Sing Along
Two familiar songs spring to life thanks to David A. Carter's movable illustrations. Youngsters can open a farmyard fence as a pig jumps out with its sound, "oink oink," showing through a die-cut opening in Old MacDonald Had a Farm. With the pull of a tab, the cat claps and rooster flaps in If You're Happy and You Know It. The final spreads in both books pop up, with all the animals spelling "E-I-E-I-O!" in one and all the animals shouting "HOORAY!" in the other. Music and lyrics appear on the back covers. (Scholastic/Cartwheel, $14.95 14p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-439-26468-5; 0-590-93828-2; Aug.)
In I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly, illus. by Stephen Gulbis, the die-cut hole on the expanding wheel that rests on top of the old lady's stomach invites youngsters to give its contents a whirl. (Scholastic/Cartwheel, $14.95 20p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-439-24328-9; Aug.)
Schooltime Rhymes
Young children will feel right at home with Hello School! A Classroom Full of Poems by Dee Lillegard, illus. by Don Carter, the team behind Wake Up, House! The 38 short entries bring "Cubbies," "Numbers," "Swings" and "Blocks" to life. Colorful three-dimensional illustrations against white backgrounds beg to be touched. (Knopf, $14.95 32p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-375-81020-X; July)
Not only does Lunch Box Mail: And Other Poems by Jenny Whitehead compare "The 1st Day of School" with "The 179th Day of School," but it offers many other poems that capture the joys and woes of childhood. The illustrations add humor as in "Ways to Hide a Bad Haircut" where a girl "practice[s] good posture" as she balances books on her head. (Holt, $16.95 48p ages 4-9 ISBN 0-8050-6259-9; July)
More Than a Board Book
Tad Hills adds two titles to the My Fuzzy Friends Board Books series. Die-cuts on each spread invite children to touch the animals' fur. For example, the "baby horse" in My Fuzzy Farm Babies asks, "Can you comb my soft mane with your fingers?" In My Fuzzy Safari Babies, youngsters can touch a panda cub and others. (S&S/Little Simon, $6.99 each 12p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-689-84165-5; -84164-7; July) Die-cut shaped pages graduate upward in two titles in the Step-Back Board Books series by Charles Reasoner. Ants Ants Ants features the insects working within every level of their anthill. The expanding beehive in Bees Bees Bees shows the inhabitants making honey and then going to sleep in rows of little green beds. (Price Sloan Stern, $7.99 each 14p ages 2-6 ISBN 0-8431-7613-X; -7614-8; July)
On the Go and Patterns, two additions to the Animagicals seriesby Carol Diggory Shields, illus. by Svjetlan Junakovic, features transformations with the lift of a flap. In the first, the front green fender of a sports car turns into the back end of a beetle; in the second, only the animal's patterned fur shows until the flap is opened and its head appears. (Handprint [Chronicle, dist.], $9.95 each 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 1-929766-14-9; -15-7; July)
Just for Girls
For youngest readers, the blonde bombshell hits the kitchen in Barbie: Fun to Cook by Fiona Munro. From "A Fruity Feast" at brunch to "Nacho Nibbles" and "Super Sundaes" that will clinch the success of any sleepover, Barbie offers step-by-step instructions ("I love cooking and it's easy when you know how!"), with color photographs plus ingredients and tools needed to complete each recipe. (DK, $12.95 48p ages 5-8 ISBN 0-7894-7335-6; Aug.)
With sections titled, "Relationships 101," "Beauty & Style Basics" and "Health & Happiness," What a Girl Wants: The Ultimate Survival Guide for Beauty, Health, and Happiness by Karen Cooper, illus. by Mei Lim, offers tips on everything from "how to be true to you" to keeping physically fit. Not only is there advice on how to break into the music business, given by the members of "KandyFloz," but Create Your Own Girl Band by Janet Hoggarth offers some music history, quizzes, "PSST! Gossip" (e.g., "Britney nearly joined girl band Innosense before she made it big") and related Web sites. Girl Net: A Girls' Guide to the Internet and More! by Sarra Manning, illus. by Phil Corbett, covers the basics (e.g., "The Internet and how to use it") as well as tackling more complicated challenges, such as "How to make your own website." One chapter provides Web addresses popular for teens. (Scholastic/Chicken House, $4.99 each paper 160p ages 9-up ISBN 0-439-29638-2; -29651-X; -29639-0; July)
A companion to The Care and Keeping of You, the spiral-bound The Care & Keeping of Me: The Body Book Journal encourages girls to write or draw in pertinent information about themselves such as, "What I should be eating more of:" and "My favorite time of day to exercise is... because..." Checklists, quizzes and tips help girls understand their bodies and express themselves. Another spiral-bound book titled, Me & My Dog: The Care and Keeping of a Girl's Best Friend by Maxine Rock, illus. by Amanda Haley, informs dog lovers how to care for their four-legged friend. There are quizzes to take, training tips and tricks to read and a keepsake section for photos and memories. (Pleasant, $7.95 each ages 8-up ISBN 1-58485-460-X; -367-0; Sept.)
A Smart Girl's Guide to Boys: Surviving Crushes, Staying True to Yourself, & Other Love Stuff! by Nancy Holyoke, illus. by Bonnie Timmons, gives advice in sections called "How to tell him you like him," "Competition & jealousy" and "How to break up." Teens can read letters from girls and advice from boys as well as trying the "pop" quizzes sprinkled throughout. (Pleasant, $9.95 paper 112p ages 8-12 ISBN 1-58485-368-9; Sept.)
Glossy color photographs of Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez and Halle Berry fill the pages of Stylin': Great Looks for Teens by Maggie Maron. As girls read make-up tips and "celebrity style secrets," view different hairstyles and learn how to "dress to impress," they can see examples on their favorite stars. (Friedman/Fairfax [Sterling, dist.], $12.95 paper 96p ages 12-up ISBN 1-58663-079-2; July)
Teen People: Real Life Diaries, edited by Linda Friedman and Dana White, features true stories from famous adolescents and everyday teens. Musical star Moby talks about how becoming a vegetarian has changed his life and René Stephens tells how she won her battle with social anxiety disorder. (HarperCollins/Avon, $12.95 paper 144p ages 12-up ISBN 0-06-447329-5; Aug.)
In GooseHead Guide to Life, the 16-year-old CEO of GooseHead.com, Ashley Power, offers cyberfans everything they need to know to build their own Web page and start a business. But first, readers are treated to "All About Ashley" and "The World According to Ashley" sections, detailing the origin of Goosehead.com in the first, and tips on love, as well as physical and mental health in the latter. (Hyperion/Volo, $14.99 paper 160p ages 12-up ISBN 0-7868-1581-7; Aug.)
