Four lyrical, homey vignettes underscore the loving relationships a young African-American boy has with the people in his family: father, mother, older sister and baby sister. With just a few words per page, Angela Johnson touches on all the most important things in the family life of a young child. In "Shoes," the child playfully describes his sneakers and looks forward to the day when they're as big as his daddy's shoes. "Spin" highlights the energetic twirling, swinging games he plays with his older sister, inside and outside. Looking at the moon through his bedroom window at night, he thinks about the things his mother has told him about "Noah's Moon." Lastly, the arrival of a new baby sister means he has to share his room and his toys with her and, when he does, "... then Mama calls me sweetheart / and Daddy calls me man." Rhonda Mitchell's realistic paintings of everyday life from a child's perspective are contrasted with the abstract paintings Daddy is shown painting at his easel in the background throughout the book. Astute viewers will enjoy seeing how Daddy's home life inspires his art, as well as how abstract art contrasts with realism, and newly independent readers will enjoy finding a sophisticated book they can read on their own. (Ages 6-9)

The Civil War Journal of Private Heyward Emmel is a primary source documenting one man's experiences on the front line of the American Civil War. For three years, first as an infantryman in the 7th Regiment, New Jersey Volunteers, and later as a stretcher bearer in the Ambulance Corps, Emmell reports on virtually all the major campaigns of the Army of the Potomac between October 1861 and October 1864. Devoid of political editorializing, usual and unusual aspects of battles, marching and maneuvers, and camp life are described. This is the only published account of the experiences of a member of the Ambulance Corps.