Books to Grow With: A Guide to Using the Best Children's Fiction for Everyday Issues and Tough Challenges

Coon, an attorney who has volunteered in classrooms, has gathered together suggested fictional titles with fewer than 100 pages and organized them by issue (such as sharing, starting school, siblings, etc.) rather than by age group. Author, illustrator, title, and subject indexes are included as are lists of multicultural books and titles available in Spanish. However, for the latter, only the English title appears. Each entry includes the title, author, publisher, number of pages, type of illustration, a paragraph summary, a suggestion for use as a read-aloud or a beginning reader or both, and possible availability. Many titles are out of print, yet the author naively states that parents can find them in local public libraries or used bookstores either in town or online. The bibliotherapeutic belief that some well-chosen picture books can "help children cope with changes in their life" is admirable. However, this book will best be used by parents, teachers, or day-care providers who do not have regular access to John T. Gillespie's Best Books for Children (Libraries Unlimited, 2003), Carolyn W. and John A. Lima's A to Zoo (Greenwood, 2001), or other professional bibliographic tools.-Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.