New Releases by Molly Bang

Three-time Caldecott Honor illustrator Molly Bang helps children solve problems by showing a different -- and highly effective -- approach: "I can''t do it" becomes "I can''t do it... yet." When Sophie can''t solve a math puzzle, she feels upset and inadequate. "I CAN''T DO IT!" she shouts, expressing the frustration all of us feel when we try and fail. Will she ever be "smart" like her sister? Maybe she isn''t smart at all.Luckily Sophie''s teacher steps in. What does it mean to be smart? Using current, popular "mindset" techniques, Sophie''s class is taught that we get smarter when we exercise our brains, such as when we work harder at solving a puzzle. Struggling to solve a problem doesn''t mean "I can''t do it!" Sophie and her classmates just can''t do it... yet! Readers will cheer when Sophie finally prevails, and at the end of the day, she''s confident and optimistic. At home, Sophie uses her new technique to help her dad solve a carpentry puzzle.In this third book about Sophie, Molly Bang again helps children deal with a challenging everyday issue, providing an opening to ask: What do you do when you think, "I can''t!"?

Catch. Throw. Uh-oh. The yellow ball is forgotten at the edge of the water. Little by little, so no one notices, the ball floats out to sea. All alone, it travels above the fish and below the gulls, and drifts into a storm. Tossed by waves all through the night, it sails ashore next day to a hug and a home. Molly Bang''s luminous pastels and gentle, rhythmic text tell a story that is both exciting and reassuring. Together, pictures and text are at once a lyrical adventure and an invitation to beach lovers and ocean gazers to journey far from shore and explore the wide-open sea. This well-loved classic returns in a 25th Anniversary Edition which will continue to delight children for another twenty-five years.

Being away from one''s parent can create feelings of insecurity for any young child. But even when they are apart, parents and children can share a special connection. Told from the parent''s point of view, In My Heart shows that, no matter where the parent is--or where the child is--the child is always in the parent''s heart. A warm, simple, reassuring story, In My Heart is the perfect read-aloud for a parent before leaving for work in the morning or before tucking a child in at night.

This nonfiction picture book tells the story of Diane Wilson, an independent shrimper in Texas who learns that chemical plants in Texas give out more pollution than in any other state. Diane lobbies, protests, writes letters, and never gives up to stop them. Based on real events. Full-color illustrations.

The sun narrates an explanation of light and energy in which the generation of electricity can be traced back to it. Tiny yellow dots represent the sun''s power as it streams from light, water, wind, and electricity. Endnotes are used to illuminate everything from dark matter to atoms to pollution.

A shipbuilder tells his daughter Dawn how he once nursed a Canada goose with a broken wing, and how soon thereafter the young woman who would become his wife and Dawn''s mother came to help him make sails.

After eleven-year-old Lupe is partially paralyzed in an accident in her Mexican village, other handicapped people help her realize that her life can still have purpose.

Using the tale of "Little Red Riding Hood" as an example, Bang uses boldly graphic artwork to explain how images and their individual components work to tell a story that engages the emotions. 3-color.

In this adaptation of a Southern folktale, a large & frightening creature who lives in the swamp threatens anyone who enters his home. But one young boy is not happy with the situation & with the help of his mother, takes a stand against the bully.

Imagines a village in which there are too many people consuming shared resources and discusses the challenge of handling our world''s environment safely.

At bedtime, a sleepy child listens as her mother describes the events of the day, which are illustrated in three-dimensional pictures featuring the child''s favorite toys.

When a little girl who lives with her animal friends learns that Gram has sent her a present, she eagerly runs to the post office to find out what it is.

A mysterious man enters a restaurant and pays for his dinner with a paper crane that magically comes alive and dances.

In a dream a poor orphan is given a brush that brings to life everything she paints.

A young girl is upset and doesn't know how to manage her anger but takes the time to cool off and regain her composure.

Numbers from ten to one are part of this lullaby which observes the room of a little girl going to bed

Bedtime! A happy game to lure the most persistent sleep evader. A warm and reassuring countdown to the land of dreams.