Calvin's dictionary is proud to be carried everywhere Calvin goes-the breakfast table, school then home again-because Calvin is determined to find the perfect word to attach to his annoying older brother. The word isn't exactly revenge, mayhem, bewilderment, subterfuge, pulverise or even retaliation, though all those words are close and very tempting. When Calvin finally finds the right word for his rascally brother, his dictionary is surprised and delighted, and readers will enjoy celebrating the triumphant discovery of Calvin's perfect word along with his dictionary.

Gloria loves to sing, dance and act in her bedroom, but not in public. No way. Gloria's big problem makes sure of that, following her wherever she goes and constantly reminding her that she's anxious and frightened, that she's not good enough and that everyone will laugh at her. Anxious Gloria worries all the time, about everything. Until, one day, Gloria summons all her courage to try out for a community theatre production. She marches herself to the audition and her big problem marches right in behind her. She gets up on stage and her big problem takes a seat in the front row and starts to laugh at her. And then at last she yells "STOP!" and her big problem shrinks to a little problem and Gloria wins a part in the play.

Buddy Benches were introduced in Germany in 2014. When a child sits on the bench, it signals to other children to ask him or her to play. Patty Brozo's children bring a playground to raucous life while Mike Deas's illustrations invest their games with images of planes, dragons and elephants. The children match their imaginations with empathy, identifying and swooping up the lonely.

What would you do if you came face to face with a Large Yellow Waxwing, Wild Turkey or Weather Loach? Who would you call if Common Wall Lizards or Giant Hogweed crept into your back yard? Alex Van Tol can help. In Aliens Among Us, she identifies more than 50 species of alien animals and plants that have established themselves in British Columbia. With the help of colour photographs and Mike Deas’ illuminating illustrations, Van Tol exposes the invaders, then explains how they got here and what they’re doing to the local environment. A former middle school teacher, Alex Van Tol has written eight books for young readers. For Aliens Among Us, she has harvested the knowledge of museum biologists to alert the next generation of responsible environmentalists. Her list of invaders includes Purple Loosestrife and Yellow Perch, Norway Rats and American Bullfrogs, Northern Snakeheads and Zebra Mussels, to name just a few. This readable and alarmingly informative book will help young people prepare for the invasion, and arm them with the tools to stop the spread of unwanted aliens in British Columbia.

Nico the Toad is always a bit grumpy. But recently he's been grumpier than ever. Stella the Mouse, Delilah the Spider and Bo the Parakeet think the school trip to the art museum will cheer him up. But the animal friends have never left the school before. If they stick together nothing can go wrong, can it? Friendship takes centre stage in this early chapter book from the Classroom Critters series.