True Companions

Third in the Good Sports series, Chip and the Karate Kick by Anne Rockwell, illus. by Paul Meisel, follows avid martial arts fan Chip O'Hare as he takes karate lessons for the first time. Eager to emulate his cinematic hero, Striper Mee, the bunny has difficulty sitting through the history and meditation that fill his first lessons and is disappointed when he doesn't advance to the yellow belt level with his friends. When a bully kicks Chip and steals his friend's kite, Chip uses the principles of karate to resist the urge to fight back. (HarperCollins, $14.99 40p ages 4-6 ISBN 0-06-028442-0; May)

One Is a Drummer: A Book of Numbers by Roseanne Thong, illus. by Grace Lin, is the pair's third concept book celebrating elements of Chinese culture. This rhyming counting book spans one to 10, showing four friends playing mahjong and eight "Chinese Immortals of old," among others. A glossary gives thorough explanations of these and other traditions mentioned. (Chronicle, $14.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-8118-3772-6; May)

Grace Lin's illustrations also fill the pages of Fortune Cookie Fortunes (along with her text), a follow-up to Dim Sum for Everyone! Here Pacy and her family examine their fortune cookies after their meal, and the girl observes that each of their fortunes comes true in a different way (e.g., a garden full of pumpkins and peapods that dwarf Ma-Ma confirm "Attention and care will make great things happen"). (Knopf, $15.95 32p ages 5-8 ISBN 0-375-81521-X; May)

In Mouse's latest adventure, Mouse's First Summer by Lauren Thompson, illus. by Buket Erdogan, the diminutive hero and pal Minka explore all aspects of a summer picnic, from red watermelon under the blue sky to the white, brown and purple of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The colorful day ends with a bright fireworks show at night. (S&S, $12.95 32p ages 2-6 ISBN 0-689-85835-3; June)

More than a decade after her first adventure, another plucky mouse stars in Ruby and the Sniffs by Michael Emberley with an urban twist on a familiar tale. When Ruby hears noises from the apartment upstairs, she investigates, suspecting cat burglars. Instead she finds three humongous hogs, the friendly Sniff family. Ruby finds herself struggling to escape their (literally) suffocating kindness, smothered both by Momma Sniff's "too soft" chair and by Baby's Sniff's abundant posterior. (Little, Brown, $15.95 32p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-316-23664-0; June)

In another ode to family togetherness, What Aunts Do Best/What Uncles Do Best by Laura Numeroff, illus. by Lynn Munsinger, offers a back-to-back homage to first aunts, then uncles, engaging in the same activities (playing the piano, going to the mall and building a secret clubhouse, among others) with their favorite animal nieces and nephews. (S&S, $14.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-689-84825-0; June)

Demi's latest folktale, The Hungry Coat: A Tale from Turkey, touched with gold foil, celebrates that nation's aesthetic with a story revolving around a wise man, Nasrettin Hoca. On his way to a dinner at the home of a rich friend, Nasrettin stops to help capture a runaway goat and has no time to change before the dinner; there his fellow diners reject him because of his appearance. When he returns dressed finely, they welcome him, and the hero uses the opportunity to teach them a lesson about the source of a man's true character. (S&S/McElderry, $19.95 40p ages 6-10 ISBN 0-689-84680-0; June)

Understanding History

A pair of books put historical events in the context of their time. Following Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado, John Winthrop, Oliver Cromwell, and the Land of Promise by Marc Aronson describes the interactions of these two influential men. Winthrop, a Puritan, struggled to create a moderate settlement for religious worship in the New World, while Cromwell, who saw himself as "the agent of God," led the revolution against King Charles I. As with his previous books, Aronson often utilizes expressions or situations with which readers will be familiar to help them place historical events in context; for instance, he compares the British takeover of Native land to "a family secret no one wants to discuss but everyone knows is there," and links Winthrop's vision of America as a "Land of Promise" with that of Martin Luther King Jr.'s ideal of "the Promised Land." (Clarion, $20 224p ages 12-up ISBN 0-618-18177-6; May)

A companion to Remember Pearl Harbor, Remember D-Day: The Plan, the Invasion, Survivor Stories by Ronald J. Drez recounts the months leading up to and the details of the Allied invasion at Normandy. Though the "survivor stories" appear mainly as brief quotations interspersed throughout the narrative, photographs of the young soldiers to which the quotes are attributed often run alongside, lending a personal quality to the text. Timelines, numerous photographs and illustrations contribute to an accessible design, and an introduction by David Eisenhower adds further depth to the volume. (National Geographic, $17.95 62p ISBN 0-7922-6666-8; May)

Interactive Fare

Titles spring forth with various interactive accoutrements. The pair that brought readers the pop-up The Wide-Mouthed Frog now introduce The Hiccuping Hippo by Keith Faulkner, illus. by Jonathan Lambert. The hero cannot shake his hiccups, despite the remedies proffered by his animal friends, each of which literally leaps off the page with their suggestions. Readers should find humor in both the text and the bright, sponge-textured characters' expressions and actions. (Dial, $12.99 16p ages 2-up ISBN 0-8037-2963-4; May)

Two interactive titles star the familiar Westie puppy—McDuff's Favorite Things and McDuff's Hide-and-Seek—by Rosemary Wells, illus. by Susan Jeffers. The first title, a touch-and-feel book, features a rubbery rain slicker, fuzzy cat fur and some sticky Liver Surprise, among other tactile trimmings. The latter follows a fast-paced chase through fields and meadows with McDuff hounding Bunny; pull-tabs, pop-ups, flaps and wheels invite interactive play. (Hyperion, $9.99 each 16p ages 2-5 ISBN 0-7868-0893-4; -1935-9; May)

How Many Elephants? A Lift-the-Flap Counting Book by Selby Beeler, illus. by Barney Saltzberg, begins with a self-possessed toddler answering the question "How many elephants are in your closet?" His confident reply: "That's silly. Elephants don't go in people's closets." Then he counts to 10 looking for more sensible things like books and toy dinosaurs. While his attention is diverted, stealthy pachyderms dance into that very closet. The final peek behind the door may well surprise readers. (Candlewick, $8.99 20p ages 2-5 ISBN 0-7636-1583-8; May)

Speaking of doors, Roxie Munro's Doors presents more than 50 flaps that invite readers to scour the pages for items hidden behind large doors that lead to a stable, a doctor's office and more. Within each room are even more flaps (cupboards, cabinets, drawers, etc.) for detecting. (Chronicle, $15.95 24p ages 2-6 ISBN 1-58717-247-X; May)

My ABC Suitcase by Neil and Catherine Stuart assists youngest book lovers with alphabetic education. The colorful laminated cardboard suitcase (with handle) has a window showing many of the 26 tiny, four-page board books contained within. The books, which resemble alphabet blocks (the upper case letter appears on the front and lower case on the back), incorporate everyday examples from "apple" to "zipper." (Handprint [Chronicle, dist.], $13.95 ages 2-5 ISBN 1-59354-047-7; May)

It's feeding time for a big purple monster in Monster Munch: 100 Things for Monster's Lunch by Leslie Bockol, illus. by Chris Sharp. This paper-over-board title comes with 100 one-inch cardboard tiles picturing items from rubber ducks and hair dryers to underwear—all wholesome fare for the creature. After finding and counting the correct tiles for each page, readers toss them into the monster's mouth—which cleverly sends them back to the storage container at the front of the book. (Innovative Kids, $16.99 14p ages 3-6 ISBN 1-58476-265-9; July)

What the team did for colors in their Good Night, Sweet Butterflies, they now do for sound in Buzz-Buzz, Busy Bees: An Animal Sounds Book by Dawn Bentley, illus. by Heather Cahoon. Beginning with nine bees, when each sturdy page is turned, a fuzzy bee, peeking through a die-cut hole, flits off the page. Various barnyard animals entreat the bees to stay, but the response is always the same: " 'Oink-Oink!' says Pig. 'Would you like to have some fun?' 'Buzz-Buzz!' says Bee. 'I really have to run!' " When the last page is turned, a cacophonous buzz greets readers. (S&S/Little Simon, $10.95 24p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-689-86848-0; May)

Just in time for summer family road trips, two sets of cards aim to keep kids occupied in the back seat: Let's Go! A Nick Jr. Travel Deck and Hit the Road! A Nickelodeon Travel Deck . In the first (aimed at ages 2-6), Nick Jr. characters including Dora, Blue and Little Bill offer up different guessing and I Spy—type games for youngsters. In the second (aimed at kids 7-11), SpongeBob, the Fairly OddParents and others present games like "That's My Letter!" in which players race to spell out Nickelodeon character names using letters from passing street signs. (Chronicle, $8.95 each 30 cards ISBN 0-8118-4153-7; -4188-X; May)

Budding naturalists (or perhaps sanitation engineers) can delight in digestive dissections in Owl Puke by Jane Hammerslough, which includes a genuine, bona fide owl pellet as well as a plastic bone-sorting tray with which kids can categorize the treasures found within. The accompanying paperback book proffers fascinating and funny owl info (an "Almost Everybody Pukes" section details various regurgitation habits across the animal kingdom), along with pictures, cartoon illustrations, a glossary and instructions for how to dig into the pellet itself. (Workman, $13.95 paper 92p ages 8-12 ISBN 0-7611-3186-8; May)