Jeanette Illidge

Six people from different corners of the world celebrate the history, culture, and beauty behind their names.

"Once upon a time, there was a girl who wanted nothing more than to play Snow White in her school's musical. Excitedly, Tameika dances and sings her way through the halls. But on the day of the auditions, she overhears some kids suggesting that she is not princess material. Tamika suddenly doesn't feel quite right enough to play a perfectly poised princess"-- Jacket flap.

Rosie is a good dog and a faithful companion to her owner, George. She likes taking walks with George and looking at the clouds together, but the closest she comes to another dog is when she encounters her reflection in her empty dog bowl, and sometimes that makes Rosie feel lonely. One day George takes Rosie to the dog park, but the park is full of dogs that Rosie doesn't know, which makes her feel lonelier than ever. When big, loud Maurice and small,...

"Lami is the best chicken catcher in the whole village. And while her sister may be speedy at spelling, her friend fast at braiding hair, and her brother brave with bulls, when it comes to chickens, nobody is faster or braver than Lami. But then she chases a chicken all around and up a baobab tree and--ouch! How can Lami catch chickens with an ankle that's puffed up like an angry lizard? Could there be, as Nana Nadia says, another secret to catching...

In this rhyming counting book, one energetic puppy and two children set out for some snowy day fun.

From one bad cat that eats from fish traps to seven that flip over the boat, a young girl tells, in rhyme, of an adventure at sea.

"Lovable monster siblings Natalie and Alphonse are back with big plans in a second surprisingly touching tale in which Natalie is ready to learn how to read. Natalie and Alphonse REALLY like books. Picture books with Dad, scary stories with Mom, and especially stories they remember or make up themselves. So when it's time for Natalie to learn to read, she thinks it will be exciting -- she can have all the stories in the world now, and even read them...

Illustrations and rhyming text celebrate pigeons as colorful, chatty denizens of the city.

"Courageous little mouse Dakota Crumb ... scours the museum at night for rare artifacts, which she shares with her friends in the morning"--

"What is Bear to do when he wakes up one day to find his Smile gone?"--