Prairie Bud Nominees 2011-2012

Solomon, Sharon

Ella and her grandfather find a peaceful walk in the woods leads to so much more. They express just how much they mean to each other by a simple word game they play together.

Grade Level: K-2
Publisher: Continental Sales, Inc.

Stewart, Melissa

When snow falls, we love to sled and skate and have snowball fights. But at the end of the day, we go home where it is warm and safe. What about all those animals out there in the forests and fields? What do they do when snow blankets the ground? Journey from your neighborhood to the woods, where ladybugs crowd together in a gap in the stone wall and a chipmunk snoozes in his burrow. Take a side trip to the pond, where a carp rests quietly on the bottom and a green frog nestles in the mud, scarcely breathing. And then as winter passes and the sun's rays grow stronger, join all the animals as they get ready for spring.

Grade Level: K-2
Publisher: Peachtree Publishers, Ltd.

Thomas, Jan
WINNER!

Hey! What rhymes with dust bunnies? These four goofy creatures reminiscent of hairy Smurfs declare they "…rhyme all the time" as they spout rhyming words. When one shouts, "Look," is he totally out of it? Or the one who really knows what's going on?

Grade Level: K-1
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Van Dusen, Chris

When a circus ship runs aground off the coast of Maine, the poor animals are left on their own to swim the chilly waters. Staggering onto a nearby island, they soon win over the wary townspeople with their kind, courageous ways. So well do the critters blend in that when the greedy circus owner returns to claim them, villagers of all species conspire to outsmart the bloated blowhard. With buoyant rhymes and caricatured illustrations evoking the early nineteenth century, Chris Van Dusen presents an entertaining tale about the bonds of community — and a rare hidden-pictures spread for eagle-eyed readers of all ages.

Grade Level: K-2
Publisher: Candlewick Press

Willis, Jeanne

Do you believe in Bog Babies? If you don't, you will!

When two small sisters go fishing in a magic pond, they find something much better than a frog or a newt. They find a Bog Baby. Small and blue, with wings like a dragon, the girls decide to take him home with them and keep him a secret. But the Bog Baby is a wild thing, and when he gets sick, the girls turn to their mother for help. She teaches them the greatest lesson of all: sometimes if you really love something, you have to let it go.

Grade Level: K-2
Publisher: Random House Children's Books