopf;ISBN: 9780375838026;$16.99;2008

In the 1930s, when Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster created the first comic book superhero, no one knew then how Superman would grab hold of the American imagination. Don’t miss the afterword to find out what happened next.

Suggested for ages 6 - 10

ANNIE AND SIMON
by Catharine O'Neill
Candlewick;ISBN: 9780763626884;$15.99;2008

Delicate watercolor pastels illustrate four short chapters in which a much older brother guides and supports his chatty, curious little sister through their days as they share picnics, canoe trips, and even bee stings.

Suggested for ages 5 - 8
Subjects: Brothers and Sisters