Most Popular Books by Kate Banks

A little tiger takes an imaginative journey The little tiger lay on his back in the tall grass. "Close your eyes, little tiger," said his mother, "and go to sleep." But the little tiger is worried about what sleep might bring. His mother reassures him that once he closes his eyes, he will dream of magical places. And when he awakens, she will be right there, waiting for him. Alternating between real-life scenes with the baby tiger and his mother and enchanted dream scenes of sleep''s possibilities, Kate Banks''s simple, comforting text and Georg Hallensleben''s bright, colorful illustrations make this a charming bedtime story for small children. Close Your Eyes is a 2002 New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year and a 2003 Bank Street - Best Children''s Book of the Year.

As evening progresses into nighttime, the moon looks down on a variety of nocturnal scenes, including a child getting ready for bed.

While waiting for it to be born, a young child wonders what its new sibling will be like. Banks''s lyrical poetry pairs with Swiatkowska''s playful dreamlike scenes to create a must-have book for all children who are about to have new siblings. Full color.

A story of woodland creatures discovering a lost doll is transformed into the perfect parable of love in this sweet, timeless picture book for fans of Corduroy and The Velveteen Rabbit. The wood mouse and the rabbit find a rag doll in the woods. Nothing about it is familiar: it doesn''t smell like the fresh air of spring or feel like the rough bark of a tree. As the group of animals grows and searches for a clue to where the doll came from, they encounter more mysteries—and discover the one thing their hearts know to be true. Whether between parent and child, siblings, or friends, this beautifully illustrated story is about the way we show one other how much we care.

At the end of the day a little boy falls asleep as his mama reads about a bear hibernating. Full color.

Kate Banks and Lauren Castillo''s City Cat is a picture book about a cat on the move and a vacationing family whose paths meet and cross as they visit all the great cities of Europe. A plucky stray cat takes a Grand Tour in Kate Banks'' story of a family on a European vacation. As the family travels from one city to the next, the cat finds its own means--by bus, boat, train, truck, and bike--to tag along on the trip, visiting historic landmarks like Buckingham Palace and the Cathedral of Notre Dame along the way. Readers will pore over the spreads to find where City Cat is hiding in each city, and detailed backmatter explains the history behind the sites in each locale.

While a farm family bustles about, preparing for the arrival of Christmas, they do not notice the great anticipation spreading among the animals, who know that something very special is on its way.

Alice was making a farm in the middle of her bedroom. She asked Mama for a pig and chickens for her farm, but when Mama didn''t have a horse, Alice turned to her papa. "Please, Papa," said Alice. "Okay," said Papa, who, since Alice asked so nicely, put her on his back and trotted around like a horse himself. A playful story where, with the use of a single polite word, lines between the real and the imaginary become blurred as toy animals come to life. A companion to Thank You, Mama, Kate Banks and Gabi Swiatkowska''s Please, Papa is perfect for a quick and playful lesson in manners.

Three eraserheads that live with a boy in the land of pencils, paper, rulers, numbers, letters, and drawings become trapped in one of his pictures while trying to correct mistakes.

Where the Wild Things Are meets Chicka Chicka Boom Boom in this emotionally satisfying picture book tailor-made for reading aloud, which celebrates creativity and the power of imagination. In a spare, lyrical text, young listeners and readers will follow a little boy through his day, from early morning till bedtime, and watch as what fills his active imagination becomes real. Toys grow to life-size: a tin monkey plays a real drum and fiddle--rat-a-tat, toot!--a stuffed lion roars--rumble, grumble--and a dump truck empties its load--BANG! But when quiet time comes, and a hush settles over his bedroom, animals nap, and the boy becomes absorbed in other activities, like reading and drawing. Here is an irresistible read-aloud by a picture-book master that captures all the joy of a child''s play, and renders a boy''s imagination real. Praise for And If the Moon Could Talk by Kate Banks: "With quiet phrases and luxurious color, Banks . . . evoke(s) a perfectly peaceful bedtime." --Publishers Weekly Praise for City Cat by Kate Banks: "If you have to pack a suitcase, . . . make room in it for this book." --The New York Times

One night, Alex''s father surprises his son by taking him to see his place of work, an exciting construction site with heavy machinery, rumbling sounds, and more. An ALA Notable Book. Reprint.

During the summer that he turns ten years old, Dillon Dillon learns the surprising story behind his name and develops a relationship with three loons living on the lake near his family''s New Hampshire cabin that help him make sense of his life.

A young baboon''s view of the world changes as his mother shows him various parts of his environment.

A perfect companion to Max''s Words, Max''s Math from author Kate Banks and illustrator Boris Kulikov features fun math concepts like shapes, matching, and counting. Max and his two brothers hop into a car and go looking for problems they can solve. They cruise down highway number 4 on their way to Shapeville, but they see an abandoned number along the way. Is it a 6? Is it a 9? And what''s it doing on the side of the road? Once the trio reach Shapeville, there''s another problem: a flood washed away all of the squares. Max and his brothers show the town that putting together two triangles will bring their shapes back together, and then they follow the residents on a trip to Count Town, where they put the missing number back in its place in the countdown to a rocket''s blastoff. This title has Common Core connections.

A storm is coming — a big one. How does a young urban boy prepare? A lovely allegorical story about ecology and caring inspired by the ancient tale of stewardship. While his family readies his townhouse for an approaching storm, boarding up windows and laying in groceries, Noah heads to the back garden, where beetles are burrowing deeper into the bark and mice are stuffing their hole with moss. Quickly and efficiently, Noah sets to work building an ark for them and other backyard creatures — salamanders and toads, snakes and spiders, even brightly colored hummingbirds. Setting out fistfuls of nuts and leaves, berries and seeds, the boy props a flashlight inside and arranges some miniature furniture for the animals to sit or sleep on. “Come,” Noah whispers to his friends just as his mother calls him inside and the dark storm roars in. From an award-winning author and a Caldecott Honoree comes a quietly inspiring story about how taking action on behalf of our fellow earth travelers can help us face fearsome events.

Lester has just moved to Cape Cod and is starting in a new school, and George is missing his best friend who has moved away, but the two develop a friendship and learn about scientific experimentation when they start working on a school science project, testing psychic ability in dogs, based on an experiment developed by Dr. Rupert Sheldrake.

When a father and child go fishing together, each does certain things his own way, and both have a wonderful day.

A boy provides instructions as he searches high and low for an elephant, which the reader can find in the illustrations.

When sixteen-year-old Baz becomes apprentice to a powerful but kind magician, he makes a long journey across the desert and into the mountains, ultimately discovering himself by learning to dispel illusions.

An ingenious sequel to Max''s Words and Max''s Dragons, Max''s Castle shows readers just how much fun wordplay can be in this winning collaboration between author Kate Banks and illustrator Boris Kulikov. When Max finds a pile of forgotten toys under the bed, his brothers Benjamin and Karl wonder what''s so special about some old blocks. So Max shows them. With some clever twists of both blocks and imagination, he constructs not only a castle but an entire adventure, complete with pirates and knights, a dark dungeon and a dragon.

"As the sun begins to set on the savanna, 10 little lions explore the darkening beauty of the landscape as they make their way home for bedtime"--

Forest animals help an injured nightingale survive the winter in a comforting story of friendship and resilience, lyrically told and gorgeously illustrated. As the days grow shorter and the air becomes colder, the spring birds fly south for winter—all except for a nightingale with a broken wing. Unable to fly, the nightingale worries about how to prepare for weather it’s never had to experience before. Luckily, the forest animals who are used to frosty conditions help the nightingale navigate the cold as its wing heals. Though the unfamiliar season proves challenging, and even a little scary at times, the nightingale discovers there’s beauty to be found in even the harshest weather—and with that comes newfound gratitude for the return of spring. Kate Banks weaves a story of perseverance and kindness, brought beautifully to life by Suzie Mason’s stunning artwork.

This deeply emotional read-aloud about a lost wolf pup who is raised by a loving polar bear is sure to resonate with families – particularly non-traditional ones. You are not my mother, said the wolf pup. I am not your mother, said the polar bear, but I can cuddle you and keep you safe. Here is a picture book that celebrates differences and promotes kindness , sure to resonate with the many fans of the beloved classic, Mama Do You Love Me? During the ice melt that follows an Arctic winter, a wolf cub finds himself spinning out to sea on a sheet of ice. He awakes lost and alone to an unfamiliar smell: a polar bear. And while the polar bear is not the wolf''s mother, she takes him on her back to her den, where she feeds him, keeps him warm, and does everything a mother would do. Time passes, the cub grows into a wolf, and soon it''s time for him to venture out into the wide world alone. Years later, the now grown wolf comes upon a tiny lost polar bear cub--and the cycle begins again. With poetic prose this beautiful picture book about the love and kindness of a stranger is sure to touch a deep chord, particularly with parents and children who have found each other in unexpected ways.

Third-grader Howie Bowles copes with having to change schools twice in one year by pretending to be a secret agent named Agent Bean Burger.

One mishap follows another when three large brothers take a bicycle trip.

After his owner dies, a cat wanders across the countryside of France, unable to forget the home he had in the stone house by the edge of the sea.

Hoping to make enough money so they can finish building a derby car, two boys offer to take care of a neighbor''s rabbit.

Peter, the son of a music man, is led on an adventure by the voice of his talking shoes.

"Banks and Hallensleben make beautiful books together." -- American Bookseller A boy picks up a rock that he finds on the beach. He holds it in his hand, and admires it. He doesn''t know that the rock has been on a great journey through time in making its way to him: that it was spewed forth from a fiery volcano, then altered by eons of wind and rain, frozen during the ice age, and finally carried out into the ocean, where it lay on the floor of the sea before being thrust onto the shore at his feet. But he does know that it is a gift from the sea. Kate Banks and Georg Hallensleben combine their talents to tell a story that is as wonderfully simple as it is profound.

After a storm knocks their tree down, a bird, a monkey, and a snake travel the jungle in search of a new home, which they end up sharing together with their new friend, the frog, in a rebus picture book. Reprint.

A familiar kitchen setting is transformed into a surprising and magical landscape, conjuring up a world where anything can happen and all things are possible.

When Max cuts out words from magazines and newspapers, collecting them the way his brothers collect stamps and coins, they all learn about words, sentences, and storytelling.