Presenting... Olivia!

The Olivia Boxed Set will have fans of Ian Falconer's perky piglet oinking for joy. The attractive black, white and salmon-pink slipcover holds Olivia—a 2001 Caldecott Honor book—and Olivia Saves the Circus plus a laminated poster of the red stockings—clad starlet in a quartet of ballet poses, suitable for framing. (Atheneum/Schwartz, $33.95 ages 3-7 ISBN 0-689-85389-0; Oct.)

Ho Ho Ho

It's not too late to order a few more stocking stuffers.... Among the Christmas titles that didn't arrive in time for our holiday reviews feature ("Holiday Roundup: Deck the Shelves," Sept. 23): A Peanuts Christmas by Charles M. Schulz unites a "complete collection" of Christmas-themed Peanuts strips, from 1950 to 1999, in one festively designed volume. Charlie Brown sends Santa a wish list and receives a form rejection slip; a costumed Peppermint Patty laments being cast once again as a sheep in the Christmas pageant ("Slouching towards Bethlehem, huh, sir?" Marcie asks when Peppermint Patty trips); while Linus keeps searching for the true meaning of Christmas. Schulz's fans can watch the image of Charlie Brown evolve from his earliest incarnation to the universally recognized contemporary look, right before their eyes. (Ballantine, $25.95 192p all ages ISBN 0-345-45351-4; Oct.)

The irresistible canine heroes of the paper-over-board Misadventures of Gaspard and Lisa series set out to make a gift for their teacher in Gaspard and Lisa's Christmas Surprise by Anne Gutman, illus. by Georg Hallensleben. As the two attempt to fashion a raincoat from a red shower curtain and Krazy Glue, it's hard to say which is funnier, the sight of the dogs in Hallensleben's zippy acrylics or Gutman's deadpan text. (Knopf, $9.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-375-82229-1; Nov.)

Animal Attractions

Clever die-cut pages and liftable flaps invite reader's participation in a handful of wild titles. A baby lemur plays hide-and-seek with Mama Jojo in Jazzy in the Jungle by Maisy creator Lucy Cousins. Readers join the search, lifting layered, die-cut pages that highlight forest fauna and the peering eyes or other attributes of wild creatures. The polka dots on the stem of an exotic flower, for instance, become the markings of a caterpillar with the turn of a page. This oversize edition sports a sumptuous tropical palette; a final gatefold displays all the rain forest animals, who help to unite the mother with Baby Jazzy. (Candlewick, $14.99 32p ages 2-5 ISBN 0-7636-1903-5; Oct.)

Elephant kicks off the competition ("I'm the biggest animal in the jungle") in The Tallest, Shortest, Longest, Greenest, Brownest Animal in the Jungle!: A Short but Very Silly Lift-the-Flap Storybook by Keith Faulkner, illus. by Rory Tyger. Liftable flaps enlarge Elephant, extend Giraffe's neck and reveal other arguing animals, who finally find something to agree on in the end. (Dutton, $11.99 16p ages 3-7 ISBN 0-525-46868-4; Oct.

In Shark in the Park! by Nick Sharratt, Timothy Pope looks through his telescope and sees "a nasty surprise." A die-cut hole (on the cover and throughout) zeros in on what he thinks in each case is a fin; a turn of the page gives the big picture. (Random/Fickling, $14.95 24p ages 2-6 ISBN 0-385-75008-0; Oct.)

For Bénédicte Guettier's In the Jungle..., a die-cut cover opens to form a hole for readers to poke their heads through (state fair—style) and take on the identities of a half dozen animals (one per spread), including a "fuzzy bear," "noisy elephant" and "a silly monkey" (a banana balanced on its head). Color-saturated backgrounds enhance the offering. (Kane/Miller, $11.95 12p ages 6 mos.-3 yrs. ISBN 1-929132-38-7; Oct.)

Delving Deeper

Aficionados of children's literature get an education with The Essential Guide to Children's Books and Their Creators, ed. by Anita Silvey, an updated version of her Children's Books and Their Creators (1995). With an encyclopedic approach, the volume contains 475 alphabetically ordered entries—375 from the previous edition and 100 new essays—covering authors, illustrators, genres, publishing trends and more. Writers and artists sound off in entries marked "Voices of the Creators"; incidental illustrations appear throughout. (Houghton, $28 560p all ages ISBN 0-618-19083-X; paper $17 -19082-1; Sept.)

Health and Happiness

Children's physical and emotional wellbeing take center stage in a trio of fall titles. The first, The Feel Good Book by Todd Parr, offers observations about experiences that give children a glow: "Reading a book under a tree feels good" and "Watching your grandma and grandpa dance feels good"; helping others also merits several mentions ("Showing the new kid around feels good"). Parr's signature illustrations, bordered by thick black lines and filled in with retro tangerines and mauves, are cheerful and bright. (Little, Brown/Tingley, $14.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-316-07206-0; Sept.)

The four food groups are reconfigured into "green-light," "yellow-light" and "red-light" foods in Eat Healthy, Feel Great by William Sears, Martha Sears and Christie Watts Kelly, illus. by Renée Andriani. This addition to the Sears Children's Library puts a kid-friendly spin on nutrition and presents a handful of easy-to-prepare recipes (can you guess the "red-light" foods? Among them: marshmallows and "cheez puffs"). "Notes for Parents and Caregivers" opens the offering and a pullout poster is included. Also available from the same team: You Can Go to the Potty. (Little, Brown, $12.95 each 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-316-78708-6; Potty ages 2-4; -78888-0; Sept.)

Brass Tacks

Several titles break down the basics for kids and teens, offering information that's both practical and fun. An updated version of Playing It Smart: What to Do When You're On Your Own (1989), The Kids' Guidebook: Great Advice to Help Kids Cope by Tova Navarra, illus. by Tom Kerr, encourages self-reliance with suggestions on how to handle a variety of situations from "What to do if you get a splinter" to "What to do if someone touches you in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable." Kid-friendly language presented in digestible chunks of text and with cartoonlike illustrations leaven the lessons. (Barron's, $6.95 paper 128p ages 7-12 ISBN 0-7641-2067-0; Oct.)

Older readers will appreciate On My Own: The Ultimate How-To Guide for Young Adults by Sally Taylor, which provides information about moving out (budget considerations, assessing a roommate, etc.), managing money, landing a job, choosing a college and more. Essential questions (e.g., "How do I find an apartment?"; "How do I write a résumé?") lead the way; later chapters focus on relationships, mental health and personal safety. There's even a section devoted to understanding the U.S. government ("What is the Electoral College?"). Quizzes that open each chapter help readers to get a realistic picture of their situation. An interactive CD-ROM is included. (Silly Goose [800-462-6420], $34.95 paper 640p ages 13-up ISBN 0-9711500-0-1; Oct.)

From Sandra and Harry Choron, the authors of The All-New Book of Lists for Kids (Children's Forecasts, June 3), comes The Book of Lists for Teens. Organized in six sections (including "Relationships," "School" and "That's Entertainment"), the information-packed volume covers a range of moods and topics, from the funny ("6 Reasons That Your Etch-a-Sketch Is More Efficient Than Your Computer") to the serious ("The Bill of Rights for Gay Students") to the totally trivial ("42 Absolutely Useless Facts"). Back matter contains a bibliography and a list of useful Web sites. (Houghton, $12 paper 336p ages 12-16 ISBN 0-618-17907-0; Oct.)

Teen Tales

Urban teens take center stage in a pair of edgy short story collections. Waifs and Strays presents 15 previously published works by Canadian fantasy writer Charles de Lint, including "May This Be Your Last Sorrow" from The Essential Bordertown and "There's No Such Thing," which appeared in Yolen and Greenburg's anthology Vampires. In its first appearance, "Sisters," tells of precocious 16-year-old Appoline, a vampire ("Yeah, I drink blood. But it's not as gross as it sounds. And it's not as messy as it is in some of the movies") who plans to wait until her sister, Cassandra, turns 16 before turning her into one, too. (Viking, $17.99 416p ages 12-up ISBN 0-670-03584-X; Sept.)

Walter Dean Myers, Amy Tan and John H. Ritter are among the contributors to Big City Cool: Short Stories About Urban Youth, edited by M. Jerry Weiss and Helen S. Weiss, a collection of 14 stories (some previously published) that get to the heart of growing up in the city. In " 'White' Real Estate" by Sharon Dennis Wyeth, a mother and son struggle to get along in a new neighborhood; "Alone and All Together" by Joseph Geha looks at the events of September 11, 2001, through the eyes of two Arab-American sisters. Back matter contains brief biographies. A companion volume, Fishing for Chickens: Short Stories About Rural Youth, edited by Jim Heynen, was published last year. (Persea [W.W. Norton, dist.], $8.95 paper 192p ages 12-up ISBN 0-89255-278-6; Oct.)