Helen Lester: 23 books

So begins the story of Helen Lester, author of Tacky the Penguin and many other popular books for children. By sharing her struggles as a child and later as a successful author, she demonstrates that hurdles are part of the process. She even gives writing tips, such as keeping a "fizzle box."...

A book about sharing for one and all! Gruntly is a hog—a ball hog, a snack hog, a treasure hog! He doesn’t share his toys with his pals and, in fact, helps himself to theirs! And when Gruntly finds out about Saturday’s treasure hunt, he can’t wait for the first clue so that he may be the one...

Ever since Angus was a wee baby monster, living below the surface of Loch Ness, his parents tried to teach him to be a proper monster. But as Angus grows bigger, he gets sloppy. Puggy-nit shells (peanuts) are piling up; his grottie (dirty) laundry is in a heap; tatties (potatoes) litter the floor....

“Lester and artist Munsinger . . . team up again for another rib-tickling, off-the-wall tale.” –Booklist Murdley Gurdson is a spectacularly accident-prone boy. He falls into wastebaskets! He drops only the most valuable vases. Worse yet: “Whatever happened, it was usually his fault.”...

When Wodney must face off against that big bully Camilla Capybara for a second time, a talking robot becomes his secret weapon. The meek wodent . . . er, rodent . . . hero with a speech impediment and a heart of gold is back! So is Camilla Capybara—the BIG bully who makes poor Wodney and his classmates...

The humor is just absurd enough to make the picture-book set howl along with Hippo and Fluffy.” –New York Times Book Review Fluffy the porcupine is unhappy with his name: “So he decided to become fluffier.” He climbs a tree and pretends to be a cloud! He even poses as a pillow. (His...

"A-huff-and-a-puff-and-a-huff-and-a-puff-and-a-huff-and-a-puff" "WHAT'S HAPPENING?" Tacky the penguin wants to know. The Winter Games, that's what's happening. And Tacky and his fellow penguins Goodly, Lovely, Angel, Neatly, and Perfect have to work hard to get in shape so they...

The new kid in town is a wombat from Down Under. He’s having a tough time fitting in, so he tries to join the baseball team. They’re excited to see a “Wham-bat” hit, but baseball seems to him like a strange game indeed as his literal interpretations of the lingo, such as “stealing third base,” lead to hilarious, and ultimately victorious, results.

Twitchly Fidget won’t shampoo, eat his cereal, or put on his sneakers. He won’t even go to a parade (what if he got sucked up into a trombone?) or a marshmallow roast (might he get stuck?) or a Fourth of February party (would he be buried in confetti?). In Twitchly’s imagination, each opportunity...

It's Halloween, and Goodly, Lovely, Angel, Neatly, and Perfect are planning the spookiest haunted igloo ever! They've decorated with spoohooky cobwebs, they've baked some awful waffle treats, and the only thing left to do is dress up as something scary to haunt the igloo. Everything is going spooktacularly...

The Nice Icy Land was crackling with busy-ness. It had taken weeks and a lot of whispery chirps for Tacky the Penguin’s friends to plan a Perfect Surprise Birdday Party for him on his special hatchday. With songs, presents, cake, fishy ice cream, and surprise entertainment from Iglooslavia’s own...

Ewetopia is not comfortable in her own wool, and every attempt she makes to impress the other sheep falls flat. So when an invitation to the Woolyones' Costume Ball arives, Ewetopia knows her chance to shine has come at last. After trying on fifty-eight different costumes, she finally finds the perfect...

"…this sprightly paced tale amiably nudges kids whose direction-following skills need some honing." —Publishers Weekly "Buddy’s father had a beautiful big nose. He was a great sniffer. Buddy’s mother had beautiful big teeth. She was a great chomper. Buddy had beautiful...

The humor is just absurd enough to make the picture-book set howl along with Hippo and Fluffy.” –New York Times Book Review Fluffy the porcupine is unhappy with his name: “So he decided to become fluffier.” He climbs a tree and pretends to be a cloud! He even poses as a pillow. (His...