Rodman Public Library has always looked for ways to connect parents and children with great children’s books, but we needed a way to highlight “the best of the best”. In 2012 we developed the idea of circulating collections of outstanding picture books grouped by author or illustrator and stored in hanging pouches. This would allow the reader to not only enjoy individual titles, but also make connections and recognize qualities unique to an author or illustrator. Thanks to an initial grant of $1,000.00 awarded by the Women’s Division, Alliance Chamber of Commerce Civic Affairs Committee, our dreams became a reality, and so we began our “Books Too Good to Miss” collection.
Currently, we have 44 pouches available for two-week checkout at the Main Library Children’s Department (as of March 2014).
Books Too Good to Miss 1 (Bark, George / Jules Feiffer -- Bear Feels Sick / Karma Wilson ; Jane Chapman -- Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed / Eileen Christelow -- Rhyming Dust Bunnies / Jan Thomas)
Books Too Good to Miss 2 (Good Night, Gorilla / Peggy Rathmann -- My Friend Rabbit / Eric Rohmann -- Old Black Fly / Jim Aylesworth ; ill. Stephen Gammell -- Julius / Angela Johnson ; ill. Dav Pilkey)
Books Too Good to Miss 3 (Ten, Nine, Eight / Molly Bang -- Can't You Sleep, Little Bear? / Martin Waddell ; Barbara Firth -- The Stray Dog / Marc Simont -- Have You Seen My Duckling? / Nancy Tafuri)
Books Too Good to Miss 4 (The Tale of Peter Rabbit / Beatrix Potter -- One Monday Morning / Uri Shulevitz -- May I Bring a Friend? / Beatrice Shenk de Regniers ; ill. Beni Montresor -- Mr. Gumpy's Outing / John Burningham)
Books Too Good to Miss 5 (Caps for Sale / Esphyr Slobodkina -- Tikki Tikki Tembo / Arlene Mosel ; ill. Blair Lent -- Stone Soup / Marcia Brown -- Petunia / Roger Duvoisin)
Books Too Good to Miss 6 (Olivia / Ian Falconer -- Froggy Gets Dressed / Jonathan London ; ill. Frank Remkiewicz -- Click, Clack, Moo : Cows That Type / Doreen Cronin; ill. Betsy Lewin [book and CD] -- It Looked Like Spilt Milk / Charles G. Shaw)
Books Too Good to Miss 8 (Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day / Judith Viorst ; ill. Ray Cruz -- A Chair for My Mother / Vera B. Williams -- Miss Rumphius / Barbara Cooney -- Tar Beach / Faith Ringgold)
Books Too Good to Miss 9 (Little Toot / Hardie Gramatky -- The Story of Ferdinand / Munro Leaf -- Millions of Cats / Wanda Gág -- The Story of Babar theLlittle Elephant / Jean De Brunhoff)
Books Too Good to Miss 10 (Uptown / Bryan Collier -- Amazing Grace / Mary Hoffman ; ill. Caroline Binch -- Goin' Someplace Special / Patricia C. McKissack ; ill. Jerry Pinkney -- Black Is Brown Is Tan / Arnold Adoff ; ill. Emily Arnold McCully)
Books Too Good to Miss 11 (Anansi the Spider / Gerald McDermott -- Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain / Verna Aardema ; ill. Beatriz Vidal -- Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears / Verna Aardema ; ill. Leo and Diane Dillon -- Mabela theCclever / Margaret Read MacDonald ; ill. Tim Coffey)
Audrey and Don Wood (The Napping House -- The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear -- Piggies -- King Bidgood's in the Bathtub)
Byron Barton (Building a House -- I Want To Be an Astronaut -- Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs -- My Car)
David Shannon and Mo Willems (No, David! / David Shannon -- A Bad Case of Stripes / David Shannon -- Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! / Mo Willems -- Knuffle Bunny / Mo Willems)
David Small (Imogene's Antlers -- George Washington's Cows -- The Gardener / Sarah Stewart ; ill. David Small -- The Library / Sarah Stewart ; ill. David Small)
Don Freeman (Corduroy -- A Pocket for Corduroy -- Norman the Doorman -- Beady Bear)
Donald Crews (Freight Train -- Truck -- School Bus – Parade)
Ed Young and Allen Say (Lon Po Po : a Red-Riding Hood Story from China / Ed Young -- Seven Blind Mice / Ed Young -- The Bicycle Man / Allen Say -- Grandfather's Journey / Allen Say)
Eric Carle (The Very Hungry Caterpillar -- Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? / Bill Martin, Jr. ; ill. Eric Carle -- The Grouchy Ladybug -- Do You Want to Be My Friend?)
Eve Rice and Robert Kraus (Sam Who Never Forgets / Eve Rice -- Benny Bakes a Cake / Eve Rice -- Whose Mouse Are You? / Robert Kraus ; ill. Jose Aruego -- Leo the Late Bloomer / Robert Kraus ; ill. Jose Aruego)
Ezra Jack Keats (Peter's Chair -- Over in the Meadow -- Whistle for Willie -- The Snowy Day)
Gene Zion and Russell Hoban (Harry the Dirty Dog / Gene Zion ; ill. Margaret Bloy Graham -- Harry by the Sea / Gene Zion ; ill. Margaret Bloy Graham -- Bread and Jam for Frances / Russell Hoban ; ill. Lillian Hoban -- Bedtime for Frances / Russell Hoban ; ill. Garth Williams)
H. A. Rey and Bernard Waber (Curious George / H. A. Rey -- Katy No-Pocket / Emmy Payne ; ill. H. A. Rey -- Ira Sleeps Over / Bernard Waber -- Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile / Bernard Waber)
James Marshall (George and Martha -- Goldilocks and the Three Bears -- Miss Nelson Is Missing / Harry Allard ; ill. James Marshall -- Space Case / by Edward Marshall ; pictures by James Marshall)
Judi Barrett and David Shannon (Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing / Judi Barrett ; ill. Ron Barrett -- Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs / Judi Barrett ; ill. Ron Barrett -- Duck on a Bike / David Shannon -- A Bad Case of Stripes / David Shannon)
Kevin Henkes (Chester's Way -- Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse -- Julius : the Baby of the World – Chrysanthemum)
Leo Lionni (Frederick -- Alexander and the Wind-up Mouse -- Swimmy -- Inch by Inch)
Lois Ehlert (Chicka Chicka Boom Boom / by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault ; ill. by Lois Ehlert -- Eating the Alphabet -- Planting a Rainbow -- Feathers for Lunch)
Margaret Wise Brown (The Important Book -- The Little Island -- Goodnight Moon --The Runaway Bunny)
Marjorie Flack and Ludwig Bemelmans (The Story About Ping / Marjorie Flack and Kurt Wiese -- Angus and the Ducks / Marjorie Flack -- Madeline / Ludwig Bemelmans -- Madeline's Rescue / Ludwig Bemelmans)
Mark Teague (How I Spent My Summer Vacation -- Pigsty -- Dear Mrs. LaRue : Letters From Obedience School -- How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? / Jane Yolen and Mark Teague -- Cómo Dan las Buenas Noches los Dinosaurios? / Jane Yolen and Mark Teague)
Maurice Sendak (Chicken Soup With Rice -- Little Bear / Else Holmelund Minarik ; ill. by Maurice Sendak -- Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present / Charlotte Zolotow ; ill. by Maurice Sendak -- Where the Wild Things Are)
Pat Hutchins (Rosie's Walk -- The Doorbell Rang -- Good-night Owl -- 1 Hunter)
Patricia Polacco (The Keeping Quilt -- Just Plain Fancy -- My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother -- Babushka's Doll)
Paul Galdone (The three little pigs -- Three little kittens -- The gingerbread boy -- The three bears)
Robert McCloskey (Burt Dow : Deep-water Man -- Blueberries for Sal -- Time of Wonder -- Make Way for Ducklings)
Rosemary Wells (Yoko -- Shy Charles -- Morris's Disappearing Bag -- Bunny Cakes)
Ruth Krauss and Crockett Johnson (A Hole Is To Dig / Ruth Krauss; ill. Maurice Sendak -- The Carrot Seed / Ruth Krauss ; ill. Crockett Johnson -- Harold and the Purple Crayon / Crockett Johnson -- The Happy Day / Ruth Krauss ; ill. Marc Simont)
Steven Kellogg (Is Your Mama a Llama? / written by Deborah Guarino ; ill. by Steven Kellogg -- The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash / by Trinka Hakes Noble ; pictures by Steven Kellogg -- The Mysterious Tadpole -- The Island of the Skog)
Tomie dePaola (The Baby Sister -- Charlie Needs a Cloak -- The Art Lesson -- Strega Nona)
Virginia Lee Burton (Maybelle the Cablecar -- Katy and the Big Snow -- The Little House -- Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel)
William Steig (Brave Irene – The Amazing Bone -- Doctor De Soto -- Sylvester and the Magic Pebble)