MONARCH BOOKS

Welcome Giant Pandas!

The giants pandas are now on exhibit at the Toronto Zoo and the whole city has gone panda crazy! Here are a few titles to help feed your panda-monium! (As well as I pic I got of the male panda, Da Mao, this past weekend)

Two Shy Pandas

Panda longs to play with Pandora next door, but he’s too shy. Pandora longs to say “Hello, Panda!”, but she’s much too shy too. Will these two shy pandas ever muster up the courage to speak to each other?

Panda-monium!

What does Beckett the panda do when his tummy rumbles? He looks for crunchy, munchy bamboo! But unbeknownst to Beckett, two other hungry pandas spot him and begin to tag along. Soon more and more pandas tiptoe behind him. And lots of hungry pandas can lead to only one thing… .PANDA-MONIUM!

Panda 

A fantastic introduction to non-fiction, which gives the child a glimpse of the life of an animal parent in their natural habitat, together with the experience of the animal baby growing up in the wild. This unique format has a small board book nestling snugly inside a larger book.

Panda and Me 

Put your index finger into Panda’s head and get talking!

Let’s take Panda for a ride. There’s a lot to talk about! Join in the simple conversation, then make up one of your own.

Anton and the Battle in New York Times Book Review

Featured in this weekend’s New York Times Sunday Book Review in a slideshow on children’s books about “Misbehavior” was Anton and the Battle. Click here to check it out!

Anton and the Battle

Starring Anton from Anton Can Do Magic (an USBBY winner and ReadBoston Award finalist), this is another funny, child-centered picture book, full of imagination. Anton and his friend Luke fight an epic battle to be declared the strongest—but will they be outdone by a puppy?

New Twists on Classic Fairy Tales

Fairy tales are a welcome addition to any child’s literary repertoire, but once the classics are in place, why not add a few twists to liven up the familiar? These new titles take a few well known stories and add in some unexpected surprises. 

 Little Red Hot

Little Red Hot loves red hot chilli peppers. She eats them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. When her grandmother catches a cold, Little Red makes her a hot pepper pie that will “knock those cold germs right out of her”. But before Little Red shares her pie with Grandma, she meets Señor Lobo. The pie comes in very handy when the wily wolf tries to trick her into thinking he’s her grandmother.

Red Riding Hood and the Sweet Little Wolf

Little Wolf doesn’t want to be a big bad wolf. She dreams of being good and kind. But when she is sent out to catch dinner and meets Red Riding Hood, what will she do? 

Three Billy Goats Fluff

Trip-trap! Trip-trap! How is Mr. Troll supposed to sleep when the three Billy Goats Fluff keep trip-trapping over his bridge? Twice a day, they loudly cross it to eat the lush green grass in the field by Mr. Troll’s home. (The grass makes their fleeces extra fluffy, important for Mother Goat’s knitting business.) But when Mr. Troll threatens to eat them, Mother Goat has a fluffy plan to keep everyone happy in this funny twist on a classic fairy tale!

Mother’s Day is less than two weeks away, some books to celebrate Mom!

With Mother’s Day right around the corner (where did April go?!), here are a few new titles that feature that very special lady in your life!

What Not to Give Your Mom on Mother’s Day

A little boy offers advice on what NOT to give your mom on Mother’s Day, unless she’s an animal. For example, don’t give her a rotting log unless she’s a salamander, or a bunch of flies unless she’s a spider! What would Mom like best?

That’s My Mommy

Daddies and mommies can do lots of things. They can reach way up high, find anything that’s lost, help you feel brave, and tuck you in at night. But best of all, daddies and mommies can make you feel loved. Charming, bold illustrations show mommies and daddies and their babies in familiar situations young readers will easily identify with. Parents and kids will love these warm and witty tributes to mommies and daddies everywhere!

Hero Mom

The moms in the book are superheroes. They may not leap over tall buildings, and they may not have super-human speed. But these moms construct buildings, fly planes, and make tanks roll. They do all kinds of things to help create a safer world. These superheroes are moms. Military moms. Hero moms.

Complete FrenchSmart now available!

Our most comprehensive French workbooks to date, Complete FrenchSmart is a Canadian, full-colour, 224-page workbook providing students with practice material for learning and mastering French. Available for grades 4 through 7, the systematically-designed activities cover the key areas of learning - vocabulary building, grammar, reading and usage.

Spring is a great time to get a pet (or just read about one!)

Now that the snow has melted, it seems like a great time to bring home, and train, a spring pet! And even if that’s not on the agenda for your family, check out these new titles to prepare or imagine what it would be like to have a furry (or scaly!) new family member.

My Crocodile Does Not Bite

Ernest’s crocodile does not bite! It’s very well trained. But when Ernest brings the crocodile to the school’s pet show, his rival Cindy Lou gets very rude. Cindy Lou is sure her poodle Fifi will win best in show. She doesn’t think Ernest’s croc should be allowed to compete. But Ernest and his friend have some tricks prepared. They’re going to prove that when a crocodile’s not busy biting, it can really put on a show!

My First Touch and Feel: Pets

This bright, interactive board book is full of fun tactile elements. Help to build a child’s vocabulary and develop their hand-eye coordination as they name all the of the darling pets through-out while they discover the touch-and-feel textures.

The Pets You Get!

Baseball books to welcome a new baseball season

Two weeks ago was the  home opener for the Toronto Blue Jays and here are some books to help welcome the season. These books range from historical to fun but all celebrate the spirit of the game!

Slugger

Ollie is a slug who loves everything about baseball. More than anything in the world, he wants to make the team. Trouble is, he can’t hold a bat. He isn’t much of a pitcher either. And he is pretty slow at running the bases. But Ollie is one determined slug…and finally he gets his Big Chance.

Miracle Mud

Lena Blackburne loved baseball. He watched it, he played it, he coached it. But he didn’t love the ways players broke in new baseballs. Tired of soggy, blackened, stinky baseballs, he found a better way. Thanks to a well-timed fishing trip and a top-secret mud recipe, Lena Blackburne Baseball Rubbing Mud was born. For seventy five years, baseball teams have used Lena’s magic mud to prepare baseballs before every game. Read the story of how Lena’s mud went from a riverbank to the major leagues and all the way to the Hall of Fame.

Something to Prove

In 1936, the New York Yankees wanted to test a hot prospect named Joe DiMaggio to see if he was ready for the big leagues. They knew just the ballplayer to call Satchel Paige, the best pitcher anywhere, black or white. 

For the game, Paige joined a group of amateur African American players, and they faced off against a team of white major leaguers plus young DiMaggio. The odds were stacked against the less-experienced black team. But Paige’s skillful batting and amazing pitching with his “trouble ball” and “bat dodger” kept the game close. 

Would the rookie DiMaggio prove himself as major league player? Or would Paige once again prove his greatness and the injustice of segregated baseball?

Celebrate April Fool’s Day with Sheep in Barnyard Fun

Booklist says that Barnyard Fun is “a playful look at being on the delivering—and receiving end—of an April Fools’ joke.” 

Barnyard Fun

When Sheep found out it was April One, he said, “It’s time to have some fun”! Sheep set his alarm an hour ahead. It woke up Rooster in his bed. Sheep plays April Fool’s jokes on Rooster, Dog, Pig and Cow. Then Horse decides to play a trick on Sheep-and the farm animals have the biggest laugh of all!

Spring into Spring with these new titles

Even though the weather isn’t particularly Spring-like yet, these books look forward to all the springtime excitement that is, hopefully, just around the corner.

It’s Springtime

It’s time for growing, nesting, cleaning, and playing. Join a cuddly cast of animals as they enjoy the simple pleasures of the season, from blooming flowers to splashing in puddles after a storm. It’s spring time! Glitter adds sparkle to the cheerful and vibrant art throughout this celebratory board book!

Noisy Bugs

There’s a lot going on out there, and this book is a wonderful bridge to a whole noisy, busy world of insects. Learn who is making what sound, and why. In this book the reader is treated to scientifically accurate, up-close depictions of some very cool bugs. It explains why the bugs make the sounds they do, and how they do it—and it’s not with their voices! Plus the author offers several intriguingbug games.

Peep Leap

In the hollow of a tree, higher than the eye can see … nine wood ducks hatch, one by one. That’s good! says Mama. We’re almost done. One last egg is very still… . Finally, the smallest egg hatches. Then it’s time for all the wood ducks to make the BIG jump from the tree-where their mother made her nest-to the water below. Ducklings One through Nine make the leap. But Duckling Ten isn’t so sure…

Books to Celebrate Passover

With Passover less than a week away, check out these great titles to help celebrate and explain the traditions of Passover:

Grover and Big Bird’s Passover Celebration

In this new Shalom Sesame® title from Kar-Ben, Grover and
Big Bird are in a hurry to get to the Passover seder, but—uh,
oh!—there are many delays. Moishe Oofnik comes to the rescue
in his tumbledown truck, but will they arrive in time to ask the Four
Questions?

Lotsa Matzah

Why is matzah plain and flat?
For centuries it’s been like that.
A rhyming introduction to Passover’s traditional food, with children eating
and enjoying “lotsa matzah” many different ways during the holiday.

Passover Magic

Passover is always a magical time, but this Passover is extra-special since Molly’s uncle Harry brings his latest magic tricks and new bride, Aunt Eda. When Uncle Harry hides the afikoman, Molly and her siblings must think carefully about the importance of Passover while they search for it. Will they discover the whereabouts of the matzoh and win the prize for finding it?