Chester Raccoon and friends are devastated at the loss of their friend Skiddel Squirrel and, at the suggestion of Mrs. Raccoon, plan a special memorial service for him at the pond. This story is designed to help children understand and cope with funerals and the trauma of losing a loved one, encouraging them to create special memories. It's authored by Audrey Penn and illustrated by Barbara Gibson.

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This story serves up a delightful recipe for a children's book: take one adorable tale of Parisian mice who want to win the prize for the best cheese soup in France, add a full serving of the whimsical illustrations of Marie LeTourneau, mix in a dash of French language and a sprinkling of Parisian café culture, and voilà! We have The Mice of Bistrot des Sept Frères (Bistro of Seven Brothers). With many basic French words cleverly woven into the story, readers will absorb the language without even realizing it. There is a pronunciation guide at the front of the book, and directions in the back to this website for the famous cheese soup recipe!

Rosie doesn't think spending the day at work with Grandma will be any fun at all. But Rosie has the time of her life as she is initiated into the exotic and adventure-filled world of a hair salon. Girls will love reading about Rosie's adventures at the action-packed salon, from a home hair color gone wrong, to the mystery of a lost boy and a missing wig!

Mattie has a couple of dilemmas. FIRST (sigh), her parents are making her babysit her humiliating younger brother nearly nonstop. What could BE more awful than the constant company of a 4-year-old brother who acts like a dog? THEN, her best friend's brother begins to show serious interest in her.

"There are some secrets so dangerous that they can't be told, even after death," Blackbeard worries. Daniel, Billy, Stefanie, and Mark have found the ancient pirate loot and are delivering it to its rightful owners in London. But the teens have only begun to scratch the surface of the deeper mysteries they have unwittingly uncovered.

School is starting in the forest, but Chester Raccoon does not want to go. To help ease Chester's fears, Mrs. Raccoon shares a family secret called The Kissing Hand to give him the reassurance of her love any time his world feels a little scary.

In this latest addition to the Kissing Hand book collection, Chester Raccoon must learn to deal with another common problem of childhood: a bully at school. When Mrs. Raccoon learns that there is a bully problem at school, she decides to investigate the situation. But after seeing the bully for herself, she shares a story about a forest that was full of smooth yellow stones, and how the animals living there changed a pointy stone they found into a smooth stone so that it wouldn't hurt any tender paws. This book encourages children to understand that many child bullies are themselves unhappy and gives readers a good example of settling differences by peaceful means. Educators will embrace this story about a positive strategy for dealing with a bully.