A HANDFUL OF BEANS: SIX FAIRY TALES
by Jeanne Steig
illustrated by William Steig
HarperCollins;ISBN: 0062051628;$17.95;
This collection of six traditional fairy tales is much more than a handful of entertainment, with its droll text and humorous illustrations. Don’t let the small size deceive you—this book packs a big dose of fun.

A HANUKKAH TREASURY
illustrated by Emily Lisker
edited by Eric A. Kimmel
Henry Holt;ISBN: 0805052933;$19.95;
A collection of stories, songs, history, poetry, and games for the Festival of Lights. There’s enough here to bring delight for more than eight nights.

BEAUTIFUL WARRIOR: THE LEGEND OF THE NUN’S KUNG FU
by Emily Arnold McCully
Scholastic;ISBN: 0590374877;$16.95;
A young girl’s life is transformed by her study of kung fu with a remarkable Buddhist nun in 17th century China. Watercolor illustrations evoke Oriental brush painting.

BOSS OF THE PLAINS: THE HAT THAT WON THE WEST
by Laurie Carlson
illustrated by Holly Meade
DK Ink;ISBN: 0789424797;$16.95;
From indispensable trail apparel to fashion statement: all you ever wanted to know about the Stetson.

BRAVO, ZAN ANGELO!: A COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE TALE WITH STORY AND PICTURES
by Niki Daly
Farrar, Straus & Giroux;ISBN: 0374309531;$16;
With his cock-a-doodling impersonation of a little red rooster, a small boy steals the commedia dell’arte show from his actor grandfather. A delightful melding of lively story and pictures full of drama and emotion.

CENDRILLON: A CARIBBEAN CINDERELLA
by Daniel San Souci
illustrated by J. Brian Pinkney
Simon & Schuster;ISBN: 068980668X;$16;
This most famous of fairy tales is “truthfully” retold by Cendrillon’s godmother. Rich language combined with colorful scratch-board illustrations gracefully depict Caribbean culture.

DUKE ELLINGTON: THE PIANO PRINCE AND HIS ORCHESTRA
by Andrea Davis Pinkney
illustrated by Brian Pinkney
Hyperion;ISBN: 0786821507;$16.49;
This picture book biography of the great jazz musician and his “hot-buttered bop” paints word pictures that echo the rhythm of Ellington’s music, while Pinkney’s scratchboard illustrations swirl and swoop over every page.

FIRE!
by Joy Masoff
photographed by Jack  Reznicki and Barry D.  Smith
Scholastic;ISBN: 0590978721;$16.95;
This slim yet exhaustive oversize volume is filled with action photos of firefighters, smoke jumpers, emergency medical technicians, and fire detectives at work.

FROM THE BELLYBUTTON OF THE MOON AND OTHER SUMMER POEMS
by Francisco X. Alarcón
illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzalez
Children's Book Press;ISBN: 0892391537;$15.95;
Bold and richly colored illustrations highlight 22 exuberant bilingual poems in a sunny celebration of the author’s childhood summers in Mexico.

INSECTLOPEDIA: POEMS AND PAINTINGS
by Douglas Florian
Harcourt Brace;ISBN: 0152013067;$16;
“You don’t need tickets/ To listen to crick-ets...” Twenty-one inventive poems about spiders and insects illustrated in buggy watercolor by the author.

JOAN OF ARC
by Josephine Poole
illustrated by Angela Barrett
Knopf;ISBN: 0679890416;$18;
The simple, evocative language of this account of the maid from Domremy will enthrall younger readers, as will Barrett’s illustrations—both pastoral and celestial— which complement the drama of Joan’s life.

KIDS KNITTING: PROJECTS FOR KIDS OF ALL AGES
by Melanie D. Falick
Artisan;ISBN: 1885183763;$17.95;
Bright photos and colorful drawings enhance clear, complete instructions for making tube socks, beanbags, puppets, sweaters, and even knitting needles.

LUCY DOVE
by Janice Del Negro
illustrated by Leonid Gore
DK Ink;ISBN: 0789425149;$16.95;
Moonlight…bags of gold…churchyards… and ghostly goings-on: this spooky tale is ripe for reading aloud.

MAGIC WORDS
by Edward Field
illustrated by Stefano Vitale
Gulliver;ISBN: 0152014985;$17;
Luminous illustrations done on bark, stone, and wood bring to life the elegant poetry based on Inuit creation stories.

MARY ON HORSEBACK: THREE MOUNTAIN STORIES
by Rosemary Wells
illustrated by Peter McCarty
Dial;ISBN: 0803721544;$16.99;
Three poignant stories, at once inspirational and informative, present portraits of the indomitable Mary Breckinridge, founder of the Frontier Nursing Service, and of the harsh life of 1920s Appalachia.

MY FREEDOM TRIP: A CHILD’S ESCAPE FROM NORTH KOREA
by Frances  Park and Ginger Park
illustrated by Debra Reid Jenkins
Boyds Mills;ISBN: 1563974681;$15.95;
Fleeing to freedom in South Korea, a guide leads little Soo and her father across the river, but her mother never escapes. A tale filled with joy and anguish.

RIDING FREEDOM
by Pam Muñoz Ryan
illustrated by Brian Selznick
ISBN: 059095766X;$15.95;
A lively biographical novel describes the unconventional life of Charlotte Parkhurst, who ran away from an orphanage, disguised herself as a boy, and went out west to become the first woman stagecoach driver.

SNOWFLAKE BENTLEY
by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
illustrated by Mary Azarian
Houghton Mifflin;ISBN: 0395861624;$16;
The story of a Vermont dairy farmer whose passion for photographing snowflakes turned a lifelong hobby into scientific discovery. Handtinted woodcuts enhance this intriguing biography.

THE SECRET KNOWLEDGE OF GROWN-UPS
by David Wisniewski
Lothrop Lee & Shepard;ISBN: 0688153399;$16;
Wisniewski reveals a few of the secrets adults never tell children. Cut-paper illustrations accompany a witty, irreverent text that will make kids wonder just what else they haven’t been told!

THE WILD BOY
by Mordicai Gerstein
Farrar, Straus & Giroux;ISBN: 0374384312;$16;
A beautifully simple retelling of the story of the Wild Boy of Aveyron, whose touching transformation from animal to boy shows the power of patience and love.

TOUCHING THE DISTANCE: NATIVE AMERICAN RIDDLE-POEMS
by Brian Swann
illustrated by Maria Rendon
Harcourt Brace;ISBN: 0152008047;$16;
What “looks like a star in the water?” Vivid mixed-media constructions illustrate and reveal the answers to this and 13 more traditional riddles.

WALTER WICK’S OPTICAL TRICKS
by Walter Wick
Cartwheel;ISBN: 0590222279;$13.95;
Even the covers of this fascinating book are lessons in deception. From the creator of the “I Spy” series: 15 impeccably photographed illustrations to baffle the eye and engage the imagination.