Common Thread I: Understanding My Feelings

Book Cover	Title	Author/ Illustrator	Age/ Grade	Copyright/ Publisher	Abstract
	Guess How Much I Love You	Sam McBratney, author  Anita Jeram, illustrator	Age PreK-Kindergarten (4-6)	Candlewick Press, MASS. 1994	The main characters of the story are Little Nutbrown Hare and his father Big Nutbrown Hare. The story takes place in the field, the rabbits natural habitat. The theme of the story is unconditional love between fathers and sons. This well known book continues to be a best seller and has won the  1996 American Booksellers Book of the Year (ABBY) Award.
	Mama, Do You Love Me?	Barbara Joosse, author Barbara Lavallee, illustrator	PreK-1(Ages 4-7)	Chronicle Books, CA 1991	The main characters of the story are Mama and her daughter, that she refers to as Dear One. The story takes place in a region of Alaska, the home place to many Eskimo and Inuit people. The theme of this story is the love that exists between a mother and her daughter no matter what happens. Mama Do You Love Me has received many honorable mentions for different organizations such as the Society of Writers and Illustrators and has won the Golden Kite Award.
	Papa, Do You Love Me?	Barbara Joosse, author Barbara Lavallee, illustrator	PreK-1 (Ages 4-7)	Chronicle Books, CA 2005	The main characters of the story are Papa and his son, that he refers to as Tender Heart. The story takes place in the homeland of the Masai people, somewhere on the continent of Africa. The theme of the story is that the love between a father and his son is unconditional despite the conditions.
	Love You Forever	Robert Munsch, author Sheila McGraw, illustrator	PreK-2 (Ages 4-8)	Firefly Books, NY 1987	The main characters of this book are a son and his mother, in various and different stages of life. The story could have taken place anywhere, but is in a present suburban community. The theme of the story is also the unconditional love between a mother and her son throughout their lifetime. This bond and love never die because the son shows the same affection for his new daughter. The National Educators Association (NEA) nominated this book as six on their list of their favorite one hundred children's books.
	I'll Always Love You	Paeony Lewis, author Penny Ives, illustrator	PreK-2 (Ages 4-8)	Little Tiger Press London, UK 2000	The main characters of this book are Alex and his mother. The story takes place in their home on one morning. The theme of the story is no matter what Alex does wrong, his mother will still love him.

Book Cover	Title	Author/ Illustrator	Age/ Grade	Copyright/ Publisher	Abstract
	When Sophie Gets Angry...Really, Really Angry	Molly Bang, author and illustrator	PreK-2 (Ages 4-8)	Blue Sky Press, NY 1999	The main characters of this book are Sophie, her sister and her mother. The story takes place on one day, in and around the home of the family where Sophie gets upset when she has to give her toy to her sister for a turn to play. The book's themes are sibling tensions and the how children view and deal with anger. This book has been honored by Caldecott and has won a Charlotte Zolotow Award for its text.
	Franklin's Bad Day	Paulette Bourgeois, author Brenda Clark, illustrator	PreK-1 (Ages 3-6)	Scholastic, NY 1997	The main characters of this book are Franklin, his friend Bear and his father. The story takes place in Franklin's forest habitat on a winter day. The book's themes are signs of anger and how to deal with them.
	Goldie is Mad	Margie Palatini author and illustrator	PreK-K (Ages 4-6)	Hyperion Books for Children, NY 2001	The main characters of this book are Goldie, her little brother Nicholas and her doll, Veronica.The story takes place in the home of Goldie's family during one day. The book's themes are how to deal with anger and how to deal with younger siblings.
	Just a Bad Day	Gina Mayer, author Mercer Mayer, illustrator	PreK-K (Ages 3-5)	Golden Books, NY 2001	The main character of the book is Little Critter and his host of unfortunate events. The story takes place in Little Critter's house on one rainy day when everything goes wrong. The theme of the book is that even though children have bad days, they don't last forever.
	The Grumpy Morning	Pamela Duncan Edwards, author Darcia Lebrosse, illustrator	PreK-K (Ages 3-5)	Hyperion Books, NY1998	The main characters of this book are a host of farm animals (pig, goat, cow etc.) and the farmer. The story has a farm setting. The theme of this story is that with patience and consistency, everything can get done and everyone will get over being grumpy.

Book Cover	Title	Author/ Illustrator	Age/ Grade	Copyright/ Publisher	Abstract
	Badger's Parting Gifts .	Susan Varley, author and illustrator	K-2 (Ages 6-8)	Harpers Collin,NY 1992	The main characters of this box are Mole, Rabbit, Fox and Frog, and the memory of their friend Badger. The story's setting is in their woodland home. The theme of this story is sometimes sadness and grief are best dealt with by good memories. This book was mentioned and recommended by the Reading Rainbow.
	Saying Goodbye to Daddy	Judith Vigna, author and illustrator	K-3 (Ages 5-8)	Albert Whitman and Company, Ill. 1991	The main characters of this story are Claire, her grandfather and her mother. This story has no particular setting, but mostly takes place in and around the home. The theme of this story is that with family support and honesty, a child is helped to get over her pain.
	Grandpa Loved	Josephine Nobisso, author Maureen Hyde, illustrator	3-5 (Ages 8-11)	Gingerbread House, NY 2000	The characters of this book are an older teenage boy and the memories of his grandfather. The story takes place in a variety of settings because it is through memories of his grandfather, and the places they went. The story takes place at the beach, the forest and the city. The theme of this touching story is that even though his loved one is gone he will always remember him through the memories they share.Grandpa Loved was the winner of the Wordweaving Award for Excellence for 2002.
	I'll Always Love You	Hans Wilhelm, author and illustrator	PreK - 2 (Ages 4-8)	Dragonfly Books, NY 1988	I'll Always Love You is a story about a dog named Elfie and her owner, a young boy. Elfie passes away and the little boy is saddened. The story is set in and around the home. The theme of this story is that through remembering, the little boy is able to get over the death of his dog.
	I Miss You: A First Look At Death	Pat Thomas, author Lesley Harker, illustrator	K-3(Ages 4-8)	Barron's Educational Series,NY 2001	I Miss You was created by a therapist and its main character is a little boy who is experiencing the death of his grandfather.  There is no particular setting to this book and it could have taken place anywhere, at anytime. This book is very honest about death but still touching. The theme of this book is that there are several ways to cope with the loss of a loved one, but honestly is very important in the process.

Book Cover	Title	Author/ Illustrator	Age/ Grade	Copyright/ Publisher	Abstract
	I Did It, I'm Sorry	Caralyn Buehner, author Mark Buehner, illustrator	PreK-3 (Ages 4-8)	Picture Puffins, NY 2000	This book is a combination of many little stories and scenarios when saying sorry comes into place. The main characters of this book are plentiful and include beavers, hogs, fish , rats and dinosaurs. The settings, like the characters are varied and include the home, school and even underwater. The theme is saying sorry when you are wrong.
	I'm Sorry	Gina Mayer, author Mercer Mayer, illustrator	PreK-K (Ages 3-5)	Golden Books, NY 2000	The main character of this book is Little Critter. Little Critter keeps apologizing for everything that he does, when he makes a mess in the house. The setting of this book, like all Little Critter books is in and around the home. The theme of this story is that apologizing when we are wrong is very important. It also emphasizes that when people apologize they should mean it and not just say it.
	Franklin Says Sorry	Paulette Bourgeois, author Brenda Clark, illustrator	PreK-2 (Ages 3-7)	Scholastic, NY 2000	The main characters of this story are Franklin and his best friend Bear. Franklin tells a secret about Bear and he needs to apologize for hurting his feelings. The setting of this book is Franklin's home and play area. The theme of this story is the importance of apologizing to mend a friendship.
	I'm Sorry	Sam McBratney author, Jennifer Eachus, illustrator	PreK - 3(Ages 4-8)	Harpers Collin, NY 2000	In I'm Sorry, the main characters of the story are a little girl and her best friend, a little boy. They get in an argument and are mad at each other. They both feel that the other should apologize. The store takes place in children's common play areas; at school and at home. The theme of this story is the importance of saying sorry to a friend.
	Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse	Kevin Henkes, author and illustrator	PreK-(Ages 4-8)	Greenwillow Harper Children, NY 1996	This story is about Lilly, the mouse and her teacher Mr. Slinger. Lilly brings her purse to school and gets it taken away by the teacher so she leaves him a very mean drawing of himself. When she gets the purse back she must apologize for what she's done.Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse emphasizes that children must think about their actions.This book has won the Kentucky Bluegrass Award,an ABBY award (1997), considered a notable book by ALA and made it on the booklist editior's choice list.

Book Cover	Title	Author/ Illustrator	Age/ Grade	Copyright/ Publisher	Abstract
	The Very Lonely Firefly	Eric Carle, author and illustrator	PreK - 1(Ages 4-6)	Philomel,NY 1995	This a story about a little firefly that is born alone and is looking for friends. He keeps being misdirected, but finally he finds just what he is looking for. The setting of this book, like so many of Eric Carle's books is in the outdoors. The message this book conveys is to never give up because loneliness doesn't last forever. Eric Carle is an award-winning author and illustrator.
	When I Miss You (The Way I Feel)	Cornelia Spelman, author Kathy Parkinson, illustrator	PreK-1(Ages 4-6)	Albert Whitman and Company, Ill. 2004	When I Miss You is a story about a little guinea pig who is lonely because he misses his parents when they leave him to go to work. The setting is relevant to a young child, it deals with being at the babysitter, daycare and at home. The theme of this book is how children deal with separation anxiety.
	I Miss You Stinky Face	Lisa McCourt, author Cyd Moore, illustrator	PreK-2 (Ages 4-8)	Scholastic,NY  2003	This story is about a little boy and his mother who are both very lonely and miss each other. The mother is at work and speaks to her son by telephone. The setting of this book is in and around the home in an imaginary dragon world. The theme of this book is dealing with separation anxiety that children experience.
	Daddy, Will You Miss Me?	Wendy McCormick, author Jennifer Eachus, illustrator	K-3(Ages 5-8)	Aladdin Paperbacks, NY 2002	Like, the past two books, Daddy, will you miss me, is a story about a little boy's anxiety and feelings when his father takes a job in Africa. The little boy's loneliness is shown in missing his father. The setting of the book is very current and could take place anywhere at anytime. The boy remembers his father by remembering what the do together. The theme is memories can help us get over loneliness.
	Have You Seen My Duckling?	Nancy Tafuri, author and illustrator	PreK-1 (Ages 3-6)	Harpers Trophy, NY 1991	Have You Seen My Duckling, takes place around their pond home and is about a mother duck who thinks her little duckling is missing. The lonely duckling is not really missing just misplaced, (he has wandered off). The theme of this story is to keep looking and you will find what you have lost.This book is a Caldecott Honor Winner.

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