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Children’s books | Bookshelf

Big Concepts for Little Minds

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From “Welcome.”

There’s no children’s book creator quite like Willems, and no book quite like this one. Designed as a gag instruction manual for the ride a baby is about to take through life — “There will be music,” but also “tears of sadness” — it’s for all ages, especially pre-verbal infants in those days when parents wonder if words are even registering. (They are. This book’s witty, graphic icons will, too.) The humor cloaks wise and reassuring words that give parents subtle cues, like a recurring reminder of all that happens “while we read this book together.”

32 pp. Hyperion. $15.99. (Board book; all ages)


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From “Now.”

“Now” offers a child’s-eye view of living fully in each moment: On every page a swingy-haired girl declares something a favorite. Whatever it is happens to be the focus of her current attention. “That is my favorite cloud,” she says, “because it’s the one I am watching.” Portis’s (“Not a Box”) words and art are both delightfully bold yet controlled. Her thick, black brush strokes slash across white expanses, and she adds washes of interesting color combinations. This book’s profundity might sneak up on you, but it will leave you marveling.

32 pp. Neal Porter/Roaring Brook. $17.99. (Picture book; ages 3 to 7)


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From “Life.”

“Life begins small,” then it grows. That simple idea begins and ends this lovely, spare tribute to being alive, despite the inevitable rough times. Rylant, a Newbery Medal winner (“Missing May”), gleans advice for navigating rockier paths from animals like hawks, camels and turtles, who know “everything is changing” but still greet each day eagerly. Wenzel’s (“They All Saw a Cat”) twinkling landscapes and charming wildlife capture a mood both intimate and grand. The effect is as calming and heart-opening as a folk song.

48 pp. Beach Lane. $17.99. (Picture book; ages 4 and up)


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From “Mr. Benjamin’s Suitcase of Secrets.”

Maybe you doubt that the tragic death of the German Jewish philosopher Walter Benjamin as he crossed the Pyrenees trying to escape the Nazis would make for a good picture book. Let me reassure you: Chang’s playful telling is attuned to children’s sense of justice, as well as their ear for the ridiculous. She focuses on the heroism of Lisa Fittko, who led refugees to Spain, and on the never-solved mystery of what was inside the suitcase Benjamin lugged with him. Her stunning mixed-media art is whimsical and serious, like childhood itself.

48 pp. NorthSouth. $18.95. (Picture book; ages 5 and up)


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From "Questions Asked."

This gem by the Norwegian novelist Gaarder, with sweet, spectral art by the Turkish-Norwegian illustrator Duzakin, is a simple list of big questions all of us would do well to ask about life and how best to live it. As the topics flit around delightfully, it avoids being either heavy-handed or precious. “Can anyone do real magic tricks? Do miracles happen sometimes?” one page asks. Any of these could spur a deep conversation with a curious kid — or adult. “Are experiences more real when I’m awake than when I’m dreaming?” Good question.

72 pp. Elsewhere. $14. (Picture book; ages 5 and up)

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