Featured Five: Illustrated Children's Books

 Each Wednesday, I'll feature five books that I'm currently loving. This week, all my picks are illustrated children's books - perfect gifts for the young book lovers in your life!

Title: Too Much Glue
Author: Jason Lefebvre
Illustrator: Zac Retz
Publisher: Flashlight Press
Age: 5-7 (K-2)
Goodreads

Too Much Glue is too much fun. Young Matty is a glue enthusiast; he firmly believes you can never have too much glue. After finding himself in a sticky situation, literally, things may have gotten a tad out of hand. Great fun!

Title: My Pen Pal, Santa
Author: Melissa Stanton 
Illustrator: Jennifer A. Bell
Publisher: Random House BFYR
Age: 3-7 (P-2)
Goodreads

In this delightful story Ava sends Santa Claus a letter, thanking him for her gifts and inquiring after his New Year plans. Surprised that someone is thinking of him after Christmas, Santa writes back, beginning a year long correspondence with Ava that leads right up until following holiday season. Ava, full of curiosity and questions, asks many of the things children will often ask of their parents, but receives answers directly from Santa himself! I loved that this story addresses the tough questions - How does Santa get into houses without chimneys? How does he even fit down those chimneys? And does Santa know the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny? - while encouraging kids who still believe in Santa to hold on to the magic and keep believing, nevermind the older siblings and peers who might say otherwise!

Title: Snatchabook
Author: Helen Docherty
Illustrator: Thomas Docherty
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Age: 3-6
Goodreads

In cozy Burrow Down, the rabbit Eliza Brown and her book-loving neighbors are without books to read at bedtime. Someone, or something, has been stealing books right from under their noses and Eliza is determined to find out who. When Eliza sets a clever trap for the book snatching thief and discovers the culprit is a Snatchabook, an adorable little imp, she quickly comes up with a plan to set things right. A beautifully illustrated story about sharing, forgiveness, and creative thinking, The Snatchabook is a fantastic read aloud story sure to enchant your readers.

Title: I'd Know You Anywhere, My Love
Author: Nancy Tillman
Illustrator: Nancy Tillman
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends/Macmillan
Age: 4-8 (P-3)
Goodreads

Nancy Tillman has done it again! An incredibly touching and moving portrait of the bond between parent and child, I'd Know You Anywhere, My Love belongs in every young reader's library. Children will love the cadence of the story and the beautiful illustrations featuring children as animals of every shape and size and the parents who will "know them anywhere." As always, I highly recommend this Tillman offering.

Title: Princess Tales: Once Upon a Time in Rhyme with Seek-and-Find Pictures
Author: Grace Maccarone
Illustrator: Gail de Marcken
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends/Macmillan
Age: 4-6 (P-1)
Goodreads

Perfect for anyone who loves fairy tales, this interactive book is sure to provide entertainment for both parents and children. Ten retellings are featured in Princess Tales, from the well-known story of Cinderella to the lesser known Twelve Dancing Princesses. What I loved most about the stories themselves was the diversity represented throughout the stories, as each takes place in a different part of the world or in an entirely new fantasy landscape. The tales are told via lengthy poems, making it a great book for parents and children to read together. After parents and children will have fun working together as they search for the items hidden within the illustrations.