Wendy McClure

ALA Top 10 Sustainability-themed Children's Books 2022A brother and sister learn that small changes can make a big difference.When a bird flies into their window by accident, Callum and his sister, Emmy, learn that from the outside, the glass looks just like the sky. They also learn that the United States has lost a lot of birds in recent years--and that there are lots of things their family can do to help. First, they set out feeders and make the windows safe. Then, for the winter, they build a little shelter and put out a heated birdbath. By springtime, all kinds of birds are visiting their yard But with such a big problem, is there more they can do to make a difference?

When Field Mouse and Squirrel find something big, round, and orange in the middle of the road, it looks kind of familiar. Skunk is positive it's a lamp, and Rabbit thinks it looks like a snack, but no one knows for sure. Luckily, there's one thing they can all agree on: it's the life of the party Discover all of the ways you can use a pumpkin in this adorable fall adventure.

Regina has a huge, princess-themed, peanut-filled cake planned for her birthday party--that is until she learns that her best friend Paula has a severe peanut allergy. In this introduction to food allergies, Regina learns how dangerous an allergic reaction can be, and how she can best help a friend stay safe. With dimensional and bright illustrations, this book perfectly depicts the importance of respecting a friend's needs.

Jack, Frances, and Frances' younger brother Harold have been ripped from the world they knew in New York and sent to Kansas on an orphan train. As the train heads to its destination, awful rumours of what life is actually like where they're going begin to pile up. And so they decide to change their fate the only way they can - they jump off the train. They wander into the woods and meet a boy who will change their lives forever. His name is Alexander, and he tells them they've come to a place nobody knows about - especially not adults-and where "all children in need of freedom" are accepted. It's a place called "Wanderville," Alexander says, and Jack, Frances, and Harold are its very first citizens.

Wendy McClure is on a quest to find the world of beloved Little House on the Prairie author Laura Ingalls Wilder--a fantastic realm of fiction, history, and places she's never been to, yet somehow knows by heart. She traces the pioneer journey of the Ingalls family-- looking for the Big Woods among the medium trees in Wisconsin, wading in Plum Creek, and enduring a prairie hailstorm in South Dakota. She immerses herself in all things Little House--exploring the story from fact to fiction, and from the TV shows to the annual summer pageants in Laura's hometowns. Whether she's churning butter in her apartment or sitting in a replica log cabin, McClure is always in pursuit of "the Laura experience." The result is an incredibly funny first-person account of obsessive reading, and a story about what happens when we reconnect with our childhood touchstones--and find that our old love has only deepened.

A hilarious and sometimes poignant look at the absurdities of weight-loss culture from an appealing and original voice. I'm Not The New Me is about coming to terms with a family heritage of fat and drastic surgeries, and about self-esteem issues that are nobody's business but your own. It's wondering what's left of yourself after you lose weight-and just who the hell you are if you gain it back. It's about the absurdities of online identities and fat girl clich s, and the sheer terror of appearing live and in person in your very own life.