Junk Man’s Daughter
Sleeping Bear Press, 2007
Bank Street College of Education Best Book
Even before they immigrate to America, Hanna and her family dream of the new life they will have there. “You will see, Hanna,” Papa said. “There are streets of gold.” But when they arrive, they find life very different from what they had imagined. Their apartment is small and Hanna and her brothers must sleep on a mattress on the floor. Mama spends her days knitting shawls and sweaters to sell on the streets but no one stops to buy. And Papa can find no work. Hanna looks everywhere for the gold Papa promised them but it is not to be found. What will happen to their dream of a new, better life in America? One day a seemingly insignificant find on a slushy street leads to an opportunity for a brighter future. And like many others before them, Hanna and her family realize that through small steps and hard work they can make their American dream come true.
When Kangaroo Goes To School
Scholastic, Northland/Rising Moon 2001
Kangaroo learns the proper way to behave on the first day of school.
When Elephant Goes To A Party
Scholastic, Northland/Rising Moon, 2001
Explains all the things that Elephant should know about how to behave when attending a birthday or other kind of party.
Taking Charge
Orchard Books, 1999
Recorded Books
When her mother has to leave home suddenly, Amanda learns how demanding it is to run a household and care for a baby.
Boom Town
Orchard Books 1998 Scholastic Book Club
Nominee, Nebraska Golden Sower Award
Recorded Books
“Bored by cabin life in the sparse settlement, Amanda figures out how to bake a gooseberry pie in the family’s crude wood stove. Soon the prospectors are paying for her pies, and her business success spills over onto other folks, who decide to settle there…. [An] entertaining lesson in history and human nature.” – The Horn Book
A Piece Of Home
Dial, 1996
McGraw Hill Bi-lingual Program
Gregor decides to take his special blanket when his family leaves Russia to live in America, but he worries about his choice all during the journey.
Nine For California
Orchard Books 1996 Finalist, Southern California
Young Reader Medal
Scholastic Book Club
SLJ Best Book 1996
Nominee Show Me Readers Award, Missouri
Association of School Librarians
Recorded Books
“This lighthearted picture book puts a uniquely human face on the Gold Rush era…. Mama and her five kids…leave Missouri to meet Pa in far-off ‘Californ-y,’ where he’s been working in the gold fields…. balanced with humor, rambunctious read-aloud language and a bounty of factual information about westward travel in the mid-1800s…. A solid-gold nugget of a history lesson.” – Publishers Weekly, starred review
The Man Who Kept His Heart In A Bucket
Dial, 1991; Scholastic Paperback, Puffin Paperback
Having once had his heart broken, Jack keeps it in a bucket safe from harm until one day a young maiden asks him to solve a riddle which teaches him the true meaning of love.
The Fisherman and the Bird
Houghton Mifflin, 1982; Reprinted, the Ginn Company
1982, Notable Children’s Trade Book
American Booksellers Pick of the Lists
A reclusive fisherman’s neighbors try to persuade him not to harm the rare birds that have nested in his boat.
All The Cats In The World
Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1982
Notable Children’s Trade Book 1982
This book offers a very touching story of a poor, elderly woman who spends her last few coins feeding all the stray cats in the neighborhood.
Nobody Stole the Pie
Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1980
1980, Children’s Choice
In a small town everybody shares the huge pie at the annual lolly berry festival. This year only one piece of pie remains. Whose fault is it when things go wrong?
A Sound to Remember
Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1979
Jewish Book Club
Jacov, a slow boy, is given the special honor of “blowing the shofar (ram’s horn)” on the Jewish high holy days.
A Single Speckled Egg
Parnassus, 1976; Japanese Rights
When three farmers worry so much that they decide to sell their farms, their wives consult the Teacher for a way to stop them.
Who Owns the Moon?
Parnassus, 1973; Japanese Rights
1973 ALA Notable Book
Once there were three farmers, Abel, Nagel and Zeke, who loved to argue. They argued about their cows, their goats, their wives. One night, when it seemed there was nothing left to argue about, they looked up in the sky and discovered the MOON – “round, full, bright, and delicious.” Immediately each farmer claimed the moon as his own. Abel sighed, Nagel shouted, Zeke roared, “MINE!” There wives could bear the quarreling no longer and sent their husbands down the mountains to the wise Teacher who, once and for all, would answer their colossal question: Who Own the Moon? Larrecq’s illustrations, rich in detail and droll humor, create the zest and old-world flavor of a delightful, robust folk tale.