Spring Picture Books

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

It has not felt like spring here lately. We had snow falling on Monday, but I keep trying to think it is coming. Today I am going to share three new picture books having to do with spring and animals. The first is Max and Marla Are Having a Picnic by Alexandra Boiger. I had the pleasure of reviewing the first Max and Marla book already. 

In this book Max and Marla are excited for their annual tradition to have a picnic on the first day of spring. They pack their meal and are off, but the day is not perfect. However Max and Marla find a way to have the perfect spring picnic. 

This book is about love of pets (and best friends) as well as the anticipation of a special event. They want it to be perfect but trouble happens and when it all seems ruined they find a way to enjoy just being together. Have you ever been looking forward to something so much and then had the event "ruined" by something occurring? This book is all about it.

I love how the picture show a young Max with his protective helmet for his bike. Although it seems to imply that he and Marla live by themselves. The illustrations are colorful and beautiful and the words are simple and easy for a child to read.

How do you celebrate the start of spring?

Our next book is A Hippy-Hoppy Toad by Peggy Archer and illustrated by Anne Wilsdorf. This book is a rhyming tale that follows a toad on an adventure. The words are simple but fun to read with the rhymes and actions. 

The illustrations are fun and colorful. I love the action in them and the words. The toad is on an adventure and travels quite a bit.

The toad and his story remind me of spring an the awakening of the animals. It is the perfect book for springtime and for nature lovers!

Our final book is On Gull Beach by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Bob Marstall. 

This beautiful book shares the tale of a boy on a Cape Cod beach. It is one of the books in the On Bird Hill & Beyond series of children's books written for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. This book tells the tale of the boy looking for treasures but having to chase a seagull for it. The words in the story are simple and easy to read. They are also written in rhyme.

The illustrations are realistic. They really reminded me of my childhood on the beach at Cape Cod as did the story.

At the end of the book there is a section on the various life found on a New England beach and what we can do to help our beaches and wildlife. After just seeing the ocean side beach at the Cape that I grew up going to I know our beaches need a lot of help. The snack shack was taken down this past month due to the erosion from the storms. We were there at low tide and it looked like the size of the beach at high tide last year. Apparently at high tide there is really a beach anymore. 

I love how this book gives so much information about the wildlife and brings the story to life. I also love how it gives information about what to do to help save the animals. It is a beautiful book.

So if you have an animal lover like I do, be sure to check out these fun books this spring!