Librarian assembles list of best children's books

OREM — Orem children's librarian Patricia Castelli has assembled a list of 100 of the best children's books from the 21st century. This is a partial list. The complete list is available on the Orem City Library Web site: lib.orem.org.

Bilingual books for preschoolers:

LATINO LULLABIES AND GENTLE GAMES: Mi Nino Arrorro, Lulu Delacre: musical arrangements by Cecilia Esquival and Diana Saez. Preschool.

Energetic Spanish finger plays, poems and songs with luscious illustrations are wonderful to share with a Spanish-speaking or bilingual child.

A TALL TALE ABOUT A GIANT WOMAN WITH A BIG HEART: Pat Mora. Illustrated by Raul Colon. Preschool.

Soft and dreamy art accompanies this story that seamlessly introduces a few Spanish words in a tale about a giant who helps her villagers stay happy and safe.

JUST A MINUTE; A TRICKSTER TALE AND COUNTING BOOK: Yuyi Morales. Preschool-Grade 3.

Senor Death has come for Grandma, but she has work to do. She counts each task in English and Spanish until death is tricked out of Grandma.

Poetry:

LOVE THAT DOG: Sharon Creech. Grades 4-6.

The simple but powerful story in verse grows out of a class poetry unit that begins "I don't want to because boys don't write poetry."

TECHNICALLY, IT'S NOT MY FAULT: John Grandits. Concrete Poems. Grades 4-8.

Experiences of a boy are turned into a laugh-out-loud collection of poems. The placement of words on the page is half the fun.

DARK SONS: Nikki Grimes. Teen.

A novel in poetry relates the lives of two boys in alternating chapters, Ishmael, the son of Abraham, and Sam, who lives in New York. Both realize their faithful father is God.

OH NO! WHERE ARE MY PANTS AND OTHER DISASTERS: POEMS: Hopkins, Lee Bennett, editor. Pictures by Wolf Erlbruch. Grades 2-6.

Amusing poems with a facing page of illustration explore the various ways children find to become embarrassed. Some turn out well, some not so well.

POEMS SELECTED BY PAUL B. JANECZKO: Paul B. Janeczko. Illustrated by Chris Raschka.

A KICK IN THE HEAD; AN EVERYDAY GUIDE TO POETIC FORMS. All ages.