LibraryAware April 2025

When Spring Comes
by Kevin Henkes

"Animals and children alike watch as the world transforms from the dark and dead of winter to a full and blooming spring"

Nothing Ever Happens On a Gray Day
by Grant Snider

Celebrating do-nothing days and solitary adventures, this lyrically colorful picture book encourages readers to embrace quiet stillness to make space for unexpected encounters, meaningful detours and some of life's most unforgettable moments.

I Love You Little Cottontail
by Katrine Crow

Tell little ones how much you love them with a charming, rhyming board book featuring endearing animal parents and babies and a mirror element that reminds them they are loved, too.

Love Makes a Garden Grow
by Taeeun Yoo

When her beloved grandfather, whom she helps tend plants, gives her a flower of her own, a young girl discovers that caring for it teaches her to feel her grandfather's love.

You Are a Honey Bee!
by Laurie Ann Thompson

The first in an adorable STEM nonfiction picture book series about the animals who share their world focuses on the life cycle of bees, from birth to first flight and beyond.

When the Sakura Bloom
by Narisa Togo

This visually stunning picture book sheds light on the cultural significance of cherry blossom season in Japan, showing the importance of slowing down to appreciate the moment and the beauty in nature.

Tomorrow's Lily
by Christopher Raschka

Exploring concepts of friendship, growing up, generosity, empathy, love and time, this beautiful and deeply moving picture book depicts an extraordinary garden where seven daylilies bloom for others during the course of one sunny week.

Hank Goes Peck
by Maudie Powell-Tuck

"The lovable antihero Hank the goose is back--and he's causing more chaos than ever! He loves to peck, so when he sees the chicks bouncing and playing, he pecks a hole in their trampoline. He punctures the piglets' inflatable pool, and he pecks at the sheep's knitting, causing a tangled mess. He just can't help himself--but Hank, NOT THE BULL! Will Hank EVER learn to be considerate of his friends? Children will love Hank's hilarious antics and silly noises, while grown-ups will appreciate the themes of friendship, recognizing others' feelings, and being considerate of those around us"

Log Life
by Amy Hevron

This eye-opening picture book explores the tiny, fascinating world of nurse logs, unique ecosystems that support hundreds of rare and important plants, creatures and fungi by providing nutrients, hideaways, shelters and protection, showing how even the smallest habitats play big roles in nature.

Who Will You Be?
by Andrea Pippins

A lyrical exploration of how family and community help shape the wonderful people our children will become depicts a loving mama who muses about the inherited attributes that her child will represent and utilize as an adult member of the wider world.

Rainbow Bear
by Bill Martin

"Young readers can learn the names of every color of the rainbow while following Little Bear as he wakes up from his hibernation and fills his hungry belly with berries!

Festival of Colors
by Kabir Sehgal

A picture book introduction to the Holi, the Indian Festival of Colors, finds siblings Mintoo and Chintoo gathering flowers to make into colorful powders to toss during the festival before gathering with friends, family members and neighbors for a vibrant celebration of fun, forgiveness and community.

What the Garden Tells Me
by Monica Mikai

"This love letter to gardens, which are glorious places blossoming with joy, wonder and wisdom, encourages readers to observe the plants around them and appreciate the things that make each one and each of us special."

Let's Go Puddling!
by Emma Perry

A group of children, along with their parents, gather together to stimp-stamp-stomp through the muddy puddles in front of their apartment building, ending the day by snuggling with the grown-ups on the couch as their soggy socks dry.

Waiting for Hanami
by J. P. Takahashi

Sai's been waiting for her family reunion at the sakura (Cherry Blossom) festival, but with the big crowd she seems to shrink down until meeting cousin Avi, with whom she dreams up ways of diving into family history and honoring new connections.

A Flower is a Friend
by Frieda Wishinsky

This peaceful and poignant ode to the natural world celebrates the relationships between flowers and the birds, insects and four-legged friends with which they share their world.

Spring Parade
by Camelia Kay

Little ones can march along with Mama and Baby Bunny as they welcome a wonderful parade of budding flowers and blossoming trees, new birds, butterflies and bees and all of their friends, emerging from the winter season.

Too Many Carrots
by Katy Hudson

Rabbit has lots of carrots and is determined to keep them all for himself when he moves in with friends, until he learns a lesson about sharing

You'll Always Be My Chickadee
by Kate Hosford

"Blending together the wonders of nature and a parent's devotion, this beautiful picture book celebrates the special bond between caregiver and child, showing there are as many ways to say “I love you” as there are special moments to be shared."

Spring for Sophie
by Yael Werber

A little girl watches the snowy days and gray skies of winter while wondering if spring will ever come and whether or not she will recognize its signs. Illustrated by the artist of The Boy With Pink Hair.

Hello Spring!
by Shelley Rotner

Complemented by a glossary of terms, a lyrical and simple introduction to the spring season's wondrous surprises explains how plants and animals change during a temperate spring marked by the end of winter and longer, warmer days.

When Isaac Hears the Rain
by Julie Thompson

"When it rains, Isaac is grateful for its renewing power and embraces it with curiosity and wonder, in this environmentally conscious book that is a perfect read-aloud for readers of all ages."

William Wakes Up
by Linda Ashman

Waking up groggy after a long winter nap, young William and his animal friends prepare for the arrival of a very special guest by cleaning, decorating and baking a tasty treat, tasks that are complicated by their sleepiness and temptingly cozy bed. By the creators of William's Winter Nap.

Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt
by Kate Messner

A lyrical follow-up to the award-winning Over and Under the Snow explores the hidden world of a vegetable garden through the seasons of the year, revealing a thriving world of insects and animals below the surface of growing vegetables.

What's New, Daniel?
by Micha Archer

A Caldecott Honor-winning author/illustrator's gloriously detailed collages invite readers into Daniel's blossoming world, encouraging them to appreciate all the wonderful new things in their own lives, big and small.

For additional reading ideas, talk with your library staff